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Lunar Time Scale: Urgent Need to Determine Moon Time, Say Scientists

By Ryan Martin / Oct 15, 2024

In the grand tapestry of our universe, time is a slippery concept. It flows at different speeds depending on gravity's pull, a quirk that has scientists and space agencies like NASA grappling with a new challenge: how to keep time on the moon. As the world watches a new space race unfold, the question of lunar timekeeping has risen to the forefront, with implications for future settlements and exploration.

SpaceX's Mission to Return Starliner Astronauts

By Eric Ward / Oct 15, 2024

A SpaceX mission has soared into the skies, embarking on a crucial task to unite astronauts aboard the International Space Station with the spacecraft that will one day carry them back to Earth. NASA's Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore have surpassed their expected stay by over 100 days, as they await the return flight scheduled for 2025.

Dyson Spheres: Potential Alien Megastructures in the Milky Way? Scientists Identify 7 Locations to Investigate

By Joshua Howard / Oct 15, 2024

Imagine a shell of mirrors or solar panels encapsulating a star, harnessing every ounce of its energy—a concept as grand as science fiction itself. This was the vision of British-American physicist Freeman Dyson in 1960, who proposed what would become known as Dyson spheres. Drawing inspiration from Olaf Stapledon's "Star Maker," Dyson set the scientific community ablaze with a theory that has since become a cornerstone of speculative astronomy.

Scientists Sequence DNA from 3,600-Year-Old Cheese

By Victoria Gonzalez / Oct 15, 2024

Cheese dating back 3,600 years has been discovered in the Xiaohe cemetery of China's Taklamakan Desert, providing a unique window into the past. This ancient dairy product, found scattered on the heads and necks of Bronze Age mummies, is the oldest cheese ever found and offers a tantalizing glimpse into the culinary practices of the Xiaohe people.

Potential Disruption of Earth's Life by Xs and Cs in the Ionosphere

By Sophia Lewis / Oct 15, 2024

In the vast expanse of Earth's atmosphere, where communication and navigation satellites send their signals through a layer known as the ionosphere, a new mystery has emerged. This electrified realm, hovering 50 to 400 miles above our planet, is home to alphabet-shaped formations that could potentially disrupt the lifeblood of radio signals that keep our modern world connected.

Astronomers Uncover the Largest Black Hole Jets Ever Detected

By Lily Simpson / Oct 15, 2024

Astronomers have made a staggering discovery of colossal black hole jets, the largest ever observed, extending a whopping 23 million light-years across the universe. The observation, which has challenged existing notions of what's possible, comes from a supermassive black hole located a staggering 7.5 billion light-years from Earth.

AI Uncovers Hundreds of Unknown Ancient Symbols in Peru's Nazca Desert

By Ryan Martin / Oct 15, 2024

In a remarkable fusion of ancient mystery and modern technology, archaeologists have uncovered 303 new giant geoglyphs in Peru's Nazca Desert, thanks to the boost of artificial intelligence (AI). This discovery, detailed in a study published in PNAS, nearly doubles the known count of Nazca geoglyphs—mysterious ground artworks crafted by moving stones or gravel approximately 2,000 years ago.

Rare Orcas Spotted Hunting Dolphins Off Chilean Coast

By Ryan Martin / Oct 15, 2024

In a dramatic encounter off the coast of Chile in 2023, a powerful female orca launched a much smaller dusky dolphin out of the water with a single, decisive blow. Within minutes, the battle was over, and the orca began to feast. But she was not alone in her meal; other orcas soon joined to share in the bounty. This rare event was captured on video by researchers aboard a nearby vessel, who identified the prey as a dusky dolphin (Lagenorhynchus obscurus), a species native to South America's coastal waters.

Sea Robins: Fish That 'Taste' the Seafloor with Their Legs

By Jessica Lee / Oct 15, 2024

Sea robins, a unique species of fish that inhabit the ocean floor, have been found to use their taste bud-covered legs to sense and unearth prey, according to groundbreaking research. These extraordinary creatures are so proficient at detecting and digging up food as they traverse the seafloor on their six leg-like appendages that they've become a point of interest for other fish species, which often follow them in hopes of scavenging some of the newly exposed prey.

Miniature Lizard Takes a 'Scuba Dive' to Evade Predators

By Megan Clark / Oct 15, 2024

Reptiles Deserve Our Wonder and Conservation Efforts

Antarctic Ice Reveals Troubling Signs: A Glimpse into Doomsday Glacier's Secrets

By Rebecca Stewart / Oct 15, 2024

The Thwaites Glacier, ominously nicknamed the "Doomsday Glacier," has been under the watchful eye of scientists who have been probing its depths with ice-breaking ships and underwater robots. Their findings, published in a series of studies, paint a bleak picture of the glacier's future, with the potential to significantly raise global sea levels.

