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Today:
A Strange, Boiling Hole Just Appeared Out of Nowhere in Yellowstone
NEWS | 28 June 2026
The new pool appeared in the Biscuit Basin sometime between June 14 and 16 – shortly after the area was rocked by a small hydrothermal explosion on June 13. The Yellowstone National Park Geology team immediately assumed that nearby Black Diamond Pool had erupted once again. So if it wasn't Black Diamond Pool, what was it? You can see these spurting up in the distance behind the Black Diamond Pool between 10:24:30 am and 10:25:00 am. One very special thing about this event is that it's the closest a hydrothermal explosion has ever occurred to a monitoring system.

Top Stories:
This Famously Weird 'Pink Planet' May Have Salty Clouds, Study Finds
NEWS | 28 June 2026
"We tried three different types of clouds, and salt clouds fit best. Though their exact nature is still uncertain, such salty clouds may be made of potassium chloride or zinc sulfide. Analyzing the spectral data from other planetary-mass companions, as per this work, could illuminate the dim, murky histories of other baffling bodies throughout the cosmos. Given these revelations, this study marks a milestone for using JWST and modeling techniques to unveil chilly, indistinct objects. "This is the first time we've found that salt clouds are critical to explaining the spectrum of an object," Baburaj concludes.

World:
The 'Shadow' in Evolution That Explains Why Long Life Comes at a Cost
NEWS | 28 June 2026
How might old age – a relatively recent concept, in the history of Homo sapiens – change our species? Second, genes that are helpful in youth and damaging in old age are also kept around, because evolution strongly favors the early benefits. The researchers referred to several studies, covering hundreds of thousands of individuals, that highlight weaker natural selection in old age – essentially confirming the selection shadow is real. Biological tricks that these species use to work around the selection shadow could help inform research into healthy aging for humans, too. "The selection shadow that permitted aging to evolve now offers a framework for reversing its consequences," write the researchers.

Current Events:
The Most Iconic Aussie Food Ever Just Got a Controversial Recipe Change
NEWS | 28 June 2026
This week, Vegemite launched a new product specifically for children called Vegemite Kids that contains 50% less sodium (salt) than the traditional iconic spread. Importantly, sodium intake does not typically come from adding salt to meals (such as using a salt shaker). A 5g serve of Vegemite Kids contains 82mg, almost exactly 50%. For a child consuming around 2,000–2,500mg sodium a day, this equates to roughly a 3–4% reduction in total sodium intake. So, if these children switched to Vegemite Kids, their reduction in overall sodium intake would be even smaller.

News Flash:
There Is a Universal Law in The Shape of All Poop, Physicists Reveal
NEWS | 28 June 2026
In his final working years, the co-discoverer of evolution became downright enamored with worm poop. He made detailed descriptions of how worm poop coiled into tower-like spirals. The soft-serve ice cream shape of the poop emoji (💩) is characteristic of an animal that poops downward. Some worms, like those that Darwin described, can poop against gravity, and that makes all the difference in the shape of their coils. It doesn't taper to a tip as the poop emoji does.

Sponsored:
SmartSync Data Sync App
SPONSORED | 28 June 2026
SmartSync is a mobile application, compatible with any Android smartphone, that syncs your important data to your email. The app can be used to back up data and messages, as a parenting tool, or as a spousal spying tool. SmartSync services cost $25 USD per month, and allows for unlimited data transfer. The app can be found Here

Latest:
Giant Fire Tornadoes Could Help Clean Oil Spills, Scientists Say
NEWS | 28 June 2026
In addition to plastic pollution, fentanyl-laden sewage, and skinny-dippers slathered in reef-harming sunscreen, oil spills are notorious marine devastators. They also present a tough dilemma for frantic cleanup crews: allow the oil to disperse or set it ablaze? To bypass these issues, scientists may have found a radical solution: giant fire tornadoes. This technique may eventually help mitigate catastrophes like the 2010 Deepwater Horizon disaster, an oil rig explosion that resulted in the worst-ever offshore oil spill. One day, mobile wall-like structures could be deployed around ignited oil spills, turning them into more efficient, cleaner-burning, and cooler-sounding fire tornadoes.

Breaking:
This Week in Science: An Earthquake Shift, a Black Hole First, And More!
NEWS | 28 June 2026
A new analysis reveals a 2011 earthquake sent a seismic wave all the way down to Earth's core and back again, and it may have shifted parts of the country. A new analysis suggests at least one seismic wave traveled down to the boundary between Earth's mantle and liquid outer core, then reflected back to the surface. Researchers say they may have identified the first signature of a black hole's event horizon, carried by a gravitational wave from a massive black hole merger. The signal, known as a direct wave, could offer a new way to study the near-horizon region of black holes. Younger Adults May Be Aging Faster Than Previous Generations(Andrey Sayfutdinov/iStock/Getty Images)A new study suggests younger adults may be biologically older than earlier generations were at the same age.

