An in-depth analysis of the stresses, tides, and internal forces on Jupiter’s icy moon Europa indicates that the moon lacks the active submarine faults essential for robust hydrothermal circulation. This phenomenon significantly impacts Europa’s chemical energy and overall habitability.
A stunning view of Europa’s surface. Image scale is 1.6 km per pixel. North of Europa is on the right. Image credit: NASA / JPL-Caltech / SETI Institute.
On Earth, tectonic activity is crucial for supporting diverse habitats that sustain life.
This interaction between water and rocks on the ocean floor can generate chemical energy essential for potential biological processes.
Thus, the existence of tectonic activity on a celestial body can indicate an environment conducive to supporting life.
Europa, one of Jupiter’s moons, is believed to harbor an immense underground ocean beneath its frosty exterior.
While earlier studies hinted at volcanic activity beneath Europa’s ocean floor, the potential for tectonic movement had not been thoroughly explored until now.
“If we could survey those oceans using remote-controlled submarines, we predict we wouldn’t observe any new cracks, active volcanoes, or hydrothermal vents on the ocean floor,” stated Dr. Paul Byrne, a researcher at Washington University in St. Louis.
“Geologically, nothing is changing there. Everything remains quiet.”
“In icy worlds like Europa, a tranquil ocean floor could suggest a lifeless ocean.”
Dr. Byrne and his team conducted comprehensive modeling to evaluate potential tectonic activity within Europa’s theorized subsurface ocean.
Their findings were compared against known behaviors on Earth’s ocean floor and Enceladus.
The researchers assessed stress from tidal forces, global contraction, mantle convection, and serpentinization— a geological process involving the interaction of rocks and water.
However, they concluded that these factors are unlikely to be driving tectonic activity, even along Europa’s existing fissures at present.
This discovery implies that water-rock interactions might be confined to the uppermost layers of the ocean floor, which limits the prospects for habitable conditions beneath Europa’s surface.
Future research aims to gather direct evidence regarding Europa’s geology and tectonics.
“Europa likely experiences tidal heating, which is why it hasn’t fully frozen,” Dr. Byrne noted.
“There may have been greater heating in its distant past.”
“However, currently, we do not observe eruptions from the ice as seen on Io. Our calculations indicate that the currents are simply not strong enough to foster significant geological activity on the ocean floor.”
For more details, refer to the results published in this week’s issue of Nature Communications.
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PK burn et al. 2026. There may be little or no active faults on Europa’s ocean floor today. Nat Commune 17, 4; doi: 10.1038/s41467-025-67151-3
This image seems to show a Martian wrench, but it’s just a stone
Brian Cory Dobbs Productions
Blue Planet Red Directed by Brian Corrie Dobbs, available on Amazon Prime Video
Blue Planet Red is a documentary focused on Mars. The world depicted by director Brian Corrie Dobbs diverges from our understanding but certainly possesses its allure. It showcases an advanced civilization of pyramid builders that either failed to avert their world’s demise or destroyed it through a catastrophic nuclear conflict.
Dobbs presents his assertions regarding advanced Martian life directly to the audience, complete with expressive gestures and confident poses. I found him quite engaging. Yet, after viewing his work, I wasn’t surprised to discover that a section of his portfolio includes questionable content (referring to dubious videos concerning cell phones, electromagnetic fields, and cancer).
Whether by design or not, Blue Planet Red serves as a historical record. It is a testament to a generation of researchers and enthusiasts raised under the imposing shadow of a two-kilometer geological mound in the Martian region of Sidonia. Back in 1976, NASA’s Viking spacecraft took a blurry photo of what seemed to be a giant human face, known as the “Face of Mars,” at the intersection of Mars’ southern highlands and northern plains.
There’s no need to delve into debunking topics that have already been convincingly dismantled many times before. If you enhance the resolution of the image, the so-called face vanishes. Features resembling tools or bones are simply rocks. Additionally, the presence of xenon-129 in Mars’ atmosphere suggests an ancient nuclear war only if we disregard the well-understood decay process of the now-extinct isotope iodine-129 into xenon-129 within Mars’ cooling lithosphere.
