Science news this week: Artemis II lifts off, diabetes cured in mice, and smog in China shapes Arctic storms

The long-awaited launch of NASA’s Artemis II mission dominated science news this week, with the excitement peaking Wednesday (April 1) as the space agency’s first crewed mission to the moon in over 50 years blasted off from Cape Canaveral, Florida.

Millions tuned in around the world as the towering Space Launch System rocket and Orion capsule rose off the launchpad at Kennedy Space Center at 6:35 p.m. EDT. Live Science covered the launch live, with reporters following the action both remotely and directly from Florida’s Space Coast.

The liftoff mostly went off without a hitch, though the launch team had to resolve one unusual range issue before takeoff. The four Artemis II crewmembers are now well into their 10-day journey around the moon, during which they’ll run tests aimed at building NASA’s capacity to execute its planned lunar surface missions. Live Science will be covering highlights from the mission, including its expected reentry on April 10, so stay tuned for updates.

Back in the realm of Earthbound science, chemists have discovered a method to turn breadcrumbs into hydrogen for use in chemical manufacturing. Archaeologists found the world’s oldest evidence of gambling in the form of dice invented by Indigenous people in the western U.S. more than 12,000 years ago. Another archaeological discovery out of Vietnam may challenge the presumed history of syphilis. And a new study suggests that quantum computers don’t need to be nearly as powerful as we thought to break the world’s most secure encryption algorithms.

Scientists cured type 1 diabetes in mice

In type 1 diabetes, the immune system has learned to attack islet cells in the pancreas and relentlessly destroy them. New research has found a way to eliminate this autoimmune attack without completely erasing the immune system. (Image credit: BSIP via Getty Images)

In type 1 diabetes, the immune system attacks cells that make insulin, leaving the body with too little of the blood-sugar-controlling hormone. Those insulin-making cells can be replaced, but the procedure typically requires patients to undergo lifelong immune suppression, which comes with its own serious health complications.

Now, in a new study, scientists explored a way to transplant insulin-making cells without the need for immunosuppression. So far, the approach has shown promise in lab mice, though much more work is needed to show it works in humans. But in theory, it could pave the way to a cure, experts told Live Science.

Discover more health news

—Scientists have discovered an ‘Achilles’ heel’ in deadly superbugs

—Pig semen component could deliver chemotherapy to hard-to-reach eye cancer, mouse study suggests

—Teenager’s hives turned out to be caused by rare water allergy

Life’s Little Mysteries

A very long solar filament that had been snaking around the sun erupted with a flourish on Dec. 6, 2010. (Image credit: NASA/GSFC/SOHO)

A close up of the sun shows a glowing orange and red ball of gas with long streaks of gas filaments leaking from its surface into the darkness of space. — A very long solar filament that had been snaking around the sun erupted with a flourish on Dec. 6, 2010. (Image credit: NASA/GSFC/SOHO)

Life on Earth literally revolves around the sun’s light and energy — but what would happen if our companion star suddenly winked out of existence? Live Science contributor Jesse Steinmetz tackles the question of what a suddenly sunless Earth might be like and which organisms might survive in such a cold, dark place.

—If you enjoyed this, sign up for our Life’s Little Mysteries newsletter

China’s push to reduce air pollution had unexpected results

New research revealed China’s actions to clean up its air pollution impacted other areas of the globe. (Image credit: Getty Images / Stringer)

China launched an effort to clean up its air in 2013, and in the decade or so since, the country has lowered its sulfate aerosol emissions by about 75%. A new study took a look at the global impact of that impressive feat, showing that the loss of smog over China likely spared the Arctic from sea-ice-damaging cyclones. The smog previously detoured storms across the North Pacific, funneling them into the Arctic, where they would destroy ice in the Bering Sea.

However, it’s not all good news: Aerosols cool the planet, so their disappearance can ultimately unmask greenhouse-gas-driven warming that was once offset by pollution’s cooling effect. In short, it’s a complicated picture that will take more research to fully understand.

