Breakthroughs happen quietly. We make sure you hear about them.
New research digs into how Mars atmosphere shapes its sedimentary landscapes. The surface and atmosphere of Mars have seen many changes over its 4.5-billion-year history. While the planet s current atmosphere is very thin (about 0.6% of Earth s), it was once thick enough to sustain liquid water. Acc...
Scientists have captured the first direct images of colliding objects in a neighboring star system. Astronomers have seen the aftermath of two powerful collisions within a 20-year period around a nearby star called Fomalhaut.The events — the first was detected in 2004 and the second in 2023 — are th...
Google plans to take a tangible first step in a new AI and computing moonshot by launching two prototype satellites to orbit in early 2027. Google recently unveiled Project Suncatcher, a research “moonshot” aiming to build a data center in space. The tech giant plans to use a constellation of solar-...
NASA aimed big for its SPHEREx’s first 3D cosmic map. Only six months after starting operations, the orbital space telescope has completed its inaugural infrared scan of the entire sky. Although infrared isn’t visible to the human eye, the map’s 102 wavelengths remain detectable across the universe—...
3 Min Read Betelgeuse and the Crab Nebula: Stellar Death and Rebirth This highly detailed image of the Crab Nebula was assembled by combining data from five telescopes spanning nearly the entire breadth of the electromagnetic spectrum: The Very Large Array (radio) in red; Spitzer Space Telescope (in...
Join 50,000+ readers who receive our daily digest of the most uplifting stories from around the world.
Robots now see the world with an ease that once belonged only to science fiction. They can recognize objects, navigate cluttered spaces, and sort thousands of parcels an hour. But ask a robot to touch something gently, safely, or meaningfully, and the limits appear instantly. As a researcher in soft...
Using AI, researchers identified one tiny molecular interaction that viruses need to infect cells. Disrupting it stopped the virus before infection could begin....
To get in the holiday spirit, a group of physicists in the Netherlands recently crafted a tiny, 3D-printed Christmas tree from ice particles. The novel method isn’t only good for decorative projects, however. According to their explainer in Nature, the approach could be useful across a range of indu...
Every year, we come back to the same question: What actually helps people feel more connected, grounded, and human? On The Science of Happiness podcast, we continue to explore what research tells us about living meaningful, joyful, and connected, to communities, our environment, and ourselves. Since...
The Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History has added a new, rare fossil to its collection: a dome-shaped skull of a Pachycephalosaurus, a type of dinosaur that lived about 67 million years ago. The fossil was donated to the museum by philanthropists Eric and Wendy Schmidt. (Eric Schmidt wa...
Brightcast is dedicated to restoring faith in humanity by highlighting the progress, solutions, and kindness that often go unnoticed. We believe in a balanced worldview.
Read our full mission →
2 min read2025 Science Activation Opportunity NASA Science encourages all people to actively participate in science through activities and resources developed by a collaborative network of project teams drawing on NASA SMD assets (science content, experts, data, etc.). Your team can apply to be part...
Astronomers have detected spacetime itself being dragged and twisted by a spinning black hole for the first time. The discovery, seen during a star’s violent destruction, confirms a prediction made over 100 years ago and reveals new clues about how black holes spin and launch jets....
Researchers at the University of Mississippi have found that embedding metallic fission fuel with uranium nitride nanoparticles can help improve the lifetime and safety of fission reactors. Additionally, the approach also helps reduce radioactive waste generated by fission plants, thereby improving ...
Scientists have discovered that T cell receptors activate through a hidden spring-like motion that had never been seen before. This breakthrough may help explain why immunotherapy works for some cancers and how it could be improved for others....
Know someone who needs a boost? Share Brightcast with your friends and family.
Researchers have shown that quantum signals can be sent from Earth up to satellites, not just down from space as previously believed. This breakthrough could make global quantum networks far more powerful, affordable, and practical....
A double blast of dying stars may be the first observed case of a long-hypothesized, never proven “superkilonova.” Although astronomers are still searching for concrete answers, a study published in The Astrophysical Journal Letters may detail the historic explosion about 1.3 billion light-years fro...
Science & Tech Stopping the next pandemic Professor Pardis Sabeti (right) with research assistant Tsion Abay.Stephanie Mitchell/Harvard Staff Photographer Kermit Pattison Harvard Staff Writer December 17, 2025 7 min read Disease surveillance network faced ‘existential cliff’ despite proven success. ...
Researchers have identified a distinctive ultraviolet signature of water in the interstellar comet known as 3I/ATLAS....
Scientists have found a way to trap and break down “forever chemicals” instead of just moving them elsewhere....
