Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Museum of Science @museumofscience.bsky.social · 9m

Earth's magnetic field is generated by the motion of molten iron in the outer core. It creates a protective magnetosphere that deflects high-energy solar wind particles and cosmic radiation away from the surface. 🧪

#SpaceWeek #Earth #Space #Science #FunFact

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Museum of Science @museumofscience.bsky.social · 20h

Captured by the Gemini South Telescope in Chile’s clear, dark skies, this rare image shows one of our last good views before the comet moves behind the Sun. Scientists expect it to reappear later this year.

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Museum of Science @museumofscience.bsky.social · 20h

Could a comet from another solar system be flying past us right now? ☄️🧪

Comet 3I/ATLAS is only the third interstellar object ever spotted in our solar system. It’s an icy traveler that likely formed in a distant star system and has been drifting through space for billions of years.

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Museum of Science @museumofscience.bsky.social · 21h

Your brain is wired to notice the bad more than the good...

This is called negativity bias. It’s rooted in the amygdala, which helps us spot danger — but it also makes us dwell on criticism and overlook good news.

Do you ever notice this happening in your own thinking? 🧠

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Museum of Science @museumofscience.bsky.social · 22h

Astronauts describe the smell of space as metallic, which can be attributed to single oxygen atoms clinging to their suits and recombining into ozone during repressurization. 🧪

#SpaceWeek #Smell #Astronaut #FunFact

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Museum of Science @museumofscience.bsky.social · 1d

The Sun is so massive that you could fit about 1.3 a million Earths inside it. Thanks to its immense volume and gravitational pull, it's the powerhouse at the center of our solar system.

How many would you have guessed? ☀️🌎🧪

#SpaceWeek #Earth #Sun #FunFact

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Museum of Science @museumofscience.bsky.social · 1d

This weekend we celebrated Hispanic Heritage Month with a day filled with cultural connections and bilingual science programs! From inspiring stories to hands-on science, we honored the incredible contributions of the Hispanic community in STEM and beyond.

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Museum of Science @museumofscience.bsky.social · 1d

What’s the weirdest science fact you know? 🤔

We’ll go first…

There’s a jellyfish that can live forever. ♾️🪼
Meet Turritopsis dohrnii: when it’s hurt or stressed, it doesn’t die… it rewinds its life cycle and starts over as a baby. Again and again.

Now it’s your turn!👇

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Museum of Science @museumofscience.bsky.social · 2d

Wetlands built by beavers store several times as much carbon as nearby forests and help mitigate wildfires and droughts. They even naturally filter water, making these habitats crucial for both wildlife and humans.

This project is part of IF/THEN®, an initiative of Lyda Hill Philanthropies.

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Museum of Science @museumofscience.bsky.social · 2d

Beavers don’t just build dams, they build entire ecosystems. 🦫🦺🧪

@thenatureeducator.bsky.social shows how these incredible engineers transform entire landscapes by creating wetlands that raise water tables, slow floods, and support thriving biodiversity.

Watch the full video here:

How Beavers Build Entire Ecosystems

YouTube video by Museum of Science

www.youtube.com

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Museum of Science @museumofscience.bsky.social · 3d

When light shines through its feathers, the brown pigment underneath is revealed. If those feathers are ground down, the delicate structures break apart, and the blue vanishes completely.

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Museum of Science @museumofscience.bsky.social · 3d

Blue jays are not truly blue, they just look that way. 🪶🧪

Most colors in nature come from pigments that absorb and reflect light, but a blue jay creates its color through structural tricks: microscopic layers and air pockets that scatter blue light back to our eyes.

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Museum of Science @museumofscience.bsky.social · 3d

Your saliva makes liters of spit every day… 🤯👅

On average, you produce about 0.5–1.5 liters daily. Over a lifetime, that’s more than 5,000 gallons — enough to fill a small backyard pool. 🏊‍♂️

And yes, you swallow most of it 😬

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Museum of Science @museumofscience.bsky.social · 3d

Launched by the Soviet Union in 1957, Sputnik became the first human-made object to orbit Earth, marking the dawn of the Space Age and proving we could reach beyond our atmosphere.

What space innovation do YOU think is next? 🚀🧪

#Sputnik #SpaceRace #Space #Rocket

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Museum of Science @museumofscience.bsky.social · 4d

If you could travel at the speed of light, where’s the first place you’d go? ⚡🌌

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Museum of Science @museumofscience.bsky.social · 5d

This was done using nanocrystals that bend light to
produce dazzling colors without plastic or toxins
… a sparkly fit for the Life of a Showgirl.

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Museum of Science @museumofscience.bsky.social · 5d

Researchers at the University of Cambridge have
created a new glitter from cellulose, the same plant-
based material that gives fruits and vegetables their
structure.

Sustainable glitter, are you ready for it? ✨

#TLOASG #TaylorSwift #Glitter #Research
#Science

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Museum of Science @museumofscience.bsky.social · 5d

Objects like strawberries are color diagnostic, meaning we’ve seen them so often in one color that our brain pre-fills it, even when it’s missing.

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Museum of Science @museumofscience.bsky.social · 5d

A pixel-by-pixel color analysis reveals no red at all, yet your brain still sees it. @alexdainis.bsky.social tells us how this is called the memory color effect. The brain uses past experiences to influence what you perceive.

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Museum of Science @museumofscience.bsky.social · 5d

Would you be surprised to learn the strawberries in this picture aren’t actually red? 🍓🧪

Watch the full video here: www.youtube.com/watch?v=RldM...

Your Brain Invents Color You Don’t See

YouTube video by Museum of Science

www.youtube.com

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Museum of Science @museumofscience.bsky.social · 5d

Energy isn’t lost, it’s transformed, often into heat that escapes into the environment, thanks to the laws of thermodynamics.

How do you conserve energy? ♻️🧪

#EnergyEfficiencyDay #Energy #Waste #STEM

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Museum of Science @museumofscience.bsky.social · 5d

These shooting stars come from Comet 21P/Giacobini-Zinner, and some may flare as bright fireballs, shining through even a nearly full moon. This is one of the few showers best seen right after sunset, perfect for early evening stargazing.

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Museum of Science @museumofscience.bsky.social · 5d

While it usually delivers just a few shooting stars an hour, this year could bring a rare burst of up to 400 meteors per hour for viewers in Asia and the Western Pacific.

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Museum of Science @museumofscience.bsky.social · 5d

You could see up to 400 meteors per hour! 🌠

The Draconid Meteor Shower returns October 6 - October 10 and is visible across the Northern Hemisphere.

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Museum of Science @museumofscience.bsky.social · 6d

Learn more about Dr. Samantha Thi Porter and more IF/THEN Women here: www.mos.org/discover/if-...

IF/THEN Collection

The IF/THEN® Collection is a library of videos, photos, and educational materials featuring women STEM innovators. There are examples of engineers, biologists, chemists, and more sharing their experie...

www.mos.org

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