George Smoot , who shared the Nobel Prize for Physics in 2006 for his studies of the cosmic microwave background (CMB), died on 18 September at the age of 80. Smoot’s work on the blackbody form and ...

The world’s best clocks may be sensitive to an odd mix of quantum and relativistic effects that would stretch time and test ...

The ground-shaking that an earthquake generates is only a fraction of the total energy that a quake releases. A quake can ...

WashU physicists build quantum sensors in boron nitride sheets to study magnetism and stress under extreme pressure.

In January I wrote a piece titled “ 5 Physics Equations Everyone Should Know .” Lots of you weighed in with your own ...

Most earthquake energy turns into heat rather than ground shaking, sometimes hot enough to melt rock in microseconds. MIT’s ...

At just 25, Cecilia Payne-Gaposchkin applied quantum physics to a treasure trove of astronomical observations to show that stars are mostly hydrogen and helium.

A recent study offers proof of feasibility for using cosmic radiation detectors to discover underground spaces. The detectors ...

Each mineral in a volcanic deposit is like a microscopic thermometer that records magma chamber temperature over time.

The key test passed by sPHENIX to prove it is ready to measure the properties of quark-gluon plasma is called a "standard candle" in particle physics. This isn't to be confused with Type 1a supernovas ...

Scientists recreated earthquakes in the lab to uncover how quake energy is split between heat, shaking, and rock damage.

MIT scientists have unraveled the hidden energy balance of earthquakes by recreating them in the lab. Their findings show that while only a sliver of energy goes into the shaking we feel on the ...