<p>The iconic Hubble Space Telescope has developed a glitch yet again and has entered 'safe mode' suspending scientific operation. The iconic but ageing piece of technology has needed constant repairs in recent years underlining need for new eye in the sky.</p>

<p>Hubble's safe mode allows the telescope to remain powered using its solar panels as scientists figure out ways to address the issue.</p>

<p>"The Hubble operations team is continuing work to resolve the issue that caused Hubble’s science instruments to enter safe mode Oct. 25. They are analyzing existing data and collecting additional data to further isolate and address the issue," NASA tweeted on Tuesday.</p>

<p>Hubble has been facing trouble since October 23 due to synchronisation errors. NASA says that synchronisation messages are necessary to provide “information the instruments use to correctly respond to data requests and commands.”</p>

<p>Scientists were able to rectify the problem after October 23 glitch by resetting the instruments on the space telescope but the problem occurred again on October 25.</p>

<p>Hubble Space Telescope was launched in 1990 to eliminate problems we face in observing the universe from the Earth's surface.</p>

<p>This is not the first time Hubble has developed problems. Hubble's payload computer malfunctioned in June this year and the space telescope entered safe mode.</p>

<p>James Webb Telescope, a successor to Hubble is all set to be launched into space next month. The telescope is armed with the latest technology and will be able to observe the universe in much better way than Hubble currently does. It is expected that Hubble will be able to aid space research for a decade more.</p>


The iconic Hubble Space Telescope has developed a glitch yet again and has entered 'safe mode' suspending scientific operation. The iconic but ageing piece of technology has needed constant repairs in recent years underlining need for new eye in the sky.

The iconic Hubble Space Telescope has developed a glitch yet again and has entered 'safe mode' suspending scientific operation. The iconic but ageing piece of technology has needed constant repairs in recent years underlining need for new eye in the sky. Hubble's safe mode allows the telescope to remain powered using its solar panels as scientists figure out ways to address the issue. "The Hubble operations team is continuing work to resolve the issue that caused Hubble’s science instruments to enter safe mode Oct. 25. They are analyzing existing data and collecting additional data to further isolate and address the issue," NASA tweeted on Tuesday. Hubble has been facing trouble since October 23 due to synchronisation errors. NASA says that synchronisation messages are necessary to provide “information the instruments use to correctly respond to data requests and commands.” Scientists were able to rectify the problem after October 23 glitch by resetting the instruments on the space telescope but the problem occurred again on October 25. Hubble Space Telescope was launched in 1990 to eliminate problems we face in observing the universe from the Earth's surface. This is not the first time Hubble has developed problems. Hubble's payload computer malfunctioned in June this year and the space telescope entered safe mode. James Webb Telescope, a successor to Hubble is all set to be launched into space next month. The telescope is armed with the latest technology and will be able to observe the universe in much better way than Hubble currently does. It is expected that Hubble will be able to aid space research for a decade more.

Hubble in trouble: Space telescope enters safe mode, suspends operations

<p>Space is full of wonders beyond our imagination. Though we have gazed far and deep into reaches of the black expanse, a lot remains unknown and what is known continues to surprise and mesmerise us. It's a good thing NASA and other space agencies are keeping track of it all.</p>

<p>A new image posted by NASA has transfixed everyone. The image shows a celestial structure that is like an eye in the sky looking at us from above. The eye does not appear benevolently watchful but has a mesmerising glow to it. The eyelashes are blue while the iris is blazing red.</p>

<p>Who is watching? God? or the Devil himself?</p>

<p>The eerie beauty is imparted to the photo by Helix Nebula which has been captured by Spitzer telescope. Helix Nebula is 700 light-years away from Earth and located in the Aquarius constellation.</p>

<p>NASA has posted the image on its Instagram account.</p>

<p>"The two-light-year diameter shroud of dust and gas around a central white dwarf, is an example of a planetary nebula, one of the final stages in the evolution of a Sun-like star. The dust makes this cosmic eye gleam red," says NASA in its Instagram post.</p>

<p><strong>Also Read | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/science/nasa-posts-image-of-hand-of-god-netizens-are-awestruck-416265">NASA posts image of 'Hand of God', netizens are awestruck</a></strong></p>

<p>NASA further explains that nebular material was ejected from the star thousands of years ago.</p>

<p>"...the close-in dust could be generated by collisions in a reservoir of objects, like our own solar system’s Kuiper Belt or cometary Oort cloud. Formed in the distant planetary system, the comet-like bodies have otherwise survived the dramatic late stages of the star’s evolution...," says NASA</p>

<p>Check out the image</p>

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<p>The image has gone crazy viral on Instagram and has been liked by more than 1000000 people.</p>


Space is full of wonders beyond our imagination. Though we have gazed far and deep into reaches of the black expanse, a lot remains unknown and what is known continues to surprise and mesmerise us.

Space is full of wonders beyond our imagination. Though we have gazed far and deep into reaches of the black expanse, a lot remains unknown and what is known continues to surprise and mesmerise us. It's a good thing NASA and other space agencies are keeping track of it all. A new image posted by NASA has transfixed everyone. The image shows a celestial structure that is like an eye in the sky looking at us from above. The eye does not appear benevolently watchful but has a mesmerising glow to it. The eyelashes are blue while the iris is blazing red. Who is watching? God? or the Devil himself? The eerie beauty is imparted to the photo by Helix Nebula which has been captured by Spitzer telescope. Helix Nebula is 700 light-years away from Earth and located in the Aquarius constellation. NASA has posted the image on its Instagram account. "The two-light-year diameter shroud of dust and gas around a central white dwarf, is an example of a planetary nebula, one of the final stages in the evolution of a Sun-like star. The dust makes this cosmic eye gleam red," says NASA in its Instagram post. Also Read | NASA posts image of 'Hand of God', netizens are awestruck NASA further explains that nebular material was ejected from the star thousands of years ago. "...the close-in dust could be generated by collisions in a reservoir of objects, like our own solar system’s Kuiper Belt or cometary Oort cloud. Formed in the distant planetary system, the comet-like bodies have otherwise survived the dramatic late stages of the star’s evolution...," says NASA Check out the image View this post on Instagram A post shared by NASA (@nasa) × The image has gone crazy viral on Instagram and has been liked by more than 1000000 people.

Devil's eye? NASA posts eerie image of Helix Nebula in Halloween season

<p>In coming years, Indian astronauts will be in space for the Gaganyaan mission, while Indian marine researchers will dive into the depths of the ocean (6kms), as a part of the Samudrayaan mission. Samudrayaan is India's ambitious deep-sea exploration mission, that will place the country in an elite list of about six nations that have operated manned, deep-sea probes for exploration, studies and research. Scientists had recently tested a basic version of the human-carrying shell of the Samudrayaan mission, off the Chennai coast. However, this was a steel hull meant for demonstration and had only been sent to a depth of 500m, as opposed to the original titanium hull that would have to dive 6km deep in the sea &nbsp;</p>

<p>Helmed by India’s National Institute of Ocean Technology, this initiative has roped in partners such as IITs, ISRO among others to fulfill various aspects of the design, testing and development within the country. The primary goal of the Samudrayaan Mission is to develop Matsya 6000, a manned deep-sea exploration vehicle that will be propelled by battery power and would be able to remain at a depth of 6 km for a duration of four hours.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The vehicle is a platform to carry devices, sensors and other equipment and to conduct experiments that would further enable deep-sea mineral exploration, improve understanding of mineral resources, investigation of tectonic activities and other deep-sea phenomena. This vehicle would be capable of carrying three persons, in a titanium-alloy sphere.</p>

<p>Regarding the technical specifications of the Samudrayaan manned vehicle, Dr Ramadass, Director, NIOT said that it would contain a thick hull that can withstand a pressure of 600 bar, at the depths of 6km. As a part of the initial testing of human capsule, it was submerged to a depth of 500 m</p>

<p>“This is a five year project, where the end goal is to get a titanium-alloy sphere of 80mm thickness and 2.1 metre diameter, which can carry humans. The components that go into the vehicle are being tested one by one. Many are being developed within India and some are being bought from the International market,” he said.&nbsp;</p>

<p>When asked about the budget allocated for the project, Dr Ramadass told WION that the whole deep ocean mission was cleared for funds of Rs 4077 crore, for a period of five years. However, the Samudrayaan vehicle alone would cost around Rs 350 crore.&nbsp;</p>

<p>On the rationale behind having a manned mission to such depths, instead of using unmanned vehicles, the director explained that electromagnetic waves would not penetrate water to great depths and that there were limitations in sending a tethered vehicle to the depths of the ocean.&nbsp;</p>

<p>“In a manned mission, we will be having a standalone probe that will have its own propulsion, oxygen generation, carbon dioxide removal, lights and cameras and other sensors. We can also have basic acoustic communication with the manned probe”, he explained.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Speaking at the launch event, union minister Dr Jitendra Singh said that missions like Gaganyaan human spaceflight and Samudrayaan manned deep-sea exploration gave Indians a sense of prestige and elevated India to a list of a few elite nations. He also touched upon the importance of industry and academia working together to attain such national missions.&nbsp;</p>


In coming years, Indian astronauts will be in space for the Gaganyaan mission, while Indian marine researchers will dive into the depths of the ocean (6kms), as a part of the Samudrayaan mission.

In coming years, Indian astronauts will be in space for the Gaganyaan mission, while Indian marine researchers will dive into the depths of the ocean (6kms), as a part of the Samudrayaan mission. Samudrayaan is India's ambitious deep-sea exploration mission, that will place the country in an elite list of about six nations that have operated manned, deep-sea probes for exploration, studies and research. Scientists had recently tested a basic version of the human-carrying shell of the Samudrayaan mission, off the Chennai coast. However, this was a steel hull meant for demonstration and had only been sent to a depth of 500m, as opposed to the original titanium hull that would have to dive 6km deep in the sea Helmed by India’s National Institute of Ocean Technology, this initiative has roped in partners such as IITs, ISRO among others to fulfill various aspects of the design, testing and development within the country. The primary goal of the Samudrayaan Mission is to develop Matsya 6000, a manned deep-sea exploration vehicle that will be propelled by battery power and would be able to remain at a depth of 6 km for a duration of four hours. The vehicle is a platform to carry devices, sensors and other equipment and to conduct experiments that would further enable deep-sea mineral exploration, improve understanding of mineral resources, investigation of tectonic activities and other deep-sea phenomena. This vehicle would be capable of carrying three persons, in a titanium-alloy sphere. Regarding the technical specifications of the Samudrayaan manned vehicle, Dr Ramadass, Director, NIOT said that it would contain a thick hull that can withstand a pressure of 600 bar, at the depths of 6km. As a part of the initial testing of human capsule, it was submerged to a depth of 500 m “This is a five year project, where the end goal is to get a titanium-alloy sphere of 80mm thickness and 2.1 metre diameter, which can carry humans. The components that go into the vehicle are being tested one by one. Many are being developed within India and some are being bought from the International market,” he said. When asked about the budget allocated for the project, Dr Ramadass told WION that the whole deep ocean mission was cleared for funds of Rs 4077 crore, for a period of five years. However, the Samudrayaan vehicle alone would cost around Rs 350 crore. On the rationale behind having a manned mission to such depths, instead of using unmanned vehicles, the director explained that electromagnetic waves would not penetrate water to great depths and that there were limitations in sending a tethered vehicle to the depths of the ocean. “In a manned mission, we will be having a standalone probe that will have its own propulsion, oxygen generation, carbon dioxide removal, lights and cameras and other sensors. We can also have basic acoustic communication with the manned probe”, he explained. Speaking at the launch event, union minister Dr Jitendra Singh said that missions like Gaganyaan human spaceflight and Samudrayaan manned deep-sea exploration gave Indians a sense of prestige and elevated India to a list of a few elite nations. He also touched upon the importance of industry and academia working together to attain such national missions.

Samudrayaan: India's first manned deep-sea probe to travel 6 km under water

<p>We've all been through this:&nbsp;we wake up around 3 am and before we realise, our mind is flooded with thoughts about past, people, incidents and more. More often than not, these memories are unpleasant. We think our problems are unsolvable. And thus our mind gets dragged on and on into a vortex of thoughts.&nbsp;</p>

<p>When such a thing happens, it seems like we are the only ones in this world to ponder over endless things. But this experience is more common than we think.</p>

<p>Science tells us why this happens. Psychologists are pointing at the neurobiological changes that take place around 3 or 4 am.</p>

<p>Around this time in the night, the core body temperature starts to rise. Since we are already a bit rested, the body's drive to sleep more is reduced. Melatonin (the sleep hormone) secretion peaks. And as the body is preparing to launch us into the day, levels of Cortisol (a stress hormone) are increased.</p>

<p>At 3 am, we are not left with any practical coping strategies. For example, a misunderstanding with someone can just be cleared by calling that person. But it's possible only during the day.</p>

<p>We are thus left in the dark with our thoughts, and problems appear unsolvable.</p>

<p>When we are awake, we are in a situation to find possible solutions to our predicaments. But 3 am thoughts indeed catch us off guard.</p>


We've all been through this: we wake up around 3 am and before we realise, our mind is flooded with thoughts about past, people, incidents and more. More often than not, these memories are unpleasant.

We've all been through this: we wake up around 3 am and before we realise, our mind is flooded with thoughts about past, people, incidents and more. More often than not, these memories are unpleasant. We think our problems are unsolvable. And thus our mind gets dragged on and on into a vortex of thoughts. When such a thing happens, it seems like we are the only ones in this world to ponder over endless things. But this experience is more common than we think. Science tells us why this happens. Psychologists are pointing at the neurobiological changes that take place around 3 or 4 am. Around this time in the night, the core body temperature starts to rise. Since we are already a bit rested, the body's drive to sleep more is reduced. Melatonin (the sleep hormone) secretion peaks. And as the body is preparing to launch us into the day, levels of Cortisol (a stress hormone) are increased. At 3 am, we are not left with any practical coping strategies. For example, a misunderstanding with someone can just be cleared by calling that person. But it's possible only during the day. We are thus left in the dark with our thoughts, and problems appear unsolvable. When we are awake, we are in a situation to find possible solutions to our predicaments. But 3 am thoughts indeed catch us off guard.

