Cosmos Magazine

Cosmos Magazine is an award-winning literary science magazine, published in Australia but with a global reach. Cosmos Magazine presents the exciting world of science in a way that everyone can enjoy, with beautiful pictures and clear explanations of the latest developments. Discover the universe around you and what makes it tick.

From the Executive Director

Science in the wild

From the Editors

Cosmos Magazine

First results from Hayabusa’s Ryugu asteroid sample • After a 5 billion km journey, Hayabusa’s treasure hunt yields clues to the origin of Earth’s water and organic material.

Fossilised dinosaur egg shows embryo preparing to hatch like a bird • An exquisitely preserved oviraptorosaur embryo suggests modern birds’ pre-hatching behaviour originated with dinosaurs.

60 MILLION ICEFISH NESTS FOUND IN ANTARCTICA • Massive fish breeding colony discovered in the chilly Weddell Sea.

The science of wicket soil • What makes Australia such a good place to play cricket?

Parker Solar Probe becomes first spacecraft to touch the Sun • NASA probe has made humanity’s first true visit to a star.

THE LONGEST EVER LIGHTNING STRIKE • This new world record was no flash in a pan.

Toxic showdown: ancient primates vs venomous snakes • An ancient primate ancestor evolved resistance to snake venom – and passed it down to us!

FOCUS: MEDICAL TECHNOLOGY

GOOD BOY! DOG BRAINS UNDERSTAND DIFFERENCE BETWEEN SPANISH AND HUNGARIAN • New research shows canine comprehension of different languages.

Why would you drop 27 seismometers on the ocean floor? • And now they’re there… how do you get them back?

TASMANIAN DEVILS PUZZLE SCIENCE WITH PICKY EATING HABITS • Our champion scavengers are creatures of taste, apparently.

Quantum batteries a step closer with superabsorption breakthrough • Research gets us closer to super-fast charging batteries.

Early footprints re-analysed as bipedal hominin’s • It appears our early ancestors were more diverse than we thought, and co-existed with each other.

Mysterious object unlike anything astronomers have seen before • What to make of a newly discovered pulsing radiation source?

ALL POINTS QUESTION

How to use drones responsibly in Kakadu • Indigenous-led guidelines are necessary for conservation technology.

BISON SCIENTISTS UNCOVER 1,000-YEAR-OLD ROCK CARVINGS • Ancient archaeological find in Canada uncovered by wallowing bison.

More megafires loom in Australia’s future • Nine decades of fire data reveals we are increasingly in danger of widespread bushfires.

Three separate attacks are the first confirmed blue whale deaths by killer whales • Australian researchers report the first documented killing of an adult blue whale by orcas.

THE DOUBLE-THREAT COPPER SURFACE THAT KILLS BACTERIA IN MINUTES • Australian nanotechnologists are mounting a new challenge to antibiotic resistance.

Risks and rewards of aluminium in solar panels • Aluminium could become a big PV polluter, but it’s also easy to recycle.

INCREDIBLY RARE BOTANICAL EVENT CAPTURED IN AMBER • These entombed ancient sprouts pose intriguing questions for biologists.

Quantum spin liquid observed in physics first • Researchers finally document never-seen-before state of matter.

*Record scratch*: maybe there actually IS liquid water on Mars? • There is, there isn’t, there is, there isn’t… what’s the deal with liquid water on the red planet?

A new view of distant galaxies • The James Webb space telescope is in position and, as Rebecca Allen explains, it promises a clearer view – and deeper understanding – of the origins of the cosmos.

Empowering our energy future • Australia has the...