This,Man-made,Vehicle,Reached,A,Record,Speed,Of,635,Thousand

NASA’s Parker Solar Probe is set to achieve its most dangerous feat yet tomorrow, December 24, 2024. After a six-year journey of spiraling closer to the star at the heart of our solar system, the spacecraft is expected to come within 3.8 million miles of the Sun’s surface. 



This tiny distance in cosmic terms lets scientists capture a new type of information, revealing secrets about solar winds, extreme heat, and magnetic fields.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-solar-probe-on-the-sun-s-doorstep">Solar probe on the Sun's doorstep</h2>



Engineers have spent years carefully adjusting <a href="https://blogs.nasa.gov/parkersolarprobe/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Parker’s flight path</a> using multiple Venus gravity assists. These flybys reshape the spacecraft’s orbit and tighten its looping path around the Sun. “This is one example of NASA’s bold missions, doing something that no one else has ever done before to answer longstanding questions about our universe,” explained <a href="https://science.nasa.gov/people/dr-arik-posner/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Arik Posner</a>, Parker Solar Probe program scientist at NASA Headquarters, describing this mission’s significance.



Ever since the launch in 2018, Parker’s main goal has been to study the Sun’s outer atmosphere, known as the corona. Tomorrow’s approach, often called <a href="https://cneos.jpl.nasa.gov/glossary/perihelion.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">perihelion</a>, marks a new milestone in that quest. The probe moves at speeds around 430,000 miles per hour, faster than any other spacecraft. At such high velocity, it can swing around our star without getting swallowed. Even so, mission managers won’t receive immediate updates once Parker hits its closest point because signals cannot travel through the intense solar environment.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-extreme-heat-and-lasting-protection">Extreme heat and lasting protection</h2>



What sets Parker apart is its resilient heat shield. This 4.5-inch-thick carbon-composite barrier enables the spacecraft’s instruments to continue functioning in an environment where temperatures can reach roughly 2,500 degrees Fahrenheit. Despite the harsh surroundings, the precious science instruments remain near room temperature, thanks to expert engineering by Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory (<a href="https://parkersolarprobe.jhuapl.edu/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">APL</a>).



During every close approach, Parker is pelted by gusts of solar wind and bathed in radiation. Still, it keeps sending back readings about magnetic fields, <a href="https://www.plasmacoalition.org/plasma_writeups/solar_plasmas.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">plasma</a> behavior, and energetic <a href="https://www.swpc.noaa.gov/phenomena/solar-radiation-storm#:~:text=Solar%20radiation%20storms%20occur%20when,of%20the%20speed%20of%20light." target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">particles</a>. The probe’s data illuminates reasons behind the corona’s blazing heat, which can climb into the millions of degrees, significantly hotter than the visible surface of the Sun. Such puzzling behavior has fascinated scientists for decades.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-chasing-the-solar-wind-s-origins">Chasing the solar wind’s origins</h2>



Solar wind, a stream of charged particles flowing away from the Sun at speeds topping one million miles per hour, plays a major role in <a href="https://science.nasa.gov/sun/what-is-the-solar-wind/">space weather</a>. 



By skimming through the corona, Parker records fresh evidence of how these particles speed up and scatter across the solar system. The answers may help experts forecast disturbances that affect satellites and astronaut safety. Surges of these charged particles can disable communication systems or even disrupt power grids on Earth.



For researchers, big questions remain. How does the <a href="https://science.nasa.gov/sun/what-is-the-solar-wind/">solar wind</a> pick up its pace so dramatically? Is there a specific region in the corona that triggers bursts of fast-moving particles? 



Parker’s measurements bring us closer to unraveling these mysteries. Officials at NASA say that by tomorrow’s approach, new layers of data will help them see patterns not possible to detect from a greater distance.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-solar-probe-and-the-sun-s-active-cycle">Solar probe and the Sun's active cycle</h2>



The Sun moves through an 11-year activity cycle. Right now, it is in an active phase, meaning increased sunspots, <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/secondary-peak-extreme-geomagnetic-solar-storm-expected-today/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">solar flares</a>, and <a href="https://www.swpc.noaa.gov/phenomena/coronal-mass-ejections" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">coronal mass ejections</a>. 



Researchers are tracking not only Parker’s journey but also the Sun’s changing patterns. Sometimes these outbursts interact with Earth’s magnetosphere and spark colorful auroras, even in places unused to such displays. And although most solar weather events are harmless for life on Earth, severe storms can interfere with GPS systems or satellites.



This is why Parker’s findings are so relevant. Gaining a better understanding of how energetic solar events begin could lead to timelier warnings, giving operators on Earth a heads-up to power down sensitive instruments or adjust satellite orbits.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-paying-tribute-to-eugene-parker">Paying tribute to Eugene Parker</h2>



In 2017, NASA renamed the probe after <a href="https://news.uchicago.edu/story/eugene-parker-legendary-figure-solar-science-and-namesake-parker-solar-probe-1927-2022">Dr. Eugene N. Parker</a>, the first person to predict the solar wind in the 1950s. He introduced key ideas about how stars interact with their surroundings. The mission’s name honors his influential work. Dr. Parker passed away in 2022, but his legacy continues. 



The data this spacecraft is sending back not only expands knowledge of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/tracing-solar-wind-directly-to-its-source-for-the-first-time/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">solar physics</a> but also shows how correct Dr. Parker’s early theories were.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-record-setting-solar-probe-flyby">Record-setting Solar Probe flyby</h2>



Mission operations expect Parker to reach perihelion at 6:53 a.m. EST on December 24. 



At that time, the spacecraft will run autonomously, and engineers at APL will wait until December 27 for a beacon tone confirming a safe passage around the Sun. “No human-made object has ever passed this close to a star, so Parker will truly be returning data from uncharted territory. We’re excited to hear back from the spacecraft when it swings back around the Sun,” explained <a href="https://parkersolarprobe.jhuapl.edu/News-Center/Show-Article.php?articleID=205" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Nick Pinkine</a>, Parker Solar Probe mission operations manager. 



When that update arrives, scientists will study Parker’s recent measurements to identify potential clues about solar wind origins and coronal heating. Each orbit is another chance to witness the scorching conditions near our star. At the same time, the probe helps refine predictions about solar eruptions that might drive future storms toward Earth.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-why-does-any-of-this-matter">Why does any of this matter?</h2>



Beyond the scientific breakthroughs, Parker’s success can have practical benefits for technology we rely on every day. Our society depends on GPS signals and stable power systems, and <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/team-creates-video-showing-the-sun-in-gamma-rays-over-a-14-year-period/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">major solar events</a> can disrupt both. By learning how to anticipate strong solar winds or flares, experts might one day keep satellites out of harm’s way or shield power grids from unexpected surges.



Tomorrow’s close approach continues a streak of remarkable achievements for NASA. As Parker zips through the corona, it gathers observations that no other mission could obtain. The craft appears ready for another sizzling pass, thanks to the robust thermal design and careful planning. 



Whether it’s helping forecast solar tempers or refining our knowledge of basic astrophysical processes, Parker remains on track to change the way we see the Sun.



