Most Popular Science News

BEIJING - A Chinese scholar persecuted during the Cultural Revolution for smuggling a rare collection of mushrooms out of China before World War II was honored Saturday when the collection was returned more than 70 years later.

Editor's Note: This is Part 6 in a 10-part LiveScience series on the origin, evolution and future of the human species and the mysteries that remain to be solved.

The long-defunct Phoenix Lander is covered in frost on the frozen Martian wasteland, as seen in new images taken from orbit.

The small earthquakes that sporadically rattle the central United States may actually be aftershocks from a few extremely large quakes that occurred in the region almost 200 years ago, according to a new study

A small chunk of space trash made an uncomfortably close pass by the International Space Station late Friday, but not close enough to force the astronauts aboard to take shelter in their Russian lifeboats.

The European Alps are both growing and shrinking, with two dynamic processes acting against each other for a net effect of ... nothing.

When a NASA spacecraft rammed into the moon in October, it tossed up a hard-to-see plume of lunar material.

Striking new photos of water-vapor geysers erupting from Saturn's moon Enceladus were beamed to Earth this week by NASA's Cassini spacecraft in orbit around the ringed planet.

From their very first days, the cries of newborns already bear the mark of the language their parents speak, scientists now find.

The world's largest cruise ship is making its first transatlantic crossing from Finland to Fort Lauderdale, Fla., where it will make its U.S. debut. Though colossal, the ship relies on the same physical principles as its smaller brethren to stay afloat.

ST. ANDREWS, Scotland - Finance officials from rich and developing countries pledged Saturday to maintain emergency support for their economies until recovery is assured, but failed to reach a clear agreement to bear the cost of fighting climate change.

LOS ANGELES - A Seattle team has collected a $900,000 prize in a NASA-backed competition to develop the concept of an elevator to space — an idea spurred by science fiction novels.

BEIJING - A Chinese scholar persecuted during the Cultural Revolution for smuggling a rare collection of mushrooms out of China before World War II was honored Saturday when the collection was returned more than 70 years later.

ST ANDREWS, Scotland (AFP) - G20 nations fell short of reaching agreement on climate finance a month before key UN talks, while pledging Saturday to maintain stimulus measures for a still "uneven" global economy.

TAIPEI (AFP) - Taiwanese breeders said Saturday they are hoping to make huge profits from a rare species of ornamental shrimp after a pair sold for 8,500 US dollars at auction.

Editor's Note: This is Part 6 in a 10-part LiveScience series on the origin, evolution and future of the human species and the mysteries that remain to be solved.

A small chunk of space trash made an uncomfortably close pass by the International Space Station late Friday, but not close enough to force the astronauts aboard to take shelter in their Russian lifeboats.

LONDON (AFP) - The country could face a serious energy crisis unless plans to build new nuclear power stations are implemented, the energy secretary revealed in an interview Saturday.

OAKLAND, Calif. - Shell Oil Co. has been ordered to pay $19.5 million to the state for environmental violations at gas stations around California.

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico - Lower-than-feared sea temperatures this summer gave a break to fragile coral reefs across the Caribbean and the central Gulf of Mexico that were damaged in recent years, scientists said Thursday.