Why do we wake up at 3 am and think negative thoughts? Science has answer

<p>Anyone says Antarctica and all we can think of is endless ice sheets and cute-looking penguins. It's hard to imagine anything else happening. Antarctica is a frozen desert with negligible vegetation and limited animal life. Can we even imagine dinosaurs roaming there amid huge wildfires raging? And even volcanic activity?</p>

<p>But apparently that was a thing for the frozen continent around 75 million years ago.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Earth went through one of the warmest periods between 66 to 100 million years ago. This meant that there was ample space for vegetation to grow. This in turn led to forest fires. And this period coincided with that which has the mighty dinosaurs ruling the global ecosystem.</p>

<p>Scientists have found evidence of the forest fire in Antarctica. An international team of researchers led by the Federal University of Pernambuco in Brazil found fossils that tell of these mega forest fires in distant past.</p>

<p>The researchers travelled to Antarctica's James Ross Island (2015-16) where they found fossils that had charcoal-like residue which hinted at forest-fires.</p>

<p>A theory that Antarctica was frequented with forest fires has already been put forward six years ago. The discovery of fossils with charcoal residue was a piece of evidence for this theory.</p>

<p><strong>What triggered the wildfires?</strong></p>

<p>Scientists have given another surprising reason for this. They think that volcanic activity (on Antarctica!) may have led to these frequent forest fires among other factors.</p>

<p>Earth is one freaky planet indeed!</p>


Anyone says Antarctica and all we can think of is endless ice sheets and cute-looking penguins. It's hard to imagine anything else happening. Antarctica is a frozen desert with negligible vegetation and limited animal life.

Anyone says Antarctica and all we can think of is endless ice sheets and cute-looking penguins. It's hard to imagine anything else happening. Antarctica is a frozen desert with negligible vegetation and limited animal life. Can we even imagine dinosaurs roaming there amid huge wildfires raging? And even volcanic activity? But apparently that was a thing for the frozen continent around 75 million years ago. Earth went through one of the warmest periods between 66 to 100 million years ago. This meant that there was ample space for vegetation to grow. This in turn led to forest fires. And this period coincided with that which has the mighty dinosaurs ruling the global ecosystem. Scientists have found evidence of the forest fire in Antarctica. An international team of researchers led by the Federal University of Pernambuco in Brazil found fossils that tell of these mega forest fires in distant past. The researchers travelled to Antarctica's James Ross Island (2015-16) where they found fossils that had charcoal-like residue which hinted at forest-fires. A theory that Antarctica was frequented with forest fires has already been put forward six years ago. The discovery of fossils with charcoal residue was a piece of evidence for this theory. What triggered the wildfires? Scientists have given another surprising reason for this. They think that volcanic activity (on Antarctica!) may have led to these frequent forest fires among other factors. Earth is one freaky planet indeed!

Antarctica burned with forest fires when dinosaurs roamed Earth, says study

<p>It perhaps is a dream of all of us to find a new planet or a star. If the discovery is vital enough, they even may give the planet our name. But not all of us have the scientific know-how to actually do that and all we can do is dream.</p>

<p>But now in our connected world, anything is possible. And if you really want to help scientists discover a new planet, all you need is a web browser and the internet.</p>

<p>The mission is to observe changes in brightness of stars. If a planet comes between us and the star, the star may dim in a certain way indicating presence of the planet.</p>

<p>There is a lot of data to sift through. The images and data has been captured by NGTS telescopes based at the European Southern Observatory (ESO) Paranal Observatory in Chile.</p>

<p><strong>Also Read | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/science/jupiter-collides-with-a-space-rock-japanese-skywatchers-observe-event-423312">Jupiter collides with a space rock, collision causes flash in its atmosphere</a></strong></p>

<p>The NGTS telescope captures images of thousands of stars in the space.</p>

<p>So why don't our softwares find the planets? Astronomers have been quoted in media reports as saying that current softwares do not capture the dimming effectively. They may miss a dimming star or falsely report presence of a planet. That's where volunteers come in.</p>

<p>If you are interested, you can head to Planet Hunters NGST page to get started. And if you think all the exercise is futile, remember that a mechanic in Australia has already found an unusual four-planet solar system.</p>


It perhaps is a dream of all of us to find a new planet or a star. If the discovery is vital enough, they even may give the planet our name. But not all of us have the scientific know-how to actually do that and all we can do is dream.

It perhaps is a dream of all of us to find a new planet or a star. If the discovery is vital enough, they even may give the planet our name. But not all of us have the scientific know-how to actually do that and all we can do is dream. But now in our connected world, anything is possible. And if you really want to help scientists discover a new planet, all you need is a web browser and the internet. The mission is to observe changes in brightness of stars. If a planet comes between us and the star, the star may dim in a certain way indicating presence of the planet. There is a lot of data to sift through. The images and data has been captured by NGTS telescopes based at the European Southern Observatory (ESO) Paranal Observatory in Chile. Also Read | Jupiter collides with a space rock, collision causes flash in its atmosphere The NGTS telescope captures images of thousands of stars in the space. So why don't our softwares find the planets? Astronomers have been quoted in media reports as saying that current softwares do not capture the dimming effectively. They may miss a dimming star or falsely report presence of a planet. That's where volunteers come in. If you are interested, you can head to Planet Hunters NGST page to get started. And if you think all the exercise is futile, remember that a mechanic in Australia has already found an unusual four-planet solar system.

Scientists want you to help them discover new planets, here's how

<p>Some readers may remember the time when a legit comet collided with planet Jupiter. The exceptional event that took place in the year 1992 was huge news worldwide as it was first such event taking place inside solar system when human technology was developed enough to observe it in detail. As the comet approached Jupiter, it broke apart and created several bright flashes that were observed by telescopes on Earth and in space.</p>

<p>A similar event has grabbed headlines now. This time the object that hit Jupiter may not be as spectacular as a comet but has generated interest in scientific community nonetheless.</p>

<p><strong>Also Read | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/science/asteroid-deflecting-nasa-spacecraft-begins-final-preparations-422759">Asteroid-deflecting NASA spacecraft begins final preparations</a></strong></p>

<p>On October 15, a flash in Jupiter's atmosphere attracted attention of skywatchers in Japan. A Twitter user who photographed the event told news websites that the flash appeared to last long.</p>

<p>The flash was also observed by team of astronomers at Japan's Kyoto University. A space rock had collided with the gas giant.</p>

<p><strong>Also Read | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/science/china-plans-to-extract-oxygen-from-moons-surface-report-422444">China plans to extract oxygen from Moon's surface: Report</a></strong></p>

<p>According to Sky &amp; Telescope, the space rock hit Jupiter's northern hemisphere.</p>

<p>Space rocks, asteroids and even comets are attracted to Jupiter due to the planet's enormous gravity. The biggest planet in our solar system has a monstrous pull on objects venturing too close to it. The planet is jokingly called a 'vacuum cleaner' of the solar system but in all seriousness, Jupiter may have been the reason we are alive today because of it eating up a rogue asteroid heading our way in all these years.</p>


Some readers may remember the time when a legit comet collided with planet Jupiter. The exceptional event that took place in the year 1992 was huge news worldwide as it was first such event taking place inside solar system when human technology was developed enough to observe it in detail.

Some readers may remember the time when a legit comet collided with planet Jupiter. The exceptional event that took place in the year 1992 was huge news worldwide as it was first such event taking place inside solar system when human technology was developed enough to observe it in detail. As the comet approached Jupiter, it broke apart and created several bright flashes that were observed by telescopes on Earth and in space. A similar event has grabbed headlines now. This time the object that hit Jupiter may not be as spectacular as a comet but has generated interest in scientific community nonetheless. Also Read | Asteroid-deflecting NASA spacecraft begins final preparations On October 15, a flash in Jupiter's atmosphere attracted attention of skywatchers in Japan. A Twitter user who photographed the event told news websites that the flash appeared to last long. The flash was also observed by team of astronomers at Japan's Kyoto University. A space rock had collided with the gas giant. Also Read | China plans to extract oxygen from Moon's surface: Report According to Sky & Telescope, the space rock hit Jupiter's northern hemisphere. Space rocks, asteroids and even comets are attracted to Jupiter due to the planet's enormous gravity. The biggest planet in our solar system has a monstrous pull on objects venturing too close to it. The planet is jokingly called a 'vacuum cleaner' of the solar system but in all seriousness, Jupiter may have been the reason we are alive today because of it eating up a rogue asteroid heading our way in all these years.

Jupiter collides with a space rock, collision causes flash in its atmosphere

<p>Asteroids may be small as compared to Earth, but their destructive power is huge due to momentum imparted to them by their speed. An asteroid struck Earth millions of years ago and ended the reign of dinosaurs. Such a rogue asteroid will very much be capable of ending human civilisation as we know it. Planetary defence hence is an important aspect of our space studies.</p>

<p>Humankind is taking first steps in this direction. NASA's asteroid deflecting spacecraft has begun final preparations before its lift-off. The spacecraft will lift-off in November this year. SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will take it in space.</p>

<p>The spacecraft is now at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. It was transported there on October 2.</p>

<p>"The spacecraft will go through a series of final tests and checks, as well as fueling, in the next few weeks as the team prepares for DART’s scheduled launch," NASA said.</p>

<p>DART is an acronym for Double Asteroid Redirection Test.</p>

<p>"DART will be the world’s first mission to test planetary defense techniques, demonstrating one mitigation method of asteroid deflection, called kinetic impact. DART will impact the small asteroid moonlet Dimorphos, which orbits a larger companion, Didymos, in a binary asteroid system to change its orbital period. Although neither asteroid poses a threat to Earth, the collision with Dimorphos enables researchers to demonstrate the deflection technique along with several new technologies, and collect important data to enhance our modeling and predictive capabilities for asteroid deflection. Those enhancements will help us better prepare should an asteroid ever be discovered as a threat to Earth," NASA said on its website<br />
&nbsp;</p>


Asteroids may be small as compared to Earth, but their destructive power is huge due to momentum imparted to them by their speed. An asteroid struck Earth millions of years ago and ended the reign of dinosaurs.

Asteroids may be small as compared to Earth, but their destructive power is huge due to momentum imparted to them by their speed. An asteroid struck Earth millions of years ago and ended the reign of dinosaurs. Such a rogue asteroid will very much be capable of ending human civilisation as we know it. Planetary defence hence is an important aspect of our space studies. Humankind is taking first steps in this direction. NASA's asteroid deflecting spacecraft has begun final preparations before its lift-off. The spacecraft will lift-off in November this year. SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will take it in space. The spacecraft is now at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. It was transported there on October 2. "The spacecraft will go through a series of final tests and checks, as well as fueling, in the next few weeks as the team prepares for DART’s scheduled launch," NASA said. DART is an acronym for Double Asteroid Redirection Test. "DART will be the world’s first mission to test planetary defense techniques, demonstrating one mitigation method of asteroid deflection, called kinetic impact. DART will impact the small asteroid moonlet Dimorphos, which orbits a larger companion, Didymos, in a binary asteroid system to change its orbital period. Although neither asteroid poses a threat to Earth, the collision with Dimorphos enables researchers to demonstrate the deflection technique along with several new technologies, and collect important data to enhance our modeling and predictive capabilities for asteroid deflection. Those enhancements will help us better prepare should an asteroid ever be discovered as a threat to Earth," NASA said on its website

Asteroid-deflecting NASA spacecraft begins final preparations

<p>On Jan. 9, 2020, about a week after the world first learned of a mysterious cluster of pneumonia cases in central China, authorities announced that scientists had found the culprit: a novel coronavirus.</p>

<p>It was a sobering announcement and an unnervingly familiar one. Nearly two decades earlier, a different coronavirus had hurdled over the species barrier and sped around the world, causing a lethal new disease called severe acute respiratory syndrome, or SARS. The virus, which became known as SARS-CoV, killed 774 people before health officials contained it.</p>

<p>But even as scientists worried that history might be repeating itself, there was one glimmer of hope. Although all viruses evolve, coronaviruses are known to be relatively stable, changing more slowly than the common flu.</p>

<p>“There was, I think, a sense that would work in our favor and that the nightmare scenario of it being like influenza — constantly changing and needing updated vaccines all the time — would probably not be the case,” said Dr. Adam Lauring, a virus expert and infectious disease physician at the University of Michigan.</p>

<p>What many scientists had not counted on was unchecked global spread. During the following weeks, the new virus, SARS-CoV-2, skipped from Wuhan, China, to a cruise ship in Japan, a small town in northern Italy and a biotechnology conference in Boston. Country by country, global coronavirus trackers turned red.</p>

<p>To date, more than 237 million people have been infected with the virus, and 4.8 million have died — 700,000 in the United States alone.</p>

<p>With every infection come new opportunities for the virus to mutate. Now, nearly two years into the pandemic, we are working our way through an alphabet of new viral variants: fast-spreading alpha, immune-evading beta, and on through gamma, delta, lambda and, most recently, mu.</p>

<p>“We just have uncontrolled infections in much of the world, and that’s going to lead to more chances for the virus to evolve,” Lauring said.</p>

<p>Even for a virus, evolution is a long game, and our relationship with SARS-CoV-2 is still in its infancy. We are extremely unlikely to eradicate the virus, scientists say, and what the next few years — and decades — hold is difficult to predict.</p>

<p>But the legacy of past epidemics, as well as some basic biological principles, provides clues to where we could be headed.</p>

<p><strong>The Genetic Lottery</strong></p>

<p>Viruses are replication machines, hijacking our cells to make copies of their own genomes. Sometimes they make small mistakes, akin to typos, as they replicate.</p>

<p>Most of the time, these errors have no benefit for the virus; many are harmful and quickly disappear. But occasionally, a virus hits the genetic lottery: a mutation that confers an advantage. This fitter version of the virus can then outcompete its peers, giving rise to a new variant.</p>

<p>The coronavirus could shift in countless ways, but there are three concerning possibilities: It could become more transmissible, it could become better at evading our immune system, or it could become more virulent, causing more serious disease.</p>

<p>SARS-CoV-2 has already become more transmissible. “The virus is just better at transmitting from one person to another than it was in January of 2020,” said Jesse Bloom, an expert in viral evolution at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle. “And this is due to a variety of mutations that the virus has acquired, some of which we understand, and some of which we don’t.”</p>

<p>One of the first of these mutations had already emerged by late January 2020. The mutation, D614G, most likely stabilized the spike protein that the virus uses to latch onto human cells, making the virus more infectious. It quickly became widespread, displacing the original version of the virus.</p>

<p>As the virus spread, more mutations sprang up, giving rise to even more transmissible variants. First came alpha, which was about 50% more infectious than the original virus, and soon delta, which was, in turn, roughly 50% more infectious than alpha.</p>

<p>“Now we’re basically in a delta pandemic,” said Robert Garry, a virus expert at Tulane University. “So another surge, another spread of a slightly better variant.”</p>

