Moon, star Spica on Mar 1, 2021

This evening – March 1, 2021 – look eastward before going to bed and you just might catch the bright waning gibbous moon and the star Spica over the horizon. Source: https://earthsky.org/tonight/moon-star-spica-on-mar-1-2021…

How the NSA’s Hubris Left America Vulnerable

A new book promises “the untold story of the cyberweapons market — the most secretive, invisible, government-backed market on earth — and a terrifying first look at a new kind of global warfare.” Its author — a New York Times cybersecurity reporter — shares the book’s story about David Evenden, a former National Security Agency analyst who later worked in Abu…

NASA explores solar wind with new view of small sun structures

Scientists have combined NASA data and cutting-edge image processing to gain new insight into the solar structures that create the Sun’s flow of high-speed solar wind, detailed in new research published today in The Astrophysical Journal. This first look at relatively small features, dubbed “plumelets,” could help scientists understand how and why disturbances form in the solar wind. Source: https://phys.org/news/2021-01-nasa-explores-solar-view-small.html…

Glenn Greenwald Resigns From The Intercept

Long-time Slashdot reader imAck writes: Glenn Greenwald announced via Twitter recently that he has resigned from The Intercept (and First Look Media), the former being a media outlet that he co-founded [in February 2014]. Purportedly, a recent attempt to constrain his editorial freedom was the incident that pushed him to make the decision. “Not content to simply prevent publication of this…

What astronauts think about life away from Earth

Axiom is an aerospace company making new possibilities accessible to humanity. Watch as astronauts retell their experience launching from Earth and living in space. Source: https://earthsky.org/space/axiom-video-roundtable-astronauts-talk-about-being-in-space…

Impossible Foods Is Now Developing a Plant-Based Alternative To Cow’s Milk

From a report: There’s a myriad of reasons to replace cow’s milk with alternatives like nut milks, oat milk, or soy milk, but for those who enjoy the experience of consuming animal-sourced dairy products, the alternatives just aren’t the same. So Impossible Foods, makers of the Impossible Burger and other plant-based meat alternatives, are working on another food replacement that looks,…

Spectacular! Moon and Venus before sunrise August 14 to 16

Enjoy an eyeful of the moon and Venus as they meet up in the morning sky in mid-August 2020! Source: https://earthsky.org/tonight/spectacular-moon-venus-before-sunrise…

NASA’s InSight flexes its arm while its ‘mole’ hits pause

NASA’s InSight lander has been using its robotic arm to help the heat probe known as the “mole” burrow into Mars. The mission is providing the first look at the Red Planet’s deep interior to reveal details about the formation of Mars and, ultimately, all rocky planets, including Earth. Source: https://phys.org/news/2020-07-nasa-insight-flexes-arm-mole.html…

First look: NASA’s James Webb space telescope fully stowed

NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope has been successfully folded and stowed into the same configuration it will have when loaded onto an Ariane 5 rocket for launch next year. Source: https://phys.org/news/2020-05-nasa-james-webb-space-telescope.html…

After sunset, use Venus to find Mercury

If you live in the Northern Hemisphere, these next few weeks will provide your best opportunity to spot Mercury, the innermost planet, in the evening sky for this year. Use Venus to locate Mercury in the western sky after sunset in May 2020! Source: https://earthsky.org/tonight/after-sunset-use-venus-to-find-mercury…