MS-PS4-2
Develop and use a model to describe that waves are reflected, absorbed, or transmitted through various materials.
- Physics
Explainer: What are gravitational waves?
Albert Einstein had predicted that large catastrophes, like colliding black holes, should produce tiny ripples in the fabric of space. In 2016, scientists reported finally detecting them
- Physics
How to catch a gravity wave
Physicists have just announced finding gravity waves. The phenomenon was predicted a century ago by Einstein’s theory of general relativity. Here’s what it took to detect the waves.
- Earth
Bubbles may have sheltered Earth’s early life
For Earth’s earliest inhabitants, a bubble on the beach would have been the next best thing to a safety blanket.
- Physics
News Brief: Why rainbows can lose some hues
When the sun is right near the horizon, such as at sunset, its light travels through the most atmosphere. When there’s also plenty of water in the air, this can rob colors from a rainbow, scientists now report.
- Physics
Boom! Sounding out the enemy
Armistice Day marked the end of the Great War. But what arguably won the war was acoustics — the science of sound. It allowed Allied troops to home in on and rout the enemy.
- Materials Science
Keeping roofs cooler to cut energy costs
Cool it! A cheap paint-on coating for roofing shingles could help reduce a home’s heating bills and might even trim urban ozone levels, a teen shows.
- Brain
Trip to Mars could damage astronauts’ brains
Experiments in mice suggest the high-energy particles that would zap astronauts on a mission to Mars could leave the explorers with brain damage.
- Chemistry
Cool Jobs: Saving precious objects
Museum conservators are experts at protecting and restoring precious objects. Along with art or history, many also have studied chemistry, physics, archaeology or other scientific fields.
- Tech
Laser vision reveals hidden worlds
From discovering ancient ruins to forecasting climate change, the laser mapping technology called lidar is changing many fields of science.
- Tech
Explainer: What are lidar, radar and sonar?
Radar, sonar and lidar and are three similar technologies. Each relies on the echoing of waves — radio, sound or light waves — to detect objects.
- Earth
Nepal earthquake offers hints of worse to come
The magnitude 7.8 earthquake that crumbled much of Nepal’s capital city could be overshadowed by larger future earthquakes along the Himalayas, scientists say.
- Space
Scientists Say: Gravitational lens
A gravitational lens is an effect that occurs when a massive object lies between a viewer and something further away. The massive object’s gravity bends light arriving from the more distant object.
