physical sciences
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A Vanished Supernova Will Reappear in 16 Years
Ten billion years ago, well before the formation of our solar system, a gargantuan explosion threw out vast amounts of highly energetic light. A star died in a dazzling supernova, and, though it happened so long ago, the flash was only seen in 2016 and vanished shortly thereafter. But if you missed it then, worry…
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How Do We Know How Old Fossils Are?
Paleolithic hunters built mammoth traps in what is now Mexico some 14,700 years ago. An unknown sea creature left footprints in sand some 550 million years ago, making them the oldest known footprints on Earth. The mysterious Denisovan humans reached southeast Asia 160,000 years ago, as evidenced by a jawbone found on the Tibetan Plateau.…
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Mystery Uranium Cubes in U.S. Labs Likely From Nazi Experiment
A research team based at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory in Washington is working to certify that mysterious uranium cubes in American laboratories were once part of Nazi Germany’s efforts to build a successful nuclear program. Using nuclear forensics, the team might be getting closer to determining the provenance of the radioactive cubes — as…
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Pacific Northwest Bakes Under More Searing Heat
The Pacific Northwest is enduring searing heat at the end of this week, a little over a month after multiple days of record-breaking temperatures killed hundreds of people in the region.