NASA’s Lucy mission launches and more: Understand the world through 8 images

Scientists found the first example of a Cretaceous-era crab preserved in amber. Cretapsara athanata is both the oldest modern-looking crab and the most complete fossil crab ever discovered.

Researchers discovered that Arctic krill are sensitive to minute changes in light, which lets them maintain their circadian rhythm even during the dark polar winter.

Researchers discovered a new mechanism that aggressive breast cancer cells use to spread to surrounding tissue, by hijacking normal cell function. The finding could open new avenues of research to understand how cancer spreads.

Researchers found stem cell-derived photoreceptor precursor transplants could treat inherited retinal diseases. These diseases are a leading cause of vision loss and are difficult to treat with gene therapy due to the high number of implicated genes.

A Russian cosmonaut returned to Earth after 191 days on the ISS and three spacewalks. He was accompanied by an actress and director, who spent nearly two weeks shooting the film Challenge aboard the space station.

NASA’s Lucy mission began its 12-year journey to study the Trojan asteroids. These asteroids near Jupiter are thought to be leftover material from the formation of the early solar system.

Researchers discovered that the cuneate nucleus in the mammalian brainstem is responsible for filtering distracting signals from the hands, allowing for dexterous movement. The finding could lead to better prosthetics and neural repair techniques.

Researchers determined that the mass extinction event that wiped out dinosaurs led to modern snakes’ extremely diverse diets. As bird and mammals populations exploded, snakes rapidly adapted to feed on new species.