Astronomers have detected the most promising signs yet of a possible biosignature outside the solar system, although they remain cautious.

A new study reveals a strong connection between Arctic warming and the development of a rare thunderstorm that came closer to the North Pole than any previously recorded.

Observations of Jupiter show that ammonia is unevenly distributed in the upper atmosphere, against expectations of uniform mixing. UC Berkeley scientists found evidence for a complicated but apparently real process associated with fierce lightning storms: strong updrafts generate slushy, ice-coated hailstones of ammonia and water that eventually plunge into the planet and deplete areas of ammonia. This is part of the first 3D picture of the planet's atmosphere, which shows storms are primarily shallow.

Autism is typically diagnosed in children ages 3 to 5 years old, but researchers at the University of Missouri’s Thompson Center for Autism and Neurodevelopment are exploring whether signs of autism could be detected as early as the first year of life.

In the first report from their longitudinal study, researchers Erin Andres and Stephen Sheinkopf found that behavior at 9 months old can indicate the likelihood that a 1 year old will be at risk for autism.

A Southwest Research Institute-led study modeled the chemistry of TOI-270 d, an exoplanet between Earth and Neptune in size, finding evidence that it could be a giant rocky planet shrouded in a thick, hot atmosphere. TOI-270 d is only 73 light years from Earth and could serve as a “Rosetta Stone” for understanding an entire class of new planets.