Science news — September 20, 2026

6 publications

1. ScienceEnergy Sci

   Sep 20, 2026, 22:19 UTC

   

   China's Space Station Upgrades Kitchen with Advanced Appliances

   China's orbiting space station, Tiangong, has enhanced its kitchen facilities with advanced appliances to improve the dining experience of its astronauts during long stays in orbit. The upgrades include an air fryer, a microwave, and a water dispenser, all designed to function in space. The station's nutritional plan has also been expanded to include a wider variety of ingredients, allowing astronauts to enjoy hot meals within 20 minutes. This initiative is part of China's ongoing efforts to strengthen its space program.

   3 sourcesSee all sources
2. SciencePhysicsSci Policy

   Sep 20, 2026, 19:16 UTC

   

   AI Chatbots' Inaccuracies in Financial Queries Highlighted in FT Report

   A report by the Financial Times has revealed that popular AI chatbots, including ChatGPT, Claude, Copilot, Grok, and Gemini, provided incorrect answers to financial queries an average of 57% of the time. This figure rose to 88% for more complex queries requiring multiple calculations, with some models being wrong up to 99% of the time. The report also highlighted instances where AI models ignored upcoming changes in tax law and invented new rules, potentially leading to significant financial losses.

   5 sourcesSee all sources
3. ScienceChinaAstronomy

   Sep 20, 2026, 13:09 UTC

   China Launches Nine Satellites on Kinetica-1 Rocket

   China successfully launched nine satellites using the Kinetica-1 rocket. The launch took place from the Jiuquan Spaceport, with the satellites entering their designated orbits. This was the 16th mission and 5th in 2026 for the Kinetica-1 rocket, which has a 100% success rate in recent launches.

   8 sourcesSee all sources
4. SciencePhysics

   Sep 20, 2026, 12:11 UTC

   

   AI Solves Century-Old Math Problem, Raising Questions About Mathematicians' Role

   Artificial Intelligence has made significant strides in mathematics, recently solving a century-old problem, sparking discussions about the future role of mathematicians in scientific research.

   5 sourcesSee all sources
5. ScienceSpace

   Sep 20, 2026, 10:59 UTC

   

   China Launches Nine Satellites

   China successfully launched nine satellites into space on Sunday, September 20. The satellites, which include 'Qinling-1' and 'Qinling-2', were carried by a Long March-1 Y18 carrier rocket from the Dongfeng Commercial Space Innovation Pilot Zone in northwest China. The launch marks the 668th flight mission of the Long March carrier rocket series.

   11 sourcesSee all sources
6. ScienceCorp GovCybersecurity

   Sep 20, 2026, 04:49 UTC

   

   AI Prices Falling, Enterprise Spending Rises

   Despite the decreasing cost of AI tokens, enterprises are spending more due to increased usage. This is driven by the growing adoption of open-weight models, which allow firms to use different models for various tasks, optimizing costs. Cheaper tokens also encourage broader AI usage.

   2 sourcesSee all sources