Arctic Bacterium Offers Clues to Life on Mars
A permafrost microbe has been discovered growing at –15°C, the coldest temperature ever reported for bacterial growth. A team of scientists from Montreal’s McGill University made the discovery on Ellesmere Island, located in the Canadian High Arctic. Researchers said they found the living strain of bacteria growing in the extreme cold of the permafrost, which […]
GROVER Robot Provides New tool for Exploring Greenland
NASA‘s newest rover could help scientists better understand changes in the massive Greenland ice sheet. Last summer, higher-than-normal temperatures caused surface melting across about 97 percent of the ice sheet. Scientists expect the robot to detect the layer of the sheet, which is buried beneath two miles of ice, that formed after last year’s extreme […]
When Domesticated Cats Turn Deadly
Most people view cats as harmless pets, but for birds and small mammals, the domesticated feline can be a deadly killer. A new study in Nature Communications finds bird and mammal mortality caused by outdoor cats is much higher than has been previously reported. Annual bird deaths in the United States are now estimated to […]
Study Finds Energy Use in Cities Causes Winter Warming
Everyday energy consumption in urban areas could be significant enough to cause winter temperatures to rise. According to a new study funded by the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), waste heat released in major cities in the Northern Hemisphere in the northern-most parts of North America and Eurasia. “The world’s most populated metropolitan areas, which […]
Satellite’s Space Trip Ends After 30 Years
The longest operating Earth-observing satellite is about to be decommissioned by the US Geological Survey. The USGS has begun the task of lowering Landsat-5 from its operational orbit. The first series of maneuvers in that effort is likely to take place within the next month. Landsat-5 was the fifth of seven satellites launched as part […]
Science Images of the Week
n this photo made Thursday, Nov. 29, 2012, The Plosky Tolbachnik volcano erupts in Russia on Thursday, Nov. 29, 2012, for the first time in 36 years. (AP)
New Microbes May Hold Clues To Extraterrestrial Life
Scientists say they have found ancient microbial life in dark and very salty water some 20 meters below the surface of a frozen and isolated Antarctic lake. The finding could provide scientists with insight into how life could possibly exist in the most extreme environments on Earth as well as elsewhere throughout the cosmos. In […]
Science Images of the Week
Coral Sounds Alarm When Threatened
Coral reefs provide one of the world’s most vital ecosystems and some of these reefs are in danger of being destroyed. While people are to blame for much of the destruction, nature also plays a role. Encroaching species of seaweed with poisonous compounds on their surfaces are one of nature’s threats. The toxic seaweed begins […]
Antibiotics Might Contribute to Bee Die-Off
A new study finds prolonged antibiotic use by beekeepers might play a role in the mysterious drop in honey bee populations in the United States. Yale researchers found genetic evidence that helpful bacteria, which normally live the bellies of honeybees, have become highly resistant to the antibiotic tetracycline, possibly weakening the bees’ ability to fight […]