The state of space travel privatization after Boeing's Starliner difficulties On Friday, Boeing's troubled Starliner spacecraft heads back to Earth. WBUR Newsroom Play AudioListen 6 mins
This week in science: a newly-discovered species, 'talking' dogs and a beluga's death NPR's Ari Shapiro talks with Regina Barber and Rachel Carlson of Short Wave about a newly discovered species in California's Mono Lake, dogs understanding words, and the death of a beloved beluga whale. Regina Barber Rachel Carlson Play AudioListen 9 mins
Humpback whales make custom fishing nets — out of bubbles To target the tiny prey they depend on, humpbacks have developed a way of trapping them with nets made out of bubbles. A new study shows exactly how they do it. Lauren Sommer
With no crew aboard, spacecraft Starliner lands without a hitch The spacecraft landed in New Mexico early Saturday morning leaving two astronauts behind on the International Space Station. The crew members will return to earth in February aboard a SpaceX craft. Nell Greenfieldboyce Play AudioListen 5 mins
Cabernet is the most popular red wine in the U.S. Can it endure climate change? Bold cabernet sauvignon wines made Napa Valley famous. Now, hotter temperatures are starting to damage the grapes, so some wineries are starting to experiment. Lauren Sommer
Florida’s coral reefs are still ailing but doing better A year after the worst coral bleaching ever recorded, Florida's reefs are slowly recovering. Despite elevated ocean temperatures, scientists say this summer they didn’t see significant bleaching. Greg Allen
Winter crabbing strained Chesapeake Bay’s blue crab population. It may soon resume After a 16-year prohibition, a group of Virginia watermen voted to reinstate winter crab dredging. Many argue the decision puts the blue crab’s fragile population in jeopardy. Julie Depenbrock Play AudioListen 4 mins
Regenerative agriculture is sold as a climate solution. Can it do all it says? Governments and industries are pouring billions of dollars into so-called “regenerative agriculture.” But while scientists say some of these farming practices do reduce planet heating pollution, for others the science is less clear. Julia Simon
The Polaris Dawn spacewalk is SpaceX’s ‘risky adventure’ New spacesuits, untested astronauts, and a lot that can go wrong make this five-day mission unusually complex, but with a potentially great reward. Geoff Brumfiel
How Memphis became a battleground over Elon Musk’s xAI supercomputer A massive project headed by Elon Musk in Memphis, Tenn., to power AI has moved at breakneck speed. But it's stirring controversy around pollution emissions. The EPA says it’s looking into it. Dara Kerr
