Quasi-periodic oscillation detected in blazar PKS 0405-385
By analyzing the historical light curve of blazar PKS 0405-385 from NASA's Fermi spacecraft, Chinese astronomers have detected quasi-periodic oscillation from this source. The discovery, presented in a paper published May 5 on arXiv.org, could shed m.....»»
NASA helps spot wine grape disease from skies above California
In a case study, scientists detected the costly infection in cabernet sauvignon grapevines before they showed symptoms visible to the human eye......»»
A solar eruption was detected on Earth, the moon, and even Mars
Scientists recently reported on a solar event that was detectable not only on Earth, but also on the moon and Mars......»»
Quantum-enhanced non-interferometric quantitative phase imaging
Optical phase retrieval and imaging appear in a wide variety of science fields, such as imaging of quasi-transparent biological samples or nanostructures metrological characterization, for example, in the semiconductor industry. At a fundamental leve.....»»
North Atlantic Oscillation contributes to "cold blob" in Atlantic Ocean
A patch of ocean in the North Atlantic is stubbornly cooling while much of the planet warms. This anomaly—dubbed the "cold blob"—has been linked to changes in ocean circulation, but a new study found changes in large-scale atmospheric patterns ma.....»»
If rogue planets are everywhere, how could we explore them?
At one time, astronomers believed that the planets formed in their current orbits, which remained stable over time. But more recent observations, theory, and calculations have shown that planetary systems are subject to shake-ups and change. Periodic.....»»
Two additional exoplanets detected in a nearby planetary system
By conducting radial velocity (RV) follow-up observations of the GJ 367 planetary system with the High Accuracy Radial velocity Planet Searcher (HARPS), an international team of astronomers has detected two additional alien worlds, at least four time.....»»
Global warming will cause more multiyear La Niña events, study finds
Southern Oscillation (ENSO) is the Earth's most consequential interannual climate fluctuation. Alternating irregularly between warm El Niño and cold La Niña phases, it brings shifts in ocean surface temperature and disrupts wind and rainfall patter.....»»
PFAS detected in blood of horses and dogs too near factory in eastern North Carolina
Debra Stewart walked toward a horse paddock with a bag of carrots in hand. Whisper, a splashed chocolate and white paint horse, met her at the fence......»»
Social media roundup: CSAM on Mastodon; Zuckerberg faces contempt charge; Twitter’s bank plans
An investigation by the Stanford Internet Observatory has found worrying volumes of CSAM on Mastodon. Of particular concern is that the child sexual abuse material included many known examples that should have been automatically detected by digital.....»»
NASA"s IXPE fires up astronomers with new blazar findings
The universe is full of powerful supermassive black holes that create powerful jets of high-energy particles, creating sources of extreme brightness in the vastness of space. When one of those jets points directly at Earth, scientists call the black.....»»
Spontaneous quasi-crystal self-assembly observed using tiny vibrating magnetic spheres
A team of physicists at Université Paris-Saclay has, for the first time, observed spontaneous quasi-crystal self-assembly. The observation occurred during an experiment they were conducting with tiny vibrating magnetic spheres. The team has written.....»»
A tailor-made magnetic vortex: A closer look at a special kind of quasiparticle
Skyrmions are microscopic magnetic vortices that can form in certain materials. First detected in 2009, they are of interest to researchers because they could be harnessed for new forms of data storage. As theoreticians predicted, there are also so-c.....»»
Does this exoplanet have a "sibling" sharing the same orbit?
Using the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA), astronomers have found the possible "sibling" of a planet orbiting a distant star. The team has detected a cloud of debris that might be sharing this planet's orbit, which they believe co.....»»
Researchers operating Gamma-ray Burst Monitor discover brightest gamma-ray burst ever detected
The University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH) has announced that three researchers associated with the UAH Center for Space Plasma and Aeronomic Research (CSPAR) have discovered a gamma-ray burst (GRB) approximately 2.4 billion light-years away in th.....»»
New tidal disruption event discovered by Chinese astronomers
Astronomers from the University of Science and Technology of China in Hefei report the discovery of a new faint tidal disruption event (TDE). The newfound TDE, designated AT 2023clx is the faintest and closest optical TDE so far detected. The finding.....»»
Detecting nanoplastics in fractions of a second using modified Raman spectroscopy
Microplastics are tiny, barely visible plastic particles that can harm the environment, for example, if they are eaten by animals. However, it has been difficult to assess the effect of even smaller particles, which can hardly be detected using conve.....»»
We"ve detected a star barely hotter than a pizza oven—the coldest ever found to emit radio waves
We have identified the coldest star ever found to produce radio waves—a brown dwarf too small to be a regular star and too massive to be a planet......»»
Microsoft takes pains to obscure role in 0-days that caused email breach
Critics also decry Microsoft's "pay-to-play" monitoring that detected intrusions. Enlarge (credit: Getty Images | Aurich Lawson) On Friday, Microsoft attempted to explain the cause of a breach that gave hackers working f.....»»
Astronomers discover a luminous nuclear transient
Using NASA's Swift spacecraft, an international team of astronomers has discovered a luminous and slowly-evolving nuclear transient event. The origin of the newly detected transient, designated Swift J221951-484240, is yet to be determined. The findi.....»»
New breakthrough shows how short pulses of light destroy particles
Polaritons are a peculiar state, a kind of quasi-particles consisting of part-light and part-matter that can bring unexpected abilities to conventional chemical reactions. New research from Umeå University and others reveals that when the polaritons.....»»