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| ©NASA |
| Spitzer Space Telescope image a new star |
Science & Technology
Like a baseball struck by a bat, there's a neutron star out there that's going, going, gone. Discovered using the Chandra X-Ray Observatory, the neutron star appears to be the result of a lopsided supernova explosion. It's now hurtling away from the Milky Way faster than 4.8 million km/h (3 million mph). And it's never coming back.
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| ©NASA |
| Chandra image of neutron star and telltale oxygen |
Right in time for the festive season, ESA's XMM-Newton X-ray observatory has discovered a huge cloud of high-temperature gas resting in a spectacular nearby star-forming region, shaped somewhat like the silhouette of Santa Claus.
An early present for astronomers, the cloud suggests that hot gas from many star-forming regions leaks into the interstellar medium.
The Orion nebula is the nearest dense star-forming region to Earth that contains stars much more massive than the Sun. XMM-Newton's newly-discovered gas cloud is composed of winds blowing from these high-mass stars that are heated to millions of degrees as they slam into the surrounding gas.
An early present for astronomers, the cloud suggests that hot gas from many star-forming regions leaks into the interstellar medium.
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| ©Panel A: XMM-Newton EPIC (Guedel et al.), Panel B: AAAS/Science (ESA XMM-Newton and NASA Spitzer data) |
| The images show the Orion nebula with its hot gas cloud. The left panel is an image obtained with XMM-Newton data from its European Photon Imaging Camera (EPIC) in X-rays.
The right panel shows XMM-Newton data, compared to Spitzer observations of the same region. The Spitzer image is a composite image of data obtained in the infrared. The Orion nebula is the nearest dense star-forming region to Earth that contains stars much more massive than the Sun. XMM-Newton's newly-discovered gas cloud is composed of winds blowing from these high-mass stars that are heated to millions of degrees as they slam into the surrounding gas. |
The Orion nebula is the nearest dense star-forming region to Earth that contains stars much more massive than the Sun. XMM-Newton's newly-discovered gas cloud is composed of winds blowing from these high-mass stars that are heated to millions of degrees as they slam into the surrounding gas.
As the world warms, the interaction between the Atlantic Ocean and atmosphere may be the recipe for stronger, more frequent hurricanes.
University of Wisconsin-Madison scientists have found that the Atlantic organizes the ingredients for a powerful hurricane season to create a situation where either everything is conducive to hurricane activity or nothing is-potentially making the Atlantic more vulnerable to climate change than the world's other hurricane hot spots.
After the 2004 and 2005 hurricane seasons, many worry what Atlantic hurricane seasons will look like in a warmer world. Evidence indicates that higher ocean temperatures add a lot of fuel to these devastating storms. In a paper published today in the "Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society," co-authors Jim Kossin and Dan Vimont caution against only looking at one piece of the puzzle. "Sea surface temperature is a bit overrated," says Kossin, an atmospheric scientist at UW-Madison's Cooperative Institute of Meteorological Satellite Studies. "It's part of a larger pattern."
University of Wisconsin-Madison scientists have found that the Atlantic organizes the ingredients for a powerful hurricane season to create a situation where either everything is conducive to hurricane activity or nothing is-potentially making the Atlantic more vulnerable to climate change than the world's other hurricane hot spots.
After the 2004 and 2005 hurricane seasons, many worry what Atlantic hurricane seasons will look like in a warmer world. Evidence indicates that higher ocean temperatures add a lot of fuel to these devastating storms. In a paper published today in the "Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society," co-authors Jim Kossin and Dan Vimont caution against only looking at one piece of the puzzle. "Sea surface temperature is a bit overrated," says Kossin, an atmospheric scientist at UW-Madison's Cooperative Institute of Meteorological Satellite Studies. "It's part of a larger pattern."
Humans somehow made their way into the Americas from distant lands, but knowing precisely when and from where they made the journey are matters of heated scientific debate.
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| ©NOAA |
| A view of the Bering Strait land bridge, as it would have appeared about 21,000 years ago. Humans probably migrated across the temporary link to the New World, recent genetic evidence suggests. |
Washington -- The National Aeronautics and Space Administration said it was evaluating a compact L-Band synthetic aperture radar system for use on unmanned U.S. aircraft.
Tokyo - Japan's future dentists may soon be able to better appreciate patients' pain by training on a humanoid robot that can mumble "ouch" when the drill hits a nerve.
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| ©AFP/Yoshikazu Tsuno |
| Japan's Nippon Dental University Hospital staff member Yuko Uchida demonstrates the workings of "Simroid", a humanoid robot dental therapy simulator for dentists and students. The robot, resembling an attractive young woman with long black hair and a pink sweater, can mumble "ouch" when the dentist hits a nerve. |
The gene produces a type of protein previously thought to play an important role in the immune system. However, the new findings suggest that these proteins, known as defensins, may be involved in regulating other important processes in the body, including pigmentation, energy balance, and production of glucocorticoid hormones.
Scientists have managed to restore a sense of touch to two patients with prosthetic arms, in what is seen as a step towards creating sensitive limbs.
Nearby Venus is looking a bit more Earth-like with frequent bursts of lightning confirmed by a new European space probe.
For nearly three decades, astronomers have said Venus probably had lightning - ever since a 1978 NASA probe showed signs of electrical activity in its atmosphere. But experts weren't sure because of signal interference.
For nearly three decades, astronomers have said Venus probably had lightning - ever since a 1978 NASA probe showed signs of electrical activity in its atmosphere. But experts weren't sure because of signal interference.
