Science In Action

By BBC World Service

Technology

What's Science In Action about?

The BBC brings you all the week's science news.

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Science In Action episodes:

04.18.2024
Unexpected black hole in our galaxy
A black hole just discovered in our Milky Way galaxy, weighing 33 times the mass of the Sun, and dating back to near the time of the Big Bang, gives new clues to the origins of this dark astronomical mysteries....
04.11.2024
Bird flu in Antarctica
The highly pathogenic strain of bird flu, H5N1, has arrived on the continent. Australian bird specialist Megan Dewar, from the Federation University of Australia, has led a mission aboard the research ship the Australis. Science in Action remembers...
04.04.2024
Earthquake in Taiwan
A powerful earthquake hit Taiwan on Wednesday morning, but thanks to the country’s early warning system and engineering-preparedness, there was little destruction and few deaths. Seismologist Ross Stein, CEO of earthquake consultancy Temblor, Inc., shares his analysis. The highly...
03.28.2024
Star for a day
3000 light years from Earth, a white dwarf star called T Coronae Borealis is on the brink of a “once-in-a-lifetime” explosion. Astrophysicist Bradley Schaefer is enthusiastic about the bright star set to appear in the night sky in the...
03.21.2024
Out of Africa
The last great "out of Arica" movement of our ancestors swept out of the northeast of the continent 74,000 years ago. Archaeologist John Kappelman of the University of Texas brings us an update to this complex tale in the form...
03.14.2024
Impacts of global warming
After a twelve-month set of climate records driven by global warming it is time to take stock of how we’re impacting the planet as a species. Coral biologist Kate Quigley, of the Minderoo Foundation and James Cook University,...
03.07.2024
The first stars in the universe
Astronomers using the James Webb Space Telescope think they have seen the glow from the first generation of stars after the Big Bang. Newton Kavli Fellow Hannah Übler discusses. The Anthropocene is meant to mean the latest geological era...
02.29.2024
One million genomes in two dimensions
The All of Us Research Program is undergoing the herculean task of gathering genomic data from over one million people living in the United States, from widely different backgrounds, in the hopes of accelerating health care research. However, within the...
02.22.2024
Largest ever covid safety study
A monumental Covid vaccine safety study of 99 million vaccinated people confirms just how rare adverse effects are and combats growing vaccine misinformation. Co-director of the Global Vaccine Data Helen Network goes through the results of this massive study. ...
02.15.2024
Climate scientist wins defamation case
High-profile climate scientist Michael Mann has been embroiled in a 12-year battle against conservative commentators who claimed his data was fraudulent. Last week, he was awarded $1m in a defamation lawsuit. Michael joins Science in Action to discuss the case...
02.08.2024
Particle physics v climate change
Should CERN be spending $17 billion on a new atom smasher whilst we face, climate change, the most pressing crisis of our time? Materials-turned environmental scientist Mark Miodownik and CERN physicist Kate Shaw debate the issue. One of...
02.01.2024
Unethical data gathering in China
Starting upbeat this week, engineer Teddy Tzanetos, team lead of NASA’s Ingenuity mission, talks on the Mars-based helicopter which defied all expectations. Our big story this week is on the scientific papers and research databases which contain the DNA...
01.25.2024
Drilling into the past
Molecular biologist Prof Jason Chin tells us about his research into accelerated evolution and how it could help create new substances to be used in medicine, chemistry and more. In South America, palaeogeneticist Dr Verena Schuenemann has been extracting...
01.18.2024
Swine fever in South East Asia
African swine fever has now reached Southeast Asia.This part of the world has high diversity in wild pigs, some of which are endemic to their native islands. In Borneo, pigs are a hugely important food source for indigenous populations, and...
01.11.2024
Seeking supernovas
The James Webb Space Telescope has revealed the clearest ever view of the stunning Cassiopeia A supernova, complete with a weird feature called 'the green monster'. Professor Dan Milisavljevic, an astronomer at Purdue University, tells us all about his research...
01.04.2024
Tackling tuberculosis in South Africa
In this episode of Science in Action, we find out that tuberculosis (TB) is the leading cause of death in South Africa. After visiting a clinic dedicated to the diagnosis and treatment of TB, Roland Pease meets researcher...
12.28.2023
Following in the footsteps of ancient humans
In this special episode of Science in Action, Roland Pease travels to South Africa to gain a deeper understanding of human origins. Along the way, he speaks to ichnologist Charles Helm and national parks ecologist Mike Fabricius, who...
12.21.2023
Volcanic eruption lights up Iceland
This week, the Reykjanes volcano in Iceland has erupted, following weeks of seismic activity. Edward Wayne Marshall, from the University of Iceland, brings us the latest science about the volcano. Also this week, the UK's 40-year-old JET fusion...
12.14.2023
The science of morning sickness
An international team of researchers led by the University of Cambridge’s Prof Stephen O’Rahilly have discovered that sensitivity to the hormone GDF15 may cause severe morning sickness during pregnancy. Dr Marlena Fejzo, who took part in the study, tells us...
12.07.2023
Can carbon capture live up to its hype?
The burning of fossil fuels releases the greenhouse gas CO2. Many countries at COP28 have expressed an interest in using carbon capture technology to permanently capture and store this CO2. Climate and energy expert Dr Richard Black tells us more...
11.30.2023
All aboard the RRS Sir David Attenborough
This week, the RRS Sir David Attenborough arrived in Antarctica to start its first full season of science in the polar region. Dr Nadine Johnston reveals more about the mission and the research they’ll be carrying out. Next...
11.23.2023
Fires in the Pantanal wetlands
This month, Brazil has seen some of its highest recorded temperatures. The country’s Pantanal wetlands, the largest tropical wetlands in the world, have been scorched by wildfires. The region is home to vibrant wildlife, including jaguars, anacondas and various birds....
11.16.2023
Volcanic rumblings in Iceland
Increased tremors have been felt in Iceland, and concerns about an impending eruption have led to the evacuation of the town of Grindavik. Geophysicist Dr Freysteinn Sigmundsson reveals more about the events and whether this area of Iceland may be...
11.09.2023
Sounds of the Cape
This week we're out in the wild and noisy spaces in and around Cape Town, South Africa. Ichnologist Charles Helm takes Roland on a bumpy ride in Walker Bay Nature Reserve to hunt for fossilised animal tracks, with...
11.02.2023
Climate emergency
