Recent findings from samples collected by China’s Chang’e 6 mission have provided valuable insights into the history of the moon, particularly its far side. The Chang’e 6 mission launched in early May 2024, landed in the vast South Pole-Aitken (SPA), and returned to Earth with 4 pounds and 4.29 ounces (1,935.3 grams) of the first-ever…
Life’s building blocks may not have been crafted in the lightning flashes of a tempest, a new study suggests, so much as in the ceaseless glow of rolling ocean mists. Researchers from Stanford University have demonstrated a phenomenon they call ‘microlightning’ is able to generate organic compounds necessary for life, putting a far gentler spin…
Population estimates in rural areas of China may be incorrect Shutterstock/aphotostory Our estimates of rural populations have systematically underestimated the actual number of people living in these regions by at least half, researchers have claimed – with potentially huge impacts on global population levels and planning for public services. However, the findings are disputed by…
NASA astronauts Barry “Butch” Wilmore and Sunita “Suni” Williams are finally headed back to Earth. The duo launched to the International Space Station (ISS) last June on the first-ever crewed mission of Boeing’s new Starliner capsule. Their mission was supposed to last just 10 days or so, but they ended up staying aloft for more…
NASA’s SpaceX Crew-9 Re-Entry and Splashdown – YouTube Watch On SpaceX is poised to land its Crew Dragon Freedom from the International Space Station with the two crewmates who launched on it and two astronauts who arrived at the space station last June on Boeing’s Starliner, which landed uncrewed without them. If you want to…
Could lumpy metallic rocks in the deepest, darkest reaches of the ocean be making oxygen in the absence of sunlight? Some scientists think so, but others have challenged the claim that so-called “dark oxygen” is being produced in the lightless abyss of the seabed. The discovery – detailed last July in the journal Nature Geoscience…
Ten million people are diagnosed with dementia worldwide each year – that’s more than ever. According to the Alzheimer’s Society approximately one million people in the UK are currently living with the disease. Studies predict this figure will rise to 1.6 million people by 2050. Alzheimer’s disease is the most common cause of dementia and…
Thousands of tonnes of plastic pollution could be escaping into the environment every year … from our mouths. Most chewing gum on sale is made from a variety of oil-based synthetic rubbers – similar to the plastic material used in car tyres. If you find that thought slightly unsettling, you are not alone. I have…
An unexpected extended stay at the International Space Station will come to an end March 18, 2025 — weather and technology permitting. If all goes as planned, NASA astronauts Sunita “Suni” Williams and Barry “Butch” Wilmore will return to Earth, unintentionally joining the top 10 list of longest time for U.S. astronauts spent in space…
Humans speak more than 7,000 languages today. As different as they all seem, researchers argue in a new review that they all stem from a single linguistic family tree that emerged before our species split into distinct populations 135,000 years ago. By 100,000 years ago, this verbal revolution was cemented into the behavior of Homo…