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VERITAS is located at the basecamp of the Fred Lawrence Whipple Observatory in southern Arizona. Image credit: K. Gibbs & N. Galente, Whipple Observatory.

VERITAS to Search for Nanosecond Laser Beams from Extraterrestrial Civilizations

Aug 12, 2019 by News Staff

Astronomers from the Breakthrough Listen, a scientific program in search for signs of intelligent life in the Universe, and the VERITAS (Very Energetic...

This electron microscope (colorized) image shows the arrangement of electrons on the gold particle. Image credit: Ye et al, doi: 10.1002/advs.201900911.

Researchers Create World’s Thinnest Gold Sheets Ever, Just Two Atoms Thick

Aug 12, 2019 by News Staff

A team of researchers at the University of Leeds, UK, has created gold nanosheets with a thickness of only 0.47 nm (two atomic layers thick) — the...

This image, taken with Hubble’s Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS), shows the planetary nebula NGC 2022. The color composite was assembled from images taken in visible and infrared light. Two 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 / R. Wade.

Hubble Captures Beautiful Planetary Nebula Image

Aug 12, 2019 by Enrico de Lazaro

The NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope has produced a stunning image of NGC 2022, a vast orb of gas in space, cast off by an aging star. This image, taken...

Poulimenos et al found that people who took advantage of a mid-day snooze were more likely to have a noticeable drop in blood pressure compared with those who didn’t nap. Image credit: Pexels.

Optimists Sleep Better and Longer, New Study Finds

Aug 12, 2019 by News Staff

People who are the most optimistic tend to sleep better and longer, according to a new study published in the journal Behavioral Medicine. Hernandez et...

Skaill farmstead looking towards St Marys kirk and Midhowe Broch. Image credit: Bobby Friel, @Takethehighview / Archaeology Institute, the University of the Highlands and Islands.

Archaeologists Unearth Norse-Period Hall in Scotland

Aug 9, 2019 by News Staff

A team of researchers from the Archaeology Institute at the University of the Highlands and Islands has unearthed the remains of a large Norse building...

This artist’s impression shows the evolution of the Universe beginning with the Big Bang on the left followed by the appearance of the Cosmic Microwave Background. The formation of the first stars ends the cosmic dark ages, followed by the formation of galaxies. Image credit: M. Weiss / Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics.

Dark Matter May Have Existed before Big Bang, Theoretical Physicist Says

Aug 9, 2019 by News Staff

Dark matter, the mysterious substance that makes up roughly a quarter of the Universe, may have its origin in pre-Big-Bang times, according to a new paper...

This new Hubble image of Jupiter, taken on June 27, 2019, reveals the giant planet’s Great Red Spot, and a more intense color palette in the clouds swirling in Jupiter's turbulent atmosphere than seen in previous years. The colors, and their changes, provide important clues to ongoing processes in Jupiter’s atmosphere. The bands are created by differences in the thickness and height of the ammonia ice clouds. The colorful bands, which flow in opposite directions at various latitudes, result from different atmospheric pressures. Lighter bands rise higher and have thicker clouds than the darker bands. Image credit: NASA / ESA / A. Simon, NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center / M.H. Wong, University of California, Berkeley.

Hubble Snaps Super-Sharp Image of Jupiter

Aug 9, 2019 by News Staff

The NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope obtained a detailed image of Jupiter on June 27, 2019, when the gas giant was approximately 400 million miles (644...

Diets higher in plant foods and lower in animal foods were associated with a lower risk of cardiovascular morbidity and mortality in a general population. Image credit: Deborah Breen Whiting.

Healthy Plant-Based Diets May Reduce Heart Disease Risks

Aug 9, 2019 by News Staff

In a new study, Dr. Casey Rebholz from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and colleagues examined the diets of middle-aged adults living...

Goumas et al found that human gaze direction significantly affected gulls’ latency to approach the food: gulls took less time to approach when a human was facing away versus looking directly at them. Image credit: Circe Denyer.

Staring at Seagulls Makes Them Less Likely to Snatch Your Food

Aug 8, 2019 by News Staff

A team of researchers from the University of Exeter, UK, put a bag of chips on the ground and tested how long it took herring gulls (Larus argentatus)...

