A study of white dwarf stars has some sorry news for the Earths future‚ suggesting that even if it is not consumed when the Sun is at its largest‚ it may one day be torn apart by the solar corpse.Despite the occasional megaflare‚ the Sun is a very stable star. It has to be‚ or we wouldnt be here but it wont be forever. Like all stars of its size‚ it will become a red giant‚ and then collapse to a white dwarf. Red giants put out so much more heat than their predecessor stars that even the beginnings of this phase will be enough to cook the Earth beyond habitability. Humanity had better have found another home by then‚ in the staggeringly unlikely chance were still around.While the Earth will not be able to support life when that occurs‚ there is still debate as to whether the planet itself will survive‚ perhaps being a memorial for exiles to look back upon. Thats a matter of some debate‚ but Mercury and Venus will definitely be swallowed. Now‚ however‚ new research suggests that even if the Earth makes it through‚ this will not be the end of the threats it faces. Instead‚ the white dwarf stage‚ sometimes called a dead star‚ comes with its own risks.Professor Boris Gaensicke of the University of Warwick‚ England‚ and Dr Amornrat Aungwerijwit of Naresuan University‚ Thailand‚ lead a team that has assembled observations of three white dwarfs over many years. They found changes in each stars brightness which they attribute to objects being devoured‚ releasing bursts of dust in the process.Although white dwarfs have less mass than their predecessor stars‚ having thrown some off‚ they are so much denser that the gravitational field in their vicinity is far more intense.";Previous research had shown that when asteroids‚ moons and planets get close to white dwarfs‚ the huge gravity of these stars rips these small planetary bodies into smaller and smaller pieces‚ said Aungwerijwit of in a statement.The process produces dust that obscures the stars temporarily. It also leads to a change in the composition of the white dwarfs outer layers‚ allowing us to determine the make-up of the objects consumed.The simple fact that we can detect the debris of asteroids‚ maybe moons or even planets whizzing around a white dwarf every couple of hours is quite mind-blowing‚ but our study shows that the behavior of these systems can evolve rapidly‚ in a matter of a few years‚ Gaensicke said. ";While we think we are on the right path in our studies‚ the fate of these systems is far more complex than we could have ever imagined.";In the case of the three target stars‚ one was steady‚ but apparently recovering from something catastrophic more than a decade ago. A second star was slowly brightening‚ but previous observations in 2015 revealed chaotic fluctuations. A third is the most mysterious‚ dimming every few months with changes by the minute during these periods. These long-term changes may be the result of the ongoing disruption of a planetesimal‚ or the collision between multiple fragments‚ both leading to a temporarily increased dust production‚ the authors write.These stars would have cleared out the areas around them during their red giant phase. Consequently‚ the objects currently being pulverized must have had more distant orbits‚ like those of Mars or the asteroid belt. Once the white dwarf stage had begun‚ something must have disrupted the unfortunate objects orbits‚ causing them to travel close enough to the dead star to suffer the effects of its gravity.Exactly what causes such disruptions is not clear‚ but the fact that each of these stars is either consuming something substantial right now‚ or has done so in recent years‚ suggests it is a common process. The white dwarfs in this study were far from a random sample. The authors propose a few percent of white dwarfs are disintegrating debris at any time‚ which presumably most do over longer timespans.If the Earth survives the red giant phase‚ it will make a much larger target than some measly asteroid‚ and therefore be harder to disrupt. On the other hand‚ at this point it would be the survivor with the innermost orbit‚ making its chances of evading the dusty fate dicey.The study is published in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society.

