NASA has selected 16 cool new futuristic space technology concepts for further study. Four of them are from NASA’s own Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), including a railway system on the moon to move cargo. Source: https://earthsky.org/space/futuristic-space-technology-concepts-nasa-jpl-niac…
Tag: Swarm
Best observing targets for binoculars
What are the best solar system and deep-sky objects to view to get the most out of your binoculars? From moon-encircled worlds to starry knots in the Milky Way, our list makes the sky’s wonders easy to find. Source: https://earthsky.org/astronomy-essentials/best-targets-for-binoculars-moon-planets-nebula-clusters…
Swarm of black holes discovered
For the first time, astronomers have detected the presence of a throng of black holes crowding near the center of an ancient globular cluster. Source: https://earthsky.org/space/group-black-holes-found-globular-cluster-ngc-6397…
Jupiter’s Trojan asteroids offer surprises
A new study out this month suggests that Jupiter’s Trojan asteroids may be more peculiar than previously thought. The Trojan asteroids are rocky objects which orbit the sun just ahead of and just behind the gas giant, in gravitational sweet spots known as Lagrange points. The swarm ahead of Jupiter, known as the L4 (Greek) group, is slightly larger than the…
Swarm of Pacific eels is largest group of fish seen in the abyss
Life is thought to be fairly sparse in the deep ocean, but an underwater probe equipped with bait managed to draw in more than 100 eels 3100 metres down in the Pacific Source: https://www.newscientist.com/article/2265810-swarm-of-pacific-eels-is-largest-group-of-fish-seen-in-the-abyss/?utm_campaign=RSS%7CNSNS&utm_source=NSNS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_content=home…
Energy from solar wind favors the north
Using information from ESA’s Swarm satellite constellation, scientists have made a discovery about how energy generated by electrically-charged particles in the solar wind flows into Earth’s atmosphere—surprisingly, more of it heads towards the magnetic north pole than towards the magnetic south pole. Source: https://phys.org/news/2021-01-energy-solar-favors-north.html…
Swarm of eels breaks record for most fish ever spotted at one time in abyssal ocean
Before we start mining for precious metals in the darkness of the deep sea, we might try switching on the light first and observing our surroundings. Source: https://www.livescience.com/largest-recorded-swarm-of-deep-sea-fish.html
Rocket Lab Becomes Second Company After SpaceX To Launch and Land Orbital Rocket
Thelasko shares a report from Forbes: In a major milestone, the New Zealand-based launch company Rocket Lab has successfully recovered an orbital-class rocket after parachuting it back to Earth from near-space — only the second company in history ever to do so. Yesterday, Thursday, November 20 at 9.20 P.M. Eastern Time, the company’s two-stage Electron rocket lifted off from the company’s…
These Drones Will Plant 40,000 Trees in a Month. By 2028, They’ll Have Planted 1 Billion
Earlier this month, on land north of Toronto that previously burned in a wildfire, drones hovered over fields and fired seed pods into the ground, planting native pine and spruce trees to help restore habitat for birds. From a report: Flash Forest, the Canadian startup behind the project, plans to use its technology to plant 40,000 trees in the area this…
Inside the secret lives of synchronous fireflies
In the Smoky Mountains, thousands of fireflies flash in unison. Researchers want to know how. Source: https://earthsky.org/earth/inside-secret-lives-synchronous-fireflies-video…