How to make your own DIY ionic thruster

Lithium can store and deliver substantial energy for its cost and weight

When exploring which compounds would be best suited for batteries, scientists sought elements that were relatively inexpensive to mine, readily available, and that provided high energy density—how much chemical energy an element could store for its size. Lithium-ion batteries provide these benefits and discharge at very low rates when unused.

The benefits of 3D printing batteries, from safety to sustainability

Rather than using the liquid electrolyte commonly found in lithium-ion batteries, 3D-printed batteries would use a solid layer, which can be custom-built into different shapes, deliver higher energy density by building thinner layers, and be fabricated with fewer raw materials compared to injection molding.

Genetically modified viruses can help construct battery electrodes

MIT scientists' modifications caused the viruses to attract conductive materials, such as gold ions, which the viruses self-assembled into nanowires that could be used in batteries. These components allow batteries to be thinner and flexible enough to be constructed into new shapes.

Nuclear-powered missiles replace chemical combustion with energy from nuclear fission

In these systems, energy is added to an airstream, which passes through a nozzle to generate thrust. Because the amount of energy released per unit mass of nuclear fuel is millions of times larger than that of chemical propellants, nuclear missiles can travel faster and farther with less fuel.

A laser energy system has allowed scientists to achieve fusion ignition

In 2022, scientists used lasers to create a powerful implosion that bound hydrogen isotopes together, releasing more energy than was input into the system. Research is ongoing to achieve this self-sustaining reaction with larger yields and energy gains.

Antimatter engines would have the greatest energy output of all machines

These devices would annihilate matter with antimatter, converting mass into pure energy. A teacup of fuel would release energy equivalent to that of a hydrogen bomb, but stabilizing and storing that much antimatter remains a challenging task. Alternatively, hybrid systems would utilize small amounts of antimatter to initiate nuclear reactions.

Internal-combustion engines convert fuel into motion using controlled explosions

Gasoline engines mix fuel and air, compressing it and igniting it to create thousands of tiny explosions that push pistons up and down. This movement spins the crankshaft, which moves a vehicle's wheels.

A lunar 'satellite catapult' revives a 50-year-old idea for launching rockets

Elon Musk has proposed building a mass driver on the moon to fling satellites into space, exploiting low gravity to cut fuel and costs. The concept dates to 1970s space-settlement studies, highlighting how older industry ideas are resurfacing amid today's AI and space-infrastructure race.

Solar sails use light as a means of propulsion

Photons possess momentum and can transfer it to objects they strike or bounce off, imparting radiative pressure, or a light-based force over a small surface area. Lasers fired at observational equipment with specially designed sails can theoretically use this mechanism to accelerate up to 20% the speed of light.

Cyclotrons move particles in spiral paths of increasing radius

After particles are injected into the center of the device, an alternating electric field and a constant magnetic field energize the particles as they spiral outward toward a target. Cyclotrons are common in hospitals that perform molecular imaging, which relies on radioactive components that decay within hours.

The basic science of rockets

How do rockets work? What is the science behind a rocket launch? How does a rocket go into space? In this short and simple video, we discuss the science of rocket propulsion and what takes to get these vehicles into orbit.

Explaining how water's movement between different salt concentrations can generate electricity

Water naturally moves from regions of low salinity, such as freshwater, to regions of high salinity, such as ocean water, across a semipermeable membrane. This movement produces pressure that can be harnessed in osmotic power systems to drive turbines and generate electricity, much like in hydroelectric plants.

NASA uses a specialized plasma wind tunnel to test heat shield technology

The ArcJet Complex ionizes compressed air that fires onto shields at hypersonic speeds, replicating the conditions of high-speed, planetary reentry. An enhanced facility incorporates lasers to mimic the radiant heating experienced during high-energy atmospheric traversal.

Japanese scientists develop an eco-friendly plastic that dissolves in saltwater

The strong and flexible plastic is made from molecules held together by saltwater-sensitive chemical bonds. The components left after the plastic breaks down within hours contain phosphorus and nitrogen, allowing them to serve as soil fertilizer.

Project STORMFURY explored modifying hurricanes with silver iodide

Between 1962 and 1983, researchers at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration investigated whether weakening and controlling hurricanes was possible. The investigation showed very few hurricanes met the criteria for modification, despite successfully weakening two storms.

Dragon seismometers, Baghdad batteries, and more ancient artifacts

The ancients were behind us in many ways, but some inventions from the time have not been surpassed in the modern era in effectiveness, beauty, or cleverness. This quick list of bizarre ancient inventions includes a battery from Baghdad, a Molotov cocktail-like explosive in Greece, and more.

Explaining the engineering challenges of extracting metal-rich nodules from the seafloor

Proposed solutions for collecting these potato-shaped rocks involve lifting a slurry composed of them, organic debris, and water through several kilometers of flexible tubing to a ship on the surface, a process that is more difficult than pumping crude oil. One method would use compressed air, but this method is only 15% energy-efficient.

Check out this interactive 3D animation of a virtual renewable energy-powered island

The US Department of Energy’s Renewable Energy Discovery (REDi) Island invite explorers to discover clean, renewable energy options by navigating a virtual island filled with energy efficient power generation and desalinization technologies.

How cosmic rays and pointed ice shards help generate lightning in clouds

Although clouds generate electric fields as electrons are transferred when currents move past one another—not unlike building up static electricity by rubbing socks against carpet—these fields have been measured to be a tenth of the strength needed to make electricity strong enough to travel through air. However, pointed crystals are estimated to boost fields by factors greater than 10, and particles from outer space may help initiate cascades of displaced electrons.

