Stunning collection of prehistoric engravings found in Spanish cave
A close examination of a frequently visited cave wall in Spain has revealed a spectacular assembly of rock art engravings thought to be at least 19,000 years old
Science
British Iron Age ‘king’ who prompted Roman invasion was probably a woman
Swapping from dairy to plant-based milk, cheese and yoghurt ‘could lead to micronutrient deficiencies’
Typhoons batter East Asia as El Niño makes Pacific 'burn with fever'
If every ship were taken out of the water, would sea levels change?
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Why do people look better in a mirror than in a photograph? Part 3
This question was posed as part of New Scientist’s Last Word series, in which readers give scientific answers to each other’s questions. Here’s what our readers had to say
Why don’t dogs look up when a low-flying plane passes overhead? Part 6
This question was posed as part of New Scientist’s Last Word series, in which readers give scientific answers to each other’s questions. Here’s what our readers had to say
This week’s new questions
Why do carnivorous quadrupeds sit on their haunches, but herbivorous ones don’t? Is the order of mathematical operations, given the acronym BODMAS, universal or does it break down in the quantum world?
The DNA is backwards on The Selfish Gene’s cover – again
Feedback notes with weary inevitability that a 50th anniversary edition of Richard Dawkins's classic work features a double-helix twisting the wrong way – not for the first time
Tom Gauld on our future robot overlords
Tom Gauld's weekly cartoon
Twisteddoodles on scientific equipment training
This week's cartoon from Twisteddoodles
Physicists get first glimpse of the zeptoverse from LHC experiment
Data from a particle collider has revealed evidence of a long-sought particle process that serves as a guide into the realm of the smallest scales ever probed
Antarctica’s permafrost is emitting worrying amounts of CO2
Carbon dioxide emissions from ice-free ground in one area of Antarctica have grown fivefold in just five years, suggesting there may be a significant source of emissions we haven’t accounted for
Endangered giant burrowing frog returns to wild after tadpoles rescued from ashes of black summer fires
Tadpoles collected from puddles in East Gippsland were transported to Melbourne zoo, where they were raised to metamorphosis and successfully bred in captivity for the first time After the 2019-20 black summer bushfires, scientists in eastern Victoria stumbled across something they had been after for years: puddles of tadpoles from the southern giant burrowing frog, one of the state’s most…
Hannah Fry: How to win The Traitors with maths (step one, don’t get made a traitor)
With a little help from Alan Turing and Thomas Bayes, I came up with a mathematical model I hoped would help me win The Traitors. Unfortunately, events then got in the way, writes Professor Hannah Fry in her latest column
Firework noise limit should be drastically cut to protect wild animals, UK government told
Ministers urged to go further than proposed cut to 110 decibels to ease acute stress on birds and others animals Campaigners are calling on the government to protect the welfare of wild animals by cutting the maximum noise level of fireworks sold to the public from 120 to 90 decibels. The Center for Wild Animal Welfare (CWAW) has said lowering the limit to 90 decibels – which is about one-eighth…
William meets firefighters who tackled summer blazes
The prince says 2026 was the first summer he felt "worried about the scale of the wildfires".
Delhi air quality worsens ahead of Diwali as firework restrictions enter force
On Wednesday morning, Delhi's air quality index reading was at 377, in the "very poor" category.
Tiktoker 'super excited' to co-host BBC nature show
Naturewatch, hosted by Chris Packham, Megan McCubbin and Kyle Thomas, is being made in Bristol.
Trust vows to 'maintain spirit' of nature reserve
Flatford Wildlife Garden is bought by the National Trust after being run by the RSPB for 15 years.
Prince William says UK faces terrifying risk of more wildfires due to climate change
The prince says 2026 was the first summer he felt "worried about the scale of the wildfires".
Nasa astronaut casts midterms vote from space – video
Anil Menon has voted in the US midterm elections by casting an electronic ballot from the International Space Station. He said he filled out the ballot on his station computer and sent it to election officials in Harris county, Texas. In a social media post, he said all three US crew members onboard also had the chance to vote. US midterm elections 2026 live Continue reading...
Nasa telescope launched in 2004 to plunge back to Earth after failed rescue mission
Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory is expected to re-enter Earth’s atmosphere Wednesday, burning up in the process Nasa’s Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory, which has spent two decades studying the most powerful explosions in the cosmos, is expected to re-enter the Earth’s atmosphere on Wednesday, burning up in the process. The satellite, which was designed to operate with its three telescopes for just…
Improved asteroid deflection model runs faster, reveals more doomsday worries
“We expected aim to matter ... What surprised us was how much,' says Sandia physicist Nathan Moore
Action needed to tackle 'biodiversity crisis'
The issue is part of wider concerns the government is not focused enough on the environment.