Venus Might Host Life, New Discovery Suggests

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September 14, 2020

Dear Reader, Venus hosts possible signs of life, a new discovery suggests. Unusually high concentrations of phosphine—a chemical typically associated with living creatures—have been detected in the hellish world's atmosphere. Our main story has the details. Also featured in this roundup are photographs showing the effects of the recent weeks' wildfires on the landscape and people of the western U.S. And lastly, we share a conversation with the chief curator of the Smithsonian Institution's National Postal Museum. Ahead of a general election in which coronavirus precautions will lead many Americans to vote by mail, he explains how mail-sorting machines work and why they are so crucial to today's postal service.

Sunya Bhutta, Senior Editor, Audience Engagement @sunyaaa

Space Venus Might Host Life, New Discovery Suggests The unexpected atmospheric detection of phosphine, a smelly gas made by microbes on Earth, could spark a revolution in astrobiology By Adam Mann

Computing Mail-Sorting Machines Are Crucial for the U.S. Postal Service An expert explains how automation enables quick deliveries—which will include ballots for November's election By Sophie Bushwick

Natural Disasters Photos Show Massive Wildfires Devastating Oregon and California Record-setting blazes fueled in part by climate change have destroyed homes and upended live across the West By Andrea Thompson

Climate A Rebuilt Paradise Nervously Watches Wildfire on the Horizon Communities in fire-prone areas are facing tough decisions on whether to stay and rebuild or move By Daniel Cusick,E&E News

Environment Polar Bears' Dropped GPS Collars Reveal How Ice Drifts Discarded polar bear trackers have found another use By Chris Baraniuk

Biology Structure and Chemistry Dictate How Cicada Wings Repel Water and Kill Bacteria A new analytical process shows how chemicals affect the nanostructures of an insect's wings By Jillian Kramer

Policy & Ethics It's Time to Rein in Inflated Military Budgets In an era of pandemics and climate change, we need to reconsider what "national security" means By Elliott Negin

Behavior & Society The Hawking Limit The late, great physicist showed us how to keep embracing life and work even as his physical condition deteriorated By Avi Loeb

FROM THE STORE Scientific American Digital & Full Archive For $69 per year, your Digital & Full Archive subscription includes 12 digital issues with full digital archive access back to 1845 and Android and iOS app access.

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FROM THE ARCHIVE Venus, Earth's Evil Twin, Beckons Space Agencies Once a water-rich Eden, the hellish planet could reveal how to find habitable worlds around distant stars By Shannon Hall,Nature magazine | June 2019

QUOTE OF THE DAY "I was considering these exotic worlds light-years away--super-Earths, tropical planets, sewage planets. And the whole time, it was just here next door." Clara Sousa-Silva, molecular astrophysicist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology

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