Science

Joint European-Japanese mission to Mercury gets its first glimpse of the planet A joint European-Japanese spacecraft got its first glimpse of Mercury as it swung by the solar system’s innermost planet while on a mission to deliver two probes into orbit in 2025. The BepiColombo mission made the first of …

The rise of dinosaurs coincided with environmental changes driven by major volcanic eruptions over 230 million years ago, a new study reveals. The Late Triassic Carnian Pluvial Episode (CPE) saw an increase in global temperature and humidity – creating a major impact on the development of animal and plant life, …

All living snakes evolved from a handful of species that survived the giant asteroid impact that wiped out the dinosaurs, the findings of a new study suggest. Researchers from the University of Bath say that this devastating extinction event that happened at the end of the Cretaceous period was a …

Hydrogen sulfide, known as sewer gas because it is emitted by manure and sewer pipes, is not only unpleasant to smell but is also poisonous and corrosive, and needs to be removed from products like natural gas. But now, researchers have found a way to convert this foul-smelling, dangerous sewer …

A smoke alarm was activated in a Russian service module on the International Space Station (ISS), the Russian space agency Roscosmos said on Thursday, and Russian news agencies reported that cosmonauts had smelled burning plastic. The RIA news agency quoted Roscosmos as saying all systems were later working properly. Plans …

While humans are protected from solar storms by the Earth’s magnetic field and atmosphere, they still have the potential to cause immense damage to infrastructure which could induce an “internet apocalypse,” new research finds. The report, entitled ‘Solar Superstorms: Planning for an Internet Apocalypse’, states that “one of the greatest …

Europe will miss a key climate target for cutting greenhouse gas emissions by more than 20 years unless it picks up the pace on energy transition measures and improves governance, a study involving Europe’s biggest utility Enel said. At the current pace, Europe will only reach its 2030 target for …

Trapped on island habitats made smaller by rising seas, Indonesia’s Komodo dragons were listed as “endangered” on Saturday, in an update of the wildlife Red List that also warned overfishing threatens nearly two-in-five sharks with extinction. About 28 percent of the 138,000 species assessed by the International Union for the …

Key air pollutants temporarily plunged by unprecedented levels during coronavirus lockdowns last year, with fine particle pollution falling by more than a third across parts of Asia, a U.N. agency said on Friday. Particulate matter (PM 2.5) fell by up to 40% across Africa, South America, and Southern Asia and …

Almost a third of the world’s tree species are at risk of extinction, while hundreds are on the brink of being wiped out, according to a landmark report published by Botanic Gardens Conservation International (BGCI) on Wednesday. According to the State of the World’s Trees report 17,500 tree species – …

A blob of warm water in the southern Pacific is fueling a decades-long megadrought in Chile, and climate change is at least partly to blame, scientists say. The “Southern Blob” east of New Zealand is driving hot and dry conditions in Chile, with snow caps melting on the Andes, reservoirs …

The COVID pandemic has shown the fragility of our global food supply chains, with many supermarkets and restaurants in almost every country having experienced food shortages. Millions of people in the UK alone have experienced severe food insecurity during COVID-19, according to a recent report by the country’s Foods Standards Agency. …

Around 45 minutes after sunset, on Saturday evening (Aug. 21) and in a single glance, a gathering of the moon and the biggest planet of our solar system, very low in the east-southeast sky is to be in the sky. Assuming one’s sky is reasonably clear, one might be able …

Scientists grew a tiny human brain in a lab through the use of induced pluripotent stem cells. The organ has developed basic eye structures that can send signals to the brain and sense light, a new report revealed. Published in the Cell Stem Cell journal under ScienceDirect, the research involved …

Environmental groups worry about the risk supertankers might pose to Eilat’s fragile coral ecosystems. The Red Sea reefs off the Israeli resort of Eilat host some of the greatest coral diversity on the planet. A symphony in splendid technicolor, the reefs are among the world’s most resilient coral colonies against …

NASA is currently recruiting applicants for participation as crew members for a simulated Mars mission set to begin next year. Successful applicants will join a one-year analog mission in habitat to simulate life in a distant world to prepare NASA for real-life challenges of future missions to Mars, with the …

Extreme heatwaves that previously only struck once every 50 years are now expected to happen once per decade because of global warming, while downpours and droughts have also become more frequent, a UN climate science report says. The report found that we are already experiencing those effects of climate change, …

Earth’s climate is getting so hot that temperatures in about a decade will probably blow past a level of warming that world leaders have sought to prevent, according to a report released Monday that the United Nations called a “code red for humanity.” “It’s just guaranteed that it’s going to …

Human-driven climate change is threatening a critical current system that plays a key role in transporting warmer and cooler waters throughout the Atlantic which could have dire impacts on world temperatures and critical ecosystems, a new scientific study has found. A new study suggests that the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation …

The team said that if this method succeeds commercially, the country will have an environmentally friendly fuel that could possibly replace petroleum, diesel, and compressed natural gas (CNG). The scientists also want to develop an indigenous magneto-electrolytic hydrogen generator. Scientists from India’s leading research facility, the Indian Institutes of Technology-Bombay, …