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For the first time, scientists have directly watched sound make a quantum jump — suddenly moving from one energy state to another instead of changing gradually. Researchers at Stanford University have recorded individual quantum states of sound in real time, observing a single phonon disappear as the system moved from an energy state of 1 to 0. The breakthrough provides scientists with a new way to study quantum mechanics and could eventually contribute to quantum computing, error correction, ultra-sensitive sensors and advanced sound-based technologies . The findings, published in Science , represent an important step in understanding how familiar things such as sound behave at the smallest possible scales. What Is a Quantum Jump? In everyday life, changes usually appear continuous. For example, when a bell rings, its sound slowly becomes quieter until it eventually disappears. Quantum physics tells a different story. At the quantum level, energy does not always change smoothly. Ins...

Scientists at Cornell University have developed a new generation of microscopic robots that can do something remarkable: sense changes in their surroundings, communicate with one another, and work together to alter the environment around them. The breakthrough, described in a 2026 study published in Nature Electronics , marks the first reported example of microscopic robots that can actively reshape their physical environment in response to what they sense. The idea is simple but powerful. Instead of having one tiny robot perform a task alone, researchers are teaching many microscopic machines to sense, communicate, coordinate and act as a team . As Itai Cohen, a Cornell University physics professor and corresponding author of the study, put it: “Little things can have a large impact.” From sensing the world to changing it Microrobots have been getting increasingly capable. Previous work from Cohen's laboratory produced robots roughly the width of a human hair that could walk auton...

For decades, astronomers have studied planets beyond our solar system by observing how they affect their host stars. Now, scientists have achieved a major breakthrough: radio signals have been directly traced to an exoplanet itself for the first time. The planet is β Pictoris b , a young and massive gas giant located about 64 light-years from Earth . Researchers detected faint, repeating radio bursts coming from the planet, providing a new way to study the invisible magnetic fields surrounding distant worlds. The discovery could open an entirely new window into the interiors and environments of giant exoplanets. A New Way to Study Distant Worlds Exoplanets are planets that orbit stars beyond our Sun. Since the first confirmed discoveries in the 1990s, astronomers have identified thousands of these distant worlds. However, studying an exoplanet directly is extremely difficult. Most are too far away and too faint to see clearly. Scientists often detect them indirectly by observing their ...

Astronomers have discovered something extraordinary in our own galaxy: the first known microblazar in the Milky Way . This unusual system contains a black hole and a massive star, and its powerful jet is aimed almost directly toward Earth. Even more remarkably, researchers have found evidence that the jet is slamming into a dense cloud of gas and dust, creating a powerful region where particles may be accelerated to petaelectronvolt (PeV) energies —among the highest particle energies known in the Universe. If confirmed, this makes the newly identified system a natural particle accelerator potentially around 100 times more powerful than the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) . The international research team, involving scientists from ASTRON, JIVE, the University of Amsterdam and other institutions, reported the discovery in Astronomy & Astrophysics . What Is a Microblazar? To understand this discovery, it helps to first understand a blazar . Black holes can pull matter toward themselves t...

What if a spacecraft did not need a large engine or huge amounts of fuel to move through space? What if it could instead use the tiny push delivered by sunlight? That is the idea behind light sails —ultra-thin sails that use the momentum of photons to produce thrust. Now, students at Cornell University have taken this technology a step further by testing extremely small, free-flying light sails designed to work with tiny spacecraft called ChipSats . The student-led missions, called Alpha CubeSat and Sailing to the Stars , successfully demonstrated important technologies in low Earth orbit and aboard the International Space Station (ISS). The experiments could help make future spacecraft smaller, cheaper and potentially capable of exploring destinations far beyond Earth. A spacecraft powered by light Traditional spacecraft depend on chemical or electric propulsion systems to change their speed and direction. These systems require fuel, engines and supporting hardware, all of which add ...

New observations from NASA’s Juno spacecraft have revealed that Jupiter uses a far more complicated defense system against the solar wind than Earth does—and the discovery could help scientists understand powerful shocks around exploding stars. Space may look empty and peaceful, but planets are constantly being bombarded by energetic particles streaming from the Sun. This continuous flow, known as the solar wind , travels through the Solar System at enormous speeds. Earth has a natural defense against this particle storm: its magnetic field. When the solar wind reaches Earth, it encounters an invisible boundary called the bow shock , where the incoming particles are suddenly slowed, heated and redirected around the planet. But Earth is not the only planet with such a protective barrier. Far away, Jupiter has an enormous magnetic field and a much more powerful interaction with the solar wind. Now, observations from NASA's Juno spacecraft have given scientists their most detailed lo...

Mars is famous for one color above all others: red . Its rusty landscapes, dusty plains and rocky mountains have earned it the nickname the Red Planet . But Mars is far more colorful than that familiar image suggests. New images of the planet’s southern polar region reveal an unusual landscape filled with purple, pink, red and bluish shades . At the center of this striking scene is Thyles Rupes , a huge icy cliff system with cliffs rising more than 1 kilometer (0.6 miles) high. The unusual colors are not simply an optical illusion. They reveal a complicated mixture of volcanic rock, dust, frozen carbon dioxide and seasonal frost. Together, these materials create one of the most unusual-looking landscapes on Mars. Why Is Mars Usually Red? The dominant color of Mars comes from iron-rich minerals in its rocks and dust. Over time, iron reacts with oxygen and becomes oxidized, producing compounds similar to rust on Earth. This iron oxide spreads across the Martian surface and atmosphere a...