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Mars

Submission + - Mars Rover Begins "Whole New Mission" (nasa.gov)

sighted writes: "[Re-submitted to correct third link. The third link should be: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/mer/telecon/20110901.html ]

NASA reports that the seemingly-unstoppable robotic geologist Opportunity is finding things at Endeavour crater that it has never seen before, adding new life to a mission that has already been epic. Observations "suggest that rock exposures on Endeavour's rim date from early in Martian history and include clay minerals that form in less-acidic wet conditions, possibly more favorable for life." In a teleconference today, one mission scientist compared this new phase of exploration to a "whole new mission." More information, including lots of pictures, here."

Mars

Submission + - Mars Rover Begins "Whole New Mission" (nasa.gov)

sighted writes: "NASA reports that the seemingly-unstoppable robotic geologist Opportunity is finding things at Endeavour crater that it has never seen before, adding new life to a mission that has already been epic. Observations "suggest that rock exposures on Endeavour's rim date from early in Martian history and include clay minerals that form in less-acidic wet conditions, possibly more favorable for life." In a teleconference today, one mission scientist compared this new phase of exploration to a "whole new mission." More information, including lots of pictures, here."
Space

Submission + - Strange Hole on the Second-Largest Asteroid (nature.com)

sighted writes: "The robotic spacecraft Dawn has now settled into its science orbit around the second-largest asteroid. This will give scientists a chance to get a closer look at the large, weird crater at Vesta's south pole, a series of equatorial ridges, and other unexpected features. One theory to explain the crater's unusual characteristics: Vesta completed an entire revolution while the crater was forming."
Image

Research Suggests E-Readers Are "Too Easy" To Read 185

New research suggests that the clear screens and easily read fonts of e-readers makes your brain "lazy." According to Neuroscience blogger Jonah Lehrer, using electronic books like the Kindle and Sony Reader makes you less likely to remember what you have read because the devices are so easy on the eyes. From the article: "Rather than making things clearer, e-readers and computers prevent us from absorbing information because their crisp screens and fonts tell our subconscious that the words they convey are not important, it is claimed. In contrast, handwriting and fonts that are more challenging to read signal to the brain that the content of the message is important and worth remembering, experts say."

Comment Unrepresentative representatives (Score 1) 623

I am both a Utahn and a Mormon. Please understand that the Utah legislature frequently does a poor job of representing either group. While I can't claim to speak for everyone, almost all the Mormons I know think this proposal is stupid, and as the governor (also a Mormon) said, Orwellian. The state legislature is well-known for being right-of-center even for here, and like all legislatures everywhere, for proposing its share of dumb ideas.
Space

Submission + - New Evidence for Hydrocarbon Rains on Titan (ciclops.org)

Riding with Robots writes: "Saturn's planet-sized moon Titan is enshrouded in thick orange haze and clouds, but that hasn't kept the robotic spacecraft Cassini from confirming the presence of lakes of liquid hydrocarbons by capturing recent changes in the lakes brought on by rainfall. Using Cassini's radar and other instruments, explorers have mapped growing lakes of liquid methane near the moon's south pole, along with the clouds that feed them. In the north, huge hydrocarbon seas with names like Kraken dominate the alien-yet-familiar landscape."

Comment Re:Methane on Mars, 2004 (Score 5, Informative) 200

IANAS, but it appears that since these findings were obtained by a completely different process, they provide important confirmation of the Mars Express data--and extend that knowledge in an important way by adding location-specific information. From TFA: "According to the team, the plumes were seen over areas that show evidence of ancient ground ice or flowing water. For example, plumes appeared over northern hemisphere regions such as east of Arabia Terra, the Nili Fossae region, and the south-east quadrant of Syrtis Major, an ancient volcano 1,200 kilometers (about 745 miles) across."
Mars

Submission + - Methane on Mars May Indicate Living Planet (nasa.gov)

Riding with Robots writes: "NASA is announcing today that the definitive detection of methane in the Martian atmosphere means the planet is still alive, at least geologically, and perhaps even biologically. 'Methane is quickly destroyed in the Martian atmosphere in a variety of ways, so our discovery of substantial plumes of methane in the northern hemisphere of Mars indicates some ongoing process is releasing the gas,' said one agency scientist. The gas was detected with observations made over over several Martian years with NASA telescopes at Mauna Kea, Hawaii. Both biological and geological processes could explain the methane."
NASA

Submission + - SPAM: Water Discovered in Ancient Moon Samples

FiReaNGeL writes: "A research team has for the first time discovered evidence of water that came from deep within the Moon, a revelation that strongly suggests water has been a part of the Moon since its early existence — and perhaps ever since it was created by a cataclysmic collision between the early Earth and a Mars-sized object about 4.5 billion years ago. The team believes that the water was contained in magmas erupted from fire fountains onto the surface of the Moon more than 3 billion years ago. About 95 percent of the water vapor from the magma was lost to space during this eruptive "degassing," the team estimates. But traces of water vapor may have drifted toward the cold poles of the Moon, where they may remain as ice in permanently shadowed craters. NASA plans to send its Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter later this year to search for evidence of water ice at the Moon's south pole. If water is found, the researchers may have figured out the origin."
Link to Original Source
Medicine

Submission + - SPAM: Why flu virus prefers to strike in winter

Roland Piquepaille writes: "You probably have been affected by flu several times in your life, and it has certainly happened in cold winter months, at least if you don't live in tropical countries. Why is the flu virus more infectious when it's cold? A U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) has an explanation. When it's cold, the virus envelope, made of lipids, hardens to a gel which protects the virus itself. But when temperature goes higher, the gel melts and no longer protects the virus which loses its ability to spread from person to person. The researchers think this finding can open new ways to fight flu by focusing on the virus lipid membrane. But read more for many additional details and a picture showing a 3-D model of the influenza virus and its lipid envelope."
Space

Submission + - Spirit Rover 4 Years Old

Brandee07 writes: Designed for a 90 day mission, the Spirit Mars Rover is starting its 4th year of exploration. Opportunity will turn four on Jan 25. From the article: "We never thought we'd still be driving these robots all over Mars," said Mark Lemmon, a planetary scientist at Texas A&M University and member of the rover science team. "We joked about driving Opportunity into Victoria Crater, but now we're there, and we're looking at doing even more science. Each day they still work is an amazing one."

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