Today: September 20, 2024
Today: September 20, 2024

Science

Science

India's lunar rover goes down a ramp to the moon's surface and takes a walk

A lunar rover slid down a ramp from the lander of India’s spacecraft within hours of its historic touch-down near the moon’s south pole, Indian space officials said Thursday, as the country celebrated its new scientific accomplishment. “India took a walk on the moon,” the state-run Indian Space Research Organization said, adding that the Chandrayan-3 Rover would conduct experiments over 14 days, including an analysis of the mineral composition of the lunar surface. Residents of the world’s most populous country had crowded around televisions in offices, shops, and restaurants on Wednesday and erupted into clapping, dancing,

August 24, 2023
India's lunar rover goes down a ramp to the moon's surface and takes a walk
Science

Loss of Antarctic ice hurting survival of emperor penguin chicks, study says

The loss of ice in one region of Antarctica last year likely resulted in none of the emperor penguin chicks surviving in four colonies, researchers reported Thursday. Emperor penguins hatch their eggs and raise their chicks on the ice that forms around the continent each Antarctic winter and melts in the summer months. Researchers used satellite imagery to look at breeding colonies in a region near Antarctica’s Bellingshausen Sea. The images showed no ice was left there in December during the Southern Hemisphere’s summer, as had occurred in 2021. Researchers said it is likely that no chicks

August 24, 2023
Loss of Antarctic ice hurting survival of emperor penguin chicks, study says
Science

Study reveals how much carbon damage would cost corporations if they paid for their emissions

The world’s corporations produce so much climate change pollution, it could eat up about 44% of their profits if they had to pay damages for it, according to a study by economists of nearly 15,000 public companies. The “corporate carbon damages” from those publicly owned companies analyzed — a fraction of all the corporations — probably runs in the trillions of dollars globally and in the hundreds of billions for American firms, one of the study authors estimated in figures that were not part of the published research. That’s based on the cost of carbon dioxide pollution that the United

August 24, 2023
Study reveals how much carbon damage would cost corporations if they paid for their emissions
Science

Launch of 4 astronauts to space station bumped to Saturday

NASA and SpaceX halted the countdown late Thursday for the launch of four astronauts to the International Space Station. Mission managers rescheduled the liftoff for early Saturday morning, giving them an extra 24 hours to close out lingering issues, officials said. Nearly ideal weather was expected. The four astronauts, representing four countries, had not yet headed to the SpaceX Falcon rocket awaiting them on the pad. They are expected to spend six months at the space station, replacing four astronauts who have been there for half a year. A NASA astronaut is leading the new

August 25, 2023
Launch of 4 astronauts to space station bumped to Saturday
Science

India's lunar rover keeps walking on the moon, days after spacecraft's historic touchdown

India’s lunar rover continued its walk on the moon Friday after the historic touch-down of India’s spacecraft near the moon’s south pole earlier this week, the country’s space agency said. The rover’s data collection and experiments could help determine if there is oxygen and hydrogen on the moon. The Chandrayan-3 Rover is expected to conduct experiments over 14 days, including an analysis of the mineral composition of the lunar surface, the Indian Space Research Organization has said. “The rover has successfully traversed a distance of about 8 meters (26.2 feet),” ISRO said Friday. “All payloads on

August 25, 2023
India's lunar rover keeps walking on the moon, days after spacecraft's historic touchdown
Science

A broad genetic test saved one newborn's life. Research suggests it could help millions of others

Brynn Schulte nearly died twice when she was a baby, at one point needing emergency surgery for massive bleeding in her brain. No one knew what was wrong until a test that looked at her full genetic blueprint found a rare bleeding disorder called factor XIII deficiency — an early diagnosis that saved her life. “You have this hopeless feeling when you don’t really know what’s going on,” said her father, Mike Schulte. “Casting a wide net really made a world of difference figuring this out quickly and getting her the right care that she needed almost

August 26, 2023
A broad genetic test saved one newborn's life. Research suggests it could help millions of others
Science

Much of Florida under state of emergency as possible tropical storm forms in Gulf of Mexico

