Study: Trip to Mars Could Weaken Astronaut’s Immune System
Some of the biggest challenges NASA faces, if it is to meet its goal of sending humans to Mars, is making sure its astronauts are kept healthy and safe from harm. Unlike current space flights, a round-trip mission to Mars could take up to 3 years. Cosmic and solar radiation and a weakening of muscles and bones […]
Want to Look Cool? Smile!
The Oxford Dictionary defines the slang word “cool” as fashionably attractive or impressive. Being called cool is considered a compliment since so many people are hoping to give such an impression. One area where people try their hardest to “look cool” is in their photographs. According to University of Arizona Professor Caleb Warren, for many […]
Calculations Show Mercury Has a Thin but Dense Crust
Mercury is the closest planet to the Sun, and very little is really known about this hot rocky orb. So far, only two space probes have ever studied Mercury. NASA’s Mariner 10 flew past the planet three times between 1973 and 1974. The flybys allowed scientists to map about half the planet, discover its thin […]
High-Tech Meteorite Hunting
Scientists estimate that thousands of extraterrestrial rocks enter our atmosphere every year, most of which burn up or fragment into smaller pieces before hitting Earth. Here’s how the Center for Near-Earth Object Studies (CNEOS) at NASA/JPL refer to various space objects. Asteroid: A relatively small, inactive, rocky body orbiting the Sun. Comet: A relatively small, […]
Hot Monster Planet; No Fountain of Youth; Sunscreen Snow on Exoplanet
Hot Monster Planet Found Orbiting Small Star British astronomers say they discovered a “monster” planet orbiting a tiny star, but, according to planet formation theory, the planet should not even exist. The theory suggests a planet of its size could not be formed around such a small star. Located about 600 light years from Earth, […]
No Worries – Scientists Say Earth’s Poles Won’t Flip for 4,000 Years
The Earth’s magnetic fields helps create a shield that protects us from the continuous onslaught of highly charged space particles and radiation, which are dangerous to creatures living on the Earth’s surface. Without these protective fields, scientists say that the solar wind also would simply blow away our atmosphere in way similar to what scientists suspect […]
Biggest Wave Spotted; Walking Heel-to-Toe; Newborn Exoplanets
New Record for Biggest Wave Measured by Buoy The UN’s World Meteorological Society says the biggest wave ever to be measured by a buoy was identified at 0600 universal time on February 4, 2013. The colossal 19-meter swell was spotted in the North Atlantic Ocean between Iceland and the UK. The previous highest wave recorded […]
New-found Planet Defies Scientific Theory
A newly-discovered planet outside of our solar system has scientists rethinking how planets form. The international research team said the new exoplanet, with the registration number HD 106906b, is not only huge, weighing 11 times Jupiter’s mass, but also orbits its sun from a distance of 650 au’s – astronomical units or 97,238,615,955 km. In […]