SAN ANTONIO — March 12, 2025 — Four small suitcase-sized spacecraft, designed and built by Southwest Research Institute headquartered in San Antonio, launched from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California on March 11. NASA’s Polarimeter to Unify the Corona and Heliosphere, or PUNCH, constellation has spread out in a low-Earth orbit along the day-night line, providing a clear view in all directions for its two-year primary mission.

Tracking targeted drug delivery is often a challenge due to limitations in the current imaging techniques. A recent study by Tokyo’s Waseda University reports a breakthrough imaging technique that allows direct and highly sensitive tracking of gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) inside the body. This novel technique, which uses neutron activation of gold, could revolutionize cancer drug delivery by enabling real-time visualization of the gold nanoparticles without external tracers.

Physicists have created a new computer code that could speed up the design of the complicated magnets that shape the plasma in stellarators, making the systems simpler and more affordable to build.

A research team led by Professor Qiang Zhang from Tsinghua University has published a comprehensive analysis of energy storage technologies critical to China’s power system decarbonization. The study, featured in Technology Review for Carbon Neutrality, examines the multifunctional roles of storage systems across grid segments, evaluates core technologies from ultrashort-duration flywheels to seasonal hydrogen storage, and projects their deployment under cost and regional constraints. The work highlights policy mechanisms to support China’s transition to a carbon-neutral energy economy by 2060.

New research suggests black holes may transition into ‘white holes’, ejecting matter and potentially even time back into the universe, defying our current understanding of these cosmic giants.

When water freezes into ice or boils into vapour, its properties change dramatically at specific temperatures. These so-called phase transitions are fundamental to understanding materials. But how do such transitions behave in nanomaterials? In Nature Communications, a team of scientists led by TU Delft presents new insights into the complex nature of phase transitions in magnetic nanomaterials. Their findings reveal the coupling between magnetic and mechanical properties, paving the way for ultra-sensitive sensors.