Supermassive black holes are the largest black holes, with masses that can exceed a billion Suns. Just this spring, the first-ever image of the supermassive black hole at the center of the Messier 87 galaxy was taken, and researchers recently spotted the largest supermassive black hole ever seen. Despite these groundbreaking efforts, figuring out how these black holes drive a galaxy’s…
Tag: Shape
Large pyramid-shaped asteroid to fly past Earth
A large space rock the approximate size and shape of the Great Pyramid of Giza is set for a close encounter. The object, which measures 427ft across, … Source: https://www.unexplained-mysteries.com/news/332774/large-pyramid-shaped-asteroid-to-fly-past-earth…
All New Cellphone Users In China Must Now Have Their Face Scanned
An anonymous reader quotes a report from MIT Technology Review: Customers in China who buy SIM cards or register new mobile-phone services must have their faces scanned under a new law that came into effect yesterday. China’s government says the new rule, which was passed into law back in September, will “protect the legitimate rights and interest of citizens in cyberspace.”…
Fossil of a newly-discovered mammal shows it had bizarre ears
A rodent-like creature that lived 120 million years ago in Asia had an unusual ear shape that may have evolved to accommodate its unique way of chewing Source: https://www.newscientist.com/article/2225162-fossil-of-a-newly-discovered-mammal-shows-it-had-bizarre-ears/?utm_campaign=RSS%7CNSNS&utm_source=NSNS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_content=home…
Was ‘Oumuamua a cosmic dust bunny?
‘Oumuamua – the weird object that entered our solar system in 2017 and quickly fled back toward interstellar space – might not be an asteroid or comet from a distant solar system, as many believed. It might instead be a “cosmic dust bunny.” Source: https://earthsky.org/space/was-oumuamua-a-cosmic-dust-bunny…
Achernar is the End of the River
Achernar is the 9th brightest star and flattest star known. It’s famous as the southernmost bright star in the constellation Eridanus the River. Here’s why much of Earth never sees it … and how you can. Source: https://earthsky.org/brightest-stars/bright-achernar-ends-the-southern-river…
Bizarre Tully Monster fossil is still a mystery
Was the Tully Monster – which left behind one of the strangest fossils ever discovered – a vertebrate or an invertebrate? The mystery continues. Source: https://earthsky.org/earth/tully-monster-mystery-fossil-invertebrate-vertebrate…
Bold Space Mission To Bring Back Rocks From Mars Takes Shape
sciencehabit shares a report from Science Magazine: In just over 1 decade, a small capsule shaped like a flying saucer could blaze in from space and smash into an empty Utah desert. Its payload would be momentous: less than 1 kilogram of rocks gathered on Mars. After years as a dream, Mars sample return is now a $7 billion plan, devised…
‘Doughnut-Shaped’ DNA Makes Cancer More Aggressive
“DNA conveys information not only in its sequence but also in its shape,” the authors said. Source: https://www.livescience.com/ring-shaped-dna-cancer-aggressive.html
ESA studies human hibernation for space travel
In movies and books, fictional astronauts enter ‘suspended animation’ to cross the vastness of space. Recently ESA investigated how real-life crew hibernation would impact a space mission to Mars. Source: https://earthsky.org/human-world/esa-study-human-hibernation-trip-to-mars…