Offbeat: General Offbeat: Space Space: Astronomy Space: Astrophysics Space: Exploration Space: General Space: Structures and Features Space: The Solar System
Published

Ravenous black hole consumes three Earths'-worth of star every time it passes      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Massive burst of X-rays detected by astronomers indicates material three times the mass of Earth burning up in a black hole. They observed a star like our own Sun being eaten away every time it orbits close. First time a Sun-like star being repeatedly disrupted by a low mass black hole has been seen, opening the possibility of a range of star and black hole combinations to be discovered.

Space: Astronomy Space: Astrophysics Space: Cosmology Space: General Space: Structures and Features Space: The Solar System
Published

New cosmological constraints on the nature of dark matter      (via sciencedaily.com) 

New research has revealed the distribution of dark matter in never before seen detail, down to a scale of 30,000 light-years. The observed distribution fluctuations provide better constraints on the nature of dark matter.

Space: Astronomy Space: Astrophysics Space: Cosmology Space: Exploration Space: General Space: Structures and Features
Published

Furthest ever detection of a galaxy's magnetic field      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Astronomers have detected the magnetic field of a galaxy so far away that its light has taken more than 11 billion years to reach us: we see it as it was when the Universe was just 2.5 billion years old. The result provides astronomers with vital clues about how the magnetic fields of galaxies like our own Milky Way came to be.

Offbeat: General Offbeat: Space Space: Astrophysics Space: Cosmology Space: General Space: Structures and Features
Published

Vast bubble of galaxies discovered, given Hawaiian name      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

The immense bubble is 820 million light years from Earth and believed to be a fossil-like remnant of the birth of the universe.

Anthropology: General Biology: Botany Biology: Evolutionary Ecology: Endangered Species Ecology: Nature Paleontology: Fossils Paleontology: General
Published

Pioneering research sheds surprising new light on evolution of plant kingdom      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A new study has uncovered intriguing insights into the evolution of plant biology, effectively rewriting the history of how they evolved over the past billion years.

Space: Astronomy Space: Exploration Space: General Space: Structures and Features
Published

Hot Jupiter blows its top      (via sciencedaily.com) 

The planet HAT-P-32b is losing so much of its atmospheric helium that the trailing gas tails are among the largest structures yet known any planet outside our solar system. Three-dimensional (3D) simulations helped model the flow of the planet's atmosphere. The scientists hope to widen their planet-observing net and survey 20 additional star systems to find more planets losing their atmosphere and learn about their evolution.

Offbeat: General Offbeat: Space Space: Astronomy Space: Astrophysics Space: Exploration Space: General Space: Structures and Features
Published

Webb reveals new structures within iconic supernova      (via sciencedaily.com) 

NASA's James Webb Space Telescope has begun the study of one of the most renowned supernovae, SN 1987A (Supernova 1987A). Located 168,000 light-years away in the Large Magellanic Cloud, SN 1987A has been a target of intense observations at wavelengths ranging from gamma rays to radio for nearly 40 years, since its discovery in February of 1987. New observations by Webb's NIRCam (Near-Infrared Camera) provide a crucial clue to our understanding of how a supernova develops over time to shape its remnant.

Offbeat: General Offbeat: Space Space: Astronomy Space: General Space: Structures and Features Space: The Solar System
Published

Scientists detect and validate the longest-period exoplanet found with TESS      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Scientists have detected and validated two of the longest-period exoplanets found by TESS to date. These long period large exoplanets orbit a K dwarf star and belong to a class of planets known as warm Jupiters, which have orbital periods of 10-200 days and are at least six times Earth's radius. This recent discovery offers exciting research opportunities for the future of finding long-period planets that resemble those in our own solar system.

Offbeat: General Offbeat: Space Space: Astronomy Space: General Space: Structures and Features Space: The Solar System
Published

New giant planet evidence of possible planetary collisions      (via sciencedaily.com) 

A Neptune-sized planet denser than steel has been discovered by an international team of astronomers, who believe its composition could be the result of a giant planetary clash.

Space: Astronomy Space: Astrophysics Space: General Space: Structures and Features
Published

Unprecedented gamma-ray burst explained by long-lived jet      (via sciencedaily.com) 

While astrophysicists previously believed that only supernovae could generate long gamma-ray bursts (GRBs), a 2021 observation uncovered evidence that compact-object mergers also can generate the phenomenon. Now, a new simulation confirms and explains this finding. If the accretion disk around the black hole is massive, it launches a jet that lasts several seconds, matching the description of a long GRB from a merger.