<p>Although some experts were surprised to see the hyperinfectious variant, which has more than a dozen notable mutations, emerge so quickly, the appearance of more transmissible variants is textbook viral evolution.</p>

<p>“It’s hard to imagine that the virus is going to pop into a new species perfectly formed for that species,” said Andrew Read, an evolutionary microbiologist at Penn State University. “It’s bound to do some adaptation.”</p>

<p>But scientists don’t expect this process to continue forever.</p>

<p>There are likely to be some basic biological limits on just how infectious a particular virus can become, based on its intrinsic properties. Viruses that are well adapted to humans, such as measles and the seasonal influenza, are not constantly becoming more infectious, Bloom noted.</p>

<p>It is not entirely clear what the constraints on transmissibility are, he added, but at the very least, the new coronavirus cannot replicate infinitely fast or travel infinitely far.</p>

<p>“Transmission requires one person to somehow exhale or cough or breathe out the virus, and it to land in someone else’s airway and infect them,” Bloom said. “There are just limits to that process. It’s never going to be the case that I’m sitting here in my office, and I’m giving it to someone on the other side of Seattle, right?”</p>

<p>He added: “Whether the delta variant is already at that plateau, or whether there’s going to be further increases before it gets to that plateau, I can’t say. But I do think that plateau exists.”</p>

<p><strong>Dodging Immunity</strong></p>

<p>In addition to becoming more transmissible, some variants have also acquired the ability to dodge some of our antibodies. Antibodies, which can prevent the virus from entering our cells, are engineered to latch onto specific molecules on the surface of the virus, snapping into place like puzzle pieces. But genetic mutations in the virus can change the shape of those binding sites.</p>

<p>“If you change that shape, you can make it impossible for an antibody to do its job,” said Marion Pepper, an immunologist at the University of Washington School of Medicine.</p>

<p>Delta appears to evade some antibodies, but there are other variants, particularly beta, that are even better at dodging these defenses. For now, delta is so infectious that it has managed to outcompete, and thus limit the spread of, these stealthier variants.</p>

<p>But as more people acquire antibodies against the virus, mutations that allow the virus to slip past these antibodies will become even more advantageous. “The landscape of selection has changed,” said Jessica Metcalf, an evolutionary biologist at Princeton University. “From the point of view of the virus, it’s no longer, ‘I just bop around, and there’s a free host.’ ”</p>

<p>The good news is that there are many different kinds of antibodies, and a variant with a few new mutations is unlikely to escape them all, experts said.</p>

<p>“The immune system has also evolved to have plenty of tricks up its sleeve to counteract the evolution of the virus,” Pepper said. “Knowing that there is this complex level of diversity in the immune system allows me to sleep better at night.”</p>

<p>Certain T cells, for instance, destroy virus-infected cells, helping to reduce the severity of disease. Together, our assortment of T cells can recognize at least 30 to 40 different pieces of SARS-CoV-2, researchers have found.</p>

<p>“It’s a lot harder to evade T cell responses than antibody responses,” said Dr. Celine Gounder, an infectious disease specialist at the New York University Grossman School of Medicine.</p>

<p>And then there are B cells, which generate our army of antibodies. Even after we clear the infection, the body keeps churning out B cells for a while, deliberately introducing small genetic mutations. The result is an enormously diverse collection of B cells producing an array of antibodies, some of which might be a good match for the next variant that comes along.</p>

<p>“They’re actually a library of guesses that the immune system makes about what variants might look like in the future,” said Shane Crotty, a virus expert at the La Jolla Institute for Immunology.</p>

<p>So far, studies suggest that our antibody, T cell and B cell responses are all working as expected when it comes to SARS-CoV-2. “This virus is mostly playing by immunological rules we understand,” Crotty said.</p>

<p><strong>‘No Interest in Killing Us’</strong></p>

<p>Whether the virus will become more virulent — that is, whether it will cause more serious disease — is the hardest to predict, scientists said. Unlike transmissibility or immune evasion, virulence has no inherent evolutionary advantage.</p>

<p>“The virus has no interest in killing us,” Metcalf said. “Virulence only matters for the virus if it works for transmission.”</p>

<p>Because people who are hospitalized may be less likely to spread the virus than those who are walking around with the sniffles, some have theorized that new viruses become milder over time.</p>

<p>One commonly cited example is the myxoma virus, which Australian scientists released in 1950 in an attempt to reduce the population of invasive European rabbits.</p>

<p>Initially, the myxoma virus proved to be “fantastically virulent,” one scientist wrote, killing more than 99% of the rabbits it infected. After just a few years, however, several somewhat milder strains of the virus emerged and became dominant.</p>

<p>But myxoma is not a simple story of a virus gradually becoming less virulent.</p>

<p>“Early variants that were too nice were also discovered in the mid-1950s,” said Read, who has studied the virus. “They caused little disease but transmitted poorly, so never came to dominate.”</p>

<p>The rabbits also evolved new immune defenses that allowed them to fight off infection more easily, and then the virus fired back, acquiring new tricks for depressing the rabbits’ immune systems.</p>

<p>“Seventy years — it’s still going gangbusters,” Read said.</p>

<p>It is too early to say whether SARS-CoV-2 will change in virulence over the long term. There could certainly be trade-offs between virulence and transmission; variants that make people too sick too quickly may not spread very far.</p>

<p>Then again, this virus spreads before people become severely ill. As long as that remains true, the virus could become more virulent without sacrificing transmissibility.</p>

<p>Moreover, the same thing that makes the virus more infectious — faster replication or tighter binding to our cells — could also make it more virulent. Indeed, some evidence suggests that delta is more likely to result in hospitalization than other variants.</p>

<p>&lt;em&gt;“&lt;/em&gt;I could actually keep this game of imagining going on for a long time,” Read said. “On my good days, I’m optimistic that the disease severity will go down through time. Because clearly, people being isolated does affect transmission. On my bad days, I worry about it going the other direction.”</p>

<p><strong>Uneasy Equilibrium</strong></p>

<p>Although many possible paths remain open to us, what is certain is that SARS-CoV-2 will not stop evolving — and that the arms race between the virus and us is just beginning.</p>

<p>We lost the first few rounds, by allowing the virus to spread unchecked, but we still have powerful weapons to bring to the fight. The most notable are highly effective vaccines, developed at record speed. “I think there is hope in the fact that the SARS-CoV-2 vaccines at this point are more effective than flu vaccines have probably ever been,” Bloom said.</p>

<p>Even the first-generation vaccines provide substantial protection against disease, and there is plenty of room to improve them by tinkering with the dosing and timing, tailoring them to new variants or developing new approaches, such as nasal sprays, that may be better at halting transmission.</p>

<p>“I have great faith that we can sort any detrimental evolutionary trajectories out by improving our current or next generation vaccines,” Read said.</p>

<p>The occasional breakthrough infection or booster could help top up our flagging immunity and teach our bodies to recognize new mutations, ultimately making us less vulnerable to the next variant that comes along.</p>

<p>“Maybe you have a reinfection, but it’s relatively mild, which also boosts your immunity,” Gounder said.</p>

<p>Meanwhile, as the number of completely vulnerable hosts dwindles, and transmission slows, the virus will have fewer opportunities to mutate. One recent paper, which has not yet been reviewed by experts, suggests that rising vaccination rates may already be suppressing new mutations.</p>

<p>And the evolution rate could also slow down as the virus becomes better adapted to humans.</p>

<p>“There’s low-hanging fruit,” Lauring said. “So there are certain ways it can evolve and make big improvements, but after a while there aren’t areas to improve — it’s figured out all the easy ways to improve.”</p>

<p>Eventually, as viral evolution slows down and our immune systems catch up, we will reach an uneasy equilibrium with the virus, scientists predict. We will never extinguish it, but it will smolder rather than rage.</p>

<p>What that equilibrium point looks like exactly — how much transmission there is and how much disease it causes — is uncertain. Some scientists predict that the virus will ultimately be much like the flu, which can still cause serious illness and death, especially during seasonal surges.</p>

<p>Others are more optimistic. “My guess is that one day this is going to be another cause of the common cold,” said Jennie Lavine, who explored that possibility as an infectious disease researcher at Emory University.</p>

<p>There are four other coronaviruses that have become endemic in human populations. We are exposed to them early and often, and all four mostly cause run-of-the-mill colds.</p>

<p>COVID-19 might just be what it looks like when a novel coronavirus spreads through a population without any preexisting immunity. “This may not be such a different beast than everything else that we’re accustomed to,” Lavine said. “It’s just a bad moment.”</p>

<p>Of course, plenty of uncertainties remain, scientists said, including how long it will take to reach equilibrium. With infections beginning to decline again in the United States, hopes are again rising that the worst of the pandemic is behind us.</p>

<p>But much of the world remains unvaccinated, and this virus has already proved capable of surprising us. “We should be somewhat cautious and humble about trying to predict what it is capable of doing in the future,” Crotty said.</p>

<p>While we can’t guard against every eventuality, we can tip the odds in our favor by expanding viral surveillance, speeding up global vaccine distribution and tamping down transmission until more people can be vaccinated, scientists said.</p>

<p>The actions we take now will help determine what the coming years look like, said Dr. Jonathan Quick, a global health expert at Duke University and the author of “The End of Epidemics.”</p>

<p>The future, he said, “depends much, much more on what humans do than on what the virus does.”</p>


On Jan. 9, 2020, about a week after the world first learned of a mysterious cluster of pneumonia cases in central China, authorities announced that scientists had found the culprit: a novel coronavirus.

