24/7 News Coverage
December 26, 2016
EXO WORLDS
The blob can learn and teach



Paris, France (SPX) Dec 26, 2016
It isn't an animal, a plant, or a fungus. The slime mold (Physarum polycephalum) is a strange, creeping, bloblike organism made up of one giant cell. Though it has no brain, it can learn from experience, as biologists at the Research Centre on Animal Cognition (CNRS, Universite Toulouse III-Paul Sabatier) previously demonstrated.1 Now the same team of scientists has gone a step further, proving that a slime mold can transmit what it has learned to a fellow slime mold when the two combine. These ne ... read more

STELLAR CHEMISTRY
Feeding the supermassive black hole at the center of the Milky Way
Scientists at Princeton University and the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL) have developed a rigorous new method for modeling the accretion disk that feed ... more
TECH SPACE
Ultra-small nanocavity advances technology for secure quantum-based data encryption
Researchers have developed a new type of light-enhancing optical cavity that is only 200 nanometers tall and 100 nanometers across. Their new nanoscale system represents a step toward brighter singl ... more
TIME AND SPACE
Laser pulses help scientists tease apart complex electron interactions
Scientists studying high temperature superconductors-materials that carry electric current with no energy loss when cooled below a certain temperature-have been searching for ways to study in detail ... more
STELLAR CHEMISTRY
VLA, ALMA team up to give first look at birthplaces of most current stars
Astronomers have gotten their first look at exactly where most of today's stars were born. To do so, they used the National Science Foundation's Karl G. Jansky Very Large Array (VLA) and the Atacama ... more
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IRON AND ICE
PANIC Lander to Revolutionize Asteroid Research
A US-German team of researchers has proposed to develop a micro-scale low-cost surface lander for the in situ characterization of an asteroid. The tiny spacecraft, called the Pico Autonomous Near-Ea ... more
STELLAR CHEMISTRY
Festive nebulae light up Milky Way Galaxy satellite
The sheer observing power of the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope is rarely better illustrated than in an image such as this. This glowing pink nebula, named NGC 248, is located in the Small Magellan ... more
STELLAR CHEMISTRY
Avalanche statistics suggest Tabby's star is near a continuous phase transition
In its search for extrasolar planets, the Kepler space telescope looks for stars whose light flux periodically dims, signaling the passing of an orbiting planet in front of the star. But the timing ... more
EXO WORLDS
Searching a sea of 'noise' to find exoplanets - using only data as a guide
Yale researchers have found a data-driven way to detect distant planets and refine the search for worlds similar to Earth. The new approach, outlined in a study published Dec. 20 in The Astron ... more
STELLAR CHEMISTRY
ESO: ALMA's Ability to Search for Water in the Universe Improved
The Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) in Chile has begun observing in a new range of the electromagnetic spectrum. This has been made possible thanks to new receivers installed at ... more


New antimatter breakthrough to help illuminate mysteries of the Big Bang

TIME AND SPACE
ALPHA observes light spectrum of antimatter for first time
In a paper published in the journal Nature, the ALPHA collaboration reports the first ever measurement on the optical spectrum of an antimatter atom. This achievement features technological developm ... more
STELLAR CHEMISTRY
Fluctuations in extragalactic gamma rays reveal two source classes but no dark matter
Researchers from the Max Planck Institute for Astrophysics and the University of Amsterdam GRAPPA Center of Excellence just published the most precise analysis so far of the fluctuations in the gamm ... more


Exploring Pluto and the Wild Back Yonder
As 2016 ends, I can't help but point out an interesting symmetry in where the mission has recently been and where we are going. Exactly two years ago we had just taken New Horizons out of cruise hibernation to begin preparations for the Pluto flyby. And exactly two years from now we will be on final approach to our next flyby, which will culminate with a very close approach to a small Kuiper Bel ... more
Juno Captures Jupiter 'Pearl'

