2017 in science

A number of significant scientific events occurred in 2017. The United Nations declared 2017 the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development.{{cite web |title=International Years |url=https://www.un.org/en/sections/observances/international-years/ |publisher=United Nations |access-date=26 December 2016|date=6 January 2015 }}

Events

=January=

File:LarsenC photo 2016315 lrg.jpg

4 January
A study published in the journal Science Advances casts further doubt on the existence of a recent "pause" in global warming, with more evidence that ocean temperatures have been underestimated.{{cite web |url=https://phys.org/news/2017-01-steady-oceans-years.html |title=Study confirms steady warming of oceans for past 75 years |publisher=PhysOrg |date=4 January 2017 |access-date=5 January 2017}}{{cite web |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-38513740 |title=Climate change: Fresh doubt over global warming 'pause' |work=BBC News |date=5 January 2017 |access-date=5 January 2017}}
After 60 wins and 0 losses over 7 days, Google reveals that a mysterious player of Go, named "Master", is actually an improved version of its AlphaGo AI.{{cite web |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/ai-program-vanquishes-human-players-of-go-in-china-1483601561 |title=Humans Mourn Loss After Google Is Unmasked as China's Go Master |publisher=WSJ |date=5 January 2017 |access-date=6 January 2017}}
Researchers at Michigan State University demonstrate a chemical compound and potential new drug able to stop the spread of melanoma by 90%.{{cite web |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/01/170104103650.htm |title=Promising new drug stops spread of melanoma by 90 percent |publisher=Science Daily |date=4 January 2017 |access-date=5 January 2017}}
NASA announces its two choices for the next Discovery Program missions – the Lucy mission, to visit several asteroids, including six Jupiter Trojans; and the Psyche mission, to visit the large metallic asteroid 16 Psyche.{{cite web |url=https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nasa-selects-two-missions-to-explore-the-early-solar-system |title=NASA Selects Two Missions to Explore the Early Solar System |publisher=NASA |date=4 January 2017 |access-date=8 January 2017}}{{cite web |url=https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/nasa-unveils-new-missions-to-bizarre-asteroids/ |title=NASA Unveils New Missions to Bizarre Asteroids |publisher=Scientific American |date=4 January 2017 |access-date=8 January 2017}}
5 January – A Japanese insurance firm, Fukoku Mutual Life Insurance, announces that 34 of its office workers will be replaced with IBM’s Watson AI.{{cite web |url=https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2017/jan/05/japanese-company-replaces-office-workers-artificial-intelligence-ai-fukoku-mutual-life-insurance |title=Japanese company replaces office workers with artificial intelligence |work=The Guardian |date=5 January 2017 |access-date=5 January 2017}}
6 January
A large portion of the Larsen C ice shelf is reported to be on the verge of breaking away from Antarctica. It is expected to become one of the top 10 biggest icebergs ever recorded, leaving the whole shelf vulnerable to future collapse, which would raise global sea levels by 10cm.{{cite web |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-38522954 |title=Huge Antarctic iceberg poised to break away |work=BBC News |date=6 January 2017 |access-date=6 January 2017}}
Researchers at MIT design one of the strongest lightweight materials known, by compressing and fusing flakes of graphene. The new material is highly porous. Computer simulations predict it is possible to make materials with a density of just 5 percent of steel, but 10 times stronger.{{cite web |url=http://phys.org/news/2017-01-porous-d-graphene-mit-strong.html |title=Porous, 3-D forms of graphene developed at MIT can be 10 times as strong as steel but much lighter |publisher=PhysOrg |date=6 January 2017 |access-date=7 January 2017}}
NASA scientists release an image (also see related comparison image) of the Earth and Moon as viewed 127 million miles away from the planet Mars by the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter.{{cite news |last=St. Fleur |first=Nicholas |title=Looking at Your Home Planet from Mars |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/09/science/earth-from-mars-photo.html |date=9 January 2017 |work=The New York Times |access-date=9 January 2017}} (related image taken by the Curiosity rover on the surface of Mars)

File:PIA21260 - Earth and Its Moon, as Seen From Mars.jpg and Moon as viewed 127 million miles away from the planet Mars by the MRO.]]

9 January – Researchers at King's College London report a way of using an Alzheimer's drug to stimulate the renewal of living stem cells in tooth pulp.{{cite web |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/01/170109092624.htm |title=Natural tooth repair method, using Alzheimer's drug, could revolutionize dental treatments |publisher=Science Daily |date=9 January 2017 |access-date=12 January 2017}}{{cite news |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/damaged-teeth-regrow-alzheimers-drug-naturally-dentist-kings-college-london-a7517366.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220501/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/damaged-teeth-regrow-alzheimers-drug-naturally-dentist-kings-college-london-a7517366.html |archive-date=1 May 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |title=Damaged teeth can be regrown naturally using an Alzheimer's drug, scientists discover |work=The Independent |date=9 January 2017 |access-date=12 January 2017}}{{cbignore}}
10 January – Researchers discover that glia, not neurons, are most affected by brain aging.{{cite web |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/01/170110120706.htm |title=Glia, not neurons, are most affected by brain aging |publisher=Science Daily |date=10 January 2017 |access-date=10 January 2017}}
11 January
A new species of gibbon, named Hoolock tianxing, is identified in southwest China.{{cite web |url=https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2017/jan/11/new-species-of-gibbon-discovered-in-china |title=New species of gibbon discovered in China |work=The Guardian |date=11 January 2017 |access-date=11 January 2017}}
Carnegie Mellon University announces "Libratus", an artificial intelligence program designed to beat humans at poker.{{cite web |url=https://www.cs.cmu.edu/news/poker-play-begins-brains-vs-ai-upping-ante |title=Poker Play Begins in "Brains Vs. AI: Upping the Ante" |publisher=Carnegie Mellon University |date=11 January 2017 |access-date=12 January 2017}}{{cite web |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-38595480 |title=AI takes on humans in marathon poker game |work=BBC News |date=12 January 2017 |access-date=12 January 2017}}
12 January – Scientists at the Scripps Research Institute report the discovery of TZAP, a protein that binds the ends of chromosomes and determines how long telomeres can be.{{cite web |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/01/170112141350.htm |title=Master regulator of cellular aging discovered |publisher=Science Daily |date=12 January 2017 |access-date=13 January 2017}}
14 January
Researchers at the University of Sydney use big data to predict how a quantum system will change and to prevent its breakdown from occurring.{{cite web |url=https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2017-01/uos-stq011117.php |title=Seeing the quantum future... literally |publisher=EurekAlert! |date=14 January 2017 |access-date=14 January 2017}}
SpaceX resumes flights, following a launch pad explosion in September 2016. A reusable Falcon 9 rocket successfully delivers 10 satellites into orbit for a client, Iridium, before returning to a landing pad in the ocean.{{cite web |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-38613275 |title=SpaceX returns to flight with Falcon 9 rocket launch |work=BBC News |date=14 January 2017 |access-date=15 January 2017}}{{cite web |url=http://www.spacex.com/news/2017/01/14/iridium-1-mission-photos |title=Iridium-1 Mission in Photos |publisher=SpaceX |date=14 January 2017 |access-date=15 January 2017}}
16 January
Astronomers working on the Japanese Akatsuki space probe mission report detecting a possible gravity wave that occurred on the planet Venus in December 2015.{{cite news |last=Chang |first=Kenneth |title=Venus Smiled, With a Mysterious Wave Across Its Atmosphere |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/16/science/venus-wave-akatsuki.html |date=16 January 2017 |work=The New York Times |access-date=17 January 2017}}
Researchers publish evidence that humans first entered North America in around 24,000 BP (Before Present), during the height of the last ice age. This is 10,000 years earlier than previously thought.{{cite web |url=https://phys.org/news/2017-01-humans-north-america-years-earlier.html |title=First humans arrived in North America 10,000 years earlier than believed |publisher=PhysOrg |date=16 January 2017 |access-date=17 January 2017}}

File:Global-warming-2016.jpg

17 January – The Chinese government announces plans for the first prototype exascale supercomputer by the end of the year.{{cite web |url=https://www.theverge.com/2017/1/19/14321832/china-exascale-supercomputer-prototype-2017 |title=China aims to build world's first exascale supercomputer prototype by 2017 |publisher=The Verge |date=19 January 2017 |access-date=19 January 2017}}
18 January
Researchers at Harvard develop a customisable "soft robot" that fits around a heart and helps it beat, potentially offering a new treatment option for patients with heart failure.{{cite web |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/01/170118143755.htm |title=Soft robot helps the heart beat |publisher=Science Daily |date=18 January 2017 |access-date=21 January 2017}}
Independent analyses by NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) show that 2016 was the hottest year on record, at 0.99 °C (1.78 °F) above the mid-20th century global mean average. This follows record warmth in the two preceding years 2015 and 2014.{{cite web |url=https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nasa-noaa-data-show-2016-warmest-year-on-record-globally |title=NASA, NOAA Data Show 2016 Warmest Year on Record Globally |publisher=NASA |date=18 January 2017 |access-date=19 January 2017}}
19 January
A study published in Nature warns that some of the most important crops in the U.S. are at risk of "abrupt and substantial yield losses" from rising temperatures later this century, with harvests potentially declining by 20% for wheat, 40% for soybean and almost 50% for maize.{{cite web |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/01/170119084622.htm |title=Harvests in US to suffer from climate change |publisher=Science Daily |date=19 January 2017 |access-date=21 January 2017}}
Researchers at Northwestern University develop an AI system that performs at human levels on a standard visual intelligence test.{{cite web |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/01/170119110935.htm |title=Making AI systems that see the world as humans do |publisher=Science Daily |date=19 January 2017 |access-date=21 January 2017}}

File:Jupiter_interior.png, normally found inside gas giants like Jupiter.]]

23 January
Researchers demonstrate a prototype 3D printer that can print fully functional human skin.{{cite web |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/01/170123090630.htm |title=3-D bioprinter to print human skin |publisher=Science Daily |date=23 January 2017 |access-date=23 January 2017}}
Scientists at the Scripps Research Institute create the first stable semisynthetic organism. This can hold two synthetic bases, called X and Y, in its genetic code indefinitely. The team says it could lead to entirely new life forms using synthetic DNA, with many potential uses in medicine.{{cite web |url=http://www.scripps.edu/news/press/2017/20170123romesberg.html |title=TSRI Scientists Create First Stable Semisynthetic Organism |publisher=Scripps Research Institute |date=23 January 2017 |access-date=24 January 2017}}{{cite web |url=https://www.theguardian.com/science/2017/jan/23/organisms-created-with-synthetic-dna-pave-way-for-new-entirely-new-life-forms |title=Organisms created with synthetic DNA pave way for entirely new life forms |work=The Guardian |date=23 January 2017 |access-date=24 January 2017}}
26 January
Researchers at the Salk Institute create the first human-pig hybrid embryo, containing genetic information from both species.{{cite web |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/01/170126132536.htm |title=Scientists use stem cells to create human/pig chimera embryos |publisher=Science Daily |date=26 January 2017 |access-date=27 January 2017}}{{cite web |url=https://www.theguardian.com/science/2017/jan/26/first-human-pig-chimera-created-in-milestone-study |title=First human-pig 'chimera' created in milestone study |work=The Guardian |date=26 January 2017 |access-date=27 January 2017}}{{cite web |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-38717930 |title=Human-pig 'chimera embryos' detailed |work=BBC News |date=26 January 2017 |access-date=27 January 2017}}
Scientists at Harvard report creating a small amount of metallic hydrogen for the first time, a century after it was theorised.{{cite web |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/01/170126142854.htm |title=Metallic hydrogen, once theory, becomes reality |publisher=Science Daily |date=26 January 2017 |access-date=27 January 2017}}{{cite news |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/hydrogen-metal-revolution-technology-space-rockets-superconductor-harvard-university-a7548221.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220501/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/hydrogen-metal-revolution-technology-space-rockets-superconductor-harvard-university-a7548221.html |archive-date=1 May 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |title=Scientists turn hydrogen into metal in breakthrough that could revolutionise the planet |work=The Independent |date=26 January 2017 |access-date=27 January 2017}}{{cbignore}} The claim is disputed.{{cite journal |title=Physicists doubt bold report of metallic hydrogen |journal=Nature |volume=542 |issue=7639 |pages=17 |date=26 January 2017 |doi=10.1038/nature.2017.21379 |pmid=28150796 |last1=Castelvecchi |first1=Davide |bibcode=2017Natur.542...17C |s2cid=4455350 |doi-access=free }}
27 January – A report from the EU's Joint Research Centre concludes that if global temperatures rise by 4 °C, the flood risk in countries representing more than 70% of the global population and of the global GDP will increase by more than 500%.{{cite web |url=https://ec.europa.eu/jrc/en/news/global-flood-risk-increase-five-fold-4-temperature-rise |title=Global flood risk to increase five-fold with a 4°C temperature rise |date=27 January 2017 |access-date=2 February 2017}}
30 January – News reports that a new safe battery has been invented. It is based on solid lithium, and is claimed to have twice the storage capacity of lithium-ion batteries. It is featured on a newly released PBS NOVA TV program entitled Search for the Super Battery.{{cite news |last=Pogue |first=David |author-link=David Pogue |title=Exclusive: Tufts professor invents a non-exploding battery that holds 2x as much power |url=http://finance.yahoo.com/news/exclusive-tufts-professor-invents-a-non-exploding-battery-that-holds-2x-as-much-power-202145984.html |date=30 January 2017 |publisher=Yahoo! News |access-date=3 February 2017}}{{cite web |author=Staff |title=Search for the Super Battery |url=https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/video/search-for-the-super-battery/ |date=1 February 2017 |publisher=Public Broadcasting Service |access-date=3 February 2017}}

=February=

1 February
Researchers led by the University of Sussex publish the first practical blueprint for how to build a quantum computer.{{cite web |url=http://www.sussex.ac.uk/newsandevents/index?id=38900 |title=First ever blueprint unveiled to construct a large scale quantum computer |publisher=University of Sussex |date=1 February 2017 |access-date=2 February 2017}}{{cite news |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/quantum-computers-quantum-physics-sussex-university-holy-grail-a7558036.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220501/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/quantum-computers-quantum-physics-sussex-university-holy-grail-a7558036.html |archive-date=1 May 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |title=Quantum computing breakthrough could help 'change life completely', say scientists |work=The Independent |date=2 February 2017 |access-date=2 February 2017}}{{cbignore}}
Researchers develop a new blue-phase liquid crystal that could triple the sharpness of TVs, computer screens, and other displays while also reducing the power needed to run the device.{{cite web |url=http://www.osa.org/en-us/about_osa/newsroom/news_releases/2017/novel_liquid_crystal_could_triple_sharpness_of_tod/ |title=Novel Liquid Crystal Could Triple Sharpness of Today's Televisions |publisher=The Optical Society |date=1 February 2017 |access-date=2 February 2017}}

File:Chenopodium quinoa0.jpg of Quinoa food crop is decoded.]]

6 February – The first stable helium compound is synthesized, Na₂He.{{cite journal |title=A stable compound of helium and sodium at high pressure |date=6 February 2017 |doi=10.1038/nchem.2716 |pmid=28430195 |journal=Nature Chemistry |volume=9 |issue=5 |pages=440–445 |bibcode=2017NatCh...9..440D |last1=Dong |first1=Xiao |last2=Oganov |first2=Artem R |last3=Goncharov |first3=Alexander F |last4=Stavrou |first4=Elissaios |last5=Lobanov |first5=Sergey |last6=Saleh |first6=Gabriele |last7=Qian |first7=Guang-Rui |last8=Zhu |first8=Qiang |last9=Gatti |first9=Carlo|last10=Deringer|first10=Volker L |last11=Dronskowski |first11=Richard |last12=Zhou |first12=Xiang-Feng |last13=Prakapenka |first13=Vitali B |last14=Konôpková |first14=Zuzana |last15=Popov |first15=Ivan A |last16=Boldyrev |first16=Alexander I |last17=Wang |first17=Hui-Tian|arxiv=1309.3827 |s2cid=20459726 }}{{cite web |url=http://www.sciencealert.com/forget-what-you-learned-scientists-might-have-just-created-a-stable-helium-compound |title=Forget what you've learned - scientists just created a stable helium compound |publisher=sciencealert.com |date=7 February 2017 |access-date=9 February 2017}} Helium is the most unreactive element.
7 February
A mysterious "white dwarf pulsar" is announced, the first known star of its kind, located 380 light years from Earth.{{cite web |url=http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/newsandevents/pressreleases/mysterious_white_dwarf |title=Mysterious white dwarf pulsar discovered |publisher=University of Warwick |date=7 February 2017 |access-date=8 February 2017}}
Asteroid 2017 BQ6 passed within 6.6 lunar distances of Earth at 6:36 UT.
8 February
The genome of the quinoa food crop is decoded by researchers at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology.{{cite web |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-38908321 |title=Quinoa genome could see 'super-food' prices tumble |work=BBC News |date=8 February 2017 |access-date=9 February 2017}}
NASA publishes a report outlining the mission goals of an uncrewed Europa surface lander and which instruments the probe may need.{{cite web |url=http://www.popsci.com/heres-what-nasas-europa-lander-could-look-like |title=Here's what NASA's Europa lander could look like |publisher=PopSci |date=9 February 2017 |access-date=10 February 2017}}
9 February – Researchers at Japan's National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology demonstrate a robotic drone bee able to pollinate flowers.{{cite web |url=https://www.newscientist.com/article/2120832-robotic-bee-could-help-pollinate-crops-as-real-bees-decline/ |title=Robotic bee could help pollinate crops as real bees decline |publisher=New Scientist |date=9 February 2017 |access-date=10 February 2017}}{{cite web |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/02/170209133506.htm |title=Sticky gels turn insect-sized drones into artificial pollinators |publisher=Science Daily |date=9 February 2017 |access-date=10 February 2017}}
10 February
A study in the journal Anthropocene Review concludes that human activity is changing the climate 170 times faster than natural processes.{{cite web |url=https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2017/feb/12/humans-causing-climate-to-change-170-times-faster-than-natural-forces |title=Humans causing climate to change 170 times faster than natural forces |work=The Guardian |date=10 February 2017 |access-date=12 February 2017}}
A study by the University of Buffalo, using four decades of evidence, finds no link between immigration and higher rates of crime.{{cite web |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/02/170210165953.htm |title=No link between immigration and increased crime, four decades of evidence finds |publisher=Science Daily |date=10 February 2017 |access-date=13 February 2017}}
14 February – A committee from the US National Academy of Sciences and the National Academy of Medicine gives cautious backing to gene editing of human embryos.{{cite web |url=http://www.nasonline.org/news-and-multimedia/news/Human-Genome-Editing-Report.html |title=With Stringent Oversight, Heritable Germline Editing Clinical Trials Could One Day Be Permitted for Serious Conditions; Non-Heritable Clinical Trials Should Be Limited to Treating or Preventing Disease or Disability at This Time |publisher=National Academy of Sciences |date=14 February 2017 |access-date=15 February 2017}}

File:PIA21422 - TRAPPIST-1 Planet Lineup, Figure 1.jpg, which may all be in the habitable zone, orbiting TRAPPIST-1, an ultra-cool dwarf star, announced.]]

15 February – A study published in Nature finds that oxygen levels in the oceans have declined by 2% globally in the last 50 years, due to warming and stratification.{{cite web |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/02/170215131546.htm |title=Global ocean de-oxygenation quantified |publisher=Science Daily |date=15 February 2017 |access-date=16 February 2017}}{{cite news |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/energy-environment/wp/2017/02/15/its-official-the-oceans-are-losing-oxygen-posing-growing-threats-to-marine-life/ |title=Scientists have just detected a major change to the Earth's oceans linked to a warming climate |newspaper=The Washington Post |date=15 February 2017 |access-date=16 February 2017}}
16 February
NASA's Dawn mission finds evidence of organic material on Ceres, the first clear detection of organic molecules from orbit on a main belt body. (related image){{cite web |url=https://phys.org/news/2017-02-scientists-geology-ceres.html |title=Dawn discovers evidence for organic material on Ceres (Update) |publisher=PhysOrg |date=16 February 2017 |access-date=17 February 2017}}
Researchers from the University of Texas at Austin develop ultra-flexible, nanoelectronic thread (NET) brain probes, designed to achieve more reliable long-term neural recording than existing probes and without causing scar formation when implanted.{{cite web |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/02/170216104017.htm |title=New, ultra-flexible probes form reliable, scar-free integration with the brain |publisher=Science Daily |date=16 February 2017 |access-date=18 February 2017}}
21 February – Scientists describe a technique to grow large quantities of inner ear progenitor cells that convert into hair cells, which could potentially treat hearing loss.{{cite web |url=https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2017-02/bawh-sua022117.php |title=Scientists unlock ability to generate new sensory hair cells |publisher=EurekAlert! |date=21 February 2017 |access-date=22 February 2017}}
22 February – Astronomers announce the discovery of seven Earth-sized exoplanets, which may all be in the habitable zone, orbiting TRAPPIST-1, an ultra-cool dwarf star, slightly larger than the planet Jupiter, located about 40 light-years from Earth.{{cite news |last=Chang |first=Kenneth |title=7 Earth-Size Planets Identified in Orbit Around a Dwarf Star |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/22/science/trappist-1-exoplanets-nasa.html |date=22 February 2017 |work=The New York Times |access-date=22 February 2017}}

=March=

1 March – Researchers report evidence of possibly the oldest forms of life on Earth. Putative fossilized microorganisms were discovered in hydrothermal vent precipitates in the Nuvvuagittuq belt of Quebec, Canada, that may have lived as early as 4.280 billion years ago, not long after the oceans formed 4.4 billion years ago, and not long after the formation of the Earth 4.54 billion years ago.{{cite journal |last1=Dodd |first1=Matthew S. |last2=Papineau |first2=Dominic |last3=Grenne |first3=Tor |last4=Slack |first4=John F. |last5=Rittner |first5=Martin |last6=Pirajno |first6=Franco |last7=O'Neil |first7=Jonathan |last8=Little |first8=Crispin T. S. |title=Evidence for early life in Earth's oldest hydrothermal vent precipitates |url=http://eprints.whiterose.ac.uk/112179/ |journal=Nature |date=1 March 2017 |volume=543 |issue=7643 |pages=60–64 |doi=10.1038/nature21377 |pmid=28252057 |access-date=2 March 2017 |bibcode=2017Natur.543...60D|doi-access=free }}{{cite news |last=Zimmer |first=Carl |author-link=Carl Zimmer |title=Scientists Say Canadian Bacteria Fossils May Be Earth's Oldest |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/03/01/science/earths-oldest-bacteria-fossils.html |date=1 March 2017 |work=The New York Times |access-date=2 March 2017}}{{cite web |last=Ghosh |first=Pallab |title=Earliest evidence of life on Earth 'found' |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-39117523 |work=BBC News |date=1 March 2017 |access-date=2 March 2017}}

File:Champagne vent white smokers.jpg on Earth found in hydrothermal vent precipitates.]]

