SCIENCE
Science coverage
Today's coverage is mostly centrist. 157 stories in the last 48 hours across 434 outlet reports.
Massive wildfire forces over 220,000 to flee southwest France
A fast-moving blaze in the Gironde region has prompted the evacuation of more than 220,000 residents, including families like Morgane Bonichot’s, as authorities battle flames larger than Paris.
Wildfires scorch western France and central Spain, displacing over a quarter million people
Massive blazes in western France and central Spain have forced more than 250,000 residents to evacuate, with several fatalities reported.
Record-Breaking Wildfires Ravage Southern France and Madrid Region, Displacing Hundreds of Thousands
Massive blazes in France’s Gironde area and the mountains around Madrid have forced over 300,000 people to flee their homes, marking the worst fire season in decades for both countries.
Texas AI Data Centers Spark Pollution Debate as Rural Residents Face New Hazards
A massive AI data center built by OpenAI's partner near Abilene, Texas, is emitting pollutants from a on-site gas plant, leaving nearby residents feeling trapped.
Two Crete firefighters die as wildfire engulfs village amid strong winds
Two Greek firefighters were killed while battling a fast-moving blaze near the village of Krya Vrisi on Crete.
Western Europe Records Hottest June Ever, Second Warmest Globally, Study Shows
June 2026 was the warmest June on record for Western Europe and the second‑hottest June worldwide, according to the Copernicus Climate Change Service.
Kenya Wildlife Service opens urgent probe after 14 elephants found dead near Amboseli
Fourteen elephants discovered dead in the Amboseli region of southern Kenya have prompted an emergency investigation by the Kenya Wildlife Service.
Netanyahu to share new intel on Iran's Pickaxe Mountain nuclear site with Trump
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu plans to brief President Donald Trump on fresh evidence that Iran has moved nuclear centrifuges to the secret Pickaxe Mountain facility and is reviving its missile program.
MIT researcher warns automating Gen Z entry jobs could cripple future talent pipelines
MIT researcher Andrew McAfee cautions that automating entry-level roles for Gen Z may erode the apprenticeship system and weaken firms' future AI talent.
Rand Paul Publishes Fauci’s Private Diaries Revealing Early Lab-Leak Concerns and Policy Missteps
Senator Rand Paul released Dr. Anthony Fauci’s personal diary entries that show he entertained a lab-origin theory and privately criticized mask and testing policies during COVID-19.
Senate subpoenas Fauci for intense hearing on COVID-19 origins and gain-of-function claims
Dr. Anthony Fauci appeared before the Senate Homeland Security Committee after Sen. Rand Paul issued a subpoena, facing questions on the pandemic’s origin and alleged gain-of-function research.
Heat dome blankets central U.S., exposing 70 million to record temperatures
A stationary heat dome is driving temperatures above 100 °F across a swath from Dallas to North Dakota, putting roughly 70 million people under heat advisories.
SpaceX launches 13th Starship test carrying next-gen Starlink V3 satellites
SpaceX lifted off its thirteenth Starship test flight, deploying twenty V3-generation Starlink satellites that will re-enter the atmosphere about twenty minutes later.
Romania shuts both Cernavoda reactors as Danube water levels hit historic lows
Romania’s energy ministry announced the closure of its second Cernavoda nuclear unit, following an earlier shutdown caused by unusually low Danube river flow.
Death toll rises to 41 after landslide devastates Pengshui district in Chongqing
Rescue teams have identified 30 additional victims, bringing the death count from the Pengshui landslide to 41, with 20 people still unaccounted for.
Punjab provinces face rising flood risk as Ravi and Chenab rivers surge
Heavy monsoon rains have flooded large parts of Punjab, killing seven people, including two children, and injuring 20 others.
Australian telehealth clinics push unapproved anti-aging peptides, exposing regulatory gaps
A Four Corners investigation revealed that Australian telehealth wellness clinics are prescribing untested anti-aging peptides, exploiting loopholes in health regulation and putting patients at risk.
Venezuela’s quake aftermath sparks looming health and environmental crises, experts warn
More than a month after the June 24 earthquakes in Venezuela, officials warn that dust, toxic rubble and unsafe water are creating fresh public-health and ecological threats.
Wildfires threaten Bordeaux's wine trade and regional economy
Massive wildfires near Bordeaux have forced evacuations, disrupted tourism and added pressure to an already struggling wine sector.
NASA's hired robot to boost Swift telescope spins out of control
A Katalyst Space spacecraft intended to lift the Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory to a higher orbit has begun tumbling, after two reaction wheels failed and a thruster problem emerged.