Category 5 hurricane Otis, which devastated Acapulco, was supercharged by global warming; hurricane expert Kerry Emanual tells Science in Action. Also, Brazilian ecologist Erika Berenguer has witnessed the destruction caused by the prolonged drought in Amazonia, where the...
10.26.2023
Bird flu reaches Antarctic region
Fear that the highly infectious variant of avian influenza, H5N1, would reach the Antarctic region and put isolated bird populations at risk has finally come to fruition as the first birds on Bird Island in the Atlantic Ocean have come...
10.19.2023
Alarm at Campi Flegrei, Italy
Accelerating seismic tremors are raising concerns for the thousands of people living atop a volcanic hot spot close to Naples, Italy. Volcanologist Alessandro Pino has been keeping a watchful eye on the developing situation. We stay in Naples...
10.12.2023
Devastating earthquakes hit Afghanistan
Lying atop a network of fault lines, where the Indian and Eurasian tectonic plates meet, Afghanistan is prone to earthquakes. However, the Herat area has not seen an event for almost 1000 years. As such, it was the least likely...
10.05.2023
The best and the worst
The 2023 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine was awarded to Katalin Karikó and Drew Weismann for their contributions to developing the fundamentals that led to life saving mRNA vaccines. Although funding and support were not always assured on their...
09.28.2023
Trilobite dinner
What did a 465-million-year-old trilobite eat for dinner? And how can we possibly know? Archaeologist Per Ahlberg has used x-ray to peer into the guts of one ancient scuttling creature and worked out what it what was munching on in...
09.21.2023
More likely, more intense
Storm Daniel devastated the city of Derna in Libya after heavy rainfall broke a dam, causing extreme flooding downstream. The World Weather Attribution (WWA) reports that severe flooding in Libya and across the Mediterranean has been made more likely and...
09.14.2023
Deadly floods in Derna
Earlier this week the deadly Mediterranean cyclone, Storm Daniel, swept through the small city of Derna in Libya, collapsing a 50-year-old dam in its wake, and triggering devastating floods which have killed over 5000 people. We speak to atmospheric scientist,...
09.07.2023
Returning to the North Pole
In September 2012 Arctic sea ice melted to its minimum ever recorded and the German research ice breaker, Polarstern, ventured deep into the region North of Russia to record findings. It’s now retracing its steps, over a decade later, to...
08.31.2023
Drowning coastal ecosystems
Global sea levels are rising more than 3mm per year under current climate conditions. At this rate we are due to hit an alarming 7mm rise per year by the end of the century. If this is not slowed, it...
08.24.2023
Brain-computer interfaces
Advances in brain-computer interfaces have allowed patients with paralysis to communicate faster, more accurately and more expressively with direct brain to speech translation. Co-author of an exciting new paper in the field, bioengineer Alex Silva, tells Science in Action about...
08.17.2023
The science behind the Hawaii fire
Hawaii is still reeling from the devastating fires that consumed Lahaina on the island of Maui last week. Professor of Meteorology from the University of Hawaii, Kevin Hamiliton, joins Science in Action to discuss the factors that make these events...
08.10.2023
Pandemic surveillance system at risk
ProMED is one of the most useful scientific tools you’ve never heard of. It’s a global surveillance system of infectious disease outbreaks which is available, for free, to researchers and the public alike. But ISID, the society which runs the...
08.03.2023
Bird Flu is back
Science in Action returns to H5N1, the fast spreading strain of bird flu which has caused devastation in the sky, sea, and land over the last few months, with no end in sight. Roland visits Skomer Island and the...
07.27.2023
Ocean current collapse
A large system of ocean currents known as the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation (AMOC) has been making headlines this week as a new paper predicts its imminent collapse. This could have devastating consequences for the climate. But not all...
07.20.2023
On the edge of a new volcano
For the third year running, Iceland’s Reykjanes peninsula is experiencing another spectacular volcanic eruption. Volcanologist Evgenia Ilyinskaya has been out in Iceland witnessing the sight and getting samples of the noxious fumes. Across the rest of the Northern Hemisphere...
07.13.2023
Europe’s heatwave death toll
As extreme heat returns to much of the world we hear the impact of last year’s heatwaves in Europe, where 62,000 people are estimated to have died. Joan Ballester, Associate Research Professor at Barcelona Institute for Global Health, discusses the...
07.06.2023
Melting of Greenland ice sheet
Record-breaking global temperatures are accelerating Greenland ice melt at an alarming rate. Professor of glaciology Alun Hubbard has witnessed the melt first hand. He tells us how the ice sheet is being destabilised and what this could mean on a...
06.29.2023
Preparing for crises
We have entered a “permacrisis”, an extended period of instability and insecurity, fuelled not only by natural disasters but pandemics, climate change and war. This week, Science in Action is at the Royal Society as they host the...
06.22.2023
Human embryo models
Over the last week, news of “synthetic human embryos” has made headlines around the world. Science in Action is getting to the bottom of the sensational story. We talk to two of the researchers who have made the...
06.15.2023
Oceans in hot water?
As Pacific Ocean temperatures rise, a major El Niño is looming. Experts from the European Centre for Medium range Weather Forecasting, Magdalena Balmaseda and Tim Stockdale, join us to discuss how it is heating up the world and if it...
06.08.2023
The beginnings of us
The origin of all complex life has been traced back 1.6 billion years as new molecular fossil records have discovered the fatty stains that our ancient single celled ancestors have left behind. Jochen Brocks, Professor of Geobiology at Australian National...
06.01.2023
Vaccinating condors against bird flu
The California Condor has been brought back from the brink of extinction by dedicated conservation efforts over the past 30 years. Now, this critically endangered species is the latest victim of the H5N1 bird flu which is racing round the...
05.25.2023
Brightest supernova in a decade
A star in the nearby Pinwheel Galaxy has exploded spectacularly into a supernova, dubbed SN 2023ixf. It is the brightest in a decade and it has got astronomers around the world into a frenzy. Science in Action hears from both...
05.18.2023
Return of the Wildfires
Over the past few weeks, wildfires have scorched over 1,800 square miles of land across North West America and are still going strong. Dr Mike Flannigan, professor at the Department of Renewable Resources at the University of Alberta, talks to...
05.11.2023
Human genome goes global
In 2003, an incredible scientific milestone was achieved as the first human genome completed sequencing. For 20 years, this genome has been used as a reference by researchers for comparison to all other DNA sequences. Now, the Human Pangenome Reference...