2 March – The University of Alberta announces details of DeepStack, a new artificial intelligence program able to beat professional human players at poker for the first time.{{cite web |title=Poker-playing AI program first to beat pros at no-limit Texas hold 'em |url=https://www.ualberta.ca/news-and-events/newsarticles/2017/march/poker-playing-ai-program-first-to-beat-pros-at-no-limit-texas-hold-em |publisher=University of Alberta |date=2 March 2017 |access-date=3 March 2017 |archive-date=3 March 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170303201240/https://www.ualberta.ca/news-and-events/newsarticles/2017/march/poker-playing-ai-program-first-to-beat-pros-at-no-limit-texas-hold-em |url-status=dead }}
6 March – IBM announces "IBM Q", an initiative to build commercially available universal quantum computing systems.{{cite web |title=IBM Building First Universal Quantum Computers for Business and Science |url=http://www-03.ibm.com/press/uk/en/pressrelease/51765.wss |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170308043511/http://www-03.ibm.com/press/uk/en/pressrelease/51765.wss |url-status=dead |archive-date=8 March 2017 |publisher=IBM |date=6 March 2017 |access-date=7 March 2017}}
7 March
The Sentinel-2B satellite is launched as part of the European Space Agency's Copernicus programme.{{cite web |title=Sentinel satellite launched to picture Planet Earth |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-39183353 |work=BBC News |date=7 March 2017 |access-date=8 March 2017}}
NASA's Cassini mission reveals new images of Pan, a small moon of Saturn, which is now shown to have a bizarre 'flying saucer' shape.{{cite web |title=Cassini Reveals Strange Shape of Saturn's Moon Pan |url=https://www.nasa.gov/image-feature/jpl/cassini-reveals-strange-shape-of-saturns-moon-pan |publisher=NASA |date=9 March 2017 |access-date=10 March 2017}}
8 March – Scientists at the University of Texas report a new phase of matter, dubbed a time crystal, in which atoms move in a pattern that repeats in time rather than in space.{{cite web |title=Scientists create new form of matter, a time crystal |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/03/170308131228.htm |work=Science Daily |date=8 March 2017 |access-date=9 March 2017}}
9 March
Researchers at the Institute for Basic Science publish details of a single atom memory storage system.{{cite web |title=Single atom memory: The world's smallest storage medium |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/03/170309120521.htm |work=Science Daily |date=9 March 2017 |access-date=10 March 2017}}
The CDH2 gene is found to be implicated in sudden death among young people and athletes.{{cite web |title=Gene found to cause sudden death in young people |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/03/170309150637.htm |work=Science Daily |date=9 March 2017 |access-date=10 March 2017}}
A study by the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics suggests that fast radio bursts in distant galaxies could be evidence of advanced alien technology.{{cite web |title=Could fast radio bursts be powering alien probes? |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/03/170309120419.htm |work=Science Daily |date=9 March 2017 |access-date=17 March 2017}}
10 March
Scientists report that extraterrestrial dust particles have been identified to be all over planet Earth. According to one of the researchers, “Once I knew what to look for, I found them everywhere.”{{cite news |last=Broad |first=William J. |title=Flecks of Extraterrestrial Dust, All Over the Roof |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/03/10/science/space-dust-on-earth.html |date=10 March 2017 |work=The New York Times |access-date=10 March 2017}}{{cite journal |last1=Gengel |first1=M.J. |last2=Larsen |first2=J. |last3=Van Ginneken |first3=M. |last4=Suttle |first4=M.D. |title=An urban collection of modern-day large micrometeorites: Evidence for variations in the extraterrestrial dust flux through the Quaternary |date=1 December 2016 |doi=10.1130/G38352.1 |volume=45 |issue=2 |journal=Geology |pages=119–122 |bibcode=2017Geo....45..119G|doi-access=free |hdl=10044/1/42484 |hdl-access=free }}
A study published in Science Advances concludes that the world's oceans are warming 13% faster than previously thought, and accelerating.{{cite web |title=Earth's oceans are warming 13% faster than thought, and accelerating |url=https://www.theguardian.com/environment/climate-consensus-97-per-cent/2017/mar/10/earths-oceans-are-warming-13-faster-than-thought-and-accelerating |work=The Guardian |date=10 March 2017 |access-date=11 March 2017}}{{cite web |title=New estimate of ocean heat finds more warming |url=https://www2.ucar.edu/atmosnews/just-published/125790/new-estimate-ocean-heat-finds-more-warming |publisher=UCAR |date=10 March 2017 |access-date=11 March 2017}}
16 March – Scientists report that a potential drug candidate, trodusquemine, can restore some heart muscle function after a heart attack. As of 2017, no drug exists that is able to do this.{{cite web |title=Scientists publish groundbreaking study on new heart drug |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/03/170316151703.htm |work=Science Daily |date=16 March 2017 |access-date=17 March 2017}}

File:Marasuchus.JPG family tree reported; original dinosaurs were possibly small 2-footed omnivorous animals with large grasping hands.]]

17 March
A new drug, evolocumab, is shown to prevent heart attacks and strokes by dramatically cutting bad cholesterol.{{cite web |title='Huge advance' in fighting world's biggest killer |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-39305640 |work=BBC News |date=17 March 2017 |access-date=17 March 2017}}{{cite web |title=Landmark Outcomes Study Shows That Repatha (Evolocumab) Decreases LDL-C To Unprecedented Low Levels And Reduces Risk Of Cardiovascular Events With No New Safety Issues |url=http://www.amgen.com/en-gb/media/news-releases/2017/03/landmark-outcomes-study-shows-that-repatha-evolocumab-decreases-ldlc-to-unprecedented-low-levels-and-reduces-risk-of-cardiovascular-events-with-no-new-safety-issues/ |publisher=Amgen |date=17 March 2017 |access-date=17 March 2017 |archive-date=18 March 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170318084511/http://www.amgen.com/en-gb/media/news-releases/2017/03/landmark-outcomes-study-shows-that-repatha-evolocumab-decreases-ldlc-to-unprecedented-low-levels-and-reduces-risk-of-cardiovascular-events-with-no-new-safety-issues/ |url-status=dead }}
A report by the International Energy Agency (IEA) finds that CO₂ emissions have remained flat for the third year in a row, despite continued global economic growth.{{cite web |title=IEA finds CO₂ emissions flat for third straight year even as global economy grew in 2016 |url=https://www.iea.org/newsroom/news/2017/march/iea-finds-co2-emissions-flat-for-third-straight-year-even-as-global-economy-grew.html |publisher=IEA |date=17 March 2017 |access-date=19 March 2017}}
22 March
Scientists report a new way of classifying the dinosaur family tree, based on newer and more evidence than available earlier. According to the new classification, the original dinosaurs, arising 200 million years ago, were small, two-footed omnivorous animals with large grasping hands. Descendants (for the non-avian dinosaurs) lasted until 66 million years ago.{{cite news |last=Wade |first=Nicholas |author-link=Nicholas Wade |title=Shaking Up the Dinosaur Family Tree |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/03/22/science/dinosaur-family-tree.html |date=22 March 2017 |work=The New York Times |access-date=22 March 2017}}{{cite journal |last1=Baron |first1=Matthew G. |last2=noram |first2=Norman B. |last3=Barrett |first3=Paul M. |title=A new hypothesis of dinosaur relationships and early dinosaur evolution |journal=Nature |date=22 March 2017 |volume=543 |issue=7646 |pages=501–506 |doi=10.1038/nature21700 |pmid=28332513 |bibcode=2017Natur.543..501B|s2cid=205254710 }}
NASA reports that sea ice extent has reached record lows at both the Arctic and Antarctic.{{cite web |title=Sea ice extent sinks to record lows at both poles |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/03/170322143149.htm |work=Science Daily |date=22 March 2017 |access-date=23 March 2017}}
23 March – Dutch scientists report a drug that can reverse aspects of ageing in old mice – restoring their stamina, coat of fur and even some organ function – by flushing out "senescent" cells in the body that have stopped dividing. Human trials are planned.{{cite web |title=Drug 'reverses' ageing in animal tests |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-39354628 |work=BBC News |date=23 March 2017 |access-date=24 March 2017}}{{cite journal |title=Targeted Apoptosis of Senescent Cells Restores Tissue Homeostasis in Response to Chemotoxicity and Aging |journal=Cell |date=23 March 2017 |doi=10.1016/j.cell.2017.02.031 |volume=169 |pages=132–147.e16 | last1 = Baar | first1 = Marjolein P. | last2 = Brandt | first2 = Renata M.C. | last3 = Putavet | first3 = Diana A. | last4 = Klein | first4 = Julian D.D. | last5 = Derks | first5 = Kasper W.J. | last6 = Bourgeois | first6 = Benjamin R.M. | last7 = Stryeck | first7 = Sarah | last8 = Rijksen | first8 = Yvonne | last9 = van Willigenburg | first9 = Hester | last10 = Feijtel | first10 = Danny A. | last11 = van der Pluijm | first11 = Ingrid | last12 = Essers | first12 = Jeroen | last13 = van Cappellen | first13 = Wiggert A. | last14 = van IJcken | first14 = Wilfred F. | last15 = Houtsmuller | first15 = Adriaan B. | last16 = Pothof | first16 = Joris | last17 = de Bruin | first17 = Ron W.F. | last18 = Madl | first18 = Tobias | last19 = Hoeijmakers | first19 = Jan H.J. | last20 = Campisi | first20 = Judith | last21 = de Keizer | first21 = Peter L.J.|issue=1 | doi-access = free | pmid = 28340339 | pmc = 5556182 }}
24 March – Scientists at the University of New South Wales publish details of experiments on mice that suggest a treatment is possible for DNA damage from aging and radiation, based on the metabolite NAD+.{{cite web |title=UNSW scientists unveil a giant leap for anti-ageing |url=http://newsroom.unsw.edu.au/news/health/unsw-scientists-unveil-giant-leap-anti-ageing |publisher=UNSW |date=24 March 2017 |access-date=25 March 2017}}
27 March – Scientists in Australia announce the discovery of the world's largest dinosaur footprint, measuring {{convert|1.7|m}} long. The previous record-holder was about {{convert|1|m}} long.{{cite web |title=Scientists Just Revealed What May Be The Biggest Dinosaur Footprint Ever Found |url=https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/worlds-biggest-dinosaur-footprint_us_58d83872e4b03692bea6f7c9?oqznkcgrqoi774x6r& |work=Huffington Post |date=27 March 2017 |access-date=28 March 2017}}{{cite journal |author1=Steven W. Salisbury |author2=Anthony Romilio |author3=Matthew C. Herne |author4=Ryan T. Tucker |author5=Jay P. Nair |title=The Dinosaurian Ichnofauna of the Lower Cretaceous (Valanginian–Barremian) Broome Sandstone of the Walmadany Area (James Price Point), Dampier Peninsula, Western Australia |journal=Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology |volume=36 |number=1 |pages=1–152 |year=2016 |doi=10.1080/02724634.2016.1269539|bibcode=2016JVPal..36S...1S |doi-access=free }}
30 March – SpaceX conducts the world's first reflight of an orbital class rocket.{{cite news |title=SpaceX Launches a Satellite With a Partly Used Rocket |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/03/30/science/spacex-launches-a-satellite-with-a-partly-used-rocket.html |work=The New York Times |date=30 March 2017 |access-date=31 March 2017}}{{cite web |title=Success for SpaceX 're-usable rocket' |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-39451401 |work=BBC News |date=31 March 2017 |access-date=31 March 2017}}

=April=

File:Bleachedcoral.jpg

3 April – Researchers at the University of Manchester demonstrate a graphene-based sieve able to filter seawater, which could improve desalination technologies.{{cite web |title=Graphene-based sieve turns seawater into drinking water |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-39482342 |work=BBC News |date=3 April 2017 |access-date=4 April 2017}}{{cite web |title=Graphene sieve turns seawater into drinking water |url=http://www.manchester.ac.uk/discover/news/graphene-sieve-turns-seawater-into-drinking-water/ |publisher=The University of Manchester |date=3 April 2017 |access-date=4 April 2017}}
10 April
Australia's Great Barrier Reef is reported to be experiencing a second consecutive mass coral bleaching event, affecting two-thirds of its area.{{cite web |title=Great Barrier Reef at 'terminal stage': scientists despair at latest coral bleaching data |url=https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2017/apr/10/great-barrier-reef-terminal-stage-australia-scientists-despair-latest-coral-bleaching-data |work=The Guardian |date=9 April 2017 |access-date=10 April 2017}}{{cite web |title=Two-thirds of Great Barrier Reef hit by back-to-back mass coral bleaching |url=https://www.coralcoe.org.au/media-releases/two-thirds-of-great-barrier-reef-hit-by-back-to-back-mass-coral-bleaching |publisher=ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies |date=10 April 2017 |access-date=10 April 2017 |archive-date=8 December 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191208132134/https://www.coralcoe.org.au/media-releases/two-thirds-of-great-barrier-reef-hit-by-back-to-back-mass-coral-bleaching |url-status=dead }}
Researchers at Washington State University demonstrate a fluid with negative mass.{{cite web |title='Negative mass' created at Washington State University |url=https://news.wsu.edu/2017/04/10/negative-mass-created-at-wsu/ |publisher=Washington State University |date=10 April 2017 |access-date=15 April 2017}}{{cite web |title=Physicists Say They've Created a Fluid With 'Negative Mass' |url=http://www.sciencealert.com/physicists-say-they-ve-created-a-fluid-with-negative-mass |work=Science Alert |date=12 April 2017 |access-date=15 April 2017}}{{Cite journal|arxiv=1612.04055|last1=Khamehchi|first1=M. A|title=Negative mass hydrodynamics in a Spin-Orbit--Coupled Bose-Einstein Condensate|journal=Physical Review Letters|volume=118|issue=15|pages=155301|last2=Hossain|first2=Khalid|last3=Mossman|first3=M. E|last4=Zhang|first4=Yongping|last5=Busch |first5=Th|author6=Michael McNeil Forbes|last7=Engels|first7=P|year=2017|doi=10.1103/PhysRevLett.118.155301|pmid=28452531|bibcode=2017PhRvL.118o5301K|s2cid=44198065}}
11 April – The telescopes of the Event Horizon Telescope finish data-taking in their attempt to image the region close to a black hole. Data analysis is expected to take several months.{{cite web |url=http://news.nationalgeographic.com/2017/04/black-hole-event-horizon-telescope-pictures-genius-science/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170412062610/http://news.nationalgeographic.com/2017/04/black-hole-event-horizon-telescope-pictures-genius-science/ |url-status=dead |archive-date=12 April 2017 |title=Astronomers May Finally Have the First Picture of a Black Hole |date=11 April 2017 |access-date=11 April 2017}}
12 April – University of Waterloo researchers capture the first composite image of a galaxies-connecting dark matter bridge.{{cite web |url=https://phys.org/news/2017-04-capture-image-dark-web-galaxies.html |title=Researchers capture first 'image' of a dark matter web that connects galaxies |work=Phys.org |access-date=17 April 2017}}
13 April
NASA scientists announce that molecular hydrogen has been detected in plumes erupting from Enceladus, moon of the planet Saturn, suggesting possible hydrothermal activity, and the possible consequent existence of primitive life forms.{{cite news |last=Chang |first=Kenneth |title=Conditions for Life Detected on Saturn Moon Enceladus |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/04/13/science/saturn-cassini-moon-enceladus.html |date=13 April 2017 |work=The New York Times |access-date=13 April 2017}}
The University of California, Berkeley, creates a device that pulls water from dry air, powered only by the Sun. Even under conditions of relatively low (20–30 percent) humidity, it is able to produce 2.8 liters of water over a 12-hour period.{{cite web |url=https://phys.org/news/2017-04-device-air-powered-sun.html |title=Device pulls water from dry air, powered only by the sun |work=PhysOrg |date=13 April 2017 |access-date=14 April 2017}}
19 April – Astronomers report the discovery of LHS 1140b, a rocky "super-Earth" in the habitable zone of a red dwarf star, LHS 1140, which astronomers say is among the best ever candidates in the search for extraterrestrial life.{{cite web |url=http://www.eso.org/public/news/eso1712/ |title=Newly Discovered Exoplanet May be Best Candidate in Search for Signs of Life |publisher=ESO |date=19 April 2017 |access-date=20 April 2017}}{{cite news |last=Overbye |first=Dennis |author-link=Dennis Overbye |title=A New Exoplanet May Be Most Promising Yet in Search for Life |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/04/19/science/exoplanet-signs-of-life.html |date=19 April 2017 |work=The New York Times |access-date=20 April 2017}}{{cite journal |doi=10.1038/nature22055 |pmid=28426003 |title=A temperate rocky super-Earth transiting a nearby cool star |journal=Nature |volume=544 |issue=7650 |pages=333–336 |year=2017 |last1=Dittmann |first1=Jason A. |last2=Irwin |first2=Jonathan M. |last3=Charbonneau |first3=David |last4=Bonfils |first4=Xavier |last5=Astudillo-Defru |first5=Nicola |last6=Haywood |first6=Raphaëlle D. |last7=Berta-Thompson |first7=Zachory K. |last8=Newton |first8=Elisabeth R. |last9=Rodriguez |first9=Joseph E.|last10=Winters|first10=Jennifer G. |last11=Tan |first11=Thiam-Guan |last12=Almenara |first12=Jose-Manuel |last13=Bouchy |first13=François |last14=Delfosse |first14=Xavier |last15=Forveille |first15=Thierry |last16=Lovis |first16=Christophe |last17=Murgas |first17=Felipe |last18=Pepe |first18=Francesco |last19=Santos |first19=Nuno C.|last20=Udry|first20=Stephane |last21=Wünsche |first21=Anaël |last22=Esquerdo |first22=Gilbert A. |last23=Latham |first23=David W. |last24=Dressing |first24=Courtney D. |arxiv=1704.05556 |bibcode=2017Natur.544..333D|s2cid=2718408 }}

File:March for Science, PDX, 2017 - 10.jpg occurred in more than 600 cities around the world on Earth Day.]]

20 April – Researchers from the Medical Research Council (United Kingdom) led by Giovanna Mallucci identify two drugs, trazodone and dibenzoylmethane (DBM), that could potentially block cell death in all neurodegenerative brain diseases.{{cite journal|author=Halliday, Mike |display-authors=et al|title=Repurposed drugs targeting eIF2α-P-mediated translational repression prevent neurodegeneration in mice|journal=Brain|volume=140|issue=6|date=1 June 2017|pages=1768–1783|doi=10.1093/brain/awx074|pmid=28430857|pmc=5445255}}{{cite web|url=https://www.mrc.ac.uk/news/browse/mrc-scientists-discover-two-repurposed-drugs-that-arrest-neurodegeneration-in-mice/|title=MRC scientists discover two repurposed drugs that arrest neurodegeneration in mice|publisher=Medical Research Council|date=19 May 2017|language=en|access-date=6 July 2018|archive-date=16 June 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170616123028/https://www.mrc.ac.uk/news/browse/mrc-scientists-discover-two-repurposed-drugs-that-arrest-neurodegeneration-in-mice/|url-status=dead}}{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-39641123|title=Experts excited by brain 'wonder-drug'|work=BBC News|date=20 April 2017|access-date=20 April 2017}}{{cite web|url=https://www.alzheimers.org.uk/news/article/190/two_existing_drugs_can_block_cell_death_in_mice_with_neurodegeneration|title=Two existing drugs can block cell death in mice with neurodegeneration|publisher=Alzheimer's Society|date=20 April 2017|access-date=20 April 2017|archive-date=20 April 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170420235746/https://www.alzheimers.org.uk/news/article/190/two_existing_drugs_can_block_cell_death_in_mice_with_neurodegeneration|url-status=dead}}
22 April – The March for Science takes place, timed to coincide with Earth Day.{{cite news |last=St. Fleur |first=Nicholas |title=Scientists, Feeling Under Siege, March Against Trump Policies |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/04/22/science/march-for-science.html |date=22 April 2017 |work=The New York Times |access-date=26 April 2017}}{{cite news |author=Staff |title=Pictures From the March for Science |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/04/22/science/science-march-photos.html |date=22 April 2017 |work=The New York Times |access-date=26 April 2017}}
24 April – Wax moth larvae are reported to be able to biodegrade polyethylene, one of the toughest, most resilient, and most used plastics. The creatures may be a solution to the growing problem of plastic waste.{{cite web |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/04/170424141338.htm |title=Wax worm caterpillar will eat plastic shopping bags: New solution to plastic waste? |work=Science Daily |date=24 April 2017 |access-date=25 April 2017}}{{cite web |url=https://www.theguardian.com/science/2017/apr/24/plastic-munching-worms-could-help-wage-war-on-waste-galleria-mellonella |title=Plastic-eating worms could help wage war on waste |work=The Guardian |date=25 April 2017 |access-date=25 April 2017}}
25 April – Researchers in the U.S. demonstrate an artificial womb-like device on lambs, which could one day be used for saving premature human babies.{{cite web |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/04/170425110807.htm |title=Unique womb-like device could reduce mortality and disability for extremely premature babies |work=Science Daily |date=25 April 2017 |access-date=26 April 2017}}{{cite web |url=https://www.theverge.com/2017/4/25/15421734/artificial-womb-fetus-biobag-uterus-lamb-sheep-birth-premie-preterm-infant |title=An artificial womb successfully grew baby sheep — and humans could be next |work=The Verge |date=25 April 2017 |access-date=26 April 2017}}
26 April – Scientists report evidence suggesting that ancient humans were present at the Cerutti Mastodon site on the North American continent 130,000 years ago, much earlier than 15,000 years ago, thought previously based on genetic studies.{{cite news |last=Zimmer |first=Carl |author-link=Carl Zimmer |title=Humans Lived in North America 130,000 Years Ago, Study Claims |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/04/26/science/prehistoric-humans-north-america-california-nature-study.html |date=26 April 2017 |work=The New York Times |access-date=26 April 2017}}{{cite journal |author=Holen, Steven R. |display-authors=et al |title=A 130,000-year-old archaeological site in southern California, USA |date=26 April 2017 |journal=Nature |volume=544 |issue=7651 |pages=470–483 |doi=10.1038/nature22065 |pmid=28447646 |bibcode=2017Natur.544..479H|s2cid=205255425 }}

=May=

File:Three Main Layers of the Eye.png reported to have been created.]]

