WEIRD SCIENCE
Michael Irving – – A star that disappeared before astronomers’ eyes could mark the first time the birth of a black hole has been directly witnessed. (Credit: NASA, ESA, P. Jeffries (STScI)). For the first time, astronomers have witnessed a star disappear …
Darren Quick – The Endorestiform Nucleus is located near the junction of the brain and the spinal cord (Credit: NeuRA). Michio Kaku calls the brain “the most complicated object in the known universe.” So, despite plenty of study, maybe it’s not a total surprise …
Michael Irving – – A composite near- and mid-infrared image of Apep, a star system that has been identified as a possible gamma ray burst source in the future (Credit: University of Sydney/European Southern Observatory). With the power to unleash as much energy …
By James Holloway – – Could rolling stones be responsible for the grooves in Phobos’ surface? (Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona). Scientists have long debated the cause of the distinctive grooves on the surface of Mars’ moon Phobos. One leading theory has it …
By Michael Irving – Astronomers have discovered a brand new type of celestial object: an active binary asteroid, meaning it’s made of two rocks orbiting each other while leaving a trail of gas like a comet. (Credit: ESA/Hubble, L. Calçada). Astronomers have …
David Szondy – A new MIT plane is propelled via ionic wind (Credit: MIT). A team of MIT engineers has flown what was long thought impossible – a heavier than air craft that needs no moving parts for achieving powered lift. The 5-lb …
Loz Blain – – The Zapata Ezfly is a jet-powered flying Segway that it seems almost anyone can fly (Credit: Zapata). The Zapata Ezfly looks for all intents and purposes like a Segway of the sky. You stand on a small platform equipped …
David Szondy – China’s Experimental Advanced Superconducting Tokamak (EAST) achieved an electron temperature of over 100 million degrees Celsius in its core plasma (Credit: IPP). The day of clean, limitless energy from nuclear fusion has taken another step closer thanks to China’s Experimental Advanced …
Michael Irving – The tardigrade shall inherit the Earth, according to a new study from Oxford and Harvard (Credit: rukanoga/Depositphotos). In about 5 billion years’ time, our Sun will use up its reserves of hydrogen and begin to cool down and expand, …
David Szondy – – A small, ephemeral lagoon in the hyperarid core of the Atacama Desert (Credit: Carlos González-Silva/Provided). Water may be an essential element of life, but to the scarce microbes that inhabit the Mars-like Atacama Desert in Chile, it’s death. …