What's Science In Action about?

Download our free app to listen on your phone

Science In Action episodes:

Unexpected black hole in our galaxy

Bird flu in Antarctica

Earthquake in Taiwan

Star for a day

Out of Africa

Impacts of global warming

The first stars in the universe

One million genomes in two dimensions

Largest ever covid safety study

Climate scientist wins defamation case

Particle physics v climate change

Unethical data gathering in China

Drilling into the past

Swine fever in South East Asia

Seeking supernovas

Tackling tuberculosis in South Africa

Following in the footsteps of ancient humans

Volcanic eruption lights up Iceland

The science of morning sickness

Can carbon capture live up to its hype?

All aboard the RRS Sir David Attenborough

Fires in the Pantanal wetlands

Volcanic rumblings in Iceland

Sounds of the Cape

Climate emergency

Bird flu reaches Antarctic region

Alarm at Campi Flegrei, Italy

Devastating earthquakes hit Afghanistan

The best and the worst

Trilobite dinner

More likely, more intense

Deadly floods in Derna

Returning to the North Pole

Drowning coastal ecosystems

Brain-computer interfaces

The science behind the Hawaii fire

Pandemic surveillance system at risk

Bird Flu is back

Ocean current collapse

On the edge of a new volcano

Europe’s heatwave death toll

Melting of Greenland ice sheet

Preparing for crises

Human embryo models

Oceans in hot water?

The beginnings of us

Vaccinating condors against bird flu

Brightest supernova in a decade

Return of the Wildfires

Human genome goes global