DEEP's Vision: Constructing Submerged Sanctuaries to Revolutionize Human Aquatic Living

By Sophia Lewis / Oct 15, 2024

In the depths of a former quarry near Bristol, UK, a vision of underwater living is taking shape. DEEP, a pioneering ocean technology company, has emerged from the shadows with a bold ambition: to "make humans aquatic." At the heart of this endeavor is the Sentinel system, an underwater habitat designed to support human occupancy at depths of 200 meters for extended periods, potentially reshaping our relationship with the ocean.

Newly Found Cave Offers Clues to Neanderthal Extinction, Researchers Suggest

By Jessica Lee / Oct 15, 2024

In 2015, archaeologist Ludovic Slimak made a groundbreaking discovery in a rock shelter of France's Rhône Valley: five Neanderthal teeth, the first complete remains of this ancient species found in France since 1979. Dubbed "Thorin" after a character from "The Hobbit," these teeth held secrets that would take nearly a decade to unravel, as they seemed to date back 105,000 years based on genetic analysis, yet the archaeological context suggested a younger age of 40,000 to 50,000 years.

A minuscule probability exists that Asteroid Apophis could collide with Earth during the Friday the 13th in 2029

By Elizabeth Taylor / Oct 15, 2024

On an eerie note fitting for a Friday the 13th, it's been revealed that the asteroid Apophis might, against all odds, have a minuscule shot at striking Earth during its close encounter on the ominous date of April 13, 2029. Yet, to befall such an event, a cascade of highly improbable cosmic coincidences would need to align.

A Brief Celestial Visitor: Earth's Upcoming Temporary 'Mini-Moon

By Sarah Davis / Oct 15, 2024

A celestial visitor is about to grace our skies, albeit briefly. Earth is set to play host to a "mini-moon," the newly discovered asteroid 2024 PT5, which will be caught in our planet's gravitational embrace from September 29 to November 25. This temporary celestial dance, as described by astronomers, is a rare occurrence detailed in the Research Notes of the American Astronomical Society.

MIT and Invena Collaborate on Maldives Coastal Preservation with Innovative Underwater Tech

By Rebecca Stewart / Oct 15, 2024

As the tides of change lap at the shores of our planet, coastal defenses are being tested like never before. The specter of rising sea levels and the fury of intensifying storms loom large over island states and coastal cities. In response, a diverse array of strategies has been deployed, from the sturdy construction of seawalls to the industrious dredging of sand from ocean floors to replenish eroding beaches.

Neurable's Mind-Reading Headphones: The Future of Preventing Mental Exhaustion

By Lily Simpson / Oct 15, 2024

In the realm of innovative technology, a new chapter is unfolding with the introduction of Neurable's MW75 Neuro headphones. These are no ordinary listening devices; they are the vanguard of a revolution in brain-computer interfaces (BCIs). Designed to read and respond to the electrical whispers of the human brain, the MW75 Neuro is poised to transform the way we interact with our digital environments.

Europa Clipper Mission Receives Approval for Launch

By Natalie Campbell / Oct 15, 2024

The Europa Clipper mission has achieved a significant milestone, clearing the path for its upcoming launch to investigate the potential for life on Jupiter's moon Europa, NASA announced. The mission has been given the go-ahead to proceed with its launch, which is scheduled for October 10. This approval came after a critical review, known as Key Decision Point E, which verified the spacecraft's readiness for its journey.

Artemis I Space Radiation Endurance: A Deep Dive into Cosmic Ray Encounters

By Samuel Cooper / Oct 15, 2024

As NASA gears up for Artemis II, a mission that will circle the moon with a crew of four astronauts as early as next year, a new study sheds light on the Orion spacecraft's radiation shielding capabilities. The data was collected during Artemis I's 25-day lunar voyage in late 2022, which, while uncrewed, carried two mannequin torsos, Helga and Zohar, to measure potential radiation exposure for astronauts.

Human Genome Encoded in Durable 'Memory Crystal' for Eons-Long Preservation

By Victoria Gonzalez / Oct 15, 2024

In a monumental feat of modern science, researchers from the University Kingdom have successfully encoded the complete human genome within a "5D memory crystal," an archival medium designed to endure the test of time for billions of years. This cutting-edge technology, the brainchild of the University of Southampton's Optoelectronics Research Centre, is poised to serve as a genetic ark, preserving the blueprint of humanity against the possibility of extinction.