Science

Global renewable power capacity to rise by 50% in 5 years - IEA

October 22, 2019

However, the Paris-based agency say that there is still work to be done in order to moderate the warming of the planet and directly address the current climate crisis. "As costs continue to fall, we have a growing incentive to ramp up the deployment of solar PV", said Dr. Fatih Birol, the IEA's Executive Director.

Rocket Lab gears up for lunar missions

October 22, 2019

Rocket Lab Founder and Chief Executive, Peter Beck, says there is increasing global interest in lunar and beyond LEO exploration from government and private sectors. The Electron is capable of sending payloads of 110 kilograms into orbit. Rocket Lab is the world's leading dedicated small satellite launch provider.

Trump humiliated by female astronauts over 'spacewalk' mistake

October 22, 2019

That would be my ideal mission. United States President Donald Trump was discomfited for a mistake while he got in touch with NASA astronauts Jessica Meir and Christina Koch at the International Space Station to congratulate them for becoming the first ever female spacewalkers, a media report stated.

Greta Thunberg mural surfaces after teen activist comes to Edmonton

October 22, 2019

On the way to the rally, a crowd of people stretching two city blocks first marched with Thunberg through part of Edmonton's downtown. Before and as marchers arrived, counter-protesters with United We Roll For Canada were signalling their support for oil and gas by laying on their horns while driving by on 109 Street.

Orionid meteor shower to light up Qatar skies on Monday

October 21, 2019

Each time that Halley's comet passes through the inner solar system on its orbit, its nucleus expels ice and rock particles into space . The Orionid meteor shower happens throughout the fall season. After that, the meteor shower will slowly wind down until Earth leaves the minefield of Halley's orbit. The best time to view the shower will be between midnight and 4 a.m., and when dawn begins.

First look at NASA's next generation spacesuits for moon exploration in 2024

October 19, 2019

Dustin Gohmert , project manager for Orion Crew Survival Systems , followed her into the spotlight, wearing a suit prototype designed for use during launch, re-entry and in-flight emergencies. Under pressure from the White House in May, NASA brought up the launch date to send humans to the moon by four years, to 2024, and told Congress it needed an additional $1.6bn in the $21bn budget for 2020 to prepare.

Tropics bring severe weather potential to Central Florida

October 19, 2019

In terms of economic impacts to the region, AccuWeather founder and CEO Dr. Joel N. Myers said, "No significant overall economic impact is expected", from the storm, but he added, "There will be some brief economic impact where heavy rains and coastal flooding occurs".

Tropical storm warnings for Gulf Coast as system strengthens

October 18, 2019

The storm is forecast to weaken after landfall as it crosses through Florida, Georgia and the Carolinas. Currently, Manatee County is located outside of the predicted area of impact for tropical storm conditions and storm surge, but gale warnings and high surf advisories are in effect for Manatee County as of Friday morning.

Virgin Galactic Unveils Custom Under Armour Spacewear

October 18, 2019

The royal blue jumpsuits are made of lightweight "flight-grade" fabric created to keep customers comfortable as they hurtle more than 50 miles into the atmosphere at up to three times the speed of sound. The space venture company revealed that Under Armour's spacewear was developed under the guidance of expert pilots, astronaut trainers, stylists, and even doctors.

India's Moon Mission-2 sends 1st illuminated image of Lunar surface

October 18, 2019

The Imaging Infrared Spectrometer (IIRS) onboard the lunar probe is created to measure the reflected sunlight and emitted portion of Moonlight from the lunar surface in narrow and contiguous spectral channels (bands) ranging from ~800-5000 nanometre (0.8-5.0 micrometres).

NOAA’s 2019 winter forecast shows it will likely to be warmer

October 18, 2019

A warmer-than-average winter is being forecast for much of the United States, including New England, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Climate Prediction Center said Thursday. Drier-than-average conditions are most likely for Louisiana, parts of Texas, Mississippi, Arkansas and Oklahoma as well areas of northern and central California.

SpaceX seeks approval to put 30,000 additional Starlink satellites

October 18, 2019

SpaceX is asking permission to launch another 30,000 satellite for its internet grid , the Starlink constellation . Deployment began in earnest back in May with the launch of the first sixty Starlink satellites , with plans to launch an additional 1,584 by 2024 and 2,200 by 2027.

Watch NASA's first ISS all-female spacewalk live online here

October 17, 2019

The faulty unit is preventing a set of recently installed batteries from providing increased power. Instead, the all-female spacewalk seems to be the result of happenstance, thanks to the makeup of the crew members aboard the ISS, as well as the need to upgrade the space station's batteries to new, lithium-ion ones.

