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Fifty years after the launch of Sputnik, does the prospect of manned spaceflight, back to the Moon and onwards to Mars, still have the power to impress?
Generating droplets below a micrometre in size from the break-up of a liquid jet or droplet usually requires surfactants or electric fields. By simply focusing one jet with a pair of coaxial ones, this could be extended down to the nanoscale.
A global infrastructure for exchanging quantum information requires coherent communication over long distances. The demonstration of interference between photons from two unsynchronized sources could bring us a step closer to that goal.
Pioneering measurements of the superfluid density in ultrathin films of a high-temperature superconductor demonstrate the importance of phase fluctuations for the physics of these fascinating materials.
After 18 years, and some significant setbacks, the first data from Borexino on low-energy solar neutrinos support the existence of neutrino oscillations, and are set to reveal more about the workings of the Sun.
An experiment that uses optical tweezers to transport atoms gently enough to preserve their quantum states might prepare the ground for a 'moving head' for quantum computers based on cold neutral atoms.
The efficient transmission of intense laser light through a plasma while minimizing instabilities represents a critical challenge to the development of laser fusion. Simulations and experiments of unprecedented scale suggest the future is bright.
It is fifty years since the launch of Sputnik. The ensuing 'space race' had major impact — politically, of course, and technologically, but it also created a new avenue for physics research and a rich seam of funding for a generation of young scientists.
The revival of interest in lunar and planetary exploration is prompting astronomers to re-evaluate the advantages of observatories on the Moon. But the debate is much more than one of science versus money, and goes to the inspirational heart of space exploration.
