A small asteroid has been pulled into Earth's orbit, becoming a sort of mini-moon, but astronomers say the orbit is only temporary. The object, called 2020 CD3, was discovered by Catalina Sky Survey and it has been circling Earth for about three years.

China's Yutu-2 rover and Chang'e-4 lander have studied rocks and soil to a depth of about 40 meters on the far side of the moon, gathering clues that point to many large impacts, according to findings published in Science Advances. Data show several layers of fine soil alternating with layers of coarse rock that researchers say were likely caused by repeated impacts over time.

High-speed cameras have captured the precise moment when two distinct droplets merge into one by using cameras taking 25,000 frames per second. The process is described in Physical Review Fluids.

The transverse tarsal arch, or TTA, is more involved in making the human foot stiff enough to walk upright than previously thought, a study in Nature suggests. The medial longitudinal arch, or MLA, was long thought to provide the bulk of the support, but researchers found that Homo naledi could walk upright despite having a flat MLA because its TTA was more like that of modern humans.

Researchers have created synthetic diamonds using a molecule found in oil and natural gas using a method described in Science Advances. "We wanted to see just a clean system, in which a single substance transforms into pure diamond -- without a catalyst," said Sulgiye Park, the study's leader.

A study in the European Heart Journal that included nine European countries linked greater consumption of dietary fiber, fruits, vegetables, milk, cheese or yogurt to a lower risk of ischemic stroke, but no significant association was found for hemorrhagic stroke. Data showed increased egg consumption was linked to a higher risk of hemorrhagic stroke, but not ischemic stroke.

Consuming one-quarter to one-third cup of milk daily may increase the risk of breast cancer by 30%, while drinking two to three cups could increase the risk by 70% to 80%, researchers reported in the International Journal of Epidemiology. The study, which followed almost 53,000 North American women for eight years, compared higher milk intakes to lower or no consumption and found little variation in results using full-fat, reduced-fat or nonfat milk.

The Health and Human Services Department has awarded a $447,126 grant to Kent State University to study the use of fight-or-flight response as a potential obesity treatment. Researchers will focus on stress responses, which they've found causes rats' muscles to heat up and burn calories, and whether humans might experience similar results.

Students in high school through graduate school are invited to gain science communication skills through an online competition, the Student Research Showcase. Abstracts are due March 6.

Undergraduate and graduate students can get research grants from Sigma Xi. The next application deadline is March 15. Matt Napolitano received two grants as a PhD student that he used for fieldwork, then helped develop a comic book to share the study's results.

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