1 May – The University of Utah reveals a new robotic drill system for greatly speeding up surgical procedures. One type of complex cranial surgery could be done in a fiftieth of the normal time, decreasing from two hours to just two and a half minutes.{{cite web |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/05/170501094309.htm |title=Get ready: Your future surgery may use an automated, robotic drill |work=Science Daily |date=1 May 2017 |access-date=2 May 2017}}{{cite news |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/2017/05/01/robotic-brain-surgeon-will-see-now-drill-can-perform-complex/ |title=The robotic brain surgeon will see you now: drill can perform complex procedures 50 times faster |newspaper=The Telegraph |date=1 May 2017 |access-date=2 May 2017|last1=Bodkin |first1=Henry }}
4 May
The European x-ray free electron laser (XFEL) produces its first beams of x-rays.{{cite news |url=http://news.sky.com/story/worlds-biggest-ever-x-ray-laser-shines-its-first-light-10862791 |title=World's biggest ever X-ray laser shines its first light |date=4 May 2017 |access-date=4 May 2017}}{{cite news |url=https://www.desy.de/aktuelles/news_suche/index_ger.html?openDirectAnchor=1222 |title=Größter Röntgenlaser der Welt erzeugt erstes Laserlicht |date=4 May 2017 |access-date=4 May 2017 |language=de}}
The first synthetic retina using soft biological tissues is created by a student at the University of Oxford.{{cite news |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/05/170504121953.htm |title=Student creates first synthetic retina for the visually impaired |date=4 May 2017 |access-date=5 May 2017}}
9 May
Scientists report newer findings, two adults and a child, of Homo naledi, an extinct species of hominin, in a second chamber, named "Lesedi", of the "Rising Star Cave" system. This second chamber is near the first earlier chamber, named "Dinaledi". In addition, remains of Homo naledi have been reported to be dated "between 236,000 and 335,000 years ago".{{Cite journal |author1=Paul H.G.M. Dirks |author2=Eric M. Roberts |author3=Hannah Hilbert-Wolf |author4=Jan D. Kramers |author5=John Hawks |author6=Anthony Dosseto |author7=Mathieu Duval |author8=Marina Elliott |author9=Mary Evans |author10=Rainer Grün |author11=John Hellstrom |author12=Andy I.R. Herries |author13=Renaud Joannes-Boyau |author14=Tebogo V. Makhubela |author15=Christa J. Placzek |author16=Jessie Robbins |author17=Carl Spandler |author18=Jelle Wiersma |author19=Jon Woodhead |author20=Lee R. Berger |year=2017 |title=The age of Homo naledi and associated sediments in the Rising Star Cave, South Africa |journal=eLife |volume=6 |pages=e24231 |doi=10.7554/eLife.24231 |pmid=28483040 |pmc=5423772 |doi-access=free }}{{cite news |last=Rincon |first=Paul |title=Amazing haul of ancient human finds unveiled |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-39842975 |date=9 May 2017 |access-date=9 May 2017}}
Scientists publish evidence that the earliest known life on land may have been found in 3.48-billion-year-old geyserite and other related mineral deposits (often found around hot springs and geysers) uncovered in the Pilbara Craton of Western Australia.{{cite news |author=Staff |title=Oldest evidence of life on land found in 3.48-billion-year-old Australian rocks |url=https://phys.org/news/2017-05-oldest-evidence-life-billion-year-old-australian.html |date=9 May 2017 |work=Phys.org |access-date=13 May 2017}}{{cite journal |last1=Djokic |first1=Tara |last2=Van Kranendonk |first2=Martin J. |last3=Campbell |first3=Kathleen A. |last4=Walter |first4=Malcolm R. |last5=Ward |first5=Colin R. |title=Earliest signs of life on land preserved in ca. 3.5 Ga hot spring deposits |date=9 May 2017 |journal=Nature Communications |volume=8 |page=15263 |doi=10.1038/ncomms15263 |pmid=28486437 |pmc=5436104 |bibcode=2017NatCo...815263D}}

File:Geyserite.jpg on land may have been found in 3.48-billion-year-old geyserite.]]

10 May
Researchers at the University of Minnesota demonstrate a 3D-printed ‘bionic skin’ that could give robots a sense of touch, or lead to electronics printed on real human skin.{{cite news |url=https://cse.umn.edu/news-release/3d-printed-bionic-skin-give-robots-sense-touch/ |title=3D-printed 'bionic skin' could give robots the sense of touch |date=10 May 2017 |access-date=11 May 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170516235939/https://cse.umn.edu/news-release/3d-printed-bionic-skin-give-robots-sense-touch/ |archive-date=16 May 2017 |url-status=dead }}
A study of nearly 6,000 adults finds that high levels of physical activity equate to a nine-year biological aging advantage. Those who engaged in a minimum of 30 to 40 minutes of running, five days a week, were found to have longer telomere lengths.{{cite news |url=http://news.byu.edu/news/research-finds-vigorous-exercise-associated-reduced-aging-cellular-level |title=High levels of exercise linked to nine years of less aging (at the cellular level) |publisher=Brigham Young University |date=10 May 2017 |access-date=11 May 2017 |archive-date=15 May 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170515083529/http://news.byu.edu/news/research-finds-vigorous-exercise-associated-reduced-aging-cellular-level |url-status=dead }}
15 May – Researchers report that glints of light observed from Earth, seen as twinkling from an orbiting satellite a million miles away, have been found to be reflected light from ice crystals in the atmosphere.{{cite news |last=St. Fleur |first=Nicholas |title=Spotting Mysterious Twinkles on Earth From a Million Miles Away |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/19/science/dscovr-satellite-ice-glints-earth-atmosphere.html |date=19 May 2017 |work=The New York Times |access-date=20 May 2017}}{{cite journal |last1=Marshak |first1=Alexander |last2=Várnai |first2=Tamás |last3=Kostinski |first3=Alexander |title=Terrestrial glint seen from deep space: oriented ice crystals detected from the Lagrangian point |date=15 May 2017 |journal=Geophysical Research Letters |volume=44 |issue=10 |page=5197 |doi=10.1002/2017GL073248 |bibcode=2017GeoRL..44.5197M|s2cid=109930589 |url=https://zenodo.org/record/1229066 |hdl=11603/13118 |hdl-access=free }} The technology used to determine this may be useful in studying the atmospheres of distant worlds, including those of exoplanets.
16 May
SESAME, a synchrotron light source in Jordan built by a collaboration including Israel, the Palestinian National Authority and Iran, is inaugurated.{{cite news |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/jordan-science-research-centre-iran-israel-palestinian-scientists-together-amman-synchrotron-light-a7738786.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220501/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/jordan-science-research-centre-iran-israel-palestinian-scientists-together-amman-synchrotron-light-a7738786.html |archive-date=1 May 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |title=Landmark Jordanian science centre hopes to bring scientists from Iran, Israel and Palestinians together |access-date=16 May 2017 |date=16 May 2017 |work=The Independent}}{{cbignore}}
ARM and the Center for Sensorimotor Neural Engineering (CSNE) announce plans to develop a "brain-implantable" system-on-a-chip (SoC) for bi-directional brain-computer interfaces (BBCI). The 10-year project is aimed at solving neurodegenerative disorders.{{cite news |url=https://community.arm.com/iot/embedded/b/embedded-blog/posts/arm-and-csne-team-up-to-develop-brain-implantable-chips |title=ARM and CSNE from the University of Washington partner to develop brain-implantable chips |publisher=ARM |date=16 May 2017 |access-date=20 May 2017}}{{cite news |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-39934506 |title=ARM to provide chips for brain injury implants |work=BBC News |date=16 May 2017 |access-date=20 May 2017}}
17 May – Human blood stem cells are grown in the laboratory for the first time by researchers at Boston Children's Hospital.{{cite news |url=https://www.newscientist.com/article/2131517-human-blood-stem-cells-grown-in-the-lab-for-the-first-time/ |title=Human blood stem cells grown in the lab for the first time |work=New Scientist |date=17 May 2017 |access-date=18 May 2017}}{{cite news |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/05/170517132609.htm |title=Approaching a decades-old goal: Making blood stem cells from patients' own cells |work=Science Daily |date=17 May 2017 |access-date=18 May 2017}}

File:Moss closeup.jpg region reported, based on a significant increase in the growth rate of moss.]]

18 May – Researchers publish evidence of a rapid greening in the Antarctica region over the last 50 years.{{cite news |url=https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2017-05/uoe-ad051617.php |title=Antarctica 'greening' due to climate change |publisher=EurekAlert! |date=18 May 2017 |access-date=19 May 2017}} Mosses that once grew less than 1mm a year are now found to be growing more than 3mm a year on average.{{cite news |url=http://m.nzherald.co.nz/world/news/article.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=11858956 |title=Antarctica starting to turn green |work=The New Zealand Herald |date=19 May 2017 |access-date=19 May 2017}}
An Australian-Chinese research team creates the world's thinnest hologram, fabricated using a simple and fast direct laser writing system, with potential for use in a range of electronic products.{{cite news |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/05/170518083031.htm |title=World's thinnest hologram paves path to new 3-D world |work=Science Daily |date=18 May 2017 |access-date=22 May 2017}}
20 May – Astronomers report that Tabby's Star, about 1,300 light-years from Earth, has again begun dimming unusually; several explanations have been considered, including the possibility that intelligent extraterrestrial life may have been constructing a Dyson swarm.{{cite web |author=Boyajian, Tabetha |display-authors=et al |author-link=Tabetha S. Boyajian |title=A Drop in Optical Flux from Boyajian's Star |url=http://www.astronomerstelegram.org/?read=10405 |date=20 May 2017 |work=The Astronomer's Telegram |access-date=22 May 2017}}{{cite web |last=Koren |first=Marina |title=The 'Alien Megastructure' Star Is Dimming Again |url=https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2017/05/tabbys-star-alien-megastructure/527382/ |date=19 May 2017 |work=The Atlantic |access-date=23 May 2017}} More dimming events happened in the following months.{{cite web |last=Gary |first=Bruce |title=Hereford Arizona Observatory photometry observations of KIC 8462852 between 2 May and 8 September 2017. |url=http://www.brucegary.net/ts/ |date=8 September 2017 |work=Bruce Gary |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170908212152/http://www.brucegary.net/ts/ |archive-date=8 September 2017 |access-date=8 September 2017}}
Update (Tabby's Star): as of 5 September 2017, a new dimming event had begun, the largest (of four) of the year,{{cite web |last=Gary |first=Bruce |title=Hereford Arizona Observatory photometry observations of KIC 8462852 between 2 May and 10 September 2017. |url=http://www.brucegary.net/ts3/ |date=10 September 2017 |work=Bruce Gary |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170910071659/http://www.brucegary.net/ts3/ |archive-date=10 September 2017 |access-date=10 September 2017}} producing as much as a 3% dimming in star brightness.{{cite web |last1=Boyajian |first1=Tabetha S. |last2=Wright |first2=Jason |author-link1=Tabetha S. Boyajian |author-link2=Jason Wright (science writer) |title=Tweets: Now @tsboyajian's star is down 3%! How low will it go? Hi-res spectra and IR photometry needed! |url=https://twitter.com/tsboyajian/status/906898237398962176 |date=10 September 2017 |publisher=Twitter |access-date=10 September 2017}}
23 May
Researchers in Harvard University report that eating up to six bars of chocolate a week could decrease the risk of a potentially fatal heart condition by approximately one quarter.[https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/05/23/six-bars-chocolate-week-could-cut-risk-common-heart-condition/ Six bars of chocolate a week could cut risk of common heart condition/] telegraph.co.uk
Scientists propose a new type of astronomical object called a "synestia" – a huge, spinning, donut-shaped mass of hot, vaporised rock, formed as planet-sized objects smash into each other.{{cite news |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/05/170523081852.htm |title=New type of planetary object proposed: Synestia |work=Science Daily |date=23 May 2017 |access-date=25 May 2017}}

File:Go board part.jpg beats the human world champion at the game Go.]]

24 May
The launch date of NASA's Psyche probe is brought forward, to target a more efficient trajectory, launching in 2022 and arriving in 2026 with a Mars gravity assist in 2023.{{Cite news |url=https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.php?release=2017-149 |title=NASA Moves Up Launch of Psyche Mission to a Metal Asteroid |date=24 May 2017 |publisher=NASA |access-date=25 May 2017}}
Researchers in Switzerland create artificial viruses that can be used to target cancer. These designer viruses alert the immune system and cause it to send killer cells to help fight the tumor. The results, published in Nature Communications, provide a basis for innovative cancer treatments.{{Cite news |url=http://www.unige.ch/communication/communiques/en/2017/cdp260517/ |title=Designer Viruses Stimulate the Immune System to Fight Cancer |date=24 May 2017 |publisher=University of Geneva |access-date=29 May 2017}}
25 May – An article in Science magazine claims the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission relied on faulty analysis to justify its refusal to adopt a critical measure for protecting Americans from nuclear-waste fires at dozens of reactor sites around the country. Radioactivity from such a fire could force approximately 8 million people to relocate and result in $2 trillion in damages.{{cite news |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/05/170525141544.htm |title=US nuclear regulators greatly underestimate potential for nuclear disaster |work=Science Daily |date=25 May 2017 |access-date=25 May 2017}}
26 May – Construction begins on the European Extremely Large Telescope.{{cite news |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-chile-telescope-idUSKBN18M2JX |title=Construction begins on world's largest telescope in Chilean desert |publisher=Reuters |date=26 May 2017 |access-date=27 May 2017}}
27 May – At the Future of Go Summit in China, Google's DeepMind AlphaGo AI program beats the world's number one Go player, Ke Jie, in the third of three matches.{{cite news |url=https://deepmind.com/research/alphago/alphago-china/ |title=AlphaGo at The Future of Go Summit, 23-27 May 2017 |work=AlphaGo |date=27 May 2017 |access-date=29 May 2017 |archive-date=6 June 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190606085734/https://deepmind.com/research/alphago/alphago-china/ |url-status=dead }}{{cite news |url=http://www.scmp.com/tech/enterprises/article/2095929/alphago-vanquishes-worlds-top-go-player-marking-ais-superiority |title=AlphaGo vanquishes world's top Go player, marking AI's superiority over human mind |work=South China Morning Post |date=27 May 2017 |access-date=29 May 2017}}
30 May
Researchers at the Scripps Research Institute announce a way to structurally modify vancomycin to make the antibiotic more powerful.{{cite news |url=http://www.genengnews.com/gen-news-highlights/vancomycin-modified-to-combat-growing-antibiotic-resistance-threat/81254414 |title=Vancomycin Modified to Combat Growing Antibiotic Resistance Threat |publisher=Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology News |date=30 May 2017 |access-date=30 May 2017}}{{cite news |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-40091179 |title=Ultra-tough antibiotic to fight superbugs |work=BBC News |date=30 May 2017 |access-date=30 May 2017}}
A survey of 352 experts in artificial intelligence finds that experts believe there is a 50% chance of AI outperforming humans in all tasks within 45 years and of automating all human jobs in 120 years.{{cite news |url=https://www.newscientist.com/article/2133188-ai-will-be-able-to-beat-us-at-everything-by-2060-say-experts/ |title=AI will be able to beat us at everything by 2060, say experts |work=New Scientist |date=31 May 2017 |access-date=6 June 2017}}{{cite arXiv |eprint=1705.08807 |title=When Will AI Exceed Human Performance? Evidence from AI Experts|date=30 May 2017|last1=Grace|first1=Katja|last2=Salvatier|first2=John|last3=Dafoe|first3=Allan|last4=Zhang|first4=Baobao|last5=Evans|first5=Owain|class=cs.AI}}
31 May – Muon g-2, a precision experiment to measure the g-factor of muons, starts taking data.Fermilab News: [http://news.fnal.gov/2017/05/muon-magnets-moment-arrived/ Muon magnet’s moment has arrived], 31 May 2017, accessed 2 June 2017

=June=

File:OSIRIS Mars true color.jpg publishes a paper on the future human settlement of Mars.]]

1 June
SpaceX founder and CEO Elon Musk publishes [http://online.liebertpub.com/doi/10.1089/space.2017.29009.emu Making Humans a Multi-Planetary Species], his plans for the future colonisation of Mars.{{cite news |url=https://www.cnet.com/news/civilization-on-mars-could-take-100-years-to-establish-says-elon-musk/ |title=Civilization on Mars could take 100 years to establish, says Elon Musk |publisher=CNET |date=16 June 2017 |access-date=17 June 2017}}
Astronomers report the detection of a third gravitational wave, named GW170104, thereby further supporting the theory of general relativity presented in 1916 by Albert Einstein.{{cite journal |doi=10.1103/PhysRevLett.118.221101 |pmid=28621973 |title=GW170104: Observation of a 50-Solar-Mass Binary Black Hole Coalescence at Redshift 0.2 |journal=Physical Review Letters |date=1 June 2017 |author=B. P. Abbott |display-authors=etal |collaboration=LIGO Scientific Collaboration and Virgo Collaboration |volume=118 |issue=22 |page=221101 |arxiv=1706.01812 |bibcode=2017PhRvL.118v1101A|s2cid=206291714 }}{{cite news |last=Overbye |first=Dennis |author-link=Dennis Overbye |title=Gravitational Waves Felt From Black-Hole Merger 3 Billion Light-Years Away |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/06/01/science/black-holes-collision-ligo-gravitational-waves.html |date=1 June 2017 |work=The New York Times |access-date=1 June 2017}}
NASA reports that the Curiosity rover provided evidence of an ancient lake in Gale crater on Mars that could have been favorable for microbial life; the ancient lake was stratified, with shallows rich in oxidants and depths poor in oxidants; and, the ancient lake provided many different types of microbe-friendly environments at the same time. NASA further reports that the Curiosity rover will continue to explore higher and younger layers of Mount Sharp in order to determine how the lake environment in ancient times on Mars became the drier environment in more modern times.{{cite web |last1=Webster |first1=Guy |last2=Mullane |first2=Laura |last3=Cantillo |first3=Laurie |last4=Brown |first4=Dwayne |title=High-Silica 'Halos' Shed Light on Wet Ancient Mars |url=https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.php?feature=6859 |date=31 May 2017 |publisher=NASA |access-date=1 June 2017}}{{cite web |last1=Webster |first1=Guy |last2=Filiano |first2=Gregory |last3=Perkins |first3=Robert |last4=Cantillo |first4=Laurie |last5=Brown |first5=Dwayne |title=Curiosity Peels Back Layers on Ancient Martian Lake |url=https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.php?feature=6863 |date=1 June 2017 |publisher=NASA |access-date=1 June 2017}}{{cite journal |author=Hurowitz, J.A. |display-authors=et al |title=Redox stratification of an ancient lake in Gale crater, Mars |date=2 June 2017 |journal=Science |volume=356 |issue=6341 |pages=eaah6849 |doi=10.1126/science.aah6849 |pmid=28572336 |bibcode=2017Sci...356.6849H|doi-access=free |hdl=10044/1/53715 |hdl-access=free }}
5 June – Astronomers at The Ohio State University and Vanderbilt University have detected a planet that is so hot, its heat rivals most stars. With a day-side temperature of 4,600 Kelvin (more than 7,800 degrees Fahrenheit), planet KELT-9b is hotter than most stars, and only 1,200 Kelvin (about 2,000 degrees Fahrenheit) cooler than our own sun.[https://thewire.in/144159/hottest-kelt-9-9b-sun-exoplanet-jwst/ Scientists Find the Hottest Planet in the Universe (So Far)] thewire.in[http://www.technology.org/2017/06/06/a-planet-hotter-than-most-stars/ A planet hotter than most stars] technology.org[https://www.theguardian.com/science/2017/jun/05/kelt-9b-astronomers-discover-hottest-known-giant-planet Kelt-9b: astronomers discover hottest known giant planet] theguardian.com
7 June – Scientists report evidence, based on fossil remains found in the western part of North Africa in Morocco at Jebel Irhoud, that Homo sapiens may have originated about 300,000 years ago, over 100,000 years earlier than previously thought.{{cite news |last=Zimmer |first=Carl |author-link=Carl Zimmer |title=Oldest Fossils of Homo Sapiens Found in Morocco, Altering History of Our Species |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/06/07/science/human-fossils-morocco.html |date=7 June 2017 |work=The New York Times |access-date=7 June 2017}}{{cite journal |last=Callaway |first=Ewan |title=Oldest Homo sapiens fossil claim rewrites our species' history |url=http://www.nature.com/news/oldest-homo-sapiens-fossil-claim-rewrites-our-species-history-1.22114 |date=7 June 2017 |journal=Nature |doi=10.1038/nature.2017.22114 |access-date=7 June 2017|url-access=subscription |doi-access=free }}
9 June – Researchers at the University of Zurich report the creation of the largest virtual universe ever simulated, consisting of 25 billion galaxies generated from 2 trillion digital particles.{{cite news |url=http://www.media.uzh.ch/en/Press-Releases/2017/Virtual-Kosmos.html |title=The largest virtual Universe ever simulated. |publisher=University of Zurich |date=9 June 2017 |access-date=10 June 2017 |archive-date=10 June 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170610074720/http://www.media.uzh.ch/en/Press-Releases/2017/Virtual-Kosmos.html |url-status=dead }}{{cite news |title=PKDGRAV3: beyond trillion particle cosmological simulations for the next era of galaxy surveys |work=SpringerOpen |year=2017 |doi=10.1186/s40668-017-0021-1 |last1=Potter |first1=Douglas |last2=Stadel |first2=Joachim |last3=Teyssier |first3=Romain |volume=4 |doi-access=free }}
12 June
Researchers at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam identify seven risk genes for insomnia.{{cite news |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/06/170612115358.htm |title=Insomnia not purely psychological condition: Insomnia genes found |work=Science Daily |date=12 June 2017 |access-date=13 June 2017}}
Two new moons – S/2016 J1 and S/2017 J1 – are reported to be orbiting Jupiter, bringing the gas giant's total number of known natural satellites to 69.{{cite news |url=https://blogs.scientificamerican.com/life-unbounded/jupiter-now-has-69-moons/ |title=Jupiter Now Has 69 Moons |work=Scientific American |date=12 June 2017 |access-date=13 June 2017}}

File:Human evolution.svg may have originated 300,000 years ago, much earlier than the 200,000 years ago thought previously.]]

