Welcome to How It Works, the magazine that explains everything you never knew you wanted to know about the world we live in. Loaded with fully illustrated guides and expert knowledge, and with sections dedicated to science, technology, transportation, space, history and the environment, no subject is too big or small for How It Works to explain.
WELCOME
MEET THIS ISSUE’S EXPERTS
An ant up close
Inside the small intestine
Earth’s aurorae
ALMA in the snow
Probe ‘touches’ the Sun for the first time • Showcasing the incredible world we live in
COMET LEONARD’S METEOR SHOWER ON VENUS
Super-carnivorous ichthyosaur discovered
Octopuses, squids and lobsters could be classed as ‘sentient beings’
HOTTEST EVER ARCTIC TEMPERATURE RECORDED
Water’s freezing point just got lower
MUTANT BACTERIA LOOK LIKE VAN GOGH’S STARRY NIGHT
Newfound millipede breaks a world record
Epic sea level rise drove Vikings out of Greenland
Toxic cane toads invade Taiwan
NASA plans a lunar nuclear power plant
US NUCLEAR SUBMARINE COLLIDES WITH UNDERWATER MOUNTAIN
WISH LIST
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DISASTER CLEANUP • From nuclear explosions to oil spills, we explain how some of the most harmful human-made catastrophes in history happened
Devastating ocean spill
5 OIL SPILL IMPACTS
Toxic tap water
Poison gas leak
California wildfires
Pacific pollution
Mud volcano
DISASTERS BY NUMBERS
EARTH’S DEFORESTATION PROBLEM • Why the removal of forests in just a handful of places around the world is a serious issue
DEFORESTATION BY NUMBERS
HOW STALACTITES AND STALAGMITES FORM • There’s some complex chemistry behind the spikes that decorate cave ceilings and floors
STRANGE STRUCTURES
HOW TO EAT POISONOUS PLANTS • Here’s how toxic compounds are removed from some of our foods
HOW RADAR WORKS • Why radio waves enable us to see objects far beyond our human senses
KEY DATES IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF RADAR
THE QUANTUM GENERATION • Henry White, sensing technologist at BAE Systems, talks about how quantum radar takes detection to a whole new level
INSIDE AN ENERGY-SAVING LIGHT BULB • The light bulb changed how we live, work and play. But with the race on to save the planet, new energy-efficient alternatives have come to the forefront
MAKING LIGHT • How the most common type of energy-efficient bulb produces light
HOW DO BULBS DIFFER?
3D PRINTING WITH METAL • How 3D printers can materialise sturdy rocket parts and more in metal
MELTING METAL • From digital file to printed part, follow the steps of the metal-printing process
DEEP-SEA DIVERS • IVE These machines explore the greatest depths of our planet
10 AMAZING EXOPLANETS • Astronomers continue to find planets orbiting other stars – here are the most intriguing recent discoveries
INSIDE THE BLUE MOON LANDER • This lunar spacecraft is being developed for a future human colony on the Moon
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CAN WE CONTROL THE WEATHER? • How existing and future technologies could help humans manipulate the climate
MARINE GEOENGINEERING • Could these ocean-based systems reverse damage to the climate?
PROTECTING EARTH FROM SPACE
WHY WE GET ADDICTED • How our brains can be tricked into wanting more and more
HOW HUMANS LEARNED TO FLY • Discover the evolution of human aviation, from our first forays into flight to...