Dozens of times over the last decade NASA scientists have launched laser beams at a reflector the size of a paperback novel about 240,000 miles (385,000 kilometers) away from Earth. They announced ...

Scientists have found a competitor to the lightning rod — one of the most tried and true methods of controlling where lightning strikes. The new method is far more expensive, but it allowed scientists ...

Breakthroughs, discoveries, and DIY tips sent six days a week. Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. There’s a reason lightning rods haven’t changed much since ...

The properties of dense helium (He) — which happens to be a principal constituent of giant gas planets like Jupiter — at thermodynamic conditions between those of condensed matter and high-temperature ...

Lightning rods have been used to guide lightning strikes for centuries, but now scientists have demonstrated something a bit more advanced than a humble metal stick. Beaming a high-powered laser into ...

Researchers at the University of Basel and the ETH in Zurich have succeeded in changing the polarity of a special ferromagnet using a laser beam. In the future, this method could be used to create ...

Whenever light hits an object, some of the light scatters back from the surface of the object. However, if the object is moving extremely fast, and if the light is incredibly intense, strange things ...

Tubular laser beams can create what amount to fiber-optic cables made of thin air, researchers report in a study to appear in Physical Review X. Laser-heated air can efficiently transmit light signals ...

A new experiment has demonstrated something that sounds physically impossible – light itself casting a shadow. It turns out that if you manipulate a laser just right, then hit it side-on with another ...

Taara started as a Google X moonshot spinoff aimed at connecting rural villages in sub-Saharan Africa with beams of light.