If we ask you to imagine a henge‚ we';d bet your mind instantly goes to the now-iconic Stonehenge in Wiltshire‚ UK. This prehistoric megalithic structure is‚ in the minds of many people‚ the quintessential example of a henge. Its even in the name‚ right? Well‚ not quite. Stonehenge isnt actually recognized as a true henge‚ despite giving its name to the classification. This raises a rather obvious question: what on Earth is a henge? Slippery definitionsThe word henge comes from the Old English word for hang. So Stonehenge was effectively called hanging stones‚ which presumably referred to the lintel stones placed across standing columns to form trilithons (three stones). The term was first applied by British Museum curator Thomas Kendrick who‚ in 1932‚ used it to define a site-type (though he did so tentatively). According to Kendrick‚ a henge was a circular or oval prehistoric monument that used ditches and banks of soil to enclose sacred sites. Entertainingly‚ this description itself precludes Stonehenge‚ as its main ditch is external to its main bank. It is therefore a proto-henge.Generally speaking‚ henges have causeways that give access to their interior. Sometimes there is only one of these entrance points (known as Class I henges)‚ but some henges have two (Class II)‚ or up to four (Class III) ways into the earthwork. Given that these ditches were shallow and located inside the raised banks‚ it is unlikely henges were used for defensive purposes.As noted above‚ a henge is defined by its earthwork structure rather than any particular feature at its center. As such‚ a henge does not always have stones arranged in its center. Sometimes there are other things there‚ such as timber posts‚ monoliths‚ pits‚ standing posts‚ coves‚ burials‚ central mounds‚ and stakeholes.Given that most henges are identified through fieldwork or aerial photography of crop marks‚ it is easy for them to be confused with other prehistoric monuments‚ such as ring cairns‚ circular enclosed cemeteries‚ barrows‚ enclosed settlements‚ Roman signal stations‚ or amphitheaters.The henge at Avebury is the largest in the country and includes its own stone circle.Image credit: Kevin Standage/Shutterstock.comIt is also worth noting that a circle of standing stones is not necessarily a henge either. These megalithic structures are far more common than henges and are found across the world.Okay‚ this sounds straightforward‚ but there are also henge sub-types. Firstly‚ there are hengiform monuments that are basically mini-henges with an internal diameter of 15-20 meters (49-66 feet) or less. Then there are the unhelpfully named henge enclosures that are much larger than regular henges (usually around 300 meters [980 feet] in diameter).As our knowledge develops‚ so too do the words we use to describe things. This is as true for archaeology as it is for any scientific subject. So today‚ the classification henge and its value for demarcating one type of ancient structure from another is very much debated within academic circles.This is because‚ over the years‚ the classification has been stretched to include unusual sites with features that do not match the original intention. As such‚ the description here is a simplified explanation of what makes a henge.Where did henges come from and who used them?So what exactly constitutes a henge is a bit of a messy subject. But surely‚ we know more about where they came from? Again‚ not necessarily so. These monuments are surprisingly difficult to date with precision. The earliest examples appear around 3000 BCE‚ but the larger ones were probably created later‚ around 2800 and 2200 BCE. Henges and other circles continued to be created through this period and into the Early Bronze Age. However‚ the larger sites had been abandoned by this point.There are older structures as well. Standing stones‚ which are even harder to date‚ could originate in the mid-Neolithic era there are postholes near Stonehenge that may date back to 8000 BCE. Things get even murkier when we start to explore the reasons for their construction. To be sure‚ there is a ton of speculation‚ inaccuracy‚ and fantasy concerning these locations. Contrary to what many New Age groups maintain‚ there is no evidence that these sites had anything to do with the historical figures known as the Druids. They also had nothing to do with Stonehenge‚ despite the enthusiasm for the monument among modern neo-Druidic practitioners.Despite these anachronistic and fabulous claims‚ it is likely that henges were ceremonial spaces. It is possible the earthwork arrangements marked out specific areas for specific people or for the spirits of the dead. They may have also been the site of ritual practices‚ such as dancing‚ drinking‚ feasting‚ sacrifices‚ and funerary rites. However‚ again‚ there is no evidence that sacrifices included humans as offerings‚ unlike at the German Woodhenge.Other interpretations suggest they may have served judiciary purposes‚ or been sites of trade or astronomical observation.Clearly‚ there is much we do not know about these sites‚ but that does not mean we can just inject wild unfounded speculation that has little archaeological evidence to support it.Examples of some hengesIt would be impractical to try to examine all the henges scattered across the British Isles. So‚ here is a selection of some examples. One of the greatest examples of a henge is at Avebury‚ Wiltshire. The site was constructed during the Neolithic period and was altered throughout this time. The site is massive‚ encircling an area that also includes part of Avebury village itself. The henge encloses the largest stone circle in Britain‚ which originally held around 100 stones. These stones themselves were enclosed by two smaller stone circles.The standing stone at the center of the Mayburgh Henge‚ Cumbria‚ England.Image credit: Jacqueline Glynn/Shutterstock.comAnother impressive example of a henge‚ albeit less grand than the one at Avebury‚ is the one at Mayburgh‚ Cumbria. Situated close to the motorway‚ this prehistoric monument has a central area of around 100 meters (328 feet) in diameter and is surrounded by a large bank made up of river pebbles. Some parts of this bank are nearly 3 meters (9.8 feet) tall.As noted above‚ the features that make a henge a henge are flexible. As such‚ Mayburgh henge does not include a surrounding ditch. However‚ it does include a large single standing stone at its centre.Finally‚ there are the stunning structures of the Ring of Brodgar‚ in Orkney‚ Scotland. This site includes a henge and stone circle and is part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site known as the Heart of Neolithic Orkney.It is the only major henge with a stone circle in Britain that is almost perfectly round. Originally‚ there were about 60 stones at this site‚ but today there are only 36. There are also 13 prehistoric burial mounds located at the site.As mentioned above‚ there are many other henges across Britain and Ireland that were built during the same period. We may not know exactly what they were created for‚ but as more examples continue to appear‚ we are certainly learning more about these impressive if not confusing ancient monuments.

