The game-changing Vera C. Rubin Observatory will collect more astronomical data in its first year than all other telescopes combined
Category: space – Page 7
From cat urine to gunpowder: Exploring the peculiar smells of outer space
Scientists are analysing the smells of space – from the aroma onboard space stations to planets hundreds of light years away – to learn about the makeup of the Universe.
The Center of Our Universe Does Not Exist. A Physicist Explains Why
About a century ago, scientists were struggling to reconcile what seemed a contradiction in Albert Einstein’s theory of general relativity.
Published in 1915, and already widely accepted worldwide by physicists and mathematicians, the theory assumed the Universe was static – unchanging, unmoving and immutable. In short, Einstein believed the size and shape of the Universe today was, more or less, the same size and shape it had always been.
But when astronomers looked into the night sky at faraway galaxies with powerful telescopes, they saw hints the Universe was anything but that. These new observations suggested the opposite – that it was, instead, expanding.
Why the moon shimmers with shiny glass beads
The Apollo astronauts didn’t know what they’d find when they explored the surface of the moon, but they certainly didn’t expect to see drifts of tiny, bright orange glass beads glistening among the otherwise monochrome piles of rocks and dust.
The beads, each less than 1 mm across, formed some 3.3 to 3.6 billion years ago during volcanic eruptions on the surface of the then-young satellite. “They’re some of the most amazing extraterrestrial samples we have,” said Ryan Ogliore, an associate professor of physics in Arts & Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis, home to a large repository of lunar samples that were returned to Earth. “The beads are tiny, pristine capsules of the lunar interior.”
Using a variety of microscopic analysis techniques not available when the Apollo astronauts first returned samples from the moon, Ogliore and a team of researchers have been able to take a close look at the microscopic mineral deposits on the outside of lunar beads. The unprecedented view of the ancient lunar artifacts was published in Icarus. The investigation was led by Thomas Williams, Stephen Parman and Alberto Saal from Brown University.
Novel crystal strategy yields brighter, longer-lasting all-inorganic perovskite LEDs
Perovskite has broad application prospects in solar cells, light-emitting diodes (LEDs), and detectors due to its high luminescent efficiency and low cost. However, electrons and holes in traditional perovskite materials often struggle to effectively recombine and emit light. As a result, the strongly space-confined method is commonly employed to improve luminescence efficiency. Furthermore, how to enhance the brightness of LEDs and extend their lifespan has become a top research priority in this field.
In a study published in Nature, Prof. Xiao Zhengguo’s team from the University of Science and Technology of China (USTC) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences has proposed a novel strategy based on weakly space-confined, large-grain crystals of all-inorganic perovskite to prepare perovskite films with larger crystalline grains and higher temperature resistance. Researchers increased the brightness of perovskite LEDs (PeLEDs) to over 1.16 million nits and extended their lifespan to more than 180,000 hours.
Researchers developed the strategy based on the weakly space-confined technique. They first added specific compounds—hypophosphorous acid and ammonium chloride—to the perovskite material. Then, they prepared a new type of perovskite thin film with larger crystalline grains and fewer defects using a high-temperature annealing process.
Global mercury levels in rivers have doubled since Industrial Revolution, research reveals
Mercury levels in the world’s rivers have more than doubled since the pre-industrial era, according to new research from Tulane University that establishes the first known global baseline for riverine mercury pollution.
The study, published in Science Advances, developed a process-based model to simulate mercury transport in rivers and found that global rivers carried approximately 390 metric tons of mercury to the oceans annually before 1850. Today, that figure has jumped to about 1,000 metric tons per year.
Primary drivers of the increase are wastewater discharge, soil erosion and mercury releases from industrial activities and mining, said lead author Yanxu Zhang, associate professor of Earth and environmental sciences at Tulane School of Science and Engineering.
Cosmic mystery deepens as astronomers find object flashing in both radio waves and xuhuong rays
Astronomers from the International Center for Radio Astronomy Research (ICRAR), in collaboration with international teams, have made a startling discovery about a new type of cosmic phenomenon.
The object, known as ASKAP J1832-0911, emits pulses of radio waves and X-rays for two minutes every 44 minutes.
The paper, “Detection of X-ray Emission from a Bright Long-Period Radio Transient,” is published in Nature.
Record-breaking cosmic structure discovered in colossal galaxy cluster
Astronomers have discovered the largest known cloud of energetic particles surrounding a galaxy cluster—spanning nearly 20 million light-years. The finding challenges long-standing theories about how particles stay energized over time. Instead of being powered by nearby galaxies, this vast region seems to be energized by giant shockwaves and turbulence moving through the hot gas between galaxies.