Clara Moskowitz

Notorious asteroid 2024 YR4 won't crash into the moon after all Earthlings aren't the only ones safe from a city-wrecking-size asteroid. Future lunar inhabitants won't have to worry about a strike in 2032 either

NEW: Sad news for those wanting the Moon to be hit by a sizeable asteroid: it ain’t happening, at least not in 2032.

But at least we now that JWST is a surprisingly good asset for tracking dangerous space rocks! :)

Me @sciam.bsky.social www.scientificamerican.com/article/noto...

Jeffrey Epstein and the scientists – podcast The release of the latest batch of documents relating to the late child sex offender Jeffrey Epstein has shed further light on his close relationship with the world of science. To find out why he cult...

In a "Jeffrey Epstein and the scientists" podcast w/ @iansample.bsky.social of The Guardian, we delve into the ugly world of Epstein and the scholars hurt by the misogyny in science that the files reveal:

www.theguardian.com/science/audi...

The Schrödinger equation is getting a glow-up for its 100th birthday A century ago, Erwin Schrödinger came up with an equation that says how the quantum world behaves. Now scientists are asking what happens when the observer is part of that world

Now on @sciam.bsky.social: The Schrödinger equation just turned 100, but that doesn’t mean quantum physicists have solved all its mysteries. Chief among them: What, exactly, does it mean to incorporate observers into the gnarly math? By Joseph Howlett.

www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-...

Sick Astronaut on ISS Forces Early Command Transfer from NASA Crew Member to Russian Cosmonaut NASA astronaut and ISS leader Mike Fincke transferred station command to a Russian cosmonaut ahead of an unprecedented medical evacuation

NASA astronaut and ISS leader Mike Fincke transferred station command to a Russian cosmonaut ahead of an unprecedented medical evacuation

In Unprecedented Move, NASA to Rush Astronauts Home after Medical Incident on ISS NASA on Thursday announced it would take the unprecedented step of bringing four crewmembers back to Earth from the space station before their official mission end

This is a first for NASA--hope the astronaut is ok!

Lazuli, a Billionaire-Funded Private Space Telescope, Signals a New Strategy for Astronomy Bigger than Hubble and launching as soon as 2029, the Lazuli Space Observatory would be the first-ever full-scale private space telescope

The first full-fledged private space telescope could launch as early as 2029--here's a thoughtful look at what that might say about and mean for astronomical science: www.scientificamerican.com/article/schm... 🧪 🔭

Humans Made Poisoned Arrowheads Thousands of Years Earlier Than Previously Thought The use of poison on arrows marked a revolution in human hunting technology—new evidence suggests it happened tens of thousands of years earlier than previously known

This is such a cool finding--the oldest direct evidence of poisoned arrows. Poisoned hunting weapons were a game-changing innovation for our ancestors. Absolutely incredible that researchers found traces of plant toxins on these tiny arrowheads from 60,000 ago 🤯🏹 🧪

These Cosmic Flashes Can Burn Brighter Than Galaxies—But Last Only Moments Celestial transients shine furiously and briefly. Astronomers are just beginning to understand them

May I recommend this lovely long read, from one of my favorite writers on the planet, @annfinkbeiner.bsky.social, about the strange and surprising explosions astronomers are discovering in the night sky 🧪

Dark Skies Should Make This Year’s Geminids Meteor Shower Spectacular. Here’s How to See Them As far as annual meteor showers are concerned, 2025 has saved the best for last. This year’s Geminids are not to be missed

Just a reminder that this year's Geminids meteor shower peaks tomorrow night! Do you have a plan to try to catch the spectacle?

This Season, Feed Your Own Curiosity Up to 50% off all subs

If you've been thinking of subscribing to Scientific American, or gifting a sub, now's the time -- it's 50% off! sciam.com/getsciam/

NASA’s Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope Completed - NASA Two technicians look up at NASA’s Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope after its inner and outer segments were connected at the agency’s Goddard Space Flight

Holy moly: The Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope construction is completed! That's fantastic news — much needed right now — and I am very much looking forward to when this beast launches. It has 100X the field of view of Hubble.

One. Hundred. *At the same resolution*.

www.nasa.gov/image-articl...

Is ESA benefitting from increased international partnerships and funding due to countries/orgs looking to it rather than to a less stable/less well-funded NASA?
"I think the answer is yes, in short." - David Phillips of @esa.int at #Appleton2025. Canada's ESA contribution is up 400% e.g. 🧪🔭

Hands holding a copy of "Crush: Close Encounters with Gravity" by James Riordon on a plain background. The cover depicts a crushed red aluminum can with a green leaf hanging off the tab.

"A fascinating exploration, packed with surprising insights & eye-opening explanations of cutting-edge physics." — @clarakm.bsky.social, senior editor at Scientific American

James Riordon's book "Crush" takes readers on a memorable tour of gravity. Available now: mitpress.mit.edu/978026205098...

NASA Found Something on Mars. Now We Might Just Leave It There NASA spent years and billions of dollars collecting Martian samples to bring home. Now they might be stranded

Wouldn't it be a ginormous waste to send a rover all the way to Mars to collect rock samples for study back on Earth and then to just...abandon them? By @astrojonny.bsky.social 🧪

The woman who discovered the first black hole Betty Webster is a name to remember. Also: more rogue binary jovians

Have you ever heard of Betty Webster? I hadn't until recently, and she co-discovered the first black hole ever found! Here's her story, to honor her memory and fantastic accomplishment.

badastronomy.beehiiv.com/p/the-woman-...

