The Other Side

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/01/260126231849.htm

Physicists have discovered that hidden magnetic order plays a key role in the pseudogap, a puzzling state of matter that appears just before certain materials become superconductors. Using an ultra-cold quantum simulator, the team found that even when magnetism seems disrupted, subtle and universal magnetic patterns persist beneath the surface. These patterns closely track the temperature at which the pseudogap forms, suggesting magnetism may help set the stage for superconductivity.

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/01/260126231849.htm

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/01/260125083427.htm

For years, scientists noticed that magnetic fields could improve steel, but no one knew exactly why. New simulations reveal that magnetism changes how iron atoms behave, making it harder for carbon atoms to slip through the metal. This slows diffusion at the atomic level and alters steel’s internal structure. The insight could lead to more efficient, lower-energy ways to make stronger steel.

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/01/260125083427.htm

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/01/260125083404.htm

When materials become just one atom thick, melting no longer follows the familiar rules. Instead of jumping straight from solid to liquid, an unusual in-between state emerges, where atomic positions loosen like a liquid but still keep some solid-like order. Scientists at the University of Vienna have now captured this elusive “hexatic” phase in real time by filming an ultra-thin silver iodide crystal as it melted inside a protective graphene sandwich.

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/01/260125083404.htm

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/01/260126075846.htm

Webb’s latest image of the Helix Nebula reveals a dramatic close-up of a dying star shedding its outer layers. The detailed view highlights glowing knots of gas shaped by fast-moving stellar winds colliding with older material. Changes in color trace a shift from scorching hot gas near the center to cooler regions farther out. The scene captures how stellar death helps supply the building blocks for future worlds.

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/01/260126075846.htm

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/01/260126075839.htm

Home fireplaces and wood stoves are quietly driving a large share of winter air pollution, even though only a small number of households rely on wood heat. Researchers found that wood smoke accounts for over one-fifth of Americans’ winter exposure to dangerous fine particles linked to heart disease and early death. Much of this pollution drifts into cities, where it disproportionately harms people of color. Reducing wood burning could deliver major public health benefits.

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/01/260126075839.htm