On Jan. 9, 2020, about a week after the world first learned of a mysterious cluster of pneumonia cases in central China, authorities announced that scientists had found the culprit: a novel coronavirus. It was a sobering announcement and an unnervingly familiar one. Nearly two decades earlier, a different coronavirus had hurdled over the species barrier and sped around the world, causing a lethal new disease called severe acute respiratory syndrome, or SARS. The virus, which became known as SARS-CoV, killed 774 people before health officials contained it. But even as scientists worried that history might be repeating itself, there was one glimmer of hope. Although all viruses evolve, coronaviruses are known to be relatively stable, changing more slowly than the common flu. “There was, I think, a sense that would work in our favor and that the nightmare scenario of it being like influenza — constantly changing and needing updated vaccines all the time — would probably not be the case,” said Dr. Adam Lauring, a virus expert and infectious disease physician at the University of Michigan. What many scientists had not counted on was unchecked global spread. During the following weeks, the new virus, SARS-CoV-2, skipped from Wuhan, China, to a cruise ship in Japan, a small town in northern Italy and a biotechnology conference in Boston. Country by country, global coronavirus trackers turned red. To date, more than 237 million people have been infected with the virus, and 4.8 million have died — 700,000 in the United States alone. With every infection come new opportunities for the virus to mutate. Now, nearly two years into the pandemic, we are working our way through an alphabet of new viral variants: fast-spreading alpha, immune-evading beta, and on through gamma, delta, lambda and, most recently, mu. “We just have uncontrolled infections in much of the world, and that’s going to lead to more chances for the virus to evolve,” Lauring said. Even for a virus, evolution is a long game, and our relationship with SARS-CoV-2 is still in its infancy. We are extremely unlikely to eradicate the virus, scientists say, and what the next few years — and decades — hold is difficult to predict. But the legacy of past epidemics, as well as some basic biological principles, provides clues to where we could be headed. The Genetic Lottery Viruses are replication machines, hijacking our cells to make copies of their own genomes. Sometimes they make small mistakes, akin to typos, as they replicate. Most of the time, these errors have no benefit for the virus; many are harmful and quickly disappear. But occasionally, a virus hits the genetic lottery: a mutation that confers an advantage. This fitter version of the virus can then outcompete its peers, giving rise to a new variant. The coronavirus could shift in countless ways, but there are three concerning possibilities: It could become more transmissible, it could become better at evading our immune system, or it could become more virulent, causing more serious disease. SARS-CoV-2 has already become more transmissible. “The virus is just better at transmitting from one person to another than it was in January of 2020,” said Jesse Bloom, an expert in viral evolution at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle. “And this is due to a variety of mutations that the virus has acquired, some of which we understand, and some of which we don’t.” One of the first of these mutations had already emerged by late January 2020. The mutation, D614G, most likely stabilized the spike protein that the virus uses to latch onto human cells, making the virus more infectious. It quickly became widespread, displacing the original version of the virus. As the virus spread, more mutations sprang up, giving rise to even more transmissible variants. First came alpha, which was about 50% more infectious than the original virus, and soon delta, which was, in turn, roughly 50% more infectious than alpha. “Now we’re basically in a delta pandemic,” said Robert Garry, a virus expert at Tulane University. “So another surge, another spread of a slightly better variant.” Although some experts were surprised to see the hyperinfectious variant, which has more than a dozen notable mutations, emerge so quickly, the appearance of more transmissible variants is textbook viral evolution. “It’s hard to imagine that the virus is going to pop into a new species perfectly formed for that species,” said Andrew Read, an evolutionary microbiologist at Penn State University. “It’s bound to do some adaptation.” But scientists don’t expect this process to continue forever. There are likely to be some basic biological limits on just how infectious a particular virus can become, based on its intrinsic properties. Viruses that are well adapted to humans, such as measles and the seasonal influenza, are not constantly becoming more infectious, Bloom noted. It is not entirely clear what the constraints on transmissibility are, he added, but at the very least, the new coronavirus cannot replicate infinitely fast or travel infinitely far. “Transmission requires one person to somehow exhale or cough or breathe out the virus, and it to land in someone else’s airway and infect them,” Bloom said. “There are just limits to that process. It’s never going to be the case that I’m sitting here in my office, and I’m giving it to someone on the other side of Seattle, right?” He added: “Whether the delta variant is already at that plateau, or whether there’s going to be further increases before it gets to that plateau, I can’t say. But I do think that plateau exists.” Dodging Immunity In addition to becoming more transmissible, some variants have also acquired the ability to dodge some of our antibodies. Antibodies, which can prevent the virus from entering our cells, are engineered to latch onto specific molecules on the surface of the virus, snapping into place like puzzle pieces. But genetic mutations in the virus can change the shape of those binding sites. “If you change that shape, you can make it impossible for an antibody to do its job,” said Marion Pepper, an immunologist at the University of Washington School of Medicine. Delta appears to evade some antibodies, but there are other variants, particularly beta, that are even better at dodging these defenses. For now, delta is so infectious that it has managed to outcompete, and thus limit the spread of, these stealthier variants. But as more people acquire antibodies against the virus, mutations that allow the virus to slip past these antibodies will become even more advantageous. “The landscape of selection has changed,” said Jessica Metcalf, an evolutionary biologist at Princeton University. “From the point of view of the virus, it’s no longer, ‘I just bop around, and there’s a free host.’ ” The good news is that there are many different kinds of antibodies, and a variant with a few new mutations is unlikely to escape them all, experts said. “The immune system has also evolved to have plenty of tricks up its sleeve to counteract the evolution of the virus,” Pepper said. “Knowing that there is this complex level of diversity in the immune system allows me to sleep better at night.” Certain T cells, for instance, destroy virus-infected cells, helping to reduce the severity of disease. Together, our assortment of T cells can recognize at least 30 to 40 different pieces of SARS-CoV-2, researchers have found. “It’s a lot harder to evade T cell responses than antibody responses,” said Dr. Celine Gounder, an infectious disease specialist at the New York University Grossman School of Medicine. And then there are B cells, which generate our army of antibodies. Even after we clear the infection, the body keeps churning out B cells for a while, deliberately introducing small genetic mutations. The result is an enormously diverse collection of B cells producing an array of antibodies, some of which might be a good match for the next variant that comes along. “They’re actually a library of guesses that the immune system makes about what variants might look like in the future,” said Shane Crotty, a virus expert at the La Jolla Institute for Immunology. So far, studies suggest that our antibody, T cell and B cell responses are all working as expected when it comes to SARS-CoV-2. “This virus is mostly playing by immunological rules we understand,” Crotty said. ‘No Interest in Killing Us’ Whether the virus will become more virulent — that is, whether it will cause more serious disease — is the hardest to predict, scientists said. Unlike transmissibility or immune evasion, virulence has no inherent evolutionary advantage. “The virus has no interest in killing us,” Metcalf said. “Virulence only matters for the virus if it works for transmission.” Because people who are hospitalized may be less likely to spread the virus than those who are walking around with the sniffles, some have theorized that new viruses become milder over time. One commonly cited example is the myxoma virus, which Australian scientists released in 1950 in an attempt to reduce the population of invasive European rabbits. Initially, the myxoma virus proved to be “fantastically virulent,” one scientist wrote, killing more than 99% of the rabbits it infected. After just a few years, however, several somewhat milder strains of the virus emerged and became dominant. But myxoma is not a simple story of a virus gradually becoming less virulent. “Early variants that were too nice were also discovered in the mid-1950s,” said Read, who has studied the virus. “They caused little disease but transmitted poorly, so never came to dominate.” The rabbits also evolved new immune defenses that allowed them to fight off infection more easily, and then the virus fired back, acquiring new tricks for depressing the rabbits’ immune systems. “Seventy years — it’s still going gangbusters,” Read said. It is too early to say whether SARS-CoV-2 will change in virulence over the long term. There could certainly be trade-offs between virulence and transmission; variants that make people too sick too quickly may not spread very far. Then again, this virus spreads before people become severely ill. As long as that remains true, the virus could become more virulent without sacrificing transmissibility. Moreover, the same thing that makes the virus more infectious — faster replication or tighter binding to our cells — could also make it more virulent. Indeed, some evidence suggests that delta is more likely to result in hospitalization than other variants. <em>“</em>I could actually keep this game of imagining going on for a long time,” Read said. “On my good days, I’m optimistic that the disease severity will go down through time. Because clearly, people being isolated does affect transmission. On my bad days, I worry about it going the other direction.” Uneasy Equilibrium Although many possible paths remain open to us, what is certain is that SARS-CoV-2 will not stop evolving — and that the arms race between the virus and us is just beginning. We lost the first few rounds, by allowing the virus to spread unchecked, but we still have powerful weapons to bring to the fight. The most notable are highly effective vaccines, developed at record speed. “I think there is hope in the fact that the SARS-CoV-2 vaccines at this point are more effective than flu vaccines have probably ever been,” Bloom said. Even the first-generation vaccines provide substantial protection against disease, and there is plenty of room to improve them by tinkering with the dosing and timing, tailoring them to new variants or developing new approaches, such as nasal sprays, that may be better at halting transmission. “I have great faith that we can sort any detrimental evolutionary trajectories out by improving our current or next generation vaccines,” Read said. The occasional breakthrough infection or booster could help top up our flagging immunity and teach our bodies to recognize new mutations, ultimately making us less vulnerable to the next variant that comes along. “Maybe you have a reinfection, but it’s relatively mild, which also boosts your immunity,” Gounder said. Meanwhile, as the number of completely vulnerable hosts dwindles, and transmission slows, the virus will have fewer opportunities to mutate. One recent paper, which has not yet been reviewed by experts, suggests that rising vaccination rates may already be suppressing new mutations. And the evolution rate could also slow down as the virus becomes better adapted to humans. “There’s low-hanging fruit,” Lauring said. “So there are certain ways it can evolve and make big improvements, but after a while there aren’t areas to improve — it’s figured out all the easy ways to improve.” Eventually, as viral evolution slows down and our immune systems catch up, we will reach an uneasy equilibrium with the virus, scientists predict. We will never extinguish it, but it will smolder rather than rage. What that equilibrium point looks like exactly — how much transmission there is and how much disease it causes — is uncertain. Some scientists predict that the virus will ultimately be much like the flu, which can still cause serious illness and death, especially during seasonal surges. Others are more optimistic. “My guess is that one day this is going to be another cause of the common cold,” said Jennie Lavine, who explored that possibility as an infectious disease researcher at Emory University. There are four other coronaviruses that have become endemic in human populations. We are exposed to them early and often, and all four mostly cause run-of-the-mill colds. COVID-19 might just be what it looks like when a novel coronavirus spreads through a population without any preexisting immunity. “This may not be such a different beast than everything else that we’re accustomed to,” Lavine said. “It’s just a bad moment.” Of course, plenty of uncertainties remain, scientists said, including how long it will take to reach equilibrium. With infections beginning to decline again in the United States, hopes are again rising that the worst of the pandemic is behind us. But much of the world remains unvaccinated, and this virus has already proved capable of surprising us. “We should be somewhat cautious and humble about trying to predict what it is capable of doing in the future,” Crotty said. While we can’t guard against every eventuality, we can tip the odds in our favor by expanding viral surveillance, speeding up global vaccine distribution and tamping down transmission until more people can be vaccinated, scientists said. The actions we take now will help determine what the coming years look like, said Dr. Jonathan Quick, a global health expert at Duke University and the author of “The End of Epidemics.” The future, he said, “depends much, much more on what humans do than on what the virus does.”

What the future holds for the coronavirus and us

<p>Earth rotates around itself once a day. For Sun this duration is of 1 month. Other planets in our solar system have varying durations. But a single rotation in 25 seconds? That's some serious speed for a celestial body.</p>

<p>A white dwarf star has been found to perform this extreme space ballet. The star is named (rather heartlessly it would appear), LAMOST J0240+1952. It is 2000 lightyears away from Earth.</p>

<p>It is a white dwarf star. These stars are extremely dense. The star has size of Earth but has mass equal to the Sun. So much material packed in such a small space makes the surface gravity of the star ridiculously extreme. If a pebble is lifted from the surface of the star and dropped from a mere few feet, it would collide with the surface of the star at a speed equal to thousands of miles an hour! The white dwarf is located in Aries constellation.</p>

<p>The massive rotation rate of this star was discovered on August 7 by astronomer Ingrid Pelisoli of the University of Warwick in Coventry, England. She and her team noticed a particular 'blip' from this star. The blip came every 25 seconds. It was subsequently found that the blip is due to rotation of the star around itself.</p>

<p>A red dwarf was found to be revolving around the white dwarf. The red dwarf is the reason why the white dwarf has such a mind boggling speed of rotation.</p>


Earth rotates around itself once a day. For Sun this duration is of 1 month. Other planets in our solar system have varying durations. But a single rotation in 25 seconds?

Earth rotates around itself once a day. For Sun this duration is of 1 month. Other planets in our solar system have varying durations. But a single rotation in 25 seconds? That's some serious speed for a celestial body. A white dwarf star has been found to perform this extreme space ballet. The star is named (rather heartlessly it would appear), LAMOST J0240+1952. It is 2000 lightyears away from Earth. It is a white dwarf star. These stars are extremely dense. The star has size of Earth but has mass equal to the Sun. So much material packed in such a small space makes the surface gravity of the star ridiculously extreme. If a pebble is lifted from the surface of the star and dropped from a mere few feet, it would collide with the surface of the star at a speed equal to thousands of miles an hour! The white dwarf is located in Aries constellation. The massive rotation rate of this star was discovered on August 7 by astronomer Ingrid Pelisoli of the University of Warwick in Coventry, England. She and her team noticed a particular 'blip' from this star. The blip came every 25 seconds. It was subsequently found that the blip is due to rotation of the star around itself. A red dwarf was found to be revolving around the white dwarf. The red dwarf is the reason why the white dwarf has such a mind boggling speed of rotation.

This star spins around itself once every 25 seconds

<p>NASA launched a first-of-its kind mission on Saturday to study Jupiter's Trojan asteroids, two large clusters of space rocks that scientists believe are remnants of primordial material that formed the solar system's outer planets.</p>

<p>The space probe, dubbed Lucy and packed inside a special cargo capsule, lifted off on schedule from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida at 5:34 a.m. EDT (0934 GMT), NASA said. It was carried aloft by an Atlas V rocket from United Launch Alliance (UAL), a joint venture of Boeing Co and Lockheed Martin Corp.</p>

<p>Lucy's mission is a 12-year expedition to study a record number of asteroids. It will be the first to explore the Trojans, thousands of rocky objects orbiting the sun in two swarms - one ahead of the path of giant gas planet Jupiter and one behind it.</p>

<p>The largest known Trojan asteroids, named for the warriors of Greek mythology, are believed to measure as much as 225 kilometers (140 miles) in diameter.</p>

<p><strong>Also Read | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/science/this-star-spins-around-itself-once-every-25-seconds-421138">This star spins around itself once every 25 seconds</a></strong></p>

<p>Scientists hope Lucy's close-up fly-by of seven Trojans will yield new clues to how the solar system's planets came to be formed some 4.5 billion years ago and what shaped their present configuration.</p>

<p>Believed to be rich in carbon compounds, the asteroids may even provide new insights into the origin of organic materials and life on Earth, NASA said.</p>

<p>"The Trojan asteroids are leftovers from the early days of our solar system, effectively the fossils of planet formation," principal mission investigator Harold Levison of the Southwest Research Institute in Boulder, Colorado, was quoted by NASA as saying.</p>

<p>No other single science mission has been designed to visit as many different objects independently orbiting the sun in the history of space exploration, NASA said.\</p>

<p><strong>Also Read | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/science/first-exoplanet-to-survive-death-of-its-star-provides-hint-of-solar-systems-future-420589">First exoplanet to survive death of its star provides hint of solar system's future</a></strong></p>

<p>As well as the Trojans, Lucy will do a fly-by of an asteroid in the solar system's main asteroid belt, called DonaldJohanson in honor of the lead discoverer of the fossilized human ancestor known as Lucy, from which the NASA mission takes its name. The Lucy fossil, unearthed in Ethiopia in 1974, was in turn named for the Beatles hit "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds."</p>

<p><strong>Also Read | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/trending/astronauts-photo-from-space-reveals-a-strange-blue-glow-on-earth-420466">Astronaut's photo from space reveals a strange blue glow on Earth</a></strong></p>

<p>Lucy the asteroid probe will make spaceflight history in another way. Following a route that circles back to Earth three times for gravitational assists, it will be the first spacecraft ever to return to Earth's vicinity from the outer solar system, according to NASA.</p>

<p>The probe will use rocket thrusters to maneuver in space and two rounded solar arrays, each the width of a school bus, to recharge batteries that will power the instruments contained in the much smaller central body of the spacecraft.</p>

<p>(With inputs from agencies)</p>


NASA launched a first-of-its kind mission on Saturday to study Jupiter's Trojan asteroids, two large clusters of space rocks that scientists believe are remnants of primordial material that formed the solar system's outer planets.

NASA launched a first-of-its kind mission on Saturday to study Jupiter's Trojan asteroids, two large clusters of space rocks that scientists believe are remnants of primordial material that formed the solar system's outer planets. The space probe, dubbed Lucy and packed inside a special cargo capsule, lifted off on schedule from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida at 5:34 a.m. EDT (0934 GMT), NASA said. It was carried aloft by an Atlas V rocket from United Launch Alliance (UAL), a joint venture of Boeing Co and Lockheed Martin Corp. Lucy's mission is a 12-year expedition to study a record number of asteroids. It will be the first to explore the Trojans, thousands of rocky objects orbiting the sun in two swarms - one ahead of the path of giant gas planet Jupiter and one behind it. The largest known Trojan asteroids, named for the warriors of Greek mythology, are believed to measure as much as 225 kilometers (140 miles) in diameter. Also Read | This star spins around itself once every 25 seconds Scientists hope Lucy's close-up fly-by of seven Trojans will yield new clues to how the solar system's planets came to be formed some 4.5 billion years ago and what shaped their present configuration. Believed to be rich in carbon compounds, the asteroids may even provide new insights into the origin of organic materials and life on Earth, NASA said. "The Trojan asteroids are leftovers from the early days of our solar system, effectively the fossils of planet formation," principal mission investigator Harold Levison of the Southwest Research Institute in Boulder, Colorado, was quoted by NASA as saying. No other single science mission has been designed to visit as many different objects independently orbiting the sun in the history of space exploration, NASA said.\ Also Read | First exoplanet to survive death of its star provides hint of solar system's future As well as the Trojans, Lucy will do a fly-by of an asteroid in the solar system's main asteroid belt, called DonaldJohanson in honor of the lead discoverer of the fossilized human ancestor known as Lucy, from which the NASA mission takes its name. The Lucy fossil, unearthed in Ethiopia in 1974, was in turn named for the Beatles hit "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds." Also Read | Astronaut's photo from space reveals a strange blue glow on Earth Lucy the asteroid probe will make spaceflight history in another way. Following a route that circles back to Earth three times for gravitational assists, it will be the first spacecraft ever to return to Earth's vicinity from the outer solar system, according to NASA. The probe will use rocket thrusters to maneuver in space and two rounded solar arrays, each the width of a school bus, to recharge batteries that will power the instruments contained in the much smaller central body of the spacecraft. (With inputs from agencies)

'Lucy in the sky': NASA space mission lifts off, will study Jupiter's Trojan asteroids

<p>Ever dream you had Spidey Sense so that it would tingle when danger is lurking just around the corner? Well it appears nature has already given you one and you take it for granted. It appears you can literally smell the danger.</p>

<p>No, we are not talking about the smell of the wasted food your partner so lovingly cooked for you. It's about real dangers.</p>

<p>A study has dwelled into the sense of smell and has found that the bundle of nerves connected internally to our nose takes just milliseconds to send message to our brain to do something if something smells fishy.</p>

<p>The research was carried out by Karolinska Institute in Sweden.</p>

<p>The study was done by observing two groups of non-smoking people. The first group had 19 persons who were asked to smell perfume of linalool or fruity-smelling ethyl butyrate. They were also made to smell diethyl disulfide which has a garlicky smell.</p>

<p>The brainwaves of these people were observed. Two types of brain waves were observed.</p>

<p>One was gamma waves. These are fast processing waves which we rely on for attention and memory. The second type is beta waves. These waves are generated when we make decisions with deliberation.</p>

<p>The second group had 21 volunteers. They were made to smell pleasant and not-so-pleasant odours as well. Their physical reactions were timed.</p>

<p>It was found that gamma and beta waves were 'coupling' to co-ordinate a response.</p>

<p>If the smell was unpleasant, in other words, deemed to be a threat, a message was sent to motor cortex of our brain within 150 milliseconds to take an action. This may then involve reactions like jerking the head away from the smell, momentarily stopping to inhale and other reactions.</p>


Ever dream you had Spidey Sense so that it would tingle when danger is lurking just around the corner? Well it appears nature has already given you one and you take it for granted.