Nasa unveils spacesuits to be worn by first woman on the moon

October 17, 2019

Two NASA engineers modeled the new suits at the agency's headquarter in Washington, DC. The spacesuit designed for exploring the Moon's surface is called the Exploration Extravehicular Mobility Unit (xEMU), and the one for launch and re-entry aboard NASA's Orion spacecraft is known as the Orion Crew Survival System, Xinhua reported .

Tropical Storm warning in effect for Florida panhandle

October 17, 2019

Potential Tropical Cyclone 16 was located in the Gulf of Mexico Thursday, moving across the Gulf. "Tropical development can occur at any time into Saturday as the system travels northeastward over the warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico", Dan Kottlowski, AccuWeather hurricane expert, said.

Watch the first all-women spacewalk on Friday

October 17, 2019

Watch live coverage here on NASA TV and nasa.gov/live Friday beginning at 6:30 a.m. They will leave the station's Quest airlock at 7:50 a.m. Three battery replacement spacewalks will be rescheduled, and five spacewalks to fix a cosmic particle detector remain on the calendar for November and December.

Former NASA scientist: We found life on Mars in the 1970s

October 17, 2019

It seemed we had answered that ultimate question. An artist's rendering of a NASA landing on the planet Mars. Levin actually criticized the space agency for not taking into account the RL findings, even if the company said that they found a substance that's mimicking life , but it's not actually life .

NASA unveils two new spacesuit prototypes for Moon to Mars exploration

October 16, 2019

The Orion Crew Survival System , a bright orange pressure suit, is the second suit that NASA launched. The Apollo moon suit, known as the Extravehicular Mobility Unit, or EMU, was famously so restricted that some astronauts preferred to "bunny hop", taking advantage of the moon's low gravity to lope over the surface.

NASA Confirms First All-Female Spacewalk

October 16, 2019

In a change to their brief, the pair will replace a faulty battery charge-discharge unit, which is now preventing a new lithium-ion battery installed earlier this month from powering the ISS. "It (doing without the BCDU) is manageable, but not something we'd want to live with in the long run", Todd told reporters. NASA originally planned an all-female spacewalk last spring, but had to cancel it because of a shortage of readily available medium-size suits.

Renewables overtake hydrocarbons in UK electricity generation

October 15, 2019

Fossil fuels made up four-fifths of the country's electricity fewer than 10 years ago, split between gas and coal, but the latest analysis by Carbon Brief shows that coal-fired power was less than 1% of all electricity generated. He said: "Already, we've cut emissions by 40% while growing the economy by two thirds since 1990". Another huge offshore wind farm was completed earlier this year.

NASA ICON Spacecraft Launches A Mission For Exploring The Space

October 15, 2019

Five seconds after the satellite's release, the attached Pegasus rocket ignited, sending Icon on its way. The spacecraft's solar panels efficiently deployed, indicating it has energy with all methods working. Full-fledged auroras appear near the poles in the ionosphere, but airglow is a fainter version of the same process that can happen nearly anyplace. But it's still bright enough for ICON's instruments to build up a picture of the ionosphere's density, composition and structure.

Sault paramedics go pink for breast cancer (2 photos)

October 15, 2019

The event brought together survivors, caregivers, and men and women from all walks of life who are passionate about saving lives from breast cancer -showing that no one walks alone. "The issue of breast cancer has become a very topical issue discussed at higher levels among government organizations and non-governmental organizations".

Burrard Street Bridge re-opened after 10 climate protesters arrested

October 14, 2019

The dangling protester , who claimed to be an experienced rock climber, said he was "perfectly safe". Nearly one in five readers (18 percent) said they would be out on the streets of the capital this week if they could be, while nearly a quarter (22 percent) said that while they agreed with the cause, they did not agree with the way protesters were going about raising awareness.

Look up! A full Hunter’s Moon will light up the night Sunday

October 14, 2019

Weather permitting, an incredible celestial sight will rise in the night skies this Sunday. If you are catching the last night of back-to-back meteor showers, there is one more skywatching event you don't want to miss this weekend: The full Hunter's Moon.

Alexei Leonov, the First Spacewalker, Has Died at Age 85

October 12, 2019

On the Apollo-Soyuz mission in 1975, Leonov met with United States astronauts in space and gave TV viewers tours of their respective crafts, the first time Soviet and USA cosmonauts collaborated in space . He was then chosen to be the first cosmonaut to land on the moon, but the catastrophic explosion of the Soviet N-1 moon rocket in 1969 abruptly ended Russia's moon aspirations.

Discovery of 20 new moons puts Saturn ahead of Jupiter

October 12, 2019

Saturn and Jupiter , with 161 between them, account for almost 80% of these. One of the newly discovered retrograde moons is the farthest known moon around Saturn. It probably took the scientific community so long to discover the twenty-odd moons circling Saturn is because of the great distance of the planet from the Earth.

