Science

On the fringes of the Milky Way Galaxy, astronomers have discovered a star with a chemical composition unlike anything they have ever seen. It corresponds to the chemical traces left behind by very massive, very early stars, as predicted by theory. This is the most convincing evidence to date that the first stars were colossal stars. Models indicate that such stars would not have left any other traces, so this is the best evidence that can be hoped for. It is believed that the first generation of stars in the universe included stars hundreds of times more massive than the Sun. A star of this size would have exploded after a brief existence, leaving no remnants for astronomers to investigate. Scientists Use Chemical Signatures to Pinpoint Massive Stars That Have Disappeared Th...

A scientist in the U.K. photographed a sequence of dazzling arcs and halos of light encircling the sun, including a remarkable ring of light that circled the sky. Alan Fitzsimmons, an astronomer at Queen's University Belfast in Northern Ireland, recorded the amazing light show over Belfast's Botanic Gardens on May 28. Fitzsimmons told Live Science the show lasted 30 minutes. Spaceweather.com reported seeing strange lighting beams in various regions of Northern Ireland, northern England, and Scotland. Fitzsimmons said millions of small, precisely positioned ice crystals in the high sky, which commonly accompany thin cirrus clouds, generate the arcs and halos. "If the winds are very uniform up there, the hexagonal-shaped crystals align," he said. "This allows sunlight refractin...

In case you were wondering, yes, the sun does make a noise; however, scientists have now determined what the sun sounds like. Solar physicists at Stanford University have determined the solar surface noise of the sun by recording acoustical pressure waves in the sun with an instrument called the Michelson Doppler Imager. The results of their research indicate that the solar surface noise is quite noisy. According to the American Academy of Audiology, the volume of the noises, which have been described as sounding like "screaming sirens," would increase by 100 decibels by the time they arrived at our location on Earth if they were allowed to travel across space. Scientists have heard the sun. This amounts to tens of thousands of watts of energy created per meter on the sun,...

X-rays have existed since Roentgen's discovery of them in 1895. They have been used for a variety of purposes, such as diagnosing health conditions in a doctor's office and detecting prohibited objects at an airport. X-rays can pass through objects, which absorb varying quantities of radiation depending on their composition. This allows us to create images of objects such as fractured bones. Now, a team of scientists from the University of Ohio and Argonne National Laboratory directed by Professor Saw Wai Hla has conducted new research. They were capable of capturing an X-ray of a single atom. This is significant because it may have a significant impact on materials science and possibly even medicine. The scientists detailed their accomplishments in the scientific journal ...

For ages, the Aurora Borealis (Northern Lights) has captivated viewers. The physics underlying this celestial ballet of light flowing across the night sky is as interesting as the sight. From ancient mythology to current understanding, we'll investigate the complicated interaction of particles, magnetic fields, and atmospheric factors that create this cosmic symphony of light. Particle-Magnetic Field Dance The Northern Lights are a beautiful display of Earth's atmospheric dynamics thousands of kilometers above us. Our Sun starts their adventure 149.6 million kilometers away. Solar wind—charged particles from the Sun—continues. Solar flares and coronal mass ejections accelerate the solar wind, sending particles toward Earth. Electrons and protons travel up to 1000 km/s towa...

Venus and Mars are best viewed now. These two planets are among the most visible celestial skywatching phenomena in June 2023. And more. Other bright planets and stars are seen. "The planets of war and love draw nearer each night, as the bright stars of Northern Hemisphere summer rise," NASA adds. Viewing Mars and Venus It's easy. They're apparent in light pollution. Clear evenings need looking up. "You can watch Mars and Venus draw closer together throughout the month in the western sky following sunset," NASA says. Mars, reddish, will appear above Venus: Venus, a hellish planet 900 degrees Fahrenheit hotter than a pizza oven, is particularly dazzling. The moon is brighter than it. It's always covered in poisonous sulfuric acid clouds that reflect sunlight into s...

In what may be one of the most incredible images ever acquired by the James Webb Space Telescope, the world's most powerful observatory has surveyed a patch of sky and discovered a galaxy-packed star factory. The image obtained as part of the JWST Advanced Deep Extragalactic Survey program depicts a portion of the GOODS-South region of the sky, which contains over 45,000 galaxies per frame. The Hubble telescope has also previously observed this region of the heavens. The JADES program will dedicate approximately 32 days of telescope time to discovering and characterizing dim, faraway galaxies as astronomers attempt to comprehend their nature. How did the first nebulae and stars originate? The researchers studied 500–850 million-year-old galaxies. "With JADES, we hope to re...

These filaments are hidden in the core of the Milky Way galaxy, a discovery made by astronomers for the first time. In the 1980s, they were discovered as a single filament hanging vertically near Sagittarius A*, the central supermassive black hole of our galaxy. The new analysis has uncovered a complete population of these filaments that radiate from the black hole like spokes on a wheel. In The Astrophysical Journal Letters, Farhad Yusef-Zadeh of Northwestern University describes the evidence for a distinct population of short filaments with PA close to the Galactic plane. "It was unexpected to discover a new population of structures that appear to be pointing toward the black hole. I was actually astonished upon seeing these. In the 1980s, Farhad Yusef-Zadeh discovered ...

After a crocodile bit his head, an Australian man survived. A saltwater crocodile (Crocodylus porosus) attacked Marcus McGowan from behind while snorkeling 25 miles (40 kilometers) off Cape York in Queensland. These reptiles have the strongest measured biting force on Earth. Before the lizard could snap harder, McGowan opened its jaws. "I was able to lever its jaws open just far enough to get my head out," McGowan said. "The crocodile then attempted to attack me a second time, but I managed to push it away with my right hand, which was then bitten by the croc." He was transported to the hospital for scalp lacerations and puncture wounds on his head and hand, minor injuries considering he faced one of the world's most fearsome predators. Strong bite Crocodile jaws are ve...

Ikon Science, a global provider of prediction and open subsurface knowledge management software and services, has launched its 4D inversion technology instrument. This investigation instrument for geophysical and well data is included in RokDoc 2023.3. As the complexity of subsurface exploration increases, there is less space for error. For exploration and production activities, quantitative interpretation algorithms must generate not only an accurate prediction of properties, but also a thorough comprehension of uncertainty. The Time-Lapse Ji-Fi app from Ikon provides comprehensive 4D fluid tracking capabilities for production and injection scenarios and is pertinent to the majority of hydrocarbon production campaigns - as well as Carbon Capture Utilisation and Storage (CCUS) init...