Science, Space, Health & Robotics News - Page 181

All the latest Science, Space, Health & Robotics news with plenty of coverage on space launches, discoveries, rockets & plenty more - Page 181.

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Extremely rare 'ghost shark' chimaera found off New Zealand's coast

Adam Hunt | Feb 18, 2022 4:01 AM CST

Researchers from New Zealand's National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research (NIWA) were responsible for the finding the specimen.

Extremely rare 'ghost shark' chimaera found off New Zealand's coast

The NIWA researchers found the chimaera, known as "ghost sharks," near New Zealand's South Island. The chimaera is a neonate, meanly newly hatched, about 1200 meters (4,000 feet) deep on the Chatham Rise while surveying the area to estimate the local populations of Hoki, another fish. They are cartilaginous relatives of sharks and rays, meaning fish with skeletons made of cartilage and not bone.

Chimaeras lay their embryos on the seafloor, where they feed on the yolk within their egg capsule before hatching. The team will be conducting further tests and genetic analyses to determine which chimera species the catch belongs to, as there are currently fifty-two known species living in the deep ocean.

Continue reading: Extremely rare 'ghost shark' chimaera found off New Zealand's coast (full post)

Physicists create a new atomic clock with 50 times greater precision

Adam Hunt | Feb 17, 2022 5:21 AM CST

A study on the new atomic clock breakthrough has been published in the journal Nature.

Physicists create a new atomic clock with 50 times greater precision

Researchers from JILA have measured an aspect of Albert Einstein's theory of general relativity using two atomic clocks, separated by only a millimeter. They measured the clocks ticking at different rates, which can be attributed to time dilation due to gravity, which Einstein's theory predicted. Atomic clocks at different elevations in a gravitational field tick at different rates, moving more slowly the stronger the gravity, in this case, closer to Earth.

In 2010, NIST physicists demonstrated the effect for two independent atomic clocks where one was positioned 33 centimeters above the other. Now, JILA researchers have measured a reduction in the frequency of radiation, or redshift, in atomic clocks comprising strontium atoms in an optical lattice.

Continue reading: Physicists create a new atomic clock with 50 times greater precision (full post)

Astronomers just found the largest galaxy ever

Adam Hunt | Feb 17, 2022 5:03 AM CST

A new paper describing the galaxy's discovery has been accepted for publication in the journal Astronomy & Astrophysics.

Astronomers just found the largest galaxy ever

Researchers from Leiden University have discovered the largest known radio galaxy ever, about 16.3 million light-years in length, or about five megaparsecs. The giant plumes of plasma visible in the photo, visible in bright orange, glow with radio light and are likely the result of a supermassive black hole at the center of the galaxy. The black holes at the center of a galaxy can create two jet streams, ejecting material out of the galaxy and emitting radio waves, creating scenes like those seen here.

These kinds of astronomical observations are only viewed from Earth, and hence they do not contain any depth information. Therefore, it is difficult to know how far the galaxy's sphere of influence expands in the third dimension. Still, at more than 16 million light-years across, the radio galaxy is comparable to one hundred Milky Ways in a row.

Continue reading: Astronomers just found the largest galaxy ever (full post)

Carbon dioxide converted into fuel with solar power in breakthrough

Adam Hunt | Feb 17, 2022 4:42 AM CST

A study on the new conversion process has been published in the journal Nature Communications.

Carbon dioxide converted into fuel with solar power in breakthrough

Researchers from Lund University in Sweden have used a material known as a covalent organic framework (COF), which is porous and can absorb sunlight very efficiently. With the addition of a catalytic complex to the COF, the researchers could use the COF to convert carbon dioxide to carbon monoxide without the need for additional energy to complete the conversion.

"The conversion to carbon monoxide requires two electrons. When we discovered that photons with blue light create long-lived electrons with high energy levels, we could simply charge COF with electrons and complete a reaction," said Kaibo Zheng of Lund University.

Continue reading: Carbon dioxide converted into fuel with solar power in breakthrough (full post)

New discovery shows how caffeine can ward off cardiovascular disease

Adam Hunt | Feb 17, 2022 4:22 AM CST

A new study on the protective effects of caffeine has been published in the journal Nature Communications.

New discovery shows how caffeine can ward off cardiovascular disease

Previous studies have shown a reduced risk of death from cardiovascular disease among habitual caffeine-consuming adults, equivalent to 400-600 milligrams of caffeine (roughly two or three cups of coffee) daily. Until now, a biochemical explanation hadn't been found by scientists.

Canadian researchers have identified how caffeine initiates a cascade effect to reduce LDL cholesterol levels in the bloodstream. High levels of LDL cholesterol are correlated with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease. The researchers found that caffeine consumption was associated with decreased PCSK9 levels in the bloodstream. PCSK9 is a protein that inhibits the liver's ability to process excess LDL cholesterol. Therefore, caffeine's ability to reduce PCSK9 allows the liver to remove more LDL cholesterol from the bloodstream.

Continue reading: New discovery shows how caffeine can ward off cardiovascular disease (full post)

NASA's IXPE takes its first image since launch of a stunning supernova

Adam Hunt | Feb 17, 2022 4:01 AM CST

NASA's Imaging X-Ray Polarimetry Explorer (IXPE) has captured its first images following its launch last year.