Discover more planet Earth news

—Extreme wildfires, droughts and storms could happen even under moderate global warming, study finds

—Scientists discover potentially huge freshwater reservoir hidden beneath Great Salt Lake

—Earth’s energy imbalance is much more extreme than climate models show ‪—‬ but scientists aren’t sure why

Also in science news this week

—‘It blew my mind’: Long-lost ice-age ecosystem, including fossils of lion-size armadillo and giant ground sloth, discovered in Texas ‘water cave’

—Farting comet seen reversing its spin for the first time ever —‬ and it may soon ‘self-destruct’

—Tasmanian tigers discovered in Indigenous rock art in Australia, suggesting these marsupials lived there much longer than thought

—Rare ‘sungrazer’ comet MAPS will shine superbright on Saturday ‪—‬ if it survives a dangerous encounter with our star

—A new tweak to Einstein’s relativity could transform our understanding of the Big Bang

Science long read

Artemis II’s Space Launch System rocket and Orion spacecraft are ready to launch from Kennedy Space Center in Florida. (Image credit: NASA/Joel Kowsky)

NASA’s Artemis II mission will not only help the space agency prepare for its future trips to the lunar surface but also offer a unique opportunity to study the impacts of deep space on human health. With the sun having recently passed its peak in activity, called solar maximum, could the four-person crew face even more risk from radiation than they would otherwise?

To unpack the effects of space weather on the human body, Live Science trending news writer Patrick Pester spoke with Patricia Reiff, a professor of physics and astronomy at Rice University in Houston. Counterintuitively, she explained that solar maximum may be a better time for the Artemis II mission than you might assume.

Something for the weekend

If you’re looking for something a little longer to read over the weekend, here are some of the best analyses, crosswords and opinion pieces published this week.

—‘Not how you build a digital mind’: How reasoning failures are preventing AI models from achieving human-level intelligence [Analysis]

—Homo habilis is the earliest named human. But is it even human? [Analysis]

—Live Science crossword puzzle #37: The seventh planet from the sun — 2 down [Crossword]

Science news in pictures

The main sensory nerve of the clitoris, the dorsal nerve, is labeled in yellow. Veins and other tissues are shown in different colors. (Image credit: Ju Young Lee et al., 2026)

Scientists recently unveiled the first 3D map of the clitoral nerves, which renders the tissues at micron-scale resolution. The effort involved CT scans stitched together from X-rays that used an extremely bright light source, called a synchrotron. Prior to this research, other scientists had studied the general structure of the clitoris using MRI and tallied up the 10,000 or so nerves in the organ. But the 3D map provides new insights into the nerves’ structures that could be incredibly useful for surgeons to reference.

Mount Arkanu is a massif made up of concentric rocky rings topped with a large hat-like formation. The entire structure is over 15 miles wide. (Image credit: NASA/ISS program)

A photo snapped in 2025 by an astronaut shows concentric mountain ridges in the Libyan desert. Known as Mount Arkanu (sometimes spelled Arkenu), the colossal structure was once thought to be an ancient impact crater. But recent research suggests it actually formed from magma repeatedly rising toward the surface and intruding into the surrounding rock. Mount Arkanu bears ancient artworks depicting human figures, along with cattle and other tethered animals, such as giraffes.

Science in motion

NASA’s Artemis II crew launches to the moon

NASA’s Artemis II Crew Launches To The Moon (Official Broadcast) – YouTube

Watch On

If you couldn’t watch the Artemis II launch live Wednesday, don’t fret! NASA’s coverage of the event can be found on the agency’s YouTube channel. (And for detailed explanations of the science you’re seeing, check out Live Science’s live coverage.)

Besides witnessing the epic moment of liftoff, you can learn about NASA astronaut’s wide array of prelaunch rituals, the menus the crew will tuck into on their venture, and the mission’s official mascot, Rise, designed by 8-year-old Lucas Ye of California. The coverage also digs into all the details of how the Artemis II mission will proceed now that the astronauts have exited Earth’s atmosphere.

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