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The ambiguous data from the Viking orbiters fostered the growth of fanciful ideas “
Yet, capturing this narrative holds a certain poignancy. Transforming Ideas gives voice to this generation of researchers. Individuals featured in the film include Richard Bryce Hoover, who led NASA’s astrobiology research at the Marshall Space Flight Center in Alabama until 2011, where he helped prove the existence of extremophiles on Earth. He is convinced he discovered microfossils in Martian meteorites. However, despite his enthusiasm, director Hoover fails to clarify in the film why these fossils rest atop the rock samples rather than embedded within them.
Contributor John Brandenburg is regarded as a respectable plasma scientist, provided he avoids discussing nuclear war on Mars. Mark Carlot, on the other hand, has dedicated 40 years to chronicling remnants of civilization on Mars while others merely see rocks. Upon returning to Earth, he proves to be an adept archaeologist.
After Apollo made its final moon landing in 1972, the initial thrill of the space race began to diminish. The images transmitted back by the Viking spacecraft signaled the next significant discovery. This hazy mixture of revolutionary yet unclear data served as a fertile ground for the emergence of fanciful ideas, particularly in the United States, where the Vietnam War and Watergate bred skepticism and paranoia.
Dobbs’ dynamic recounting of the Martian narrative frames it as a tale of an event occurring 3.7 billion years ago when the wet, warm planet transitioned into a barren dust bowl. For me, it resonates more with what happened to the passionate groups glued to their screens and magazines in the 1970s. Let us momentarily set aside our disdain and engage with this generation. Strong hope should never again hinder a kind heart like this.
American and German (and Nazi) rocket scientists drew inspiration from Antarctic exploration to draft this foundational technical specification for a manned mission to Mars.
Simon Ings is a novelist and science writer. X Follow him at @simonings
The sun serves as a fundamental source of heat and light in the solar system, with its energy generated in the core through the collision of hydrogen ions and helium.Nuclear Fusion. Consequently, while the surface temperature of the sun is extremely hot by Earth’s standards—approximately 10,000°F or 5,600°C—it is relatively cooler compared to the center, which reaches around 27,000,000°F or 15,000,000°C.
Heat and light travel from the sun’s center to its surface via two main processes: one is similar to how the sun heats the Earth, known as radiation. Here, energy moves outward through light particles, or photons. Conversely, heat transfer occurs on Earth through the process of convection, with cold gas descending while warm gas rises. This creates a swirling motion within the sun, where hot gases near the core move upward and cooler gases sink back down.
A diagram of the sun illustrating how convection and radiation influence heat movement at different depths. “Sun poster” by Kelvinsong is licensed under CC by-sa 3.0.
The interplay of radiation, convection, and the sun’s varying rotational speeds based on distance from the equator results in uneven heating of the solar surface, leading to both hot and cold areas. While scientists have a grasp of this general pattern, discrepancies exist between models predicting solar surface temperatures and observed data. The model estimates a temperature of around 2,000 Kelvin (k), translating to approximately 3,100°F or 1,700°C for the coldest sections, yet actual findings indicate these regions are around 4,000k, or about 6,700°F or 3,700°C.
This paradox highlights the challenges in understanding heat transfer within the sun. Several unknown factors may lead to the observed discrepancy of over 1,000k in the coldest spots. A team of researchers investigated one possible explanation for the missing heat by conducting both two-dimensional and three-dimensional simulations. They hypothesized that when convection separates neutral charged gases from the sun’s center, negatively charged electrons are driven by a magnetic field near the sun’s surface, generating additional heat. This phenomenon is referred to as Thermal Farley-Bnemann’s instability, or TFBI Turbulence.
