A new study published in Big Earth Data  introduces the University of Bonn Soil Moisture Data Catalog (UB-SMDC), a standards-compliant metadata portal that centralizes information on publicly available soil moisture content (SMC) datasets and provides a unified platform for efficient data discovery, comparison, and access. Built on the GeoNetwork platform and supported by a controlled metadata taxonomy, the catalog analyzes 373 SMC datasets, facilitating transparent research, cross-dataset integration, and a comprehensive understanding of the global soil moisture data landscape.The data and materials supporting the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request. All metadata records are cataloged and publicly accessible in the UB-SMDC GeoNetwork data portal (https://ubsmdc.sfb1502.de/).

Detecting microcystin-leucine-arginine (MC-LR) in freshwater is increasingly important as harmful algal blooms intensify, but biosensor readings are affected by changing water conditions. Researchers at Hanbat National University and the University of Central Florida developed a machine learning-based calibration framework for biosensors using water quality data. The model accurately predicted MC-LR levels while reducing the need for repeated recalibration, enabling more reliable on-site monitoring.

Xavier Trepat and his team at the Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia (IBEC) are key partners in ALIVE: Active Living Matter — Information, Vitality, and Emergence, an international research programme selected for funding through the first European edition of the Novo Nordisk Foundation Challenge Programme. Coordinated by the Niels Bohr Institute in Copenhagen, the project will receive 75 million DKK (around €10 million) over six years to uncover how information flows drive the emergence, organisation and function of living tissues.

Stars like our Sun are formed from the gravitational collapse of prestellar cores. However, prestellar cores have strong magnetic fields that need to be weakened for gravitational collapse to take over allowing a star to form. By observing two tracer molecules in a prestellar core, researchers have observed ambipolar diffusion, a velocity discrepancy between ions and neutral particles. This process weakens the magnetic field of the core, which eventually collapses to form a protostar.

The development of high‐energy‐density sodium‐ion batteries places stringent requirements on cathode materials to simultaneously achieve high operating voltages, rapid Na⁺ ions transport, and long‐term structural and interfacial stability. Polyanionic NASICON‐type frameworks have emerged as a compelling cathode platform due to their robust three‐dimensional Na⁺ ions diffusion networks, strong inductive effects, and excellent thermal stability. Within this materials family, fluorophosphate NASICON cathodes offer elevated redox potentials, while targeted anion chemistry modulation provides an effective strategy to tune electronic structure, ion migration, and interfacial reactivity. Representative vanadium‐based fluorophosphate cathodes, Na₃V₂(PO₄)₂F₃ (NVPF) and Na₃V₂O₂(PO₄)₂F (NVOPF), exhibit closely related crystal frameworks yet display distinct sodium storage behavior and degradation characteristics under high‐voltage operation. In NVOPF, partial substitution of F⁻ by O²⁻ enhances electronic conductivity and Na⁺ ions transport kinetics, while NVPF maintains a higher redox potential associated with the V³⁺/V⁴⁺ couple. This review critically compares NVPF‐ and NVOPF‐based cathodes in terms of crystal structure, sodium storage mechanism, synthesis and modification strategies, and high‐voltage cathode/electrolyte interfacial stability. By correlating structural chemistry with electrochemical and interfacial evolution, this work provides general insights and design guidelines for high‐voltage NASICON‐type cathodes in sodium‐ion batteries.

Researchers led by Prof. JIANG Changlong from the Institute of Solid State Physics, Hefei Institutes of Physical Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, have developed a simple fluorescent sensing system that can quickly and visually detect phoxim, an organophosphorus pesticide of concern in food safety and environmental monitoring.

A research team led by Assoc. Prof. CAO Liang from the Hefei Institutes of Physical Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, in collaboration with researchers from the Institute of Solid State Physics, Anhui University and other research institutions, has developed a new approach based on controlled interlayer sliding to regulate quantum states in layered materials. By precisely tuning the movement of atomic layers, the approach enables the design of superlattices and the regulation of electronic properties through structural engineering.

Catalysts are everywhere—from fertilizer production to clean energy—but making them more active without sacrificing stability has remained a major challenge. Researchers have now engineered a gold-platinum nanocluster catalyst that can be activated at lower temperatures while maintaining its precise atomic structure, boosting low-temperature carbon monoxide oxidation performance. Yet a clever ligand design could pave the way for more efficient and durable catalysts.Catalysts are everywhere—from fertilizer production to clean energy—but making them more active without sacrificing stability has remained a major challenge. Researchers have now engineered a gold-platinum nanocluster catalyst that can be activated at lower temperatures while maintaining its precise atomic structure, boosting low-temperature carbon monoxide oxidation performance. Yet a clever ligand design could pave the way for more efficient and durable catalysts.