Our Planet

The coldest place in the Universe exists on Earth

It may sound strange, but the coldest place in the Universe is not anywhere in the vast, cold outer space – it exists here on Earth. Well, it is not actually a natural place you can come across. It is in a laboratory in M.I.T. (Massachusetts Institute of Technology).

Earth and the Sound of Silence

An amazing 4K Ultra-HD video of the majestic beauty of Earth as seen by the crew of the International Space Station, accompanied by “The Sound of Silence” by Paul Simon.

Top 10 Most Iconic Photos of Earth from Space

Earth is actually a fragile and isolated rock, a “blue marble” in a vast, cold and hostile space. But only after seeing our planet from space we truly understood that. Seeing the Earth first time from a distance was a powerful experience that has changed the way we see our planet. Here are the top 10 most iconic photos of Earth from space.

The moment the spacewalking record was broken

Bruce McCandless II during the first untethered spacewalk - he broke the spacewalking record

On February 7, 1984, during the STS-41-B (the tenth NASA Space Shuttle mission and the fourth flight of the Space Shuttle Challenger), NASA astronaut Bruce McCandless II (June 8, 1937 – December 21, 2017) made the first-ever untethered free flight using the Manned Maneuvering Unit^{Notes 1}. With a distance of 98 meters (320 feet) from the space shuttle, he also broke the spacewalking record.

A Stunning Aurora video from Space in Ultra-HD (4K)

An amazing Aurora video published by NASA, showing both Aurora Borealis (Northern Lights) and Aurora Australis (Southern lights). It is taken from the International Space Station (ISS) using the time-lapse shot. Enjoy one of the most beautiful natural phenomena in ultra-HD (4K).

CrocBITE: Worldwide Crocodilian Attack Database

Where native large crocodilians and humans live close to each other, crocodile attacks on humans occasionally occur. In fact, only 9 out of 23 crocodilian species are considered dangerous to adult humans. ^{Notes 1} And in those six species, only individuals 2 meters (6.6 feet) and longer in length are capable of killing adult humans.

Two species, which are also the largest and most aggressive, saltwater crocodile and Nile crocodiles have a well-known reputation for preying on humans. These two also have the most documented cases. Each year, hundreds of people die of either Nile or saltwater crocodile attacks.

The mugger crocodile, which can be found throughout the Indian subcontinent and the surrounding countries, also very dangerous to humans, killing many people in India every year.

Despite the American crocodile is considered to be less aggressive, a few (unverified) fatally attacks reported. Also, species/individuals smaller than 2 meters can inflict painful and dangerous bites on adult humans and they are even capable of killing children. Even then, according to the Worldwide Crocodilian Attack Database most interactions between crocodiles and humans are uneventful.

LIGO detects gravitational waves from neutron star merger

Carl Sagan’s famous quote says “The nitrogen in our DNA, the calcium in our teeth, the iron in our blood, the carbon in our apple pies were made in the interiors of collapsing stars. We are made of starstuff.” In that famous quote, Sagan makes reference to the whole universe started off with hydrogen and helium, all stars produce helium, and then stars over a certain mass threshold produce carbon, nitrogen, oxygen and lots of heavier elements – which are also the source of the life. The star stuff is inside us – every living thing on Earth.

But, even stars aren’t powerful enough to create heavy elements like silver, gold, and cesium. Since the 1950s, scientists have wondered: where do most of the elements in the periodic table come from?

Humans can cause deadly Earthquakes

On May 12, 2008, a huge 7.9 M_W earthquake hit Chengdu, a sub-provincial city which has served as the capital of China’s Sichuan province. Over 69,000 people lost their lives. 374,176 were reported injured, with 18,222 listed as missing as of July 2008. The earthquake also left about 4.8 million people homeless. Some scientists believe that the construction and filling of the Zipingpu Dam with 320 million tons of water over a well-known fault line may have triggered the earthquake ^{Notes 1}.

Sichuan earthquake is only one example of (but the deadliest by far, though) many earthquakes that triggered by the human activities, according to a study published in the journal Seismological Research Letters, titled “Database of earthquakes triggered by human activity is growing – with some surprises”.

Japanese Volcano Eruption – Amazing Drone Footage

James Reynolds, the storm chaser, and a drone pilot, shot an amazing aerial footage of the eruption of Shinmoedake, a volcano in Kagoshima Prefecture, Kyūshū, Japan. You can also hear the rumbling sound coming from the volcano.

the First-Ever 360-Degree Spacewalk Video

Russian TV network Russia Today (RT) has released the first 360-Degree Spacewalk Video ever. The video is recorded by the Russian Cosmonauts Sergey Ryazansky and Fedor Yurchikhin outside the International Space Station (ISS) while doing their 7.5-hour spacewalk on August 16, 2017. The video contains breathtaking images of Earth. You can watch the 360-Degree interactive video below.