The team employed two computer programs, ebysus and Epic, to simulate these cold bubbles in the outer layer of the sun, known as the Chrome area, over a span of 8-10 milliseconds. They incorporated variables such as material density, magnetic field strength, and collision frequency into their simulations. The TFBI turbulence was then integrated into the 2D ebysus model, which was compared with heating observed in the EPPIC simulations in both 2D and 3D.
The primary distinction between the programs lies in how they treat gas: ebysus models it as a swirling liquid, facilitating easier movement calculations, while Epic views it as a collection of bouncing particles that generate electromagnetic fields, complicating calculations. They conducted five simulations: one in 2D with EBYSUS, which was the fastest yet potentially the least accurate, one in 2D with Epic, which was slower but arguably more realistic, and two in 3D with EPPIC, which, while the slowest, yielded the most accurate outcomes.
The results from their 2D simulations indicated that turbulent heating could increase temperatures in cold regions by over 700,000. Similar findings were observed in the 3D simulations as well. The team contended that their simulations demonstrated how turbulence from the TFBI could augment heat in the sun’s cooler areas beyond what convection and radiation contribute. Nonetheless, they recommended that future research extend over longer time frames to fully grasp the implications of these processes. Additionally, comparisons between 2D and 3D simulations suggest that scientists can effectively investigate this phenomenon using quicker 2D fluid models, achieving results comparable to more complex and resource-intensive 3D particle models.
NASA, ESA, Jennifer Lotz, Matt Mountain, Anton M. Koekemoer, HFF Team (STScI)
In the vast expanse of the universe, galaxies that exhibit peculiar contours are surprisingly filled with ancient stars. This offers astronomers an initial peek into a unique type of stellar body that emerged soon after the universe’s inception.
Although the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) has allowed scientists to revisit regions of the early universe, pinpointing the first stars remains elusive. These primordial stars, termed Population III stars, are primarily colossal hydrogen spheres believed to have formed in the universe’s infancy. As the very first stars, they left behind an environment largely devoid of heavier elements following their demise.
While there have been theories hinting at the existence of such stars, definitively proving their existence in the early universe has been challenging, as galaxies appeared to have become tainted with heavier elements merely a few hundred million years post-Big Bang.
Recently, Morihara Highlands from the California Institute of Technology and his team found a galaxy almost entirely composed of hydrogen, indicating the presence of Population III stars. However, this galaxy emerged later than expected, approximately a billion years after the universe began.
Dubbed Amore6, it was initially identified within the Abell 2744 galaxy cluster. Upon measuring the light from Amore6 using the JWST, Morishita and his colleagues noted the complete absence of common oxygen ions. This suggests that the galaxy harbors less than 0.2% of the oxygen present in our sun, indicating a lack of contamination by heavier elements.
As the universe evolves, the likelihood of encountering such pristine galaxies diminishes. In images captured by the JWST, Amore6 appears somewhat isolated, which Morishita posits could be a factor in its untouched state. “This seclusion might mean that this galaxy has not yet encountered sufficient gas to trigger star formation, implying that it could evolve slowly,” he mentions.
“If these findings are validated, it would be truly astonishing, as we did not anticipate discovering such an untarnished galactic environment later in the universe’s development,” says Fabio Pacucci of the Harvard Smithsonian Astrophysics Center in Massachusetts.
This discovery has implications for observing “direct collapse” black holes. Unlike the conventional pathway of collapsed stars, these black holes form from massive clouds of untainted gas. While astronomers had predicted their existence, they have never actually formed as it was believed that primitive gas was only available for a limited period, up to 100 million years after the Big Bang. However, if this untainted gas can persist for an extended duration, the potential for observing such phenomena increases, Pacucci argues.
World Capital of Astronomy: Chile
Explore the astronomical marvels of Chile. Visit some of the world’s most advanced observatories and gaze at the star-filled sky beneath some of the clearest conditions on Earth.
