Science: At this week’s annual meeting of the American Geophysical Union in San Francisco, scientists from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration reported that in 2012 the Arctic experienced new record lows for summer sea ice, spring snow cover, and the Greenland ice sheetâmdash;despite the fact that air temperatures were not unusually high this year relative to the past decade. “The Arctic is changing in both predictable and unpredictable ways, so we must expect surprises,” said Jane Lubchenco, NOAA administrator, in a press release. The announcement was based on NOAA’s 2012 Arctic Report Card, which incorporates the work of 141 scientists from 15 countries.
The finding that the Saturnian moon may host layers of icy slush instead of a global ocean could change how planetary scientists think about other icy moons as well.
Modeling the shapes of tree branches, neurons, and blood vessels is a thorny problem, but researchers have just discovered that much of the math has already been done.
January 29, 2026 12:52 PM
Get PT in your inbox
PT The Week in Physics
A collection of PT's content from the previous week delivered every Monday.
One email per week
PT New Issue Alert
Be notified about the new issue with links to highlights and the full TOC.
One email per month
PT Webinars & White Papers
The latest webinars, white papers and other informational resources.