Redox-driven mineral and organic associations in Jezero Crater, Mars.

The Perseverance rover has explored and sampled igneous and sedimentary rocks within Jezero Crater to characterize early Martian geological processes and habitability and search for potential biosignatures. Upon entering Neretva Vallis, on Jezero Crater's western edge, Perseverance investigated distinctive mudstone and conglomerate outcrops of the Bright Angel formation. Here we report a detailed geological, petrographic and geochemical survey of these rocks and show that organic-carbon-bearing mudstones in the Bright Angel formation contain submillimetre-scale nodules and millimetre-scale reaction fronts enriched in ferrous iron phosphate and sulfide minerals, likely vivianite and greigite, respectively.

Pleistocene terrestrial warming trend in East Asia linked to Antarctic ice sheets growth.

How terrestrial mean annual temperature (MAT) evolved throughout the past 2 million years (Myr) remains elusive, limiting our understanding of the patterns, mechanisms, and impacts of past temperature changes. Here we report a ~2-Myr terrestrial MAT record based on fossil microbial lipids preserved in the Heqing paleolake, East Asia. The increased amplitude and periodicity shift of glacial-interglacial changes in our record align with those in sea surface temperature (SST) records.

Late fluid flow in a primitive asteroid revealed by Lu-Hf isotopes in Ryugu.

Carbonaceous asteroids are the source of the most primitive meteorites and represent leftover planetesimals that formed from ice and dust in the outer Solar System and may have delivered volatiles to the terrestrial planets. Understanding the aqueous activity of asteroids is key to deciphering their thermal, chemical and orbital evolution, with implications for the origin of water on the terrestrial planets. Analyses of the objects, in particular pristine samples returned from asteroid Ryugu, have provided detailed information on fluid-rock interactions within a few million years after parent-body formation.

The oldest known lepidosaur and origins of lepidosaur feeding adaptations.

The Lepidosauria is the most species-rich group of land-dwelling vertebrates. The group includes around 12,000 species of lizards and snakes (Squamata) and one species of Rhynchocephalia, the tuatara Sphenodon punctatus from New Zealand. Squamates owe their success to their generally small size, but also to their highly mobile skull that enables them to manipulate large prey.

An Eocene shallow water isselicrinid sea lilies from the Northern Hemisphere.

Stalked crinoids are uncommon fossils in the Cenozoic. This is particularly due to their continuous decline starting from the Late Cretaceous and gradual restriction to the deep-sea environment, which bears a fossil record bias. On the other hand, in recent times, new data have emerged documenting some relict populations of sea lilies in the shallow marine facies from the Cenozoic.

High-Performance Zirconium Disilicide Ceramics Fabricated via High-Pressure and High-Temperature Sintering.

Zirconium disilicide (ZrSi) ceramics have excellent physical and chemical properties and are employed in aerospace, energy, and chemical industries. Currently, the preparation and properties of ZrSi ceramics have been less studied. To comprehensively study the characteristics of ZrSi ceramics, in this study, dense bulk ZrSi ceramic samples are successfully prepared by the high-pressure-high-temperature (HPHT) sintering technique.

Growth performance, lipid metabolism, gut histoarchitecture and immune and antioxidant related gene expression in juvenile Asian sea bass, Lates calcarifer fed peroxidized lipids with or without dietary selenium nanoparticles.

This study evaluated the effects of dietary recovered frying soybean oil (RFSBO) and selenium nanoparticles (SeNPs) on growth performance, hepatic metabolism, intestinal morphology, and the expression of antioxidant, immune, and growth-related genes in juvenile Asian sea bass (Lates calcarifer, 41.5 ± 0.1 g) reared under high temperature (32-33 °C) and high salinity (38-40 ppt).

Unlocking low NO emissions from nitrate-laden wastewater in constructed wetlands: critical role of pyrrhotite substrate layer in mediating nitrate-dependent sulfide oxidation.

Constructed wetlands (CWs) treating nitrate-rich wastewater often face incomplete denitrification and elevated NO emissions due to insufficient electron donors. Pyrrhotite as a CW substrate demonstrated potential for enhancing autotrophic denitrification through coupled sulfur and iron biological oxidation. However, the impact of pyrrhotite layer positioning on regulating NO emissions and underlying mechanisms remains unclear.

