Washington, DC, 13 March 2008—The organic soup that spawned life on Earth may have gotten generous helpings from outer space, according to a new study. more »

Washington, DC, 28 Feb. 2008 — Interstellar space may be strewn with tiny whiskers of carbon, dimming the light of far-away objects.  This discovery by scientists at the Carnegie Institution may have implications for the “dark energy” hypothesis, proposed a decade ago in part to explain the unexpected dimness of certain stellar explosions called Type1a supernovae. more »

Scientists have discovered that the magnetic strength of magnetite—the most abundant magnetic mineral on Earth—declines drastically when put under pressure. more »

A discovery by scientists at the Carnegie Institution has opened the door to a new generation of piezoelectric materials that can convert mechanical strain into electricity and vice versa, potentially cutting costs and boosting performance in myriad applications ranging from medical diagnostics to green energy technologies. more »

Washington, D.C. - Friday, January 25, 2008. Since we can’t sample the deepest regions of the Earth, scientists watch the velocity of seismic waves as they travel through the planet to determine the composition and density of that material.  more »

Organic compounds contain carbon and hydrogen and form the building blocks of all life on Earth. By analyzing organic material and minerals in the Martian meteorite Allan Hills 84001, scientists at the Carnegie Institution's Geophysical Laboratory have shown for the first time that building blocks of life formed on Mars early in its history.  more »

Washington, D.C. —In the first experiments able to mimic the crushing, searing conditions found in Earth’s lower mantle, and simultaneously probe tell-tale properties of iron, scientists* have discovered that material there behaves very differently than predicted by models. more »

Washington, DC – The contents of the deep Earth affect the planet as a whole, including life at its surface, but scientists must find unusual ways to “see” it. Only recently have researchers been able to produce the extreme temperatures and pressures found inside our planet to understand how it is forming and evolving.  more »

Washington, DC — Scientists at the Carnegie Institution’s Geophysical Laboratory in collaboration with a physicist at the Chinese University of Hong Kong have discovered that two different physical parameters —pressure and the substitution of different isotopes of oxygen (isotopes are different forms of an element) —have a similar effect on electronic properties of mysterious materials called high-temperature superconductors. more »

Washington, D.C. – Scientists at Carnegie’s Geophysical Laboratory have discovered a new type of phase transition—a change from one form to another—in vanadium, a metal that is commonly added to steel to make it harder and more durable. Under extremely high pressures, pure vanadium crystals change their shape but do not take up less space as a result, unlike most other elements that undergo phase transitions. The work appears in the February 23 issue of Physical Review Letters. more »