There are so many awesome things about math‚ but one of the most reassuring is its certainty. If something can be proven not always a given‚ we grant you then its proven forever; no going back a few centuries later and realizing you were wrong all along because nipples exist.Take pi‚ for example. Its famously irrational‚ and we arent just saying that because weve calculated 100 trillion digits of it so far and the end is still nowhere in sight. The fact and it is a fact that the constant cant be written as a fraction of two whole numbers has been known for at least some 360 years at this point: the first known proof is credited to Johann Heinrich Lambert in 1761‚ and at least five or six others have been developed since.That didnt seem to matter‚ though‚ to 19th-century physician and amateur mathematician emphasis on the amateur‚ there Edward J Goodwin. It was he who‚ in 1894‚ wrote a paper that claimed to prove that pi was rational and who‚ three years later‚ tried to make that result the law of the land.The Indiana Pi BillAnd so‚ in 1897‚ House Bill No. 246 was brought before the Indiana State Legislature.Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Indiana: It has been found that a circular area is to the square on a line equal to the quadrant of the circumference‚ as the area of an equilateral rectangle is to the square on one side. The diameter employed as the linear unit according to the present rule in computing the circle';s area is entirely wrong‚ as it represents the circle';s area one and one-fifth times the area of a square whose perimeter is equal to the circumference of the circle. This is because one fifth of the diameter fails to be represented four times in the circle';s circumference. For example: if we multiply the perimeter of a square by one-fourth of any line one-fifth greater than one side‚ we can in like manner make the square';s area to appear one-fifth greater than the fact‚ as is done by taking the diameter for the linear unit instead of the quadrant of the circle';s circumference.It goes on like this for a while it is‚ youll be relieved (though not surprised) to hear‚ fucking nonsense from start to finish: as Petr Beckmann noted in his A History of Pi‚ it not only contradict[s] elementary geometry‚ but also appear[s] to contradict [itself] before concluding the proposed act with a few spurious boasts about Goodwins mathematical credentials. Had it passed‚ the value of pi would in Indiana‚ at least have been legally defined as a rational number.And the craziest thing of all? It might have actually gotten through had it not been for the chance intervention of a math professor who knew better.Squaring the circleIt may have gone down in history as the Indiana Pi Bill‚ but the text of the proposed law actually never mentions the constant in question. Goodwins claim was slightly more roundabout than that: he purported to have found a method of squaring the circle.But what does that mean‚ exactly? Well‚ technically‚ squaring the circle is an Ancient Greek problem‚ but really‚ it goes back to the very dawn of mathematics back when all we had going for us as a species was a geometry set and a give em hell attitude. The question is this: given a circle of a particular area‚ how do you draw a square with the exact same area?It might not sound too difficult when set out like that‚ and indeed‚ the Greeks were pretty good at this squaring process when it came to other shapes. As early as 300 BCE‚ Euclid had already set out an algorithm for converting a polygon with any number of sides into a square with the same area perhaps‚ therefore‚ squaring a circle would be a natural development of that process. After all‚ as at least one ancient philosopher argued‚ what is a circle if not the ultimate limit of a series of n-sided regular convex polygons?The more sides you add‚ the closer you get to a circle. But will you ever get there?Image Credit: Braindrain0000‚ PUblic Domain‚ via Wikimedia CommonsSadly for the ancients‚ though‚ squaring the circle is impossible. How can