Ever dream you had Spidey Sense so that it would tingle when danger is lurking just around the corner? Well it appears nature has already given you one and you take it for granted. It appears you can literally smell the danger. No, we are not talking about the smell of the wasted food your partner so lovingly cooked for you. It's about real dangers. A study has dwelled into the sense of smell and has found that the bundle of nerves connected internally to our nose takes just milliseconds to send message to our brain to do something if something smells fishy. The research was carried out by Karolinska Institute in Sweden. The study was done by observing two groups of non-smoking people. The first group had 19 persons who were asked to smell perfume of linalool or fruity-smelling ethyl butyrate. They were also made to smell diethyl disulfide which has a garlicky smell. The brainwaves of these people were observed. Two types of brain waves were observed. One was gamma waves. These are fast processing waves which we rely on for attention and memory. The second type is beta waves. These waves are generated when we make decisions with deliberation. The second group had 21 volunteers. They were made to smell pleasant and not-so-pleasant odours as well. Their physical reactions were timed. It was found that gamma and beta waves were 'coupling' to co-ordinate a response. If the smell was unpleasant, in other words, deemed to be a threat, a message was sent to motor cortex of our brain within 150 milliseconds to take an action. This may then involve reactions like jerking the head away from the smell, momentarily stopping to inhale and other reactions.

We can literally 'smell' danger coming our way, study finds

<p>Fine cheese is the food of the sophisticated. The dairy product is paired with different foods or drinks to enhance the delight of fine dining. There are many, many types of cheese and each has its own taste and fanbase. Europeans are avid cheese eaters but in some modified form, the dairy product is consumed in different corners of the world.</p>

<p>But how old is this tradition of eating cheese? A new study has found out that at least in Europe Blue Cheese and Beer were being consumed since the Iron Age, that is, 2700 years ago.</p>

<p>The research was conducted jointly by many institutions in Austria, Italy and the US.</p>

<p>To reach the conclusion, researchers analysed 2700-year-old stool samples in Hallstatt-Dachstein/Salzkammergut salt mines in Austria.</p>

<p>In their analysis, the researchers found presence of two fungi in the samples. The fungi Penicillium roqueforti and Saccharomyces cerevisiae are still widely used to make blue cheese and beer. Through a genome-wide analysis the researchers found out that these fungi were used by people in the Iron Age to ferment food</p>

<p>The research team thinks that diet of these yesteryear Europeans involved fibrous foods and was rich in carbohydrates.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The findings about blue cheese and beer have helped the researchers conclude that culinary practices of even our pre-historic ancestors had a degree of sophistication.</p>


Fine cheese is the food of the sophisticated. The dairy product is paired with different foods or drinks to enhance the delight of fine dining. There are many, many types of cheese and each has its own taste and fanbase.

Fine cheese is the food of the sophisticated. The dairy product is paired with different foods or drinks to enhance the delight of fine dining. There are many, many types of cheese and each has its own taste and fanbase. Europeans are avid cheese eaters but in some modified form, the dairy product is consumed in different corners of the world. But how old is this tradition of eating cheese? A new study has found out that at least in Europe Blue Cheese and Beer were being consumed since the Iron Age, that is, 2700 years ago. The research was conducted jointly by many institutions in Austria, Italy and the US. To reach the conclusion, researchers analysed 2700-year-old stool samples in Hallstatt-Dachstein/Salzkammergut salt mines in Austria. In their analysis, the researchers found presence of two fungi in the samples. The fungi Penicillium roqueforti and Saccharomyces cerevisiae are still widely used to make blue cheese and beer. Through a genome-wide analysis the researchers found out that these fungi were used by people in the Iron Age to ferment food The research team thinks that diet of these yesteryear Europeans involved fibrous foods and was rich in carbohydrates. The findings about blue cheese and beer have helped the researchers conclude that culinary practices of even our pre-historic ancestors had a degree of sophistication.

People had blue cheese and beer even 2700 years ago, says study

<p>Searching for extra-terrestrial life has been preoccupation of scientists and creative folks. The idea of us not being alone in this universe on this rock we call Earth is somewhat assuring. Maybe it gives a purpose to our search in the vast expanse of space that so far not yielded any definitive clue of intelligent alien life.</p>

<p>Scientists have now found stars that are unexpectedly blasting out radio signals. This has indicated presence of hidden planets.</p>

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<p dir="ltr" lang="en"><a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Gravitas?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Gravitas</a> |'Unusual radio waves' have been detected from the centre of the <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/MilkyWayGalaxy?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#MilkyWayGalaxy</a>. Scientists say these signals are unlike anything they have come across. <a href="https://twitter.com/palkisu?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@palkisu</a> gets you a report. <a href="https://t.co/a3V4dgxQRJ">pic.twitter.com/a3V4dgxQRJ</a></p>
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<p>University of Queensland’s Dr Benjamin Pope and colleagues at the Dutch national observatory ASTRON have been searching for planets using Low-Frequency Array (LOFAR), world's most powerful radio telescope located in the Netherlands.</p>

<p>Dr Pope has been quoted as saying that the team of researchers has discovered radio signals from 19 red dwarf stars. It is suspected that four of these stars have planets orbitting them.</p>

<p>Planets in our solar system also emit radio waves but such radio waves from planets outside the solar system had yet to be found.</p>

<p>Red dwarf stars are much smaller than the Sun. They have intense magnetic activity and radio emissions.</p>

<p>More research is needed to determine to the most accurate degree what is the cause of these radio emissions. What if aliens are sending us messages? That would be interesting indeed.</p>


Searching for extra-terrestrial life has been preoccupation of scientists and creative folks. The idea of us not being alone in this universe on this rock we call Earth is somewhat assuring.

Searching for extra-terrestrial life has been preoccupation of scientists and creative folks. The idea of us not being alone in this universe on this rock we call Earth is somewhat assuring. Maybe it gives a purpose to our search in the vast expanse of space that so far not yielded any definitive clue of intelligent alien life. Scientists have now found stars that are unexpectedly blasting out radio signals. This has indicated presence of hidden planets. #Gravitas |'Unusual radio waves' have been detected from the centre of the #MilkyWayGalaxy. Scientists say these signals are unlike anything they have come across. @palkisu gets you a report. pic.twitter.com/a3V4dgxQRJ — WION (@WIONews) October 13, 2021 × University of Queensland’s Dr Benjamin Pope and colleagues at the Dutch national observatory ASTRON have been searching for planets using Low-Frequency Array (LOFAR), world's most powerful radio telescope located in the Netherlands. Dr Pope has been quoted as saying that the team of researchers has discovered radio signals from 19 red dwarf stars. It is suspected that four of these stars have planets orbitting them. Planets in our solar system also emit radio waves but such radio waves from planets outside the solar system had yet to be found. Red dwarf stars are much smaller than the Sun. They have intense magnetic activity and radio emissions. More research is needed to determine to the most accurate degree what is the cause of these radio emissions. What if aliens are sending us messages? That would be interesting indeed.

Scientists catch unexpected radio signals from distant stars

<p>No two galaxies are exactly alike. Rather each galaxy in the universe is considered to be like a fingerprint. There may be similarities between two galaxies but it is almost inconceivable that two galaxies would be identical twins of each other.</p>

<p>It is because of this scientific community was surprised as astronomer Timothy Hamilton found two galaxies that appeared to be twins of each other.</p>

<p>The object is now called Hamilton's Object.</p>

<p>"My first thought was that maybe they were interacting galaxies with tidally stretched-out arms. It didn't really fit well, but I didn't know what else to think," Hamilton has been quoted as saying by NASA.</p>

<p><strong>Also Read | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/science/scientists-catch-unexpected-radio-signals-from-distant-stars-420244">Scientists catch unexpected radio signals from distant stars</a></strong></p>

<p>As scientific world pondered over reasons why these galaxies would have been twins, astronomer Richard Griffiths of the University of Hawaii proposed his view.</p>

<p>He said that the Hamilton's Object was seen as two galaxies due to 'gravitational lensing'</p>

<p>Gravitational lensing is a phenomenon that occurs due chance alignment of a massive space object between us and another distant object. The light coming from the distant object 'bends' due to massive gravity of the object situated nearer to us. As the light travels along the space-time curvature of the massive object,&nbsp;a single distant object appears as two.</p>


No two galaxies are exactly alike. Rather each galaxy in the universe is considered to be like a fingerprint. There may be similarities between two galaxies but it is almost inconceivable that two galaxies would be identical twins of each other.

No two galaxies are exactly alike. Rather each galaxy in the universe is considered to be like a fingerprint. There may be similarities between two galaxies but it is almost inconceivable that two galaxies would be identical twins of each other. It is because of this scientific community was surprised as astronomer Timothy Hamilton found two galaxies that appeared to be twins of each other. The object is now called Hamilton's Object. "My first thought was that maybe they were interacting galaxies with tidally stretched-out arms. It didn't really fit well, but I didn't know what else to think," Hamilton has been quoted as saying by NASA. Also Read | Scientists catch unexpected radio signals from distant stars As scientific world pondered over reasons why these galaxies would have been twins, astronomer Richard Griffiths of the University of Hawaii proposed his view. He said that the Hamilton's Object was seen as two galaxies due to 'gravitational lensing' Gravitational lensing is a phenomenon that occurs due chance alignment of a massive space object between us and another distant object. The light coming from the distant object 'bends' due to massive gravity of the object situated nearer to us. As the light travels along the space-time curvature of the massive object, a single distant object appears as two.

Mystery of two 'identical galaxies' solved

<p>Asteroids, like deadlines, may not make a whooshing sound as they go by (Or they do for all we know!) but its nice to see them do a flyby. They are good to observe from a distance. As long as they flying by, no one should have any problem.&nbsp;</p>

<p>It's when one of them decides to crash onto Earth is when skyfall (quite literally) occurs. The Earth-shaking (again, literally), groundbreaking (get the drift) catastrophe has potential to either destroy life on Earth or drastically alter make-up of it. Dinosaurs know it all too well.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Asteroids do not have to be very large to create major mayhem on our blue planet. Due to their high speeds, even a relatively smaller one can pack a big punch due to its huge momentum.</p>

<p>In a few weeks, 8 asteroids bigger than the pyramids of Giza are going to fly past Earth. Just for the record, the Giza pyramids weigh millions of tonnes and these asteroids are bigger than these oversized luxury coffins of ancient Egyptian kings and queens.</p>

<p>Here are the names of the asteroids that will whoosh by Earth in coming weeks. Dates have also been mentioned</p>

<p><strong>October 15 - 2021 SM3</strong></p>

<p>This asteroid has been classified as Near-Earth Object (NEO). It will pass at a distance of 4.8 million kilometres</p>

<p><strong>October 20 - 1996 VB3:&nbsp;</strong></p>

<p>This one is more massive than the previous one. And it will also come closer to Earth than the last one. This asteroid will pass at a distance of 3.2 million kilometres.</p>

<p><strong>October 25 - 2017 SJ20:&nbsp;</strong></p>

<p>This one is relatively smaller. It will pass by Earth at a distance of 7.1 million kilometres</p>

<p><strong>November 2 - 2017 TS3:</strong></p>

<p>This one is a big gun with a size ranging from 98 metres to 220 metres. It will clear the Earth at a distance of 5.3 million kilometres.</p>

<p><strong>November 13 - 2004 UE:&nbsp;</strong></p>

<p>This one is the biggest of them all. And perhaps it's a good thing that it will keep a distance of 4.2 million kilometres between itself and Earth when it will fly by</p>

<p><strong>November 20 - 2016 JG12:</strong></p>

<p>This one is about 190 metres in diameter. It will come at a distance of 5.5 kilometres from Earth</p>

<p><strong>November 21 - 1982 HR:&nbsp;</strong></p>

<p>This asteroid is also called 3361 Orpheus. It will clear the Earth by a distance of 5.7 million kilometres.</p>

<p><strong>November 29 - 1994 WR12</strong></p>

<p>This asteroid will fly by Earth at a distance of 6.1 million kilometres</p>


Asteroids, like deadlines, may not make a whooshing sound as they go by (Or they do for all we know!) but its nice to see them do a flyby. They are good to observe from a distance.