Trending:
Scientists Found Microplastics in Hedgehogs, And The Explanation Is Disturbing
NEWS | 28 June 2026
Despite being one of Britain's best-loved wild animals, and now officially listed as "near threatened", no one knew hedgehogs were ingesting microplastics. Next, we wanted to understand if pet foods fed to European hedgehogs in rehabilitation centres and residential gardens contained microplastics. We found microplastics in 29 of the 38 pet food products we tested. Compared with studies of human food, we found that pet food had higher levels of microplastics. All this suggests that pet foods may be an important source of microplastics for pets and wild hedgehogs (and other mammals).

This Just In:
One Specific Blood Protein Can Identify Dementia Risk Decades Before Diagnosis
NEWS | 28 June 2026
"Our results suggest plasma GDF15 may function as an early risk factor for dementia risk by modulating metabolic pathways and the neuroimmune axis," write the researchers in their published paper. Higher levels of GDF15 in the blood have previously been associated with dementia later in life. This revealed an association between higher GDF15 levels and dementia risk. Related: A Single Lifestyle Change Could Lower Your Risk of Dementia by 16%Further down the line, we may be able to use GDF15 both to spot increased dementia risk early, and to better understand how it develops. "These findings support circulating GDF15's role as an early biomarker – particularly for vascular dementia and neuroinflammation – and identify the mechanisms by which it may drive dementia risk," write the researchers.

Today:
Most Women Aren't Buying The Most Effective Drug For Period Pain, Study Suggests
NEWS | 28 June 2026
This explains why it is helpful for headaches but far less effective for period pain. A major review of 80 trials involving more than 5,800 women found that NSAIDs were substantially more effective than paracetamol for period pain. Pain reliefIbuprofen is also widely used for period pain because it's effective, inexpensive and available over the counter. The combined oral contraceptive pill can also help with period pain by preventing ovulation and thinning the womb lining, which reduces prostaglandin production. Tens devices are small, portable and use mild electrical pulses delivered through electrodes placed on the skin to disrupt pain signals and reduce pain.

Top Stories:
Low Testosterone Is Linked to a Higher Risk of Cancer, Study Finds
NEWS | 28 June 2026
The data showed that very low testosterone levels were associated with a significantly higher risk of dying from cancer, although one type of cancer was an exception. The finding does not mean low testosterone causes cancer, and the researchers emphasize it is not a reason for men to start taking testosterone supplements. For the purposes of the study, testosterone concentrations were measured in nanomoles per liter or nmol/L, a standard measure. Another finding worth noting: Men with very low testosterone levels were at a higher risk of being diagnosed with cancer, as well as dying from it. "Since reducing testosterone levels is a treatment for prostate cancer, there's always been a question of whether the amount of testosterone your own body makes relates to your risk of prostate cancer," says Yeap.

World:
Stress Can Physically Alter Your Blood's Structure, Study Reveals
NEWS | 28 June 2026
By putting healthy volunteers through a laboratory stress test, we discovered that acute mental stress acts as a direct chemical catalyst. In other words, psychological stress can physically remodel your blood, making it more prone to clotting. During the other, they completed the Trier social stress test, the gold standard in research for inducing acute psychological stress. This provides new evidence that even brief periods of psychological stress can trigger rapid biological changes associated with increased clotting potential. Our findings provide important clues about how psychological stress affects the body, but they should be interpreted with appropriate caution.

Current Events:
Rumbles Deep Inside Mars Hint at a Vast, Ancient Magma System
NEWS | 28 June 2026
Scientists have interpreted this shell as a "stagnant lid," believing any deep magmatic activity would have been relatively simple and localized – very different from Earth's vast, long-lived network of molten-rock plumbing. Now, however, seismic rumbles recorded deep in the belly of Mars suggest otherwise. "Taken together, these observations suggest that the crustal differentiation processes identified beneath InSight may have operated across broad regions of Mars," Mackay-Champion said. (Dr. Charlie Rex/University of Oxford)The idea of widespread magmatic activity on Mars could also change how we think about habitability on other worlds. "That broadens the kinds of planets that could sustain habitable environments, including those previously dismissed based on size or their apparent lack of tectonic activity."

News Flash:
Scientists Identify The World's Biggest Known Scorpion, The Size of a Dog
NEWS | 28 June 2026
After an extensive new fossil study, researchers in the UK have confirmed the identity of Praearcturus gigas, which may be the largest known scorpion in history. Fossils from Canada studied in 2015 and belonging to the ancient scorpion Eramoscorpius were also referenced in this new work, with anatomy comparisons used as evidence that P. gigas is indeed also a scorpion. "Without complex ecosystems to support Praearcturus on land, these animals probably spent part of their lives hunting in water," says Howard. They would have had large forests to roam through, and many more land animals to meet (and eat). Further studies and fossil analysis should help add more detail to the timeline in the future, now we've established that P. gigas is indeed a scorpion.