15 June
Chinese scientists report the successful transmission of entangled photons between suborbital space and Earth, using the satellite Micius.{{cite news |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/06/170615142754.htm |title=Ring, Ring: 'Earth? It's space calling, on the quantum line' |work=Science Daily |date=15 June 2017 |access-date=21 June 2017}}
A study by the universities of Coventry and Radboud finds that meditation, yoga and Tai Chi can 'reverse' the molecular reactions in DNA which cause ill-health and depression.{{cite news |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/06/170615213301.htm |title=Meditation and yoga can 'reverse' DNA reactions which cause stress, new study suggests |work=Science Daily |date=15 June 2017 |access-date=22 June 2017}}
18 June – The European Society of Cardiology reports a vaccine that lowers cholesterol in mice, which may offer hope of immunising against cardiovascular disease.{{cite news |url=http://www.alphagalileo.org/ViewItem.aspx?ItemId=176494&CultureCode=en |title=Vaccine that lowers cholesterol in mice offers hope of immunising against cardiovascular disease |work=AlphaGalileo |date=18 June 2017 |access-date=22 June 2017 |archive-date=19 July 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170719084229/http://www.alphagalileo.org/ViewItem.aspx?ItemId=176494&CultureCode=en |url-status=dead }}
19 June – Astronomers report evidence of a possible tenth Mars-sized planet residing at the edge of the Solar System.{{cite news |last=Osbourne |first=Hannah |title=Forget Planet 9 - There's Evidence Of A Tenth Planet Lurking At The Edge Of The Solar System |url=http://www.newsweek.com/planet-10-lurking-edge-solar-system-628517 |date=23 June 2017 |work=Newsweek |access-date=23 June 2017}}{{Cite journal |last1=Volk |first1=Kathryn |last2=Malhotra |first2=Renu |title=The curiously warped mean plane of the Kuiper belt |journal=The Astronomical Journal |volume=154 |issue=2 |page=62 |arxiv=1704.02444 |year=2017 |doi=10.3847/1538-3881/aa79ff |bibcode=2017AJ....154...62V|s2cid=5756310 |doi-access=free }}
20 June
NASA's Kepler Space Telescope team publish 219 new exoplanet candidates, 10 of which are near-Earth size and orbiting in their star's habitable zone.{{cite news |url=https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nasa-releases-kepler-survey-catalog-with-hundreds-of-new-planet-candidates |title=NASA Releases Kepler Survey Catalog with Hundreds of New Planet Candidates |publisher=NASA |date=19 June 2017 |access-date=22 June 2017}}
The European Space Agency confirms the Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (LISA) as the third large-class mission in its science programme, with launch expected in 2034.{{cite news |url=http://www.esa.int/Our_Activities/Space_Science/Gravitational_wave_mission_selected_planet-hunting_mission_moves_forward |title=Gravitational wave mission selected, planet-hunting mission moves forward |publisher=ESA |date=20 June 2017 |access-date=21 June 2017}}{{cite news |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-40346410 |title=Europe selects grand gravity mission |work=BBC News |date=20 June 2017 |access-date=21 June 2017}}
22 June – A study of snail neurons, published in Current Biology, suggests memories that trigger anxiety and PTSD could be 'erased' without affecting normal memory of past events.{{cite news |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/06/170622121944.htm |title=Select memories can be erased, leaving others intact |work=Science Daily |date=22 June 2017 |access-date=23 June 2017}}
26 June
Research by Cornell University suggests that rising sea levels will displace 1.4 billion people by 2060 and 2 billion by 2100.{{cite news |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/06/170626105746.htm |title=Rising seas could result in 2 billion refugees by 2100 |work=Science Daily |date=26 June 2017 |access-date=27 June 2017}}
Remote Sensing Systems (RSS), a satellite record of lower tropospheric temperature, undergoes a major revision, showing nearly 30% faster warming since 1979.[https://www.carbonbrief.org/major-correction-to-satellite-data-shows-140-faster-warming-since-1998 Major correction to satellite data shows 140% faster warming since 1998] Carbon Brief 30 June 2017{{cite web |url=http://images.remss.com/msu/msu_time_series.html |title=RSS / MSU and AMSU Data / Time Series Trend Browser |website=remss.com}}
29 June – A study published in the journal Science concludes that unmitigated climate change will exacerbate inequality in the USA, with southern states losing up to 20 percent of their income by century's end.{{cite news |url=https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2017-06/ru-scc062317.php |title=Study: Climate change damages US economy, increases inequality |publisher=EurekAlert! |date=29 June 2017 |access-date=30 June 2017}}
30 June – The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) reveals plans to send an astronaut to the Moon by 2030.{{cite news |url=https://phys.org/news/2017-06-japan-reveals-moon.html |title=Japan reveals plans to put a man on moon by 2030 |work=PhysOrg |date=30 June 2017 |access-date=30 June 2017}}

=July=

File:Large_Hadron_Collider_dipole_magnets_IMG_0955.jpg particle confirmed by scientists at the Large Hadron Collider.]]

1 July – Researchers from the University of Alabama at Birmingham warn that brainwave-sensing headsets are vulnerable to hacking and could reveal a user's passwords if their brainwaves are being monitored.{{cite web |title=Hackers could use brainwaves to steal passwords, study finds |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/07/170701081756.htm |date=1 July 2017 |work=Science Daily |access-date=10 July 2017}}
4 July – Scientists report evidence that homo sapiens may have migrated out of Africa 270,000 years ago, much earlier than the 70,000 years ago thought previously.{{cite news |last=Zimmer |first=Carl |author-link=Carl Zimmer |title=In Neanderthal DNA, Signs of a Mysterious Human Migration |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/07/04/science/neanderthals-dna-homo-sapiens-human-evolution.html |date=4 July 2017 |work=The New York Times |access-date=4 July 2017}}{{cite journal |author=Posth, Cosimo |display-authors=et al |title=Deeply divergent archaic mitochondrial genome provides lower time boundary for African gene flow into Neanderthals |date=4 July 2017 |journal=Nature Communications |volume=8 |page=16046 |doi=10.1038/ncomms16046 |pmid=28675384 |pmc=5500885 |bibcode=2017NatCo...816046P}}
5 July – A study in the journal Science Advances shows that climate sensitivity is greater than previously thought, and that lower estimates of future temperatures do not take into account long-term patterns of warming.{{cite web |title=Hopes of mild climate change dashed by new research |url=https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2017/jul/05/hopes-of-mild-climate-change-dashed-by-new-research |date=5 July 2017 |work=The Guardian |access-date=15 July 2017}}{{cite web |title=Reconciling predictions of climate change |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/07/170705164530.htm |date=5 July 2017 |work=Science Daily |access-date=15 July 2017}}
6 July
Physicists at CERN{{'s}} Large Hadron Collider report the detection of the particle Xi baryon (with the Greek letter Xi), a new hadron, a composite particle containing two charm quarks and one up quark.{{cite web |author=Staff |title=The LHCb experiment is charmed to announce observation of a new particle |url=http://www.interactions.org/press-release/lhcb-experiment-charmed-announce-observation-new-particle |date=6 July 2017 |work=Interactions.org |access-date=6 July 2017}}{{cite news |last=Chang |first=Kenneth |title=CERN Physicists Find a Particle With a Double Dose of Charm |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/07/06/science/cern-quarks-charm-baryon.html |date=6 July 2017 |work=The New York Times |access-date=7 July 2017}}
Researchers report that the surface on the planet Mars may be more toxic to microorganisms, especially a common terrestrial type, Bacillus subtilis, than thought earlier. This is based on studies with perchlorates, common on Mars, in a simulated Martian ultraviolet atmosphere.{{cite news |last=Daley |first=Jason |title=Mars Surface May Be Too Toxic for Microbial Life - The combination of UV radiation and perchlorates common on Mars could be deadly for bacteria |url=http://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/mars-surface-may-be-toxic-bacteria-180963966/ |date=6 July 2017 |work=Smithsonian |access-date=8 July 2017}}{{cite journal |last1=Wadsworth |first1=Jennifer |last2=Cockell |first2=Charles S. |title=Perchlorates on Mars enhance the bacteriocidal effects of UV light |date=6 July 2017 |journal=Scientific Reports |volume=7 |page=4662 |number=4662 |doi=10.1038/s41598-017-04910-3 |pmid=28684729 |pmc=5500590 |bibcode=2017NatSR...7.4662W}}
7 July – Researchers at Queensland University of Technology announce the development of a genetically modified banana with higher levels of vitamin A, which could improve the nutritional content of bananas in Uganda.{{cite web |title=Golden bananas high in pro-vitamin A developed |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/07/170707095806.htm |date=7 July 2017 |work=Science Daily |access-date=10 July 2017}}
10 July
NASA's Juno spacecraft obtains close-range images of Jupiter's red spot.{{cite web |title=NASA's Juno Spacecraft Spots Jupiter's Great Red Spot |url=https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.php?feature=6896 |date=12 July 2017 |publisher=NASA |access-date=13 July 2017}}
Scientists from Stanford University publish evidence that a sixth mass extinction of life on Earth is already underway.{{cite web |title=Earth's sixth mass extinction event already under way, scientists warn |url=https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2017/jul/10/earths-sixth-mass-extinction-event-already-underway-scientists-warn |date=10 July 2017 |work=The Guardian |access-date=11 July 2017}}{{cite web |title=Prelude to global extinction: Human impact on Earth's animals |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/07/170710161009.htm |date=10 July 2017 |work=Science Daily |access-date=11 July 2017}}
11 July – Researchers at George Washington University reveal a new prototype solar cell with 44.5 percent efficiency.{{cite web |title=Scientists Design Solar Cell that Captures Nearly All Energy of Solar Spectrum |url=https://mediarelations.gwu.edu/scientists-design-solar-cell-captures-nearly-all-energy-solar-spectrum |date=11 July 2017 |publisher=George Washington University |access-date=12 July 2017}}

File:Iceberg_A-68_on_July_12,_2017.png detaches from Antarctica.]]

12 July
A huge iceberg, one of the largest ever recorded, detaches from the Larsen C ice shelf in Antarctica.{{cite web |title=Iceberg twice size of Luxembourg breaks off Antarctic ice shelf |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/jul/12/giant-antarctic-iceberg-breaks-free-of-larsen-c-ice-shelf |date=12 July 2017 |work=The Guardian |access-date=13 July 2017}}
The discovery of the smallest star able to sustain fusion, EBLM J0555-57Ab, is announced; its diameter is just slightly larger than Saturn.{{cite web |title=Smallest-ever star discovered by astronomers |url=https://phys.org/news/2017-07-smallest-ever-star-astronomers.html |date=12 July 2017 |work=PhysOrg |access-date=12 July 2017}}
Scientists at Harvard use the CRISPR gene-editing system to store a GIF animation in the DNA of bacteria.{{cite web |title=Scientists Used CRISPR to Put a GIF Inside a Living Organism's DNA |url=https://www.technologyreview.com/s/608268/scientists-used-crispr-to-put-a-gif-inside-living-dna/?set=608263 |date=12 July 2017 |work=Technology Review |access-date=13 July 2017}}{{cite web |title=Gif and image written into the DNA of bacteria |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-40585299 |date=13 July 2017 |work=BBC News |access-date=13 July 2017}}
Research published in Royal Society Open Science reveals that six of the world's large carnivores – the African wild dog, cheetah, Ethiopian wolf, lion, red wolf and tiger – have lost over 90% of their historic range.{{cite web |title=World's large carnivores being pushed off the map |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-40596729 |date=15 July 2017 |work=BBC News |access-date=15 July 2017}}{{cite journal |title=Range contractions of the world's large carnivores |journal=Royal Society Open Science |volume=4 |issue=7 |pages=170052 |date=12 July 2017 |doi=10.1098/rsos.170052 |pmid=28791136 |pmc=5541531 |last1=Wolf |first1=Christopher |last2=Ripple |first2=William J. |bibcode=2017RSOS....470052W }}
14 July – Astrophysicists report that tardigrade micro-animals may be one of the most resilient life forms on Earth since they may be able to withstand global mass extinctions due to astrophysical events, such as supernovae, gamma-ray bursts, large asteroid impacts, and passing-by stars.{{cite news |last=Guarino |first=Ben |title=These animals can survive until the end of the Earth, astrophysicists say |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/speaking-of-science/wp/2017/07/14/these-animals-can-survive-until-the-end-of-the-earth-astrophysicists-say/ |date=14 July 2017 |newspaper=The Washington Post |access-date=14 July 2017}}{{cite journal |last1=Sloan |first1=David |last2=Alves Batista |first2=Rafael |last3=Loeb |first3=Abraham |author3-link=Abraham Loeb |title=The Resilience of Life to Astrophysical Events |date=14 July 2017 |journal=Scientific Reports |volume=7 |page=5419 |number=5419 |doi=10.1038/s41598-017-05796-x |pmid=28710420 |pmc=5511186 |arxiv=1707.04253 |bibcode=2017NatSR...7.5419S}}
17 July
Astronomers confirm the detection of strange radio signals from Ross 128, a nearby red dwarf star.{{cite web |last=Mendez |first=Abel |title=Strange Signals from the Nearby Red Dwarf Star Ross 128 |url=http://phl.upr.edu/library/notes/ross128 |date=17 July 2017 |publisher=Planetary Habitability Laboratory at University of Puerto Rico at Arecibo |url-status=dead |archive-date=17 July 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170717181621/http://phl.upr.edu/library/notes/ross128 |access-date=17 July 2017}}{{cite news |last=Osborne |first=Hannah |title=Ross 128: Mystery Radio signals Detected From Red Dwarf Star Just 11 Light-Years Away |url=http://www.newsweek.com/mystery-radio-signals-ross-128-star-637682 |date=17 July 2017 |work=Newsweek |access-date=17 July 2017}}
Researchers at the University of Tokyo demonstrate a breathable nanoscale mesh with an electronic sensor that can be worn on the skin for a week without discomfort, and could potentially monitor a person's health continuously over a long period.{{cite web |title=Breathable, wearable electronics on skin for long-term health monitoring |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/07/170717110502.htm |date=17 July 2017 |work=Science Daily |access-date=19 July 2017}}
Researchers in California report how carbon sequestration in the ocean can be made 500 times faster, by simply adding a common enzyme to the process.{{cite web |title=Key to speeding up carbon sequestration discovered |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/07/170717160045.htm |date=17 July 2017 |work=Science Daily |access-date=21 July 2017}}
18 July – A computer simulation by the University of Manchester suggests that Tyrannosaurus rex moved slower than was thought previously, with its size and weight limiting the dinosaur to a maximum of 20 km/h (12 mph).{{cite web |title=Mighty T. rex 'walked rather than sprinted' |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-40632751 |date=18 July 2017 |work=BBC News |access-date=19 July 2017}}
19 July – Archaeologists publish evidence that Aboriginal people have been in Australia for at least 65,000 years, suggesting the arrival of humans on the continent was up to 18,000 years earlier than previously thought.{{cite web |title=Rock find 'rewrites' Australian human history |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-australia-40651473 |date=20 July 2017 |work=BBC News |access-date=20 July 2017}}{{cite journal |title=Human occupation of northern Australia by 65,000 years ago |date=19 July 2017 |journal=Nature |volume=547 |issue=7663 |pages=306–310 |doi=10.1038/nature22968 |pmid=28726833 |last1=Clarkson |first1=Chris |last2=Jacobs |first2=Zenobia |last3=Marwick |first3=Ben |last4=Fullagar |first4=Richard |last5=Wallis |first5=Lynley |author-link5=Lynley Wallis |last6=Smith |first6=Mike |last7=Roberts |first7=Richard G. |last8=Hayes |first8=Elspeth |last9=Lowe |first9=Kelsey |last10=Carah |first10=Xavier |last11=Florin |first11=S. Anna |last12=McNeil |first12=Jessica |last13=Cox |first13=Delyth |last14=Arnold |first14=Lee J. |last15=Hua |first15=Quan |last16=Huntley |first16=Jillian |last17=Brand |first17=Helen E. A. |last18=Manne |first18=Tiina |last19=Fairbairn |first19=Andrew |last20=Shulmeister |first20=James |last21=Lyle |first21=Lindsey |last22=Salinas |first22=Makiah |last23=Page |first23=Mara |last24=Connell |first24=Kate |last25=Park |first25=Gayoung |last26=Norman |first26=Kasih |last27=Murphy |first27=Tessa |last28=Pardoe |first28=Colin |url=https://digital.library.adelaide.edu.au/dspace/bitstream/2440/107043/2/hdl_107043.pdf |hdl=2440/107043 |bibcode=2017Natur.547..306C |s2cid=205257212 |hdl-access=free }}

File:SEM image of Milnesium tardigradum in active state - journal.pone.0045682.g001-2.pngs, one of the most resilient life forms on Earth, may withstand global mass extinctions due to astrophysical events.]]

21 July – Asteroid 2017 OO1 passes close to Earth.{{cite web |url=http://minorplanetcenter.net/neo/view?date=2457955.65&label=2017%20OO1&packed_desig=K17O01O |title=2017 OO1 Close approach date: 2017 7 21.150000 (03 36 0.0) |website=minorplanetcenter.net}}{{cite web |url=http://earthsky.org/space/asteroid-2017-oo1-close-pass-undetected |title=Close shave from an undetected asteroid - EarthSky.org |website=earthsky.org|date=26 July 2017 }}
25 July – Researchers at Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology (UNIST) announce a new record efficiency of 22.1% for perovskite solar cells.{{cite web |title=New world efficiency record with perovskite solar cells |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/07/170725122105.htm |date=25 July 2017 |work=Science Daily |access-date=31 July 2017}}
26 July
The Breakthrough Starshot initiative announces that it has developed and launched the world's smallest spacecraft, precursors of "StarChip", known as "Sprites", measuring just 3.5 cm and weighing only four grams, but containing solar panels, computers, sensors, and radios.{{cite web |title=Reaching for the Stars, Breakthrough Sends Smallest-Ever Satellites into Orbit |url=https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/reaching-for-the-stars-breakthrough-sends-smallest-ever-satellites-into-orbit/ |date=26 July 2017 |work=Scientific American |access-date=27 July 2017}}{{cite web |title=In Quest to Reach Alpha Centauri, Breakthrough Starshot Launches World's Smallest Spacecraft |url=https://breakthroughinitiatives.org/News/12 |date=26 July 2017 |publisher=Breakthrough Initiatives |access-date=27 July 2017}}
Researchers discover that stem cells in the brain's hypothalamus govern how fast aging occurs in the body.{{cite web |title=Brain cells found to control aging |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/07/170726132107.htm |date=26 July 2017 |work=Science Daily |access-date=27 July 2017}}
The first gene editing of human embryos in the USA is reported to have taken place, using CRISPR.{{cite web |title=Human embryo gene editing has taken place in US, claims report |url=https://www.newscientist.com/article/2141971-human-embryo-gene-editing-has-taken-place-in-us-claims-report/ |date=27 July 2017 |work=New Scientist |access-date=27 July 2017}}{{cite news |last=Connor |first=Steve |title=Rewriting Life - First Human Embryos Edited in U.S. - Researchers have demonstrated they can efficiently improve the DNA of human embryos. |url=https://www.technologyreview.com/s/608350/first-human-embryos-edited-in-us/ |date=26 July 2017 |work=MIT Technology Review |access-date=27 July 2017}}
27 July
Astronomers announce that half the matter of the Milky Way galaxy may have come from other distant galaxies.{{cite web |author=Staff |title=Milky Way's origins are not what they seem |url=https://phys.org/news/2017-07-milky.html |date=27 July 2017 |work=Phys.org |access-date=27 July 2017}}
Astronomers report the first measurement of a gamma ray burst (namely, GRB 160625B) as it happened.{{cite news |last=Mandelbaum |first=Ryan F. |title=Astronomers Capture Wild Intergalactic Gamma Ray Burst As it Happens |url=https://gizmodo.com/astronomers-capture-wild-intergalactic-gamma-ray-burst-1797261225 |date=27 July 2017 |work=Gizmodo |access-date=27 July 2017}}
28 July – An organic compound, acrylonitrile, or vinyl cyanide, (C₂H₃CN), possibly essential for life by being related to cell membrane and vesicle structure formation, is reported to have been found on Titan, moon of Saturn.{{cite web |last=Wall |first=Mike |title=Saturn Moon Titan Has Molecules That Could Help Make Cell Membranes |url=https://www.space.com/37653-saturn-moon-titan-cell-membrane-molecules.html |date=28 July 2017 |work=Space.com |access-date=29 July 2017}}{{cite journal |author=Palmer, Maureen Y. |display-authors=et al |title=ALMA detection and astrobiological potential of vinyl cyanide on Titan |date=28 July 2017 |journal=Science Advances |volume=3 |pages=e1700022 |number=7 |doi=10.1126/sciadv.1700022 |pmid=28782019 |pmc=5533535 |bibcode=2017SciA....3E0022P}}{{cite news |last=Kaplan |first=Sarah |title=This weird moon of Saturn has some essential ingredients for life |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/speaking-of-science/wp/2017/08/08/this-weird-moon-of-saturn-has-some-essential-ingredients-for-life/ |date=8 August 2017 |newspaper=The Washington Post |access-date=8 August 2017}}

=August=

File:Embryo, 8 cells.jpg used to remove faulty DNA from human embryos for the first time.]]

