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Ophiuchus Star-Forming Complex Hosts Analogues of Early Solar System, Astronomers Say

Multi-wavelength observations of the Ophiuchus star-forming region reveal interactions between clouds of star-forming gas and radionuclides produced in a nearby cluster of young stars. The top image (a) shows the distribution of aluminum-26 in red, traced by gamma-ray emissions. The central box represents the area covered in the bottom left image (b), which shows the distribution of protostars in the Ophiuchus clouds as red dots. The area in the box is shown in the bottom right image (c), a deep near-infrared color composite image of the L1688 cloud, containing many well known prestellar dense-gas cores with disks and protostars. Image credit: Forbes et al., doi: 10.1038/s41550-021-01442-9.
Aug 17, 2021 by News Staff

The Ophiuchus star-forming complex is a complex of interstellar clouds, nebulae and prestellar cores in the constellation of Ophiuchus. At an estimated distance of 427 light-years, it is one of the closest star-forming regions to our Solar System. A new study of the complex shows how our Solar System may have become enriched with short-lived radioactive elements. Evidence of this enrichment process has been around since the 1970s, when scientists...

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This illustration depicts the asteroid Phaethon being heated by the Sun. Image credit: NASA / JPL-Caltech / IPAC.

Sodium Vapor Outgassing Explains Asteroid Phaethon’s Cometlike Activity

Aug 17, 2021 by News Staff

The 5.8-km-wide (3.6-mile) near-Earth asteroid Phaethon, which is the source of the annual Geminid meteor shower, brightens as it gets close to the Sun....

Life may have begun shortly after Earth formed 4.54 billion years ago. Image credit: Hadeano.

Life on Earth Arose Multiple Times and in Multiple Ways, New Theory Says

Aug 17, 2021 by News Staff

In a new theoretical paper, researchers from the Santa Fe Institute provide a new perspective on the origin of life by arguing that life has emerged many...

Domestic cats (Felis catus) would rather eat from a tray of easily available food rather than work out a simple puzzle to get their food. Image credit: Delgado et al., doi: 10.1007/s10071-021-01530-3.

Cats Prefer Freely Available Food over Food that Requires Effort, Study Says

Aug 17, 2021 by News Staff

When tested, many animals will work for food when similar food is freely available, a phenomenon known as contrafreeloading. In a new study published in...

An illustration of Saturn and its ‘fuzzy’ core. Image credit: R. Hurt, IPAC / Caltech.

Saturn Has Diffuse, Stably Stratified Core, New Study Says

Aug 16, 2021 by News Staff

Astronomers using data from NASA’s Cassini spacecraft on ripples in Saturn’s rings have revealed new information about the gas giant’s mysterious...

Apis mellifera ligustica. Image credit: Scaccabarozzi et al., doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0253838.

Angry Bees Produce Richer, More Protein-Dense Venom, Study Finds

Aug 16, 2021 by News Staff

Chemists have analyzed protein diversity in venom produced by Apis mellifera ligustica in the marri (Corymbia calophylla) ecosystem in southern-western...

Life reconstruction of Silutitan sinensis (left) and Hamititan xinjiangensis (right). Image credit: Chuang Zhao & Xiaolin Wang.

Two New Species of Sauropod Dinosaurs Unearthed in China

Aug 16, 2021 by Enrico de Lazaro

Paleontologists have identified two new species of giant herbivorous dinosaurs from fossils found in the Turpan-Hami Basin, Xinjiang, northwestern China. Life...

Three New Orchid Species Discovered in Ecuador

Aug 16, 2021 by Natali Anderson

An international team of botanists has discovered three new endemic species of the orchid genus Lepanthes in the highlands of Ecuador. Lepanthes oro-lojaensis...

This Hubble image shows the barred spiral galaxy NGC 1385. The color image was made from separate exposures taken in the ultraviolet, visible and near-infrared regions of the spectrum with Hubble’s Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3). Five filters were used to sample various wavelengths. The color results from assigning different hues to each monochromatic image associated with an individual filter. Image credit: NASA / ESA / Hubble / J. Lee / PHANGS-HST Team.

Hubble Looks at Barred Spiral Galaxy NGC 1385

Aug 16, 2021 by Enrico de Lazaro

Astronomers using the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope have taken a picture of a spiral galaxy called NGC 1385. This Hubble image shows the barred spiral...

