soil

NASA Is Cracking Open a 50-Year-Old Vacuum-Sealed Tube of Lunar Gas And Soil

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The Apollo missions to the Moon brought a total of 2,196 rock samples to Earth. But NASA has only just started opening one of the last ones, collected 50 years ago. For all that time, some tubes were kept sealed so that they could be studied years later, with the help of the latest technical … Read more

Virgin Orbit targeting this summer for 1st-ever orbital launch from UK soil

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On the heels of a third straight successful launch from California earlier this year, Virgin Orbit plans to extend its liftoffs to the United Kingdom. The company aims to launch for the first time this summer from Spaceport Cornwall, in the western United Kingdom, Virgin Orbit announced on Wednesday (March 9). The mission will loft … Read more

Eating More Bugs Could Help The Environment Even More Than We Thought

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Insects have been touted as a food of the future, not least because of the sustainability benefits. An excellent protein source, they take up significantly fewer resources to produce when compared to traditional farming. Give your farm of mealworms around 2 kilograms (4.4 pounds) of food and you’ll get a kilogram of edible protein; with beef, … Read more

In One Part of Europe, Soil Is Rapidly Degrading. It’s a Warning to Us All

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In the Mediterranean region, the soil is degrading, and land is turning to desert faster than anywhere else in the European Union, according to a new analysis. Experts warn that the combined effects of unsustainable land practices and climate change have depleted a finite resource to a critical point.   A recent publication by a … Read more

Dog waste may harm nature reserve biodiversity by fertilising the soil

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Dogs’ urine and faeces bring large amounts of nitrogen and phosphorus into suburban nature reserves, which could be harmful to plant biodiversity Life 7 February 2022 By Chen Ly A dog in a wildflower patch at St Abbs Head Nature Reserve, UK Rebecca Cole / Alamy Stock Photo Taking your dog for a walk in … Read more

Archaeologists Find Traces of Sacred Groves Tended by The Ancient Maya

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For the ancient Maya people who lived across central America for thousands of years, the cacao plant that chocolate comes from was considered to be a gift from the gods – so much so that beans from these trees were used as a unit of currency.   Now, researchers have been able to identify new … Read more

Yutu-2: China’s rover finds sticky soil on the far side of the moon

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We haven’t been able to take a close-up look at the far side of the moon until now, and the discoveries being made by the Yutu-2 rover might prove important for future missions 19 January 2022 By Alex Wilkins A photo of the Yutu-2 moon rover, taken by the Chang’e-4 lunar probe AFP The first … Read more

Thawing Permafrost Is Poised to Unleash Havoc in The Arctic, Scientists Warn

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Thawing Arctic permafrost laden with billions of tonnes of greenhouse gases not only threatens the region’s critical infrastructure but life across the planet, according to a comprehensive scientific review.   Nearly 70 percent of the roads, pipelines, cities, and industry – mostly in Russia – built on the region’s softening ground are highly vulnerable to … Read more

Soil Microbe Could Clean Up Nuclear Waste

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Fission in nuclear reactors forges radioactive metal by-products so toxic that they must be stored deep underground, at great cost and effort, for millennia. But a protein made by a common microbe could help ease this hazardous burden, researchers report in the Journal of the American Chemical Society. Two of nuclear waste’s most problematic ingredients … Read more

Australian wildlife: Newly discovered millipede has a record-breaking 1306 legs

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A millipede with 1306 legs has smashed the world record after being discovered 60 metres underground in Australia   Life 16 December 2021 By Alice Klein A 10-centimetre-long female Eumillipes persephone millipede with 1306 legs Paul Marek, Virginia Tech A millipede with over 1300 legs has smashed the world record for the most limbs, … Read more