Submicron metal-bearing aerosols from an industrial hub of the North China Plain.

Particulate matter emitted from heavy industries is a major source of atmospheric metals in the North China Plain (NCP). In this study, submicron particles (0.1-1.

Association between metal(loid)s in different biospecimens and dementia: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Metal (loid)s are widely present in the environment and affect human health, especially the central nervous system. Dementia is a syndrome characterized by cognitive decline that can be caused by neurological degeneration. We aimed to review the current state of knowledge with respect to associations between various metal(loid)s in different biospecimens and dementia.

Compositional "plainification" in biodegradable magnesium-rare earth alloys - Achieving well-balanced performance in an ultra-lean Mg-Pr alloy.

Contrary to the traditional strengthening route by adding multiple & high-dosage alloying elements, we here explored extremely compositional and phase-constituent "simplification" in rare earth (RE) containing biodegradable magnesium alloys for better biocompatibility. An ultra-lean Mg-0.1Pr alloy with a multiscale microstructure has been developed through casting and extrusion, which showed well-balanced performances that match the commercial Mg-based orthopedic products.

Remote sensing and image analysis of macro-plastic litter: A review.

Effective reduction of oceanic plastic pollution requires scalable and objective monitoring methods that go beyond traditional human-based surveys. This review synthesizes recent advances in remote sensing and AI-driven image analysis for detecting macro-plastic litter. Peer-reviewed studies published up to 2024 were systematically selected from the Scopus database, focusing on applications of remote sensing platforms including webcams, drones, balloons, aircraft, and satellites for monitoring plastic litter in coastal, riverine, and other aquatic environments.

Spatiotemporal characteristics, drivers, sources, and health risks of nitrate and sulfate in groundwater on the Chinese Loess Plateau.

Groundwater nitrate (NO) and sulfate (SO) pollution in semi-arid regions has attracted widespread attention. However, unveiling the dynamics and sources of NO and SO in regional groundwater is challenging because of complex anthropogenic activities and hydrogeological conditions. This study combined physicochemistry and multiple stable isotopes (δH-HO, δO-HO, δN-NO, δO-NO, δS-SO, and δO-SO) to explore the spatiotemporal patterns, driving factors, sources, and potential health hazards of NO and SO in groundwater on the Loess Plateau, China.

Anthropogenic forcing drives centennial-scale phytoplankton productivity dynamics in the East China Sea revealed by biomarker records.

Anthropogenic climate warming and coastal eutrophication have restructured phytoplankton communities in the East China Sea; however, the centennial-scale dynamics of phytoplankton remain poorly understood. By systematically integrating 33 sediment cores, we reconcile the variations of primary productivity during the last century. The results revealed increased primary productivity during the past century, while the phytoplankton groups showed divergent eco-regional responses: river-dominated estuaries have partially mitigated the dominance of dinoflagellates (1980s) via Changjiang nitrate loading, while potential hypoxic regions shifted earlier (1960s) under thermal forcing and silicate concentration.

Horizontal Gene Transfer and Recombination in Cyanobacteriota.

Cyanobacteria played a pivotal role in shaping Earth's early history and today are key players in many ecosystems. As versatile and ubiquitous phototrophs, they are used as models for oxygenic photosynthesis, nitrogen fixation, circadian rhythms, symbiosis, and adaptations to harsh environments. Cyanobacterial genomes and metagenomes exhibit high levels of genomic diversity partly driven by gene flow within and across species.

Positive Neutrino Masses with DESI DR2 via Matter Conversion to Dark Energy.

The Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI) is a massively parallel spectroscopic survey on the Mayall telescope at Kitt Peak, which has released measurements of baryon acoustic oscillations determined from over 14 million extragalactic targets. We combine DESI Data Release 2 with CMB datasets to search for evidence of matter conversion to dark energy (DE), focusing on a scenario mediated by stellar collapse to cosmologically coupled black holes (CCBHs). In this physical model, which has the same number of free parameters as ΛCDM, DE production is determined by the cosmic star formation rate density (SFRD), allowing for distinct early- and late-time cosmologies.

Geospatial patterns in terrestrial organic matter reactivity across four shelf seas spanning the Eurasian Arctic.

