The earliest atmosphere on Mercury
Mercury is a most unusual planet. The smallest planet in the solar system, and the closest planet to the sun, it is in a 3:2 spin resonance, slowly turning and experiencing scorching heat up to 430 degrees Celsius, and the night side frigid, down to.....»»
Powering enzymes with light to make ammonia
The Earth's atmosphere contains large amounts of nitrogen in the form of dinitrogen gas (N2). Converting N2 to ammonia (NH3) is critical for making the fertilizer needed for agriculture......»»
In world first, Russian chess player poisons rival’s board with mercury
At least it wasn't novichok. Enlarge / Amina Abakarova allegedly spreading mercury on her rival's chess board. Russia is no stranger to unique poisonings. State agents have been known to use everything from polonium-lac.....»»
The earliest traces of life on Earth—researchers explore carbon in 3.9-billion-year-old Canadian rocks
The isotopic composition of carbon in iron formations from the Saglek-Hebron Complex in Nunatsiavut (northern Labrador) has been seen as evidence of the earliest traces of life on Earth. But a new study by the University of Ottawa, Carleton Universit.....»»
Model suggests spewing metal nanorods into Mars" atmosphere could warm the planet by 30 K
A small team of engineers and geophysicists from Northwestern University, the University of Chicago, and the University of Central Florida has found, via modeling, that creating millions of metal nanorods from material on the Martian surface and then.....»»
NASA Retires Asteroid-Hunting Telescope
NASA’s NEOWISE telescope has searched for asteroids, brown dwarfs and luminous galaxies. The spacecraft will soon burn up in Earth’s atmosphere.....»»
Mercury Weather gets new widget and extra data provider with its latest update
As I once wrote here on 9to5Mac, Mercury is an elegant weather app for Apple devices for those looking for an alternative to the native iOS Weather app. The developers behind the app have just released a major update to it, which adds things like a.....»»
How efficiently different US forests will remove atmospheric carbon in the future
Forests absorb carbon by capturing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, making forest carbon stocks an important resource against climate change. In research published in Ecology and Evolution, investigators examined existing tree regeneration pattern.....»»
Researchers identify useful emission lines in the sun"s outer atmosphere
When studying the solar spectrum, researchers often search for specific emission lines: prominent wavelengths emitted by ions as their electrons transition from higher to lower energy levels. Emission spectra of two iron ions, Fe IX and Fe X, are par.....»»
Scientists pin down the origins of the moon"s tenuous atmosphere
While the moon lacks any breathable air, it does host a barely-there atmosphere. Since the 1980s, astronomers have observed a very thin layer of atoms bouncing over the moon's surface. This delicate atmosphere—technically known as an "exosphere"—.....»»
First full 2-D spectral image of aurora borealis from a hyperspectral camera
Auroras are natural luminous phenomena caused by the interaction of electrons falling from the sky and the upper atmosphere. Most of the observed light consists of emission lines of neutral or ionized nitrogen and oxygen atoms and molecular emission.....»»
Scientists find a human "fingerprint" in the upper troposphere"s increasing ozone
Ozone can be an agent of good or harm, depending on where you find it in the atmosphere. Way up in the stratosphere, the colorless gas shields the Earth from the sun's harsh ultraviolet rays. But closer to the ground, ozone is a harmful air pollutant.....»»
Sea level changes shaped early life on Earth, fossils show
A newly developed timeline of early animal fossils reveals a link between sea levels, changes in marine oxygen, and the appearance of the earliest ancestors of present-day animals......»»
Predicting solar storms before they leave the sun
When giant solar storms hit Earth, they trigger beautiful auroral displays high in Earth's atmosphere. There's a dark side to this solar activity, though. The "space weather" it sets off also threatens our technology. The potential for damage is why.....»»
Ammonia-free gallium nitride semiconductor production found to improve crystal quality, reduce environmental impact
Gallium nitride (GaN) semiconductors can now be grown without ammonia, a toxic chemical that needs a sophisticated detoxifying system before it can be released into the atmosphere. The new technique is not only more environmentally friendly but also.....»»
The New Gods of Weather Can Make Rain on Demand—or So They Want You to Believe
In a gold-trimmed command center on the outskirts of Abu Dhabi, scientists are seeking to wring moisture from desert skies. But will all their extravagant cloud-seeding tech—planes that sprinkle nanomaterials, lasers that scramble the atmosphere—.....»»
Scientists untangle interactions between the Earth"s early life forms and the environment over 500 million years
The atmosphere, the ocean and life on Earth have interacted over the past 500-plus million years in ways that improved conditions for early organisms to thrive. Now, an interdisciplinary team of scientists has produced a perspective article on this c.....»»
Researchers develop high-sensitivity technique to detect mercury in soil
Environmental pollution by heavy metals is a major social problem. Among these metals, mercury (Hg) is strictly controlled due to its high toxicity. Focusing on soil, which is closely related to our daily lives, the environmental standard for mercury.....»»
Rock art and archaeological record reveal man"s complex relationship with Amazonian animals
Rock art explored by archaeologists in the Colombian Amazon has provided an insight into the complex relationship between the earliest settlers on the continent and the animals they encountered......»»
Trees reveal climate surprise: Microbes living in bark remove methane from the atmosphere
Tree bark surfaces play an important role in removing methane gas from the atmosphere, according to a study published 24 July in Nature......»»
New research proposes better carbon storage with stacked geology
The overarching goal of all carbon capture and storage projects is the same: Keep carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions out of the atmosphere by storing them in the subsurface for good......»»