How It Works

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

FREE 2 eBooks FOR EVERY READER! • Grab yourself two fascinating, fact-packed How It Works specials for your digital device. Simply use the links below or scan the QR code to download

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...