Illustration of NASA’s Relay 1 satellite, in front of Relay 2
NASA
A long-dormant satellite unexpectedly emitted a powerful radio pulse, momentarily surpassing all other celestial signals. Astronomers speculate that this flash may have resulted from a rare micrometeoroid impact or a spontaneous discharge.
NASA’s Relay 2 satellite was among the earliest operational satellites, launched as an experimental communications tool in 1964. Its use was discontinued the following year, and by 1967, the satellite’s electronic components had ceased functioning, leaving its metal frame orbiting indefinitely.
So Clancy James from Curtin University in Australia and his team were puzzled nearly 60 years later when they detected a burst of short, intense radio waves emanating from the satellite’s suspected location.
Utilizing the Australian Square Kilometer Array Pathfinder (ASKAP), an array of 36 telescopes in Western Australia, James and his colleagues were searching the sky for signs of a mysterious radiation pulse from other galaxies.
On June 13th, they received a signal that seemed to originate from within our galaxy. “If it’s in close proximity, studying it through an optical telescope becomes quite feasible, so I was thrilled at the prospect of discovering a new pulsar or some other object,” Clancy remarks.
However, upon closer examination, the signal appeared to be quite close to Earth, which meant that ASKAP couldn’t focus on everything simultaneously. This indicated the source was likely within 20,000 kilometers of our planet, according to Clancy. The signal was notably short-lived, lasting less than 30 nanoseconds. “It was an exceptionally potent radio pulse that briefly outshone everything else in the sky,” Clancy explains.
When they traced the signal back to its source and compared it to known satellite positions, they concluded the only plausible explanation was Relay 2. Since that satellite is inoperative, Clancy and his team suspect that the signals may result from external events such as electrostatic discharges or micrometeoroids striking the satellite, creating clouds of charged plasma.
“It’s quite challenging to differentiate between these two scenarios,” says Karen Aplin from the University of Bristol in the UK. This difficulty arises because the radio emissions from both phenomena appear comparable. Yet, monitoring future electrostatic discharges from satellites could prove beneficial, she adds. “In an environment filled with space debris and numerous smaller, cost-effective satellites that lack sufficient protection from electrostatic discharges, this radio detection could ultimately lead to innovative technologies for assessing such discharges in space,” she concludes.
When I interviewed a nurse practitioner in California, what she valued most about nursing was the “human element” of being with other people. “I think we all just want our suffering acknowledged, even if we can't cure it or do anything about it,” she told me.
She still remembers when a homeless man came into her clinic. The man had a hunched back and his feet were gnarled and calloused from years of being on the street. She was “just sitting there tending to the wound on his leg.” This moment stood out to her. One reason for this is that clinics and hospitals have fewer opportunities to take such time, as the pursuit of efficiency imposes time constraints.
Washing her feet represented what nursing meant to her: humility, service, and witness. “To give him a moment where he says, 'I see you, I acknowledge you, this is me taking care of you,'” she said. “It was powerful for both of us.”
What value is there in being seen by people other than friends and family? What happens when people connect with each other in everyday encounters such as civic life and commerce? Why is it important? Amid efficiency campaigns, constant data collection, and the rapid proliferation of AI connecting jobs such as therapy and education, these questions have never been more urgent.
The benefits of human interaction have long been unmeasurable and often ignored, and the value of the skill of connecting with others has long been considered innately feminine. As a social scientist, I spent five years studying these connections to learn how and why they matter and how people make them in different environments.
In fact, we know that the relationship between doctor and patient is as follows: Stronger impact on medical outcomes Rather than taking aspirin every day to prevent a heart attack, a therapist's Connection with client They have more impact than the specific treatments they adhere to. Reflective and witnessing work is important enough to deserve its name. After five years of interviewing and observing numerous practitioners and clients in their workplaces, I have come to call it “joint labor.”
Bonded labor may enable the modern service economy, but it is more than a kind of lubricant to the engine for the outcomes we value, like understanding algebra, managing diabetes, and learning how to manage anxiety. is fulfilled. Rather, seeing and being seen has powerful effects for both individuals and communities.