ALMA made the most precise measurements of cold gas swirling around a supermassive black hole -- the cosmic behemoth at the center of the giant elliptical galaxy NGC 3258. The multi-color ellipse reflects the motion of the gas orbiting the black hole, with blue indicating motion toward us and red motion away from us. The inset box represents how the orbital velocity changes with distance from the black hole. The material was found to rotate faster the closer in the astronomers observed to the black hole, enabling them to accurately calculate its mass: a whopping 2.25 billion times the mass of our Sun. Image credit: ALMA / ESO / NAOJ / NRAO / B. Boizelle / AUI / NSF / S. Dagnello / Hubble Space Telescope / NASA / ESA / Carnegie-Irvine Galaxy Survey.

ALMA Determines Mass of Supermassive Black Hole in NGC 3258

Aug 8, 2019 by News Staff

Astronomers using the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) have observed the dynamical sphere of influence of a supermassive black hole...

Earth’s magnetic field connects the North Pole (orange lines) with the South Pole (blue lines) in this NASA-created image. Image credit: NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center.

Most Recent Reversal of Earth’s Magnetic Field Lasted 22,000 Years

Aug 8, 2019 by News Staff

Earth’s magnetic field is produced in the planet’s liquid iron outer core as it spins around the solid inner core, and protects the surface from harmful...

Colorful and wispy Sharpless 2-296 forms the ‘wings ‘ of an area of sky known as the Seagull Nebula -- named for its resemblance to a gull in flight. This celestial bird contains a fascinating mix of intriguing astronomical objects. Glowing clouds weave amid dark dust lanes and bright stars. The Seagull Nebula -- made up of dust, hydrogen, helium and traces of heavier elements -- is the hot and energetic birthplace of new stars. Image credit: ESO / VPHAS+ Team / N.J. Wright, Keele University.

ESO’s VLT Survey Telescope Observes Seagull Nebula

Aug 8, 2019 by News Staff

The VLT Survey Telescope (VST), a large telescope at ESO’s Paranal Observatory, has taken a brilliant picture of the Seagull Nebula, which lies along...

Young children notice everything -- even when they don’t have to. Image credit: Hai Nguyen Tien.

Kids Pay Attention to Everything, New Study Shows

Aug 8, 2019 by News Staff

In a study published in the journal Developmental Psychology, a team of researchers surprised adult and young participants by making information that was...

In this illustration, one photon (purple) carries a million times the energy of another (yellow). Image credit: NASA / Sonoma State University / Aurore Simonnet.

Scientists Find Way to Measure Quantum Entanglement in Chemical Reactions

Aug 7, 2019 by News Staff

A duo of researchers at Purdue University has modified a popular theorem — called Bell’s inequality — for identifying quantum entanglement...

This image (colorized), taken by the International Scientific Optical Network (ISON), shows the near-Earth asteroid 2019 OK. Image credit: S. Schmalz / ISON.

Astronomers Snap Images of Near-Earth Asteroid 2019 OK

Aug 7, 2019 by News Staff

Using several telescopes of the International Scientific Optical Network (ISON), astronomers have captured a series of images of the recently-discovered...

Reconstruction of Heracles inexpectatus, dwarfing a bevy of 3.1-inch (8 cm) high Kuiornis -- small New Zealand wrens scuttling about on the forest floor. Image credit: Brian Choo, Flinders University.

World’s Largest Parrot Lived 19 Million Years Ago in New Zealand

Aug 7, 2019 by News Staff

An international group of paleontologists has found two incomplete bones from an ancient parrot with a mass of 7 kg, double that of the heaviest known...

Avocado Genome Sequenced

Aug 7, 2019 by News Staff

A multinational team of researchers has sequenced the genomes of Mexican, Guatemalan and West Indian avocados, and the most commercially popular hybrid...

While it is well known that cacao is a major source of flavonoids, this is the first time the effect has been studied in human subjects to determine how it can support cognitive, endocrine and cardiovascular health. Image credit: Sci-News.com.

Dark Chocolate Consumption May Reduce Depression Symptoms

Aug 7, 2019 by News Staff

A new study, published recently in the journal Depression and Anxiety, provides evidence that consumption of chocolate, particularly dark chocolate, may...

During the fruiting season, western lowland gorillas consistently opened African walnuts using their teeth. Image credit: van Casteren et al, doi: 10.1002/ajpa.23911.

Gorillas Use Their Teeth to Crack Open and Eat African Walnuts

Aug 6, 2019 by News Staff

Gorilla diets are characterized by large amounts of fruits and plants. Hard-object feeding is not generally associated with these great apes as the high...