2 February – A study published in the journal Science by researchers from the United States Geological Survey and the University of California, Santa Cruz reports the severe degradation of the health of polar bears in the Arctic, due to the effects of climate change.[60] 5 February Researchers find additional evidence for an exotic form of water, called superionic water, which is not found naturally on Earth, but could be common on the planets Uranus and Neptune.[61][62] Astronomers report evidence, for the first time, that extragalactic exoplanets, much more distant than the exoplanets found within the local Milky Way galaxy, may exist.[63][64] 6 February SpaceX successfully conducts its maiden flight of its most powerful rocket to date, and the most powerful rocket since the Space Shuttle program, the Falcon Heavy, from LC39A at John F. Kennedy Space Center.[59] The National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC) reports that global sea ice extent has fallen to a new record low.[65] 8 February – Astronomers report the first confirmed findings from the Zwicky Transient Facility (ZTF) project, with the discovery of 2018 CL, a small near-Earth asteroid.[66][67] 9 February – Human eggs are grown in the laboratory for the first time, by researchers at the University of Edinburgh.[68][69] 13 February – Scientists at Rockefeller University, writing in the journal Nature Microbiology, describe how compounds in soil known as malacidins can overcome antibiotic resistance in mice with MRSA.[70]