DigitalAce - Slashdot User

Aral Sea May Recover; Dead Sea Needs a Lifeline 131

Posted by timothy on Saturday April 24, 2010 @02:48AM from the just-needs-feng-shui-adjustment dept.

An anonymous reader writes "It's a tale of two seas. The drying up of the Aral Sea is considered one of the greatest environmental catastrophes in history, but the northern sector of the sea, at least, is showing signs of life. A dam completed in 2005 has increased the North Aral's span by 20 percent, and birds, fish, and people are all returning to the area. Meanwhile, the Dead Sea is still in the midst of precipitous decline, since too much water is being drawn out of the Jordan River for thirsty populations and crops. To keep the sea from shrinking more, scientists are pushing an ambitious scheme called the 'Red-Dead conduit,' which would channel huge amounts of water from the Red Sea to the Dead Sea. However, the environmental consequences of such a project may be troubling."

Rogue Brown Dwarf Lurks In Our Cosmic Neighborhood 188

Posted by Soulskill on Friday April 09, 2010 @04:20PM from the brown-dwarf-rogue-lurks-in-ironforge dept.

astroengine writes "The UK Infrared Telescope in Hawaii has discovered a lone, cool brown dwarf called UGPSJ0722-05. As far as sub-stellar objects go, this is a strange one. For starters, it's the coolest brown dwarf ever discovered (and astronomers using the UKIRT should know; they are making a habit of finding cool brown dwarfs). Secondly, it's close. In fact, it's the closest brown dwarf to Earth, at a distance of only 10 light years. And thirdly, it has an odd spectroscopic signature, leading astronomers to think that this might be the discovery of a whole new class of brown dwarf."

Comment Journalistic Ethics (Score 1) 623

by DigitalAce on Thursday September 30, 1999 @04:24PM (#1647133) Attached to: Mars Orbiter Lost Over Metric Conversion Error

The thing that disturbs me the most about this revelation was the way it was treated by some journalists. One CNN headline on 9/25/99 read:

"Lost probe was model of NASA's faster, cheaper space missions"

Here's the link to the story.

I am a firm supporter of the faster, cheaper, and better program. Imagine sending hundreds or thousands of different probes throughout the cosmos instead of a couple of ultra-expensive manned missions to Mars just so we can strut around the surface, pat ourselves on the back, plant a flag in the dirt, and go home. Scientific discovery should be the driving force behind our space missions, not nationalistic bravado.

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