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Aug62022 by adminNo Comments

Astrophysicists observe one of the most powerful short gamma-ray bursts ever

Science

Aug. 5 (UPI) -- The collision of two distant neutron stars released one of the most powerful short gamma-ray bursts ever recorded, scientists say. The collision marked the first time scientists have recorded millimeter-wavelength light from a fiery explosion to be caused by the merger of a neutron star with another star. It was observed on Nov. 6, 2021. The observation was made with the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array, or ALMA, in Chile. ALMA is an international observatory operated by the National Science Foundation's National Radio Astronomy Observatory. "Afterglows for short bursts are very difficult to come by, so it was spectacular to catch this event shining so brightly," ALMA principal investigator Wen-fai Fong said in a statement. "After many years observing these bu...

Sep182020 by adminNo Comments

Astronomers observe stellar winds from aging stars in unprecedented detail

Science

Sept. 17 (UPI) -- Astronomers have captured high resolution images of stellar winds emanating from a diversity of aging stars. The observations, detailed Thursday in the journal Science, suggest the dramatic shapes of planetary nebulae are formed by interactions between stellar winds and nearby planets and stars. Advertisement As dying stars swell and cool, they expel particles and shed mass, producing stellar winds. As the red giants continue to age and evolve, they heat up again, casting off layers of ejected stellar material. Stellar radiation causes these sloughed layers to glow, creating what astronomers call planetary nebulae. Scientists have long struggled to explain the wide variety of shapes and colors that characterize planetary nebulae. "The sun, which will ultimately become a...

Jun182020 by adminNo Comments

Astronomers observe rare newborn star

Science

June 17 (UPI) -- Astronomers have spotted a rare newborn star located 16,000 light-years away. The neutron star, estimated to be just 240 years old, was first spotted in early March by NASA's Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory. The star made its presence known with a massive eruption of X-rays. Advertisement Shortly after the X-rays were spotted, astronomers in the United States and Europe trained NASA's NuSTAR telescope and the European Space Agency's XMM-Newton observatory on the stellar object. The observations, detailed Wednesday in the Astrophysical Journal Letters, the unique physical attributes of the neutron star. Neutron stars are the super dense collapsed cores of giant stars -- what's leftover after massive stars die explosive, fiery deaths. The stars are also some of the densest ...

May182020 by adminNo Comments

Physicists observe quantum entanglement of 15 trillion atoms

Science

May 15 (UPI) -- Scientists have observed an unexpectedly large quantum system featuring 15 trillion entangled atoms, according to a new study. Quantum entanglement describes the connection between separate particles. The phenomenon is key to the promise of quantum computing, quantum encryption and other quantum technologies. Usually, quantum entanglement features a pair of coupled atoms or electrons. Entangled states are quite delicate. To ensure entangled particles remain undisturbed, many quantum systems must be isolated and kept at temperatures approaching absolute zero, limiting their practical viability. For the new study, published Friday in Nature Communications, researchers heated a cloud of gas atoms to temperatures upwards of 450 Kelvin. The atoms were far from isolated. Every ...

Dec282019 by adminNo Comments

Scientists observe earliest steps in seed germination

Science

Dec. 27 (UPI) -- Several studies have highlighted the roles hormones play in enabling seed germination, the sprouting of a seedling, or small plant, from a seed, but much less is known about how energy metabolism is jump-started at the outset of the germination process -- until now. Using a new kind of fluorescent biosensor, researchers were able to watch energy metabolism and a sulfur-powered process called redox metabolism. The new observations, described this week in the journal PNAS, showed energy metabolism is kick-started just minutes after a seed is exposed to water. In no time, the cells' energy centers, or mitochondria, began facilitating respiration. Researchers were also able to watch the activation of molecular switches, including thiol-redox switchers, that allow for energy ...