As soon as Wednesday, NASA is poised to make history—sending the first woman, the first person of color, and the first non-American on a voyage around the moon.
NASA began the countdown Monday for humanity's first launch to the moon in 53 years.
In many parts of the world, including China, soil acidification is reducing agricultural yields. Recycling animal manure can help counteract this acidification and is therefore a key component of circular agriculture. However, this approach also has a downside.
Planetary surface missions currently operate cautiously. On Mars, communication delays between Earth and rovers (typically between four and 22 minutes), as well as data transfer constraints due to uplink and downlink limitations, force scientists to plan operations in advance. Rovers are designed for energy efficiency and safety, and to move slowly across hazardous terrain.
Germany's largest companies are deeply entangled with rival businesses in China and the US, and unable to escape either superpower, according to new research published by the University of Sussex and King's College London. The findings are published in the journal Review of International Political Economy.
Earth is teeming with life: creatures big and small have spread and adapted to vastly different environments. Many animals can also change their physiology—how their bodies function—in response to local fluctuations. Just think of hibernating bears in winter, for example.
Researchers at Murdoch University have developed a forensic intelligence tool which could help police link the victims of serial offenders by analyzing their facial appearance. The study, "Development of face similarity linkage for the attribution of intelligence links in unsolved sexually motivated serial homicide," is published in The Police Journal: Theory, Practice and Principles.
The taste and texture profile of protein shakes could be improved by tweaking the way whey protein is made, new research has found. An ongoing collaboration among the University of Reading, Aberystwyth University and Arla Foods Ingredients has resulted in the production of whey protein (a dairy-derived ingredient found in gym shakes and sports supplements) with improved texture characteristics. The findings, published in the International Dairy Journal, suggest that manufacturing changes have the potential to improve the palatability of whey protein drinks.
The sun, our nearest star, never stops breathing. Every second of every day, it exhales a vast stream of charged particles that sweeps outward through the solar system at hundreds of kilometers per second. We call it the solar wind, and while that name conjures something gentle and constant, the reality is considerably more turbulent.
Scientific expeditions require months of planning before scientists can acquire the first data. A bark cuts through the Arctic silence, waking Anna up. She slept only three hours after collecting the last sample. Anna reaches for her rifle, exits the tent, and steps onto the midnight ice. She pets the guard dog she rented a few days earlier. It might be a false alarm, but she scans the darkness for polar bears, hoping her training pays off. She cannot afford to lose the samples. Nor her life.
