Lifeboat Foundation

Researchers have developed the first 3D maps of magnetic field structures within a spiral arm of the Milky Way. While we’ve seen smaller-scale magnetic fields before, this is much larger, showing the overall magnetic pattern in our galaxy. These fields are incredibly weak, about 100,000 times weaker than the Earth’s magnetic field, but they impact the galaxy, strongly influencing star-forming regions.

“The Stardust samples, microscopic grains from a body less than two miles wide, contain a record of the deep past covering billions of miles,” said Dr. Ryan Ogliore. “After 18 years of interrogating this comet, we have a much better view of the solar system’s dynamic formative years.”

What can samples collected from a comet almost 20 years ago tell us about the history of comets and our solar system? This is what a recent study published in Geochemistry hopes to address as a researcher from the Washington University in St. Louis (WUSTL) analyzed samples from Comet 81P/Wild 2 that were returned to Earth almost exactly 18 years ago today. This study holds the potential to help scientists not only gain greater insights into the origin and history of comets, but of our solar system, as well.

Image of the Stardust sample return capsule being retrieved inside a protective covering after it was collected from its landing site at the U.S. Air Force Utah Test and Training Range in January 2006. (Credit: NASA)

Continue reading “NASA’s Stardust Mission Samples Reveals New Secrets of Comet 81P/Wild 2 Comet” »

Researchers may have identified the missing component in the chemistry of the Venusian clouds that would explain their color and splotchiness in the UV range, solving a long-standing mystery.

What are the clouds of Venus made of? Scientists know it’s mainly made of sulfuric acid droplets, with some water, chlorine, and iron. Their concentrations vary with height in the thick and hostile Venusian atmosphere. But until now they have been unable to identify the missing component that would explain the clouds’ patches and streaks, only visible in the UV range.

In a new study published in Science Advances, researchers from the University of Cambridge synthesised iron-bearing sulfate minerals that are stable under the harsh chemical conditions in the Venusian clouds.

Whenever I sit down to look at my footage from a project, my workflow usually consists of using a display LUT or a Color Space Transform (CST) modifier in DaVinci Resolve to correct my footage from RAW or Log.

With all the exposure and color tools at our disposal, one thing is missing from our workflow. Datacolor aims to change that.

Heat is the enemy of quantum uncertainty. By arranging light-absorbing molecules in an ordered fashion, physicists in Japan have maintained the critical, yet-to-be-determined state of electron spins for 100 nanoseconds near room temperature.

The innovation could have a profound impact on progress in developing quantum technology that doesn’t rely on the bulky and expensive cooling equipment currently needed to keep particles in a so-called ‘coherent’ form.

Unlike the way we describe objects in our day-to-day living, which have qualities like color, position, speed, and rotation, quantum descriptions of objects involve something less settled. Until their characteristics are locked in place with a quick look, we have to treat objects as if they are smeared over a wide space, spinning in different directions, yet to adopt a simple measurement.

Does the Moon’s crust have more water than previously thought? This is what a recent study published in Nature Astronomy hopes to figure out as a team of international researchers investigated how the mineral apatite found within a Moon meteorite provides greater insight into how the Moon’s early crust from billions of years ago could have possessed higher amounts of water than scientists have previously hypothesized. This study holds the potential to not only help scientists better understand lunar history but also provide a gateway to unlocking lunar water for future astronaut missions, as well.

“The discovery of apatite in the Moon’s early crust for the first time is incredibly exciting – as we can finally start to piece together this unknown stage of lunar history,” said Dr. Tara Hayden, who is a postdoctoral associate at Western University and lead author of the study. “We find the Moon’s early crust was richer in water than we expected, and its volatile stable isotopes reveal an even more complex history than we knew before.”

For thousands of years, the moon inspired humans from afar, but the bright beacon in Earth’s night sky — located more than 200,000 miles (321,868 kilometers) away — remained out of reach. That all changed on September 13, 1959, when the former Soviet Union’s uncrewed spacecraft, Luna 2, landed on the moon’s surface.

The Luna 2 probe created a crater when it touched down on the moon between the lunar regions of Mare Imbrium and Mare Serenitatis, according to NASA.

That pivotal, lunar dust-stirring moment signaled the beginning of humanity’s endeavors to explore the moon, and some scientists now suggest it was also the start of a new geological epoch — or period of time in history — called the “Lunar Anthropocene,” according to a comment paper published in the journal Nature Geoscience on December 8.

New research from a Western University postdoctoral fellow shows the early lunar crust, which makes up the surface of the moon, was considerably enriched in water more than 4 billion years ago, counter to previously held understanding. The discovery is outlined in a study published today (Jan. 15) in the journal Nature Astronomy.

Working with a meteorite she classified as one that came from the moon while a graduate student at The Open University (U.K.), Tara Hayden identified, for the first time, the mineral apatite (the most common phosphate) in a sample of early lunar crust.

The research offers exciting new evidence that the moon’s early crust contained more water than was originally thought, opening new doors into the study of lunar history.

To combat the issue of space debris, Australia’s EOS Space and Japan’s EX-Fusion will develop a laser system to remove it from Earth’s orbit.

EX-Fusion, a startup based in Osaka, is attempting to remove tiny pieces of space debris by firing laser beams from the ground.