Power outage reveals growing strain of data centers on US electric grid
A downed power line near Washington, DC caused more than 3 GW of data center load to drop, extending grid recovery to over 10 minutes and prompting regional flickering lights.
Self-sustaining sargassum blooms turn coastal nuisance into lasting challenge
Massive sargassum mats have become a recurring disaster for Caribbean and Gulf coasts, driven by a feedback loop that fuels their own growth.
Curiosity Rover Captures Vast Field of Polygonal Fractures on Mars
NASA’s Curiosity rover has photographed an extensive area of honeycomb-shaped polygonal fractures while climbing the Valle Grande valley on Mars.
Texas attorney general secures removal of endangered status for dunes sagebrush lizard
A settlement with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has nullified the 2024 endangered listing of the dunes sagebrush lizard after a lawsuit filed by Attorney General Ken Paxton.
NASA astronaut Chris Williams and crew land safely after 241-day ISS mission
NASA astronaut Chris Williams returned to Earth with Russian cosmonauts Sergey Kud-Sverchkov and Sergei Mikaev after a 241-day stay on the International Space Station.
Two previously unknown Augustine sermons authenticated from a 12th-century manuscript
A medieval codex examined by Latin scholar Christian Tornau has yielded two sermons attributed to St. Augustine, marking the first such discovery in 1,600 years.
NASA-backed Flight to Sample Giant Wildfire ‘Fire Clouds’ Launches from Colorado
A Gulfstream V based in Colorado will soon fly into towering pyrocumulonimbus clouds over Oregon to collect fresh smoke samples for a NASA-led study.
Burnham tells Trump UK will take pragmatic stance on North Sea drilling
Prime Minister Andy Burnham said he promised President Donald Trump a practical approach to North Sea oil and gas, while facing mixed pressure from unions and his own party.
California's coastal waters heat up 4 °C, pushing whales away and drawing sharks near shore
Ocean temperatures off California have risen up to 4 °C above normal, forcing whales and dolphins to leave, starving seabirds and bringing great white sharks closer to beaches.
UKRI cuts threaten closure of Jodrell Bank’s iconic Lovell telescope
The UK Research and Innovation agency has withdrawn £2.8 million in funding, putting the Jodrell Bank Observatory and its Lovell telescope at risk of shutting down by April 2028.
Scientists race to develop vaccine as Central African Ebola outbreak worsens
An Ebola flare-up in Central Africa has triggered urgent vaccine development efforts, with CEPI funding trials and Oxford University advancing its own candidate.
Aerial Survey Uncovers Hundreds of New Ancient Earthworks in the Amazon
A plane equipped with remote-sensing tools detected 396 previously unknown earthworks in a 4,500-km² area of Brazil near the Bolivia-Peru border, suggesting tens of thousands more may lie hidden across the Southwest Amazon.
Human-induced warming makes extreme fire-friendly weather far more common in Spain and France
Scientists say climate change has dramatically increased the odds of hot, dry, windy conditions that fuel wildfires in southwestern France and central Spain.
Wandering Supermassive Black Hole Caught Tearing Apart Star Far from Galaxy Core
NASA’s Swift telescope observed a rare tidal disruption event caused by a million-solar-mass black hole located tens of thousands of light-years from its galaxy’s center.
Strong El Nino threatens heightened weather losses across Asia in 2026
Munich Re warned that a strengthening El Nino will raise the risk of extreme weather and insurance losses throughout the Asia-Pacific region later this year.
JetZero secures $3 billion to launch fuel-saving Z4 blended-wing aircraft
California-based JetZero received a $3 billion loan from the U.S. Export-Import Bank to begin production of its blended-wing-body Z4, a 250-seat plane promising up to 50% lower fuel use.
Ancient Chilean Mummies Yield First Direct Smallpox DNA from Colonial Era
Scientists have extracted variola virus DNA from two 16th-century Chilean mummies, providing the earliest molecular proof of smallpox introduced by Europeans to the Americas.
Assam flood devastates Hiloni Nepali Khuti village, death toll climbs to 78
The village of Hiloni Nepali Khuti in Assam was swept away by the Dikhow River after heavy rains, while the state death toll rose to 78.
Study links taking five or more prescriptions to sharply higher death risk in seniors
Research published in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society finds that older adults who use five or more prescription drugs face a markedly higher chance of dying than those on fewer medications.
Strong El Niño threatens global economies and food security amid rising tensions
A record-strength El Niño is intensifying worldwide weather extremes, prompting governments and aid agencies to brace for costly agricultural disruptions and heightened geopolitical strain.