Alexei Leonov, 1st person to walk in space, dies at 85

October 11, 2019

Russian space agency Roscosmos Space Corporation announced his passing Friday. Four years later Leonov made history when he left a spacecraft during the Voskhod 2 mission for a space walk that lasted 12 minutes and nine seconds. Leonov flew into space again in 1975, commanding the Soviet half of the Apollo-Soyuz mission, the first U.S. Leonov was born in 1934 in a large peasant family in western Siberia.

Invasive Snakehead Fish Spotted in Georgia for First Time

October 10, 2019

The fish can wreak havoc on local ecosystems, and Georgia wildlife officials hope to contain its spread. An invasive species of fish that can grow to 3 feet long has been found in Georgia, according to state officials. "Thanks to the quick report by an angler, our staff was able to investigate and confirm the presence of this species in this water body. - Immediately report it to your regional Georgia DNR Wildlife Resources Division Fisheries Office ".

Warren Defends Claim She Lost 1971 Teaching Job Due to Pregnancy

October 09, 2019

But the Washington Free Beacon , a conservative news website, reported Monday that it had obtained school board records that contradict Warren's story . Two retired teachers who worked at Riverdale Elementary for over 30 years, including the year Warren was there, told CBS News that they don't remember anyone being explicitly fired due to pregnancy during their time at the school.

Astronauts Grow ‘Space Meat’ But Admit Taste ‘Needs to Be Improved'

October 09, 2019

Israeli food startup Aleph Farms announced on 7 October that it had successfully grown meat in space. Spacecraft crews don't have the luxury of raising farm animals - meat-eating astronauts could enjoy steaks on long journeys instead of making do with specially prepared space food .

NASA found a weirdly salty 'ancient oasis' on Mars

October 09, 2019

This is evidence that a salty lake was evaporating from the surface around that time, scientists reported Monday in a new paper in Nature Geoscience . Pure salt is usually left behind when a lake dries and disappears, but these are mineral salts mixed in with sediment. Scientists liken the region's ancient environment to the South America's Altiplano , where alpine lakes and streams from the surrounding mountains feed a series of saline lakes on an arid, high-altitude plateau.

Back-to-back meteor showers make this a great week for stargazing

October 09, 2019

According to U.S. space agency NASA , the shower produces between 10 and 20 shooting stars an hour. It is recommended that meteor shower watchers dress warmly, bring a blanket, and perhaps even a hot beverage to enjoy. Fireballs, also known as very bright meteors, streak across our sky when debris from a comet breaks up in our upper atmosphere. After 3 a.m. local time, once the moon has set, is prime viewing time for those in North America, AccuWeather reported .

US Astronauts Complete 1st Of 5 Power Upgrade Spacewalks

October 09, 2019

The first all-female spacewalk is back on, six months after a suit-sizing flap led to an embarrassing cancellation. Koch conducted the six-hour mission with fellow astronaut Nick Hague. She will then venture out into the cold vacuum of space with Koch for the first all-female spacewalk on October 21 followed by her third spacewalk in the span of 10 days on October 25.

The center of the Milky Way exploded 3.5 million years ago

October 08, 2019

Our Milky Way galaxy does look quite peaceful most of the time, but recent, but in recent past, it has some other stories behind this. EarthSky contextualized it nicely by noting that, when this flare occurred, dinosaurs had already been extinct for well over 63 million years .

Israel's Aleph Farms Makes Lab-Grown, Slaughter-Free Steak…In Space

October 08, 2019

To conduct the experiment, Aleph Farms teamed up with Russian company 3D Bioprinting Solutions , which develops implementations of 3D bioprinting technologies, and two American companies, Meal Source Technologies and Finless Foods, to carry out the process on September 26.

Saturn overtakes Jupiter as planet with most moons

October 08, 2019

The discovery of 20 previously unknown moons around Saturn has helped the ring planet surpass all others in our solar system, according to the International Astronomical Union's Minor Planet Center . Scientists were able to locate the new moons thanks to more robust computing power and better algorithms for tracking faint distant objects, Sheppard said.

Who Is Katie Bouman, the Woman Behind the First Black Hole Photo?

October 08, 2019

The algorithms they developed seamlessly stitched together the data to create the wondrous image we see today. Black holes have historically been impossible to observe due to their nature of swallowing every bit of light that tries to escape it.

The incredible science behind China's moon landing

October 07, 2019

Since signals from Earth can't directly reach the far side of the moon - and vice versa - communication between CNSA and Chang'e-4 and the rover relies on a relay satellite dubbed Queqiao . A crewed lunar mission is also under consideration. The chosen landing site, Von Karman crater , is in the north of the SPA basin about half way between the south pole and the equator, and punches a little deeper than the surrounding basin floor.

