Ben Turner
Ben Turner is a U.K. based staff writer at Live Science. He covers physics and astronomy, among other topics like weird animals and climate change. He graduated from University College London with a degree in particle physics before training as a journalist. When he's not writing, Ben enjoys reading literature, playing the guitar and embarrassing himself with chess.
Latest articles by Ben Turner
Don't miss the longest partial lunar eclipse of the century next week
By Ben Turner published
This eclipse will be the longest one of the century, and of the past 580 years.
Politician suggests bombing erupting La Palma volcano to stop lava flow
By Ben Turner published
Aside from lava flows, the volcano has been belching out high-speed molten boulders and causing tremors.
World leaders pledge to end deforestation by 2030
By Ben Turner published
The enormous pledge encompasses over 85% of the world's forests and more than 100 nations.
Earth may be trapped inside a giant magnetic tunnel
By Ben Turner published
Scientists made the startling discovery by plugging radio wave observations into a brand-new computer model.
Nobel prize in physics goes to trio whose research alerted the world to climate change
By Ben Turner published
Their work gave us crucial insights into how complex systems behave.
32,000 mph fireball spotted soaring over North Carolina
By Ben Turner published
The fireball’s bright streak was captured by a neighborhood porch camera.
Otherworldly 'time crystal' made inside Google quantum computer could change physics forever
By Ben Turner published
The crystals neatly sidestep some of physics' most iron-clad laws.
Rogue black holes could be wandering at the edges of the Milky Way
By Ben Turner last updated
A new simulation predicts that the lost giants were dislodged by gigantic collisions and have wandered the outskirts of galaxies ever since.
Hubble captures gorgeous image of 'Einstein ring' from warped quasar light
By Ben Turner published
Astronomers use the rings to study remote galaxies and to measure the masses of the objects that create them.
Physicists give weird new phase of matter an extra dimension
By Ben Turner published
The new phase of matter behaves like a solid and a frictionless liquid at the same time
Famous Einstein equation used to create matter from light for first time
By Ben Turner last updated
The particles used were spooky virtual particles, conjured from a disturbance between two electromagnetic fields.
Gulf Stream could be veering toward irreversible collapse, a new analysis warns
By Ben Turner published
Although scientists don’t fully understand the varying strengths of the factors contributing to the slowdown, all of them are linked to human-caused climate change.
NASA has glimpsed our galaxy's fate in three-way galactic brawl
By Ben Turner published
Despite the apocalyptic appearances, galactic mergers are a frequent and essential part of a galaxy’s life cycle.
'Massive melting event' strikes Greenland after record heat wave
By Ben Turner published
One estimate suggests that 13 billion tons (12 metric tons) of ice made its way into the ocean on a single day.
Flashing meteor that exploded over Norway landed somewhere in a nearby forest
By Ben Turner last updated
Scientists believe the ultra-fast object landed in a densely-forested area near the capital, Oslo. It could take up to ten years to find.
Jeff Bezos went to the edge of space. Does that make him an astronaut?
By Ben Turner published
The billionaire's flight has opened up a debate about what "astronauts' and "space' even are.
Curiosity rover discovers that evidence of past life on Mars may have been erased
By Ben Turner published
The findings from the Curiosity rover could help the Perseverance rover decide which samples to collect for later analysis.
'Alien burp' may have been detected on Mars by NASA's Curiosity rover
By Ben Turner last updated
Methane tends to only be made by biological life, so scientists are wondering if the source is from alien microbes.
China wants to launch asteroid-deflecting rockets to save Earth from Armageddon
By Ben Turner published
Although the asteroid, Bennu, only has a 1-in-2700 chance of hitting Earth, scientists are taking the risk seriously.
Enormous Antarctic lake vanishes in 3 days
By Ben Turner published
Scientists are concerned that increasing amounts of meltwater could be finding its way into the ocean.
This 'charming' particle could have saved the universe
By Ben Turner published
The charm meson could answer why there's more matter than antimatter in the universe.
When this star blows, its planets will be turned into enormous pinballs
By Ben Turner published
The researchers created a computer model to predict the ways the planets would scatter, finding that slight tweaks to starting positions lead to vastly different outcomes
Famous Stephen Hawking theory about black holes confirmed
By Ben Turner published
Physicists analyzed data from the first ever gravitational waves detected to prove Hawking's theory, and think that even more could be discovered from studying the ripples in space-time.