NASA's IXPE takes its first image since launch of a stunning supernova

Initially launching on December 9th, 2021, the IXPE has since completed its month-long commissioning phase and confirmed all instruments are in working order. The first object of IXPE's attention is Cassiopeia A, a supernova remnant left behind by a star that exploded sometime in the seventeenth century. The saturation of the magenta color in the above image corresponds to the intensity of X-ray light observed by IXPE, overlayed with high-energy X-ray data, shown in blue, from NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory.

"The IXPE image of Cassiopeia A is as historic as the Chandra image of the same supernova remnant. It demonstrates IXPE's potential to gain new, never-before-seen information about Cassiopeia A, which is under analysis right now," said Martin C. Weisskopf, the IXPE principal investigator based at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama.

Continue reading: NASA's IXPE takes its first image since launch of a stunning supernova (full post)

NASA's climate report predicts a 'historic' sea levels rise by 2050

Jak Connor | Feb 17, 2022 1:03 AM CST

A new report from a variety of government agencies has predicted the sea levels across US coastlines for the next 30 years.

NASA's climate report predicts a 'historic' sea levels rise by 2050

The report comes from NASA along with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and states that sea levels across US coastlines are expected to rise by a foot (10 - 12 inches), which means in the next 30 years, the ocean levels will rise as much as they have in the last 100 years. According to NOAA administration Rich Spinrad, who spoke during a news conference on February 15, this newly released report is the "most up-to-date, long term sea-level rise projections of all of the United States and Territories", adding "what we're reporting out today is historic."

During the same news conference, NASA administrator Bill Nelson backed up the report by stating that "the science is very clear" and urged that now is the time to take action against the "climate crisis." Nelson went on to explain that the rapid increase in sea levels rising is generated by humans, and that the "science of the last 20 years has settled the question of human behavior that is driving this climate change."

Continue reading: NASA's climate report predicts a 'historic' sea levels rise by 2050 (full post)

Scientists discover something massive hiding within cosmic dust

Jak Connor | Feb 17, 2022 12:31 AM CST

A "very large" telescope was used to snap the below image of a galaxy researchers call Messier 77 or NGC 1068.

Scientists discover something massive hiding within cosmic dust

The European Space Observatory's Very Large Telescope located in Chile was used to snap an image of Messier 77, which is located around 47 million light-years from Earth within the constellation Cetus. The image, according to the ESO, has shed new light on galaxies that harbor an active core. At the center, Messier 77 is a supermassive black hole that has an immense gravitational pull. Galaxies that have an active nucleus are fueled by surrounding gas and dust being sucked into the center of the black hole.

Messier 77's supermassive black hole is shrouded in cosmic dust that completely conceals the spiral galaxy's core. However, the Multi Aperture Mid-Infrared Spectroscopic Experiment (MATISSE) mounted to the Very Large Telescope can see in a range of wavelengths that allow it to see through the cosmic dust. With the acquired data from multiple observations, researchers developed a new way to view Messier 77, adding to the researchers' observing program of galaxies with an active core.

Continue reading: Scientists discover something massive hiding within cosmic dust (full post)

Here's why NASA makes its ISS astronauts scan their eyes and veins

Jak Connor | Feb 17, 2022 12:03 AM CST

Astronauts aboard the International Space Station (ISS) are on a regular schedule of working out, conducting vital experiments, and doing body research.

Here's why NASA makes its ISS astronauts scan their eyes and veins

In a recent update on the events taking place on the ISS, NASA explains that three astronauts were scheduled for eye and vein scans on Tuesday, and throughout the scanning, doctors on Earth observed. The scanning took place in the Columbus laboratory module and used the Ultrasound 2 device that snapped images of the astronauts' neck, shoulder, and leg veins.

NASA flight engineers Mark Vande Hei and Thomas Marshburn and German astronaut Matthias Maurer also had their eyes scanned. So, why scan astronauts aboard the ISS? NASA explains in its blog post that the acquired data will be used to measure the effects of microgravity on the human body, which will no doubt lead to the development of technology that would reduce any negative impact of long-space duration for astronauts.

Continue reading: Here's why NASA makes its ISS astronauts scan their eyes and veins (full post)

Major depression treatment with psilocybin effective for up to a year

Adam Hunt | Feb 16, 2022 5:21 AM CST

A new study on psilocybin's effect in the treatment of major depressive disorder has been published in the Journal of Psychopharmacology.

Major depression treatment with psilocybin effective for up to a year

Researchers from the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine have previously demonstrated psilocybin's ability to relieve symptoms of major depressive disorder in adults for up to a month. A follow-up study of the same participants has shown "substantial antidepressant effects" that can last for at least a year in some patients after psilocybin-assisted psychotherapy treatment.

"Our findings add to evidence that, under carefully controlled conditions, this is a promising therapeutic approach that can lead to significant and durable improvements in depression," says Natalie Gukasyan, M.D., assistant professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.

Continue reading: Major depression treatment with psilocybin effective for up to a year (full post)