Scientists have reached a milestone in describing how the northern lights work by way of a process called “magnetic reconnection.” The process is best imagined as untangling twisted strands of spaghetti.

Studying algal cultures and seawater samples from the Southern Ocean off Antarctica, marine biologists have revealed a key cog in the biochemical machinery that allows marine algae at the base of the oceanic food chain to thrive. They have discovered a previously unknown protein in algae that grabs an essential but scarce nutrient out of seawater, vitamin B12.

New research studies indicate that the Santa Cruz region produces large earthquakes more frequently than previously thought.