Montreal, Canada (SPX) Feb 01, 2022
When did the Earth reach oxygen levels sufficient to support animal life? Researchers from McGill University have discovered that a rise in oxygen levels occurred in step with the evolution and expansion of complex, eukaryotic ecosystems. Their findings represent the strongest evidence to date that extremely low oxygen levels exerted an important limitation on evolution for billions of years.

Beijing (XNA) Feb 01, 2022
China's Mars probe Tianwen-1 extended festival greetings to the Chinese people with stunning video footage captured by a camera on its orbiter to snap selfies above the red planet on Monday, the eve of the Chinese Lunar New Year. The video published by the China National Space Administration showed that the orbiter's 3000N engine, propellant tank, attitude control engine and other componen

Pasadena CA (JPL) Feb 01, 2022
We'll soon be on the move again after shaking loose some pesky pebbles that became lodged in Perseverance's bit carousel. How has the science team been making the best use of our extended stay at the Issole parking space, and preparing for our next phase of science investigations? As outlined in our previous blog post, the team made good progress ejecting pebbles that became lodged in the

Boston MA (SPX) Feb 01, 2022
In a global collaboration, a team of researchers recently proved a 90-year-old theory on why comets' heads, but never the tails, are green. The scientific explanation, published in PNAS on Dec. 21, has to do with the way the molecule dicarbon (C2) gets blown apart by sunlight. The other part of the story lies in an accidental discovery and a love of spectroscopic perturbations, passed from

Pasadena CA (JPL) Feb 01, 2022
We continue to characterize "The Prow," which stands proud above nearby flat lying dust coated bedrock. Our sedimentologists are very keen to get grain size measurements, as this can give very valuable insights into conditions at the time the sediments were laid down. A change in grain size can show that we have changing conditions over time, so getting MAHLI on rocks here is the highest p

Houston TX (SPX) Feb 01, 2022
The Center for the Advancement of Science in Space, Inc. (CASIS), manager of the International Space Station (ISS) National Laboratory, has announced the release of a new online tool for educators called Expedition Space Lab. This tool is designed to provide educators with easy access to ISS-related lessons, activities, and other resources to integrate into their curriculum. Through Expedi

Orlando FL (SPX) Feb 01, 2022
SpaceX successfully launched an Italian Earth-observation satellite, the COSMO-SkyMed Second Generation 2, from Florida after several days of setbacks. A Falcon 9 rocket mounted with the spacecraft lifted off at 6:11 p.m. EST from Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. SpaceX scrubbed the launch three times due to weather worries and a fourth time on Sunday because a cruis

London, UK (SPX) Feb 01, 2022
The UK Space Agency is providing 1.7 million pounds for new projects to support sustainable space operations, Science Minister George Freeman announced Monday. The 13 new projects will help track and remove dangerous debris in space. They include an AI-based tool which can take autonomous action to avoid a collision and another which will see multiple small spacecraft fired at debris befor

Washington DC (SPX) Feb 01, 2022
The NASA-funded Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System (ATLAS)-a state-of-the-art asteroid detection system operated by the University of Hawaii (UH) Institute for Astronomy (IfA) for the agency's Planetary Defense Coordination Office (PDCO)-has reached a new milestone by becoming the first survey capable of searching the entire dark sky every 24 hours for near-Earth objects (NEOs) that c

Washington DC (SPX) Feb 01, 2022
The International Space Station is a unique laboratory that is returning enormous scientific, educational, and technological developments to benefit people on Earth and is enabling our ability to travel into deep space. The Biden-Harris Administration's commitment to extend space station operations until 2030 will enable the United States to continue to reap these benefits for the next decade wh