Tag: Foam

How the Ozone Layer Was ‘Rescued’ From a Spike in CFC

Thelasko shared this report from the BBC: A steady decline in the levels of ozone-harming CFC chemicals in the atmosphere has resumed, scientists say. This follows a recent, dangerous pause in that downward trajectory, which could have slowed the healing of Earth’s protective ozone layer. Atmospheric measurements published in 2018 pointed to illegal CFC production that was occurring in Eastern China….

Nathan Myhrvold’s Dazzling High-Resolution Photographs of Snowflakes

Nathan Myhrvold is a former CTO of Microsoft, co-founder of the equity company Intellectual Ventures, and the founder of “food innovation lab” Modernist Cuisine (which among other things resulted in book of remarkable food photography). But he’s now photographing the intricate designs of snowflakes, reports Fast Company: Over the span of 18 months, Myhrvold built a camera with a microscopic lens…

Ancient ice beneath the surface of comet 67P is softer than candyfloss

When the Philae lander arrived at comet 67P, its harpoons didn’t deploy as planned and it bounced across the surface, revealing ice that is softer than the foam on coffee Source: https://www.newscientist.com/article/2258248-ancient-ice-beneath-the-surface-of-comet-67p-is-softer-than-candyfloss/?utm_campaign=RSS%7CNSNS&utm_source=NSNS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_content=home…

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,…

Spacecraft Made From Ultra Thin Foam Could Reach Proxima Centauri In 185 Years

An anonymous reader quotes Newsweek:
A hypothetical spacecraft made from an extremely thin layer of a synthetic foam could technically make it to our closest neighboring star Proxima Centauri in just 185 years, scientists have said. If Voyager were to make the same journey, it would take around 73,000 years, according to NASA. In a study that is due to be published…

A New Artificial Material Effectively Cannot Be Cut

Researchers from the University of Stirling, UK, have embedded ceramic spheres in aluminum foam to create a material that couldn’t be cut with angle grinders, power drills or water jet cutters. “They dubbed it Proteus after the shape-shifting Greek god, for the way the material metamorphosed in different ways to defend against attacks,” reports New Scientists. From the report: “It’s pretty…

Facebook Will Donate 720,000 Masks and 1.5 Million Gloves to Healthcare Workers

The San Francisco Chronicle reports: Facebook plans to donate 720,000 masks — a combination of the coveted N95 respirators and more basic surgical masks — and 1.5 million pairs of gloves to health care workers around the world. Facebook officials said they bought the masks for their offices’ emergency disaster kits following wildfires in California. Facebook has already donated 375,000 masks…

Image: Space foam already bubbling as planned

Installed on Friday in the International Space Station and sending down images by Monday. This picture shows one of the first images of foam formed inside the Fluid Science Laboratory in Europe’s space laboratory Columbus. Source: https://phys.org/news/2020-03-image-space-foam.html…

Image: The foam-coarsening experiment aboard the ISS

Another fluid experiment joins long running research on foam stability on the International Space Station. The Foam-Coarsening experiment, developed by Airbus for ESA, is scheduled to be activated this month in the Fluid Science Laboratory in the European Columbus module. Source: https://phys.org/news/2020-03-image-foam-coarsening-aboard-iss.html…