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Meet bag, bottle and straw, three bits of plastic left on the beach.

They are only small, but they are heading into the ocean, where they could cause big damage. ESA is exploring how satellites can help detect and reduce plastic pollution in the ocean. From spotting build-ups of marine litter to tracking ocean currents, satellites could be game-changing in tackling this enormous environmental problem.

Though engaging for children and adults alike, this video is designed with primary school students in mind. In particular, teachers can use it to introduce the topic of marine litter in subjects such as

Charlottesville VA (SPX) Aug 10, 2021
The National Science Foundation (NSF) has awarded the National Radio Astronomy Observatory (NRAO) $23 million for design and development work on the Next Generation Very Large Array (ngVLA), including producing a prototype antenna. The ngVLA, a powerful radio telescope with 263 dish antennas distributed across North America, is proposed as one of the next generation of cutting-edge astronomical

Palmdale CA (SPX) Aug 05, 2021
A heavy chorus of bolting and machinery filled the X-59 Quiet SuperSonic Technology, or QueSST, assembly building as engineers, system technicians, and aircraft fabricators worked to merge the major aircraft sections together, making it look like an actual aircraft for the first time since the initial cut of metal in 2018. "We've now transitioned from being a bunch of separate parts sittin

Washington DC (SPX) Aug 10, 2021
A Carnegie-led survey of exoplanet candidates identified by NASA's Transiting Exoplanets Satellite Survey (TESS) is laying the groundwork to help astronomers understand how the Milky Way's most common planets formed and evolved, and determine why our Solar System's pattern of planetary orbits and sizes is so unusual. Carnegie's Johanna Teske, Tsinghua University's Sharon Wang (formerly of

Washington DC (SPX) Aug 10, 2021
In the early stages of the Universe, quarks and gluons were quickly confined to protons and neutrons which went on to form atoms. With particle accelerators reaching increasingly higher energy levels the opportunity to study this fleeting primordial state of matter has finally arrived. Quark-Gluon Plasma (QGP) is a state of matter which existed only for the briefest of times at the very be

Pasadena CA (JPL) Aug 10, 2021
NASA's Sea Level Change Team has created a sea level projection tool that makes extensive data on future sea level rise from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) easily accessible to the public - and to everyone with a stake in planning for the changes to come. Pull up the tool's layers of maps, click anywhere on the global ocean and coastlines, and pick any decade between

Houston TX (SPX) Aug 11, 2021
An 18-year-old high school graduate has developed an elegant new way to gauge the liver health of astronauts-and it could someday help solve an enduring medical mystery in space. Each year, the Genes in Space program, founded by Boeing and miniPCR bio and supported by the International Space Station (ISS) U.S. National Laboratory and New England Biolabs, holds an annual student research co

Paris (AFP) Aug 10, 2021
Astronauts aboard the International Space Station are set to welcome a most unusual guest, as "the Blob" blasts off into orbit on Tuesday. An alien on its own planet, the Blob is an unclassifiable organism - neither fish nor fowl. Nor is it plant, animal or fungus. As such, Physarum polycephalum - a type of slime mould - has long fascinated scientists and will now be part of a unique

Herndon VA (SPX) Aug 11, 2021
BlackSky will add six satellites to its constellation through three dedicated missions via Rocket Lab and launch services provider, Spaceflight Inc. The first mission, called "Love at First Insight," is scheduled to occur in late-August and will be quickly followed by the next two missions. The series of missions planned to take place between late-August through September represent the company's