A tiny molecular twist may be what lets birds feel Earth's magnetic field

How a robin senses the planet's magnetism — a built-in compass no one fully understands — may come down to a protein that reacts to blue light, called cryptochrome. A team led by Yasuhiro Kobori at Kobe University, with colleagues across Japan and at the University of Freiburg, used rapid magnetic measurements to catch the protein mid-reaction. They found that a small twisting motion of one of its building blocks can strengthen the signal that tells the bird which way is which. The mechanism, published in The Journal of Physical Chemistry Letters, connects a subtle molecular dance to one of nature's most mysterious senses.

SDG 9 · Industry, innovation and infrastructure — Mechanism: tech innovation