Australia's vast Nullarbor Plain hides deep caves that can teach us about alien worlds
Stretching more than 200,000 square kilometers (77,000 square miles) across southern Australia, the vast, flat plains of the Nullarbor mark one of the world's largest regions of limestone. It formed w
Science
phys.org
19.09.2026
Bringing ice sheets to life: Releasing a dynamic ice sheet modeling workflow for Australia's climate model
Ice sheets are fundamental components of the Earth system. Antarctica and Greenland, the two ice sheets currently on Earth, don't just affect their own regions: What happens on these vast masses of la
Science
phys.org
19.09.2026
How one plume of hot rock built two volcano chains off Australia's coast
Lord Howe Island sits about 600 kilometers (370 miles) off the New South Wales coast, a crescent of rainforest and sea cliffs that draws visitors to its beaches and birdlife. Few people realize they a
Science
phys.org
18.09.2026
From war to weather, Australian farmers are planting spring crops in an uncertain world
Australian farmers are heading into spring with an unusual mix of optimism and uncertainty.
Science
phys.org
18.09.2026
Opt-out AI training plan could weaken Australian copyright protections
The ground is shifting beneath the feet of Australian authors and other creatives. A leaked proposal seen by the ABC suggests the government might grant artificial intelligence (AI) companies access t
Science
phys.org
17.09.2026
Black holes from stellar to supermassive size may follow one jet-launching rule
An early-career Western Australian astrophysicist has helped uncover a universal rule behind one of the most powerful behaviors in the universe: when black holes launch jets. The discovery, published
Science
phys.org
17.09.2026
El Niño may lift Australian food prices as dry conditions squeeze farms
Australia's farm sector currently faces a double whammy from weather and nonweather-related factors: a confirmed El Niño effect and surging inflationary pressures.
Science
phys.org
17.09.2026
We could soon be able to track changes in Australia's forests in near‑real time—using satellites
Forests and woodlands cover millions of hectares across Australia, from tropical rainforests and temperate eucalypt forests to the vast woodlands and shrublands of the arid interior. They store enormo
Science
phys.org
17.09.2026
New livestream brings remote Australian arid zone waterhole to the world
A new livestream from a remote waterhole in the Northern Territory is giving people around the world the opportunity to observe wildlife in real time.
Science
phys.org
17.09.2026
Bird flu has claimed its first Australian sea lion and dolphin. How does the virus get into these animals?
A rare Australian sea lion (Neophoca cinerea) on Kangaroo Island has been confirmed to have died from highly pathogenic H5N1 bird flu. The sea lion had recently been attacked by a shark, weakening it.
Science
phys.org
17.09.2026
Australia's ancient rainfall patterns more complex than previously believed
"Sediment and fossil records are a major pillar of our understanding of how the climate works—but climate scientists have gotten something wrong about Australia's ice age," says Dr. Alex F. Wall, lead
Science
phys.org
16.09.2026
This Australian cave hid 25,000 years of ritual secrets
Microscopic plant remains are revealing how GunaiKurnai ancestors used Cloggs Cave for ritual practices over thousands of years. People deliberately gathered whole grasses, carried them into the dark
Science
sciencedaily.com
15.09.2026
Frontline trauma: Alarming PTSD rates in WA police revealed
More than one-third of Western Australia's police officers report symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), new research led by Edith Cowan University (ECU) and published in the journal Austr
Science
phys.org
15.09.2026
Indigenous Australian population was much larger than previously thought and decimated after First Fleet's arrival
Australia had a much larger Indigenous population before the arrival of Europeans than previously thought, according to new research. The research also demonstrates much larger population losses resul
Science
phys.org
15.09.2026
Australia must double down to meet our climate targets, new study shows how
Within the next five years, global warming is set to breach the 1.5°C threshold at the heart of the 2015 Paris Agreement. This will have dire consequences, from rapidly melting ice sheets to ghostly w
Science
phys.org
15.09.2026
Social isolation in Australia has nearly doubled over two decades
Australians are becoming increasingly lonely and socially isolated, according to new University of Sydney research that found rates of social isolation nearly doubled over the past 23 years. Lonelines
Science
phys.org
14.09.2026
Inspiration alone won't solve Australia's teacher shortage, study reveals
A $10 million Australian government campaign celebrating inspirational teachers risked overlooking the workplace conditions driving educators from the profession, according to new research led by Curt
Science
phys.org
14.09.2026
Tasmanian devils lived with people in outback Western Australia 45,000 years ago, new fossils show
Tasmanian devils are among Australia's most distinctive mammals. Stocky, powerful and famously noisy, wild populations are now restricted to Tasmania. But this was not always the case. In fact, thousa
Science
phys.org
11.09.2026
Australia's reading and math results are at an 'all‑time low'—but there's more to the story
Results from the latest international test of 15-year-olds have prompted another round of headlines suggesting there are serious problems with Australia's academic results.
Science
phys.org
10.09.2026
Rising sea levels could cost Australians at least $855 billion by 2100
Rising sea levels and storm surges could cost $855 billion in economic losses across Australia by the end of the century, according to new research, the first of its kind in Australia.
Science
phys.org
10.09.2026