Breaking down the challenges of alkaline environments and how extremophiles survive them

These areas are far less acidic than the interiors of most organisms' cells, and this imbalance draws protons that are needed for various metabolic processes, including energy production, out of cells. To counter these effects, some alkaliphiles have developed stronger proton regulation across their cellular membranes and proteins that drive these processes with greater stability amid such acidity imbalances.

While atoms are normally made of protons, neutrons, and electrons, exotic ones have been built with antimatter—alternate versions of normal matter that live for fractions of a second and are about a billion times as rare.

Electric vehicle systems run on five key components

The system is made up of a charger—converting AC into DC—a battery, a power control unit, motor(s), and a single gear. A complex gearbox is not needed because electric motors are efficient at operating across a range of speeds.

Scientific advances are unlocking a wide range of alternatives to IVF

From refined artificial insemination and microsurgical sperm extraction to experimental uterine transplants, scientific innovation is rapidly advancing potential fertilization technologies. But they come along with costly trials, some ethical dilemmas, regulatory issues, and more.

Planeterrellas create artificial auroras that mimic the atmospheric displays of light by setting up an electric field between two metal balls in a jar filled with a small amount of air.

How fusion—which releases energy when two lighter atoms combine to form a heavier atom—differs from fission

View the 18 vehicles that broke the land speed record

The battery-powered "La Jamais Contente" was the first car to exceed 100 kilometers (62.1 miles) per hour, achieving the feat in 1899. By 1997, advancements in aerodynamic understanding and engineering led to the Thrust Supersonic Car, a jet-powered vehicle that reached a speed of 1,223.6 kilometers (760.3 miles) per hour.

Despite promoting alternative current, Nikola Tesla did not invent it

The technology was developed by Hippolyte Pixii in 1832, almost 25 years before Tesla was born. Other myths about Tesla include that he invented the transformer, radio, and the induction coil, which was invented by Nicholas Callan in 1836.

Prosthetics and orthotics have been 3D printed to improve the lives of animals

Shells for hermit crabs, wheelchairs for guinea pigs and dogs, and horseshoes for improved running performance have been created using 3D printers. Other artificial body parts made using this technology include a jaw for a loggerhead turtle, a beak for a toucan, and a tail for an American alligator.

The history of many kitchen appliances involves unexpected discoveries and applications, including wartime radar turned hamster defroster and replacing an 'ice king' with heat-stealing boxes.

Pure water does not conduct electricity because this flow of energy requires the movement of charged particles, and water is a neutral molecule.

Sony set the standard for cylinder-shaped batteries when it repurposed manufacturing equipment used to make rolls of magnetic recording tape.

Watch how deep-sea mining equipment collects and processes polymetallic nodules—metal-rich, potato-shaped rocks—from the ocean floor and creates environmentally damaging plumes of sediments.

Astronauts have repaired genetic damage in space using CRISPR—a molecular tool that can make precise changes to DNA and is used in single-celled organisms to attack invasive viruses.

Learn how your body is, scientifically, like a firework with its own slow, controlled burn.

SpaceX's S-1 or 'prospectus' revealed many previously unknown details about the company, including its unprofitability despite doing $18.7B in revenue in 2025, exactly how many voting shares Elon Musk will have in the company (roughly 85%), and more.

As of 2025, the most cited papers in science include a review of graphene, methods to improve image recognition, streamlining electron density calculations, and optimizing protein studies.

After 25 people used virtual reality headsets to practice flying with virtual wings—flapping their arms—their visual cortex responded to the wings almost as if they were real arms, treating them as body parts.

Read a deep dive on the 'all-purpose healing' peptide BPC-157.

Objects can be 3D printed with light by projecting 2D computerized tomography (CT) scans onto rotating cylinders of resin, which solidify upon exposure.

In 1984, Operation Smash Hit intentionally crashed a 239-ton train into a nuclear waste canister at 100 miles per hour to prove the canister's safety, which remained completely intact and lost just 0.29 of its 100 pounds of pressure.

For centuries, Niagara Falls has been a magnet for daredevils seeking to conquer one of nature's most powerful wonders, with its 200-foot drop and water rushing at 32 feet per second with 280 tons of force.

Children are now three times more likely to say they want to be a YouTuber when they grow up than an astronaut, with some even attending 'YouTube camps' that teach kids how to create content for the platform.

How Amazon operates a 'flywheel' business model, a self-reinforcing cycle that drives continuous growth

This site reaches millions of visitors who are tired of AI chatbots and seeking human connection. Pretend to be an AI chatbot and ask questions, provide answers, and draw for people in real time.

Some renewable energy sources may weaken the resiliency of electric grids by removing outage buffers provided by coal- and natural gas-fired plants, which provide the system with more time to find a new power source if a plant goes down.

About 2,000 US babies are born annually without some portion of their limbs, potentially leading to a lifetime of pricey prosthetics.

The 1987 Nintendo video game 'Stadium Events' isn't known for being particularly fun, but its scarcity has made it a highly sought-after item that has sold for up to $35K at auction.

To reduce wrinkles in clothing, research recommends gentle wash cycles with more water and tumble drying with smaller loads and longer times.

Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps is independent of Iran's regular army and is one of the most powerful and influential military-political organizations in the Middle East.

Stanford built a Google Maps for the Roman Empire, revealing how much it cost to travel in the ancient world