Asteroids, like deadlines, may not make a whooshing sound as they go by (Or they do for all we know!) but its nice to see them do a flyby. They are good to observe from a distance. As long as they flying by, no one should have any problem. It's when one of them decides to crash onto Earth is when skyfall (quite literally) occurs. The Earth-shaking (again, literally), groundbreaking (get the drift) catastrophe has potential to either destroy life on Earth or drastically alter make-up of it. Dinosaurs know it all too well. Asteroids do not have to be very large to create major mayhem on our blue planet. Due to their high speeds, even a relatively smaller one can pack a big punch due to its huge momentum. In a few weeks, 8 asteroids bigger than the pyramids of Giza are going to fly past Earth. Just for the record, the Giza pyramids weigh millions of tonnes and these asteroids are bigger than these oversized luxury coffins of ancient Egyptian kings and queens. Here are the names of the asteroids that will whoosh by Earth in coming weeks. Dates have also been mentioned October 15 - 2021 SM3 This asteroid has been classified as Near-Earth Object (NEO). It will pass at a distance of 4.8 million kilometres October 20 - 1996 VB3: This one is more massive than the previous one. And it will also come closer to Earth than the last one. This asteroid will pass at a distance of 3.2 million kilometres. October 25 - 2017 SJ20: This one is relatively smaller. It will pass by Earth at a distance of 7.1 million kilometres November 2 - 2017 TS3: This one is a big gun with a size ranging from 98 metres to 220 metres. It will clear the Earth at a distance of 5.3 million kilometres. November 13 - 2004 UE: This one is the biggest of them all. And perhaps it's a good thing that it will keep a distance of 4.2 million kilometres between itself and Earth when it will fly by November 20 - 2016 JG12: This one is about 190 metres in diameter. It will come at a distance of 5.5 kilometres from Earth November 21 - 1982 HR: This asteroid is also called 3361 Orpheus. It will clear the Earth by a distance of 5.7 million kilometres. November 29 - 1994 WR12 This asteroid will fly by Earth at a distance of 6.1 million kilometres

Eight massive asteroids, bigger than pyramids, to approach Earth in October-November

<p>Astronaut Thomas Pesquet has a fanbase of his own! The European Space Agency astronaut is perched on the International Space Station (ISS). And from there, he clicks beautiful pics of Earth and space. His posts on his Instagram account reveal wonders of our own planet and space alike.</p>

<p>On October 8, Pesquet posted an image in which part of night side of Earth was visible. The land could be seen lit up with cities and roads and more. While this alone very much made for a beautiful image, a certain detail in the photo was unmissable.</p>

<p>Prominent among the yellow lights was a blue glow just near the centre of the image. It resembled movie depiction of a blast taking place. The bluish hue appears mysterious and certainly piques interest.</p>

<p>Pesquet explains in his post that the blue glow is of a '...thunder strike with a ‘transient luminous event’...' The phenomenon, he says has taken place in upper atmosphere.</p>

<p>"A single frame from a timelapse over Europe, showing a thunder strike with a ‘transient luminous event’ in the upper atmosphere!! This is a very rare occurrence and we have a facility outside Europe's Columbus laboratory dedicated to observing these flashes of light. The Space Station is extremely well suited for this observatory as it flies over the equator where there are more thunderstorms. What is fascinating about this lightning is that just a few decades ago they had been observed anecdotally by pilots and scientists were not convinced they actually existed. Fast forward a few years and we can confirm elves, and sprites are very real and could be influencing our climate too! My friend Andreas Mogensen has a large part to play in this story, he was the first to capture them from space (in only ten days on the Space Station he did all this, legend!) proving the worth of having a facility to monitor the flashes!" says Pesquet in his Instagram post.</p>

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<p>Like any other Instagram post of Pesquet, this one has mesmerised thousands. The image has got more than 40,000 likes.</p>


Astronaut Thomas Pesquet has a fanbase of his own! The European Space Agency astronaut is perched on the International Space Station (ISS). And from there, he clicks beautiful pics of Earth and space.

Astronaut Thomas Pesquet has a fanbase of his own! The European Space Agency astronaut is perched on the International Space Station (ISS). And from there, he clicks beautiful pics of Earth and space. His posts on his Instagram account reveal wonders of our own planet and space alike. On October 8, Pesquet posted an image in which part of night side of Earth was visible. The land could be seen lit up with cities and roads and more. While this alone very much made for a beautiful image, a certain detail in the photo was unmissable. Prominent among the yellow lights was a blue glow just near the centre of the image. It resembled movie depiction of a blast taking place. The bluish hue appears mysterious and certainly piques interest. Pesquet explains in his post that the blue glow is of a '...thunder strike with a ‘transient luminous event’...' The phenomenon, he says has taken place in upper atmosphere. "A single frame from a timelapse over Europe, showing a thunder strike with a ‘transient luminous event’ in the upper atmosphere!! This is a very rare occurrence and we have a facility outside Europe's Columbus laboratory dedicated to observing these flashes of light. The Space Station is extremely well suited for this observatory as it flies over the equator where there are more thunderstorms. What is fascinating about this lightning is that just a few decades ago they had been observed anecdotally by pilots and scientists were not convinced they actually existed. Fast forward a few years and we can confirm elves, and sprites are very real and could be influencing our climate too! My friend Andreas Mogensen has a large part to play in this story, he was the first to capture them from space (in only ten days on the Space Station he did all this, legend!) proving the worth of having a facility to monitor the flashes!" says Pesquet in his Instagram post. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Thomas Pesquet (@thom_astro) × Like any other Instagram post of Pesquet, this one has mesmerised thousands. The image has got more than 40,000 likes.

Astronaut's photo from space reveals a strange blue glow on Earth

<p>Earth and Venus are somewhat similar planets when it comes to size. But there are vast differences. Earth is moderate and supports life while Venus is quite literally hellish. It is the hottest planet in the solar system with surface temperature of 475 degrees Celcius.</p>

<p>The early solar system was a violent place. There were huge collisions between space rocks. Some of them grew in size because of that and became planet. Both, Earth and Venus underwent this violent process.</p>

<p><strong>Also Read | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/science/nasa-posts-video-of-moon-parade-with-saturn-in-background-419171">NASA posts video of 'moon parade' with Saturn in background</a></strong></p>

<p>Now a study has said that there were some space rocks that grazed the Earth but collided with Venus. So what was hit-and-run for Earth was a full-blown collision for Venus. In other words, these huge space rocks 'bounced off' the early Earth and collided with early Venus often becoming part of the planet.</p>

<p>The study has been published in Planetary Journal Science.</p>

<p><strong>Also Read | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/science/what-is-the-significance-of-change-5-less-than-2-billion-years-old-lunar-samples-419140">What is the significance of Chang'e-5 less than 2 billion years old lunar samples?</a></strong></p>

<p>The scientists carrying out the study analysed 4000 computer simulations. In these simulations, Mars-sized protoplanets were crashing with early Earth and Venus. The researchers found that about half of the space rocks just grazed the Earth and about half of these collided with Venus. Grazing the Earth slowed down the speed of these protoplanets because of which they were able to collide and stick with Venus.</p>

<p>Such studies hold potential to shed more light on why there is (literally) world of a difference between Earth and Venus, planets with similar mass and almost similar orbit around the Sun.</p>


Earth and Venus are somewhat similar planets when it comes to size. But there are vast differences. Earth is moderate and supports life while Venus is quite literally hellish.

Earth and Venus are somewhat similar planets when it comes to size. But there are vast differences. Earth is moderate and supports life while Venus is quite literally hellish. It is the hottest planet in the solar system with surface temperature of 475 degrees Celcius. The early solar system was a violent place. There were huge collisions between space rocks. Some of them grew in size because of that and became planet. Both, Earth and Venus underwent this violent process. Also Read | NASA posts video of 'moon parade' with Saturn in background Now a study has said that there were some space rocks that grazed the Earth but collided with Venus. So what was hit-and-run for Earth was a full-blown collision for Venus. In other words, these huge space rocks 'bounced off' the early Earth and collided with early Venus often becoming part of the planet. The study has been published in Planetary Journal Science. Also Read | What is the significance of Chang'e-5 less than 2 billion years old lunar samples? The scientists carrying out the study analysed 4000 computer simulations. In these simulations, Mars-sized protoplanets were crashing with early Earth and Venus. The researchers found that about half of the space rocks just grazed the Earth and about half of these collided with Venus. Grazing the Earth slowed down the speed of these protoplanets because of which they were able to collide and stick with Venus. Such studies hold potential to shed more light on why there is (literally) world of a difference between Earth and Venus, planets with similar mass and almost similar orbit around the Sun.

Space rocks bounced off Earth before collision with Venus: Study

<p>Think your life is hell? All the life's misery burning you to the core and you craving for escape from all the agony? Think about a planet that literally has to bear rain of blazing hot liquid iron.</p>

<p>WASP-76b is the appropriately named planet that has to suffer such a fate. It's a gas giant. It was discovered in 2016. It is 640 lightyears away from us.</p>

<p>The planet is tidally locked. That means one side of the planet always faces its sun and the&nbsp;other side experiences perpetual night.</p>

<p><strong>Also Read | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/science/nasa-posts-video-of-moon-parade-with-saturn-in-background-419171">NASA posts video of 'moon parade' with Saturn in background</a></strong></p>

<p>The temperature on the dark side is upwards of 1000 degrees Celsius while that on day side goes beyond 2000 degrees Celsius. For comparison, consider Venus, the hottest planet in the solar system. The surface temperature on Venus is 471 degrees Celsius. Way lower that what this gas giant has to bear.</p>

<p>Super high temperatures means that iron vapourises on the day side of WASP-76b and falls as hellish rain on the night side.</p>

<p><strong>Also Read | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/science/what-is-the-significance-of-change-5-less-than-2-billion-years-old-lunar-samples-419140">What is the significance of Chang'e-5 less than 2 billion years old lunar samples?</a></strong></p>

<p>Now, as if this was not enough, scientists have found ionised calcium in the atmosphere of the planet. This means that WASP-76b's atmosphere may be more intense than we previously thought. The scientists say that upper layers of the atmosphere of this planet may be hotter than expected.</p>

<p>The study has been published in peer-reviewed journal The Astrophysical Journal Letters.</p>


Think your life is hell? All the life's misery burning you to the core and you craving for escape from all the agony? Think about a planet that literally has to bear rain of blazing hot liquid iron.

Think your life is hell? All the life's misery burning you to the core and you craving for escape from all the agony? Think about a planet that literally has to bear rain of blazing hot liquid iron. WASP-76b is the appropriately named planet that has to suffer such a fate. It's a gas giant. It was discovered in 2016. It is 640 lightyears away from us. The planet is tidally locked. That means one side of the planet always faces its sun and the other side experiences perpetual night. Also Read | NASA posts video of 'moon parade' with Saturn in background The temperature on the dark side is upwards of 1000 degrees Celsius while that on day side goes beyond 2000 degrees Celsius. For comparison, consider Venus, the hottest planet in the solar system. The surface temperature on Venus is 471 degrees Celsius. Way lower that what this gas giant has to bear. Super high temperatures means that iron vapourises on the day side of WASP-76b and falls as hellish rain on the night side. Also Read | What is the significance of Chang'e-5 less than 2 billion years old lunar samples? Now, as if this was not enough, scientists have found ionised calcium in the atmosphere of the planet. This means that WASP-76b's atmosphere may be more intense than we previously thought. The scientists say that upper layers of the atmosphere of this planet may be hotter than expected. The study has been published in peer-reviewed journal The Astrophysical Journal Letters.

Hot, liquid iron rains on this planet and temperature can hit 2k mark

<p>NASA posts spectacular image of things across the universe. One may be forgiven to think that NASA's lenses are always focussed at distant stars and galaxies. The space agency posts n-number of photos of distant celestial bodies after all! But NASA has a close eye on our planetary neighbourhood as well. And the results are no less breathtaking.</p>

<p>This time NASA has wowed people by posting a unique visualisation of Saturn, the most recognisable planet in our solar system. The ringed beauty is a sight to behold on its own. The majestic planet and its rings can easily be spotted in the night sky using even a mid-sized telescope.</p>

<p>So what's special about this new video?</p>

<p>NASA's visualisation, made based on images from Hubble Space Telescope show a 'moon parade'. This is to say that Saturn's moons can be seen in this video along with the beautuful planet. The sight mesmesrises the viewers.</p>

<p><strong>Also Read | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/first-images-from-mars-rover-show-ancient-river-delta-in-jezero-crater-419119">First images from Mars rover show ancient river delta in Jezero crater</a></strong></p>

<p>"Time for a moon parade. Four of Saturn’s moons move across the face of their planet in this spectacular Hubble visualization...," NASA has said in its Instagram post. In the video, a shadow on one of the moons ON Saturn can also be seen. Check it out. Make sure you keep sound on.</p>

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<p>Like any other NASA post, this one has got thumbs up from Instagram people. At the time of publishing of this story, the video has got more than 90,000 likes.<br />
&nbsp;</p>


NASA posts spectacular image of things across the universe. One may be forgiven to think that NASA's lenses are always focussed at distant stars and galaxies. The space agency posts n-number of photos of distant celestial bodies after all!

NASA posts spectacular image of things across the universe. One may be forgiven to think that NASA's lenses are always focussed at distant stars and galaxies. The space agency posts n-number of photos of distant celestial bodies after all! But NASA has a close eye on our planetary neighbourhood as well. And the results are no less breathtaking. This time NASA has wowed people by posting a unique visualisation of Saturn, the most recognisable planet in our solar system. The ringed beauty is a sight to behold on its own. The majestic planet and its rings can easily be spotted in the night sky using even a mid-sized telescope. So what's special about this new video? NASA's visualisation, made based on images from Hubble Space Telescope show a 'moon parade'. This is to say that Saturn's moons can be seen in this video along with the beautuful planet. The sight mesmesrises the viewers. Also Read | First images from Mars rover show ancient river delta in Jezero crater "Time for a moon parade. Four of Saturn’s moons move across the face of their planet in this spectacular Hubble visualization...," NASA has said in its Instagram post. In the video, a shadow on one of the moons ON Saturn can also be seen. Check it out. Make sure you keep sound on. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Hubble Space Telescope (@nasahubble) × Like any other NASA post, this one has got thumbs up from Instagram people. At the time of publishing of this story, the video has got more than 90,000 likes.

NASA posts video of 'moon parade' with Saturn in background

<p>Imagine you are out on a trek and suddenly run out of drinking water. You search for water and find a stream, but aren't sure about purity of water. What do you do?</p>

<p>Boiling the water may be one of the options but it'll take lot of time for it to cool and (at last) become cool for drinking.</p>

<p>Scientists at University of Texas, Austin have developed hydrogels that can purify contaminated water. The hydrogel tablets can kill bacterias present in water by forming Hydrogen Peroxide coupled with activated carbon. Such a combination is lethal for bacteria as it disturbs their metabolism.&nbsp;</p>

<p>“The hydrogel is a multifunctional hydrophilic polymer that can bring a revolution and curb water scarcity. In addition, it is highly efficient and can be produced on a mass level,” Guihua Yu, Associate Professor, Cockrell School of Engineering, Texas, said in a press release.</p>

<p>The hydrogel tablet can purify one-litre of water in an hour. The method provides additional benefit as the purification does not need energy and does not form any harmful by-products. The methods we commonly use need thermal energy (boiling) or solar energy. The use of solar energy causes accumulation of microbes. This eventually slows down and shuts the system.</p>


Imagine you are out on a trek and suddenly run out of drinking water. You search for water and find a stream, but aren't sure about purity of water. What do you do?

