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Categories: Paleontology: Climate, Space: Exploration

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

Asteroid's comet-like tail Is not made of dust, solar observatories reveal      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

We have known for a while that asteroid 3200 Phaethon acts like a comet. It brightens and forms a tail when it's near the Sun, and it is the source of the annual Geminid meteor shower, even though comets are responsible for most meteor showers. Scientists had blamed Phaethon's comet-like behavior on dust escaping from the asteroid as it's scorched by the Sun. However, a new study using two NASA solar observatories reveals that Phaethon's tail is not dusty at all but is actually made of sodium gas.

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

How to land on a planet safely      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers develop a model to describe the interaction between a rocket plume and the surface of a planetary body in near-vacuum conditions. The computational framework takes in information about the rocket, its engines, and the surface composition and topography, as well as the atmospheric conditions and gravitational forces at the landing site, and the results can be used to evaluate the safety and feasibility of a proposed landing site and to optimize the design of spacecraft and rocket engines for planetary landings.

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

Webb reveals early-universe prequel to huge galaxy cluster      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Every giant was once a baby, though you may never have seen them at that stage of their development. NASA's James Webb Space Telescope has begun to shed light on formative years in the history of the universe that have thus far been beyond reach: the formation and assembly of galaxies. For the first time, a protocluster of seven galaxies has been confirmed at a distance that astronomers refer to as redshift 7.9, or a mere 650 million years after the big bang. Based on the data collected, astronomers calculated the nascent cluster's future development, finding that it will likely grow in size and mass to resemble the Coma Cluster, a monster of the modern universe.

Offbeat: General Offbeat: Space Space: Exploration Space: General Space: The Solar System
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Scientists detect seismic waves traveling through Martian core      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

New NASA InSight research reveals that Mars has a liquid core rich in sulfur and oxygen, leading to new clues about how terrestrial planets form, evolve and potentially sustain life.

Offbeat: General Offbeat: Space Space: Astronomy Space: Exploration Space: General Space: The Solar System
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Pioneering research sheds new light on the origins and composition of planet Mars      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A new study has uncovered intriguing insights into the liquid core at the centre of Mars, furthering understanding of the planet's formation and evolution.

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

Making better measurements of the composition of galaxies      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A study using data from telescopes on Earth and in the sky resolves a problem plaguing astronomers working in the infrared and could help make better observations of the composition of the universe with the James Webb Space Telescope and other instruments.

Environmental: Water Geoscience: Earthquakes Geoscience: Environmental Issues Paleontology: Climate
Published

Puerto Rico tsunami deposit could have come from pre-Columbian megathrust earthquake      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Tsunami deposits identified in a coastal mangrove pond in Northwest Puerto Rico could have come from a megathrust earthquake at the Puerto Rico Trench that occurred between 1470 and 1530, according to new research.

Biology: Marine Biology: Zoology Ecology: Endangered Species Ecology: Extinction Ecology: Sea Life Paleontology: Climate
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African penguins: Climate refugees from a distant past?      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Imagine the view from the western coastline of southern Africa during the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) over twenty thousand years ago: in the distance you would see at least fifteen large islands -- the largest 300 square kilometers in area -- swarming with hundreds of millions of marine birds and penguin colonies.

Biology: Marine Biology: Zoology Ecology: Animals Ecology: Sea Life Offbeat: General Offbeat: Paleontology and Archeology Offbeat: Plants and Animals Paleontology: Climate Paleontology: Early Mammals and Birds Paleontology: Fossils Paleontology: General
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X-ray analysis sheds new light on prehistoric predator's last meal      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

We now know more about the diet of a prehistoric creature that grew up to two and a half meters long and lived in Australian waters during the time of the dinosaurs, thanks to the power of x-rays. Researchers used micro-CT scans to peer inside the fossilized stomach remains of a small marine reptile -- a plesiosaur nicknamed 'Eric' after a song from the comedy group Monty Python -- to determine what the creature ate in the lead up to its death.

Offbeat: General Offbeat: Space Space: Astronomy Space: Astrophysics Space: Exploration Space: General Space: Structures and Features Space: The Solar System
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Could this copycat black hole be a new type of star?      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

It looks like a black hole and bends light like a black hole, but it could actually be a new type of star. Though the mysterious object is a hypothetical mathematical construction, new simulations by Johns Hopkins researchers suggest there could be other celestial bodies in space hiding from even the best telescopes on Earth.

Biology: Botany Biology: General Ecology: Endangered Species Ecology: Extinction Ecology: General Ecology: Invasive Species Ecology: Nature Ecology: Research Ecology: Trees Environmental: Biodiversity Environmental: Ecosystems Environmental: General Geoscience: Earth Science Geoscience: Environmental Issues Paleontology: Climate
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The diversity of present tree species is shaped by climate change in the last 21,000 years      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A new global survey of 1000 forest areas shows how climate change since the peak of the last ice age has had a major impact on the diversity and distribution of tree species we see today. The results can help us predict how ecosystems will react to future changes, thus having an impact on conservation management around the globe.

Biology: Biochemistry Space: Astronomy Space: Astrophysics Space: Cosmology Space: Exploration Space: General Space: Structures and Features Space: The Solar System
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Metal-poor stars are more life-friendly      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A star's chemical composition strongly influences the ultraviolet radiation it emits into space and thus the conditions for the emergence of life in its neighborhood.

Archaeology: General Environmental: Biodiversity Environmental: Ecosystems Geoscience: Earth Science Geoscience: Environmental Issues Paleontology: Climate Paleontology: Fossils
Published

Nullarbor rocks reveal Australia's transformation from lush to dust      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers have discovered how long ago the Australian Nullarbor plain dried out, with a new approach shedding light on how ancient climate change altered some of the driest regions of our planet.

Offbeat: General Offbeat: Space Space: Astronomy Space: Exploration Space: General Space: Structures and Features Space: The Solar System
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Playing hide and seek with planets      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

An international team of astronomers announced the first exoplanet discovered through a combined approach of direct imaging and precision measurements of a star's motion on the sky. This new method promises to improve the efficiency of exoplanet searches, paving the way for the discovery of an Earth twin.

Offbeat: General Offbeat: Space Space: Astronomy Space: Exploration Space: General Space: Structures and Features Space: The Solar System
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New exoplanet discovered      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Astronomers report the first exoplanet jointly discovered through direct imaging and precision astrometry, a new indirect method that identifies a planet by measuring the position of the star it orbits. Data from the Subaru Telescope in Hawai`i and space telescopes from the European Space Agency (ESA) were integral to the team's discovery.

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

A sharper look at the M87 black hole      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

The iconic image of the supermassive black hole at the center of M87 has gotten its first official makeover based on a new machine learning technique called PRIMO. The team used the data achieved the full resolution of the array.

Offbeat: General Offbeat: Space Space: Astronomy Space: Astrophysics Space: Exploration Space: General Space: Structures and Features Space: The Solar System
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M87 in 3D: New view of galaxy helps pin down mass of the black hole at its core      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

From Earth, giant elliptical galaxies resemble highly symmetric blobs, but what's their real 3D structure? Astronomers have assembled one of the first 3D views of a giant elliptical galaxy, M87, whose central supermassive black hole has already been imaged by the Event Horizon Telescope. M87 turns out to be triaxial, like a potato. The revised view provides a more precise measure of the mass of the central black hole: 5.37 billion solar masses.

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

James Webb Space Telescope images challenge theories of how universe evolved      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Astronomers find that six of the earliest and most massive galaxy candidates observed by the James Webb Space Telescope so far appear to have converted nearly 100% of their available gas into stars, a finding at odds with the reigning model of cosmology.