Science
Follow the Next Steps in the Webb Space Telescope's Journey – SciTechDaily
The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) is the next of NASA’s Great Observatories; following in the line of the Hubble Space Telescope, the Compton Gamma-ray Observatory, the Chandra X-ray Observatory, and the Spitzer Space Telescope. JWST combines qualities of two of its predecessors, observing in infrared light, like Spitzer, with fine resolution, like Hubble. Credit: NASA, SkyWorks Digital, Northrop Grumman, STScI
After two weeks of complex structural deployments, Webb has passed a major milestone and is now fully unfolded in space. For insight on what to expect in the months ahead and how to follow along, we hear from Alexandra Lockwood, project scientist for Webb science communications at the Space Telescope Science Institute:
“Words can’t describe the pride and excitement the Webb team is feeling right now. From engineers to scientists to IT staff to graphic designers to administrative personnel (and more!), we are all overjoyed with the incredible successes of the observatory to date. While we still have a long way to go before getting the science, the engineering feats that have been accomplished, on Earth and now in space, are awe-inspiring. They are a testament to the hard work and expertise of the international Webb team.
“Now that the action-packed deployment sequence is over, we are moving into a much slower, yet deliberate, phase of the commissioning process. In the next two weeks, we will move each of the 18 primary mirror segments, and the secondary mirror, out of their launch positions. Then five months of commissioning will include 1) further cooling of the entire observatory, and of the Mid-Infrared Instrument in particular, 2) checking and then aligning the secondary and 18 mirror segments into a single coherent optical system, first with the NIRCam instrument and then with all instruments individually and in parallel, and 3) calibrating of each of the four instruments and their many scientific modes. The novelty and variety of science that this observatory can produce requires thousands of things to be checked ahead of time. But rest assured that this summer will sizzle with the hot (nay cold?) observations we will soon be sharing!
“The team is committed to keeping you informed – even through the often slow and meticulous parts of this commissioning process. This blog will be updated weekly, and sometimes more often. Please check back to hear more status updates, in-depth explanations of Webb’s science and technology, and even some fun team anecdotes!
“We’re excited to be on this journey to #UnfoldTheUniverse with you.”
—Alexandra Lockwood, project scientist for Webb science communications, Space Telescope Science Institute
Science
Mysterious object that hit Florida man's roof was part of the International Space Station – CBC News
When a strange object hit Alejandro Otero’s home in Florida, he had to return early from vacation. Once he got in touch with NASA, he learned it was a piece of space junk from the International Space Station.
The object was a piece of space junk that was expected to burn up in Earth’s atmosphere
NASA confirmed Monday that a mystery object that crashed through the roof of a Florida home last month was a chunk of space junk from equipment discarded at the International Space Station (ISS).
The cylindrical object that tore through the home in Naples on March 8 was subsequently taken to the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral for analysis.
The space agency said it was a metal support used to mount old batteries on a cargo pallet for disposal. The pallet was jettisoned from the space station in 2021, and the load was expected to eventually fully burn up on entry into Earth’s atmosphere, but one piece survived.
The chunk of metal weighed 0.7 kilograms and was 10 centimetres tall and roughly four centimetres wide.
Homeowner Alejandro Otero told television station WINK at the time that he was on vacation when his son told him what had happened.
Otero came home early to check on the house, finding the object had ripped through his ceiling and torn up the flooring.
“I was shaking. I was completely in disbelief. What are the chances of something landing on my house with such force to cause so much damage,” Otero said. “I’m super grateful that nobody got hurt.”
By Mateo Muego
Posted April 15, 2024 7:15 pm
1 min read
New research from Simon Fraser University reveals ants could be a solution to prevent tick bites.
In a media release Monday, the university said researchers found that ticks would avoid ants and the area they were in. Even once the ants would leave the area, ticks would still not go to where the ants previously were.
“They could see that there were ants and basically go, ‘I’m not going to go there because there may be ants there or there may be ants there again soon,” said Claire Gooding, the lead author of the study.
The research was published recently in the journal Royal Society Open Science.
Gooding said the team researched ants as a potential solution because the insects work in large groups and use chemicals to communicate.
“They are social insects and use a huge range of pheromones to communicate with one another,” Gooding said.
