Transfer of command comes ahead of an unprecedented medical evacuation ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏
January 13, 2026—Most probiotic supplements are overhyped. Plus, sonic waves that stop fire, and astronomers discover a "failed galaxy." —Andrea Gawrylewski, Chief Newsletter Editor | | The "failed galaxy" Cloud-9. The diffuse magenta represents radio data that shows the presence of gas. The dashed circle marks the peak of radio emission, which is where researchers focused their search for stars. NASA, ESA, VLA, Gagandeep Anand (STScI), Alejandro Benitez-Llambay (University of Milano-Bicocca) (science); Joseph DePasquale (STScI) (image processing) | | Share your thoughts: What are you most excited for in space news in 2026? We're gathering reader ideas to be posted on our website: click here and scroll down to the tan box near the bottom and click "Join the Discussion." | | When you pop a pill that's filled with "good bacteria," it's typically under the assumption that it will confer some health benefits. But the research isn't as sure as probiotic marketing teams are. Some specific probiotics are proven to help people with certain conditions, but for now, many researchers agree that there isn't sufficient evidence showing that probiotics help the average person. What you should know: Your body is already naturally full of trillions of microorganisms that help you digest, and their populations are maintained by eating healthy foods. Researchers say that, for most people, adding fiber, yogurt and fermented foods to their diet is the best way to maintain gut health. Some conditions, including a rare disease affecting premature infants, and a side effect of a treatment for Crohn's, can be prevented or improved by taking probiotics. But for conditions with broader underlying causes, like IBS, the evidence isn't as strong that probiotics can help. What the experts say: Research on next-generation probiotics may soon offer solutions that are more personalized. "The goal is to move from a one-size-fits-all supplement model toward precision microbiome interventions, where specific strains are matched to specific health problems," says Yosra Helmy, a microbiologist at the University of Kentucky. —Emma Gometz, newsletter editor | | How it works: The key ingredients for a fire are heat, fuel and oxygen. Take one of these away, and the flames are extinguished. Sound waves can stifle a fire by vibrating the oxygen molecules faster than the fuel can use them, preventing the fire from getting the air it needs to burn. Sonic fire prevention sounds like it should be louder than it is—the tech uses infrasound, which is inaudible to people and travels farther than higher-frequency waves.
What the experts say: Technology that uses sound to fight fires has been in the works for decades, from projects at George Mason University to the U.S Department of Defense. "Acoustic influence on flames is well known in combustion," says Albert Simeoni, head of the department of fire protection engineering at Worcester Polytechnic Institute in Massachusetts. As for Sonic Fire Tech, some Californians will give its pilot installations a go in 2026. —E.G. | | | | |
Limited Space Available for 2026 Mediterranean Eclipse Cruise | | Join us! We secured additional cabins for our 2026 solar eclipse cruise. Reserve yours now for the experience of a lifetime: watching totality approach while surrounded by the sea, fellow science lovers and your trip leader, Senior Editor Clara Moskowitz. | | | | |
- See if you can reassemble this image. It shows the damaged heat shield of NASA's Orion spacecraft, which eroded more than expected during the Artemis I lunar test flight in 2024. This is among the reasons the Artemis program's next phase was rescheduled to this year.
| | Historically, most of what astronomers learned about the universe came from observations of visible light. But some of the most revealing discoveries now come from its darkest places. A so-called "failed galaxy" that lacks stars shows how incomplete a light-centric view of the cosmos can be—and how much of the universe's structure is shaped by what we can't see at all. For more science on the dark universe, check out this special edition of the magazine from 2024. | | —Andrea Gawrylewski, Chief Newsletter Editor
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