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Published

Astronomers discover a key planetary system to understand the formation mechanism of the mysterious 'super-Earths'      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A study presents the detection of a system of two planets slightly larger than Earth orbiting a cold star in a synchronized dance. Named TOI-2096, the system is located 150 light-years from Earth. This system, located 150 light-years from Earth, is one of the best candidates for a detailed study of their atmosphere with the JWST space telescope.

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

New study provides novel insights into the cosmic evolution of amino acids      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

All biological amino acids on Earth appear exclusively in their left-handed form, but the reason underlying this observation is elusive. Recently, scientists uncovered new clues about the cosmic origin of this asymmetry. Based on the optical properties of amino acids found on the Murchison meteorite, they conducted physics-based simulations, revealing that the precursors to the biological amino acids may have determined the amino acid chirality during the early phase of galactic evolution.

Space: Exploration Space: General Space: The Solar System
Published

A deep underground lab could hold key to habitability on Mars      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Tunnels deep underground in North Yorkshire are providing a unique opportunity to study how humans might be able to live and operate on the Moon or on Mars.

Biology: Biochemistry Chemistry: Biochemistry Computer Science: Artificial Intelligence (AI) Engineering: Robotics Research Offbeat: Computers and Math Offbeat: General Offbeat: Plants and Animals
Published

Researchers build bee robot that can twist      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A robotic bee that can fly fully in all directions has been developed. With four wings made out of carbon fiber and mylar as well as four light-weight actuators to control each wing, the Bee++ prototype is the first to fly stably in all directions. That includes the tricky twisting motion known as yaw, with the Bee++ fully achieving the six degrees of free movement that a typical flying insect displays.

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

NASA's Hubble hunts for intermediate-sized black hole close to home      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Astronomers have come up with what they say is some of their best evidence yet for the presence of a rare class of 'intermediate-sized' black hole that may be lurking in the heart of the closest globular star cluster to Earth, located 6,000 light-years away.

Chemistry: General Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry Engineering: Nanotechnology Engineering: Robotics Research Offbeat: General Physics: Optics
Published

Physical chemists develop photochromic active colloids shedding light on the development of new smart active materials      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

In nature, the skin of cephalopods (animals with tentacles attached to the head) exhibits unparalleled camouflage ability. Their skin contains pigment groups that can sense changes in environmental light conditions and adjust their appearance through the action of pigment cells. Although intricate in nature, this colour-changing ability is fundamentally based on a mechanical mechanism in which pigment particles are folded or unfolded under the control of radial muscles. Inspired by this natural process, a research team forms dynamic photochromic nanoclusters by mixing cyan, magenta and yellow microbeads, achieving photochromism on a macro scale.

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

An X-ray look at the heart of powerful quasars      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers have observed the X-ray emission of the most luminous quasar seen in the last 9 billion years of cosmic history, known as SMSS J114447.77-430859.3, or J1144 for short. The new perspective sheds light on the inner workings of quasars and how they interact with their environment.

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

NASA's Spitzer, TESS find potentially volcano-covered Earth-size world      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Astronomers have discovered an Earth-size exoplanet, or world beyond our solar system, that may be carpeted with volcanoes. Called LP 791-18 d, the planet could undergo volcanic outbursts as often as Jupiter's moon Io, the most volcanically active body in our solar system.

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

Astronomers observe the first radiation belt seen outside of our solar system      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Astronomers have described the first radiation belt observed outside our solar system, using a coordinated array of 39 radio dishes from Hawaii to Germany to obtain high-resolution images. The images of persistent, intense radio emissions from an ultracool dwarf reveal the presence of a cloud of high-energy electrons trapped in the object's powerful magnetic field, forming a double-lobed structure analogous to radio images of Jupiter's radiation belts.

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Published

New study puts a definitive age on Saturn's rings -- they're really young      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Physicists measured the flux of interplanetary dust around Saturn. The researchers concluded that the planet's rings formed less than 400 million years ago, making them much younger than Saturn itself.

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

Astronomers reveal the largest cosmic explosion ever seen      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Astronomers have uncovered the largest cosmic explosion ever witnessed. The explosion is more than ten times brighter than any known supernova and three times brighter than the brightest tidal disruption event, where a star falls into a supermassive black hole.

