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A private lunar lander has captured the first high-definition sunset pictures from the moon.

Firefly Aerospace and NASA released the stunning photos Tuesday, taken before the Blue Ghost lander fell silent over the weekend. One shot included Venus in the distance.

Firefly’s Blue Ghost landed on the on March 2, the first private spacecraft to touch down upright and perform its entire mission. It kept taking pictures and collecting science data five hours into the lunar night before it died for lack of solar energy.

As the world increasingly prioritizes sustainable energy solutions, solar power stands out as a leading candidate for clean energy generation. However, traditional solar cells have encountered several challenges, particularly regarding efficiency and stability. But what if there was a better alternative? Imagine a solar cell that is affordable, more stable and highly efficient. Does it sound like science fiction? Not anymore. Meet SrZrSe3 chalcogenide perovskite, a rising star in the world of photovoltaics.

Our research team at the Autonomous University of Querétaro in Mexico has recently unveiled a solar cell crafted from a unique material called SrZrSe3. This novel approach is turning heads in the pursuit of affordable and efficient solar energy.

For the first time, we have successfully integrated advanced inorganic metal sulfide layers, known as hole transport layers (HTLs), with SrZrSe3 using SCAPS-1D simulations. Our work, published in Energy Technology, has significantly raised the (PCE) to an impressive rate of more than 27%, marking an advancement in solar technology.

Researchers at Heriot-Watt University have made a discovery that could pave the way for a transformative era in photonic technology. For decades, scientists have theorized the possibility of manipulating the optical properties of light by adding a new dimension—time. This once-elusive concept has now become a reality thanks to nanophotonics experts from the School of Engineering and Physical Sciences in Edinburgh, Scotland.

Published in Nature Photonics, the team’s breakthrough emerged from experiments with nanomaterials known as transparent conducting oxides (TCOs)—a special glass capable of changing how light moves through the material at incredible speeds. These compounds are widely found in and touchscreens and can be shaped as ultra-thin films measuring just 250 nanometers (0.00025 mm), smaller than the wavelength of visible light.

Led by Dr. Marcello Ferrera, Associate Professor of Nanophotonics, of the Heriot-Watt research team, supported by colleagues from Purdue University in the US, managed to “sculpt” the way TCOs react by radiating the material with ultra-fast pulses of light. Remarkably, the resulting temporally engineered layer was able to simultaneously control the direction and energy of individual particles of light, known as photons, a functionality which, up until now, had been unachievable.

A breakthrough from JMU Würzburg researchers has brought science one step closer by creating a stacked dye system that efficiently moves charge carriers using light—just like in plant cells.

Harnessing Sunlight: The Magic of Photosynthesis

Photosynthesis is the process plants use to convert sunlight, carbon dioxide, and water into energy-rich sugars and oxygen. This remarkable system fuels plant growth and releases the oxygen we breathe.

With artificial photosynthesis, mankind could utilize solar energy to bind carbon dioxide and produce hydrogen. Chemists from Würzburg and Seoul have taken this one step further: They have synthesized a stack of dyes that comes very close to the photosynthetic apparatus of plants. It absorbs light energy, uses it to separate charge carriers and transfers them quickly and efficiently in the stack.

Photosynthesis is a marvelous process: plants use it to produce and oxygen from the simple starting materials carbon dioxide and water. They draw the energy they need for this complex process from sunlight.

If humans could imitate photosynthesis, it would have many advantages. The free energy from the sun could be used to remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and use it to build carbohydrates and other useful substances. It would also be possible to produce hydrogen, as photosynthesis splits water into its components oxygen and hydrogen.

A research team led by Assistant Professor Shogo Mori and Professor Susumu Saito at Nagoya University has developed a method of artificial photosynthesis that uses sunlight and water to produce energy and valuable organic compounds, including pharmaceutical materials, from waste organic compounds. This achievement represents a significant step toward sustainable energy and chemical production.

The findings were published in Nature Communications.

“Artificial photosynthesis involves that mimic the way plants convert sunlight, water, and carbon dioxide into energy-rich glucose,” Saito explained. “Waste products, which are often produced by other processes, were not formed; instead, only energy and useful chemicals were created.”

Humans can do plenty, but plants have an ability we don’t: they make energy straight from sunlight, a superpower called photosynthesis. Yet new research shows that scientists are closing that gap.

Osaka Metropolitan University researchers have revealed the 3D structure of an artificial photosynthetic antenna protein complex, known as light-harvesting complex II (LHCII), and demonstrated that the artificial LHCII closely mirrors its natural counterpart. This discovery marks a significant step forward in understanding how plants harvest and manage , paving the way for future innovations in artificial .

The researchers, led by Associate Professor Ritsuko Fujii and then graduate student Soichiro Seki of the Graduate School of Science and Research Center for Artificial Photosynthesis, had their study published in PNAS Nexus.

A team of researchers has made an advancement in the field of multifunctional energy harvesting. Their latest study advances in understanding the photovoltaic effect in ferroelectric crystals.

The article, “Study on Influence of AC Poling on Bulk Photovoltaic Effect in Pb(Mg1/3 Nb2/3)O3-PbTiO3 Single Crystals,” published in Advanced Electronic Materials, reports the team’s recent research results regarding improving the electric output of the bulk photovoltaic effect (BPVE) via manipulation of ferroelectric domains in oxide perovskite crystals.

In ordinary , the mechanism of harvesting the solar energy and then converting them into green electricity is based on the formation of p-n junctions of semiconductors. While the p-n junction has been invented for more than a century, widely used in the silicon industry nowadays, the BPVE is a more recently discovered physical phenomenon from the 1960s–1970s.

An international team of researchers affiliated with UNIST has unveiled a novel cross-linker additive that significantly addresses the longstanding stability issues associated with organic solar cells, also known as organic photovoltaics (OPVs).

With the incorporation of just 0.05% of this cross-linking agent, the lifespan of OPVs can be improved by over 59%. Industry analysts suggest this breakthrough brings the commercialization of OPVs—regarded as next-generation solar cells—closer to reality.

Led by Professor BongSoo Kim in the Department of Chemistry at UNIST, the research team, in collaboration with researchers from the University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB), the University of Lille in France, and the French National Center for Scientific Research (CNRS), identified the operational principles of this innovative cross-linker using a variety of advanced analytical techniques.

In an amazing achievement akin to adding solar panels to your body, a northeast sea slug sucks raw materials from algae to provide its lifetime supply of solar-powered energy, according to a study by Rutgers University–New Brunswick and other scientists.

“It’s a remarkable feat because it’s highly unusual for an animal to behave like a plant and survive solely on photosynthesis,” said Debashish Bhattacharya, senior author of the study and distinguished professor in the Department of Biochemistry and Microbiology at Rutgers–New Brunswick. “The broader implication is in the field of artificial photosynthesis. That is, if we can figure out how the slug maintains stolen, isolated plastids to fix carbon without the plant nucleus, then maybe we can also harness isolated plastids for eternity as green machines to create bioproducts or energy. The existing paradigm is that to make green energy, we need the plant or alga to run the photosynthetic organelle, but the slug shows us that this does not have to be the case.”

The sea slug Elysia chlorotica, a mollusk that can grow to more than two inches long, has been found in the intertidal zone between Nova Scotia, Canada, and Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts, as well as in Florida. Juvenile sea slugs eat the nontoxic brown alga Vaucheria litorea and become photosynthetic – or solar-powered – after stealing millions of algal plastids, which are like tiny solar panels, and storing them in their gut lining, according to the study published online in the journal Molecular Biology and Evolution.