1 August
Scientists present a detailed description and 3D model image of possibly the first flower that lived about 140 million years ago.{{cite news |last=Gabbott |first=Prof Sarah |title=Did the first flower look like this? |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-40780491 |date=1 August 2017 |work=BBC News |access-date=1 August 2017}}{{cite journal |author=Sauquet, Hervé |display-authors=et al |title=The ancestral flower of angiosperms and its early diversification |date=1 August 2017 |journal=Nature Communications |volume=8 |page=16047 |doi=10.1038/ncomms16047 |pmid=28763051 |pmc=5543309 |bibcode=2017NatCo...816047S}}
Virgo joins LIGO in the measurement of gravitational waves, improving the sensitivity.{{cite web |last=Conover |first=Emily |url=https://www.sciencenews.org/blog/science-ticker/virgo-detector-joins-ligo-search-gravitational-waves |title=Virgo detector joins LIGO in the search for gravitational waves |date=1 August 2017 |work=Science News |access-date=2 August 2017}}
2 August
For the first time, scientists use CRISPR in human embryos to remove faulty DNA responsible for a hereditary heart condition.{{cite news |last=Belluck |first=Pam |title=In Breakthrough, Scientists Edit a Dangerous Mutation From Genes in Human Embryos |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/02/science/gene-editing-human-embryos.html |date=2 August 2017 |work=The New York Times |access-date=2 August 2017}}{{cite web |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-40802147 |title=Human embryos edited to stop disease |work=BBC News |date=2 August 2017 |access-date=2 August 2017}}{{cite press release |url=http://www.salk.edu/news-release/early-gene-editing-success-holds-promise-preventing-inherited-diseases/ |title=Early gene-editing success holds promise for preventing inherited diseases |publisher=Salk Institute |date=2 August 2017 |access-date=2 August 2017}}
Scientists at Edinburgh Napier University report a treatment based on antimicrobial peptides that could potentially lead to a cure for the common cold.{{cite web |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-edinburgh-east-fife-40800941 |title='Exciting discovery' in common cold cure search |work=BBC News |date=2 August 2017 |access-date=2 August 2017}}
Astronomers report that WASP-121b is the first exoplanet found to contain water (in the form of hot water molecules) in an extrasolar planetary stratosphere (i.e., an atmospheric layer in which temperatures increase as the altitude increases). WASP-121b is a "hot Jupiter" in the constellation Puppis, and is about 880 light-years (light travel distance) from Earth.{{cite web |last1=Landau |first1=Elizabeth |last2=Villard |first2=Ray |title=Hubble Detects Exoplanet with Glowing Water Atmosphere |url=https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.php?feature=6909 |date=2 August 2017 |publisher=NASA |access-date=2 August 2017}}{{cite web |last=Pultarova |first=Tereza |title=Hubble Telescope Detects Stratosphere on Huge Alien Planet |url=https://www.space.com/37705-exoplanet-stratosphere-detected-wasp-121b.html |date=3 August 2017 |work=Space.com |access-date=3 August 2017}}{{cite journal |author=Evans, Thomas M. |display-authors=et al |title=An ultrahot gas-giant exoplanet with a stratosphere |date=2 August 2017 |journal=Nature |volume=548 |issue=7665 |pages=58–61 |doi=10.1038/nature23266 |pmid=28770846 |arxiv=1708.01076 |bibcode=2017Natur.548...58E|s2cid=205258293 }}
4 August – In a letter to Darwin Life, Inc. and New Hope Fertility Center, the FDA warns that the "three parent baby" technique should not be marketed in the U.S.{{cite web |url=https://www.newscientist.com/article/mg23531384-100-three-parent-technique-must-not-be-marketed-in-us-says-fda/ |title='Three parent' technique must not be marketed in US, says FDA |work=New Scientist |date=9 August 2017 |access-date=10 August 2017}}
5 August – NASA celebrates the fifth anniversary of the Curiosity rover mission landing, and related exploratory accomplishments, on the planet Mars.{{cite web |last1=Webster |first1=Guy |last2=Cantillo |first2=Laurie |last3=Brown |first3=Dwayne |title=Five Years Ago and 154 Million Miles Away: Touchdown! |url=https://mars.jpl.nasa.gov/news/2017/five-years-ago-and-154-million-miles-away-touchdown |date=2 August 2017 |publisher=NASA |access-date=6 August 2017}}{{cite web |last=Wall |first=Mike |title=After 5 Years on Mars, NASA's Curiosity Rover Is Still Making Big Discoveries |url=https://www.space.com/37722-mars-rover-curiosity-five-years-anniversary.html |date=5 August 2017 |work=Space.com |access-date=6 August 2017}} (Videos: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IxvODcuFb1s Curiosity{{'s}} First Five Years (02:07)]; [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O0nPFaBU98k Curiosity{{'s}} POV: Five Years Driving (05:49)]; [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q-uAz82sH-E Curiosity{{'s}} Discoveries About Gale Crater (02:54)])

File:Patagotitan-Scale-Diagram-Steveoc86.svg, one of the largest ever dinosaurs, is officially named.]]

8 August – Patagotitan mayorum, one of the largest ever dinosaurs, is officially named by researchers.{{cite web |last=Borenstein |first=Seth |title=Patagotitan mayorum: New study describes the biggest dinosaur ever |url=https://phys.org/news/2017-08-patagotitan-mayorum-biggest-dinosaur.html |work=Phys.org |date=9 August 2017 |access-date=9 August 2017}}
10 August – Researchers at Brown University report the transmission of data through a terahertz multiplexer at 50 gigabits per second, which could lead to a new generation of ultra-fast Wi-Fi.{{cite web |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/08/170810104911.htm |title=First data transmission through terahertz multiplexer: 100 times faster than today's best |work=Science Daily |date=10 August 2017 |access-date=14 August 2017}}{{cite web |url=https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2017-08/bu-srf080817.php |title=Scientists report first data transmission through terahertz multiplexer |publisher=EurekAlert! |date=10 August 2017 |access-date=14 August 2017}}{{cite news |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/2017/08/10/ultrafast-wi-fi-horizon-scientists-send-data-100-times-current/ |title=Ultrafast wi-fi on horizon as scientists send data at 100 times current speeds |work=The Daily Telegraph |date=10 August 2017 |access-date=14 August 2017|last1=Knapton |first1=Sarah }}
11 August – A deep learning algorithm is reported to be capable of visually identifying thousands of plant species.{{cite journal |url=http://www.nature.com/news/artificial-intelligence-identifies-plant-species-for-science-1.22442 |title=Artificial intelligence identifies plant species for science |journal=Nature |date=11 August 2017 |access-date=12 August 2017|doi=10.1038/nature.2017.22442 |last1=Ledford |first1=Heidi |url-access=subscription }}
12 August – Scientists discover 91 volcanoes located two kilometres below the West Antarctic Ice Sheet, making it the largest volcanic region on Earth.{{cite web |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/aug/12/scientists-discover-91-volcanos-antarctica |title=Scientists discover 91 volcanoes below Antarctic ice sheet |work=The Guardian |date=12 August 2017 |access-date=13 August 2017}}
14 August – A study by Ben-Gurion University suggests that the use of 'smiley' emoticons in workplace emails may reduce the perception of competence, and could even undermine information sharing.{{cite web |url=https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2017-08/aabu-ei081117.php |title='Smiley' emojis in formal workplace e-mails could create frowns, says Ben-gurion University study |publisher=EurekAlert! |date=14 August 2017 |access-date=14 August 2017}}
21 August
Researchers at MIT's Plasma Science and Fusion Center (PSFC) working with colleagues in Belgium and the UK find a new way to generate very high-energetic ions to study nuclear fusion.{{cite web |url=https://news.mit.edu/2017/mit-plasma-research-collaboration-gives-fusion-heating-boost-0821 |title=Fusion heating gets a boost |publisher=MIT |date=21 August 2017 |access-date=29 August 2017}}{{cite web |url=http://www.popularmechanics.com/science/energy/a27961/mit-nuclear-fusion-experiment-increases-efficiency/ |title=MIT Achieves Breakthrough in Nuclear Fusion |work=Popular Mechanics |date=28 August 2017 |access-date=29 August 2017}}
A team of scientists from all over the globe finds that there may indeed be diamond precipitation deep inside icy giant planets like Neptune and Uranus.{{Cite journal |title=Formation of diamonds in laser-compressed hydrocarbons at planetary interior conditions |journal=Nature Astronomy |last1=Kraus |first1=D. |last2=Vorberger |first2=J. |last3=Pak |first3=A. |last4=Hartley |first4=N. J. |last5=Fletcher |first5=L. B. |last6=Frydrych |first6=S. |last7=Galtier |first7=E. |last8=Gamboa |first8=E. J. |last9=Gericke |first9=D. O. |last10=Glenzer |first10=S. H. |last11=Granados |first11=E. |last12=MacDonald |first12=M. J. |last13=MacKinnon |first13=A. J. |last14=McBride |first14=E. E. |last15=Nam |first15=I. |last16=Neumayer |first16=P. |last17=Roth |first17=M. |last18=Saunders |first18=A. M. |last19=Schuster |first19=A. K. |last20=Sun |first20=P. |last21=van Driel |first21=T. |last22=Döppner |first22=T. |last23=Falcone |first23=R. W. |display-authors=1 |volume=1 |issue=9 |pages=606–611 |date=September 2017 |doi=10.1038/s41550-017-0219-9 |bibcode=2017NatAs...1..606K|s2cid=46945778 |url=http://www.escholarship.org/uc/item/1zd805nx}}
22 August
Scientists at the American Chemical Society meeting in Washington demonstrate "cyborg bacteria" able to outperform plants at photosynthesis.{{cite web |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-40975719 |title='Cyborg' bacteria deliver green fuel source from sunlight |work=BBC News |date=22 August 2017 |access-date=23 August 2017}}{{cite web |url=https://www.acs.org/content/acs/en/pressroom/newsreleases/2017/august/cyborg-bacteria-outperform-plants-when-turning-sunlight-into-useful-compounds-video.html |title=Cyborg bacteria outperform plants when turning sunlight into useful compounds (video) |publisher=ACS |date=22 August 2017 |access-date=23 August 2017}}
Engineers in the U.S. demonstrate how to make ultra-compact antennas for wireless communication 100 times smaller than their current size.{{cite web |url=https://www.science.org/content/article/mini-antennas-could-power-brain-computer-interfaces-medical-devices |title=Mini-antennas could power brain-computer interfaces, medical devices |work=Science |date=22 August 2017 |access-date=23 August 2017}}

File:VLTI reconstructed view of the surface of Antares.jpg, most detailed image of a star other than the Sun.]]

23 August
A peer-reviewed study by Harvard University concludes that petroleum company Exxon misled the public about the dangers of climate change for nearly 40 years.{{cite web |url=https://money.cnn.com/2017/08/23/investing/exxon-misled-climate-change-harvard-study/index.html |title=Harvard study: Exxon 'misled the public' on climate change for nearly 40 years |publisher=CNN |date=23 August 2017 |access-date=24 August 2017}}{{cite news |author=Staff |title=Exxon knew of climate change in 1981, email says – but it funded deniers for 27 more years |url=https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2015/jul/08/exxon-climate-change-1981-climate-denier-funding |date=8 July 2015 |work=The Guardian |access-date=24 August 2017}}
Astronomers using ESO's Very Large Telescope to study the star Antares produce the most detailed image and create the first map of surface motion of a star other than the Sun.{{cite web |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/08/170823090919.htm |title=Best ever image of a star's surface, atmosphere |work=Science Daily |date=23 August 2017 |access-date=24 August 2017}}
24 August – In a study published by Nature, researchers at the University of Manchester show that magnetic hysteresis is possible in individual molecules at −213 °C. This proves that storing data with single-molecule magnets is more feasible than previously thought, and could theoretically give 100 times higher density than current technologies.{{cite web |url=http://www.manchester.ac.uk/discover/news/major-leap-towards-storing-data-at-the-molecular-level/ |title=Major leap towards storing data at the molecular level |publisher=University of Manchester |date=24 August 2017 |access-date=24 August 2017}}
26 August – Astronomers detect 15 repeating Fast Radio Bursts coming from FRB 121102 located in a dwarf galaxy about 3 billion light-years away from Earth. The researchers note that FRB 121102 is presently in a "heightened activity state, and follow-on observations are encouraged, particularly at higher radio frequencies".{{cite web |author=Gajjar, Vishal |display-authors=et al |title=FRB 121102: Detection at 4 - 8 GHz band with Breakthrough Listen backend at Green Bank |url=http://www.astronomerstelegram.org/?read=10675 |date=29 August 2017 |work=Astronomer's Telegram |access-date=30 August 2017}}{{cite news |last=Osbourne |first=Hannah |title=FRBS:Repeating Radio Signals Coming From Distant Galaxy Detected By Astronomers |url=http://www.newsweek.com/frb-fast-radio-bursts-deep-space-breakthrough-listen-657144 |date=30 August 2017 |work=Newsweek |access-date=30 August 2017}}
28 August – Scientists break the record for coldest temperature of molecules, at 50 millionths of a degree above absolute zero.{{cite web |url=https://www.sciencenews.org/article/molecules-face-big-chill |title=Molecules face the big chill |work=Science News |date=28 August 2017 |access-date=30 August 2017}}
31 August – Astronomers at the Hubble Space Telescope report the first hints of possible water content within the TRAPPIST-1 multiplanetary system, which includes seven Earth-sized exoplanets, about 40 light-years away from Earth.{{cite news |last1=Bourrier |first1=Vincent |last2=de Wit |first2=Julien |last3=Jäger |first3=Mathias |title=Hubble delivers first hints of possible water content of TRAPPIST-1 planets |url=http://www.spacetelescope.org/news/heic1713/ |date=31 August 2017 |work=www.SpaceTelescope.org |access-date=4 September 2017}}{{cite news |author=PTI |title=First evidence of water found on TRAPPIST-1 planets - The results suggest that the outer planets of the system might still harbour substantial amounts of water. This includes the three planets within the habitable zone of the star, lending further weight to the possibility that they may indeed be habitable. |url=http://indianexpress.com/article/technology/science/first-evidence-of-water-found-on-trappist-1-planets-4827977/ |date=4 September 2017 |work=The Indian Express |access-date=4 September 2017}}

=September=

1 September – The European X-ray Free Electron Laser (XFEL) is officially opened in the German city of Hamburg.{{cite web |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-41117442 |title=XFEL: Brilliant X-ray laser comes online |work=BBC News |date=1 September 2017 |access-date=4 September 2017}}
4 September – Astronomers report the discovery of an intermediate-mass black hole with 100,000 solar masses hiding in a gas cloud near the heart of the Milky Way, ranking it as the second largest black hole ever seen in the galaxy.{{cite journal |title=Millimetre-wave emission from an intermediate-mass black hole candidate in the Milky Way |journal=Nature Astronomy |volume=1 |issue=10 |pages=709–712 |date=4 September 2017 |doi=10.1038/s41550-017-0224-z |last1=Oka |first1=Tomoharu |last2=Tsujimoto |first2=Shiho |last3=Iwata |first3=Yuhei |last4=Nomura |first4=Mariko |last5=Takekawa |first5=Shunya |arxiv=1707.07603 |bibcode=2017NatAs...1..709O |s2cid=119400213 }}

File:Eastonterm.jpg may be expected to be lost by 2100 due to global warming.]]

5 September
NASA celebrates 40 years of the Voyager missions, which included the launch of Voyager 1 on 5 September 1977, and the earlier launch of Voyager 2 on 20 August 1977, presently traveling into interstellar space, beyond the outer solar system.{{cite news |last=Krauss |first=Lawrence M. |author-link=Lawrence M. Krauss |title=Pondering Voyagers' Interstellar Journeys, and Our Own |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/05/opinion/pondering-voyagers-interstellar-journeys-and-our-own.html |date=5 September 2017 |work=The New York Times |access-date=5 September 2017}}
Scientists report that the Curiosity rover detected boron, an essential ingredient for life on Earth, on the planet Mars. Such a finding, along with previous discoveries that water may have been present on ancient Mars, further supports the possible early habitability of Gale Crater on Mars.{{cite journal |author=Gasda, Patrick J. |display-authors=et al |title=In situ detection of boron by ChemCam on Mars |date=5 September 2017 |journal=Geophysical Research Letters |volume=44 |issue=17 |page=8739 |doi=10.1002/2017GL074480 |bibcode=2017GeoRL..44.8739G|doi-access=free |hdl=2381/41995 |hdl-access=free }}{{cite news |last=Paoletta |first=Rae |title=Curiosity Has Discovered Something That Raises More Questions About Life on Mars |url=https://gizmodo.com/curiosity-has-discovered-something-that-raises-more-que-1800879035 |date=6 September 2017 |work=Gizmodo |access-date=6 September 2017}}
6 September – A research team led by Andrea Morello at the University of New South Wales invented a new type of quantum computing design they called Flip-flop qubits, which makes it much easier to integrate quantum computing with electronic circuits compared with existing approaches.{{cite web |url=https://newsroom.unsw.edu.au/news/science-tech/flip-flop-qubits-radical-new-quantum-computing-design-invented |title=Flip-flop qubits: radical new quantum computing design invented |publisher=UNSW |date=6 September 2017 |access-date=6 September 2017}}
7 September – The International Astronomical Union officially approves the naming of 14 features on the surface of Pluto. These are the first geological features on the planet to be named following the close flyby by the New Horizons spacecraft in July 2015.{{cite web |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/09/170907112411.htm |title=Pluto features given first official names |work=Science Daily |date=7 September 2017 |access-date=9 September 2017}}
11 September – The second phase of experimentation at the upgraded Wendelstein 7-X fusion reactor begins, and first plasmas are produced.{{cite news |url=http://www.ipp.mpg.de/4254576/08_17 |title=Wendelstein 7-X: Second round of experimentation started |date=11 September 2017 |access-date=26 December 2017}}{{cite news |url=https://phys.org/news/2017-09-wendelstein-x-experimentation.html |title=Wendelstein 7-X: Second round of experimentation started |date=11 September 2017 |access-date=26 December 2017}}
13 September
A study published in Nature concludes that Asia's mountain glaciers will lose at least a third of their mass through global warming by 2100.{{cite web |url=https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2017/sep/14/asia-glaciers-shrink-threatening-water-supply |title=Asia's glaciers to shrink by a third by 2100, threatening water supply of millions |work=The Guardian |date=14 September 2017 |access-date=14 September 2017}}{{cite journal |title=Climate science: The future of Asia's glaciers |issue=7671 |pages=166–167 |journal=Nature |volume=549 |date=13 September 2017 |doi=10.1038/549166a |pmid=28905903 |last1=Cogley |first1=J. Graham |bibcode=2017Natur.549..166C |doi-access=free }}
A quantum computer at IBM was used to calculate energy levels in beryllium hydride.{{cite journal |title=Hardware-efficient variational quantum eigensolver for small molecules and quantum magnets |journal=Nature |volume=549 |issue=7671 |pages=242–246 |date=13 September 2017 |doi=10.1038/nature23879 |pmid=28905916 |last1=Kandala |first1=Abhinav |last2=Mezzacapo |first2=Antonio |last3=Temme |first3=Kristan |last4=Takita |first4=Maika |last5=Brink |first5=Markus |last6=Chow |first6=Jerry M. |last7=Gambetta |first7=Jay M. |arxiv=1704.05018 |bibcode=2017Natur.549..242K |s2cid=4390182 }} The calculation method is an important step towards the simulation of larger molecules beyond the reach of classical supercomputers.{{cite web |url=https://www.science.org/content/article/quantum-computer-simulates-largest-molecule-yet-sparking-hope-future-drug-discoveries |title=Quantum computer simulates largest molecule yet, sparking hope of future drug discoveries |date=13 September 2017 |access-date=22 September 2017}}

File:Cassini Saturn Orbit Insertion.jpg of Cassini-Huygens{{'s}} 20-year mission to explore the planet Saturn.]]