First, when people see each other, it helps create dignity by simply communicating that they are worthy of being seen by others. I spoke with Mariah, a woman who ran a program in California where ex-prisoners met with mentors in small groups to teach them entrepreneurial skills. She said it took men a while to get used to the attention. “Like, [they ask] “So you just want to know what I think?” This program helped change men through human attention.
The power of human attention to inspire others may be a truism, but perhaps less well-known is that these effects go both ways. “It's a trusting relationship,” Jenna, a primary care physician, told me. “That trust infuses the relationship with almost a power, a sacredness. There's just something about that. I feel really honored and lucky to be able to do something like that. That trust infuses the relationship with almost a power, a sacredness. It gives me just as much.”
Finally, people help others understand themselves better. “I think every kid needs to be seen. Really I saw it,” said Bart, the school principal. “I don't think kids understand it on a deep level. I don't think they really dig into that information or content until they feel seen by the person they're learning from. ”
These outcomes – dignity, purpose and understanding – mean a lot to the individuals involved. But being seen can also have broader effects. In recent research, Formerly Incarcerated People in Chicago We found that receiving interpersonal recognition from local community leaders helps us feel like we fit in. One former prisoner said he now knew he had “something worth saying”. Who is seen and who is not seen can be politically influenced by the feeling of being ignored. stir up populist angerwhile being promoted by recognition; sense of belonging It brings communities together.
Of course humans too mistakeWe recognize each other because judgment and prejudice can poison these interactions and elicit shame in rather vulnerable moments. But as a therapist told me, if people only seek to avoid shame—for example, by choosing an AI companion or counselor—they may never find relief from shame. Shame is common in relationships, but it's something you should work through together, not run away from. Part of the power of human interaction comes from the risks we take when we reveal ourselves to each other.
Bonded labor has profound implications for individuals and our society, but it is under siege in data analytics, drowning practitioners in collection and measurement requirements, and behind automated treatments, education, etc. We are under threat from an increasingly lagging AI. Novelty. For some, AI may be better than nothing, while others believe it is better than humans. Still, both choose technology to solve problems primarily caused by insufficient staffing and a constant drive for efficiency, and both have a hard time understanding what humans actually do for each. It reflects the fact that it reflects. I don't really understand the others.
Instead, we need to preserve and protect these personal interactions. We need to strengthen the working conditions of combined labor workers so that they can better see others. We need to impose “connectivity criteria” that help us decide which AIs to encourage. For example, the kind of AI that creates new antibiotics. Decoding the language of sperm whales – and which one to apply the brakes on, i.e. intervene in human relationships. Each of us must decide how much we value human connection in our own lives and in the lives of our neighbors.
F
Or, for those who remember the early days of the survival horror genre, its aesthetic renaissance in the independent gaming scene was a macabre delight. “Crow County,” “The Closing Shift,” and “Murder House” are all modern paranormal adventures with low-poly 3D visuals and blocky textures. It’s used not only as a visual hook, but as a way to reconnect with the things that scared the likes of Silent Hill and Clock Tower. Get involved first. Fear the Spotlight, the debut title from Cozy Game Pals and new horror-focused publisher Blumhouse Games, is another wonderful, warmly chilling example.
Two girls break into a high school library late at night, looking for specific items. It’s a spirit board that was locked in a display case as part of an exhibit on the occult. Vivian is a bit of a nerd and the library’s star volunteer, while Amy is a charming outsider with an interest in the paranormal. When the two decide to hold a seance in a vacant building, they come into contact not only with the dead, but also with tragic events from the school’s recent past. Then Amy mysteriously disappears.