Organic matter stored in Arctic permafrost represents a key component of the carbon cycle, yet its reactivity across heterogeneous continent-scale permafrost regions remains poorly understood. Here, we leverage the four shelf seas of the Eurasian Arctic as integrative receptor systems to evaluate terrestrial organic matter reactivity, assessed by examining organic carbon preservation as a function of C-constrained cross-shelf transport time. Our findings reveal higher reactivity of terrestrial organic matter released to the Laptev Sea and the eastern East Siberian Sea, lower reactivity in the western East Siberian Sea, and no deducible degradation in the Kara Sea.

The weak land carbon sink hypothesis.

Over the past three decades, assessments of the contemporary global carbon budget consistently report a strong net land carbon sink. Here, we review evidence supporting this paradigm and quantify the differences in global and Northern Hemisphere estimates of the net land sink derived from atmospheric inversion and satellite-derived vegetation biomass time series. Our analysis, combined with additional synthesis, supports a hypothesis that the net land sink is substantially weaker than commonly reported.

North Pacific meridional mode has larger impacts on El Niño evolution than the March Madden-Julian Oscillation.

The El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) is a key driver of global climate variability. Early-season westerly wind bursts (WWBs) have long been suggested to be important for ENSO evolution and diversity, with the Madden-Julian Oscillation (MJO) among the main sources of WWBs. However, MJO's contribution to ENSO evolution has been difficult to quantify.

Observation of Three Resonant Structures in the Cross Section of e^{+}e^{-}→π^{+}π^{-}h_{c}.

Using e^{+}e^{-} collision data collected with the BESIII detector operating at the Beijing electron positron collider, the cross section of e^{+}e^{-}→π^{+}π^{-}h_{c} is measured at 59 points with center-of-mass energy sqrt[s] ranging from 4.009 to 4.950 GeV with a total integrated luminosity of 22.

Characterization of strontium-rich groundwater in a typical alpine basin on Tibetan Plateau: Implications for sustainable exploitation and development.

This study focuses on mineral groundwater in alpine regions and its sustainable exploitation. The Tongde basin on Tibetan Plateau was investigated to reveal the hydrochemistry and formation of mineral groundwater in alpine basins and its sustainable development under anthropogenic disturbances. The results show that groundwater there is characterized by enriched strontium, with concentrations in the range of 0.

Shocked quartz at the Younger Dryas onset (12.8 ka) supports cosmic airbursts/impacts contributing to North American megafaunal extinctions and collapse of the Clovis technocomplex.

Shocked quartz grains are an accepted indicator of crater-forming cosmic impact events, which also typically produce amorphous silica along the fractures. Furthermore, previous research has shown that shocked quartz can form when nuclear detonations, asteroids, and comets produce near-surface or "touch-down" airbursts. When cosmic airbursts detonate with enough energy and at sufficiently low altitude, the resultant relatively small, high-velocity fragments may strike Earth's surface with high enough pressures to generate thermal and mechanical shock that can fracture quartz grains and introduce molten silica into the fractures.

A Late Bronze Age foreign elite? Investigating mobility patterns at Seddin, Germany.

During the Late Bronze Age (ca. 11th-8th century BCE), far-reaching and extensive trade and exchange networks linked communities across Europe. The area around Seddin in north-western Brandenburg, Germany, has long been considered as at the core of one such networks.

The redox rhythm gates immune-induced cell death distinctly from the genetic clock.

Organisms use circadian clocks to synchronize physiological processes to anticipate the Earth's day-night cycles and regulate responses to environmental signals to gain competitive advantage. While divergent genetic clocks have been studied extensively in bacteria, fungi, plants, and animals, an ancient conserved circadian redox rhythm has been recently reported. However, its biological function and physiological outputs remain elusive.

Why and How to Use Process Philosophy in Everyday Ecology and Biology?

Recent studies in biology and ecology show striking convergences with process philosophy (PP). Biologists today are debating the real nature of evolution and of life itself, which is increasingly considered as a set of interrelated processes rather than a set of tangible species and material lineages. This perspective of focusing on changes can also be found with ecologists and environmental ethicists, whose studies feed into as well as draw on PP principles.