High-orbit satellites could light the way for travel to the moon
MIT Newsby Haley Wahl | MIT Lincoln Laboratory11d ago
On Earth, the processes behind navigation are made nearly invisible by global positioning satellites (GPS).
MIT News
news.mit.eduadded August 2026
68%MIT researchers tackle the economic realities of fusion power
MIT Newsby Peter Dizikes | MIT News11d ago
In the last decade, scientists have shown that fusion energy can work, as a physical process. Next question: Can it work economically?
Physicists watch a material’s electrons assemble, and reassemble, into coexisting phases
MIT Newsby Jennifer Chu | MIT News14d ago
A tall glass of ice water isn’t just a thirst quencher; it’s also an everyday example of coexisting phases. Water’s molecular makeup can exist simultaneously in both a liquid and solid phase.
A new way to watch heat move through electronics
MIT Newsby Zach Winn | MIT News15d ago
The same overheating problem that happens to our laptops also plagues computer servers and data centers around the world — and heat management is only getting harder as computer chips get more...
Scientists unveil more than 600 new tissue models of human cancer
MIT Newsby Anne Trafton | MIT News16d ago
To develop new targeted treatments for cancer, scientists need tissue models that accurately represent the genetic and molecular traits of the cancer they’re studying.
Researchers make air-stable, ultrathin superconductors, for more scalable quantum devices
MIT Newsby Adam Zewe | MIT News16d ago
Super-thin superconducting materials, which are only one or a few atoms thick, have unique properties scientists can leverage to produce more compact, scalable, and efficient quantum devices.
These 3D-printed objects can tell you if they’re being used properly
MIT Newsby Adam Zewe | MIT News16d ago
Imagine a bottle of hazardous chemicals sitting on a laboratory shelf that changes its appearance to alert scientists that its lid is not properly secured, potentially preventing a dangerous spill.
Solving the solvent problem
MIT Newsby Steve Nadis | Department of Nuclear Science and Engineering17d ago
Lithium-ion batteries are the leading choice in today’s electric vehicle and battery energy storage system industries, but they contain a number of critical minerals — including lithium, cobalt...
Turning molecules into reliable electronic devices
MIT Newsby Adam Zewe | MIT News18d ago
Molecules are among the smallest building blocks available for making next-generation devices. Their unique, customizable properties enable promising applications in emerging computing, sensing...
Why some nitrogen-processing enzymes are more efficient than others
MIT Newsby Anne Trafton | MIT News22d ago
Nitrogen gas is abundant in Earth’s atmosphere, but most living organisms can’t readily use this nitrogen.
MIT and Broad Institute researchers break diffraction barrier in super-resolution microscopy
MIT Newsby Danielle Randall Doughty | Department of Chemistry23d ago
Researchers in the lab of Sam Peng, the Pfizer Inc. - Gerald Laubach Career Development Assistant Professor of Chemistry at MIT and a core institute member of the Broad Institute of MIT and...
MIT engineers design recyclable elastic yarn
MIT Newsby Jennifer Chu | MIT News25d ago
After a closet cleanout, what options are there for recyling our old threads? Not many. Apart from bringing used clothes to a donation center, there is no process for recycling textiles like there...
Professor Emeritus Dimitri Bertsekas, influential computer scientist and prolific author, dies at 83
MIT Newsby Jane Halpern | Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science22 Jul 2026
Dimitri Bertsekas PhD ’71, the Jerry McAfee (1940) Emeritus Professor in Engineering in the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science (EECS), a principal investigator in the...
Diffuse puffs of “missing” matter surround most galaxies
MIT Newsby Jennifer Chu | MIT News21 Jul 2026
Stars and galaxies make up much of the universe’s ordinary, observable matter. But for decades, scientists have wrestled with a cosmic conflict: There should be much more.
How an influx of salt may affect microbial ecosystems
MIT Newsby Anne Trafton | MIT News17 Jul 2026
As sea levels rise due to climate change, encroaching sea water will likely make freshwater environments saltier.
For energy systems that power a reliable grid, the future is all about location
MIT Newsby Zach Winn | MIT News16 Jul 2026
Will a warming climate and changing weather patterns lead to more grid blackouts and other energy disruptions?
A better way to turn 2D designs into 3D models for rapid prototyping
MIT Newsby Adam Zewe | MIT News16 Jul 2026
Engineers often use vision-language models to produce new designs, such as for airplane or automobile components.
3D-printed bridge points the way to greener construction
MIT Newsby Stephanie Martinovich | Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering15 Jul 2026
Concrete is the most widely used building material on Earth, and producing it is one of the largest single sources of carbon emissions.
Electric fields help guide neural activity, even from moment to moment
MIT Newsby David Orenstein | The Picower Institute for Learning and Memory15 Jul 2026
It’s a fact of life that the electrical activity of neurons will vary during repetitions of the same task, even when the ultimate outcome is the same.
Ketogenic diets may increase cancer risk in the small intestine
MIT Newsby Anne Trafton | MIT News15 Jul 2026
A high-fat, low-carbohydrate diet, also called a ketogenic diet, can help some people lose weight by forcing their bodies to burn fat for fuel instead of sugar.