Learn more about <a href="https://science.nasa.gov/mission/parker-solar-probe/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">NASA's Parker Solar Probe here...</a>



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Spacecraft flew through the Sun's atmosphere today for the first time ever

NASA’s Parker Solar Probe is set to achieve its most dangerous feat yet tomorrow, December 24, 2024. After a six-year journey of spiraling closer to the star at the heart of our solar system, the spacecraft is expected to come within 3.8 million miles of the Sun’s surface. This tiny distance in cosmic terms lets scientists capture a new type of information, revealing secrets about solar winds, extreme heat, and magnetic fields. Solar probe on the Sun's doorstep Engineers have spent years carefully adjusting Parker’s flight path...

Until recently, assessing the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/monkey-sperm-cells-could-treat-human-infertility/">fertility</a> of breeding bulls has been a complicated and expensive matter, involving laboratory tests of the bulls’ semen. Now, a research team from <a href="https://www.cornell.edu/">Cornell University</a> has developed a novel fertility assessment method called RHEOLEX that is quicker and easier to perform than the traditional ones, resembling a home pregnancy test.



The scientists found inspiration in a biological process occurring in mammals called “rheotaxis,” through which the female reproductive tract simultaneously guides and selects high-quality sperm. By mimicking the cow’s female reproductive tract’s dimensions and hydrodynamic features in a microfluidic device, the researchers managed to assess the reproductive quality of bulls’ sperm within just a few minutes.&nbsp;



While traditionally, sperm quality is evaluated using computer-assisted sperm analysis that measures swimming speed and concentration, such a method ignores the strenuous process of sperm moving along the female’s reproductive tract described through the concept of rheotaxis.



“This method, along with the motile (fast speed) sperm concentration determination, can quickly predict fertility levels in artificial insemination,” said study lead author Mohammad Yaghoobi, a doctoral student in Food Science at Cornell. “We can predict the bull’s in vivo sperm fertility level within five minutes.”



According to Yaghoobi, unlike conventional semen quality parameters, which often fail to provide statistically significant predictions, the RHEOLEX method is an easy and accurate biomarker for determining in vivo male fertility.



“We are essentially taking rheotaxis results and translating that into signals that tells us the bull fertility level, which is great, because it can save companies a lot of money by selecting the best bulls. We are using nature’s selection process and that’s a huge difference,” said study senior author Alireza Abbaspourrad, an assistant professor of Food Chemistry and Ingredient Technology at Cornell.



“With this new RHEOLEX method, you can conduct better selection and breeding for bulls and cows, which can translate into higher quality and quantity products like improved milk and meat. This saves breeders and producers time,” she concluded.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlelanding/2022/lc/d2lc00150k">Lab on a Chip</a>.&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:andrei.ionescu5891@gmail.com">Andrei Ionescu</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

New test can detect bulls’ fertility status in minutes

Until recently, assessing the fertility of breeding bulls has been...

On January 15, a volcano erupted and destroyed much of the island nation of Tonga. Immediately after the historic eruption, scientists began trying to analyze and reconstruct the events. An international team, including experts from UC Santa Barbara, has reported their findings in the journal <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/journal/Earthquake-Research-Advances">Earthquake Research Advances</a>.&nbsp;



“This is definitely, without a doubt, the largest eruption since Mt. Pinatubo in 1991,” said study co-author Melissa Scruggs.



The research suggests that an early eruption the day before may have laid the foundation for the larger, more violent eruption by sinking the volcano's main vent below the earth’s surface. Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai (HTHH) is a stratovolcano, a cone shaped volcano that can have periodically violent explosions but often has smaller ones.&nbsp;



Part of the Tofua Volcanic Arc, HTHH is created by the Pacific Plate being pushed below the Indo-Australian Plate, causing heat and pressure and building a 100 kilometer volcano chain. The landscape is a dynamic one. In only 2015, two islands were joined by the volcano’s eruption and this second eruption destroyed that new island.&nbsp;



When HTHH erupted, an ash plume shot 58 kilometers into the sky, “It went halfway to space,” Scruggs said. As the steam rose into the air, ice crystals formed and like a biblical pillar of smoke, lighting surrounded the ash cloud. In fact, the scientists estimate that as much as 80 percent of all the earth’s lightning at the time was around the eruption.&nbsp;



Shockwaves traveled faster than predicted by models and caused tsunamis across the Pacific and farther afield. The shockwaves moved faster because the models are based on tsunamis caused by earthquakes, not volcanic eruptions.&nbsp;



Atmospheric pressure waves seem to have caused a second meteo-tsunami in the Caribbean, which isn’t connected to the Pacific. This was something new for scientists, “Basically the whole ocean just kind of sloshed around for five days after the eruption,” Scruggs said.&nbsp;



So much happened that was unprecedented to science, and the researchers emphasize there’s still much to learn. A better understanding of this eruption may ultimately help improve early warning methods in the future.&nbsp;



Image Credit: Tonga Geological Services



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By <a href="mailto:zachfitzner@yahoo.com">Zach Fitzner</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

New clues about the Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai eruption

On January 15, a volcano erupted and destroyed much of...

New research suggests that in order to survive, prehistoric mammals bulked up physically - rather than developing their brains - after <a href="https://www.earth.com/video/new-evidence-reveals-that-dinosaurs-died-in-the-spring/">dinosaurs</a> became extinct.&nbsp;



66 million years ago, a catastrophic asteroid impacted the earth and ended the reign of dinosaurs. The 10-million-year period after this event is called the Paleocene. During this time, mammals increased their body size to adapt to the drastic changes on Earth.



The evolution of modern-day mammals is well known in the scientific community. Until now, it has been unclear how they developed in the first million years following the mass extinction.



A team from the <a href="https://www.ed.ac.uk/">University of Edinburgh</a> performed CT scans on newly discovered fossils from the Paleocene. The scans revealed that mammals’ brains decreased while their body size increased at a much faster rate.&nbsp;



The experts also found that animals relied heavily on their sense of smell because other senses were less developed, including vision. In order to survive in the new world, these findings suggest it was more important to be big than intelligent.



Around 10 million years later, modern mammal groups such as primates developed bigger brains, complex senses and motor skills. This would have improved their survival chances at a time when competition for resources was extreme.



“Large brains are expensive to maintain and, if not necessary to acquire resources, would have probably been detrimental for the survival of early placental mammals in the chaos and upheaval after the asteroid impact," said lead researcher Dr Ornella Bertrand.



Mammals today are highly intelligent. This can lead us to assume that brains helped our ancestors outlast the dinosaurs and survive extinction – but this research argues, that isn't the case.&nbsp;



“The mammals that usurped the dinosaurs were fairly dim-witted, and only millions of years later did many types of mammals develop bigger brains as they were competing with each other to form new ecosystems," said study senior author Professor Steve Brusatte.



The badlands of New Mexico are frequently visited by scientists as one of the few places where skeletons of the mammals that lived immediately after the mass extinction of dinosaurs can be found.



“Collecting and CT scanning many of the beautiful fossil skulls has led to this new understanding of what these bizarre animals were like and the evolution of the mammalian brain," said Dr. Thomas Williamson, Curator of Palaeontology at the New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science.



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By <a href="mailto:katherinebucko@gmail.com">Katherine Bucko</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Ancient mammals bulked up to deal with drastic changes

New research suggests that in order to survive, prehistoric mammals...

Sunset,Over,The,Sand,Dunes,In,The,Desert.,Death,Valley,

A new <a href="https://news.cornell.edu/stories/2022/03/deserts-breathe-water-vapor-study-shows">study</a> shows that the desert breathes, at least figuratively. The research explains how water vapor penetrates sand, and is essential for the fungi and bacteria living in the sand.