15 September – The Cassini-Huygens spacecraft ends its 20-year mission to explore the planet Saturn, its rings and moons. The spacecraft is directed into Saturn's atmosphere to disintegrate.{{cite news |last1=Brown |first1=Dwayne |last2=Cantillo |first2=Laurie |last3=Dyches |first3=Preston |title=NASA's Cassini Spacecraft Ends Its Historic Exploration of Saturn |url=https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.php?feature=6948 |date=15 September 2017 |publisher=NASA |access-date=15 September 2017}}{{cite news |last=Chang |first=Kenneth |title=Cassini Vanishes Into Saturn, Its Mission Celebrated and Mourned |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/14/science/cassini-grand-finale-saturn.html |date=14 September 2017 |work=The New York Times |access-date=15 September 2017}}
25 September
A 35-year-old man who had been in a vegetative state for 15 years after a car accident is reported to have shown signs of consciousness after neurosurgeons implanted a vagus nerve stimulator into his chest.{{cite web |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/09/170925132935.htm |title=After 15 years in a vegetative state, nerve stimulation restores consciousness |work=Science Daily |date=25 September 2017 |access-date=26 September 2017}}{{cite web |url=https://www.theguardian.com/science/2017/sep/25/nerve-implant-restores-consciousness-to-man-in-vegetative-state |title=Nerve implant 'restores consciousness' to man in vegetative state |work=The Guardian |date=25 September 2017 |access-date=26 September 2017}}
The Australian government announces that it will establish a national space agency.{{cite web |url=http://www.sciencemag.org/news/2017/09/australia-returns-space |title=After lengthy campaign, Australia gets its own space agency |work=Science |date=25 September 2017 |access-date=27 September 2017}}
27 September
The LIGO and Virgo collaborations announce the detection of a fourth binary black hole merger, GW170814. For the first time, three detectors recorded the signal, leading to a more precise localization of the source in the sky.[https://dcc.ligo.org/public/0145/P170814/010/GW170814.pdf A three-detector observation of gravitational waves from a binary black hole coalescence] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170928060102/https://dcc.ligo.org/public/0145/P170814/010/GW170814.pdf |date=28 September 2017 }}, retrieved 27 September 2017{{cite news |url=https://www.nature.com/news/european-detector-spots-its-first-gravitational-wave-1.22690?WT.mc_id=TWT_NatureNews&sf117118315=1 |title=European detector spots its first gravitational wave |date=27 September 2017 |access-date=27 September 2017}}{{cite news |last=Overbye |first=Dennis |author-link=Dennis Overbye |title=New Gravitational Wave Detection From Colliding Black Holes |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/27/science/black-holes-collision-ligo-virgo.html |date=27 September 2017 |work=The New York Times |access-date=28 September 2017}}
Researchers from Oxford, Münster and Exeter Universities create photonic computer chips – that use light rather than electricity – to imitate the way a brain's synapses operate.{{cite web |url=https://phys.org/news/2017-09-holy-grail-creation-brain-like-photonic.html |title=Move towards 'holy grail' of computing by creation of brain-like photonic microchips |work=PhysOrg |date=27 September 2017 |access-date=28 September 2017}}
28 September – The last recovered image taken by the Rosetta spacecraft, which closely studied the comet 67P/Churyumov–Gerasimenko (67P), and which later impacted the surface of the comet, is reported.{{cite web |last=Dvorsky |first=George |title=Scientists Unexpectedly Find Rosetta's Final Image of Comet 67P/CG |url=https://gizmodo.com/scientists-unexpectedly-find-rosetta-s-final-image-of-c-1818966894 |date=28 September 2017 |work=Gizmodo |access-date=28 September 2017}}
29 September – At the 68th International Astronautical Congress in Adelaide, Australia, Elon Musk reveals the next plans for his company SpaceX including the announcement of a rocket called Big Falcon Rocket,{{cite web |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-41441877 |title=Elon Musk: Rockets will fly people from city to city in minutes |work=BBC News |date=29 September 2017 |access-date=29 September 2017}}{{cite web |url=https://techcrunch.com/2017/09/28/spacex-plans-to-use-spaceships-for-earth-passenger-transit/?ncid=mobilenavtrend |title=SpaceX plans to use spaceships for Earth passenger transit |publisher=TechCrunch |date=29 September 2017 |access-date=29 September 2017}}{{cite news |url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-09-29/elon-musks-bfr-rocket-fleet-talk-in-adelaide/9000460 |title=Elon Musk's SpaceX flags cheap travel anywhere on Earth within an hour using new rocket |work=ABC News |date=29 September 2017 |access-date=29 September 2017|last1=Sutton |first1=Malcolm }}{{cite web |url=https://www.theguardian.com/science/video/2017/sep/29/elon-musk-manned-mars-mission-spacex-video |title=Elon Musk: we can launch a manned mission to Mars by 2024 |work=The Guardian |date=29 September 2017 |access-date=29 September 2017}} known as Starship as of 2019.{{cite news|url=https://www.geekwire.com/2018/goodbye-bfr-hello-starship-elon-musk-gives-classic-name-mars-spaceship/|title=Goodbye, BFR … hello, Starship: Elon Musk gives a classic name to his Mars spaceship|last=Boyle|first=Alan|date=19 November 2018|work=GeekWire|access-date=22 November 2018|quote=Starship is the spaceship/upper stage & Super Heavy is the rocket booster needed to escape Earth’s deep gravity well (not needed for other planets or moons)|author-link=Alan Boyle}}
30 September – NASA reports radiation levels on the surface of the planet Mars were temporarily doubled, and were associated with an aurora 25-times brighter than any observed earlier, due to a massive, and unexpected, solar storm in mid-September 2017.{{cite web |last=Scott |first=Jim |title=Large solar storm sparks global aurora and doubles radiation levels on the martian surface |url=https://phys.org/news/2017-09-large-solar-storm-global-aurora.html |date=30 September 2017 |work=Phys.org |access-date=30 September 2017}}

=October=

File:Leptin.png molecule pictured).]]

2 October
The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine is awarded to Jeffrey C. Hall, Michael Rosbash and Michael W. Young for their discoveries of molecular mechanisms controlling the circadian rhythm.{{cite web |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/10/171002092603.htm |title=2017 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine: Molecular mechanisms controlling the circadian rhythm |work=Science Daily |date=3 October 2017 |access-date=3 October 2017}}
3 October
The Nobel Prize in Physics is awarded to Rainer Weiss, Kip Thorne and Barry Barish for their role in the detection of gravitational waves.{{cite news |last1=Rincon |first1=Paul |last2=Amos |first2=Jonathan |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-41476648 |title=Einstein's waves win Nobel Prize |work=BBC News |date=3 October 2017 |access-date=3 October 2017}}{{cite news |last=Overbye |first=Dennis |author-link=Dennis Overbye |title=2017 Nobel Prize in Physics Awarded to LIGO Black Hole Researchers |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/03/science/nobel-prize-physics.html |date=3 October 2017 |work=The New York Times |access-date=3 October 2017}}{{cite news |last=Kaiser |first=David |author-link=David Kaiser (physicist) |title=Learning from Gravitational Waves |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/03/opinion/gravitational-waves-ligo-funding.html |date=3 October 2017 |work=The New York Times |access-date=3 October 2017}}
4 October
The Nobel Prize in Chemistry is awarded to Jacques Dubochet, Joachim Frank and Richard Henderson for "developing cryo-electron microscopy for the high-resolution structure determination of biomolecules in solution".{{cite news |author=Staff |title=Nobel prize awarded for imaging molecules |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-41495621 |date=4 October 2017 |work=BBC News |access-date=4 October 2017}}{{cite news |last=Chang |first=Kenneth |title=Nobel Prize in Chemistry Awarded for 3D Views of Biological Molecules |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/04/science/nobel-prize-chemistry.html |date=4 October 2017 |work=The New York Times |access-date=4 October 2017}}
NASA announces that the likely explanation for the unusual dimming events related to KIC 8462852 (or Tabby's Star) is that an "uneven ring of dust" orbits the star.{{cite web |last=Landau |first=Elizabeth |title=Mysterious Dimming of Tabby's Star May Be Caused by Dust |url=https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.php?feature=6963 |date=4 October 2017 |publisher=NASA |access-date=4 October 2017}}{{cite journal |author=Meng, Huan Y.A. |display-authors=et al |title=Extinction and the Dimming of KIC 8462852 |date=3 October 2017 |journal=The Astrophysical Journal |volume=847 |number=2 |page=131 |doi=10.3847/1538-4357/aa899c |bibcode=2017ApJ...847..131M|arxiv=1708.07556 |s2cid=118875846 |doi-access=free }}{{cite web |last=Tabor |first=Abby |title=The scientific quest to explain Kepler's most enigmatic find |url=https://phys.org/news/2017-10-scientific-quest-kepler-enigmatic.html |date=5 October 2017 |work=Phys.org |access-date=5 October 2017}}
5 October – Astronomers identify C/2017 K2, the most distant comet ever observed in our Solar System, at a distance of {{convert|1.5|e9km|e9mi|abbr=unit}}.{{cite web |url=https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2017-10/uoc--tlb100517.php |title=Team led by UCLA astrophysicist observes primitive comet 1.5 billion miles from the sun |publisher=EurekAlert! |date=5 October 2017 |access-date=6 October 2017}}
9 October
A study by the Carnegie Institution for Science finds that wind farms in the North Atlantic could, in theory, provide sufficient energy to meet all of humanity's current needs during wintertime.{{cite web |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/10/171009154949.htm |title=Huge energy potential in open ocean wind farms in the North Atlantic |work=Science Daily |date=9 October 2017 |access-date=10 October 2017}}{{cite web |url=https://www.inverse.com/article/37245-floating-wind-farms-solve-humanity-energy-needs |title=Open-Ocean Wind Farms Could Meet Current Global Energy Demand |work=Inverse |date=9 October 2017 |access-date=10 October 2017}}
Scientists at Rutgers University find an efficient way to enhance the nutritional value of corn, by inserting a bacterial gene from E Coli, that stimulates production of a key nutrient called methionine, an amino acid found usually in meat.{{cite web |url=https://news.rutgers.edu/genetically-boosting-nutritional-value-corn-could-benefit-millions/20171009 |title=Genetically Boosting the Nutritional Value of Corn Could Benefit Millions |publisher=Rutgers University |date=9 October 2017 |access-date=12 October 2017}}

File:Neutron star collision.ogv (GW170817) detected from merger of two neutron stars.]]

10 October – A study by Imperial College London and the World Health Organisation finds there has been a tenfold increase in childhood and adolescent obesity since 1975, with the number of obese likely to exceed the underweight by 2022.{{cite web |url=http://www3.imperial.ac.uk/newsandeventspggrp/imperialcollege/newssummary/news_6-10-2017-15-55-51 |title=Tenfold increase in childhood and adolescent obesity in four decades |publisher=Imperial College London |date=10 October 2017 |access-date=12 October 2017}}
12 October – The dwarf planet Haumea is confirmed to have a ring system, the first time such a feature has been discovered around a trans-Neptunian object.{{cite web |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/10/171012093350.htm |title=Haumea, the most peculiar of Pluto companions, has a ring around it |work=Science Daily |date=12 October 2017 |access-date=12 October 2017}}{{cite web |url=http://www.planetary.org/blogs/jason-davis/2017/20171011-haumea-has-a-ring.html |title=Planetary Society-funded telescopes help find ring around Haumea, a distant dwarf planet |publisher=The Planetary Society |date=11 October 2017 |access-date=13 October 2017}}
16 October – Astronomers officially announce the detection of a gravitational wave, named GW170817, associated with the merger of two neutron stars. GW170817 also seemed related to a gamma ray burst, likely GRB 170817A, 1.7 seconds later, and a visible light observational event 11 hours afterwards, AT 2017gfo.{{cite news |last=Cho |first=Adrian |title=Merging neutron stars generate gravitational waves and a celestial light show |url=https://www.science.org/content/article/merging-neutron-stars-generate-gravitational-waves-and-celestial-light-show |date=16 October 2017 |work=Science |access-date=16 October 2017}}{{cite news |last1=Landau |first1=Elizabeth |last2=Chou |first2=Felicia |last3=Washington |first3=Dewayne |last4=Porter |first4=Molly |title=NASA Missions Catch First Light from a Gravitational-Wave Event |url=https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.php?feature=6975 |date=16 October 2017 |publisher=NASA |access-date=16 October 2017}}{{cite news |last=Overbye |first=Dennis |author-link=Dennis Overbye |title=LIGO Detects Fierce Collision of Neutron Stars for the First Time |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/16/science/ligo-neutron-stars-collision.html |date=16 October 2017 |work=The New York Times |access-date=16 October 2017}}{{cite news |last=Krieger |first=Lisa M. |title=A Bright Light Seen Across The Universe, Proving Einstein Right - Violent collisions source of our gold, silver |url=http://www.mercurynews.com/2017/10/16/a-bright-light-seen-across-the-universe-proving-einstein-right/ |date=16 October 2017 |work=The Mercury News |access-date=16 October 2017}}
17 October – Qualcomm announces the first 5G mobile connection, which has a connection speed of 1 Gbit/s.{{cite web |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-41652967 |title='First 5G mobile net connection' claimed by Qualcomm |work=BBC News |date=17 October 2017 |access-date=18 October 2017}}{{cite web |url=https://www.qualcomm.com/news/releases/2017/10/17/qualcomm-achieves-worlds-first-announced-5g-data-connection-5g-modem |title=Qualcomm Achieves World's First Announced 5G Data Connection on a 5G Modem Chipset for Mobile Devices |publisher=Qualcomm |date=17 October 2017 |access-date=18 October 2017}}
18 October
Alphabet announces an improved version of the AlphaGo artificial intelligence, developed by its subsidiary Google DeepMind.{{cite web |url=https://www.theguardian.com/science/2017/oct/18/its-able-to-create-knowledge-itself-google-unveils-ai-learns-all-on-its-own |title=It's able to create knowledge itself: Google unveils AI that learns on its own |work=The Guardian |date=18 October 2017 |access-date=19 October 2017}}
A German study finds a 75% reduction in flying insect biomass over the past 25 years, suggesting the possibility of large-scale ecological collapse.{{cite web |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-41670472 |title=Alarm over decline in flying insects |work=BBC News |date=19 October 2017 |access-date=19 October 2017}}{{Cite journal|title=More than 75 percent decline over 27 years in total flying insect biomass in protected areas |volume=12 |issue=10 |pages=e0185809 |journal=PLOS ONE|date=18 October 2017 |doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0185809 |pmid=29045418|pmc=5646769 |last1=Hallmann |first1=Caspar A |last2=Sorg |first2=Martin |last3=Jongejans |first3=Eelke |last4=Siepel |first4=Henk |last5=Hofland |first5=Nick |last6=Schwan |first6=Heinz |last7=Stenmans |first7=Werner |last8=Müller |first8=Andreas |last9=Sumser |first9=Hubert |last10=Hörren |first10=Thomas |last11=Goulson |first11=Dave |last12=De Kroon |first12=Hans|bibcode=2017PLoSO..1285809H|doi-access=free }}
Scientists announce the discovery of teeth fossils in Germany resembling those of Australopithecus afarensis, suggesting the extinct hominin may have existed 9.7 million years ago, much earlier than 3.9 million years ago, and not living only in Africa, as thought previously.{{cite web |last=Greshko |first=Michael |title=Ancient Teeth Found in Europe Belonged to Mystery Primate |url=https://news.nationalgeographic.com/2017/10/ancient-teeth-found-germany-dont-rewrite-human-history-science/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171021022507/https://news.nationalgeographic.com/2017/10/ancient-teeth-found-germany-dont-rewrite-human-history-science/ |url-status=dead |archive-date=21 October 2017 |date=20 October 2017 |work=National Geographic |access-date=20 October 2017}}{{cite web |last=Wehner |first=Mike |title=Shocking discovery of ancient teeth could rewrite human history |url=http://bgr.com/2017/10/20/human-history-fossil-teeth-germany-discovery/ |date=20 October 2017 |work=BGR Media |access-date=20 October 2017}}{{cite web |author=Staff |title=9.7 million-year-old teeth fossils discovered in Germany |url=https://www.dailysabah.com/history/2017/10/20/97-million-year-old-teeth-fossils-discovered-in-germany |date=20 October 2017 |work=Daily Sabah |access-date=20 October 2017}}

File:Clouds over the Atlantic Ocean.jpg could be warmer now than those in the last 100 million years.]]

19 October
Canadian astronomer Robert Weryk discovers ʻOumuamua, the first known interstellar object detected passing through the Solar System.{{cite journal|display-authors=1|last1=Meech|first1=Karen J.|last2=Weryk|first2=R.|last3=Micheli|first3=M.|last4=Kleyna|first4=J.T.|last5=Hainaut|first5=O.R.|last6=Jedicke|first6=R.|last7=Wainscoat|first7=R.J.|last8=Chambers|first8=K.C.|last9=Keane|first9=J.V.|first10=A.|last10=Petric|first11=L.|last11=Denneau|first12=E.|last12=Magnier|first13=T.|last13=Berger|first14=M.E.|last14=Huber|first15=H.|last15=Flewelling|first16=C.|last16=Waters|first17=E.|last17=Schunova-Lilly|first18=S.|last18=Chastel|s2cid=4393243|date=2017-11-20|title=A brief visit from a red and extremely elongated interstellar asteroid|journal=Nature|volume=552|issue=7685|pages=378–381|doi=10.1038/nature25020|pmid=29160305|pmc=8979573|bibcode=2017Natur.552..378M}}
NASA announces that the Dawn spacecraft mission around the dwarf planet Ceres would be extended until the hydrazine fuel in the spacecraft runs out, possibly in the second half of 2018; afterwards, the spacecraft is expected to remain in a stable orbit around Ceres indefinitely.{{cite web |last=Landau |first=Elizabeth |title=Dawn Mission Extended at Ceres |url=https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.php?feature=6980 |date=19 October 2017 |publisher=NASA |access-date=19 October 2017}}
Measurement of the magnetic moment of antiprotons provides further evidence for CPT symmetry, the hypothesis that matter and antimatter behave identical when time and space are reversed at the same time.{{cite news |url=https://home.cern/about/updates/2017/01/base-precisely-measures-antiprotons-magnetic-moment |title=BASE precisely measures antiproton's magnetic moment |date=18 January 2017 |access-date=3 January 2018}}{{cite journal |author=Smorra C. |display-authors=et al |title=A parts-per-billion measurement of the antiproton magnetic moment |date=20 October 2017 |journal=Nature |volume=550 |issue=7676 |pages=371–374 |doi=10.1038/nature24048 |pmid=29052625 |bibcode=2017Natur.550..371S|doi-access=free }}
20 October – IBM shifts the goal for quantum supremacy by demonstrating that classical computers can simulate larger quantum systems than previously thought, and uses a supercomputer to simulate up to 56 qubits.{{cite web |url=https://www.newscientist.com/article/2151032-googles-quantum-computing-plans-threatened-by-ibm-curveball/ |title=Google's quantum computing plans threatened by IBM curveball |date=20 October 2017 |access-date=22 October 2017}}
25 October
An improved version of the genetic engineering technique CRISPR is published in the journals Science and Nature.{{cite web |url=https://www.technologyreview.com/s/609203/crispr-20-is-here-and-its-way-more-precise/ |title=CRISPR 2.0 is here |work=MIT Technology Review |date=25 October 2017 |access-date=26 October 2017}}{{cite journal |title=RNA editing with CRISPR-Cas13 |journal=Science |date=25 October 2017 |doi=10.1126/science.aaq0180 |last1=Cox |first1=David B. T. |last2=Gootenberg |first2=Jonathan S. |last3=Abudayyeh |first3=Omar O. |last4=Franklin |first4=Brian |last5=Kellner |first5=Max J. |last6=Joung |first6=Julia |last7=Zhang |first7=Feng |volume=358 |issue=6366 |pages=1019–1027 |pmid=29070703 |pmc=5793859 |bibcode=2017Sci...358.1019C }}{{cite journal |url= |title=Programmable base editing of A•T to G•C in genomic DNA without DNA cleavage |journal=Nature |date=25 October 2017 |doi=10.1038/nature24644 |volume=551 |pages=464–471 | last1 = Gaudelli | first1 = Nicole M. | last2 = Komor | first2 = Alexis C. | last3 = Rees | first3 = Holly A. | last4 = Packer | first4 = Michael S. | last5 = Badran | first5 = Ahmed H. | last6 = Bryson | first6 = David I. | last7 = Liu | first7 = David R.|issue=7681 | pmc = 5726555 | pmid = 29160308 |bibcode=2017Natur.551..464G }}
In a report, the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates the loss of tens of thousands of US manufacturing jobs, due to the effects of artificial intelligence by 2026, but at the same time estimates growth in fields like software engineering.{{cite web |url=https://www.technologyreview.com/the-download/609218/what-does-work-look-like-in-2026-new-statistics-shine-light-on-automations/ |title=What Does Work Look Like in 2026? New Statistics Shine Light on Automation's Impacts |work=MIT Technology Review |date=25 October 2017 |access-date=26 October 2017 |archive-date=27 January 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180127164753/https://www.technologyreview.com/the-download/609218/what-does-work-look-like-in-2026-new-statistics-shine-light-on-automations/ |url-status=dead }}{{cite web |url=https://www.bls.gov/news.release/ecopro.tn.htm |title=Employment Projections: 2016-26 Technical Note |publisher=US Bureau of Labor Statistics |date=25 October 2017 |access-date=26 October 2017}}
26 October
European researchers discover a flaw in the way ocean temperatures have been estimated, suggesting they were colder in the past than previously thought, and that the current period of warming is unparalleled over the last 100 million years.{{cite web |url=https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2017-10/epfd-tow102317.php |title=The oceans were colder than we thought? |publisher=EurekAlert! |date=26 October 2017 |access-date=26 October 2017}}{{cite news |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/climate-change-worse-water-temperature-reading-scientists-global-warming-ice-melt-weather-a8020696.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220501/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/climate-change-worse-water-temperature-reading-scientists-global-warming-ice-melt-weather-a8020696.html |archive-date=1 May 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |title=Climate change might be worse than thought after scientists find major mistake in water temperature readings |work=The Independent |date=26 October 2017 |access-date=26 October 2017}}{{cbignore}}
A study by the University of Melbourne finds that sea levels could rise 1.3m globally unless coal power ends by 2050.{{cite web |url=https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2017/oct/26/sea-levels-to-rise-13m-unless-coal-power-ends-by-2050-report-says |title=Sea levels to rise 1.3m unless coal power ends by 2050, report says |work=The Guardian |date=26 October 2017 |access-date=26 October 2017}}
NASA reports an object, named A/2017 U1, that is believed to be the first known interstellar asteroid or comet to pass through our Solar System.{{cite web |url=https://www.theguardian.com/science/2017/oct/27/mysterious-object-detected-speeding-past-the-sun-could-be-from-another-solar-system-a2017-u1 |title=Mysterious object seen speeding past sun could be 'visitor from another star system' |work=The Guardian |date=27 October 2017 |access-date=27 October 2017}}{{cite web |url=https://www.nasa.gov/feature/jpl/small-asteroid-or-comet-visits-from-beyond-the-solar-system |title=Small Asteroid or Comet 'Visits' from Beyond the Solar System |publisher=NASA |date=26 October 2017 |access-date=27 October 2017}}