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis declared a state of emergency Saturday for most of the state’s Gulf coast as forecasters say a weather system off the coast of Mexico could soon become a tropical storm and start moving toward the area. DeSantis’ declaration covers the Gulf coast from the southwestern city of Fort Myers north through Panama City in the Panhandle. Thirty-three of the state’s 67 counties are covered in the declaration. The National Hurricane Center says there’s a 70% chance the system will become a tropical storm by Monday and a 90% chance overall. Currently,

August 26, 2023
Much of Florida under state of emergency as possible tropical storm forms in Gulf of Mexico
Science

At Fukushima Daiichi, decommissioning the nuclear plant is far more challenging than water release

For the wrecked Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant, managing the ever-growing volume of radioactive wastewater held in more than 1,000 tanks has been a safety risk and a burden since the meltdown in March 2011. Its release marks a milestone for the decommissioning, which is expected to take decades. But it’s just the beginning of the challenges ahead, such as the removal of the fatally radioactive melted fuel debris that remains in the three damaged reactors, a daunting task if ever accomplished. Here’s a look at what’s going on with the plant’s decommissioning: WHAT HAPPENED AT FUKUSHIMA

August 27, 2023
At Fukushima Daiichi, decommissioning the nuclear plant is far more challenging than water release
Science

Women working in Antarctica say they were left to fend for themselves against sexual harassers

The howling winds and perpetual darkness of the Antarctic winter were easing to a frozen spring when mechanic Liz Monahon at McMurdo Station grabbed a hammer. If those in charge weren’t going to protect her from the man she feared would kill her, she figured, she needed to protect herself. It wasn’t like she could escape. They were all stuck there together on the ice. So she kept the hammer with her at all times, either looped into her Carhartt overalls or tucked into her sports bra. “If he came anywhere near me, I was

August 27, 2023
Women working in Antarctica say they were left to fend for themselves against sexual harassers
Science

Takeaways from AP's investigation into sexual harassment and assault at Antarctica's McMurdo Station

Many women who work at McMurdo Station, the main United States research base in Antarctica, say the isolated environment and macho culture have allowed sexual harassment and assault to flourish. The National Science Foundation, which oversees the U.S. Antarctic Program, published a report in 2022 in which 59% of women said they’d experienced harassment or assault while on the ice. But the problem goes beyond the harassment itself, The Associated Press found. In reviewing court records and internal communications, and in interviews with more than a dozen current and former employees, the AP uncovered a

August 27, 2023
Takeaways from AP's investigation into sexual harassment and assault at Antarctica's McMurdo Station
Science

Japan asks China to urge citizens to halt harassment after start of Fukushima wastewater release

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida asked China on Monday to urge its citizens to halt acts of harassment, including crank calls and stone throwing at Japanese diplomatic facilities and schools, in response to Japan’s release of treated radioactive wastewater from the damaged Fukushima nuclear power plant. “I must say it is regrettable,” Kishida said. He said Vice Minister for Foreign Affairs Masataka Okano summoned China’s ambassador, Wu Jianghao, to ask that Chinese people act calmly and responsibly. The release of the treated wastewater into the ocean, which began Thursday and is expected to continue for decades, has

August 28, 2023
Japan asks China to urge citizens to halt harassment after start of Fukushima wastewater release
Science

Native nations on front lines of climate change share knowledge and find support at intensive camps

Jeanette Kiokun, the tribal clerk for the Qutekcak Native Tribe in Alaska, doesn’t immediately recognize the shriveled, brown plant she finds on the shore of the Salish Sea or others that were sunburned during the long, hot summer. But a fellow student at a weeklong tribal climate camp does. They are rosehips, traditionally used in teas and baths by the Skokomish Indian Tribe in Washington state and other tribes. “It’s getting too hot, too quick,” Alisa Smith Woodruff, a member of the Skokomish tribe, said of the sun-damaged plant. Tribes suffer some of the most

August 29, 2023
Native nations on front lines of climate change share knowledge and find support at intensive camps
Science

Neurosurgeon investigating patient's mystery symptoms plucks a worm from woman's brain in Australia

A neurosurgeon investigating a woman’s mystery symptoms in an Australian hospital says she plucked a wriggling worm from the patient’s brain. Surgeon Hari Priya Bandi was performing a biopsy through a hole in the 64-year-old patient’s skull at Canberra Hospital last year when she used forceps to pull out the parasite, which measured 8 centimeters, or 3 inches. “I just thought: ‘What is that? It doesn’t make any sense. But it’s alive and moving,’” Bandi was quoted Tuesday in The Canberra Times newspaper. “It continued to move with vigor. We all felt a bit sick,” Bandi