For a long time, scientists didn't know how moisture reached these tiny life forms. But <a href="https://www.mae.cornell.edu/faculty-directory/michel-yves-louge">Michel Louge</a>, professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering at Cornell University, developed a tool to understand this ecosystem better. The device is called a capacitance probe. The probes use multiple sensors to record various characteristics of sand, including water content, velocity, and solid concentration.



Although scientists have suspected that air passes through sand, the probe allows them to accurately detect how porous the substrate is.



"The wind flows over the dune and as a result creates imbalances in the local pressure, which literally forces air to go into the sand and out of the sand. So, the sand is breathing, like an organism breathes," said Professor Louge.



The researchers believe there are several applications for this discovery. Perhaps we could better understand how soil absorbs and drains water, which could lead to agricultural developments. Moreover, satellite engineers could use the technology to create more accurate images. The probes could even help us explore worlds beyond earth.



The probe could also help pharmaceutical companies make our medicines safer. Louge has been working with Merck since 2018. They wish to apply this science to <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0032591020312456?via%3Dihub">continuous manufacturing</a>, a more efficient, more cost-effective way to produce pharmaceuticals.&nbsp;



"If you want to do continuous manufacturing, you have to have probes that will allow you, as a function of time, and everywhere that's important, to check that you have the right behavior of your process," explained Professor Louge.



Considering current affairs, perhaps the most valuable use of this technology is its ability to help us better understand how agricultural lands turn into deserts.



The study is published in the <a href="https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/21699011">Journal of Geophysical Research-Earth Surface</a>.&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:nire518@gmail.com">Erin Moody </a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Study reveals that deserts breathe

A new study shows that the desert breathes, at least...

Ripe,Red,Apples,On,Wooden,Background

When they are prepared for transport, apples and other <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/fruits-vegetables-memory-loss-men/">fruits</a> are often treated with fungicides that protects them against spoilage and extends their shelf life. While this practice is useful for preserving the fruits’ freshness, it nevertheless may help select and boost the transmission of multi-drug resistant pathogenic yeasts, according to a team of researchers led by the <a href="http://www.du.ac.in/">University of Delhi</a> in India and <a href="https://www.mcmaster.ca/">McMaster University</a> in Canada.



The scientists examined the surface of 84 fruits representing nine different tree fruit types that were collected between 2020 and 2021 from regions in northern India. These fruits included 62 apples – 20 freshly picked from orchards and 42 purchased from a market in Delhi.&nbsp;



The researchers found that 13 percent of the apples contained traces of <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/fungal/candida-auris/index.html">Candida auris</a>, a multi-drug resistant pathogenic yeast that currently poses an urgent threat to public health worldwide, according to the <a href="https://www.cdc.gov">Centers for Disease Control and Prevention</a> (CDC). All of the apples on which the pathogen was found had been stored before purchase, and most probably treated with fungicides to remain fresh.



C.auris was first discovered in Japan in 2009, and has subsequently spread to all inhabited continents, causing significant outbreaks in hospitals and other healthcare facilities. Since some strains are resistant to all available classes of antifungal drugs, this pathogen is highly difficult to treat and may soon become a global menace.&nbsp;



While the forces that drive the simultaneous emergence of multiple distinct clusters of C.auris all over the world are not yet fully understood, this new study suggests that apples could be a selective force for the pathogen, helping it spread and become more resistant to medicines.&nbsp;



“When we look at human pathogens, we tend to look at what’s immediate to us,” said study co-lead author Jianping Xu, a professor of Biology at the McMaster University. “But we have to look at it more broadly. Everything is connected, the whole system. Fruit is just one example.” 



Further research is needed to clarify what types of fruits are helping spread the pathogen, what is the role of fungicides in making it resistant to multiple drugs, and which are the current pathways of global transmission.&nbsp;



The study is published in the journal <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1128/mbio.00518-22">mBio</a>.



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By <a href="mailto:andrei.ionescu5891@gmail.com">Andrei Ionescu</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Apples can help store and transmit drug-resistant pathogens

When they are prepared for transport, apples and other fruits...

According to a new study led by <a href="https://www.ucl.ac.uk/">University College London</a> (UCL), achieving net-zero <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/carbon-dissolved-in-rivers-is-damaging-our-planet/">carbon</a> emissions by 2050 would be possible without damaging the economy. Moreover, the experts argue that, with stringent public policy, the Paris Agreement target of limiting global warming to&nbsp;1.5 °C above pre-industrial levels by 2100 is feasible, and could be achieved while maintaining robust economic growth.



Although some researchers have repeatedly claimed that resolving the climate crisis is not consistent with continued economic growth in rich countries, the current situation in the European Union already shows strong evidence that curbing global warming while maintaining economic growth is in fact possible. Between 1990 and 2016, for instance, EU’s economy grew by more than 50 percent, while carbon dioxide emissions fell by 25 percent.



“Continuing global economic growth is clearly compatible with achieving the temperature target in the Paris Agreement,” said study lead author Paul Ekins, a professor of Resources and Environmental Policy at UCL. “Governments now need to step up to put in place the policies to stimulate the investments that are required to turn these projections into reality.”



Professor Ekins and his colleagues modeled various scenarios to slow the growth of global primary energy demand, so that, by the end of the 21st century, demand is only 30 percent above its 2020 levels. Moreover, they also modeled the deployment of renewable technologies needed to decarbonize electricity almost completely by the end of the century while producing seven times as much power as the world used in 2010, and to replace the use of fossil fuels in the transportation and heating industries. In addition, they modelled the global phasing down of coal, taking as an example the way in which the United States has reduced its use in recent years.



The result of these simulations is clear: under all the scenarios taken into consideration, it would be possible to reach net-zero emissions without reducing economic growth, while also limiting temperature increases to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels. However, in order to achieve this, national governments and policies worldwide would need to stimulate significant increases in energy and resource efficiency, and to rapidly deploy low-carbon technologies and strong environmental policies.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://academic.oup.com/ooenergy/advance-article/doi/10.1093/ooenergy/oiac005/6550337">Oxford Open Energy</a>.



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By <a href="mailto:andrei.ionescu5891@gmail.com">Andrei Ionescu</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Reducing carbon emissions while maintaining economic growth

According to a new study led by University College London...

As the extent of suitable habitat decreases and conflict with humans increases, many African lions end up being moved to sanctuaries where they can be cared for and protected. Add to this the lions rescued from circuses, foreign <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/wild-animals-lead-longer-lives/">zoos</a> and war zones, and it becomes apparent that significant numbers of lions need to be managed at such sanctuaries. This is not a simple task when dealing with a large apex predator that can be aggressive and territorial.&nbsp;



Often lone lions are rescued and brought to a facility where other lions already live in groups. It is not healthy for lions to live alone as they are social animals with complex group structures and they thrive on close relationships with others. It would be ideal to introduce newcomer lions into established groups, but this is usually not possible due to the levels of aggression and intolerance towards outsiders.



In a rather novel approach, researchers from the <a href="https://twin-cities.umn.edu/">University of Minnesota</a> have been treating captive lions with the hormone oxytocin to determine whether this would make their behavior more prosocial and manageable. Oxytocin is known to enhance social bonding in some group-living mammals, such as meerkats, although most of the previous research on the effects of the hormone has been focused on bonded pairs of animals, such as marmosets, macaques and chimpanzees. The effects of oxytocin have never before been tested in a non-domesticated social group of carnivores, such as lions.



