With accessible features illustrated with the world’s best photography, BBC Focus Magazine explains the theory behind scientific phenomena and really brings science to life. In every issue you’ll find news of the latest major scientific developments, a lively Q&A section plus exclusive and astonishing photographic reports that range from the breathtaking to the downright odd.
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HUBBLE SPOTS NEW ATMOSPHERE FORMING ON EARTH-LIKE EXOPLANET • The planet may have lost its previous atmosphere and is now forming a new one, thanks to volcanic activity
Frozen plant fossils hint at catastrophic future ice melts • Long-lost ice core provides evidence of a massive melt during a previous period of warming
Good month Bad month
Cuttlefish exercise self-control, demonstrating a link between willpower and intelligence • The quick-learning cephalopods proved their intelligence in an adapted version of the Stanford marshmallow experiment
In numbers
Neanderthals could talk like humans, study suggests
Lab-grown organoids shed light on great apes’ brain growth • ‘Mini brains’ provide clues to size difference in human, gorilla and chimpanzees’ brains
Weightlessness could decrease astronauts’ ability to recognise emotions in crew mates
Teenage T. rexes bested smaller rivals • The theory could explain why medium-sized dino fossils are so rare
Smart contact lenses may soon monitor your eye health in real time • The technology has been awarded a patent and will soon be ready for clinical trials
Scientists grow tear glands in a lab – before making them cry • The ‘organoids’ teared up as part of a study looking to stop dry eye diseases
‘Solar-powered sea slugs’ can detach their heads and grow a whole new body in weeks • The finding is an extreme example of autotomy – an animal’s ability to shed part of its body when under threat
MC Hammer’s 1990 hit U Can’t Touch This played to baby fish
Marathon dive to the bottom of the Mariana Trench finds new species of isopod
Lip-syncing robot gets one step closer to crossing the uncanny valley • The researchers used a combination of speech synthesis, machine learning and 3D-printing techniques to create a robot that accurately emulates the natural movements of the human jaw, lips and tongue
EYE IN THE SKY • AS THE JAMES WEBB SPACE TELESCOPE READIES FOR ITS LAUNCH LATER THIS YEAR, WE TAKE A LOOK AT HOW THIS HUBBLE SUCCESSOR WILL ECLIPSE ITS PREDECESSOR
THE TELESCOPE IN FOCUS • THE JAMES WEBB SPACE TELESCOPE WILL IMAGE THE LITTLE KNOWN PLACES IN THE MILKY WAY AND BEYOND. HERE ARE JUST A FEW OF THE THINGS IT HOPES TO SEE AND THE TECH IT WILL USE TO SEE THEM…
RISING OUT OF THE ABYSS • On land, the highest mountains reach up to the sky and their slopes are blanketed with cloud. In the ocean, the tallest peaks stretch towards the surface and their sides are swathed in plankton. Let’s explore the hidden world of seamounts…
SEARCHING FOR SEAMOUNTS
INSIDE INFORMATION • Muon tomography is a non-invasive investigation technique made possible by particles travelling through space at almost the speed of light. And it’s revealing secrets buried deep inside ancient pyramids and volcanoes
STRUCTURAL INTEGRITY
CONQUERING THE UNDERGROUND EVEREST • The Dark Star cave system in a remote corner of Uzbekistan might one day be crowned the ‘world’s deepest cave’. Hidden inside the subterranean labyrinth lie geological...
