Credit: University of Cambridge Researchers at the University of Cambridge have demonstrated that the plant hormone gibberellin (GA) is essential for the formation and maturation of nitrogen-fixing root nodules in legumes and can also increase nodule size. They identified the specific times and location where GA governs the initiation, growth and function of nodules. These … Read more
LEGS will directly support the Artemis campaign, including the Lunar Gateway, human landing system (HLS), and lunar terrain vehicle (LTV). Credit: NASA NASA’s LEGS can do more than help Earthlings move about the planet. Three Lunar Exploration Ground Sites, or LEGS, will enhance the Near Space Network’s communications services and support of NASA’s Artemis campaign. … Read more
Turbidity samples of some of the dissolved regolith. Credit: Freer, Pesch, & Zabel Water purification is a big business on Earth. Companies offer everything from desalination to providing just the right pH level for drinking water. But on the moon, there won’t be a similar technical infrastructure to support the astronauts attempting to make a … Read more
Comparison of high-resolution spectra of J 0206+4941 and a moderately r-process-enhanced (r-I) star, HD 124897 ([Eu/Fe] = +0.45, with similar stellar parameters. Credit: Xie et al., 2024. Using the Gran Telescopio Canarias (GTC), astronomers from the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) and elsewhere have discovered a new extremely r-process-enhanced star in the Milky Way’s thin … Read more
Credit: Unsplash/CC0 Public Domain Medications used by astronauts on the International Space Station might not be good enough for a three-year journey to Mars. A new study led by Duke Health shows that over half of the medicines stocked in space—staples such as pain relievers, antibiotics, allergy medicines, and sleep aids—would expire before astronauts could … Read more
Lead levels in moss are as much as 600 times higher in older Portland neighborhoods where lead-sheathed telecommunications cables were once used compared to lead levels in rural areas. Credit: Alyssa Shiel, Oregon State University. Lead levels in moss are as much as 600 times higher in older Portland, Oregon, neighborhoods where lead-sheathed telecommunications cables … Read more
Fourteen alternative academic practices in STEM higher education. Credit: University of California – Santa Barbara The field of science aims to be objective, repeatable and justified in its choices and methods. These principles are what distinguish accepted scientific findings from pseudo-science. Yet the experience of learning and working in the field of science, including graduate … Read more
Credit: Unsplash/CC0 Public Domain World leaders must take advantage of a pivotal window of opportunity for forging a much-needed joined-up approach to tackle climate change and biodiversity loss, say scientists from ZSL and York University. Without this, work on tackling either crisis could inadvertently harm progress on the other. Published 23 July in the Journal … Read more
Microsphere of high quality factor made of a polymer blend (upper right, emitting light). Credit: Jorge González-Sierra Researchers at IMDEA Nanociencia have fabricated high quality microspheres from conjugated organic polymer blends with excellent lasing properties. The laser emission of the microspheres has the highest quality factor reported to date, Q>18,000. Dielectric optical microresonators confine and … Read more
Different parts of Senegalia venosa. Credit: Tropical Plants (2024). DOI: 10.48130/tp-0024-0017 A research team has identified the distribution and regeneration status of the endangered Senegalia venosa in Tigray and Gonder drylands. They found it has a poor regeneration rate due to factors like charcoal production and grazing. The study emphasizes the need for further investigation … Read more