The current study took place during 2018 and 2019, on a wildlife reserve in Dinokeng, South Africa. Researchers, led by animal biologist Craig Packer and neuroscientist Sarah Heilbronner from the University of Minnesota, used hunks of raw meat to lure lions up to a fence so they could spray oxytocin up their noses with a modified squeeze-bottle.&nbsp;



“By spraying the oxytocin directly up the nose, we know it can travel up the trigeminal nerve and the olfactory nerve straight up into the brain.” said study first author Jessica Burkhart. “Otherwise the blood-brain barrier could filter it out.”



After spraying 23 lions with oxytocin, Burkhart and her colleagues measured changes in aggressive behavior within the group and between groups. Their findings are published today in the journal iScience, where they describe the effects of the hormone on lion social behavior. &nbsp;



“You can see their features soften immediately, they go from wrinkled and aggressive to this totally calm demeanor,” said Burkhart. “They totally chill out. It’s amazing.”&nbsp;



The researchers found that a sprayed lion would allow other members of the group to approach more closely when it was in possession of a favorite toy.&nbsp;



“After the lions were treated with oxytocin, and we gave them their favorite pumpkin toy to play with, we saw the average distance between them drop from about 7 meters with no treatment to about 3.5 meters after oxytocin was administered,” explained Burkhart.



This greater social tolerance was not seen when sprayed lions were in possession of food, however. But the hormone did lead to decreased vigilance and greater tolerance in the presence of potential intruders from another group. Recordings of the roars of other, unknown lions were played and, whereas untreated lions always roared back in response, lions treated with oxytocin never responded by roaring. This finding is important when considering possible approaches to the introduction of new lions into an established group.



In order to keep lions safe and away from humans, many have been transported to private fenced reserves, which often results in lions from different prides being mixed in with one another. In addition, when lone lions arrive at such sanctuaries they need to be integrated into existing groups and the oxytocin treatment may help facilitate this.



“Currently we’re working on introductions of animals who have been rescued from circuses or overseas or war zones that now live in sanctuaries,” said Burkhart. “The hope is that this will translate to animals being relocated in the wild, helping them to become more inclined to their new social environment so they're more curious and less fearful, leading to more successful bonding.”



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.cell.com/iscience/home">iScience</a>.



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By <a href="mailto:bosman@truewan.co.za">Alison Bosman</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Hormone treatment makes captive lions more manageable

As the extent of suitable habitat decreases and conflict with...

Humans and other vertebrate species hear using eardrums that can turn soundwave pressure into signals to the brain. A new experimental study led by <a href="https://www.binghamton.edu/">Binghamton University</a> has investigated the auditory processing of orb-weaving <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/scientists-reveal-spiders-web-making-secrets/">spiders</a> and found that these small creatures are using their webs as extended auditory rays to capture sounds. Such a procedure is possibly giving spiders advanced warning of incoming predators or prey.



It has long been known that spiders readily respond when something vibrates in their webs, such as potential pray. In these new experiments though, researchers discovered for the first time that spiders turned, crouched, or flattened out in response to sounds travelling through their web.&nbsp;



Spider silk is so thin and sensitive that it can easily detect the movements of vibrating air particles that make up soundwaves. “The spider is really a natural demonstration that this is a viable way to sense sound using viscous forces in the air on thin fibers,” said study senior author Ronald Miles, a professor of mechanical engineering at Binghamton. “If it works in nature, maybe we should have a closer look at it.”



According to professor Miles and his colleagues, spiders can detect minuscule movements and vibrations through sensory organs located on their tarsal claws at the tips of their legs, which they use to grasp their webs. Since orb-weaving spiders build large webs, they are creating “acoustic antennas” with a sound-sensitive area that is often 10,000 times larger than the spiders themselves.



To better understand spiders’ auditory mechanisms, the scientists used laser vibrometry to measure over one thousand locations on a spider’s web, while the spider was located in the center of the web. They placed a mini-speaker five centimeters away from the center of the web and two millimeters away from the web plane, allowing the sound to travel to the spider both through the air and through the web.&nbsp;



The results were amazing: while the soundwave from the mini-speaker died out significantly while travelling through the air, it propagated readily through the web with very little attenuation, providing evidence that the web moves with sound almost at maximum physical efficiency across an ultra-wide frequency range.



The researchers also found that, by stretching and crouching, spiders are changing the tension of the silk strands, tuning them to pick up different frequencies, and thus customizing their external auditory “organ” to hear different sorts of sound.



Further research is needed to investigate how spiders make use of the sounds they can detect using their web and to find whether other species of web-weaving spiders also use their silk to outsource their hearing.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2122789119">Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences</a>.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:andrei.ionescu5891@gmail.com">Andrei Ionescu</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Spiders use their webs to detect sounds

Humans and other vertebrate species hear using eardrums that can...

Two,Zebra,Finches

While it may just sound pretty to the human ear, <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/the-song-of-the-east-african-sunbird-may-be-a-million-years-old/">bird song</a> has in fact multiple functions. For instance, a male’s song may be used to repel other male competitors, or to attract females. In some of the more than 5,000 songbird species, the males are real “virtuosos.” Throughout their entire life, they acquire new songs and can vary them according to specific purposes.&nbsp;



A new study led by the <a href="https://www.orn.mpg.de/en">Max Plank Institute for Ornithology</a> has found that songs of four different zebra finch populations differ systematically. These “cryptic dialects” appear to be decisive for females’ choice of mate. In other words, female zebra finches pay more attention to “cultural” traits than to the males’ appearance.



Zebra finch males learn their songs from conspecifics at an early-age, in an individual-specific manner. The songs each male learns in infancy are generally used for a lifetime. Due to these individual signatures in songs, scientists have long assumed that dialect formation is not possible in zebra finches. However, by using a machine learning algorithm able to recognize the songs of males from four different, separately kept zebra finch populations, the Max Plank researchers have managed to detect different dialects in zebra finch songs.



“We were indeed surprised by this result. It appears that there are cryptic dialects in zebra finches, which remained undetected by conventional analysis methods,” said study co-lead author Wolfgang Forstmeier, a behavioral ecologist at Max Planck.



Dr. Forstmeier and his colleagues have also shown that these dialects are biologically highly relevant, playing a key role in mate choice. In order to disentangle the role of biology from that of culture in female mate choice, the researchers made zebra finch parents from one population raise chicks from another population. This led to zebra finches with different combinations of genetic (e.g. body size) and culturally acquired traits (e.g. dialect).



The analysis of social interactions between the finches have revealed that females preferred partners who sang the same dialect as the males with whom these females grew up. Dialect preference turned out to be much stronger than the tendency to choose a mate based on appearance, highlighting the fundamental role song plays in birds’ social interaction.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-022-28881-w#Sec13">Nature Communications</a>.



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By <a href="mailto:andrei.ionescu5891@gmail.com">Andrei Ionescu</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer&nbsp;

Female zebra finches choose mates based on their dialects

While it may just sound pretty to the human ear,...

