May 6, 2026—Last summer, a tsunami in Alaska took scientists (and boaters) by surprise. Now, geologists know what happened. Plus, some mathematicians want to stop using pi as the circle constant, and the atmosphere hits a grim carbon milestone.

—Andrea Gawrylewski
Chief Newsletter Editor

TODAY'S NEWS

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Alaskan Tsunami Trigger

Last August, a 1,500-foot tsunami rushed out into the dramatic sheer walls of the Tracy Arm fjord which sits to the southeast of Juneau, Alaska. Boat operators 50 miles away noticed very high tides running over sandbars and shorelines along the jagged coast and wondered what to make of it.

What happened: In the days that followed, geologic researchers examined seismic and satellite data and aerial imagery and determined that 2.26 billion cubic feet of earth had collapsed at the South Sawyer Glacier, which sits at the head of the fjord. The glacier has thinned and retreated dramatically in the last 25 years. In the spring and summer of 2025, the ice retreated inland several hundred feet at the base of the collapsed slope, exposing most of the rock that ultimately caused a landslide just days before the sudden collapse. The big landslide triggered a tsunami that reached more than 1,500 feet up the side of the fjord and sloshed back and forth like bathtub water, creating a seismic “ringing” that could be detected around the world for up to 36 hours.

Why this matters: The big slide produced a seismic signal equivalent to a magnitude 5.4 earthquake, but smaller seismic events occurred at least 24 hours prior, shaking with increasing intensity. “We’d love to identify precursors as early as possible, with the eventual goal of assessing where and when a landslide would occur,” she says. “It’s possible that they occur prior to most slides, but we don’t have enough seismic data to detect them. It’s also possible that they only happen under specific circumstances.”

Below is an excerpt from a recent edition of "Proof Positive," a weekly newsletter by theoretical physicist Manon Bischoff. I think you'll love Manon's approachable way of explaining everyday concepts in math. Sign up here and read it first every week.

Should We Abandon Pi?

“I know it will be called blasphemy by some, but I believe that π is wrong.” With this bold opening statement in a 2001 Mathematical Intelligencer article, mathematician Robert Palais launched a debate that continues to this day.

For many, an attack on pi is tantamount to an attack on all of mathematics! Hardly any other symbol is so strongly associated with the subject. Songs, poems, books and films have been dedicated to pi. The date of the International Day of Mathematics, March 14, is based on the first digits of pi. It is all the more astonishing, then, that Palais has won over quite a few supporters.

Anyone who thinks this is a circle of people who despise mathematics is completely wrong. On the contrary, their passion for the subject drives them to such disruption.

To make one thing clear from the outset: no one in this debate doubts the correct calculation of pi. But Palais argues that it was wrong to choose the value 3.14159... as the fundamental constant of a circle. He believes it would be much more appropriate to use twice that value, a value now known as tau (τ).

Nine years after Palais’s article was published, physicist Michael Hartl posted “The Tau Manifesto” online. In it, he elaborated on and expanded upon Palais’s arguments. “π is a confusing and unnatural choice for the circle constant,” Hartl wrote.

One reason tau is superior to pi:

In mathematics, the radius, not the diameter, is what defines a circle. Therefore, the mathematical constant pi should be defined in terms of its radius, and tau allows you to quickly do that. With it, the circumference of a circle is calculated as: C = τ × r.

One reason pi is superior to tau:

Thousands of years ago, the mathematical constant pi was defined as the ratio of circumference to diameter. One reason for this is that the diameter of a circle is much easier to determine than its radius. Therefore, the formula C = 2πr must be retained.

Read the rest of Manon's article here, and click the link at the top of the article to sign up for Proof Positive to read it first every week.

Join the discussion: Should mathematicians abandon pi? Share your thoughts with other readers in our online discussion here.

WHAT WE'RE READING

Parents are refusing vitamin K shots for their newborns. The babies are dying from brain bleeds. | ProPublica
A team of divers is experimenting with hydrogen to figure out how deep humans can go. | MIT Technology Review
An AI-run public health insurance system in Kenya loaded the highest costs onto the poorest participants, an investigation shows. | Africa Uncensored

For something so abstract, π inspires a surprising devotion in humans. It has its own day on the calendar, it’s been set to music and poetry, and its endless digits have fascinated generations. Why this number, of all numbers? I think it’s because the circle itself feels so fundamental—appearing everywhere from planetary orbits to the significance we ascribe to rings. To know π is to hold a kind of key to that perfect form. Whether you favor π or τ, the debate is really a reminder: even in mathematics, meaning isn’t just calculated—it’s felt.

Which circle constant team are you on? Tell me, and send any comments or feedback on this newsletter to newsletters@sciam.com. We'll be back tomorrow.

—Andrea Gawrylewski, Chief Newsletter Editor

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Solar activity makes space junk crash to Earth faster | NASA just released 12,000 photos from Artemis 2 | What's the best time to see Eta Aquarid meteors?

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May 6, 2026

Taking you out of this world, every day

The Launchpad

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We are halfway through the week, space fans!

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Editor's Note

And that's it for our space update today!

Thanks for sticking with me to the end of this message. Stay tuned for some breaking new science later this week. Also this week, we'll see China's next cargo launch to the Tiangong space station and new information about a NASA Earth mission.

Keep looking up!

Chelsea Gohd

Content Manager, Space.com.