Ultra-rare mineral points to huge impact crater in Australia
Michael Irving – The incredibly-rare mineral reidite has been found in an impact crater in Western Australia (Credit: sdecoret/Depositphotos). It’s said that time heals all wounds, and apparently that even applies to wounds on the Earth itself. Woodleigh Crater in Western Australia …
Alloy nanoparticles cut cost of platinum and increase life of hydrogen fuel cells
David Szondy – The new catalyst combines an outer shell of platinum atoms (gray spheres) with ordered layers of platinum and cobalt atoms (blue spheres) in its core (Credit: Sun lab/Brown University). A team of Brown University scientists has developed a new …
Boston Dynamics gives Spot the robot a job
David Szondy – Spot is equipped with an arm/neck for making close inspections (Credit: Boston Dynamics). Not content with mastering parkour, Boston Dynamics is putting one of its advanced robots to “work” for the first time. In a YouTube video released by …
20 new deep-space radio signals detected by Outback telescopes
Michael Irving – An artist’s rendition of fast radio bursts, being detected by the ASKAP telescope in Western Australia (Credit: OzGrav, Swinburne University of Technology). Fast radio bursts (FRBs) are one of the most intriguing celestial mysteries out there at the moment. …
Archaeologists uncover first Dead Sea Scrolls cave in 60 years
Michael Irving – Archaeologists have discovered a 12th cave that once contained unknown Dead Sea Scrolls (Credit: Casey L. Olson and Oren Gutfeld). The Dead Sea Scrolls are among the most important historical texts ever discovered, dating as far back as the …
Ancient Egyptian pigment may find use on power-saving roofs
Ben Coxworth – Egyptian blue is considered to be the world’s first synthetic pigment (Credit: Maugli/Depositphotos). Thousands of years ago, the ancient Egyptians created a blue pigment which they used in their depictions of gods and royalty. Derived from calcium copper silicate, the …
Nikon Small World winners zoom in on microscopic marvels
Rich Haridy – Image of Distinction: Cassida rubiginosa (thistle tortoise beetle), ventral view (Credit: Özgür Bulur). A surreal close-up of a weevil eye has taken the top prize at this year’s Nikon Small World Photomicrography Competition. The magnificent annual photography competition, now in …
Shortages of rare earth elements could limit clean energy development
We’ve started searching for rare earth elements in some unlikely places Laura Mast, Environmental Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology. U.S. National Archives on Flickr. Rare earth elements — elements like scandium, neodymium, and dysprosium — have found their way into every aspect of our …
Sol’s Pocket Rocket straddles the awkward space between e-bikes and e-motos
Loz Blain – Something like an electric Grom, the Pocket Rocket is a humble, practical and clean e-commuter (Credit: Sol Motors). It’s too fast and powerful to be an e-bike, but so underpowered that you’d hardly call it a motorcycle. Sol Motors …