When <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/exposure-to-green-space-reduces-oxidative-stress-in-children/">children</a> learn to read they have to work out the connections between the sounds they hear in words and the letters they read. Known as letter-sound mapping, this skill ultimately helps young people to build word recognition and decoding skills that improve fluency in both reading and writing.&nbsp;Previous research has shown that proficiency in letter-sound mapping in young children is strongly associated with later reading success, but there is little research about the relationship between sleep, memory development, and literacy skills.



It is common practice to allow preschool children to nap during the daytime, and researchers from Macquarie University in Australia, the University of Oxford, the University of York and the University of Sheffield wondered what impact these short periods of sleep would have on the acquisition of letter-sound skills. They monitored the learning progress of thirty-two three-to-five-year-old children from two daycare centers in Sydney, Australia, who napped regularly.&nbsp;



Each child participated in seven sessions, over two to four weeks, which included the following:



<ul><li>a pre-test that was used to establish baseline levels of letter-sound knowledge;</li><li>letter-sound mapping training – this was held a week apart under both “nap” and “no-nap” conditions;&nbsp;&nbsp;</li><li>post-tests that were used to assess learning, once after a nap and once after a period of wakefulness.&nbsp;</li></ul>



The knowledge gained during training was also reassessed one day later, to determine whether any effect of napping on learning was retained. Each session assessed&nbsp;letter-sound mappings and using explicit learning (e.g., “Which sound does the letter C make?”) and knowledge generalization tasks (e.g., “Here’s Tav and Cav, which one is /kav/?”).



The results of the study, published today in the journal <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/childdevelopment/facts.html">Child Development</a>, find that a daytime nap improves a child’s ability to learn letter sounds and to transfer this newly learned knowledge to the recognition of printed letters in a word; this implies that naps could be beneficial for preschool children’s learning of letter-sound mappings.



“Having a nap after learning might facilitate the capacity to utilize newly learned information in a new task,” said Hua-Chen Wang, Lecturer in the School of Education at Macquarie University. “We found a positive nap effect on children’s learning of letter-sound mappings, and in particular, on using that knowledge to read unfamiliar words.”



The researchers hypothesized that, if a nap benefits a child’s letter-sound skills, then children who napped would perform better on both the explicit learning tasks (when children were asked to produce or recognize the letter sounds they learned earlier) and knowledge transfer tasks (when children were asked to identify unfamiliar words containing the letter sounds they learned earlier). The findings showed that napping did positively affect performance on the knowledge transfer test.&nbsp;Furthermore, this nap benefit was maintained the following day.&nbsp;



It is true that the research was not carried out in a laboratory and that this prevented the measurement of physiological features of sleep, such as the amount of time spent in REM (rapid eye movement) sleep and whether this was related to improved learning. This would perhaps be an appropriate direction for future research. The authors also note that, since the nap effect was only found in generalizing letter-sound knowledge to recognizing printed words, but not on the explicit learning measures, future research on this topic with a larger sample size is recommended.&nbsp;&nbsp;



“The research provides initial evidence that naps facilitate the acquisition and application of letter-sound mappings, abilities that are crucial to early reading development,” said Anne Castles, Professor of Psychological Studies at Macquarie University.&nbsp;&nbsp;“These findings may have implications for creating the optimal conditions for the acquisition of this fundamental literacy skill in preschool children.”



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By <a href="mailto:bosman@truewan.co.za">Alison Bosman</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Daytime napping may boost literacy skills in preschoolers

When children learn to read they have to work out...

Researchers from <a href="https://www.monash.edu/">Monash University</a> are one step closer to saving the critically endangered helmeted honeyeater, an iconic <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/wild-birds-do-not-carry-antibiotic-resistant-salmonella/">bird</a> that serves as the emblem of the Australian state of Victoria.&nbsp;



The scientists sequenced the honeyeater’s chromosomes, which is a more detailed approach than a simple genetic sequencing. A high density genetic map was created, detailing over 50,000 marker positions.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;



The results of the genetic analysis will allow researchers to examine the impact of breeding helmeted honeyeaters with another subspecies, and will also help experts monitor their overall health.&nbsp;



Helmeted honeyeaters are beautiful yellow and black birds native to Australia. Unfortunately, honeyeater populations have declined dramatically since the arrival of white colonists in Australia.&nbsp;



By the 1980s, approximately 50 individuals survived the decimation. All of the birds were found in Yellingbo Nature Conservation Reserve, due to habitat restoration and captive breeding, their population has grown to 250 birds.&nbsp;



It’s not all a conservation story for the helmeted honeyeaters. Because the bird’s population dropped so low, most of the remaining birds are close relatives and inbreeding and reproductive problems are common.&nbsp;



To combat the inbreeding, conservationists have been breeding the birds with closely related subspecies to improve genetic diversity.&nbsp;



“Because the helmeted honeyeater is the last of its kind, genetic augmentation must come from a different subspecies. However, this kind of genetic mixing is not common: conservation managers generally avoid crossing subspecies for fear of losing local adaptation and distinctiveness," explained Dr. Alexandra Pavlova.



Now, with the high quality genetic material available, conservationists can look at the consequences of each captive breeding operation. This information can be used as a guide for the conservation efforts and hopefully successfully restore the population.&nbsp;



“The genome sequence and the genetic map will be used to get the right balance between rescuing the helmeted honeyeater from extinction through inbreeding, while retaining unique features that make it a helmeted honeyeater," said study lead author Diana Robledo-Ruiz.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://academic.oup.com/gigascience">GigaScience</a>.



Image Credit: Nick Bradsworth



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By <a href="mailto:zachfitzner@yahoo.com">Zach Fitzner</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Genetic study could help save helmeted honeyeaters

Researchers from Monash University are one step closer to saving...

As we learn to live with the Covid-19 <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/alpaca-nanobodies-can-neutralize-coronavirus-variants/">virus</a>, researchers are working to better understand its impacts. A new study has revealed that adults sick with both Covid-19 and the flu simultaneously are at a much greater risk of severe disease or even death compared to patients infected with Covid alone.&nbsp;



A research team from the <a href="https://www.ed.ac.uk/">University of Edinburgh</a>, University of Liverpool, Leiden University and Imperial College London, studied more than 305,000 hospitalized patients with Covid-19. It is the largest ever study of people with Covid-19 and other endemic respiratory viruses.



“Understanding the consequences of double infections of SARS-CoV-2 and other respiratory viruses is crucial as they have implications for patients, hospitals and ICU capacity during seasons that SARS-CoV-2 and influenza circulate together," said Dr. Geert Groeneveld of Leiden University Medical Center.



For the investigation, test results for respiratory viral co-infections were recorded for 6,965 Covid-19 patients. Of these, 227 also had the flu and were experiencing more significant symptoms.&nbsp;



Patients with co-infection of Covid-19 and flu viruses were over four times more likely to require ventilation support and 2.4 times more likely to die than if they only had Covid-19.



The study demonstrates a greater need for flu testing of hospitalized Covid-19. It also demonstrates the importance of staying diligent with flu shots and full vaccination against Covid-19.



A representative from each research team shared their observations on the threat of co-infection.&nbsp;



“In the last two years we have frequently witnessed patients with Covid-19 become severely ill, at times leading to an ICU admission and the employment of an artificial ventilator to help with breathing. That an influenza infection could give rise to a similar situation was already known, but less was understood about the outcomes of a double infection of SARS-CoV-2 and other respiratory viruses," said Dr. Maaike Swets, PhD student at the University of Edinburgh.