August 29, 2023
Neurosurgeon investigating patient's mystery symptoms plucks a worm from woman's brain in Australia
Science

Supermoon could team up with Hurricane Idalia to raise tides higher just as the storm makes landfall

A rare blue supermoon could raise tides above normal just as Hurricane Idalia takes aim at Florida’s west coast, exacerbating flooding from the storm. The moon will be closest to the Earth on Wednesday night, the same day Idalia is expected to make landfall in Florida. While a supermoon can make for a spectacular backdrop in photos of landmarks around the world, its intensified gravitational pull also makes tides higher. “I would say the timing is pretty bad for this one,” said Brian Haines, the meteorologist in charge at the National Weather Service office in Charleston, South Carolina. It’s expected

August 29, 2023
Supermoon could team up with Hurricane Idalia to raise tides higher just as the storm makes landfall
Science

India's moon rover confirms sulfur and detects several other elements near the lunar south pole

India’s moon rover confirmed the presence of sulfur and detected several other elements near the lunar south pole as it searches for signs of frozen water nearly a week after its historic moon landing, India’s space agency said Tuesday. The rover’s laser-induced spectroscope instrument also detected aluminum, iron, calcium, chromium, titanium, manganese, oxygen and silicon on the lunar surface, the Indian Space Research Organization, or ISRO, said in a post on its website. The lunar rover had come down a ramp from the lander of India’s spacecraft after last Wednesday’s touch-down near the moon’s south pole.

August 29, 2023
India's moon rover confirms sulfur and detects several other elements near the lunar south pole
Science

A new Titanic expedition is planned. The US is fighting it, says wreck is a grave site

The U.S. government is trying to stop a planned expedition to recover items of historical interest from the sunken Titanic, citing a federal law and an international agreement that treat the shipwreck as a hallowed gravesite. The expedition is being organized by RMS Titanic Inc., the Georgia-based firm that owns the salvage rights to the world’s most famous shipwreck. The company exhibits artifacts that have been recovered from the wreck site at the bottom of the North Atlantic, from silverware to a piece of the Titanic’s hull. The government’s challenge comes more than two months after

August 29, 2023
A new Titanic expedition is planned. The US is fighting it, says wreck is a grave site
Science

Typhoon Saola strengthens as it passes Taiwan on its way to China

Typhoon Saola strengthened overnight as it continued its path across the Pacific early Wednesday and headed for China’s southern coast. The typhoon was moving northwest with sustained winds of 191 kph (118 mph) and gusts of up to 234 kph (145 mph), according to Taiwan’s Central Weather Bureau, and is now considered a strong typhoon. The typhoon’s eye won’t hit Taiwan’s mainland, but the storm’s outer bands will hit the island’s southern cities. The weather bureau also warned of heavy rain and strong winds in Taiwan’s southern cities, especially southern Pingtung county. The typhoon is currently

August 30, 2023
Typhoon Saola strengthens as it passes Taiwan on its way to China
Science

Live updates | Hurricane Idalia set to hit Florida as Category 4 storm

Follow live updates about Hurricane Idalia, which has strengthened to a Category 4 storm as it steams toward Florida, threatening to unleash life-threatening storm surges and rainfall. What to know — Feeding on some of the hottest water on the planet, Hurricane Idalia is rapidly strengthening as it bears down on Florida. — A rare blue supermoon could play a role in an unfolding disaster as Hurricane Idalia takes aim at Florida’s west coast. — Florida’s Big Bend is one of the last truly natural places in the state. Now it’s in the bull’s-eye of

August 30, 2023
Live updates | Hurricane Idalia set to hit Florida as Category 4 storm
Science

Mexican Navy hopes to expand net-snagging hooks to protect endangered vaquita porpoises

Mexico’s Navy said Wednesday it is planning to expand the area where it sinks concrete blocks topped with metal hooks to snag gill nets that are killing vaquita marina porpoises. The Navy began dropping the blocks into the Gulf of California last year, in hopes it may help save the world’s most endangered marine mammal. The vaquita lives only in the Gulf, also known as the Sea of Cortez, where as few as ten vaquitas remain. They cannot be held or bred in captivity. The vaquitas are caught and drown in illegal gill nets set