File:C2017U1still.gif

30 October – The World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) reports that concentrations of CO₂ in the Earth's atmosphere reached a record high of 403.3 parts per million in 2016.{{cite web |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-41778089 |title=Record surge in atmospheric CO₂ seen in 2016 |work=BBC News |date=30 October 2017 |access-date=30 October 2017}}{{cite web |url=https://public-old.wmo.int/en/media/press-release/greenhouse-gas-concentrations-surge-new-record |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231218173208/https://public-old.wmo.int/en/media/press-release/greenhouse-gas-concentrations-surge-new-record |url-status=dead |archive-date=18 December 2023 |title=Greenhouse gas concentrations surge to new record |publisher=WMO |date=30 October 2017 |access-date=30 October 2017}}
31 October
Researchers at the United States Department of Energy set a new world efficiency record for quantum dot solar cells, at 13.4 percent.{{cite web |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/10/171031120324.htm |title=Scientists elevate quantum dot solar cell world record |work=Science Daily |date=31 October 2017 |access-date=31 October 2017}}
Astronomers working with the Next-Generation Transit Survey report the discovery of NGTS-1b, a large confirmed hot Jupiter-sized extrasolar planet orbiting NGTS-1, a small red dwarf star about half the mass and radius of the Sun, every 2.65 days.{{Cite journal|arxiv=1710.11099|last1=Bayliss|first1=Daniel|title=NGTS-1b: A hot Jupiter transiting an M-dwarf|journal=Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society|volume=475|issue=4|page=4467|last2=Gillen|first2=Edward|last3=Eigmuller|first3=Philipp|last4=McCormac|first4=James|last5=Alexander|first5=Richard D|last6=Armstrong|first6=David J|last7=Booth|first7=Rachel S|last8=Bouchy|first8=Francois|last9=Burleigh|first9=Matthew R|last10=Cabrera|first10=Juan|last11=Casewell|first11=Sarah L|last12=Chaushev|first12=Alexander|last13=Chazelas|first13=Bruno|last14=Csizmadia|first14=Szilard|last15=Erikson|first15=Anders|last16=Faedi|first16=Francesca|last17=Foxell|first17=Emma|last18=Gansicke|first18=Boris T|last19=Goad|first19=Michael R|last20=Grange|first20=Andrew|last21=Gunther|first21=Maximilian N|last22=Hodgkin|first22=Simon T|last23=Jackman|first23=James|last24=Jenkins|first24=James S|last25=Lambert|first25=Gregory|last26=Louden|first26=Tom|last27=Metrailler|first27=Lionel|last28=Moyano|first28=Maximiliano|last29=Pollacco|first29=Don|last30=Poppenhaeger|first30=Katja|display-authors=29|year=2017|doi=10.1093/mnras/stx2778|doi-access=free |bibcode=2018MNRAS.475.4467B}}{{cite web |last=Lewin |first=Sarah |title=Monster Planet, Tiny Star: Record-Breaking Duo Puzzles Astronomers |url=https://www.space.com/38625-monster-planet-circles-tiny-star.html |date=31 October 2017 |work=Space.com |access-date=1 November 2017}}{{cite web |author=Staff |title='Monster' planet discovery challenges formation theory |url=https://phys.org/news/2017-10-monster-planet-discovery-formation-theory.html |date=31 October 2017 |work=Phys.org |access-date=1 November 2017}} Daniel Bayliss, of the University of Warwick, and lead author of the study describing the discovery of NGTS-1b, stated, "The discovery of NGTS-1b was a complete surprise to us—such massive planets were not thought to exist around such small stars – importantly, our challenge now is to find out how common these types of planets are in the Galaxy, and with the new Next-Generation Transit Survey facility we are well-placed to do just that."

=November=

1 November – NASA reports that the first evidence of an exoplanet was noted as early as 1917. The evidence was found after reviewing archival materials discovered in storerooms at the Carnegie Observatories in Pasadena, California.{{cite web |last=Landau |first=Elizabeth |title=Overlooked Treasure: The First Evidence of Exoplanets |url=https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.php?feature=6991 |date=1 November 2017 |publisher=NASA |access-date=1 November 2017}}

File:Kheops-Pyramid.jpg

2 November
Scientists report that significant changes in the position and structure of the brain have been found in astronauts who have taken trips in space, based on MRI studies. Astronauts who took longer space trips were associated with greater brain changes.{{cite journal |author=Roberts, Donna R. |display-authors=et al |title=Effects of Spaceflight on Astronaut Brain Structure as Indicated on MRI |date=2 November 2017 |journal=New England Journal of Medicine |volume=377 |issue=18 |pages=1746–1753 |doi=10.1056/NEJMoa1705129 |pmid=29091569|s2cid=205102116 |doi-access=free }}{{cite web |last=Foley |first=Katherine Ellen |title=Astronauts who take long trips to space return with brains that have floated to the top of their skulls |url=https://qz.com/1119668/space-travel-changes-astronauts-brains/ |date=3 November 2017 |work=Quartz |access-date=3 November 2017}}
Archaeologists using muography report the discovery of a large "void" inside the Great Pyramid of Giza, Egypt.{{cite web |title='Big void' identified in Khufu's Great Pyramid at Giza |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-41845445 |date=2 November 2017 |work=BBC News |access-date=2 November 2017}}
The Tapanuli orangutan (Pongo tapanuliensis), a new species of orangutan, is described in the journal Current Biology.{{cite journal |title=Morphometric, Behavioral, and Genomic Evidence for a New Orangutan Species |date=2 November 2017 |journal=Current Biology |doi=10.1016/j.cub.2017.09.047 |volume=27 |pages=3487–3498.e10 | last1 = Nater | first1 = Alexander | last2 = Mattle-Greminger | first2 = Maja P. | last3 = Nurcahyo | first3 = Anton | last4 = Nowak | first4 = Matthew G. | last5 = de Manuel | first5 = Marc | last6 = Desai | first6 = Tariq | last7 = Groves | first7 = Colin | last8 = Pybus | first8 = Marc | last9 = Bilgin Sonay | first9 = Tugce | last10 = Roos | first10 = Christian | last11 = Lameira | first11 = Adriano R. | last12 = Wich | first12 = Serge A. | last13 = Askew | first13 = James | last14 = Davila-Ross | first14 = Marina | last15 = Fredriksson | first15 = Gabriella | last16 = de Valles | first16 = Guillem | last17 = Casals | first17 = Ferran | last18 = Prado-Martinez | first18 = Javier | last19 = Goossens | first19 = Benoit | last20 = Verschoor | first20 = Ernst J. | last21 = Warren | first21 = Kristin S. | last22 = Singleton | first22 = Ian | last23 = Marques | first23 = David A. | last24 = Pamungkas | first24 = Joko | last25 = Perwitasari-Farajallah | first25 = Dyah | last26 = Rianti | first26 = Puji | last27 = Tuuga | first27 = Augustine | last28 = Gut | first28 = Ivo G. | last29 = Gut | first29 = Marta | last30 = Orozco-terWengel | first30 = Pablo | last31 = van Schaik | first31 = Carel P. | last32 = Bertranpetit | first32 = Jaume | last33 = Anisimova | first33 = Maria | last34 = Scally | first34 = Aylwyn | last35 = Marques-Bonet | first35 = Tomas | last36 = Meijaard | first36 = Erik | last37 = Krützen | first37 = Michael|issue=22 | doi-access = free | pmid = 29103940 | hdl = 10230/34400 | hdl-access = free }}{{cite news |last=Cochrane |first=Joe |title=New Orangutan Species Could Be the Most Endangered Great Ape |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/11/02/science/new-orangutan-species.html |date=2 November 2017 |work=The New York Times |access-date=3 November 2017}}{{cite web |title=New great ape species identified in Indonesia |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-41848816 |date=2 November 2017 |work=BBC News |access-date=2 November 2017}}
Researchers at the University of Rochester Medical Center identify four genes – KRAS, CDKN2A, SMAD4, and TP53 – responsible for how long patients survive with pancreatic cancer.{{cite web |title=Pancreatic cancer survival linked to four genes |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/11/171102180133.htm |date=2 November 2017 |work=Science Daily |access-date=3 November 2017}}
Researchers from the University of Aberdeen report that a single dose of the drug Trodusquemine can "melt away" fat inside arteries.{{cite web |title=Drug 'melts away' fat inside arteries |url=https://www.abdn.ac.uk/news/11280/ |date=2 November 2017 |publisher=University of Aberdeen |access-date=9 November 2017}}
6 November – A study by the Earth Institute at Columbia University finds that swapping where crops are grown around the world could potentially feed an extra 825 million people.{{cite web |title=Swapping Where Crops are Grown Could Feed an Extra 825 Million People |url=http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2017/11/06/swapping-where-crops-are-grown-could-feed-an-extra-825-million-people/ |date=6 November 2017 |publisher=Earth Institute at Columbia University |access-date=9 November 2017}}
7 November
Fossils of tiny shrew-like creatures are discovered in southern England, dating back 145 million years, making them the oldest-known ancestors of most living mammals.{{cite web |title=Fossil of 'our earliest ancestors' found in Dorset |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-41889633 |date=7 November 2017 |work=BBC News |access-date=7 November 2017}}
UK scientists report that resveratrol analogues, when applied to senescent cells in the laboratory, made the cells look and behave younger, with longer telomeres and the ability to divide again.{{cite web |title=Old human cells rejuvenated in breakthrough discovery on aging |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/11/171107113145.htm |date=7 November 2017 |work=Science Daily |access-date=7 November 2017}}

File:Composite image of Supernova 1987A.jpg, to have exploded multiple times, over at least 50 years. (example of a supernova remnant shown)]]

8 November
Astronomers report the first known case of a star, IPTF14hls, that exploded multiple times, over a period of at least 50 years.{{cite web |title=What is dead may never die |url=http://www.astronomy.com/news/2017/11/zombie |date=8 November 2017 |work=Astronomy.com |access-date=9 November 2017}}
Through the use of a gene therapy technique, doctors in Germany are able to treat a boy with junctional epidermolysis bullosa, a disease which leaves skin fragile and easily susceptible to blister formation.{{cite web |title='Butterfly child' given life-saving skin |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/health-41914101 |date=8 November 2017 |work=BBC News |access-date=9 November 2017}}{{cite web |title=Gene therapy grafts have repaired a child's devastating skin disorder |url=https://www.technologyreview.com/s/609380/gene-therapy-grafts-have-repaired-a-childs-devastating-skin-disorder/ |date=8 November 2017 |work=MIT Technology Review |access-date=9 November 2017}}
9 November – Scientists from the Portuguese Institute of the Sea and the Atmosphere discover and recover the fossil remains of an ancient shark dating back nearly 80 million years, in waters off the coast of the town of Portimão.{{cite web |title=Portuguese trawler nets 'prehistoric shark' |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/blogs-news-from-elsewhere-41928537 |date=9 November 2017 |work=BBC News |access-date=10 November 2017}}
10 November
IBM reports building a quantum computer with 50 qubits.{{cite web |url=https://www.ibm.com/blogs/research/2017/11/the-future-is-quantum/ |title=The future is quantum |date=10 November 2017 |publisher=IBM |access-date=10 November 2017}}
Researchers at Texas A&M University and the Los Alamos National Laboratory discover a new type of material, which is possibly more resistant to the effects of helium in a nuclear fusion reaction than current materials.{{cite web |title=Channeling helium: Researchers take next step toward fusion energy |url=http://engineering.tamu.edu/news/2017/11/10/channeling-helium-researchers-take-next-step-toward-fusion-energy |date=10 November 2017 |publisher=Texas A&M University |access-date=19 November 2017}}{{cite web |title=Helium channels in nanocomposites could be game changers |url=http://www.lanl.gov/discover/news-stories-archive/2017/November/helium-channels-in-nanocomposites.php |date=13 November 2017 |publisher=Texas A&M University |access-date=19 November 2017}}{{cite web |title=A New Helium-Resistant Material Could Save Fusion Reactors |url=http://www.popularmechanics.com/science/energy/a13615390/nanocomposite-vascularized-solids-fusion-reactors/ |date=15 November 2017 |work=Popular Mechanics |access-date=19 November 2017}}
13 November
Global carbon emissions are reported to be rising again after a three-year plateau.{{cite web |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-41941265 |title=First CO₂ rise in four years puts pressure on Paris targets |date=13 November 2017 |work=BBC News |access-date=13 November 2017}}{{cite web |url=http://www.globalcarbonproject.org/carbonbudget/17/files/UK_UEA_GCPBudget2017.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171113222904/http://www.globalcarbonproject.org/carbonbudget/17/files/UK_UEA_GCPBudget2017.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-date=13 November 2017 |title=Record high CO₂ emissions delay global peak |date=13 November 2017 |publisher=UEA/Global Carbon Project |access-date=13 November 2017 }}
Experiments on mice show that variants in a gene called ankyrin-B, carried by millions of Americans, could cause cells to store fat, potentially leading to obesity.{{cite web |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/11/171113153824.htm |title=Gene prompts cells to store fat, fueling obesity |date=13 November 2017 |work=Science Daily |access-date=14 November 2017}}{{cite web |url=http://news.unchealthcare.org/news/2017/november/discovery-shows-how-a-gene-prompts-cells-to-store-fat-fueling-obesity |title=Fat Cell Gene Deficiency Promotes Obesity |date=13 November 2017 |publisher=UNC Health Care |access-date=16 November 2017 |archive-date=16 November 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171116190443/http://news.unchealthcare.org/news/2017/november/discovery-shows-how-a-gene-prompts-cells-to-store-fat-fueling-obesity |url-status=dead }}
The FDA approves "Abilify MyCite", the first drug in the U.S. with a digital ingestion tracking system that records when the medication was taken, via a sensor embedded in the pill.{{cite web |url=https://www.fda.gov/NewsEvents/Newsroom/PressAnnouncements/ucm584933.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171114065740/https://www.fda.gov/NewsEvents/Newsroom/PressAnnouncements/ucm584933.htm |url-status=dead |archive-date=14 November 2017 |title=FDA approves pill with sensor that digitally tracks if patients have ingested their medication |date=13 November 2017 |publisher=FDA |access-date=15 November 2017}}{{cite web |url=https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/otsuka-and-proteus-announce-the-first-us-fda-approval-of-a-digital-medicine-system-abilify-mycite-aripiprazole-tablets-with-sensor-300555280.html |title=Otsuka And Proteus® Announce The First U.S. FDA Approval Of A Digital Medicine System: ABILIFY MYCITE® (aripiprazole tablets with sensor) |date=14 November 2017 |publisher=PR Newswire |access-date=15 November 2017}}{{cite web |url=https://www.technologyreview.com/the-download/609476/the-fda-has-approved-smart-pills-that-track-when-patients-take-their-meds/ |title=The FDA Has Approved Smart Pills That Track When Patients Take Their Meds |date=14 November 2017 |work=Technology Review |access-date=15 November 2017}}{{cite web |url=https://www.theverge.com/2017/11/14/16648166/fda-digital-pill-abilify-otsuka-proteus |title=The FDA has approved the first digital pill |date=14 November 2017 |work=The Verge |access-date=15 November 2017}}
California Institute of Technology researchers manage to stabilize a ring of plasma in open air for the first time.{{cite web |url=http://www.caltech.edu/news/engineers-create-stable-plasma-ring-open-air-80367 |title=Engineers Create Stable Plasma Ring in Open Air |date=13 November 2017 |publisher=California Institute of Technology |access-date=14 December 2017}}{{cite web |url=https://futurism.com/stable-plasma-ring-created-open-air-first-time-ever/ |title=A Stable Plasma Ring Has Been Created in Open Air For the First Time Ever |date=16 November 2017 |work=Futurism.com |access-date=14 December 2017}}
15 November – A study led by Newcastle University finds that sea life in some of the deepest parts of the Pacific Ocean – as far down as 11 km (7 miles) – is contaminated with plastic pollution.{{cite web |url=https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2017/nov/15/plastics-found-in-stomachs-of-deepest-sea-creatures |title=Plastics found in stomachs of deepest sea creatures |date=15 November 2017 |work=The Guardian |access-date=15 November 2017}}
20 November – A study by the University of Edinburgh suggests that life on Earth may have originated from biological particles carried by streams of space dust.{{cite web |url=https://www.ed.ac.uk/news/2017/space-dust-may-transport-life-between-worlds |title=Space dust may transport life between worlds |date=20 November 2017 |publisher=University of Edinburgh |access-date=28 November 2017}}{{Cite journal|last=Berera |first=Arjun |title=Space dust collisions as a planetary escape mechanism |journal=Astrobiology |volume=17 |issue=12 |pages=1274–1282 |date=6 November 2017 |arxiv=1711.01895 |doi=10.1089/ast.2017.1662 |pmid=29148823 |bibcode=2017AsBio..17.1274B|s2cid=126012488 }}

File:Porous chondriteIDP.jpg may have originated from biological particles carried by space dust.]]

22 November – In a breakthrough for antibiotic resistance, researchers at the Université de Montréal in Canada report a way of designing better molecules that make it harder for plasmids to move between bacteria.{{cite web |url=http://nouvelles.umontreal.ca/en/article/2017/11/22/antibiotics-resistance-researchers-succeed-to-block-genes-of-resistance/ |title=Antibiotics resistance: researchers succeed to block genes of resistance |date=22 November 2017 |publisher=University of Montreal |access-date=23 November 2017 |archive-date=23 November 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171123141621/http://nouvelles.umontreal.ca/en/article/2017/11/22/antibiotics-resistance-researchers-succeed-to-block-genes-of-resistance/ |url-status=dead }}
23 November – A study by the University of Leeds finds that shrinking glacier cover across Iceland could lead to increased volcanism in the region, by reducing pressure on the Earth's surface.{{cite web |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/11/171123095405.htm |title=Climate change could increase volcano eruptions |date=23 November 2017 |work=Science Daily |access-date=25 November 2017}}
28 November
A study by Northwell Health identifies dozens of new genetic variations associated with a person's general cognitive ability, while also noting a genetic overlap with longevity.{{cite web |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/11/171128123356.htm |title=New genetic variations linked to educational attainment: Genetic overlap between cognitive ability and longevity |date=28 November 2017 |work=Science Daily |access-date=29 November 2017}}
Facebook begins to use artificial intelligence to help identify users potentially at risk for suicide, and thus possibly better help provide them the proper mental health and support resources.{{cite web |url=http://www.businessinsider.com/facebook-is-using-ai-to-spot-suicidal-tendencies-2017-11 |title=Facebook is using artificial intelligence to spot suicidal tendencies in its users |date=28 November 2017 |work=Business Insider |access-date=29 November 2017}}{{cite web |url=https://techcrunch.com/2017/11/27/facebook-ai-suicide-prevention/ |title=Facebook rolls out AI to detect suicidal posts before they're reported |date=28 November 2017 |publisher=TechCrunch |access-date=29 November 2017}}{{cite web |url=https://www.theverge.com/2017/11/28/16709224/facebook-suicidal-thoughts-ai-help |title=Facebook is using AI to spot users with suicidal thoughts and send them help |date=28 November 2017 |work=The Verge |access-date=29 November 2017}}
The Voyager I spacecraft, the most distant man-made object, fires its trajectory thrusters for the first time since 1980, to extend its lifetime by two or three more years.{{cite web |url=https://arstechnica.com/science/2017/12/after-37-years-voyager-has-fired-up-its-trajectory-thrusters/ |title=After 37 years, Voyager 1 has fired up its trajectory thrusters |date=1 December 2017 |publisher=ARSTechnica |access-date=2 December 2017}}{{cite web |url=https://www.nasa.gov/feature/jpl/voyager-1-fires-up-thrusters-after-37 |title=Voyager 1 Fires Up Thrusters After 37 Years |date=1 December 2017 |publisher=NASA |access-date=2 December 2017}}
29 November – A study published in Nature finds that inhibiting RNA polymerase III (Pol III), a common enzyme found in all mammals, including humans, can extend the lifespan of flies and worms.{{cite web |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/11/171129131437.htm |title=Lifespan prolonged by inhibiting common enzyme |date=29 November 2017 |work=Science Daily |access-date=4 December 2017}}
30 November – Researchers from Imperial College London announce a breakthrough in optical computing, with a 10,000-fold reduction in the distance over which light can interact.{{cite web |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/11/171130141048.htm |title=Squeezing light into a tiny channel brings optical computing a step closer |date=30 November 2017 |work=Science Daily |access-date=4 December 2017}}

=December=

1 December
Researchers at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich demonstrate a 3D printer using living matter, which could offer unique properties not found in "dead matter" such as plastics or metals.{{cite web |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/12/171201181555.htm |title=3-D-printed minifactories |date=1 December 2017 |work=Science Daily |access-date=2 December 2017}}
Researchers at the University of Minnesota develop graphene nano 'tweezers' able to grab individual biomolecules, with potential for use in handheld disease diagnostic systems that could be run on smartphones.{{cite web |url=https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2017-12/uom-rdg120117.php |title=Researchers develop graphene nano 'tweezers' that can grab individual biomolecules |date=1 December 2017 |publisher=EurekAlert! |access-date=3 December 2017}}

File:Artist's rendering ULAS J1120+0641.jpg, ULAS J1342+0928, and supermassive black hole found so far. (artist concept of similar quasar)]]

