UN rights chief slams indifference over migrant deaths at sea
Geneva (AFP) Dec 10, 2014 -
The UN's human rights chief on Wednesday condemned rich nations for their indifference to waves of global migration, after new figures showed more than 3,400 people died in the Mediterranean this year trying to reach Europe.
"The lack of concern that we see in many countries for the suffering and exploitation of such desperate people is deeply shocking," UN High Commissioner Zeid Ra'ad Al Hu ...
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Rosetta Comet Water Different Than Earth Water
Pasadena CA (JPL) Dec 12, 2014 -
The European Space Agency's Rosetta spacecraft has found the water vapor from comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko to be significantly different from that found on Earth. The discovery fuels the debate on the origin of our planet's oceans.
The measurements, by the Rosetta Orbiter Spectrometer for Ion and Neutral Analysis (ROSINA) instrument, were made in the month following the arrival of the s ...
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China launches another remote sensing satellite
Jiuquan, China (XNA) Dec 12, 2014 -
China sent the Yaogan-25 remote sensing satellite into a scheduled orbit at 3:33 a.m. on Thursday from the Jiuquan satellite launch center.
The Yaogan-25 was carried by a Long March-4C rocket. It was the 201st mission for the Long March rocket technology.
Yaogan satellites are mainly used for scientific experiments, natural resource surveys, crop yield estimates and disaster relief. ...
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The Geminids meteor shower should be one of the best this year
Melbourne, Australia (The Conversation) Dec 12, 2014 -
The best meteor shower of the year should put on an impressive display this weekend - weather permitting - with the annual Geminids poised to light up the sky with bright, long meteors visible as frequently as every couple of minutes.
Meteor showers occur when the Earth ploughs through trails of debris as it spins its yearly course around the sun.
This weekend, the Earth will pass th ...
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The Science of Magnetic Reconnection
Greenbelt MD (SPX) Dec 11, 2014 -
Understanding vast systems in space requires understanding what's happening on widely different scales. Giant events can turn out to have tiny drivers - take, for example, what rocked near-Earth space in October 2003. On Oct. 28, 2003, and again on Oct. 29, massive solar flares erupted on the sun, sending X-rays zooming through the solar system.
Along with the flares, the sun expelled gian ...
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RS-25 engine upgrade is no 80s techno flashback
Huntsville AL (SPX) Dec 11, 2014 -
Take a look at your current devices. Can you imagine swapping that smartphone for a gigantic cellphone from the 1980s? Surfing the Internet with dial-up speed? Working out to your favorite music with a cassette player? Today's technology is better, faster and more innovative. People have to keep up with the rapidly changing times, and so does the "brain" for the RS-25 rocket engine.
The en ...
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China publishes images captured by CBERS-4 satellite
Beijing (XNA) Dec 11, 2014 -
The China National Space Administration (CNSA) published Tuesday the first images captured by the newly launched CBERS-4 satellite jointly developed with Brazil.
The images, captured with 5m panchromatic/8m multispectral cameras, are "clear, colorful and with high quality and have met the designed standards," according the CNSA.
China launched the CBERS-4, the fifth satellite of the ...
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Boeing Covers Groundwork in Second Milestone For Commercial Crew
Washington DC (SPX) Dec 12, 2014 -
The momentum of certifying American space transportation systems capable of carrying astronauts to the International Space Station continued on pace as NASA took a comprehensive look at all of Boeing's ground-based system designs.
This Ground Segment Critical Design Review marks the second milestone in the company's Commercial Crew Transportation Capability (CCtCap) contract, NASA's Launch ...
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Crude oil cargo for ESA's first flight with China
Paris (ESA) Dec 12, 2014 -
ESA is finalising its first experiment on a Chinese space mission: small containers of crude oil will help to improve our understanding of oil reservoirs buried kilometres underground.
The package has already passed a gamut of testing at ESA's Technical Centre, ESTEC, in Noordwijk, the Netherlands, including the temperature shifts of orbital flight and the vibration and shocks of launch an ...
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Swarms of Pluto-Size Objects Kick Up Dust around Adolescent Sun-Like Star
Boston MA (SPX) Dec 12, 2014 -
Astronomers using the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) may have detected the dusty hallmarks of an entire family of Pluto-size objects swarming around an adolescent version of our own Sun.
By making detailed observations of the protoplanetary disk surrounding the star known as HD 107146, the astronomers detected an unexpected increase in the concentration of millimeter-s ...
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Future of USAF is air, space, cyberspace integration
Washington DC (AFNS) Dec 12, 2014 -
The commander of Air Force Space Command talked about the fundamental relationship between space operations and everyday life - not only for the military, but for the American people - during a breakfast at the Capitol Hill Club, Dec. 5.
Gen. John E. Hyten, the AFSPC commander, explained the complexities of global space operations, and how they're a seamless and invisible part of day-to-da ...
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Swarms of Pluto-Size Objects Kick Up Dust around Adolescent Sun-Like Star
Boston MA (SPX) Dec 12, 2014 -
Astronomers using the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) may have detected the dusty hallmarks of an entire family of Pluto-size objects swarming around an adolescent version of our own Sun.
By making detailed observations of the protoplanetary disk surrounding the star known as HD 107146, the astronomers detected an unexpected increase in the concentration of millimeter-s ...
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New 'electronic skin' for prosthetics, robotics detects pressure from different directions
Washington DC (SPX) Dec 12, 2014 -
Touch can be a subtle sense, but it communicates quickly whether something in our hands is slipping, for example, so we can tighten our grip.