Imagine you are out on a trek and suddenly run out of drinking water. You search for water and find a stream, but aren't sure about purity of water. What do you do? Boiling the water may be one of the options but it'll take lot of time for it to cool and (at last) become cool for drinking. Scientists at University of Texas, Austin have developed hydrogels that can purify contaminated water. The hydrogel tablets can kill bacterias present in water by forming Hydrogen Peroxide coupled with activated carbon. Such a combination is lethal for bacteria as it disturbs their metabolism. “The hydrogel is a multifunctional hydrophilic polymer that can bring a revolution and curb water scarcity. In addition, it is highly efficient and can be produced on a mass level,” Guihua Yu, Associate Professor, Cockrell School of Engineering, Texas, said in a press release. The hydrogel tablet can purify one-litre of water in an hour. The method provides additional benefit as the purification does not need energy and does not form any harmful by-products. The methods we commonly use need thermal energy (boiling) or solar energy. The use of solar energy causes accumulation of microbes. This eventually slows down and shuts the system.

Scientists develop hydrogel tablet capable of making river water drinkable

<p>A rogue asteroid hitting Earth to end human civilisation as we know it is very much possible. Last time such an asteroid hit Earth, it eliminated more than half of life on the planet and ended the reign of dinosaurs. To avoid such a fate, space agencies around the worl keep a close watch at out planetary surroundings.</p>

<p>If an asteroid slated to hit Earth is detected, one of the strategies is to fire nuclear warheads to disintegrate it before it makes contact with Earth.</p>

<p><strong>Also Read | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/science/winds-on-jupiter-are-speeding-up-and-no-one-knows-why-416727">Winds on Jupiter are speeding up and no one knows why</a></strong></p>

<p>However, this approach needs careful calculations. Smallest of the mistakes would mean that we will just be splitting one asteroid into two or more parts. This means that instead of just one impact, we would get several at different locations of Earth. Hence this approach draws criticism.</p>

<p><strong>Also Read | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/science/nasa-has-captured-image-of-eye-in-the-sky-418294">NASA has captured image of 'eye in the sky'</a></strong></p>

<p>However, researchers have now concluded in a study that such an approach is safe. For this, they created computer models that analysed effect of 1-megaton-yield nuclear bomb on a 100-meter wide asteroid.</p>

<p><strong>Also Read | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/science/a-long-rainy-spell-induced-by-volcanism-helped-dinosaurs-become-huge-418394">A long rainy spell induced by volcanism helped dinosaurs become huge</a></strong></p>

<p>Five different asteroid orbits were analysed and the researchers concluded that if we could hit the asteroid two months before impact, it is possible to reduce the debris to just 0.1 per cent of the total mass of the asteroid. If we could hit it six months before impact, researchers say that the debris can be reduced to 1 per cent of the total mass.</p>

<p>The study has been published in journal Acta Astronautica.</p>


A rogue asteroid hitting Earth to end human civilisation as we know it is very much possible. Last time such an asteroid hit Earth, it eliminated more than half of life on the planet and ended the reign of dinosaurs.

A rogue asteroid hitting Earth to end human civilisation as we know it is very much possible. Last time such an asteroid hit Earth, it eliminated more than half of life on the planet and ended the reign of dinosaurs. To avoid such a fate, space agencies around the worl keep a close watch at out planetary surroundings. If an asteroid slated to hit Earth is detected, one of the strategies is to fire nuclear warheads to disintegrate it before it makes contact with Earth. Also Read | Winds on Jupiter are speeding up and no one knows why However, this approach needs careful calculations. Smallest of the mistakes would mean that we will just be splitting one asteroid into two or more parts. This means that instead of just one impact, we would get several at different locations of Earth. Hence this approach draws criticism. Also Read | NASA has captured image of 'eye in the sky' However, researchers have now concluded in a study that such an approach is safe. For this, they created computer models that analysed effect of 1-megaton-yield nuclear bomb on a 100-meter wide asteroid. Also Read | A long rainy spell induced by volcanism helped dinosaurs become huge Five different asteroid orbits were analysed and the researchers concluded that if we could hit the asteroid two months before impact, it is possible to reduce the debris to just 0.1 per cent of the total mass of the asteroid. If we could hit it six months before impact, researchers say that the debris can be reduced to 1 per cent of the total mass. The study has been published in journal Acta Astronautica.

Nuking a rogue asteroid is a safe strategy for Earth after all, says study

<p>A comet and an asteroid are chalk and cheese. The difference between these two is perhaps as large as the distance between respective places where they usually hang out in space</p>

<p>A comet comes from outer space. They are icy. As they approach the Sun, the heat begins to melt the ice and the 'outgassing' as it is called, forms the 'tail' of the comet that we see when it passes by Earth.</p>

<p>Asteroids on the other hand are generally located in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter. These space rocks do not have a spectacular look like comets but the fate of dinosaurs makes us keep a close watch on them. Asteroids are very much part of the solar system and have orbits around the Sun that are somewhat similar to those of the planets.</p>

<p><strong>Also Read | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/science/nasa-has-captured-image-of-eye-in-the-sky-418294">NASA has captured image of 'eye in the sky'</a></strong></p>

<p>A newly discovered space rock seems to be a hybrid of both classes. It has been named (248370) 2005 QN173</p>

<p>There is nothing special about its location. It hangs out in the asteroid belt like a million others and peacefully revolves around the Sun.</p>

<p><strong>Also Read | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/science/cosmic-music-check-out-nasa-post-on-heavenly-sounds-from-galaxys-centre-418128">'Cosmic Music': Check out NASA post on 'heavenly' sounds from galaxy's centre</a></strong></p>

<p>But in July this year, the asteroid was seen to show signs of outgassing just like a comet. The outgassing was seen when the asteroid was relatively closer to the Sun in his orbit. So it has characteristics of an asteroid as well as a comet</p>

<p>Such space objects are called active asteroids or main-belt comets. These are very rare. Only 7 have been confirmed to be main-belt comet so far.</p>


A comet and an asteroid are chalk and cheese. The difference between these two is perhaps as large as the distance between respective places where they usually hang out in space A comet comes from outer space.

A comet and an asteroid are chalk and cheese. The difference between these two is perhaps as large as the distance between respective places where they usually hang out in space A comet comes from outer space. They are icy. As they approach the Sun, the heat begins to melt the ice and the 'outgassing' as it is called, forms the 'tail' of the comet that we see when it passes by Earth. Asteroids on the other hand are generally located in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter. These space rocks do not have a spectacular look like comets but the fate of dinosaurs makes us keep a close watch on them. Asteroids are very much part of the solar system and have orbits around the Sun that are somewhat similar to those of the planets. Also Read | NASA has captured image of 'eye in the sky' A newly discovered space rock seems to be a hybrid of both classes. It has been named (248370) 2005 QN173 There is nothing special about its location. It hangs out in the asteroid belt like a million others and peacefully revolves around the Sun. Also Read | 'Cosmic Music': Check out NASA post on 'heavenly' sounds from galaxy's centre But in July this year, the asteroid was seen to show signs of outgassing just like a comet. The outgassing was seen when the asteroid was relatively closer to the Sun in his orbit. So it has characteristics of an asteroid as well as a comet Such space objects are called active asteroids or main-belt comets. These are very rare. Only 7 have been confirmed to be main-belt comet so far.

An asteroid or comet? This space rock is a combination of both

<p>Stormchasers may chase hurricanes and tornadoes for the thrill of it, or even for&nbsp;scientific analysis, but they keep their vehicles ready to make a quick escape when the storm comes&nbsp;too close. So even the most adventurous souls among us say 'No thanks' when it comes to venturing too close to hurricanes. It is perhaps why we don't get clearer picture (beyond a point) of what goes on inside when the winds and even seawater take the shape of something that is sure to kill you.</p>

<p>Thanks to a drone, we now have a video that shows us what went inside Hurricane Sam, the recent storm that formed in Atlantic Ocean.</p>

<p>The dramatic footage has been released by National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Check it out below.</p>

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<p>The drone that ventured where no drone had gone before is a sailing drone named Saildrone Explorer SD 1045. The video was shot on September 30, 2021. The uncrewed surface vehicle (USV) battled 50-foot high waves and superstrong winds that gusted up to the speeds of 120 mph (193 kph).</p>

<p><strong>Also Read | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/science/winds-on-jupiter-are-speeding-up-and-no-one-knows-why-416727">Winds on Jupiter are speeding up and no one knows why</a></strong></p>

<p>The Saildrone has been on various missions to collect data which can then be analysed to improve our predictions about a hurricane. The saildrone has fitted with a special 'hurricane wing' that allows it to battle stormiest of the conditions while continuing its main task of gathering important data.</p>

<p><strong>Also Read | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/science/nasa-has-captured-image-of-eye-in-the-sky-418294">NASA has captured image of 'eye in the sky'</a></strong></p>

<p>The saildrone is seven metres or 23 feet long. It has oceanographic or meteorological sensors that enable it to gather data.</p>

<p>The drone is operated by a pilot remotely and it can remain at sea for a year.</p>


Stormchasers may chase hurricanes and tornadoes for the thrill of it, or even for scientific analysis, but they keep their vehicles ready to make a quick escape when the storm comes too close.

Stormchasers may chase hurricanes and tornadoes for the thrill of it, or even for scientific analysis, but they keep their vehicles ready to make a quick escape when the storm comes too close. So even the most adventurous souls among us say 'No thanks' when it comes to venturing too close to hurricanes. It is perhaps why we don't get clearer picture (beyond a point) of what goes on inside when the winds and even seawater take the shape of something that is sure to kill you. Thanks to a drone, we now have a video that shows us what went inside Hurricane Sam, the recent storm that formed in Atlantic Ocean. The dramatic footage has been released by National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Check it out below. × The drone that ventured where no drone had gone before is a sailing drone named Saildrone Explorer SD 1045. The video was shot on September 30, 2021. The uncrewed surface vehicle (USV) battled 50-foot high waves and superstrong winds that gusted up to the speeds of 120 mph (193 kph). Also Read | Winds on Jupiter are speeding up and no one knows why The Saildrone has been on various missions to collect data which can then be analysed to improve our predictions about a hurricane. The saildrone has fitted with a special 'hurricane wing' that allows it to battle stormiest of the conditions while continuing its main task of gathering important data. Also Read | NASA has captured image of 'eye in the sky' The saildrone is seven metres or 23 feet long. It has oceanographic or meteorological sensors that enable it to gather data. The drone is operated by a pilot remotely and it can remain at sea for a year.

Want to know what happens inside a hurricane? This actual video will show you

<p>Can you imagine a cat-sized dinosaur? The answer is most likely a 'no'. When someone says dinosaurs, all we can imagine is a scary creature the size of a building eyeing for round two of its brunch. Movies haven't helped change this perception.</p>

<p>Dinosaurs ruled the pre-historic world but their beginnings were very humble. They were literally the size of a cat. But they gradually grew in size and reached scary proportions within 2 million years. And a super long rainy spell in this period helped.</p>

<p>And what caused this rain? Scientists say continued volcanic activity.</p>

<p><strong>Also Read | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/science/scientists-unearth-bones-of-two-new-species-of-dinosaurs-417380">Scientists unearth bones of two new species of dinosaurs</a></strong></p>

<p>Researchers who carried out the study have published their findings in journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.</p>

<p>The scientists studied sediments at the bottom of an ancient lake crater in China (Jiyuan basin) and concluded that between 234 and 232 million years ago, earth experienced what are called 'pulses' of volcanic activity. This increased amount of carbon dioxide in the air. This increased temperature and intensified hydrologic cycle.</p>

<p><strong>Also Read | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/science/before-chickens-early-humans-reared-one-of-the-most-dangerous-birds-study-417744">Before chickens, early humans reared one of the most dangerous birds: Study</a></strong></p>

<p>This resulted in long spell of rain and made the atmosphere humid. This environment created favourable conditions for large amphibians and reptiles (dinosaurs) to thrive and for the latter, increase in size immensely.</p>


Can you imagine a cat-sized dinosaur? The answer is most likely a 'no'. When someone says dinosaurs, all we can imagine is a scary creature the size of a building eyeing for round two of its brunch.

Can you imagine a cat-sized dinosaur? The answer is most likely a 'no'. When someone says dinosaurs, all we can imagine is a scary creature the size of a building eyeing for round two of its brunch. Movies haven't helped change this perception. Dinosaurs ruled the pre-historic world but their beginnings were very humble. They were literally the size of a cat. But they gradually grew in size and reached scary proportions within 2 million years. And a super long rainy spell in this period helped. And what caused this rain? Scientists say continued volcanic activity. Also Read | Scientists unearth bones of two new species of dinosaurs Researchers who carried out the study have published their findings in journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. The scientists studied sediments at the bottom of an ancient lake crater in China (Jiyuan basin) and concluded that between 234 and 232 million years ago, earth experienced what are called 'pulses' of volcanic activity. This increased amount of carbon dioxide in the air. This increased temperature and intensified hydrologic cycle. Also Read | Before chickens, early humans reared one of the most dangerous birds: Study This resulted in long spell of rain and made the atmosphere humid. This environment created favourable conditions for large amphibians and reptiles (dinosaurs) to thrive and for the latter, increase in size immensely.

A long rainy spell induced by volcanism helped dinosaurs become huge

<p>We all are used to looking at pictures of galaxies with less-than-impressive galactic centre. But NASA has now shared a brilliant image of a galaxy that looks like a celestial eye.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The galaxy has a supermassive black hole at its centre. But the galactic nucleus emits large amount of electromagnetic radiation.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The galaxy is called Seyfert Galaxy. In the scientific circles, it is identified as NGC 5728.</p>

<p>Seyfert galaxy looks like a normal galaxy but it has an active galactic nucleus that has unusually high luminosity.</p>

<p>This galaxy comes under the class of galaxies that are known to be most luminous source of electromagnetic radiation.</p>

<p>The image shared by NASA has been captured by Hubble Space telescope</p>

<p>It is estimated that luminosity of Seyfert galaxy is 10^8 to 10^11 times solar luminosity. The stunning image of the galaxy was captured by Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) of Hubble Space telescope.</p>


We all are used to looking at pictures of galaxies with less-than-impressive galactic centre. But NASA has now shared a brilliant image of a galaxy that looks like a celestial eye.

