We, humans, are destroying the Earth’s wilderness, very fast. Actually, we are the main (and probably the only) cause of the sixth major extinction event in the history of our planet. Now, a recent UN report says at least one million species (animals, plants, and insects) are at the risk of extinction. There will be serious consequences for life on Earth, and also for human beings.
Continue reading “UN report warns one million species at risk of extinction”Two neutron stars collided near the solar system 4.6 billion years ago
According to a new study published in the May 2, 2019 issue of Nature, 4.6 billion years ago, two neutron stars collided near the early Solar System (actually about 1000 light-years from the gas cloud that eventually formed the Solar System). This violent collision has created heavy elements like silver, gold, platinum, cesium, and uranium. The study says 0.3% of the Earth’s heaviest elements have been created by this event.
Continue reading “Two neutron stars collided near the solar system 4.6 billion years ago”InSight captures a sunrise, sunset, and clouds on Mars
NASA’s Mars InSight lander captured a series of sunrise, sunset, and cloud images. On April 24 and 25, 2019 (the 145th Martian day, or sol, of the mission), Instrument Deployment Camera (IDC) on the spacecraft’s robotic arm captured sunrise and sunsets.
Another camera, called Instrument Context Camera (ICC) beneath the lander’s deck captured drifting clouds across the Martian sky at sunset.
Continue reading “InSight captures a sunrise, sunset, and clouds on Mars”GEDI: NASA’s Laser Mission to Measure Trees
NASA’s Global Ecosystem Dynamics Investigation (GEDI) on the International Space Station (ISS) beams laser light down to Earth to reveal the height and density of trees and vegetation.
Continue reading “GEDI: NASA’s Laser Mission to Measure Trees”Did European Colonisation precipitate the Little Ice Age?
Many of us think that rapid environmental change is a quintessentially modern crisis. Today, temperatures are soaring, topsoil is washing away, phosphorous is being diluted, forests are retreating, pesticides are sterilising farmland, fertilisers are choking waterways, and biodiversity is plummeting under the onslaught of overpopulated, industrialised societies. Some of these changes are indeed truly new. But many others have deep roots and distant echoes in the early modern period, the years between around 1400 and 1800 when much of the world began to assume its present form. Recently, scientists, geographers, historians, and archaeologists have combined expertise and evidence to reveal just how profound early modern environmental transformations really were.
Continue reading “Did European Colonisation precipitate the Little Ice Age?”The Melting Points of 80 Elements, Substances, and Metal Alloys
Have you ever wondered why plastic melts in a bonfire, but a cast iron pan doesn’t? A bonfire can reach temperatures as hot as 2,012 °F (1,100 °C). Most PET plastic melts at a measly 491 °F (255 °C), so it doesn’t stand a chance! Cast iron prevails with an average melting point of 2,100 °F (1,150 °C), depending on the iron-carbon alloy proportions.
Continue reading “The Melting Points of 80 Elements, Substances, and Metal Alloys”Brazilian couple plants 2 million trees [and creates a new forest!]
In the early 2000s, famed Brazilian photographer Sebastião Salgado and his wife Lélia Wanick decided to rebuild their deserted piece of land of 600 hectares in Aimorés, Brazil. They planted more than 2 million tree saplings in 18 years.
And the result is amazing! They created a new forest, and now, the site has 293 plant species, 172 bird species, and 33 animal species, some of which were on the verge of extinction.
Continue reading “Brazilian couple plants 2 million trees [and creates a new forest!]”Timelapse of the future [an amazing video!]
Melodysheep published an amazing video titled “Timelapse of the future: a journey to the end of time”. This experience takes us on a journey to the end of time, trillions of trillions of years into the future, to discover what the fate of our planet, our sun, and our universe may ultimately be.
If this video won’t give you goosebumps, I don’t know what will.
Continue reading “Timelapse of the future [an amazing video!]”On Earth Day, NASA wants to see the Earth around you
NASA tweeted this morning and said that “Good morning Europe and Africa! Celebrate Earth Day today by sharing with NASA a photo of the gorgeous planet we call home. Show us how you #PictureEarth around you.”
Continue reading “On Earth Day, NASA wants to see the Earth around you”Amazing weather balloon flight to the Stratosphere
An amazing video showing a weather Balloon flight to the Stratosphere. Cameras were installed in a box attached to a weather balloon to get high-altitude images of the Earth. Published by the J. W. Astronomy channel.
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