After discovering the effectiveness of ant pheromones, the team worked with a synthetic chemist and was able to “recreate a synthetic version” of the pheromones.
This synthetic ant pheromone was also successful in repelling ticks.
“There’s quite a big risk of tick encounters in the summer,” said Gooding. “People often encounter them on the sides of trails.”
The study suggests hikers could consider using ant pheromones as a repellent to scare off ticks.
They have a patent application in process for the repellant chemicals they developed.
There are three species of ticks that commonly bite humans. In some cases, if bites are not treated quickly enough, they can prove fatal.
More on Science and Tech
© 2024 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — NASA’s plan to bring samples from Mars back to Earth is on hold until there’s a faster, cheaper way, space agency officials said Monday.
Retrieving Mars soil and rocks has been on NASA’s to-do list for decades, but the date kept moving forward, as costs ballooned. A recent independent review put the total cost at $8 billion to $11 billion, with an arrival date of 2040, about a decade later than advertised.
NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said that’s too much and too late. He’s asking private industry and the space agency’s centers to come up with other options to revamp the project. With NASA facing across-the-board budget cuts, he wants to avoid gutting other science projects to finance the Mars sample project.
“We want to get every new and fresh idea that we can,” he said at a news conference.
NASA’s rover Perseverance already has gathered 24 core samples in tubes since landing in 2021 at Mars’ Jezero Crater, an ancient river delta. The goal is more than 30 samples to scour for possible signs of ancient Martian life.
The space agency wants to get at least some of the collected samples to Earth sometime in the 2030s for no more than the $7 billion. That would require a spacecraft that goes to Mars to get the tubes and launches off the planet. Then it must rendezvous with yet another spacecraft that would bring the samples to Earth.
NASA’s science mission chief, Nicky Fox, refused to speculate at the news conference when the samples might arrive at Earth, given a new program and timeline, or even how many samples might be returned. That information will be included in any proposals, she said.
“We’ve never launched from another planet, and that’s actually what makes Mars sample return such a challenging and interesting mission,” Fox said.
Scientists are eager to analyze pristine samples from Mars in their own labs, far superior to the kind of rudimentary testing done by spacecraft at the red planet. It will take such in-depth testing to confirm any evidence of microscopic life dating back billions of years when water flowed on the planet, according to NASA.
The samples will help NASA decide where astronauts go on Mars in the 2040s, Nelson said.
NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, had been in charge of the sample project. It was hit by hundreds of layoffs earlier this year due to all the budget cutbacks. Nelson is seeking ideas from across the space agency, with the revamped program more spread out.
NASA hopes to receive any ideas by late fall.
___
The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Science and Educational Media Group. The AP is solely responsible for all content.
Marcia Dunn, The Associated Press
Mysterious object that hit Florida man's roof was part of the International Space Station – CBC News
Canada Pension Plan investment board to host public meeting in Calgary – CTV News Calgary
Paul Krugman Is Right About the Economy, and the Polls Are Wrong – New York Magazine
Silver investment demand jumped 12% in 2019
12 Bizarre Things People Did Just To Make Social Media Content
Global Media Markets, 2015-2020, 2020-2025F, 2030F – TV and Radio Broadcasting, Film and Music, Information Services, Web Content, Search Portals And Social Media, Print Media, & Cable – GlobeNewswire
-
Business24 hours ago
FFAW, ASP Pleased With Resumption of Crab Fishery – VOCM
-
Media24 hours ago
Marjorie Taylor Greene won’t say what happened to her Trump Media stock
-
Business23 hours ago
Tesla May Be Headed For Massive Layoffs As Woes Mount: Reports – InsideEVs
-
Media15 hours ago
Trump Media plunges amid plan to issue more shares. It's lost $7 billion in value since its peak. – CBS News
-
Media23 hours ago
Trump Media stock slides again to bring it nearly 60% below its peak as euphoria fades – National Post
-
Tech19 hours agoJava News Roundup: JobRunr 7.0, Introducing the Commonhaus Foundation, Payara Platform, Devnexus – InfoQ.com
-
Real eState19 hours ago
Real estate mogul concerned how Americans will deal with squatters: ‘Something really bad is going to happen’ – Fox Business
-
Sports18 hours ago
Rafael Nadal confirms he’s ready for Barcelona: ‘I’m going to give my all’ – ATP Tour