Fossilized spores from the Early Ordivician deposits of Australia. Image credit: Strother & Foster, doi: 10.1126/science.abj2927.

480-Million-Year-Old Spores of Early Land Plants Found in Australia

Aug 13, 2021 by News Staff

Until now, the first fossil evidence of land plants was from the Devonian period (420 million years ago). However, molecular evidence suggests an earlier...

An illustration of an adult male woolly mammoth (Mammuthus primigenius) navigates a mountain pass in Arctic Alaska, 17,100 years ago. Image credit: James Havens / University of Alaska Museum of the North.

New Research Sheds Light on Life of Arctic Woolly Mammoth

Aug 13, 2021 by News Staff

Scientists have examined isotopes collected from the tusk of a woolly mammoth (Mammuthus primigenius) that lived in Alaska approximately 17,100 years ago,...

The Schneider’s marmoset (Mico schneideri). Image credit: Rodrigo Costa-Araújo.

Scientists Discover New Species of Amazonian Marmoset

Aug 13, 2021 by Natali Anderson

A new, pseudo-cryptic species of the Amazonian marmoset genus Mico has been identified by a team of researchers led by Dr. Rodrigo Costa-Araújo of the...

The study sheds new light on the link between sleep deprivation and obesity. Image credit: Sweet Briar College.

Brief Naps during Day Don’t Relieve Sleep Deprivation, Study Says

Aug 13, 2021 by News Staff

Sleeping for a short period (i.e. napping) may help mitigate impairments in cognitive processing caused by sleep deprivation, but there is limited research...

A portrait of a juvenile female Denisovan based on a skeletal profile reconstructed from ancient DNA methylation maps. Image credit: Maayan Harel.

Philippine Ayta Magbukon People Have Highest Amount of Denisovan DNA in the World

Aug 12, 2021 by News Staff

New research led by Uppsala University scientists suggests that there were multiple archaic human species that inhabited the Philippines prior to the arrival...

This image shows the South Séítah region of Jezero Crater, captured by NASA’s Ingenuity helicopter during its 11th flight on August 4, 2021. At the bottom center of the image is Ingenuity’s shadow. Above it, toward the top of the frame -- just beyond the dune field and right of center -- is the Perseverance rover (white circle). Image credit: NASA / JPL-Caltech.

Ingenuity Helicopter Captures Image of Perseverance Rover

Aug 12, 2021 by News Staff

On August 4, 2021, NASA’s Ingenuity helicopter performed its 11th flight on Mars, snapping multiple photographs during its trip. This image shows the...

Nicotiana insecticida uses a sticky substance to trap and kill insects. Image credit: Maarten Christenhusz.

Botanists Discover Seven New Tobacco Species in Australia

Aug 12, 2021 by News Staff

Nicotiana insecticida, one of the newly-discovered species, is remarkable in its insect trapping abilities. Nicotiana insecticida uses a sticky substance...

Machu Picchu is Several Decades Older Than Previously Thought

Aug 12, 2021 by News Staff

New research shows that Machu Picchu, an ancient Incan citadel set high in the Andes Mountains in Peru, was occupied from about 1420 to 1532 CE, with activity...

Joint action structure of chimpanzees and bonobos resembles that of humans. Image credit: Emilie Genty.

Study: Great Apes Use ‘Hello’ and ‘Goodbye’ Signals to Begin and End Social Interactions

Aug 12, 2021 by News Staff

In a paper published this week in the journal iScience, an international team of researchers documented chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) and bonobos (Pan...

Euoplos schmidti. Image credit: Jeremy Wilson.

Five New Species of Golden Trapdoor Spiders Discovered

Aug 11, 2021 by News Staff

The newly-discovered species of golden trapdoor spiders are from south-eastern Queensland, Australia. Euoplos schmidti. Image credit: Jeremy Wilson. Australian...

Carcharocles megalodon pursuing two prehistoric whales. Image credit: Karen Carr / CC BY 3.0.

Catastrophic End-Cretaceous Extinction Was Not Dramatic for Sharks, Study Shows

Aug 11, 2021 by News Staff

Paleontologists have examined tooth morphologies in multiple lineages of sharks that lived during the 27.6-million-year interval around the end-Cretaceous...

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