we be sure? Well‚ it turns out that finding a way to solve this problem is equivalent to proving that pi is rational that‚ if you were wondering why we havent mentioned it yet‚ is where the constant in question comes into all of this. You can run through it yourself pretty easily‚ actually: the area of a square of side length s is s2; the area of a circle of radius r is r2; for the two to be equal‚ therefore‚ would have to be rational.You can';t draw this with a ruler and compass!Image Credit: Mabit1‚ CC BY-SA 4.0‚ via Wikimedia CommonsBut pi isnt just not rational‚ its transcendental kind of like the veganism to irrationalitys vegetarianism. It would take a couple of millennia for that to be proven once and for all it was eventually closed as a problem by Ferdinand von Lindemann in 1882 but by the time of Goodwins quote-unquote result‚ it was a well-established fact.So what was Goodwin up to?Goodwins piPossibly the weirdest thing of all about the ";Indiana Pi Bill"; is that‚ despite being infamous as the bill that tried to legislate a rational value for pi‚ nobody has ever managed to figure out what that value was meant to be.There are some clues: towards the end of the second of three‚ the bill claims that the ratio of the diameter and circumference is as five-fourths to four‚ which is equivalent to saying that pi equals 3.2. Thats not bad‚ as approximations to pi go that is to say‚ its quite a bit less accurate than the Babylonians managed in the 17th century BCE‚ but its way better than the value implied in section one of the bill‚ which at 9.2376 was probably [] the biggest overestimate of in the history of mathematics‚ Beckmann noted.In fact‚ had the bill passed‚ Goodwins own work would have been outlawed in the state. Not that he ever seems to have done anything so passe as to use the correct irrational value of the constant‚ but a perusal of his various writings turns up at least nine different values of pi.What was he thinking? Well‚ as pointed out by Gizmodo‚ Goodwin was an interesting character. He didnt rely on frivolous things like evidence or logic to support his theorems he had something better. He knew the true value of pi‚ he explained in an 1897 interview with The Indianapolis Sun‚ because God had revealed it to him in March 1888.Presumably‚ precisely which of the many values God pinpointed it as has been lost to time.An unlikely heroWhen the Indiana Pi Bill hit the state assembly‚ nobody was quite sure what to make of it. Thats not totally surprising‚ since the bill is essentially 50 percent jargon and 50 percent nonsense but unfortunately‚ that seems to have been enough to win over some of the local lawmakers. After being bounced from the House Committee on Canals no‚ we dont know why either to the Committee on Education‚ the bill was passed unanimously.Indiana was one step closer to having pi legally defined as a rational number discovered by a man who claimed God had told him the value. It just had to pass the State Senate which is when the magnificently named Clarence Abiathar Waldo stepped in.There was no particular reason Waldo should have known about the Pi Bill he was only in the statehouse that day to lobby for a bigger budget for Purdue University‚ where he taught math. Instead‚ he found himself witnessing the State Assembly debating whether to redefine pi by statute.Alarmed‚ he took it upon himself to coach his words the senators on the facts of‚ you know‚ basic geometry. Thanks to his intervention‚ when the bill finally reached the Senate floor‚ it was met with derision.The Senators made bad puns about it‚ ridiculed it and laughed over it‚ reported Will E Edington of DePauw University some years later. The fun lasted half an hour.In the end‚ the Indiana Pi Bill got exactly the respect it deserved: It was indefinitely postponed‚ as not being a ";subject for legislation‚ Edington confirmed.Senator Hubbell characterized the bill as utter folly‚ he wrote. The Senate might as well try to legislate water to run uphill as to establish mathematical truth by law.

