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Categories: Archaeology: General, Offbeat: Space
Published Rocky planets can form in extreme environments
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Astronomers have provided the first observation of water and other molecules in the highly irradiated inner, rocky-planet-forming regions of a disk in one of the most extreme environments in our galaxy. These results suggest that the conditions for terrestrial planet formation can occur in a possible broader range of environments than previously thought.
Published Decoding past climates through dripstones
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A recent study demonstrates how dripstones can be crucial for reconstructing past climates. The new approach can provide a detailed picture of the climate around early human occupations in South Africa.
Published Dishing the dirt on human evolution: Why scientific techniques matter in archaeology
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Scientists should seek answers hidden in the dirt using proven and state-of-the-art archaeological science techniques to support new discoveries about human evolution following recent controversies at a cave site in Africa, says a group of international experts. Their recommendations follow claims published in June of this year that Homo naledi --a small-brained human species -- buried their dead in Rising Star Cave, South Africa, between 335,000 and 241,000 years ago, and may also have decorated the cave walls with engravings.
Published An astronomical waltz reveals a sextuplet of planets
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Astronomers have found a key new system of six transiting planets orbiting a bright star in a harmonic rhythm. This rare property enabled the team to determine the planetary orbits which initially appeared as an unsolvable riddle.
Published Study of ancient British oral microbiomes reveals shift following Black Death
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source The Second Plague Pandemic of the mid-14th century, also known as the Black Death, killed 30-60 percent of the European population and profoundly changed the course of European history. New research suggests that this plague, potentially through resulting changes in diet and hygiene, may also be associated with a shift in the composition of the human oral microbiome toward one that contributes to chronic diseases in modern-day humans.
Published New astrophysics model sheds light on additional source of long gamma-ray bursts
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Cutting-edge computer simulations combined with theoretical calculations are helping astronomers better understand the origin of some of the universe's most energetic and mysterious light shows -- gamma-ray bursts, or GRBs. The new unified model confirms that some long-lasting GRBs are created in the aftermath of cosmic mergers that spawn an infant black hole surrounded by a giant disk of natal material.
Published Was 'witchcraft' in the Devil's Church in Koli based on acoustic resonance? The crevice cave has a unique soundscape
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source The national park of Koli in eastern Finland is home to a famous, 34-metre-long crevice cave known as Pirunkirkko, or Devil's Church in English. A new study investigates the acoustics of the Devil's Church and explores whether the acoustic properties of the cave could explain the beliefs associated with it, and why it was chosen as a place for activities and rituals involving sound.
Published Alien haze, cooked in a lab, clears view to distant water worlds
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Scientists have simulated conditions that allow hazy skies to form in water-rich exoplanets, a crucial step in determining how haziness muddles important telescope observations for the search of habitable worlds beyond the solar system.
Published How shipwrecks are providing a refuge for marine life
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source New research has highlighted how the estimated 50,000 wrecks around the UK coastline are protecting the seabed, and the species inhabiting it, in areas still open to bottom-towed fishing.
Published Telescope Array detects second highest-energy cosmic ray ever
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source In 1991, an experiment detected the highest-energy cosmic ray ever observed. Later dubbed the Oh-My-God particle, the cosmic ray’s energy shocked astrophysicists. Nothing in our galaxy had the power to produce it, and the particle had more energy than was theoretically possible for cosmic rays traveling to Earth from other galaxies. Simply put, the particle should not exist. On May 27, 2021, the Telescope Array experiment detected the second-highest extreme-energy cosmic ray. The newly dubbed Amaterasu particle deepens the mystery of the origin, propagation and particle physics of rare, ultra-high-energy cosmic rays.
Published Casas del Turuñuelo, a site of repeated animal sacrifice in Iron Age Spain
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source The Iron Age site of Casas del Turuñuelo was used repeatedly for ritualized animal sacrifice, according to a multidisciplinary study.
Published Neanderthals were the world's first artists, research reveals
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Recent research has shown that engravings in a cave in La Roche-Cotard (France), which has been sealed for thousands of years, were actually made by Neanderthals. The findings reveal that the Neanderthals were the first humans with an appreciation of art.
Published NASA's Webb reveals new features in heart of Milky Way
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source The latest image from NASA's James Webb Space Telescope shows a portion of the dense center of our galaxy in unprecedented detail, including never-before-seen features astronomers have yet to explain. The star-forming region, named Sagittarius C (Sgr C), is about 300 light-years from the Milky Way's central supermassive black hole, Sagittarius A*.
Published 'Triple star' discovery could revolutionize understanding of stellar evolution
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A ground-breaking new discovery could transform the way astronomers understand some of the biggest and most common stars in the Universe. Research by PhD student Jonathan Dodd and Professor René Oudmaijer, from the University's School of Physics and Astronomy, points to intriguing new evidence that massive Be stars -- until now mainly thought to exist in double stars -- could in fact be 'triples'. The remarkable discovery could revolutionise our understanding of the objects -- a subset of B stars -- which are considered an important 'test bed' for developing theories on how stars evolve more generally.
Published Curators and cavers: How a tip from a citizen scientist led to deep discoveries in Utah's caves
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Scientists and colleagues from Utah's caving community have published the first research from their collaborative fieldwork effort deep in Utah's caves. The journal's feature article reveals why caves make such compelling research archives; what was uncovered in Boomerang Cave in northern Utah; why skeletal remains provide new access to hard-to-get data from the recent past; and offers a new zoological baseline for mammalian changes in an alpine community.
Published 'Teenage galaxies' are unusually hot, glowing with unexpected elements
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Using the James Webb Space Telescope, CECILIA Survey receives first data from galaxies forming two-to-three billion years after the Big Bang. By examining light from these 33 galaxies, researchers discovered their elemental composition and temperature. The ultra-deep spectrum revealed eight distinct elements: Hydrogen, helium, nitrogen, oxygen, silicon, sulfur, argon and nickel. The teenage galaxies also were extremely hot, reaching temperatures higher than 13,350 degrees Celsius.
Published High-power fiber lasers emerge as a pioneering technology
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Optical scientists have created a high-power 'Star Wars' style-laser, boosting their use in defense and for remote sensing applications.
Published Radiocarbon dating meets Egyptology and Biblical accounts in the city of Gezer
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source New dates provide detailed insights into the timing of events in the ancient city of Gezer, according to a new study.
Published With unprecedented flares, stellar corpse shows signs of life
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source After a distant star's explosive death, an active stellar corpse was the likely source of repeated energetic flares observed over several months -- a phenomenon astronomers had never seen before, astronomers report.
Published James Webb Space Telescope detects water vapor, sulfur dioxide and sand clouds in the atmosphere of a nearby exoplanet
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Astronomers have used recent observations made with the James Webb Space Telescope to study the atmosphere of the nearby exoplanet WASP-107b. Peering deep into the fluffy atmosphere of WASP-107b they discovered not only water vapor and sulfur dioxide, but even silicate sand clouds. These particles reside within a dynamic atmosphere that exhibits vigorous transport of material.