Chandrayaan-2 orbiter sends high resolution images of moon

October 07, 2019

The ISRO said, that Orbiter High-Resolution Camera (OHRC) gives high dimensional images of the lunar surface. The ISRO chief, known for his calm and collected demeanor, received an outporing of support from across the country after the Chandrayaan 2 mission's lander Vikram failed to make a soft landing on the moon.

NASA's first all-female spacewalk could happen this month

October 07, 2019

Astronauts Christina Koch and Andrew Morgan have just returned to the ISS after changing over a pair of old batteries. At the moment the astronauts aboard need to do another four more spacewalks to complete the transition from the old batteries to the new.

Paralysed man walks again using brain-controlled robotic system

October 07, 2019

Within the safety of a lab setting, he was also able to control the suit's arms and hands, using two sensors on his brain. Each records his brain signals and transmits them to a decoding algorithm. The quality of the recordings from the implants remained stable, the algorithm continued to decode the signals, and the patient experienced no post-surgical complications.

UAE's First Astronaut Leaves ISS, Touches Down in Kazakhstan

October 07, 2019

She is expected to return to Earth in February 2020, nearly a year after her launch. After postlanding medical checks, Hague will return to Houston, and Ovchinin and Almansoori will return to Star City, Russia. A multinational team of three astronauts on board Russia's Soyuz MS-12 spacecraft safely returned to Earth on Thursday, after completing their mission on the International Space Station (ISS).

First detailed NASA images of Ultima Thule reveal 'snowman' shape

October 06, 2019

Never before has any spacecraft team tracked down such a small body at such high speed so far away in the abyss of space. " New Horizons has set a new bar for state-of-the-art spacecraft navigation". As more data comes in, scientists will have a better handle on what's causing it. On Pluto, the culprit was tholins - hydrocarbon molecules formed from the interaction between sunlight and methane.

Singer-songwriter Sia reveals she has chronic pain disease

October 05, 2019

The singer-songwriter Sia Furler has disclosed that she has the chronic pain disease Ehlers-Danos syndrome, and told others suffering from pain "you're not alone". Worldwide, the syndrome is believed to effect one in every 5,000 people . Life is fucking hard. She mentioned in 2013: 'I got seriously addicted to Vicodin and Oxycodone, and I was always a drinker but I didn't know I used to be an alcoholic.

Breast cancer awareness: Share your survival story

October 05, 2019

For many people who have received a breast cancer diagnosis, as well as their families, the five-year breast cancer survival rate of 88% has helped transform their diagnosis from one of fear to one of hope. The tendency of men developing breast cancer is quite low, the reason is that women begin developing breast tissue sooner and more than men do. When it comes to the symptoms of breast cancer, women don't exhibit symptoms similar to that of men.

New organic compounds found on Saturn moon

October 04, 2019

These new findings complement the discovery the team made past year of large, insoluble complex organic molecules believed to float on the surface of Enceladus' ocean. Recent studies show that there are microbes like this in our own ocean. The research is supported by two other studies that found complex organic bubbles and nutrient rich oceans on Enceladus.

ISRO performs 4rd lunar-bound orbit maneuver

October 04, 2019

Pragyan will use a ramp that Vikram will lay to roll down to the lunar surface. The name Pragyan translates to "wisdom" in Sanskrit. Ankur, a resident of Ambassa in Dhalai district of Tripura and a student of class IX at Dolubari High School, is one among 60 in the country to have won the online space quiz conducted by the Indian Space Research Organisation ( Isro ) among school students of classes VIII, IX and X to increase awareness about India's space programmes.

Listen to the sounds on Mars, courtesy of NASA's InSight mission

October 04, 2019

NASA's InSight's "ear" is so sensitive that it is able to pick up vibrations of a breeze. There's also an indication of how Mars affects the seismometer itself. The Insight team has noticed that, particularly at night, the instrument picks up unusual sounds that they refer to as " dinks and donks ", according to the statement.

Listen to NASA's InSight at Work on Mars

October 04, 2019

InSight , or Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport, is a two-year mission to explore a part of Mars that we know the least about: its deep interior. On the Moon , fractures remain intact, and sound traveling through them becomes scattered. They also figured out that the sounds they named "dinks and donks" happen when the instrument expands and contracts.

Kiss to Play Special Concert for Great White Sharks

October 04, 2019

The event is part of Airbnb Animal Experiences , and is created to have people entertain animals instead of the other way around. KISS will be heading down under to Australia next month, but they're taking things even further and deeper by performing for fans that actually live underwater.

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