🔭 🧪

Man With Tick-Borne Meat Allergy Dies after Eating Burger Lone star tick bites are the most common cause of alpha-gal syndrome, which causes severe allergic reactions to red meat

True nightmare fuel: Scientists just confirmed the first known death from a severe meat allergy caused by a tick bite.

The man, who died in 2024 after eating a burger, had alpha-gal syndrome, a bizarre disease triggered by tick bites.

www.scientificamerican.com/article/man-...

City Raccoons Are Evolving to Look More Like Pets City-dwelling raccoons seem to be evolving a shorter snout—a telltale feature of our pets and other domesticated animals

I, for one, welcome our new trash panda overlords.

But for real, fascinating science on how we might be seeing the very early stages of domestication in action in wild animals. 🧪

By @marinacoladas.bsky.social for @sciam.bsky.social

“Deciding the line between non-life and life is not interesting. What’s important is the process.” Great talk by Jack Szostak at #SciWri25

For what it's worth, the Planetary Society's @caseydreier.bsky.social will discuss Isaacman's renomination and other issues relating to space science policy at #ScienceWriters2025 in Chicago on Sunday, in conversation with @clarakm.bsky.social: sciencewriters2025.org/schedule/

Rejected NASA Chief Pick Jared Isaacman Renominated to Head Agency Ahead of Jared Isaacman’s renomination for the position of NASA’s administrator, a dispute between him and its acting chief Sean Duffy spilled into the open, with potentially profound consequences for...

Now on @sciam.bsky.social: After a leaked memo and a dust-up with NASA’s interim chief, Jared Isaacman’s renomination to lead the space agency portends potentially profound changes for U.S. space science and exploration. By @danvergano.bsky.social.

www.scientificamerican.com/article/nasa...

What Is Burevestnik, Russia’s New Nuclear-Powered Cruise Missile? Russian leader Vladimir Putin claimed his nation conducted a successful flight of a nuclear-powered cruise missile. Here’s how that missile might work

Russia's nuclear missile is a very bad idea, by @danvergano.bsky.social

Some Scientists See UFOs in Old Telescope Data. Others See a Teachable Moment New peer-reviewed research reporting strange lights in the pre-space-age sky is sparking curiosity and controversy

It's never aliens. By @astrojonny.bsky.social www.scientificamerican.com/article/did-...

YouTube video by Scientific American Look up tonight to see a comet AND a meteor shower

Don't forget to look up tonight! 🧪 youtube.com/shorts/4XYp0...

Two Wrong Strategies Do Make a Right in This Math Paradox In certain circumstances, losses create a sure path to victory, an idea with implications for biology and cancer therapy

The very strange math that shows how if you combine two losing strategies you can...win?!? 🧪 www.scientificamerican.com/article/parr...

Headline from an article in Nature this week that states "Prizes must recognize machine contributions to discovery. The future of science will be written by humans and machines together. Awards should reflect that reality."

Lol the Nobels can't even acknowledge women's contribution to discovery. But sure let's acknowledge The Machines.

This Year’s Nobel Prize in Physics Is Awarded to Three Scientists for Work in Quantum Mechanics John Clarke, Michel H. Devoret and John M. Martinis shared the 2025 Nobel Prize in Physics for their work showing how bizarre microscopic quantum effects can infiltrate our large-scale, everyday world

Now on @sciam.bsky.social: This year’s physics Nobel goes to 3 researchers who demonstrated quantum tunneling on a superconducting chip. By bringing this microscopic effect into the macroscale world, they laid important foundations for quantum computing.

www.scientificamerican.com/article/2025...

Fractal Chaos Discovered in Prime Numbers Mathematicians have found a new way to predict how prime numbers behave

Finding order in chaos by @lyndie.bsky.social 🧪 www.scientificamerican.com/article/math...

Are Black Holes Creating Dark Energy? A controversial prediction about black holes and the expansion force of the universe could explain a cosmology mystery

Maybe dark energy is completely different than we imagined: @rboyle31.bsky.social 🧪 www.scientificamerican.com/article/is-d...

My linocut with portrait of Kathleen Lonsdale in gradient of lavender at the bottom to indigo at the top. She looks like a serious woman with a big mop of curly hair, round glasses, in a floral shirt and blazer. To her left is her own first drawing of electron density projection calculated for hexachlorobenzene. In front of her in black is her own one crystal model of hexamethylbenzene (with spheres for atoms and bars to indicate bonds or for structure and a small tag).

Day 25 #SciArtSeptember prompt tireless: 🧪🐡👩🏼‍🔬 #histsci Kathleen Lonsdale DBE FRS (née Yardley, 1903-1971) who solved a longstanding #chemistry conundrum of the shape of benzene, here with her drawing of electron density for hexachlorobenzene (green) & model of hexamethylbenzene. Her husband said, 🧵

The Meteorite That Vanished: A Tale of Lies, Death and Smuggling How a space rock vanished from Africa and showed up for sale across an ocean

This is a truly wild caper by @danvergano.bsky.social on the disappearance of the El Ali meteorite: www.scientificamerican.com/article/insi...