Every year DISCOVER sorts through the scientific accomplishments of the past 12 months, and assembles a list of the coolest experiments, most brilliant discoveries, and most world-changing events. As you page through the countdown to the #1 science story, we think you'll come to the same conclusion we did: 2010 was quite a year.
Click any headline to go to the full article.
100 to 91
100.
A Portrait of a Violent Star
(pictured): NASA's new Solar Dynamics Observatory takes ultraviolet images of the sun.
99.
Sex Secrets of the Bi-Gender Chicken
: These bizarre gynandromorphic birds are bizarre on the cellular level, too.
98.
The Roaming Rocks of Death Valley
: How do these boulders go wandering?
97.
Science Explains Why Breaking Up Is Hard to Do
: Here's what you learn when you look at the brain scans of people who have been dumped.
96.
Male Piperfish Pick Their Litters
: The males of this species nurture the fertilized eggs and bear the young, but they seem to play favorites.
95.
Rubik's Cube Decoded
: What's the maximum number of moves it takes to solve a scrambled cube?
94.
Natural Cycle Melts Alpine Glaciers
: While human-induced climate change accounts for at least half of the retreat of Alpine glaciers, natural shifts in ocean currents are also to blame.
93.
A Green City Rises in the Desert
: In Abu Dhabi, an ultragreen city is taking shape.
92.
Sharks Use Math to Hunt
: These ocean predators know a little something about fractals.
91.
Sun-Powered Plane Takes a 24-Hour Flight
: The
Solar Impulse
flew through a day and a night without using a drop of fuel.