Uranus as seen by the Voyager 2 spacecraft in 1986 NASA/JPL-Caltech A day on Uranus just got slightly longer, thanks to more accurate measurements of its rotation period that should help scientists plan missions to probe the gas giant. Figuring out the rotation period of the solar system’s giant planets is much harder than for…
The government sets out spending plans on five years of science. Where will the money go? Source link
United Launch Alliance is due to send 27 Kuiper satellites into low Earth orbit as Amazon begins a full-scale deployment of its satellite internet network Amazon Amazon’s satellite internet division, Kuiper, is set to launch 27 satellites into orbit today – the first step in building a network that it hopes will soon rival Starlink,…
An artist’s illustration of Haumea Science Photo Library/Alamy I find the outer reaches of our solar system fascinating. It’s a place that we know very little about considering how relatively close it is – even its size is up for debate. It’s littered with icy rocks, most of which are detectable only by huge telescopes….
“But Louis Wu had gone alone, jumping ahead of the midnight line, hotly pursued by the new day” … Larry Niven’s Ringworld Tithi Luadthong/Alamy IN THE NIGHT-TIME heart of Beirut, in one of a row of general-address transfer booths, Louis Wu flicked into reality. His foot-length queue was as white and shiny as artificial snow….
The Eta Aquarids meteor shower as visible in Sri Lanka in 2024 Thilina Kaluthotage/NurPhoto/ Getty Images The Lyrids and Eta Aquarids meteor showers will soon be appearing in the night skies. This year, they will start becoming visible within days of each other in April, with the bright Lyrids peaking on the night between 21…
The asteroid Apophis, named after the Egyptian god of chaos and destruction ESA-Science Office In four years, on 13 April 2029 to be exact, a large asteroid named Apophis will fly by Earth just 32,000 kilometres above the surface. Apophis, like the recently identified asteroid known as 2024 YR4, was once thought to be on…
A gene-edited grey wolf created by Colossal Biosciences Colossal Biosciences The creation of genetically modified grey wolves that are claimed to resemble extinct dire wolves has been criticised by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). Colossal Biosciences, a US company aiming to “de-extinct” several species with gene-editing technology, announced earlier this month that…
In 1984, an amateur paleontologist in Scotland found a remarkable specimen: a nearly complete fossil of what looked to be a lizard or salamander. Rather small in size at 20 centimeters, it would turn out to be a crucial piece in the puzzle of animal evolution. This creature, called Westlothiana lizziae, is one of the…
“Moth orchids are tropical plants…” Shutterstock/SoNelly With such a wholesome image, the world of horticulture can have some surprisingly passionate debates. So while it is probably extremely unwise, I thought I would wade into one of the most heated questions in gardening in recent years: should you really water tropical orchids with ice cubes? Bear…