Creepy atmosphere…fear the spotlight. Photo: Blumhouse Games
As Vivian, you must roam the nightmarishly transformed hallways, searching for your friends and learning more about what happened here 30 years ago. Developer Cozy Game Pals understands that night school is the perfect horror setting. The game features dark, locker-lined hallways, shabby bathrooms, and areas such as a gymnasium and pool that take on an eerie atmosphere when it gets quiet. Empty. As you explore, the game gives you small telltale signs of horror conventions. A creaking door, a flickering light, a glimpse of a face down the hallway, so you know something is watching outside. There’s also a nice use of 1990s technology, such as an overhead projector, a television with a video player, and an ancient PC, which not only provides the setting for the puzzles, but also lets you know that we’re no longer in the 21st century.
Particularly fun are the formal nods to Resident Evil and Silent Hill. Important items in the environment will glow, catching your eye and drawing Vivian’s head to interesting artifacts as you pass by. Puzzles also use familiar conventions and often involve mechanical objects, such as a generator that requires a fuse or a piano that requires a particular song to be played. The use of jerky, low-poly visuals is truly retro, but it has a self-conscious, artistic quality that elevates the look of the game beyond mere nostalgia.
This also applies to the story, which rises above the sometimes shoddy plotting and wooden voice acting common to old-school horror titles. At its core, Fear the Spotlight is a sensitive and emotionally resonant queer love story through which it explores themes of performance and observation. This is a game about the role we play in life and the role that imagination (for better or worse) plays in love and desire. The title Spotlight is both literal and figurative, offering a metaphor for the human gaze: love and bullying, desire and obsession.
This is a short game that can be completed in a few hours and has a slightly lower difficulty level, making it a great entry point into the horror genre for young adults. There’s a nice message at the end thanking players for their time and attention and acknowledging that the game isn’t perfect. Not really, but nothing really. The time I spent with the company was absorbing, eerie, and unexpectedly thought-provoking. Horror offers a distorted, shadowy lens through which to view our lives and learn new things about ourselves and the world, and it’s expertly utilized here. With its focus on love, Fear the Spotlight does more than just scare you.
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Navigating the challenges of modern dating can be overwhelming for single individuals. The uncertainties of how much you have in common with a stranger, whether you share similar values, and if you can open up to them loom large. Game developer Tanat Boozayaangool delves into these questions in Building Relationships, posing an additional intriguing query: What if you were a home?
The title of this dating adventure game is meant to be taken literally. In Building Relationships, players assume the role of the newest bachelorette residing on an island where love could blossom. The primary objective is to build relationships with other island dwellers, including a charismatic tent, a lackluster houseboat, and a flirtatious windmill named Millie. According to Boozayaangool, Millie tends to be a bit forward, catching some off guard.
Inspired by the eccentric pigeon dating sim “Hatoful Boyfriend” from 2011, “Building Relationships” promises a dating parody infused with personal narratives and surrealism. The game unfolds through various dates that lead to intertwined storylines on the island, where players ultimately decide whom to share a picnic with.
In addition to engaging with the island’s inhabitants through their unique personalities, players can freely explore the environment. Along the way, they encounter talking treasure chests that enhance mobility and fishing spots where they unearth humorous “carp” (referred to as cars in jest). Boozayaangool aimed to infuse the gameplay with a sense of playful exploration in a compact open-world setting, drawing inspiration from the emotive indie gem “A Short Hike”.
The gritty, low-poly art style of the island adventure pays tribute to the origins of Building Relationships as a college game jam creation. The scenery is adorned with cylindrical trees and jagged rocks cloaked in low-res textures, delivering a nostalgic visual style that complements the contemplative ambiance.
Despite the game’s uplifting visual appeal and its inclusion in June’s Wholesome Games Direct, a celebration of non-violent indie gaming, Boozayaangool refrains from labeling it solely as a feel-good experience. Reflecting on the personal themes embedded in the narrative, they acknowledge the underlying emotional challenges of building relationships: “For a seemingly lighthearted game, there’s unexpected depth waiting to be uncovered.”
Without divulging too much, Boozayaangool encourages players to brace themselves for the emotional complexities inherent in the dating journey depicted in the game: “Despite its whimsical facade, there’s a surprising amount of substance to explore.”
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