7.3-magnitude earthquake rocks New Zealand, spawns tsunami warning

At this writing, the National Emergency Management Agency of New Zealand is still warning people to stay away from harbors, rivers and estuaries. Source: https://earthsky.org/earth/earthquake-new-zealand-march-4-5-2021-tsunami-warning…

Giant iceberg breaks off Brunt Ice Shelf in Antarctica

A giant iceberg, about twice the size of Chicago, broke off from Antartica’s Brunt Ice Shelf in late February 2021. Source: https://earthsky.org/earth/giant-iceberg-breaks-off-antarctica-brunt-ice-shelf…

Hoinga: Debris of stellar explosion found in unexpected location

In the first all-sky survey by the eROSITA X-ray telescope onboard SRG, astronomers at the Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics have identified a previously unknown supernova remnant, dubbed “Hoinga.” The finding was confirmed in archival radio data and marks the first discovery of a joint Australian-eROSITA partnership established to explore our Galaxy using multiple wavelengths, from low-frequency radio waves to…

Asteroid dust in Chicxulub crater seals deal on dino extinction

Scientists examined rock cores taken from the Chicxulub crater in Mexico, site of the asteroid impact that triggered dinosaur extinction, and found iridium, a telltale sign of asteroids. Source: https://earthsky.org/earth/asteroid-dust-iridium-chicxulub-crater-dinosaur-extinction…

Facebook, TikTok Least Trusted By Americans, Google Most Trusted, Says Survey

An anonymous reader quotes a report from ZDNet: Forty percent of Americans don’t trust Facebook and TikTok and Google appears to be winning the trust wars, according to a survey from SeoClarity. SeoClarity surveyed 1,057 American residents to gauge trust in tech companies and found a majority of US citizens think social media companies need more regulation. The findings are notable…

What is a quasar?

A quasar is an extremely bright and distant point-like source visible to radio telescopes. The source is a so-called Active Galactic Nucleus, fueled by a supermassive black hole. Source: https://earthsky.org/astronomy-essentials/definition-what-is-a-quasar…

Do Python Developers Want Static Typing?

Results were announced this week for the fourth “official annual Python Developers Survey” of over 28,000 developers (in nearly 200 countries) conducted by the Python Software Foundation and JetBrains. 85% of the survey respondents use Python as their main programming language, InfoWorld reports: Python developers cite simplicity and ease of use as principal reasons for using the language, but they still…

Nearby black hole Cyg X-1 more massive than thought

New research suggests that the famous black hole Cygnus X-1 – first black hole ever detected and one of the closest to Earth – is farther away and much more massive than previously believed. Source: https://earthsky.org/space/cygnus-x-1-black-hole-more-massive-farther…

3D map of a million binary stars

A new atlas of nearby binary stars plots more than a million pairs and reveals a profusion of identical twins. Source: https://earthsky.org/space/3d-map-million-binary-stars…

Dark streaks on Mars may be caused by salts and melting ice

Researchers at the SETI Institute say that unusual dark streaks on sun-facing slopes on Mars, debated about for years, may be small landslides caused by a combination of salts and melting ice just below the surface. Source: https://earthsky.org/space/mars-dark-streaks-melting-ice-recurring-slope-lineae…