“We found that the combination of Covid-19 and flu viruses is particularly dangerous. This will be important as many countries decrease the use of social distancing and containment measures," said Kenneth Baillie, professor of Experimental Medicine at the University of Edinburgh. "We expect that Covid-19 will circulate with flu, increasing the chance of co-infections. That is why we should change our testing strategy for Covid-19 patients in hospital and test for flu much more widely.”



Professor Calum Semple of the University of Liverpool, noted that there has been a rise in the usual seasonal respiratory viruses as people return to normal mixing. "So, we can expect flu to be circulating alongside Covid-19 this winter. We were surprised that the risk of death more than doubled when people were infected by both flu and Covid-19 viruses. It is now very important that people get fully vaccinated and boosted against both viruses, and not leave it until it is too late.”



“Being infected with more than one virus is not very common but it’s important to be aware that co-infections do happen," said Professor Peter Openshaw of Imperial College London. "The vaccines that protect against Covid-19 and flu are different, and people need both. The way that these two infections are treated is also different so it’s important to test for other viruses even when you have a diagnosis in someone who is hospitalised with a respiratory infection. This latest discovery by the ISARIC consortium again adds significantly to improving the way we manage patients.”



The research was funded by UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) and by the Department of Health and Social Care through the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) as part of the UK Government’s Covid-19 rapid research response. It is published in the journal <a href="https://www.thelancet.com/">The Lancet</a>



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By <a href="mailto:katherinebucko@gmail.com">Katherine Bucko</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

COVID-19 and the flu can increase severe risks, including death

As we learn to live with the Covid-19 virus, researchers...

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features Nushagak Bay, a large estuary in southwest Alaska. Nushagak runs mainly north to south and exits in Bristol Bay, a large body of water in the Bering Sea.



"The bay is primarily fed by the Nushagak River, which begins in the Alaska Range and flows southwest approximately 450 km. The bay is also fed by several additional rivers including the Wood, Igushik, Snake and Weary rivers," says ESA.



"The dark colors of the Nushagak River are most likely due to tannins or lignins (chemical substances found in plants). Tannins and lignins from roots, leaves, seeds, bark and soil can leach into the water and give it a brown or even black colour. The sediments then flow southwards where it is mixed with the bluer waters of the bay."



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



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By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Nushagak Bay in southwest Alaska

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Today's Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.acs.org/">American Chemical Society</a> (ACS) reveals that proteins on flu viruses are actually flexible, tilting and waving in a “breath-like” motion. According to the experts, these proteins could be used to better defend against the flu.



"The main antigenic targets of influenza virus are two surface glycoproteins, hemagglutinin (HA) and neuraminidase (NA). Whereas the structural and dynamical properties of both glycoproteins have been studied previously, the understanding of their plasticity in the whole-virion context is fragmented," wrote the researchers.



To investigate, the team conducted detailed simulations of the influenza A H1N1 virion, or the swine flu. The experts concluded that the visualizations show many new vulnerable states of flu viruses, which could improve future vaccines and antiviral drugs.



Video/ Image Credit: American Chemical Society&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Flu viruses are more flexible than expected

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features Lake Trasimeno, which is located west of Perugia in central Italy. It is the fourth largest lake in the country. While Trasimeno’s water level varies, it has a maximum depth of approximately six meters.&nbsp;



"In this Copernicus Sentinel-2 image, captured on 6 August 2022, the lake’s emerald green colour is likely due to the presence of phytoplankton. Streaks in the water, particularly visible in the west, indicate the presence of soil and sediments which have been stirred up by winds. Dark colored waters in the southern part of the lake indicate a presence of submerged and floating macrophytes (aquatic plants) as well as algae," says ESA.



"Surrounded by hills on three sides, Trasimeno is subject to heavy storms created by winds, especially from the north and west. There are three islets in the lake: Maggiore, Minore and Polvese (the largest). The lake’s shores are sparsely inhabited with only two popular villages: Castiglione del Lago and Passignano sul Trasimeno."



"Italy is experiencing its worst drought in 70 years which has affected drinking water supplies, hydroelectric power and agricultural production. High temperatures, hot winds and lack of rainfall are the main causes of drought in the Umbrian region which saw Lake Trasimeno’s drop 1.3 m, reaching the limit of the hydrometric zero in July 2022."



Video/Image Credit: ESA&nbsp;



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By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Lake Trasimeno in Central Italy

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Today's Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.acs.org/">American Chemical Society</a> describes a new self-powered nanosensor that can instantly detect mercury contamination with the tap of a finger.&nbsp;



The oxidized form of mercury can be harmful when it is ingested through contaminated water or food. This makes it necessary for experts to develop sensors that can quickly and accurately detect the presence of mercury.&nbsp;



Zong-Hong Lin and colleagues have now created a triboelectric nanosensor (TENS) that can detect mercury by simply by touching a sample. According to the researchers, their TENS could serve as the basis for similar devices to safely and remotely monitor other pollutants.



Video Credit: American Chemical Society&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Detecting mercury contamination with the tap of a finger

[sendtonews key="LvS8v8bp9z-2564889-12187" type="single"] Today's Video of the Day from the...

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.acs.org/">American Chemical Society</a> explores the ability of salt to transform the way that foods and beverages taste. Salt is known to cover up undesirable flavors, such as bitterness in coffee or beer, but how exactly does sodium chloride change the taste of other compounds?



One previous study showed that, not only does salt suppress bitterness, but also enhances sweetness and sourness. Another study revealed that bitterness reduction by salt seems to be happening at the tongue receptor level as well as in the brain.&nbsp;



While it is known that salt taste is mediated by the presence of sodium channels in the form of taste buds, experts believe that there is also an unknown receptor responsible for how we taste salt that has not yet been identified.&nbsp;



Video Credit: ACS Reactions



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

How does salt makes things taste better?

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features Santiago, the capital city of Chile. The city is located in the center of the Santiago Metropolitan Region, which has a population of about eight million people.&nbsp;



'The weather of Santiago resembles the Mediterranean climate with dry and warm summers with temperatures reaching up to 35°C (from October to March) and cool and humid winters that can drop to 0°C (from April to September)."



"The city lies in the centre of the country’s central valley around 80 km from the Pacific Ocean to the west and borders Argentina to the east. A tiny part of Argentina is visible in the top-right corner of the image where the mountain crest of the Andes Mountains acts as a divider between the two countries," says ESA.



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Santiago, Chile in South America

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Spiral,Galaxy,,Illustration,Of,Milky,Way

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Astronomers at <a href="https://www.jhu.edu/">Johns Hopkins University</a> have created an interactive map of the universe, including the actual position and real colors of 200,000 galaxies. The map allows the public to access data that was previously only available to scientists.



The map was developed using data collected by the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. For over two decades, a telescope in New Mexico was aimed at slightly different locations to capture the night sky.&nbsp;



"Growing up I was very inspired by astronomy pictures, stars, nebulae and galaxies, and now it's our time to create a new type of picture to inspire people," said map creator Brice Ménard, a professor at Johns Hopkins. "Astrophysicists around the world have been analyzing this data for years, leading to thousands of scientific papers and discoveries. But nobody took the time to create a map that is beautiful, scientifically accurate, and accessible to people who are not scientists. Our goal here is to show everybody what the universe really looks like."



"In this map, we are just a speck at the very bottom, just one pixel. And when I say we, I mean our galaxy, the Milky Way which has billions of stars and planets. We are used to seeing astronomical pictures showing one galaxy here, one galaxy there or perhaps a group of galaxies. But what this map shows is a very, very different scale."



