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Categories: Biology: Botany, Space: Astrophysics
Published NASA's Webb finds signs of possible aurorae on isolated brown dwarf
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Astronomers have found a brown dwarf (an object more massive than Jupiter but smaller than a star) with infrared emission from methane, likely due to energy in its upper atmosphere. This is an unexpected discovery because the brown dwarf, W1935, is cold and lacks a host star; therefore, there is no obvious source for the upper atmosphere energy. The team speculates that the methane emission may be due to processes generating aurorae.
Published 'Blob-like' home of farthest-known fast radio burst is collection of seven galaxies
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source In summer 2022, astronomers detected the most powerful and most distant fast radio burst (FRB) ever observed. Now, astronomers have pinpointed the extraordinary object's birthplace -- and it's rather curious, indeed. Using images from NASA's Hubble Space Telescope, the researchers traced the FRB back to not one galaxy but a group of at least seven galaxies.
Published Final supernova results from Dark Energy Survey offer unique insights into the expansion of the universe
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source In the culmination of a decade's worth of effort, scientists analyzed an unprecedented sample of more than 1,500 supernovae classified using machine learning. They placed the strongest constraints on the expansion of the universe ever obtained with the DES supernova survey. While consistent with the current standard cosmological model, the results do not rule out a more complex theory that the density of dark energy in the universe could have varied over time.
Published Three iron rings in a planet-forming disk
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Astronomers have detected a three-ringed structure in the nursery of planets in the inner planet-forming disk of a young star. This configuration suggests two Jupiter-mass planets are forming in the gaps between the rings. The detailed analysis is consistent with abundant solid iron grains complementing the dust composition. As a result, the disk likely harbors metals and minerals akin to those in the Solar System's terrestrial planets. It offers a glimpse into conditions resembling the early Solar System over four billion years ago during the formation of rocky planets such as Mercury, Venus, and Earth.
Published Space oddity: Uncovering the origin of the universe's rare radio circles
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Astronomers believe they may have found the origin of the universe's giant odd radio circles: they are shells formed by outflowing galactic winds, possibly from massive exploding stars known as supernovae.
Published Scientists engineer plant microbiome to protect crops against disease
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Scientists have engineered the microbiome of plants for the first time, boosting the prevalence of 'good' bacteria that protect the plant from disease. The findings could substantially reduce the need for environmentally destructive pesticides.
Published Why are bees making less honey? Study reveals clues in five decades of data
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Honey yields in the U.S. have been declining since the 1990s, with honey producers and scientists unsure why, but a new study has uncovered clues in the mystery of the missing honey.
Published Researchers improve seed nitrogen content by reducing plant chlorophyll levels
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Chlorophyll plays a pivotal role in photosynthesis, which is why plants have evolved to have high chlorophyll levels in their leaves. However, making this pigment is expensive because plants invest a significant portion of the available nitrogen in both chlorophyll and the special proteins that bind it. As a result, nitrogen is unavailable for other processes. In a new study, researchers reduced the chlorophyll levels in leaves to see if the plant would invest the nitrogen saved into other process that might improve nutritional quality.
Published Magnetic fields in the cosmos: Dark matter could help us discover their origin
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source We don't know how magnetic fields in the cosmos formed. Now a new theoretical research tells how the invisible part of our universe could help us find out, suggesting a primordial genesis, even within a second of the Big Bang.
Published Sodium's high-pressure transformation can tell us about the interiors of stars, planets
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A new study has revealed the chemical bonding behind sodium's high-pressure transformation from shiny metal to transparent insulator.
Published Further evidence for quark-matter cores in massive neutron stars
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source New theoretical analysis places the likelihood of massive neutron stars hiding cores of deconfined quark matter between 80 and 90 percent. The result was reached through massive supercomputer runs utilizing Bayesian statistical inference.
Published New reptile on the block: A new iguana species discovered in China
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Researchers have identified a new iguana species, Wang's garden lizard (Calotes wangi), in southern China and northern Vietnam. This species, part of the Calotes versicolor complex, was discovered through extensive surveys conducted from 2009 to 2022. Measuring less than 9 cm with an orange tongue, it inhabits subtropical and tropical forests, thriving in various landscapes including urban areas.
Published Electronic 'soil' enhances crop growth
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Barley seedlings grow on average 50% more when their root system is stimulated electrically through a new cultivation substrate. Researchers have now developed an electrically conductive 'soil' for soil-less cultivation, known as hydroponics.
Published Hubble sights a galaxy with 'forbidden' light
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A whirling image features a bright spiral galaxy known as MCG-01-24-014, which is located about 275 million light-years from Earth. In addition to being a well-defined spiral galaxy, MCG-01-24-014 has an extremely energetic core known as an active galactic nucleus (AGN) and is categorized as a Type-2 Seyfert galaxy. Seyfert galaxies, along with quasars, host one of the most common subclasses of AGN. While the precise categorization of AGNs is nuanced, Seyfert galaxies tend to be relatively nearby and their central AGN does not outshine its host, while quasars are very distant AGNs with incredible luminosities that outshine their host galaxies.
Published Researchers study a million galaxies to find out how the universe began
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Researchers have analyzed more than one million galaxies to explore primordial fluctuations that seeded the formation of the structure of the entire universe.
Published Organic compounds in asteroids formed in colder regions of space
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Analysis of organic compounds -- called polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) -- extracted from the Ryugu asteroid and Murchison meteorite has found that certain PAHs likely formed in the cold areas of space between stars rather than in hot regions near stars as was previously thought. The findings open new possibilities for studying life beyond Earth and the chemistry of objects in space.
Published Astronomers detect seismic ripples in ancient galactic disk
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A new snapshot of an ancient, far-off galaxy could help scientists understand how it formed and the origins of our own Milky Way. At more than 12 billion years old, BRI 1335-0417 is the oldest and furthest known spiral galaxy in our universe. The researchers were able to not only capture the motion of the gas around BRI 1335-0417, but also reveal a seismic wave forming -- a first in this type of early galaxy.
Published New 1.5-billion-pixel image shows Running Chicken Nebula in unprecedented detail
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source While many holiday traditions involve feasts of turkey, soba noodles, latkes or Pan de Pascua, this year, the European Southern Observatory is bringing you a holiday chicken. The so-called Running Chicken Nebula, home to young stars in the making, is revealed in spectacular detail in this 1.5-billion-pixel image captured by the VLT Survey Telescope.
Published Supernova encore: Second lensed supernova in a distant galaxy
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source In November 2023, NASA's James Webb Space Telescope observed a massive cluster of galaxies named MACS J0138.0-2155. Through an effect called gravitational lensing, first predicted by Albert Einstein, a distant galaxy named MRG-M0138 appears warped by the powerful gravity of the intervening galaxy cluster. In addition to warping and magnifying the distant galaxy, the gravitational lensing effect caused by MACS J0138 produces five different images of MRG-M0138.
Published Pancake stack of films on a balloon most accurate gamma-ray telescope
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A pancake stack of radioactivity-sensitive films carried through the sky by a balloon was able to take the world's most accurate picture of a neutron star's gamma ray beam. To achieve this, researchers combined the oldest method of capturing radioactive radiation with the newest data capturing techniques and a clever time-recording device.