Offbeat: Space Space: Astronomy Space: Astrophysics Space: Exploration Space: General Space: Structures and Features
Published

Telescopes help unravel pulsar puzzle      (via sciencedaily.com) 

With a remarkable observational campaign that involved 12 telescopes both on the ground and in space, including three European Southern Observatory (ESO) facilities, astronomers have uncovered the strange behavior of a pulsar, a super-fast-spinning dead star. This mysterious object is known to switch between two brightness modes almost constantly, something that until now has been an enigma. But astronomers have now found that sudden ejections of matter from the pulsar over very short periods are responsible for the peculiar switches.

Ecology: Extinction Paleontology: Dinosaurs Paleontology: Fossils Paleontology: General
Published

Europe's very own dinosaurs -- the enigmatic Late Cretaceous rhabdodontids      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A new study brings together intriguing details about the little-known Rhabdodontidae dinosaurs of Late Cretaceous Europe. These gregarious herbivores, characterized by robust builds and beaks specialized for tough vegetation, inhabited the European archipelago. Despite being widespread and abundant, they vanished in Western Europe due to environmental changes around 69 million years ago, while surviving longer in Eastern Europe. Their fossil record offers valuable insights into their evolution and lifestyle, although its limited nature still challenges comprehensive understanding.

Anthropology: General Biology: Evolutionary Biology: Zoology Offbeat: Paleontology and Archeology Offbeat: Plants and Animals Paleontology: Fossils Paleontology: General
Published

Three-eyed distant relative of insects and crustaceans reveals amazing detail of early animal evolution      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Scientists use cutting edge scanning technology to reconstruct 'fossil monster' that lived half a billion years ago. The creature's soft anatomy was well-preserved, allowing it to be imaged almost completely: It fills a gap in our understanding of the evolution of arthropods such as insects and crustaceans.

Anthropology: General Archaeology: General Biology: Marine Ecology: Endangered Species Ecology: Sea Life Paleontology: Fossils Paleontology: General
Published

Wastewater pipe dig reveals 'fossil treasure trove'      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A new article describes the 266 fossil species as one of the richest and most diverse groups of three-million-year-old fauna ever found in New Zealand. At least ten previously unknown species will be described and named in future research. Fossils of the world's oldest known flax snails, an extinct sawshark spine, and great white shark teeth have all been found in a mound of sand excavated from beneath Mangere Wastewater Treatment Plant in 2020.

Offbeat: Space Space: Astronomy Space: Astrophysics Space: Exploration Space: General Space: Structures and Features Space: The Solar System
Published

Mysterious Neptune dark spot detected from Earth for the first time      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Using ESO's Very Large Telescope (VLT), astronomers have observed a large dark spot in Neptune's atmosphere, with an unexpected smaller bright spot adjacent to it. This is the first time a dark spot on the planet has ever been observed with a telescope on Earth. These occasional features in the blue background of Neptune's atmosphere are a mystery to astronomers, and the new results provide further clues as to their nature and origin.

Archaeology: General Biology: Zoology Offbeat: Paleontology and Archeology Offbeat: Plants and Animals Paleontology: Fossils
Published

Researchers extract ancient DNA from a 2,900-year-old clay brick, revealing a time capsule of plant life      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

For the first time, a group of researchers have successfully extracted ancient DNA from a 2,900-year-old clay brick. The analysis provides a fascinating insight into the diversity of plant species cultivated at that time and place, and could open the way to similar studies on clay material from other sites and time periods.

Space: Astrophysics Space: Cosmology Space: Exploration Space: General Space: Structures and Features
Published

Rewriting the past and future of the universe      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

New research has improved the accuracy of the parameters governing the expansion of the Universe. More accurate parameters will help astronomers determine how the Universe grew to its current state, and how it will evolve in the future.

Anthropology: Cultures Anthropology: General Archaeology: General Biology: Molecular Paleontology: Fossils
Published

Ancient metal cauldrons give us clues about what people ate in the Bronze Age      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Archaeologists have long been drawing conclusions about how ancient tools were used by the people who crafted them based on written records and context clues. But with dietary practices, they have had to make assumptions about what was eaten and how it was prepared. A new study analyzed protein residues from ancient cooking cauldrons and found that the people of Caucasus ate deer, sheep, goats, and members of the cow family during the Maykop period (3700--2900 BCE).

Biology: Evolutionary Biology: Marine Ecology: Invasive Species Ecology: Sea Life Paleontology: Fossils Paleontology: General
Published

The modern sea spider had started to diversify by the Jurassic, study finds      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

An extremely rare collection of 160-million-year-old sea spider fossils from Southern France are closely related to living species, unlike older fossils of their kind.