The Planet (on, and off)

Cruising at a depth of 8,336 meters (over 27,000 feet) just above the seabed, a young snailfish has become the deepest fish ever filmed by scientists during a probe into the abyss of the northern Pacific Ocean. Scientists from University of Western Australia and Tokyo University of Marine Science and Read more…

America’s Department of Defense is gearing up for a future conflict in space, as China and Russia deploy missiles and lasers that can take out satellites and disrupt military and civilian communications. The White House this month proposed a $30 billion annual budget for the U.S. Space Force, almost $4 Read more…

Paris voted overwhelmingly Sunday to banish for-hire electric scooters from the streets of the French capital, delivering a blow to operators and a victory for road safety campaigners. The referendum means the City of Light, once a pioneer in embracing e-scooter services, is set to become the only major European Read more…

“SpaceX has its first commercial cargo contract to the lunar surface,” says Jaret Matthews, the founder of the tiny startup Astrolab which makes a moon rover the size of a Jeep Wrangler. On Friday, Astrolab announced that it had signed an agreement with SpaceX for its Flexible Logistics and Exploration Read more…

What does a stressed plant sound like? A bit like bubble-wrap being popped. Researchers in Israel report in the journal Cell on March 30 that tomato and tobacco plants that are stressed — from dehydration or having their stems severed — emit sounds that are comparable in volume to normal Read more…

The foodstuff feeds more than half the world — but also fuels diabetes and climate change. According to Indonesian legend, rice was bestowed upon the island of Java by the goddess Dewi Sri. Pitying its inhabitants the blandness of their existing staple, cassava, she taught them how to nurture rice Read more…