Chemistry: General Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry Engineering: Robotics Research
Published

Milk reaction inspires new way to make highly conductive gel films      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A research team has developed what they call a 'dip-and-peel' strategy for simple and rapid fabrication of two-dimensional ionogel membranes. By dipping sustainable biomass materials in certain solvents, molecules naturally respond by arranging themselves into functional thin films at the edge of the material that can easily be removed using nothing more than a simple set of tweezers.

Chemistry: Biochemistry Computer Science: Artificial Intelligence (AI) Computer Science: Virtual Reality (VR) Engineering: Robotics Research Offbeat: Computers and Math Offbeat: General
Published

Robotic proxy brings remote users to life in real time      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers have developed a robot, called ReMotion, that occupies physical space on a remote user's behalf, automatically mirroring the user's movements in real time and conveying key body language that is lost in standard virtual environments.

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

Astronomers find no young binary stars near Milky Way's black hole      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Scientists analyzed over a decade's worth of data about 16 young supermassive stars orbiting the supermassive black hole at the center of the Milky Way galaxy. Supermassive stars typically are formed in pairs, but the new study found that all 16 of the stars were singletons. The findings support a scenario in which the supermassive black hole drives nearby stars to either merge or be disrupted, with one of the pair being ejected from the system.

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

Researchers measure the light emitted by a sub-Neptune planet's atmosphere      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers observed exoplanet GJ 1214b's atmosphere by measuring the heat it emits while orbiting its host star. Astronomers directly detected the light emitted by a sub-Neptune exoplanet -- a category of planets that are larger than Earth but smaller than Neptune.

Space: Astronomy Space: Exploration Space: General Space: The Solar System
Published

How 1,000 undergraduates helped solve an enduring mystery about the sun      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

For three years at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, a group of students spent an estimated 56,000 hours analyzing the behavior of hundreds of solar flares. Their results could help astrophysicists understand how the sun's corona reaches temperatures of millions of degrees Fahrenheit.

Space: Astronomy Space: Exploration Space: General Space: The Solar System
Published

Webb looks for Fomalhaut's asteroid belt and finds much more      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Astronomers used NASA's James Webb Space Telescope to image the warm dust around a nearby young star, Fomalhaut, in order to study the first asteroid belt ever seen outside of our solar system in infrared light. But to their surprise, the dusty structures are much more complex than the asteroid and Kuiper dust belts of our solar system. Overall, there are three nested belts extending out to 14 billion miles (23 billion kilometers) from the star; that's 150 times the distance of Earth from the Sun. The scale of the outermost belt is roughly twice the scale of our solar system's Kuiper Belt of small bodies and cold dust beyond Neptune. The inner belts -- which had never been seen before -- were revealed by Webb for the first time.

Chemistry: Biochemistry Computer Science: Artificial Intelligence (AI) Computer Science: General Engineering: Robotics Research
Published

The influence of AI on trust in human interaction      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

As AI becomes increasingly realistic, our trust in those with whom we communicate may be compromised. Researchers at the University of Gothenburg have examined how advanced AI systems impact our trust in the individuals we interact with.

Computer Science: Artificial Intelligence (AI) Engineering: Robotics Research Offbeat: Computers and Math Offbeat: General
Published

Scurrying centipedes inspire many-legged robots that can traverse difficult landscapes      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Intrigued to see if the many limbs could be helpful for locomotion in this world, a team of physicists, engineers, and mathematicians are using this style of movement to their advantage. They developed a new theory of multilegged locomotion and created many-legged robotic models, discovering the robot with redundant legs could move across uneven surfaces without any additional sensing or control technology as the theory predicted.

Engineering: Robotics Research Environmental: General Environmental: Water Physics: General Physics: Optics Physics: Quantum Computing Physics: Quantum Physics
Published

Quantum lidar prototype acquires real-time 3D images while fully submerged underwater      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers have demonstrated a prototype lidar system that uses quantum detection technology to acquire 3D images while submerged underwater. The high sensitivity of this system could allow it to capture detailed information even in extremely low-light conditions found underwater.