thedebrief.org

1 week ago | thedebrief.org | Micah Hanks

Scientists say Earth’s oceans are slowly getting darker, according to new findings that reveal a concerning trend affecting the largest bodies of water that cover our planet. According to the new findings, nearly one-fifth of the global ocean has darkened within the past two decades. This phenomenon is being driven by changes in the optical properties of ocean water, which spans more than 75 million square miles of the Earth’s surface.

1 week ago | thedebrief.org | Micah Hanks

Stunning new deep-field imagery captured by NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope has revealed one of the most distant known galaxies observed by astronomers. Formed just 280 million years after the Big Bang—a blink of the eye at cosmic timescales—the new imagery of galaxy cluster Abel S1063 provides astronomers with an unprecedented look at some of the earliest galaxies to have formed in our universe.

1 week ago | thedebrief.org | Micah Hanks

Researchers studying an ancient form of writing used by the Incas in pre-Columbian South America have unraveled new clues to a longstanding mystery. The research, undertaken by Professor Sabine Hyland at the University of St. Andrews, reveals that the enigmatic form of communication, known as quipu (also written as khipu), helped record observations of the ancient climate during the height of the Incan Empire.

1 week ago | thedebrief.org | Ryan Whalen

Antarctic research is advancing thanks to a new krypton-81 ice-dating technique that deepens our understanding of how the paleoclimate changed over millions of years. In a unique blend of quantum physics and glaciology, Professors Zheng-Tian Lu and Wei Jiang from the University of Science and Technology of China (USTC) led the development of the new All-Optical Atom Trap Trace Analysis technique.

1 week ago | thedebrief.org | Ryan Whalen

NASA’s Perseverance rover recently captured images of itself alongside a distant Martian dust devil, in a selfie taken by the robotic explorer at Witch Hazel Hill on the rim of the Jezero Crater. The image, captured on May 10, 2025, celebrated 1,500 Martian days since the lander first touched down in February 2021. Over the last five months, Perseverance has been exploring the Witch Hazel Hill locality in pursuit of fresh stone samples.