For the first time, scientists report the development of a stretchable "electronic skin" closely modeled after our own that can detect not just pressure, but also what direction it's coming from. The study on the advance, which could have application ...
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NASA parodies 'All about that Bass' to promote space exploration
Houston (UPI) Dec 12, 2014 -
As has become a recent tradition, the students at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas parodied a hit song to highlight NASA's work in space exploration.
This year they turned Megan Trainor's song "All About that Bass" into "All About that Space" to spur excitement for Orion's first flight.
Orion had a two-hour test flight and successfully recovered from the Pacific Ocea ...
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NASA, SpaceX reschedule next week's ISS resupply launch
Cape Canaveral, Fla. (UPI) Dec 12, 2014 -
NASA announced Thursday that the launch of SpaceX's robotic Dragon capsule will be delayed three days. The International Space Station resupply mission was originally scheduled to blast off on Tuesday, December 16. But proceedings have been rescheduled for Friday, December 19.
"The change of launch date allows SpaceX to take extra time to ensure they do everything possible on the ground ...
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Early adoption of robotic surgery leads to organ preservation for kidney cancer patients
New York NY (SPX) Dec 12, 2014 -
Patients with operable kidney cancers were more likely to have a partial nephrectomy - the recommended treatment for localized tumors - when treated in hospitals that were early adopters of robotic surgery, according to a new study.
Researchers from NYU Langone Medical Center and elsewhere, publishing online in the journal Medical Care, report that by 2008, hospitals that had adopted rob ...
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Trimble UX5 drone allowed for commercial operations
Sunnyvale, Calif. (UPI) Dec 11, 2014 -
A California-headquartered company has been given the go-ahead to commercially operate its unmanned aerial system for a variety of industries.
Trimble, which provides aerial images for 2D and 3D deliverables - such as orthomosaic images, three-dimensional point clouds and contour maps - said permission came through an exemption from the Federal Aviation Administration.
The FAA ...
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Astronomers spot Pluto-size objects swarming about young sun
Cambridge, Mass. (UPI) Dec 11, 2014 -
Researchers at Harvard have come across images that suggest a series of Pluto-sized object swarming about the outer reaches of a solar system anchored by a young star.
The Astronomers have been using the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA), a radio telescope in Chile, to keep tabs on star HD 107146 and the protoplanetary disk that surrounds it. Recently, the scientists n ...
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Researchers detect possible signal from dark matter
Lausanne, Switzerland (SPX) Dec 14, 2014 -
Could there finally be tangible evidence for the existence of dark matter in the Universe? After sifting through reams of X-ray data, scientists in EPFL's Laboratory of Particle Physics and Cosmology (LPPC) and Leiden University believe they could have identified the signal of a particle of dark matter.
This substance, which up to now has been purely hypothetical, is run by none of the sta ...
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Building a Worldwide Genetic Library BRIC-by-BRIC
Greenbelt MD (SPX) Dec 14, 2014 -
A house is only as good as its foundation. Built solid and strong, the resulting structure should last for decades. NASA is laying a strong foundation of life science research with results from a recent investigation on the International Space Station called BRIC-19.
The Biological Research in Canisters (BRIC) series of investigations encapsulates samples inside rectangular containers abou ...
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Galactic Get-Together Has Impressive Light Display
Huntsville AL (SPX) Dec 14, 2014 -
At this time of year, there are lots of gatherings often decorated with festive lights. When galaxies get together, there is the chance of a spectacular light show as is the case with NGC 2207 and IC 2163
Located about 130 million light years from Earth, in the constellation of Canis Major, this pair of spiral galaxies has been caught in a grazing encounter. NGC 2207 and IC 2163 have hoste ...
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Uruguay's OpenSky Orders Gilat VSATs for ANTEL
Petah Tikva, Israel (SPX) Dec 14, 2014 -
Gilat Satellite Networks Ltd. reports that systems integrator OpenSky ordered an initial VSAT network for ANTEL, the state-owned telecommunications company of Uruguay.
ANTEL intends to use its new VSAT network to provide Internet access to schools as well as services for enterprise and defense-related entities across the country.
The order - for a fully-redundant SkyEdge II-c hub and ...
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Cosmic Impacts Might Help Synthesize Organic Compounds
Moffett Field CA (SPX) Dec 14, 2014 -
Bullets of ice shot at high speeds can deposit organic compounds on surfaces they strike. The new findings suggest that comets might, indeed, have helped deliver key ingredients of life to Earth and perhaps elsewhere, researchers say. The scientists detailed their findings in the journal Astrobiology.
Craters on the moon are evidence that the Inner Solar System was prone to giant impacts f ...
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Help U.S. Cope with Climate Change: Enter NASA-USGS Data App Challenge
Washington DC (SPX) Dec 14, 2014 -
NASA in partnership with the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) is offering more than $35,000 in prizes to citizen scientists for ideas that make use of climate data to address vulnerabilities faced by the United States in coping with climate change.
The Climate Resilience Data Challenge, conducted through the NASA Tournament Lab, a partnership with Harvard University hosted on Appirio/Topcoder ...
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Observing Solar System Worlds as if They Were Distant Exoplanets
Moffett Field CA (SPX) Dec 14, 2014 -
"It takes one to know one," as the old truism goes. When it comes to unraveling the mysteries of far-off exoplanets, the same holds true - one more reason why astronomers want to thoroughly understand the local planets right here in our Solar System.
A new scientific paper moves the ball forward in this regard by simulating how several rocky Solar System bodies would look if glimpsed at th ...
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