Astronomers detect ancient lonely quasars with murky origins
A quasar is the extremely bright core of a galaxy that hosts an active supermassive black hole at its center. As the black hole draws in surrounding gas and dust, it blasts out an enormous amount of energy, making quasars some of the brightest object.....»»
What is societal collapse? Lessons from the past can help us understand our future, but only to a point
As the climate crisis accelerates, it's hard not to wonder if today's societies can adapt. Growing worries over climate change have sparked interest in the collapse of ancient civilizations and the rise of the (often apocalypse-themed) "cli-fi" genre.....»»
Developing bird migration tracking with call detection technology
A research team primarily based at New York University (NYU) has achieved a breakthrough in ornithology and artificial intelligence by developing an end-to-end system to detect and identify the subtle nocturnal calls of migrating birds......»»
How gravitational waves could help detect Star Trek-style warp drive spaceships
How much do we really know about what else is out there in the universe?.....»»
Amateur Scientist: Detect Cosmic Dust & Space Debris
Tweak the Make: Twilight photometer to detect micrometeors and orbital junk 400 miles high. The post Amateur Scientist: Detect Cosmic Dust & Space Debris appeared first on Make: DIY Projects and Ideas for Makers......»»
Gravitational wave observatories could detect primordial black holes speeding through the solar system
Cosmologists have long hypothesized that the conditions of the early universe could have caused the formation of black holes not long after the Big Bang. These "primordial black holes" have a much wider mass range than those that formed in the later.....»»
Q&A: Astronomers await a once-in-80-year stellar explosion
We sat down with Carnegie Science Observatories theoretical astrophysicist Tony Prio to talk about T Coronae Borealis, the stellar explosion that occurs once every 80 years and is due to light up in the coming months......»»
Five lessons from ancient civilizations for keeping homes cool in hot, dry climates
Modern buildings tend to take electricity and air conditioning for granted. They often have glass facades and windows that can't be opened. And when the power goes out for days in the middle of a heat wave, as the Houston area experienced in July 202.....»»
Ancient viral genomes preserved in glaciers reveal climate history—and how viruses adapt to climate change
As humans alter the planet's climate and ecosystems, scientists are looking to Earth's history to help predict what may unfold from climate change. To this end, massive ice structures like glaciers serve as nature's freezers, archiving detailed recor.....»»
Naval Research Laboratory"s LARADO instrument to detect lethal orbital debris, integrated on STP satellite
U.S. Naval Research Laboratory's (NRL) Lightsheet Anomaly Resolution and Debris Observation (LARADO) instrument was successfully integrated and tested on the Space Test Program Satellite 7 (STPSat-7) spacecraft at National Aeronautics and Space Admin.....»»
What a submerged ancient bridge discovered in a Spanish cave reveals about early human settlement
A new study led by the University of South Florida has shed light on the human colonization of the western Mediterranean, revealing that humans settled there much earlier than previously believed. This research, detailed in a recent issue of the jour.....»»
Ancient gene gives spiders their narrow waist, research reveals
An ancient gene is crucial for the development of the distinctive waist that divides the spider body plan in two, according to a study published August 29 in the open-access journal PLOS Biology by Emily Setton from the University of Wisconsin-Madiso.....»»
The Vesuvius challenge is using AI to virtually unroll Pompeii"s ancient scrolls
The Vesuvius Challenge is an unparalleled competition in the field of classical studies, with the potential to pave the way for something akin to a second Renaissance. Its objective is to use artificial intelligence (AI) to virtually unroll hundreds.....»»
New Horizons spacecraft measurements shed light on the darkness of the universe
Just how dark is deep space? Astronomers may have finally answered this long-standing question by tapping into the capabilities and distant position of NASA's New Horizons spacecraft, by making the most precise, direct measurements ever of the total.....»»
Is Betelgeuse actually a binary star?
Betelgeuse has been a favorite among amateur astronomers for many years. However you pronounce it, its unexpected dimming draws even more attention to this red supergiant variable star in Orion. It has a few cycles of variability. One of them occurs.....»»
Ancient sea cow that was attacked by both a primeval crocodile and shark sheds new light on prehistoric food chains
A new study showing how a prehistoric sea cow was preyed upon by not one, but two different carnivores—a crocodilian and a shark—is revealing clues into both the predation tactics of ancient creatures and the wider food chain millions of years ag.....»»
From rhino horn snuff to pangolin livestock feed: A half-century of patents reveals the wildlife trade"s evolution
The bright blue blood of the horseshoe crab is used around the world to detect bacterial contamination in vaccines. Synonymous with luxury, sturgeon caviar has been patented as an antidote to impotency in China. Rhino horn is used in traditional Asia.....»»
Reconfigurable sensor can detect particles 0.001 times the wavelength of light
In recent years, advances in photonics and materials science have led to remarkable developments in sensor technology, pushing the boundaries of what can be detected and measured. Among these innovations, non-Hermitian physics has emerged as a crucia.....»»
Microscopic fossilized shells reveal ancient climate change patterns
At the end of the Paleocene and beginning of the Eocene epochs, between 59 to 51 million years ago, Earth experienced dramatic warming periods, both gradual periods stretching millions of years and sudden warming events known as hyperthermals......»»
Locked in a glacier: Virus adaptations to extreme weather provide climate change insights
Ancient viruses preserved in glacial ice hold valuable information about changes in Earth's climate, a new study suggests......»»
Bonobo evidence suggests ancient origin of the "common enemy effect"
In the face of threats from other groups, humans, chimpanzees, and a selection of other species get closer to their own. Now an international team led by Kyoto University has shown that even our more peaceful cousins, bonobos—who have never been ob.....»»