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This week, scientists discovered the biggest collection of whale fossils deep in the Indian Ocean, protocols for what happens if we ever find alien life got their first upgrade in 16 years, chromosomes from frozen rats have been resurrected in live mice, NASA announced the crew of Artemis III – who will not be going to the Moon – and we delve deeper into the pseudoscience of astrology.
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Earliest Evidence For Fire Use Suggests Homo Erectus May Have Transported Flames 1.79 Million Years Ago
Long before humans figured out how to make fire from scratch, they learned to transport burning embers from wildfires into their caves, where they kept the flame burning for as long as they could. New evidence from Wonderwerk Cave in South Africa suggests this practice may have begun almost 1.8 million years ago, around 700,000 years earlier than thought. Read the full story here
Biggest, Deepest Whale Graveyard Ever Found Contains Nearly 500 Whales, With Some As Old As 5 Million Years
Deep below the surface of the Indian Ocean, way beyond where sunlight reaches, scientists aboard a mini-submarine discovered the deepest, oldest, and largest accumulation of whale fossils and carcasses ever found, including new extinct species. It is one of the most extraordinary underwater discoveries of the past century, and it could spark a paradigm shift in the way we understand life in the deep. Read the full story here
Global "Post-Detection Protocols" For Disclosing Alien Life Just Got Their First Major Update In 16 Years
If we found evidence of extraterrestrial life, how should we tell the world? The “post-detection protocols” for announcing the discovery and existence of alien life have just had their first major update in 16 years, though the all-important "no reply" rule remains in place. Read the full story here
DNA From Dead-Rat Popsicles Frozen For Over A Year Successfully Creates Living Chimeras. Could We Do The Same With Mammoths?
Scientists have successfully demonstrated that chromosomes from dead animals can be brought back to life by inserting them into mouse embryos. The novel approach resurrected chromosomes from frozen rats and created mouse chimeras, with multiple tissue groups being influenced by the introduced genetic material. Is this how we bring mammoths back? Read the full story here
"Earth's First Starfleet": NASA Announces The Crew Of Artemis III, The Astronauts Who Will Also Not Go Around The Moon
NASA has announced the crew for Artemis III, the next stage of the US space program's attempt to deliver humans back to the surface of the Moon. Whilst Artemis III was originally slated to land on the Moon's south pole, that is no longer the case. Nevertheless, the crew will have an interesting mission ahead of them, even if it isn't as fun as the Artemis II mission, nor the upcoming Artemis IV and V. Read the full story here
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Feature of the week:
How Astrology Went From Intellectual Respectability To Pseudoscience
Astrology has been part of human culture for thousands of years; the earliest recorded astrological system dates back to Mesopotamia in the 3rd millennium BCE. Over the centuries, the practice has evolved across different cultures, divining the rise and fall of kingdoms, famines, and political events that shaped nations. Bound up in this story is the genesis of mathematics, astronomy (which was once indistinguishable from astrology), and even medicine. And yet today, this once-respected activity has become something altogether different: a pseudoscientific industry worth $3 billion in the US alone. We spoke to Carlos Orsi, author of What Science Says About Astrology, to find out how we got here. Read the full story here
More content:
Have you seen our e-magazine, CURIOUS? Issue 47, June 2026, is available now. This month, we asked, “Should You Clone Your Pet?” – check it out for exclusive interviews, book excerpts, long reads, and more.
PLUS, the We Have Questions podcast – an audio version of our coveted CURIOUS e-magazine column – continues. In episode 21, we ask, “Are There Plants That Can Photosynthesize By Moonlight?”
Our Break It Down podcast now has a new monthly format, coming at you in both audio and visual. So tune in each month to hear about some of the wildest science stories and adventures we’ve been on. Kick off this month with “Artemis II Records, Neanderthal Not-Hybrids, And Introducing ‘Moon Joy’”
The Big Questions season 6 returns on June 18, 2026, so here's our season 5 bonus episode to tide you over until then: Can Magic Be Used As A Tool In Science? You can catch up on the whole of season 5 here.
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