We all are used to looking at pictures of galaxies with less-than-impressive galactic centre. But NASA has now shared a brilliant image of a galaxy that looks like a celestial eye. The galaxy has a supermassive black hole at its centre. But the galactic nucleus emits large amount of electromagnetic radiation. The galaxy is called Seyfert Galaxy. In the scientific circles, it is identified as NGC 5728. Seyfert galaxy looks like a normal galaxy but it has an active galactic nucleus that has unusually high luminosity. This galaxy comes under the class of galaxies that are known to be most luminous source of electromagnetic radiation. The image shared by NASA has been captured by Hubble Space telescope It is estimated that luminosity of Seyfert galaxy is 10^8 to 10^11 times solar luminosity. The stunning image of the galaxy was captured by Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) of Hubble Space telescope.

NASA has captured image of 'eye in the sky'

<p>Venus, the other neighbour of Earth than Mars has a literal hell on its surface. The average temperature is 461 Degrees Celsius. The atmosphere is almost entirely made up of Carbon dioxide and it is 90 times thicker than the atmosphere on Earth.</p>

<p>But a new study has started an interesting discussion. It says that Venus' clouds may have conditions suitable for photosynthesis.</p>

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<p>Photosynthesis is one of the major processes responsible for formation of life on any planet. Even on Earth, complex life was able to develop only when microbes started photosynthesis and created enough oxygen for complex life.</p>

<p>Now the new study says that clouds on Venus may have conditions that may support photosynthesis not just during the day but also at night. Scientists think that conditions may even be favourable for microbes to form. The clouds on Venus may absorb UV rays and provide some degree of protection just like ozone layer does it on Earth.</p>

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<p>Rakhesh Mogul, lead author of the study and Biochemistry professor California State Polytechnic University, Pomona has been quoted in media reports as saying that Venus' clouds made 'great target for life detecting missions.</p>

<p>The study has been published in the journal Astrobiology.</p>


Venus, the other neighbour of Earth than Mars has a literal hell on its surface. The average temperature is 461 Degrees Celsius. The atmosphere is almost entirely made up of Carbon dioxide and it is 90 times thicker than the atmosphere on Earth.

Venus, the other neighbour of Earth than Mars has a literal hell on its surface. The average temperature is 461 Degrees Celsius. The atmosphere is almost entirely made up of Carbon dioxide and it is 90 times thicker than the atmosphere on Earth. But a new study has started an interesting discussion. It says that Venus' clouds may have conditions suitable for photosynthesis. Also Read | 37 per cent patients have long Covid symptoms months post recovery: Oxford study Photosynthesis is one of the major processes responsible for formation of life on any planet. Even on Earth, complex life was able to develop only when microbes started photosynthesis and created enough oxygen for complex life. Now the new study says that clouds on Venus may have conditions that may support photosynthesis not just during the day but also at night. Scientists think that conditions may even be favourable for microbes to form. The clouds on Venus may absorb UV rays and provide some degree of protection just like ozone layer does it on Earth. Also Read | Before chickens, early humans reared one of the most dangerous birds: Study Rakhesh Mogul, lead author of the study and Biochemistry professor California State Polytechnic University, Pomona has been quoted in media reports as saying that Venus' clouds made 'great target for life detecting missions. The study has been published in the journal Astrobiology.

A study claims that Venus may host life in its clouds

<p>Malaria is still a deadly disease in many parts of the world. It claims more lives in poorer continents like Africa where even basic medical facilities are not available in many countries. As per World Health Organisation (WHO) more than 400,00 deaths were recorded across the world due to Malaria in the year 2019 alone.</p>

<p>Now it appears that primary parasite responsible for the disease, Plasmodium falciparum, is able to mutate to avoid common ways of detection we use.</p>

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<p>A study by an immunologist at Ethiopian Public Health Institute has shed more light on this. Sindew Feleke, the immunologist says that about 10 per cent of Malaria cases escaped detection&nbsp;around Ethiopia's border region because of at least one mutation. This is allowing the parasite to evade rapid diagnostic testing (RDT).</p>

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<p>Ability to hide from the testing may give the parasite an extra advantage to spread more.</p>

<p>The parasite Plasmodium falciparum infests human blood cells to clone itself. These cells then burst, which sends a flood of parasites within the body. This causes waves of fever and other symptoms.</p>

<p>For their study, Feleke and his colleagues studied blood samples of over 12,500 patients along Ethiopian borders with Eritrea and Sudan. They found that a false negative had been reported in about 10 per cent of the cases.</p>


Malaria is still a deadly disease in many parts of the world. It claims more lives in poorer continents like Africa where even basic medical facilities are not available in many countries.

Malaria is still a deadly disease in many parts of the world. It claims more lives in poorer continents like Africa where even basic medical facilities are not available in many countries. As per World Health Organisation (WHO) more than 400,00 deaths were recorded across the world due to Malaria in the year 2019 alone. Now it appears that primary parasite responsible for the disease, Plasmodium falciparum, is able to mutate to avoid common ways of detection we use. Also Read | Before chickens, early humans reared one of the most dangerous birds: Study A study by an immunologist at Ethiopian Public Health Institute has shed more light on this. Sindew Feleke, the immunologist says that about 10 per cent of Malaria cases escaped detection around Ethiopia's border region because of at least one mutation. This is allowing the parasite to evade rapid diagnostic testing (RDT). Also Read | 37 per cent patients have long Covid symptoms months post recovery: Oxford study Ability to hide from the testing may give the parasite an extra advantage to spread more. The parasite Plasmodium falciparum infests human blood cells to clone itself. These cells then burst, which sends a flood of parasites within the body. This causes waves of fever and other symptoms. For their study, Feleke and his colleagues studied blood samples of over 12,500 patients along Ethiopian borders with Eritrea and Sudan. They found that a false negative had been reported in about 10 per cent of the cases.

Malaria parasite found to undergo mutations evading detection

<p>Tales of kings and queens having tigers and leopards as pets are dime a dozen. But to know that commoners reared a literally murderous bird even before chickens were domesticated by humans is something.</p>

<p>The birds in question are called cassowaries. Adults of this type are 5 to 6 feet tall. They have a sharp, sword-like toe that can easily sever human arm or mortally stab the abdomen. These flightless birds are found in Papua New Guinea (PNG) near Australia and have a record of killing humans.</p>

<p>But a new study has found that people on the island reared cassowaries in ancient times before domesticating chickens was a thing. Humans domesticated chickens about 9500 years ago. But the study suggests that cassowaries were being reared about 18,000 years ago. Researchers at Penn State University have carried out the research.</p>

<p>The researchers studied remains of cassowary eggshells, determined their exact age and found evidence that the eggs were being harvested by early humans. There was evidence of eggs being cooked and eaten. As per the study, these birds were used for their meat as well.</p>

<p>Researchers have been quoted as saying that while human domestication of animals like dogs in ancient times is well documented, the study on cassowaries underlines the need for early humans' interaction with avian species.</p>

<p>This research has been released in journal PNAS.</p>


Tales of kings and queens having tigers and leopards as pets are dime a dozen. But to know that commoners reared a literally murderous bird even before chickens were domesticated by humans is something.

Tales of kings and queens having tigers and leopards as pets are dime a dozen. But to know that commoners reared a literally murderous bird even before chickens were domesticated by humans is something. The birds in question are called cassowaries. Adults of this type are 5 to 6 feet tall. They have a sharp, sword-like toe that can easily sever human arm or mortally stab the abdomen. These flightless birds are found in Papua New Guinea (PNG) near Australia and have a record of killing humans. But a new study has found that people on the island reared cassowaries in ancient times before domesticating chickens was a thing. Humans domesticated chickens about 9500 years ago. But the study suggests that cassowaries were being reared about 18,000 years ago. Researchers at Penn State University have carried out the research. The researchers studied remains of cassowary eggshells, determined their exact age and found evidence that the eggs were being harvested by early humans. There was evidence of eggs being cooked and eaten. As per the study, these birds were used for their meat as well. Researchers have been quoted as saying that while human domestication of animals like dogs in ancient times is well documented, the study on cassowaries underlines the need for early humans' interaction with avian species. This research has been released in journal PNAS.

Before chickens, early humans reared one of the most dangerous birds: Study

<p>Mars, the nearest neighbour of Earth is today a barren wasteland. The red planet is a striking sight in the night sky. It's hard to imagine anything catastrophic happening on Mars today.</p>

<p>But a new study has found that massive floods from overflowing craters had outsized role in shaping Martian surface. The study has been carried out by researchers at University of Texas at Austin.</p>

<p>The study found that these floods carved deep chasms and moved vast amounts of sediment. The findings have been published in the scientific journal 'Nature'</p>

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<p>"If we think about how sediment was being moved across the landscape on ancient Mars, lake breach floods were a really important process globally," said lead author Tim Goudge, an assistant professor at the UT Jackson School of Geosciences.&nbsp;</p>

<p>"And this is a bit of a surprising result because they`ve been thought of as one-off anomalies for so long," Goudge added.</p>

<p>Crater lakes were common on Mars billions of years ago when the Red Planet had liquid water on its surface. Some craters could hold a small sea`s worth of water. But when the water became too much to hold, it would breach the edge of the crater, causing catastrophic flooding that carved river valleys in its wake.&nbsp;</p>

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<p>A 2019 study led by Goudge determined that these events happened rapidly. Remote sensing images taken by satellites orbiting Mars have allowed scientists to study the remains of breached Martian crater lakes.&nbsp;</p>

<p>However, the crater lakes and their river valleys have mostly been studied on an individual basis, Goudge said. This is the first study to investigate how the 262 breached lakes across the Red Planet shaped the Martian surface as a whole.</p>

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<p>The research entailed reviewing a preexisting catalogue of river valleys on Mars and classifying the valleys into two categories: valleys that got their start at a crater`s edge, which indicates they formed during a lake breach flood, and valleys that formed elsewhere on the landscape, which suggests a more gradual formation over time.</p>

<p>From there, the scientists compared the depth, length and volume of the different valley types and found that river valleys formed by crater lake breaches punch far above their weight, eroding away nearly a quarter of the Red Planet`s river valley volume despite making up only 3 per cent of total valley length.</p>

<p><em>(With inputs&nbsp;from agencies)</em></p>


Mars, the nearest neighbour of Earth is today a barren wasteland. The red planet is a striking sight in the night sky. It's hard to imagine anything catastrophic happening on Mars today.

Mars, the nearest neighbour of Earth is today a barren wasteland. The red planet is a striking sight in the night sky. It's hard to imagine anything catastrophic happening on Mars today. But a new study has found that massive floods from overflowing craters had outsized role in shaping Martian surface. The study has been carried out by researchers at University of Texas at Austin. The study found that these floods carved deep chasms and moved vast amounts of sediment. The findings have been published in the scientific journal 'Nature' Also Read | NASA's Hubble space telescope finds dead galaxies "If we think about how sediment was being moved across the landscape on ancient Mars, lake breach floods were a really important process globally," said lead author Tim Goudge, an assistant professor at the UT Jackson School of Geosciences. "And this is a bit of a surprising result because they`ve been thought of as one-off anomalies for so long," Goudge added. Crater lakes were common on Mars billions of years ago when the Red Planet had liquid water on its surface. Some craters could hold a small sea`s worth of water. But when the water became too much to hold, it would breach the edge of the crater, causing catastrophic flooding that carved river valleys in its wake. Also Read | Winds on Jupiter are speeding up and no one knows why A 2019 study led by Goudge determined that these events happened rapidly. Remote sensing images taken by satellites orbiting Mars have allowed scientists to study the remains of breached Martian crater lakes. However, the crater lakes and their river valleys have mostly been studied on an individual basis, Goudge said. This is the first study to investigate how the 262 breached lakes across the Red Planet shaped the Martian surface as a whole. Also Read | NASA posts image of 'Hand of God', netizens are awestruck The research entailed reviewing a preexisting catalogue of river valleys on Mars and classifying the valleys into two categories: valleys that got their start at a crater`s edge, which indicates they formed during a lake breach flood, and valleys that formed elsewhere on the landscape, which suggests a more gradual formation over time. From there, the scientists compared the depth, length and volume of the different valley types and found that river valleys formed by crater lake breaches punch far above their weight, eroding away nearly a quarter of the Red Planet`s river valley volume despite making up only 3 per cent of total valley length. (With inputs from agencies)

Megafloods shaped Martian surface, says study

<p>When anyone says galaxy, it brings to mind a pool of stars, planets and even existence of life. With various processes, explosions, star births, a notion of liveliness is associated with the word 'galaxy'. But when we say 'dead' galaxies. An unknown gloom sets in.</p>

<p>Using NASA's Hubble Space telescope and Atacama Large Millimeter/Submillimeter Array (ALMA), astronomers have found at least six, massive galaxies which were 'dead' at the time universe was 3 billion years old.</p>

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<p>Cold Hydrogen is required to form new stars. These dead galaxies had run out of cold hydrogen. Since there was no fuel, the galaxies could not make new stars and thus, were 'empty'.</p>

<p>As per scientists, these galaxies being dead was a surprising thing as when the universe was 3 billion years old, there was a spurt of star formation. It was the 'peak epoch' of star formation.</p>

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<p>NASA has said there is generally less likelihood of these galaxies rejuvenating even after minor mergers with nearby small galaxies.</p>

<p>Study of these dead galaxies has been published in the journal Nature.</p>


When anyone says galaxy, it brings to mind a pool of stars, planets and even existence of life. With various processes, explosions, star births, a notion of liveliness is associated with the word 'galaxy'.

When anyone says galaxy, it brings to mind a pool of stars, planets and even existence of life. With various processes, explosions, star births, a notion of liveliness is associated with the word 'galaxy'. But when we say 'dead' galaxies. An unknown gloom sets in. Using NASA's Hubble Space telescope and Atacama Large Millimeter/Submillimeter Array (ALMA), astronomers have found at least six, massive galaxies which were 'dead' at the time universe was 3 billion years old. Also Read | Winds on Jupiter are speeding up and no one knows why Cold Hydrogen is required to form new stars. These dead galaxies had run out of cold hydrogen. Since there was no fuel, the galaxies could not make new stars and thus, were 'empty'. As per scientists, these galaxies being dead was a surprising thing as when the universe was 3 billion years old, there was a spurt of star formation. It was the 'peak epoch' of star formation. Also Read | Astronaut posts breathtaking photo of aurora taken from above Earth NASA has said there is generally less likelihood of these galaxies rejuvenating even after minor mergers with nearby small galaxies. Study of these dead galaxies has been published in the journal Nature.

NASA's Hubble space telescope finds dead galaxies

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