The northern white rhino faces a biological puzzle: with just two infertile females left‚ how can the species survive? Scientists might just have the answer‚ as they say the cells of dead individuals could bolster the northern white rhino gene pool‚ giving rise not just to more animals‚ but to a genetically robust population.While the northern white rhino (Ceratotherium simum cottoni) females are infertile‚ its hoped a surrogate such as the closely related southern white rhino (C. simum simum) could step in to carry their embryos. As for creating those? That all comes down to a bit of genetic tinkering.Banked skin cells (fibroblast cell lines) can be reprogrammed into induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs)‚ which have the ability to differentiate into any cell type‚ explained Dr Aryn P Wilder‚ one of a team of conservation scientists working on the project at San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance‚ to IFLScience. From there‚ the iPSCs can be directed to differentiate into primordial germ cells that give rise to sperm and eggs.Weve so far successfully created primordial germ cells in this way for species spanning mice‚ rats‚ rabbits‚ horses‚ monkeys‚ and even humans‚ with the process being slightly different each time. However‚ thus far‚ the only animal weve successfully created a fully mature and ready-to-go egg or sperm cell for is mice.One hurdle is that the primordial germ cells require support cells for growth and maturation‚ continued Wilder. For endangered species like the northern white rhino‚ we will need to generate these support cells from the iPSCs.By using two approaches to create northern white rhino embryos‚ it';s hoped we can secure genetic diversity for future generations.Image credit: San Diego Zoo Wildlife AllianceThe team still have some obstacles to overcome‚ including optimizing the culture conditions‚ and experimenting with the support cells Wilder mentioned. The process is possible thanks to the genetically rich remains of 12 deceased northern white rhinos stored in the Frozen Zoo‚ one of several cryoconservation repositories across the planet that aim to preserve species'; genetic diversity by banking biological material.This isnt even the first time frozen remains have contributed to the creation of northern white rhino embryos. Using cryopreserved semen‚ scientists have already created northern white rhino embryos for transfer into a southern white rhino surrogate. However‚ this method alone wouldnt yield enough genetic diversity to keep future generations healthy. This is why its hoped that further embryos generated through dead skin cells could top up the population‚ painting a potentially positive future for the northern white rhino.Our models suggest that a population restored from more [northern white rhino] individuals‚ and with repeated reintroduction of those individuals over time‚ is less likely to suffer inbreeding depression and low fitness than a population restored from a limited founder pool‚ said Wilder. For these reasons‚ we think that focusing on using these viable cell lines for restoration is a promising strategy for restoring a healthy [northern white rhino] population.Recovering species from the brink is a topic thats becoming increasingly relevant in modern times‚ as the northern white rhino is far from alone in teetering on the verge of extinction. Just recently‚ the de-extinction company Colossal Bioscience teamed up with Re:wild to work on technological advancements that could prevent endangered species from being wiped out‚ demonstrating how leaps forward such as this one are of vital importance to the planets most threatened wildlife.

Sometimes we get a glimpse of extremely rare animals that cant fail to delight. From underwater cuties like the dumbo octopus to a rare pink elephant calf in South Africa‚ catching a glimpse of something that special brings an extra sense of joy. That is exactly what happened to the Kanyirninpa Jukurrpa (KJ) Martu rangers in Australia as they caught sight of a glorious golden marsupial mole.KJ Martu Rangers are the Traditional Custodians of a vast area in the Western Desert of the Pilbara in Australia. Martu Country is an arid ecosystem that covers 13.6 million hectares across northwestern Australia.This is the second sighting of an elusive Kakarratul (marsupial mole) in just six months‚ write the KJ Martu Rangers on their Facebook page. Kakarratul (Notoryctes caurinus) live in sand dunes and spend almost their entire lives underground‚ only rarely venturing up to the surface. These tiny critters only measure 12-16 centimeters (4.7 -6.3 inches).These palm-sized little moles effectively swim through the sand and don';t make any empty tunnels behind them instead‚ they use their nose and forehead as a ram to burrow their way through. These moles feed on insects that they find within the sand‚ mostly ants and beetle larvae‚ writes the IUCN.While the moles are known to be marsupials and specimens have shown up in museum collections‚ almost nothing is known about their reproductive habits or lifespan because they are so elusive.The rangers combined their pujiman (traditional) knowledge with modern conservation techniques to look after some of the most threatened species in this area‚ including the marsupial mole and the night parrot‚ thenorthern quoll‚ and the Pilbara leaf-nosed bat.The KJ Martu Rangers protect the ecosystem of the Western Desert of the Pilbara.Image Courtesy of the Kanyirninpa Jukurrpa (KJ) Martu Rangers.These Australia Kakarratul might have luscious blond locks and resemble chicken nuggets wearing Legolas wigs‚ but they are not the only golden moles out there. In an incredible feat of convergent evolution‚ South Africa is also home to a chicken nugget-shaped mole that also swims through the sand dunes. The De Wintons golden mole was rediscovered late last year after not being seen for 80 years.