Juno Mission Prepares for December 11 Jupiter Flyby

Research Offers Clues About the Timing of Jupiter's Formation

First Light for Breakthrough Listen at Parkes Telescope
Breakthrough Listen, the 10-year, $100-million astronomical search for intelligent life beyond Earth launched in 2015 by Internet entrepreneur Yuri Milner and Stephen Hawking, has announced its first observations using the Parkes Radio Telescope in New South Wales, Australia. Parkes joins the Green Bank Telescope (GBT) in West Virginia, USA, and the Automated Planet Finder (APF) at Lick Ob ... more
Search for ET underway with Parkes Radio Telescope

Breakthrough Listen to Search for Intelligent Life Around Tabby's Star

New bacteria groups, and stunning diversity, discovered underground

Daily Newsletters - Space - Military - Environment - Energy

Astronomers discover dark past of planet-eating 'Death Star'
An international team of scientists, including researchers from the University of Chicago, has made the rare discovery of a planetary system with a host star similar to Earth's sun. Especially intriguing is the star's unusual composition, which indicates it ingested some of its planets. "It doesn't mean that the sun will 'eat' the Earth any time soon," said Jacob Bean, assistant professor ... more
Microlensing Study Suggests Most Common Outer Planets Likely Neptune-mass

Searching a sea of 'noise' to find exoplanets - using only data as a guide

The blob can learn and teach

Small Troughs Growing on Mars May Become 'Spiders'
Erosion-carved troughs that grow and branch during multiple Martian years may be infant versions of larger features known as Martian "spiders," which are radially patterned channels found only in the south polar region of Mars. Researchers using NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) report the first detection of cumulative growth, from one Martian spring to another, of channels resultin ... more
All eyes on Trump over Mars

Opportunity performs several drives to ancient gully

Full go-ahead for building ExoMars 2020



Lunar sonic booms
The sonic boom created by an airplane comes from the craft's large, speeding body crashing into molecules in the air. But if you shrank the plane to the size of a molecule, would it still generate a shock wave? Scientists such as University of Iowa physicist Jasper Halekas hope to answer that question by studying miniature shock waves on the moon. These sonic boomlets, physicists believe, ... more
India Inc joins hands to bid for moon mission

TeamIndus signs contract with ISRO for lunar mission

Moonwalker Buzz Aldrin stable after South Pole health scare

Festive nebulae light up Milky Way Galaxy satellite
The sheer observing power of the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope is rarely better illustrated than in an image such as this. This glowing pink nebula, named NGC 248, is located in the Small Magellanic Cloud, just under 200 000 light-years away and yet can still be seen in great detail. Our home galaxy, the Milky Way, is part of a collection of galaxies known as the Local Group. Along with ... more
VLA, ALMA team up to give first look at birthplaces of most current stars

Fluctuations in extragalactic gamma rays reveal two source classes but no dark matter

Feeding the supermassive black hole at the center of the Milky Way

Daily Newsletters - Space - Military - Environment - Energy

exactEarth to study Small Vessel Tracking for UK Space Agency
exactEarth has been awarded a 1.1 million pound grant from the UK Space Agency (UKSA) under its 'International Partnerships Programme' (IPP). The IPP funding will support the operational deployment of exactEarth's Satellite AIS-based small vessel tracking technology "exactTrax" to improve safety of life at sea (SOLAS) for South Africa's small boat owners and operators - in particular the artisan ... more
Airbus DS ships payload module for MetOp-C for final assembly

Neutron diffraction probes forms of carbon dioxide in extreme environments

NOAA's GOES-S Satellite Undergoing Environmental Testing

PANIC Lander to Revolutionize Asteroid Research
A US-German team of researchers has proposed to develop a micro-scale low-cost surface lander for the in situ characterization of an asteroid. The tiny spacecraft, called the Pico Autonomous Near-Earth Asteroid In Situ Characterizer (PANIC), could be a breakthrough for the scientific community, offering simple and cheap solutions for asteroid research. The concept of the PANIC mission envi ... more
Ceres Offers Insight Into Prospects For Life in Early Solar System

The case of the missing diamonds

Studies refute hypothesis on what caused abrupt climate change thousands of years ago



