Geoff Brumfiel

A NASA spacecraft passing by the moon on Monday is carrying 12,000 varieties of yeast. Researchers hope the tiny "yeastronauts" can teach them about how radiation will affect humans in space.

A briefing slide obtained by NPR through the Freedom of Information Act shows that former President Trump tweeted a classified satellite photo in 2019.

More than three years after his tweet, the U.S. government has formally declassified the image from one of its most powerful spy satellites.

New research shows that a type of primate known as an aye-aye loves picking its nose. Researchers say the findings raise interesting questions about why nose-picking is such a common behavior.

Advocates for inoculation are distressed by what they see as a new political focus on an old public health measure.

"You know, this image of Neanderthals being brutes, is not quite accurate," says paleogenticist Laurits Skov. "The more we learn about them, the more like humans they appear to be."

Researchers have uncovered the first Neanderthals that are related to each other. The finding shows that these ancient people lived in clans similar to those of modern humans.

Experts in Russian doctrine worry that as the war in Ukraine gets more desperate, Russia might be tempted to detonate a nuclear weapon.

NASA says its mission to knock an asteroid off course — a test of planetary defense — succeeded beyond its expectations.

President Biden's stark warning about the "tactical" nuclear weapons Russia might use is raising fears of a new crisis. But what are these weapons and how might they be used?

The events on Monday in the Baltic Sea resembled blasts from depth charges or mines, according to a Swedish researcher. They caused major leaks from the inactive Nord Stream pipelines.

Operations at Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant were fully stopped on Sunday as a safety precaution. Russia and Ukraine are accusing each other of shelling the plant.

The head of the world's atomic watchdog warned that the reactors at Zaporizhzhia might have to be shut down. That would start a clock ticking at the site.

The United Nations is calling for a demilitarized zone around a nuclear power plant in southern Ukraine.

The Ukrainian government says the sixth reactor at the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant is now disconnnected from the Ukrainian power grid from Russian attacks.

The international atomic watchdog has been to some of the world's toughest locations, but nothing quite like Europe's largest nuclear power plant in an active war zone.

Inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency arrive today at the troubled Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant to assess damage and establish safety and security conditions.

Conditions at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant in Ukraine are deteriorating as international monitors are hoping to visit the facility in the coming days.

Sweat is essential to keeping humans cool and comfortable, but some insects also need our sweat to survive.

Satellite images and social media analyzed by NPR show attacks have hit structures around the plant, coming dangerously close to causing a nuclear disaster.