"From this speck at the bottom, we are able to map out galaxies across the entire universe, and that says something about the power of science."



The <a href="https://mapoftheuniverse.net/">interactive map</a> is available online, where it can be downloaded for free.



Video Credit: Johns Hopkins&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Interactive map of the universe includes 200,000 galaxies

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Lesotho: Africa's "Kingdom in the Sky" Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features northwest Lesotho in South Africa.



According to ESA, Lesotho is the only nation in the world that lies completely above 1,000 m in elevation. The country is famous for its tall mountains and narrow valleys, and is known as Africa's "Kingdom in the Sky."



Out of a population of around two million people, about 80 percent live in rural areas. More than 75 percent of these people are engaged in <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/climate-change-will-have-a-global-impact-on-agriculture/">agriculture</a>, including rainfed cereal production and animal grazing.&nbsp;



ESA reports that the country’s agricultural system faces a growing number of issues, with climate-related vulnerabilities such as drought, floods and extreme temperatures occurring more frequently. 



Diamonds are amongst the minerals found in the mountains. Indeed, Lesotho can truly be called the Kingdom in the Sky. Beautiful, culturally rich, safe, affordable, and easily accessible from Durban and Johannesburg, mountainous Lesotho is a vastly underrated travel destination. the Kingdom of Lesotho (Sotho: 'Muso oa Lesotho) is an enclaved country in southern Africa. It is just over 30,000 km2 (11,583 sq mi) in size and has a population of around 2 million.



Video Credit: ESA&nbsp;&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer 



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Lesotho: Africa's "Kingdom in the Sky"

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Today's Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features Dublin, the capital and largest city of Ireland. Beyond its pub culture, Dublin is known as a modern culinary destination and a UNESCO City of Literature.



"Dublin is located near the midpoint of Ireland’s east coast in the province of Leinster. The city, which covers an area of around 115 square kilometers, is bordered by the Dublin Mountains, a low mountain range to the south, and is surrounded by flat farmland to the north and west," says ESA.



"The city straddles the River Liffey, which rises in the Wicklow Mountains and flows around 80 kilometers eastwards through the city of Dublin, in which it is canalised and bordered with quays. It then empties into Dublin Bay, an arm of the Irish Sea."



Dublin has an abundance of green spaces, including one of the largest enclosed public parks in any European capital city. Phoenix Park, which was originally formed as a royal hunting park in the 1660s, includes 707 hectares of green space.



Video Credit: ESA&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

The city of Dublin on Ireland's east coast

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Today's Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features the province of Zaragoza in northeast Spain. The image was captured by the Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission.



"Together with the provinces of Huesca and Teruel, Zaragoza formed the old kingdom of Aragon. Its capital, also called Zaragoza (not visible in this image) is home to around half of Aragon’s population," says ESA.



"The Ebro River can be seen winding its way through the province from west to east in this image. Between its source in the Cantabrian Mountains in the northwest and its delta on the Mediterranean coast, the Ebro River is fed by more than 200 tributaries as it flows 910 km across much of northern Spain."



Since rainfall is very scarce in this region, irrigation in the Ebro basin is critically important. In the valleys surrounding the Ebro River, many fields are used for growing crops such as corn, wheat, and barley.



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

The province of Zaragoza in northeast Spain

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Today’s Video of the Day from <a href="https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/">NASA Earth Observatory</a> reveals the evolution of the Columbia Glacier in southeastern Alaska. Columbia is among the fastest shrinking glaciers in the world, and the video documents its rapid retreat over the years.&nbsp;



Columbia Glacier is a large, multi-branched calving glacier that flows out of the Chugach Mountains to the Prince William Sound.&nbsp;



According to USGS, Columbia had a long history of stability prior to 1980, with a length 41 miles, and small, short-lived advances or retreats.



In the years since 1980, however, satellite images have captured Columbia’s alarming retreat. By using false-color images, scientists can distinguish between snow and ice, open water, vegetation, and rocky debris on the glacier’s surface.



The series of false-color images featured in today's video were acquired over the span of 35 years. You can see that by 2021, the glacier’s main branch had retreated about 15 miles from its initial position.



The Columbia Glacier has also lost more than 50 percent of its volume, mostly due to calving. <a href="https://www.earth.com/video/nasa-reveals-3d-visual-of-an-atmospheric-river/">NASA</a> reports that while climate change likely started the retreat, mechanical processes kept the disintegration going.



The NASA images are provided by Jesse Allen, Robert Simmon, Joshua Stevens, and Lauren Dauphin using data from Landsat satellites, from the U.S. Geological Survey, and data from MODIS on NASA’s Terra satellite. The structure of Columbia’s moraine played a large role in the stability of the glacier before 1980. 



Like other tidewater glaciers, the Columbia built up a moraine over time, and the mixture of ice and rock functioned like a dam keeping out the sea. It was supported on one end by the shoreline and by the underwater terminal moraine at the other.



Video Credit: NASA Earth Observatory/&nbsp; NASA’s Scientific Visualization Studio



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



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The rapid retreat of the Columbia Glacier

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features the Pyrenees Mountains, which form a natural boundary between France and Spain in southwest Europe.



The mountain range is 430 kilometers in length. It stretches from the Mediterranean Sea on the east to the Atlantic Ocean on the west.



At an elevation of 3404 meters, Pico de Aneto is the highest mountain peak in the Pyrenees, and the third-highest peak in Spain. Pico de Aneto is located in the Posets-Maladeta Natural Park, which spans more than 82,000 acres.&nbsp;



"Geological studies have revealed that the Pyrenees Mountains have been around for longer than the Alps, with their sediments first deposited in coastal basins during the Paleozoic and Mesozoic eras," reports ESA.



"The entire mountain range formed due to the upwelling of large sedimentary rocks by the collision of the Iberian and the Eurasian plate around 100 to 150 million years ago, followed by intense erosion from ice and water."



The western Pyrenees receive more precipitation due to moisture blowing in from the Atlantic Ocean. The mountain range contains many lakes, several small glaciers, and some of the highest waterfalls in Europe.



Video &amp; Image Credit: ESA



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



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The Pyrenees Mountains in southwest Europe

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Earth,Like,Exoplanet,3d,Render

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Today's Video of the Day from <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/goddard">NASA Goddard</a> describes two exoplanets that are orbiting a star 218 light-years away. A team of researchers led by the University of Montreal has found evidence that these planets are "water worlds."



The experts used data from NASA’s Hubble and Spitzer Space Telescopes. They discovered that exoplanets Kepler-138 c and Kepler-138 could be composed largely of water.



"We previously thought that planets that were a bit larger than Earth were big balls of metal and rock, like scaled-up versions of Earth, and that's why we called them super-Earths," explained study co-author Björn Benneke.&nbsp;



"However, we have now shown that these two planets, Kepler-138 c and d, are quite different in nature and that a big fraction of their entire volume is likely composed of water. It is the best evidence yet for water worlds, a type of planet that was theorized by astronomers to exist for a long time."



