Lifeboat Foundation: Safeguarding Humanity
Toggle light / dark theme

Blog

Category: space – Page 54

“The circumgalactic medium plays a huge role in that cycling of that gas,” said Dr. Nikole Nielsen.

What are the exact sizes of galaxies, and are they bigger than they appear in deep space images? This is what a recent study published in Nature Astronomy hopes to address as an international team of researchers investigated the dust cloud that has long been hypothesized to orbit galaxies, indicating that galaxies are bigger than they appear. This study holds the potential to help scientists better understand the formation and evolution of galaxies, along with where the galaxy ends, and open space begins.

For the study, the researchers examined what’s known as the circumgalactic medium (CGM), which is a gas reservoir that extends far beyond a galaxy’s observable boundary, within a star-forming galaxy located 270 million light-years from Earth. Using novel imaging methods with ASTRO 3D, the researchers were able to observe this galaxy’s CGM extends as far out as 100,000 light-years beyond the galaxy’s observable boundary. Additionally, the team reports the physical aspects of the gas cloud, which is comprised of oxygen and hydrogen, changed as the gas cloud extended farther out.

Read more | >

“In recent years scientists have found that Mars has an annual cycle that is much more dynamic than people expected 10 or 15 years ago,” said Dr. John Clarke.

What happened to all the liquid water on Mars and what can this teach us about Earth-like exoplanets? This is what a recent study published in Science Advances hopes to address as an international team of researchers investigated the atmospheric and atomic processes responsible for Mars losing its water over time. This study holds the potential to help researchers better understand the evolution of Mars, specifically regarding the loss of water, and what implications this holds for Earth-like exoplanets.

For the study, the researchers used a combination of data from NASA’s Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution (MAVEN) and Hubble Space Telescope (HST) spacecraft to measure the ratio of hydrogen and deuterium that escapes from Mars over three Martian years, with each Martian year comprising 687 Earth days. Deuterium is also called “heavy hydrogen” since it is a hydrogen atom with a neutron in its nucleus, making its mass greater than hydrogen.

Since deuterium is heavier, this means hydrogen is lost to space faster, and measuring this present-day loss can help scientists determine how much was lost in Mars’s ancient past. Additionally, Mars’ orbit is more elliptical than Earth, meaning it orbits farther away from the Sun at certain times of the year, and this could also contribute to hydrogen loss, as well. In the end, the team found that this ratio changes as Mars is closer to the Sun and farther away, which challenges longstanding hypotheses regarding Mars’s atmospheric evolution.

Continue reading “The Fate of Water on Mars: New Findings from Hubble and MAVEN Missions” | >

Discovering Earth’s third global energy Field. 🌀

A NASA-led rocket team has finally discovered the long-sought electric field driving particles from Earth’s atmosphere into space ‼️

First hypothesized over 60 years ago, it is “an agent of chaos” whose impacts are still not fully known: go.nasa.gov/3XcDDLD

Continue reading “NASA Discovers a Long-Sought Global Electric Field on Earth” | >

The University of Texas at Austin this week announced that it has opened its undergraduate robotics program to high school applicants. The honors program is one of the first in the U.S. that allows incoming freshmen to apply for the program as part of their initial admission application. It’s a clear indication that robotics is no longer in the realm of hyper-specialized graduate and doctorate programs.

The minor is tied to a handful of other majors, including aerospace engineering, electrical and computer engineering, computational engineering, computer science and mechanical engineering. Each forms a foundational piece of an eventual robotics major. With the rise of robotics in high school STEAM teaching, the program is designed to maintain incoming freshmen’s interest in the growing space.

Read more | >

HELSINKI — Senegal’s space agency signed an agreement on cooperation on the International Lunar Research Station Thursday, swelling the ranks of the China-led project.

Maram Kaire, head of the Senegalese Space Study Agency (ASES) and Li Guoping, chief engineer of the China National Space Administration (CNSA) signed the agreement on cooperation in the International Lunar Research Station (ILRS) at the second international conference on deep space exploration (Tiandu) in Tunxi, Anhui province, Sept. 5.

The agreement came as Chinese President Xi Jinping held talks with Senegalese President Bassirou Diomaye Faye. The latter is visiting for the Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) and a state visit.

Read more | >