How it works: A proton (far left) from the Super Proton Synchrotron (SPS) accelerator at CERN hits carbon nuclei (small gray spheres). This produces a shower of various elementary particles, including a large number of neutral pions (orange sphere). As the unstable neutral pions decay, they emit two high-energy gamma rays (curly yellow arrows). These … Read more
LOS ANGELOS – Earth’s inner core, a solid sphere of iron located deep within our planet, has slowed its rotation, according to new research. Scientists from the University of Southern California say their discovery challenges previous notions about the behavior of the inner core and raises intriguing questions about its influence on Earth’s dynamics. The … Read more
Some would say that there is no sweeter image than that of a young mother embracing her infant toddler. Today, I’d like to share with you an even sweeter photo: a young mother cradling 30 to 40 of her babies, who are still eggs, in her clammy, clam-covered arms. To make it even more beautiful, … Read more
A ‘Hot Neptune’ exoplanets has been found to contain sulfur dioxide in its atmosphere – an atmosphere that also erupts into space as the planet orbits the poles of its star in a highly inclined orbit every three and a third days. The existence of sulfur dioxide in the atmosphere of the exoplanet, named GJ … Read more
Thousands of satellites in “megaconstellations” have been launched to meet the demand for global Internet service, and thousands more will be launched in the near future. But these small satellites have a short lifespan and, when they burn up during reentry, will release ozone-depleting pollutants. A new study in Geophysical Research Letters measures this pollution … Read more
The inner core began to slow down around 2010, moving slower than the Earth’s surface. Credit: University of Southern California University of Southern California scientists have proven that Earth’s inner core is receding—slowing down—relative to the planet’s surface, as shown in a new study published in Nature. The motion of the inner core has been … Read more
This plot shows the difference in length between a PCFG gray whale born in 2020 versus one born before 2000. OSU researchers determined that a PCFG gray whale born in 2020 is expected to reach an adult body length of 1.65 meters (about 5 feet, 5 inches) shorter than a gray whale born before 2000. … Read more
Sensing deflected wavefronts in fluorescence microscopy. Credit: Optics (2024). DOI: 10.1364/OPTICA.518559 A team led by researchers at HHMI’s Janelia Research Campus has adapted a class of techniques used in astronomy to whiten images of distant galaxies for use in the life sciences, offering biologists a faster and cheaper way to get clearer and sharper microscopic … Read more
Over an inland sea 100 million years ago, a great flying reptile haunted the skies. Kyle Johnson via Unsplash Looking out over the Eromanga Sea 100 million years ago, not every ferocious predator would be found under the surface of the water. [–> Instead, one threat would come from the skies. [–> The “long-vanished” sea … Read more
Cracking and self-healing of peptide glass. Credit: Nature (2024). DOI: 10.1038/s41586-024-07408-x A team of materials scientists from Tel Aviv University and Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, both in Israel, working with a colleague from the California Institute of Technology in the US, have discovered that mixing a certain peptide with water results in creating a … Read more