NASA engineers have discovered the source of Voyager 1';s mysterious glitch‚ which left it sending back a repeating pattern of 1s and 0s rather than useful data.Voyager 1 has traveled further than any human-made object‚ crossing the heliopause and heading into interstellar space. While doing this‚ it has continued to send back useful data to Earth‚ helping us learn about the space between stars outside of our own Solar System. All this while working with just 69.63 kilobytes of memory‚ and running partly on code originally written in the archaic computer language Fortran 5.";The button you press to open the door of your car‚ that has more compute power than the Voyager spacecrafts do‚"; Voyager project manager Suzanne Dodd explained to NPR. ";It';s remarkable that they keep flying‚ and that they';ve flown for 46-plus years.";With such a mission‚ you';d expect the occasional challenge‚ even before you take into account the high radiation environment it is heading through.In September 2023‚ an issue arose with the data coming back from Voyager 1. Normally transmitted in binary code‚ or a series of 0s and 1s representing words‚ the probe was instead sending only alternating 1s and 0s. Effectively‚ the call between the spacecraft and the Earth was still connected‚ but Voyagers ';voice'; was replaced with a monotonous dial tone‚ the NASA Voyager engineering team explained to IFLScience in February.Because of this issue‚ scientists are not receiving any science data or updates about the probes health and status‚ including information that might reveal the source of the problem. Through various indirect means‚ the team has concluded that the issue is most likely with the Flight Data System [FDS]‚ one of the probes onboard computers. The team is working hard to resolve the issue‚ but this process may take months.In March‚ NASA sent a ";poke"; command to Voyager 1‚ prompting it to send back a readout of the FDS memory‚ as well as other variables in the software. From this‚ they found that around 3 percent of its memory has become corrupted‚ likely the result of a single chip in the probe ceasing to function.";Engineers cant determine with certainty what caused the issue‚"; NASA explained in a statement. ";Two possibilities are that the chip could have been hit by an energetic particle from space or that it simply may have worn out after 46 years.";The team is up against time pressure‚ as the plutonium-powered system that powers the craft is running out of juice. In a few years‚ they may have to shut down science instruments one by one to keep it chugging along.However‚ the team is optimistic that they will be able to fix the issue in the coming weeks and months‚ allowing the probe to send back useful science data once more.

The ancient Egyptians are famous for their reverence of celestial bodies‚ yet the role that the Milky Way played in their cosmology remains poorly understood by Egyptologists. However‚ according to a new analysis‚ the band of stars that streaks across the sky may have had a number of mythological functions‚ acting as a path to the underworld while also guiding birds along their annual migration route.Penned by astrophysicist Dr Or Graur from the University of Portsmouth‚ the new study examined the idea that the Milky Way was represented by the sky goddess Nut‚ who is often depicted as a star-studded woman arching over the Earth in order to protect it from the menacing waters of the abyss‚ known as Nun. According to the Book of Nut‚ also known as The Fundamentals of the Course of the Stars‚ the sky womans primary job was to give birth to the Sun each morning‚ before swallowing it in the evening.To help her achieve this task‚ Nut is perpetually oriented with her rear in the east and her head in the west. The Milky Way‚ however‚ changes its position in the sky over the course of the year‚ running from east to west in the summer months and north to south in the winter.This discrepancy has cast doubt over the idea that Nut represents the galaxy. However‚ after consulting numerous funerary papyri found in Ancient Egyptian tombs‚ Graur identified several depictions of Nut with her arms outstretched at 45 degrees to her body.Such a pose enables the sky goddess to cover the various alignments of the Milky Way as the year progresses‚ thus suggesting that she may well have been the embodiment of our galaxy after all. For instance‚ Graur explains that in the winter‚ the Milky Way delineates Nuts arms‚ while during the summer months‚ it sketches out her torso (or backbone).Seeking further assurances for Nuts association with the Milky Way‚ the study author looked for similarities between her role in Ancient Egyptian mythology and other representations of the star gods in cultures around the world. For instance‚ according to one Egyptian Coffin Text‚ Nut is described as a ladder by which the souls of the dead are able to ascend to the afterlife‚ echoing the role of the Milky Way in Native American mythology.Many Native American peoples across North America view the Milky Way as a road along which the spirits of the dead travel to the afterlife‚ writes Graur. The Lakota name for the Milky Way is Wani Thachku‚ the Spirits Road‚ which the Lakota follow to heaven when they die.Similarly‚ he explains that The dead of the Yucatec Maya travel along the Milky Way at night‚ with the dark band of the Milky Ways Great Rift envisioned as a highway leading straight to the underworld.Yet another passage from the Book of Nut describes how birds appear from the goddesses'; northern end each winter as they migrate south from Europe to Africa. In isolation‚ this does little to prove that Nut represents the Milky Way‚ although such a link becomes clearer when one considers the associations between the band of stars and bird migration in other Indigenous cultures.This link still exists today in the name given to the Galaxy by Finland‚ Estonia‚ and several Baltic states: Birds Path (e.g.‚ Linnunrata in Finnish or Pauki Takas in Lithuanian)‚ writes Graur.Overall‚ Graurs findings shine a light on the mystery of Nut and her relationship with the Milky Way‚ indicating that different parts of her body are capable of representing the stars at different times of year. My study also shows that Nuts role in the transition of the deceased to the afterlife and her connection to the annual bird migration are consistent with how other cultures understand the Milky Way‚ he explained in a statement.The study has been published in the Journal of Astronomical History and Heritage.

