News about PaperPanda, Open Access, and Research
The International Astronomical Union (IAU) has launched a new center to fight the threat of satellite megaconstellations, which it now describes as worse than urban light pollution. The Center for the Protection of the Dark and Quiet Sky from Satellite Constellation Interference will be run jointly by the U.K.-headquartered Square Kilometer Array Observatory organization and … Read more
Three years ago, astronomers were reeling from the launch of the first 60 satellites of SpaceX’s Starlink constellation, which aims to provide broadband internet access worldwide. The satellites left bright traces on astronomical images, posing “an existential threat to observation from the ground,” said astronomer Debra Elmegreen, president of the International Astronomical Union (IAU), at … Read more
An ancient temple dating from the early centuries of Buddhism has been unearthed in the Swat Valley in northern Pakistan – part of the ancient Gandhara region that was conquered by Alexander the Great and gave rise to a mixing of Buddhist belief and Greek art. Archaeologists think that the temple dates from about the middle … Read more
A bomb cyclone is a large, intense midlatitude storm that has low pressure at its center, weather fronts and an array of associated weather, from blizzards to severe thunderstorms to heavy precipitation. It becomes a bomb when its central pressure decreases very quickly – by at least 24 millibars in 24 hours. Two famed … Read more
A new image of the heart of the Milky Way is revealing mysterious structures we’ve never seen before. Taken using the ultra-sensitive MeerKAT radio telescope in South Africa, the images show nearly 1,000 strands of magnetic filaments, measuring up to 150 light-years in length, in surprisingly neat and regular arrangements. That’s 10 times the … Read more
An alliance of experts in space, sports and the entertainment industry are designing and developing original games exclusively for low or microgravity playing fields. The group, known as the Space Games Federation, has already identified a number of prospective game concepts, from guiding a magnetic ball through hoops in space to space dodgeball, as well … Read more
In 2014, amateur astronomers in New Zealand glimpsed a flare of light emanating from the constellation of Centauri. NASA later confirmed this blaze was a massive supernova explosion from another galaxy an incredible 57 million light-years away from our Milky Way. “Dedicated amateur astronomers often make intriguing discoveries – particularly of fleeting astronomical phenomena … Read more
In the heart of the Milky Way, stars tread a complex measure. Bound by the gravitational field of the supermassive black hole in the galactic center, Sagittarius A*, a group of stars known as S-stars swoop on wild, years-long orbits. These orbits were recently studied to measure Sgr A*, a result that won the scientists … Read more
George Abbey now has more than a herd of longhorns to his name at the entrance to NASA’s Johnson Space Center. Driving by the Houston home to NASA’s human spaceflight program, past the 35-acre pasture established by Abbey for Texas Longhorn cattle to graze, visitors now come across a sign dedicating Johnson’s Rocket Park to … Read more