Video Credit: NASA Goddard



Image Credit: NASA, ESA, and Leah Hustak (STScI)



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



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Two distant planets may be "water worlds"

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Satellites reveal how Earth's systems are interconnected Today’s Video of the Day from <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/goddard">NASA Goddard</a> describes Earth’s interconnected systems, and how this network is affected by rising temperatures.&nbsp;



During 2020, average global temperatures matched the hottest year on record. The hurricane season was also record-breaking, with many of the storms intensifying at extraordinary speeds. Hot water in the ocean is fuel for hurricanes. The satellite data shows that it's all one interconnected system showing how Satellites reveal how Earth's systems are interconnected.



According to NASA, dust swept up from Northern Africa plays a major role in the formation of hurricanes, and is also a key source of fertilization in the Amazon rainforest. As a result of<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/seagrass-wasting-disease-is-fueled-by-climate-change/"> climate</a> change, dust plumes are expected to decline, which will have an effect on vegetation far away.&nbsp;



Images from Earth-observing satellites show how the world’s plant life is affected by natural disasters, fires, and deforestation. Satellites also reveal how widespread changes in vegetation impact waterways,&nbsp; the climate, air quality. Satellites communicate by using radio waves to send signals to the antennas on the Earth. "Earth From Space" is a groundbreaking two-hour special that reveals a spectacular new space-based vision of our planet. 



Video Credit: NASA Goddard&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Satellites reveal how Earth's systems are interconnected

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://welcome.miami.edu/">University of Miami</a> Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science explores how changes in water temperatures have affected tiger shark habitats and movements in the North Atlantic Ocean. The study reveals that rising temperatures have caused the sharks to shift toward the poles over the past 40 years.



“Tiger shark annual migrations have expanded poleward, paralleling rising water temperatures,” explained study lead author Neil Hammerschlag. “These results have consequences for tiger shark conservation, since shifts in their movements outside of marine protected areas may leave them more vulnerable to commercial fishing.”



The researchers analyzed nine years of tracking data from satellite-tagged tiger sharks, combined with four decades of conventional tag and recapture data provided by National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Cooperative Shark Tagging Program.



The experts found that during the last decade of record heat, for every one-degree Celsius increase in water temperatures, tiger sharks migrated further poleward by over 400 kilometers. They also migrated two weeks earlier than usual to waters off the northeastern coast of the United States.



“Given their role as apex predators, these changes to tiger shark movements may alter predator-prey interactions, leading to ecological imbalances, and more frequent encounters with humans,” concluded Professor Hammerschlag.



Video Credit: University of Miami Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Tiger sharks are shifting poleward as temperatures rise

Today’s Video of the Day from the University of Miami...

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> is focused on the melt ponds that emerge during the spring and summer on the Greenland Ice Sheet, which is the largest ice mass in the northern hemisphere.



"Melt ponds are vast pools of open water that form on both sea ice and ice sheets and are visible as turquoise-blue pools of water in this Copernicus Sentinel-2 image," says ESA.



"When snow and ice melts atop glaciers, water flows in channels and streams and collects in depressions on the surface. These melt ponds can speed up the melting of the surrounding ice since they greatly reduce the ice’s ability to reflect sunlight."



"This can create a positive feedback where an increasing number of melt ponds absorb more heat which causes ice cover to melt even faster."



According to ESA, Greenland has been hit with a late-season heatwave that began in early September. This caused the type of melt event that usually occurs in the middle of summer.



"In a recent paper published in Nature Climate Change, scientists found that major sea-level rise from the melting of the Greenland ice cap is now ‘inevitable’ even if the burning of fossil fuels were to halt overnight," says ESA. "Using satellite observations of Greenland ice loss and ice cap from 2000 to 2019, the team found the losses will lead to a minimum rise of 27 cm regardless of climate change."



Video Credit: ESA&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Melt ponds on the Greenland Ice Sheet

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> describes a new map of Mars that is providing insight into the planet’s watery past. The map also reveals where future missions could safely land on Mars.&nbsp;



The map has been created over the last decade using observations of water-rich rocks and mineral deposits. The images were captured by ESA’s Mars Express and NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter.



"A big surprise is the prevalence of these minerals, with the map revealing hundreds of thousands of water-affected locations in the oldest parts of the planet," says ESA. "The new data will help answer exciting questions about Mars’ climate history, whether water was globally persistent or confined to short, intense episodes, and whether the conditions were ever suitable for life."



"Specifically, the map shows the locations and abundances of aqueous minerals. These are from rocks that have been chemically altered by the action of water in the past, and have typically been transformed into clays and salts."



According to John Carter of the Institut d’Astrophysique Spatiale (IAS), our collective understanding of Mars has been oversimplified. He explained that planetary scientists have tended to think that only a few types of clay minerals on Mars were created during its wet period, then as the water gradually dried up, salts were produced across the planet.



The new map shows that the composition of Mars is much more complicated than what we thought. For example, while many salts formed after Martian clays, there are some salts that are presumed to be older than some of the clays.&nbsp;



“The evolution from lots of water to no water is not as clear cut as we thought, the water didn’t just stop overnight. We see a huge diversity of geological contexts, so that no one process or simple timeline can explain the evolution of the mineralogy of Mars. That’s the first result of our study. The second is that if you exclude life processes on Earth, Mars exhibits a diversity of mineralogy in geological settings just as Earth does,” said Carter.



Video Credit: ESA



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

The history of Mars is much more complex than we thought

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Today's Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.stowers.org/">Stowers Institute for Medical Research</a> describes how cavefish adapted to a sedentary lifestyle over tens of thousands of years. 



The experts found that the muscle metabolism of cavefish has been genetically reprogrammed over time. As a result, the animals have experienced major changes in their morphology and behavior. Despite these changes, however, the cavefish remain healthy and fit.



The research may provide new clues about the evolutionary consequences of prolonged physical inactivity in humans.&nbsp;



“It’s no surprise that people are moving less and less as technology has advanced,” said Rohner. “With cavefish, we have a unique system where we can study what might happen if people remained couch potatoes over very, very long periods of time.”



Video Credit: Stowers Institute for Medical Research



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Cavefish are healthy despite their sedentary lifestyle

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Today’s Video of the Day from <a href="https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/">NASA Earth Observatory</a> some of the most incredible waves in the world, as seen by Landsat satellites.



"With more than 370,000 miles of coastline on Earth, there are plenty of places where epic waves build up, curl over, and hurtle toward the shore.- much to the thrill of surfers," says NASA. "There are some places where these waves are so magnificent that they can be seen from space."



"With the broad perspective of satellites, we can see how these iconic waves develop into the world’s tallest, longest, fastest, and heaviest."



Video Credit: NASA Earth Observatory&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Satellites capture the world's biggest and fastest waves

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> describes why satellite images and measurements of our planet have become "essential to our survival, offering a new outlook of our world."&nbsp;



Rising sea levels pose one of the biggest societal threats associated with climate change. According to ESA, satellite altimeter missions such as Copernicus Sentinel-6 are essential in monitoring global and regional changes in sea level.



"Unbeknown to many, the island of Crete, Greece, plays an important role in the Copernicus satellite altimetry constellation and on an international stage," reports ESA.



"Satellite altimetry data have to be continuously monitored at the ESA’s Permanent Facility for Altimetry Calibration where different techniques have pioneered the use of transponders to provide the best measurements to validate satellite altimeters in space soon after launch."



Dr. Craig Donlon explains that, by understanding planet Earth through satellite measurements, we are able to find evidence of change.&nbsp;



Video Credit: European Space Agency&nbsp;



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By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Satellites have become essential to our survival

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