August 30, 2023
Mexican Navy hopes to expand net-snagging hooks to protect endangered vaquita porpoises
Science

West Point time capsule that appeared to contain nothing more than silt yields centuries-old coins

A nearly 200-year-old West Point time capsule that appeared to yield little more than dust when it was opened during a disappointing livestream contained hidden treasure after all, the U.S. Military Academy said Wednesday. It was just more hidden than expected. The lead box believed to have been placed by cadets in the base of a monument actually contained six silver American coins dating from 1795 to 1828 and a commemorative medal, West Point said in a news release. All were discovered in the sediment of the box, which at Monday’s ceremonial opening at the New York academy appeared to

August 30, 2023
West Point time capsule that appeared to contain nothing more than silt yields centuries-old coins
Science

Japan's PM visits fish market, vows to help fisheries hit by China ban over Fukushima water release

Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida sampled seafood and talked to workers at Tokyo’s Toyosu fish market Thursday to assess the impact of China’s ban on Japanese seafood in reaction to the release of treated radioactive wastewater from the wrecked Fukushima Daiichi plant to the sea. The release of the treated wastewater began last week and is expected to continue for decades. Japanese fishing groups and neighboring countries opposed it, and China immediately banned all imports of Japanese seafood in response. One of the seafood business operators told Kishida that sales of his scallops, which are largely exported

August 31, 2023
Japan's PM visits fish market, vows to help fisheries hit by China ban over Fukushima water release
Science

Trains suspended, people warned away from the coastline as Typhoon Saola churns toward south China

Chinese state media report at least 121 passenger trains are suspending service in anticipation of the arrival of Typhoon Saola, while people in coastal areas of southern China were being warned to stay away from the coastline. The suspensions on key lines running from north to south as well as on regional networks will begin Thursday and continue through Sept. 6, state broadcaster CCTV reported. China’s National Meteorological Center said Saola was moving toward the coast at a speed of about 15 kph (9 mph) and is due to make landfall Friday afternoon in the southern province

August 31, 2023
Trains suspended, people warned away from the coastline as Typhoon Saola churns toward south China
Science

Scientists say study found a direct link between greenhouse gas emissions and polar bear survival

Fifteen years after polar bears were listed as threatened, a new study says researchers have overcome a roadblock in the Endangered Species Act that prevented the federal government from considering climate change when evaluating impacts of projects such as oil and gas drilling. The act requires agencies to ensure projects they approve don’t further harm listed species. But a 2008 Department of Interior legal opinion said greenhouse gas emissions didn’t have to be considered because the impact from specific projects couldn’t be distinguished from that of all historic global emissions. A study published Thursday in Science’s Policy Forum says scientists

August 31, 2023
Scientists say study found a direct link between greenhouse gas emissions and polar bear survival
Science

Trump-era rule change allowing the logging of old-growth forests violates laws, judge says

A federal judge has found that a Trump-era rule change that allowed for the logging of old-growth forests in the Pacific Northwest violates several laws. U.S. Magistrate Judge Andrew Hallman on Thursday found that the U.S. Forest Service violated the National Environmental Policy Act, the National Forest Management Act and the Endangered Species Act when it amended a protection that had been in place since 1994. The findings came in response to a lawsuit filed by multiple environmental groups over the change. Hallman recommended that the Forest Service’s environmental assessment and finding of no significant impact

September 01, 2023
Trump-era rule change allowing the logging of old-growth forests violates laws, judge says
Science

In final hours before landfall, Hurricane Idalia stopped intensifying and turned from Tallahassee

In the final hours before Hurricane Idalia struck Florida the storm had grown into a Category 4 beast lurking off the state’s west coast, and the forecast called for it to continue intensifying up until landfall. An Air Force Reserve Hurricane Hunter aircraft had recorded winds up to 130 mph (215 kph), the National Hurricane Center said in an ominous bulletin at 6 a.m. Wednesday. As the sun rose an hour later, however, there was evidence the hurricane began replacing the wall around its eye — a phenomenon that experts say kept it from further intensifying. Maximum

September 01, 2023
In final hours before landfall, Hurricane Idalia stopped intensifying and turned from Tallahassee

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