![Planet Theia Portions of the Moon-forming impactor Theia survived throughout Earth's history in the deep mantle Description: Terrestrial planet formation concludes with giant impacts between early Solar System planets. The formation of Earth's Moon is widely considered the prime example of such an impact, yet no direct evidence has been found. In this week's issue, Qian Yuan and his colleagues demonstrate that two massive seismically-observed basal mantle structures may represent remnants of planet Theia’s mantle rock. The combination of high-resolution giant impact simulations, mantle convection models, mineral physics calculations, and seismic imaging suggests that the lower half of Earth’s mantle remained mostly solid after this impact, and that parts of Theia’s mantle sank and accumulated atop Earth's core nearly 4.5 billion years ago, survived there throughout Earth’s history.](https://media.cnn.com/api/v1/images/stellar/prod/moon-forming-impactor-1.jpg?c=16x9&q=h_270,w_480,c_fill)
Scientists say they’ve finally found remnants of Theia, an ancient planet that collided with Earth to form the moon
![a3.jpg](https://media.cnn.com/api/v1/images/stellar/prod/a3.jpg?c=16x9&q=h_270,w_480,c_fill)
A young woman was sacrificed and frozen for 500 years in the Andes. Scientists just revealed her face
![This photograph shows ripples in the surface of Denman Glacier in East Antarctica that throw shadows against the ice. The glacier is melting at a faster rate now than it was from 2003 to 2008.](https://media.cnn.com/api/v1/images/stellar/prod/denman20200325-nasa.jpg?c=16x9&q=h_270,w_480,c_fill)
Scientists discover an ancient landscape in an area on Earth ‘less well known than the surface of Mars’
![DTFA4M Homo neanderthalensis, neanderthal man](https://media.cnn.com/api/v1/images/stellar/prod/dtfa4m.jpg?c=16x9&q=h_270,w_480,c_fill)
Why do some groups of people today have more Neanderthal DNA than others? A new study offers answers
![Early Europeans thrived on seaweed, study of dental plaque reveals](https://media.cnn.com/api/v1/images/stellar/prod/231017120325-02-early-europeans-seaweed.jpg?c=16x9&q=h_270,w_480,c_fill)
A nutrient-rich food that once largely disappeared from Western diets was a staple of early Europeans, study finds
![(add caption)](https://media.cnn.com/api/v1/images/stellar/prod/231012204224-surgeon-tools-stock-image-restricted.jpg?c=16x9&q=h_270,w_480,c_fill)
Gene-edited pig kidney keeps monkey alive for 2 years, trial finds, a step toward longer-lasting human transplants
![New research confirms age of ancient footprints](https://media.cnn.com/api/v1/images/stellar/prod/231005113523-01-ancient-footprints-first-americans.jpg?c=16x9&q=h_270,w_480,c_fill)
Scientists say they’ve confirmed evidence that humans arrived in the Americas far earlier than previously thought
![Bawendi, Louis Brus + Alexei Ekimov](https://media.cnn.com/api/v1/images/stellar/prod/231004094138-nobel-prize-chemistry-2023-split.jpg?c=16x9&q=h_270,w_480,c_fill)
Nobel Prize awarded for discovery of quantum dots that changed everything from TV displays to cancer imaging
![TOPSHOT - Audience members take photos of a screen showing a video about China's Chang'e-5 moon probe at an event announcing details of international access to lunar samples collected by the probe, in Beijing on January 18, 2021. (Photo by GREG BAKER / AFP) (Photo by GREG BAKER/AFP via Getty Images)](https://media.cnn.com/api/v1/images/stellar/prod/231003090057-02-china-moon-mission-chang-e-5-file-2021.jpg?c=16x9&q=h_270,w_480,c_fill)
China’s next moon mission aims to do what no country has ever done. Its space ambitions don’t end there
![Pierre Agostini, Ferenc Krausz and Anne L'Huillier shared this year's physics prize.](https://media.cnn.com/api/v1/images/stellar/prod/231003110208-nobel-prize-physics-winners-split.jpg?c=16x9&q=h_270,w_480,c_fill)
Nobel Prize in physics won by trio who created rapid flashes of light to ‘capture the shortest of moments’
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![Containers of Planters Dry Roasted Peanuts on Thursday, Dec. 10, 2020. (AP Photo/Jon Elswick)
CHICAGO - OCTOBER 22: Monopoly games made by Parker Brothers, a subsidiary of Hasbro, are offered for sale at a Toys R Us store October 22, 2007 in Chicago, Illinois. Hasbro today reported a 62 percent rise in quarterly profit. (Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images)](https://media.cnn.com/api/v1/images/stellar/prod/230918132146-06-mandela-effect-mr-peanut-monopoly-split.jpg?c=16x9&q=h_270,w_480,c_fill)
The ‘Mandela Effect’ describes the false memories many of us share. But why can’t scientists explain it?
![02 earthquake lights explainer](https://media.cnn.com/api/v1/images/stellar/prod/230913145050-02-earthquake-lights-explainer.jpg?c=16x9&q=h_270,w_480,c_fill)
Strange lights spotted in Morocco earthquake videos may be a phenomenon reported for centuries, scientists say
![Shanidar Cave photographed in May 2023. Photo C.O. Hunt](https://media.cnn.com/api/v1/images/stellar/prod/230904174353-06-neanderthal-burial-flower-burial.jpg?c=16x9&q=h_270,w_480,c_fill)
A ‘flower burial’ unearthed in 1960 reshaped the study of Neanderthals. A new discovery calls it into question
![FILE - This undated file photo provided by The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration shows a vaquita porpoise. Mexico announced in the first week of March 2023, that it is seeking to avoid potential trade sanctions for failing to stop the near-extinction of the vaquita, the world's smallest porpoise and most endangered marine mammal. Studies estimate there may be as few as eight vaquitas remaining in the Gulf of California, the only place they exist and where they often become entangled in illegal gill nets and drown. (Paula Olson/NOAA via AP File)](https://media.cnn.com/api/v1/images/stellar/prod/230808141748-vaquita-porpoise-extinction-alert.jpg?c=16x9&q=h_270,w_480,c_fill)
International Whaling Commission issues its first-ever extinction alert over endangered vaquita porpoise