Geoff Brumfiel
Geoff Brumfiel works as a senior editor and correspondent on NPR's science desk. His editing duties include science and space, while his reporting focuses on the intersection of science and national security.
From April of 2016 to September of 2018, Brumfiel served as an editor overseeing basic research and climate science. Prior to that, he worked for three years as a reporter covering physics and space for the network. Brumfiel has carried his microphone into ghost villages created by the Fukushima nuclear accident in Japan. He's tracked the journey of highly enriched uranium as it was shipped out of Poland. For a story on how animals drink, he crouched for over an hour and tried to convince his neighbor's cat to lap a bowl of milk.
Before NPR, Brumfiel was based in London as a senior reporter for Nature Magazine from 2007-2013. There, he covered energy, space, climate, and the physical sciences. From 2002 – 2007, Brumfiel was Nature Magazine's Washington Correspondent.
Brumfiel is the 2013 winner of the Association of British Science Writers award for news reporting on the Fukushima nuclear accident.
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Early satellite imagery appears to show some damage at Iran's main site. -
Besides its flights to the International Space Station and Starship program, SpaceX is deeply embedded in the Department of Defense. The feud between Elon Musk and President Trump could end all that. -
The relationship breakdown between Elon Musk and the Trump administration could have big implications for Musk's company SpaceX, which the U.S. relies on for space- and defense-related services.
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Several dummy satellites were supposed to be launched, but a door on the ship did not open as planned. -
A series of executive orders aims to promote new kinds of nuclear reactors while restructuring the body in charge of nuclear safety. -
The plan includes a vast array of space-based sensors and interceptors. -
Flamingos look silly when they eat, but new research suggests they're actually being smart. -
Reporters have been looking at federal agencies and employees impacted by DOGE cuts from food inspectors to nuclear scientists to firefighters, and the broader effects of the restructuring efforts.
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Robots have been a thing for a long time, but they've never quite met expectations. While AI has changed the game for chatbots, it's not quite so clear for robots. NPR science desk correspondent Geoff Brumfiel spoke to our colleagues over on our science podcast Short Wave on how humanoid robots are actually developing with the help of artificial intelligence. It was a fascinating discussion and so we are sharing that conversation with you today on the Indicator. Related episodes: Is AI underrated? (Apple / Spotify) Is AI overrated? (Apple / Spotify) Dial M for Mechanization (Apple / Spotify) For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org.Fact-checking by Sierra Juarez. Music by Drop Electric. Find us: TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Newsletter.
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NPR has learned that rules must now be vetted by the White House and that the administration is drafting an executive order that could loosen radiation limits.