Moore Foundation provides libraries with a millione solar-eclipse viewers
The Space Science Institute was awarded a grant from the Moore Foundation that will provide 1.26 million solar viewing glasses and other resources for 1,500 public libraries across the nation. They will serve as centers for eclipse education and viewing for their communities. The libraries will be selected through a registration process managed by the STAR Library Education Network (STAR_N ... more
Preparing for the August 2017 Total Solar Eclipse

Giving the Sun a brake

Perspectives on magnetic reconnection

Chinese missile giant seeks 20% of a satellite market
China Aerospace Science and Industry Corp, the largest missile maker in the country, is taking aim at 20 percent or more of the small-satellite launch contracts in the world by 2020, company executives said. "We estimate that from 2017 to 2020, we will send aloft at least 10 solid-fuel carrier rockets each year, to send about 50 small satellites into orbit," said Guo Yong, president of the ... more
China-made satellites in high demand

Space exploration plans unveiled

China launches 4th data relay satellite

Daily Newsletters - Space - Military - Environment - Energy

Festive nebulae light up Milky Way Galaxy satellite
The sheer observing power of the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope is rarely better illustrated than in an image such as this. This glowing pink nebula, named NGC 248, is located in the Small Magellanic Cloud, just under 200 000 light-years away and yet can still be seen in great detail. Our home galaxy, the Milky Way, is part of a collection of galaxies known as the Local Group. Along with ... more
VLA, ALMA team up to give first look at birthplaces of most current stars

Fluctuations in extragalactic gamma rays reveal two source classes but no dark matter

Feeding the supermassive black hole at the center of the Milky Way

Chimpanzees are 'indifferent' when it comes to altruism
New research into chimpanzees suggests that, when it comes to altruistically helping a fellow chimpanzee, they are 'indifferent'. The paper, published in Nature Communications, found no evidence that chimpanzees had a tendency to help others - or conversely to be spiteful - when there was no anticipated benefit to themselves. In two experiments, chimpanzees could determine whether or ... more
Earliest evidence discovered of plants cooked in ancient pottery

Dental hygiene, caveman style

Neurons paralyze us during REM sleep



'Passengers' and the real-life science of deep space travel
From "Aliens" to "Interstellar," Hollywood has long used suspended animation to overcome the difficulties of deep space travel, but the once-fanciful sci-fi staple is becoming scientific fact. The theory is that a hibernating crew could stay alive over vast cosmic distances, requiring little food, hydration or living space, potentially slashing the costs of interstellar missions and eradicat ... more
NASA Readies for Major Orion Milestones in 2017

India achieves advances multiple space systems in 2016

Spacewalk for Thomas Pesquet at ISS

Arctic lakes thawing earlier each year
Scientists from the University of Southampton have found Arctic lakes, covered with ice during the winter months, are melting earlier each spring. The team, who monitored 13,300 lakes using satellite imagery, have shown that on average ice is breaking up one day earlier per year, based on a 14-year period between 2000 and 2013. Their findings are published in the Nature journal Scientific ... more
Satellites observe 'traffic jams' in Antarctic Ice Stream caused by tides

Scientists measure pulse of CO2 emissions during spring thaw in the Arctic

Landsat provides global view of speed of ice

Rising sea level estimates require collaborative response
Policymakers and scientists must act quickly and collaboratively to help coastal areas better prepare for rising sea levels globally, say climate change experts from Princeton and Penn State universities. Recent estimates suggest that global mean sea level rise could exceed two meters by 2100. These projections are higher than previous estimates and are bas ... more
Early action key to reducing sea lion impacts on salmon, new study finds

Rebels blamed for 'poisoning' Damascus water

Pakistan frees 220 Indian fishermen

A population of neutron stars can generate gravitational waves continuously
Professor Sudip Bhattacharyya of the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR), Mumbai, India, and Professor Deepto Chakrabarty (MIT, USA), an adjunct visiting professor at the same institute, have shown that a population of neutron stars should spin around their axes much faster than the highest observed spin rate of any neutron star. They pointed out that the observed lower spin rate ... more
LISA Pathfinder's pioneering mission continues

Magnetic mirror could shed new light on gravitational waves

Verlindes new theory of gravity passes first test



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