A new study suggests that spring snowmelt in the Alps is occurring earlier in the year, and the earlier warming – due to climate change – threatens vitally important microbial communities in Alpine soils. Source: https://earthsky.org/earth/alps-climate-change-driven-snowmelt-abrupt-seasonal-change…
Tag: Alpine
Why does this galaxy look older than its years?
To the extent that we can see them, galaxies in the very early universe should look relatively young and unformed. But galaxy ALESS 073.1 is a surprise to astronomers: it looks more mature than we’d have any reason to expect. Why? Source: https://earthsky.org/space/galaxy-looks-older-than-its-years-aless-073-1…
Grizzlies Are Coming Back. But Can We Make Room For Them?
As grizzly bears expand their range in Montana, Idaho, and Wyoming into places where they haven’t been seen in a century or more, they’re increasingly encountering humans. From a report: Things intensified last summer as trails and campgrounds across the region flooded with inexperienced tourists seeking refuge in the outdoors during the coronavirus pandemic. Grizzly attacks spiked. Bear managers were inundated…
Ötzi the Iceman may have scaled ice-free Alps
Many Alpine summits may have been ice-free before about 5,900 years ago. Source: https://www.livescience.com/otzi-iceman-lived-in-ice-free-alpine.html
Pluto’s landscape more like Earth’s than previously thought
New analysis of data gathered from New Horizons’ 2015 flyby of Pluto shows evidence of Earth-like snow-capped mountains and the potential for glaciers made of methane ice. Source: https://earthsky.org/space/pluto-landscape-more-like-earths-than-previously-thought…
Boom! Bam! Boom! How to make a triple crater on Mars
Like many worlds in our solar system, Mars has prominent impact craters. A particularly unusual example is shown in this new image from ESA’s Mars Express: an ancient triplet composed of 3 overlapping craters. Source: https://earthsky.org/space/mars-express-ancient-triple-impact-crater…
Surprisingly mature galaxies in the early universe
When the universe was only a tenth of its current age its galaxies experienced a growth spurt. It was this period that the scientists in the ALPINE project focused on when they used ESO’s ALMA telescope to carry out the first ever large survey of distant galaxies. To their surprise, these galaxies observed in the early stages of their life were…
Swiss Region To Take Cryptocurrency For Tax Payments In 2021
A Swiss region that has billed itself as a hub for high-tech finance said Thursday that it plans to accept cryptocurrencies Bitcoin and Ether for tax payments starting next year. ABC News reports: Switzerland’s Zug canton joins its eponymous main city and several Swiss towns in agreeing to take tax payments in cryptocurrency. Zug is thought to be the first region…
Could Pine64’s Cheap Linux Smartphone Replace Your PC?
TechRadar reports on Pine64’s new “PinePhone Convergence Package” handset, calling it “a Linux desktop you can keep in your pocket” that can be used as a PC when plugged into an external display and a keyboard. The device costs just $199 and is aimed primarily at Linux enthusiasts. The PinePhone Linux smartphone is based on the Alpine Linux-based PostmarketOS that can…
Hummingbirds see colors we can only imagine
“Our experiments enabled us to get a sneak peek into what the world looks like to a hummingbird,” one scientist said. Source: https://earthsky.org/earth/wild-hummingbirds-see-colors-humans-can-only-imagine…