Scientists establish a new method to estimate the magnitude of large earthquakes in minutes instead of hours based on measurements of the gravitational field in the region.{{cite news |url=http://www.newsweek.com/huge-earthquakes-change-strength-gravity-so-fast-it-can-tell-us-how-bad-quake-727234 |title=Huge Earthquakes Can Change the Strength of Gravity Quickly—And Tell Us How Bad Quake Is |date=30 November 2017 |access-date=21 January 2018}}
4 December – The MICROSCOPE (satellite) collaboration publishes its first results. The Equivalence principle was measured to hold true within a precision of 10⁻¹⁵, improving prior measurements by an order of magnitude.{{Cite journal|title=Precision measurement of Equivalence Principle|journal=Physical Review Letters|volume=119|issue=23|pages = 231101|doi=10.1103/PhysRevLett.119.231101|pmid=29286705|year=2017|last1=Touboul|first1=Pierre|last2=Métris|first2=Gilles|last3=Rodrigues|first3=Manuel|last4=André|first4=Yves|last5=Baghi|first5=Quentin|last6=Bergé|first6=Joël|last7=Boulanger|first7=Damien|last8=Bremer|first8=Stefanie|last9=Carle|first9=Patrice|last10=Chhun|first10=Ratana|last11=Christophe|first11=Bruno|last12=Cipolla|first12=Valerio|last13=Damour|first13=Thibault|last14=Danto|first14=Pascale|last15=Dittus|first15=Hansjoerg|last16=Fayet|first16=Pierre|last17=Foulon|first17=Bernard|last18=Gageant|first18=Claude|last19=Guidotti|first19=Pierre-Yves|last20=Hagedorn|first20=Daniel|last21=Hardy|first21=Emilie|last22=Huynh|first22=Phuong-Anh|last23=Inchauspe|first23=Henri |last24=Kayser|first24=Patrick|last25=Lala|first25=Stéphanie|last26=Lämmerzahl|first26=Claus|last27=Lebat|first27=Vincent|last28=Leseur|first28=Pierre|last29=Liorzou|first29=Françoise |last30=List|first30=Meike|display-authors=29|arxiv=1712.01176|bibcode=2017PhRvL.119w1101T|s2cid=6211162}}
5 December – Google's new AlphaZero AI beats a champion chess program after teaching itself in four hours.{{cite web |url=https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2017/dec/07/alphazero-google-deepmind-ai-beats-champion-program-teaching-itself-to-play-four-hours |title=AlphaZero AI beats champion chess program after teaching itself in four hours |date=7 December 2017 |work=The Guardian |access-date=7 December 2017}}{{Cite arXiv|author-link1=David Silver (programmer) |first1=David |last1=Silver|first2=Thomas|last2=Hubert|first3=Julian|last3=Schrittwieser|first4=Ioannis|last4=Antonoglou |first5=Matthew|last5=Lai|first6=Arthur|last6=Guez|first7=Marc |last7=Lanctot|first8=Laurent|last8=Sifre|first9=Dharshan|last9=Kumaran|first10=Thore|last10=Graepel|first11=Timothy|last11=Lillicrap|first12=Karen|last12=Simonyan|first13=Demis |last13=Hassabis |author-link13=Demis Hassabis |eprint=1712.01815|title=Mastering Chess and Shogi by Self-Play with a General Reinforcement Learning Algorithm|class=cs.AI|date=5 December 2017}}
6 December
Astronomers report detecting the most distant known quasar ULAS J1342+0928, which contains the most distant supermassive black hole, at a reported redshift of z = 7.54, surpassing the redshift of 7 for the previously known most distant quasar ULAS J1120+0641.{{cite journal |author=Bañados, Eduardo |display-authors=et al |title=An 800-million-solar-mass black hole in a significantly neutral Universe at a redshift of 7.5 |journal=Nature |volume=553 |issue=7689 |pages=473–476 |doi=10.1038/nature25180 |pmid=29211709 |arxiv=1712.01860 |bibcode=2018Natur.553..473B|year=2018 |s2cid=205263326 }}{{cite web |last=Choi |first=Charles Q. |title=Oldest Monster Black Hole Ever Found Is 800 Million Times More Massive Than the Sun |url=https://www.space.com/39000-oldest-farthest-monster-black-hole-yet.html |date=6 December 2017 |work=Space.com |access-date=6 December 2017}}
Construction of the ITER nuclear fusion project reaches the halfway point.{{cite news |url=https://phys.org/news/2017-12-nuclear-fusion-hails-halfway-milestone.html |title=Nuclear fusion project hails halfway construction milestone |date=6 December 2017 |work=PhysOrg |access-date=7 December 2017}}
Scientists at Harvard University's Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering announce a 100-fold increase in the complexity of "DNA bricks" that can self-assemble into 3D nanostructures.{{cite news |url=https://wyss.harvard.edu/a-100-fold-leap-to-gigadalton-dna-nanotech/ |title=A 100-fold leap to GigaDalton DNA nanotech |date=6 December 2017 |work=Harvard University |access-date=13 December 2017}}{{cite web |url=https://phys.org/news/2017-12-fold-gigadalton-dna-nanotech.html |title=A 100-fold leap to GigaDalton DNA nanotech |date=6 December 2017 |work=PhysOrg |access-date=7 December 2017}}
A paper by the Carnegie Institution for Science concludes that climate models with the most severe impacts for later this century are likely to be the most accurate, suggesting that the IPCC reports may be underestimating the future trends.{{cite web |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/12/171206132220.htm |title=More-severe climate model predictions could be the most accurate |date=7 December 2017 |work=Science Daily |access-date=7 December 2017}}
7 December
Physicists at the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign report the discovery of a new form of matter called excitonium.{{cite web |url=https://physics.illinois.edu/news/article/24114 |title=Physicists excited by discovery of new form of matter, excitonium |date=7 December 2017 |publisher=University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign |access-date=12 December 2017}}
Massachusetts Institute of Technology researchers discover a method to make bacteria more vulnerable to a type of antibiotics known as quinolones.{{cite web |url=https://news.mit.edu/2017/boosting-antibiotic-arsenal-1207 |title=Boosting the antibiotic arsenal: New strategy could enable existing drugs to kill bacteria that cause chronic infections |date=7 December 2017 |work=MIT |access-date=13 December 2017}}{{cite web |url=http://www.healthinformative.com/news-research/new-strategy-enable-existing-drugs-kill-bacteria-cause-chronic-infections/ |title=New Strategy Could Enable Existing Drugs to Kill Bacteria That Cause Chronic Infections |date=10 December 2017 |work=Health Informative |access-date=13 December 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171215054715/http://www.healthinformative.com/news-research/new-strategy-enable-existing-drugs-kill-bacteria-cause-chronic-infections/ |archive-date=15 December 2017 |url-status=dead }}
8 December – Scientists report that Homo sapiens may have migrated out of Africa as early as 120,000 years ago, particularly into Asia; well before the traditional exiting date of 60,000 years ago.{{cite journal |last1=Bae |first1=Christopher J. |last2=Douka |first2=Katerina |last3=Petraglia |first3=Michael D. |title=On the origin of modern humans: Asian perspectives |journal=Science |date=8 December 2017 |volume=358 |issue=6368 |page=eaai9067 |doi=10.1126/science.aai9067 |pmid=29217544 |doi-access=free }}{{cite news |last=Kuo |first=Lily |title=Early humans migrated out of Africa much earlier than we thought |url=https://qz.com/1151816/early-humans-migrated-out-of-africa-much-earlier-than-we-thought/ |date=10 December 2017 |work=Quartz |access-date=10 December 2017}}

File:Neuron with mHtt inclusion.jpg using IONIS-HTTRx, an experimental drug.]]

9 December – Astronomers report a brightening of X-ray emissions from GW170817 (gravitational wave)/GRB 170817A (gamma-ray burst)/SSS17a (optical astronomical transient).{{cite news |last1=Haggard |first1=Daryl |last2=Ruan |first2=John J. |last3=Nynka |first3=Melania |last4=Kalogera |first4=Vicky |last5=Evans |first5=Phil |title=LIGO/Virgo GW170817: Brightening X-ray Emission from GW170817/GRB170817A/SSS17a - ATel #11041 |url=http://www.astronomerstelegram.org/?read=11041 |date=9 December 2017 |work=The Astronomer's Telegram |access-date=9 December 2017}}{{cite news |last1=Margutti |first1=R. |last2=Fong |first2=W. |last3=Eftekharl |first3=T. |last4=Alexander |first4=E. |last5=Chornock |first5=R. |title=LIGO/Virgo GW170817: Chandra X-ray brightening of the counterpart 108 days since merger - ATel #11037 |url=http://www.astronomerstelegram.org/?read=11037 |date=7 December 2017 |work=The Astronomer's Telegram |access-date=9 December 2017}}
11 December
University College London reports that a genetic error responsible for Huntington's disease has been corrected in patients for the first time, using an experimental drug called IONIS-HTTRx.{{cite web |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-42308341 |title=Huntington's breakthrough may stop disease |date=11 December 2017 |work=BBC News |access-date=11 December 2017}}{{cite web |url=https://www.ucl.ac.uk/news/news-articles/1217/111217-huntingtons-disease-protein |title=Drug lowers deadly Huntington's disease protein |date=11 December 2017 |publisher=University College London |access-date=11 December 2017}}
Vanderbilt University researchers develop a new hyperlens material, which makes it possible to resolve details as small as a virus on the surface of living cells.{{cite news |url=https://news.vanderbilt.edu/2017/12/11/hyperlens-crystal-capable-of-viewing-living-cells-in-unprecedented-detail/ |title=Hyperlens crystal capable of viewing living cells in unprecedented detail |date=11 December 2017 |newspaper=Vanderbilt University |access-date=13 December 2017}}{{cite web |url=https://phys.org/news/2017-12-hyperlens-crystal-capable-viewing-cells.html |title=Hyperlens crystal capable of viewing living cells in unprecedented detail |date=11 December 2017 |work=PhysOrg |access-date=11 December 2017}}
University of Waterloo researchers devise a new battery technology innovation which could lead car batteries to be able to hold dramatically more energy, thus leading to an extended travel range per charge in electric vehicles.{{cite news |url=https://uwaterloo.ca/news/news/battery-research-could-triple-range-electric-vehicles |title=Battery research could triple range of electric vehicles |newspaper=Waterloo News |date=11 December 2017 |publisher=University of Waterloo |access-date=13 December 2017}}{{cite web |url=http://www.hybridcars.com/university-waterloo-research-battery-lead-triple-range-evs/ |title=University of Waterloo Research Battery Could Lead to Triple-Range EVs |date=11 December 2017 |work=HybridCars.com |access-date=13 December 2017}}
13 December
Engineers at Columbia University manage to create artificial graphene in a nano-fabricated semiconductor structure.{{cite web |url=http://engineering.columbia.edu/news/aaron-pinczuk-artificial-graphene |title=Columbia Engineers Create Artificial Graphene in a Nanofabricated Semiconductor Structure |date=13 December 2017 |publisher=Columbia University |access-date=16 December 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171219210511/http://engineering.columbia.edu/news/aaron-pinczuk-artificial-graphene |archive-date=19 December 2017 |url-status=dead }}
The firm Carbon Engineering demonstrates the synthesization of gasoline and diesel fuels with the use of carbon dioxide captured from the air and hydrogen derived from water, with its "Air to Fuels" technology for the first time.{{cite web |url=http://carbonengineering.com/ce-demonstrates-air-fuels/ |title=CE Demonstrates Air to Fuels |date=13 December 2017 |publisher=Carbon Engineering |access-date=16 December 2017}}
14 December
British doctors use a new form of gene therapy to treat haemophilia A, a genetic defect which leads to constant bleeding.{{cite web |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/health-42337396 |title=Haemophilia A trial results 'mind-blowing' |date=14 December 2017 |work=BBC News |access-date=14 December 2017}}
NASA astronomers report the detection of Kepler-90i, a super-Earth exoplanet, and the eighth in a multiexoplanetary system orbiting the star Kepler-90, which now hosts the most exoplanets ever found to date orbiting an extrasolar star. The exoplanet was found in archival data gathered by the Kepler space telescope with the aid of a newly utilized computer tool, deep learning, a class of machine learning algorithms.{{cite news|last1=Shallue|first1=Christopher J.|last2=Vanderburg |first2=Andrew|title=Identifying Exoplanets With Deep Learning: A Five Planet Resonant Chain Around Kepler-80 And An Eighth Planet Around Kepler-90|url=https://www.cfa.harvard.edu/~avanderb/kepler90i.pdf |date=16 December 2017|access-date=14 December 2017}}{{cite web|last1=Chou |first1=Felecia|last2=Hawkes|first2=Alison |last3=Northon|first3=Karen|title=Release 17-098 - Artificial Intelligence, NASA Data Used to Discover Eighth Planet Circling Distant Star|url=https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/artificial-intelligence-nasa-data-used-to-discover-eighth-planet-circling-distant-star|date=14 December 2017|publisher=NASA|access-date=14 December 2017}}
Archeological excavations at Lechaio in Greece reveal new evidence of large-scale Ancient Roman engineering.{{cite web |url=https://www.theguardian.com/science/2017/dec/14/new-underwater-discoveries-in-greece-reveal-ancient-roman-engineering |title=New underwater discoveries in Greece reveal ancient Roman engineering |date=14 December 2017 |work=The Guardian |access-date=15 December 2017}}

File:Pont du Gard BLS.jpg in Greece reveal evidence of large-scale ancient Roman engineering – an example of such engineering is pictured.]]

15 December
Researchers at the University of New South Wales publish a complete design for a quantum computer chip that can be manufactured using mostly standard industry processes and components.{{cite web |url=https://newsroom.unsw.edu.au/news/science-tech/complete-design-silicon-quantum-computer-chip-unveiled |title=Complete design of a silicon quantum computer chip unveiled |date=16 December 2017 |publisher=University of New South Wales |access-date=16 December 2017}}{{cite web|url=http://www.tomshardware.com/news/unsw-silicon-quantum-chip-architecture,36129.html|title=UNSW Proposes 7nm Silicon DRAM-Like Architecture For Quantum Chips|date=15 December 2017|publisher=Tom's Hardware|access-date=16 December 2017}}
Researchers at the United States Department of Energy's Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory and Princeton University develop a piece of software employing the use of new artificial intelligence techniques which is more efficient at predicting possible disruptions in nuclear fusion reactions.{{cite web|url=https://www.princeton.edu/news/2017/12/15/artificial-intelligence-helps-accelerate-progress-toward-efficient-fusion-reactions|title=Artificial intelligence helps accelerate progress toward efficient fusion reactions|date=15 December 2017|publisher=Princeton University|access-date=24 December 2017}}{{cite web|url=https://phys.org/news/2017-12-artificial-intelligence-efficient-fusion-reactions.html|title=Artificial intelligence helps accelerate progress toward efficient fusion reactions|date=15 December 2017|work=Phys.org|access-date=24 December 2017}}
The first baby is born from a transplanted cadaveric womb, in Brazil.{{cite news|title=First baby born after deceased womb transplant|first=James|last=Gallagher |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-46438396|work=BBC News|date=2018-12-05|access-date=2018-12-05}}
16 December – The Pentagon confirms the existence of the Advanced Aviation Threat Identification Program (AATIP), a secret investigatory effort funded from 2007 to 2012 by the United States Government to research and study unidentified flying objects.{{cite news|last1=Cooper|first1=Helene|last2=Blumenthal|first2=Ralph|last3=Kean|first3=Lesie|title=Glowing Auras and 'Black Money': The Pentagon's Mysterious U.F.O. Program |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/16/us/politics/pentagon-program-ufo-harry-reid.html|date=16 December 2017|work=The New York Times|access-date=16 December 2017}}{{cite news |last=Siese |first=April |title=The Pentagon has confirmed its $22M program to investigate UFOs |url=https://qz.com/1158998/the-pentagon-confirms-its-22-million-ufo-investigation-program/ |date=16 December 2017 |work=Quartz (publication) |access-date=17 December 2017}}
17 December – The peer-reviewed scientific journal Nano Letters publishes details of a memory storage device only one atomic layer thick.{{Cite journal|title=Atomristor: Nonvolatile Resistance Switching in Atomic Sheets of Transition Metal Dichalcogenides |volume=18 |issue=1|pages=434–441 |date=13 December 2017 |journal=Nano Letters |doi=10.1021/acs.nanolett.7b04342 |pmid=29236504 |last1=Ge |first1=Ruijing |last2=Wu |first2=Xiaohan |last3=Kim |first3=Myungsoo |last4=Shi |first4=Jianping |last5=Sonde |first5=Sushant |last6=Tao |first6=Li |last7=Zhang |first7=Yanfeng |last8=Lee |first8=Jack C |last9=Akinwande |first9=Deji |bibcode=2018NanoL..18..434G |doi-access=free }}
18 December – Scientists report that 3.45 billion year old Australian rocks once contained microorganisms, the earliest direct evidence of life on Earth.{{cite web |last=Livni |first=Ephrat |title=Scientists finally confirm there was life on Earth 3.5 billion years ago |url=https://qz.com/1159798/the-oldest-fossils-on-earth-show-that-3-5-billion-years-ago-there-was-life-on-our-planet/ |date=18 December 2017 |work=Quartz |access-date=18 December 2017}}{{cite web |last=Tyrell |first=Kelly April |title=Oldest fossils ever found show life on Earth began before 3.5 billion years ago |url=https://news.wisc.edu/oldest-fossils-ever-found-show-life-on-earth-began-before-3-5-billion-years-ago/ |date=18 December 2017 |publisher=University of Wisconsin–Madison |access-date=18 December 2017}}{{cite journal |last1=Schopf |first1=J. William |last2=Kitajima |first2=Kouki |last3=Spicuzza |first3=Michael J. |last4=Kudryavtsev |first4=Anatolly B. |last5=Valley |first5=John W. |title=SIMS analyses of the oldest known assemblage of microfossils document their taxon-correlated carbon isotope compositions |date=2017 |journal=PNAS |volume=115 |issue=1 |pages=53–58 |doi=10.1073/pnas.1718063115 |pmid=29255053 |pmc=5776830 |bibcode=2018PNAS..115...53S|doi-access=free }}
19 December – The FDA approves Luxturna, the first gene therapy for an inherited condition in the U.S., for patients with a form of retinal dystrophy.{{cite news|url=https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2017/12/19/571962226/first-gene-therapy-for-inherited-disease-gets-fda-approval|title=First Gene Therapy For Inherited Disease Gets FDA Approval|date=19 December 2017|newspaper=NPR|access-date=20 December 2017|last1=Stein|first1=Rob}}{{cite web|url=https://www.fda.gov/NewsEvents/Newsroom/PressAnnouncements/ucm589467.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171219164647/https://www.fda.gov/NewsEvents/Newsroom/PressAnnouncements/ucm589467.htm|url-status=dead|archive-date=19 December 2017|title=FDA approves novel gene therapy to treat patients with a rare form of inherited vision loss|date=19 December 2017|publisher=FDA|access-date=20 December 2017}}
21 December
The company General Fusion reports achieving the first plasma on its newest plasma injector named PI3, the world's largest.{{cite web |url=http://generalfusion.com/2017/12/first-plasma-in-worlds-largest-plasma-injector-brings-general-fusion-commercial-fusion-energy-step-closer/ |title=World's Largest Plasma Injector Brings Commercial Fusion Energy a Step Closer |date=21 December 2017 |work=General Fusion |access-date=21 December 2017}}{{cite web |url=http://mashable.com/2017/12/19/nuclear-fusion-company-plans-to-make-carbon-free-energy/ |title=Nuclear fusion company says it will make carbon-free energy a reality |date=21 December 2017 |work=Mashable |access-date=21 December 2017}}
Astronomers report that RZ Piscium, a star that brightens and dims in a highly erratic manner, is associated with a large amount of infrared radiation, suggestive evidence that a large amount of gas, dust and debris is orbiting the star, possibly as a result of the disruption, or destruction, of local planets by the star.{{cite journal |author=Punzi, K.M. |display-authors=et al |title=Is the Young Star RZ Piscium Consuming Its Own (Planetary) Offspring? |date=21 December 2017 |journal=The Astronomical Journal |volume=155 |pages=33 |number=1 |doi=10.3847/1538-3881/aa9524|arxiv=1712.08962 |bibcode=2018AJ....155...33P |s2cid=119530135 |doi-access=free }}{{cite web |last1=Reddy |first1=Francis |last2=Garner |first2=Rob |title=New Study Finds 'Winking' Star May Be Devouring Wrecked Planets |url=https://www.nasa.gov/feature/goddard/2017/new-study-finds-winking-star-may-be-devouring-wrecked-planets |date=21 December 2017 |publisher=NASA |access-date=22 December 2017}}

Awards

Queen Elizabeth Prize for Engineering – Eric Fossum, George E. Smith, Nobukazu Teranishi and Michael Francis Tompsett

Deaths

4 January – Heinz Billing, German physicist (b. 1914)
10 January – Oliver Smithies, British-American biochemist and Nobel Prize winner (b. 1925)
16 January – Eugene Cernan, American astronaut, Apollo 17 (b. 1934)
7 February – Hans Rosling, Swedish statistician (b. 1948)
8 February – Peter Mansfield, British physicist and Nobel Prize winner (b. 1933)
20 February – Mildred Dresselhaus, American physicist, Presidential Medal of Freedom and National Medal of Science laureate, "queen of carbon science" (b. 1930)
21 February – Kenneth Arrow, American economist and Nobel Prize winner (b. 1921)
26 February – Ludvig Faddeev, Russian physicist and mathematician (b. 1934)
7 March – Hans Georg Dehmelt, German-American physicist and Nobel Prize winner (b. 1922)
8 March – George Andrew Olah, Hungarian-American chemist and Nobel Prize winner (b. 1927)
29 March – Alexei Abrikosov, Russian-American physicist and Nobel Prize winner (b. 1928)
14 July – Maryam Mirzakhani, Iranian mathematician and the first female Fields Medalist (b. 1977)
5 September – Nicolaas Bloembergen, Dutch-American physicist and Nobel Prize winner (b. 1920)
30 September – Vladimir Voevodsky, Russian mathematician and Fields Medalist (b. 1966)
18 November – Fotis Kafatos, Greek biologist and founding president of the European Research Council (b. 1940)

References

External links

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Category:2017-related lists

Category:21st century in science