Suffolk Coast Wildfire Escalates Into Major Incident, Hundreds of Firefighters Mobilized
A wind-driven blaze on Suffolk’s coastal heath has been declared a major incident, with about 90 firefighters battling the flames.
AI Adoption Slows Wage Growth for Low-Paid Workers, Study Finds
A new Apollo Global Management white paper shows that AI exposure has trimmed real wage growth for many occupations, especially low-income workers, while having no clear effect on overall employment.
Environmental defender kidnapped in Michoacán, sparking renewed fear among activists
José Luis Silva Andrade, a forest defender from Agua Fría, was seized on July 15 after investigating illegal logging, prompting heightened alarm among local environmentalists.
Tri-species predator showdown frozen in 100-million-year-old Queensland fossils
Fossils from north-west Queensland reveal a three-species predation event in the ancient Eromanga Sea, showing an ichthyosaur with pterosaur remains later attacked by a kronosaurus.
NSW funds $225 million upgrade to boost South West Renewable Energy Zone capacity
The New South Wales government is allocating $225 million to upgrade the Dinawan substation and a transmission line, expanding capacity to support new wind and solar projects.
Germany approaches 10,000 heat-related deaths as record June temperatures hit
Germany's heat-related mortality is estimated at nearly 10,000 this year, the highest total since 2016, according to the Robert Koch Institute.
EPA moves to scrap controversial ethylene-oxide sterilizer rule amid supply-chain concerns
The EPA's 2024 regulation limiting ethylene-oxide emissions from medical sterilizers was delayed and is now slated for repeal after warnings it could harm U.S. medical supply chains.
Wisconsin venom collector's blood aids experimental antivenom for dozens of snakes
A self-taught herpetologist from Wisconsin who repeatedly injected himself with snake venom has provided blood that helped scientists create an experimental antivenom protecting mice from 19 venomous species.
Iowa and Missouri sue New York over out-of-state greenhouse-gas rule
Iowa, Missouri and a free-market group have filed a federal lawsuit challenging New York’s greenhouse-gas reporting regulation that they say unlawfully reaches producers outside the state.
Gaza's beekeepers battle to revive hives amid ruined fields and blocked farms
After two years of conflict, Gaza's beekeepers face near-total loss of hives and farmland, forcing them to improvise on rooftops and rely on costly supplies.
Live Eagle Nest Sparks $10 Million Drive to Safeguard Big Bear Forest
A livestream of bald eagle parents Jackie and Shadow and their new chicks has drawn global viewers, while the nonprofit Friends of Big Bear Valley races to raise $10 million by July 31 to buy nearby forest land threatened by development.
Commonwealth Fusion Systems secures another $1 billion to push fusion ahead
Fusion startup Commonwealth Fusion Systems announced a fresh $1 billion financing round, adding to its total of $4 billion raised to date.
Shorter daily eating windows may boost cognition in older women
A six-month pilot study found that women aged 50-79 who ate within an 8-9-hour window showed better performance on planning and problem-solving tests than those who ate over 12 hours, despite similar weight loss.
River otters kill dozens of brown pelicans at Point Reyes, birds begin fleeing
Scientists documented 73 brown pelican deaths by river otters at Abbotts Lagoon and observed that the birds are starting to fly away when otters approach.
H5N1 bird flu confirmed in Victoria after infected tern found near Portland
A greater crested tern near Portland tested positive for the deadly H5N1 strain, marking the virus's first detection in Victoria.
Seven English regions declared in drought after record-dry July
The Environment Agency has officially listed seven areas of England as being in drought following an exceptionally dry summer, with rainfall in July at just 7% of normal and only 1% in the south.
Robotic shark-watcher to patrol California coast and feed lifeguards real-time data
Scientists at California State University, Long Beach have built a semi-autonomous robot that will monitor great-white sharks offshore and relay live information to beach safety teams.
Wales faces nation-wide drought as July heads toward record dryness
Natural Resources Wales has declared an environmental drought across the entire country, citing unprecedented heat and falling river levels.
Mexican Fossils Reveal Ten-Million-Year Evolutionary 'Holding Pen' Before Great American Migration
New fossil evidence shows Mexico acted as a long-term evolutionary bottleneck for mammals before the Panamanian land bridge linked North and South America.
Two Men Detained Over Illegal Welding Linked to Spain's Largest Recent Wildfire
The Civil Guard in Toledo arrested a 51-year-old and a 42-year-old suspected of igniting the Almorox blaze after conducting prohibited welding in a forested area.