Science News: NASA Artemis III Crew Announced, Brain Mapping Breakthrough, and More
NASA Artemis III Crew Announced
NASA has announced the four-person crew for the Artemis III mission, including NASA astronauts Andre Douglas, Randy Bresnik, and Frank Rubio, along with ESA astronaut Luca Parmitano. The mission will test integrated operations between the Orion spacecraft and one or more components in low Earth orbit.
Read more: Artemis III Crew Announced
World's Largest Opioid Review Finds They Often Don't Work
A comprehensive review of opioids for acute pain found that these commonly prescribed medications often provide only small, short-lived benefits, with many patients experiencing no better outcomes than placebo for conditions including certain surgeries and kidney stone pain, while facing higher risks of side effects and dependence.
Read more: World's largest opioid review finds they often don't work
Scientists Mapped Every Neural Connection in a Fruit Fly and Found a Surprise
Researchers have completed the first full connectome mapping of an adult fruit fly's central nervous system, revealing that complex behaviors emerge from distributed local circuits rather than centralized control—a finding that challenges traditional assumptions about how brains coordinate movement, sensation, and cognition.
Read more: Scientists mapped every neural connection in a fruit fly and found a surprise
An Invisible Forever Chemical Rain Is Falling Across the Planet
Researchers have discovered that refrigerants and anesthetic gases used to protect the ozone layer have generated over 335,000 tonnes of trifluoroacetic acid (TFA), a persistent 'forever chemical' now found in rainwater and Arctic ice worldwide.
Read more: An invisible forever chemical rain is falling across the planet