Antarctica is an ice-capped continent with blistering cold temperatures‚ but it also harbors red-hot volcanic activity.There are a dozen volcanoes in Antarctica‚ the majority of which are located in West Antarctica and Marie Byrd Land. One study in 2017 identified 138 volcanoes in this part of the continent alone. While most of these are dormant‚ eight or nine of the Antarctic volcanoes are regarded as active.Just three volcanoes have even been seen erupting in recent history‚ although it was a different story in the distant past. Recent research gathered ice cores from Antarctica that suggested the continent was wracked by gigantic volcanic eruptions during the last ice age‚ many of which were larger than any eruption in modern history.One of the most ferocious volcanoes on the continent is Mount Erebus‚ the tallest active volcano in Antarctica with a summit elevation of 3‚794 meters (12‚448 feet) and the southernmost active volcano on Earth.Named after the personification of darkness in Greek mythology‚ it';s said Mount Erebus was erupting when Captain Sir James Clark Ross first set eyes upon it in 1841. It';s located alongside two other volcanoes on Ross Island‚ which was named after the aforementioned British explorer.If you look closely at satellite images of this geological giant‚ you';ll notice slight hints of red in its summit crater. Remarkably‚ this is a searingly hot lava lake that';s been bubbling since at least 1972.The volcano regularly pumps out plumes of gas and steam. In past bouts of volcanic activity‚ it has been known to eject boulders of partially molten rock known as volcanic bombs.A satellite image of Mount Erebus breaking through the clouds of Antarctica on November 25‚ 2023Image credit: Landsat 9 OLI-2/USGSStrangest of all‚ scientists have found that its gusts of gas are loaded with tiny crystals of metallic gold‚ no larger than 20 micrometers. Over the course of a single day‚ it';s estimated that the volcano spews out around 80 grams of gold that';s worth around $75.The gold dust traves far and wide. Antarctic researchers have detected traces of the gold in ambient air up to 1‚000 kilometers (621 miles) from the volcano.The volcano is perhaps most notorious‚ however‚ for the Mount Erebus disaster. On November 28‚ 1979‚ Air New Zealand Flight 901 flew head-on into the side of the volcano‚ killing all 257 people onboard.The flight was part of an Air New Zealand program that let passengers travel on an 11-hour sightseeing flight from Auckland to Antarctica and then back to New Zealand.That fateful day in November 1979 was cloudy‚ but the aerial tour went ahead regardless. As reported by the BBC‚ pilot Captain Jim Collins attempted to descend the plane to about 610 meters (2‚000 feet) by spiraling downwards in two large loops. During the maneuver‚ just before 1 pm‚ the plane smashed into the side of Mount Erebus and killed everyone on board‚ likely within an instant.At the wreck site‚ rescue crews discovered some of the passengers cameras that still contained intact film. Their photos‚ some taken seconds before the impact‚ showed there was decent visibility at the time of the crash and the plane was well below the clouds‚ ruling out the possibility that the volcano was obscured by thick clouds.Instead‚ its thought that a whiteout was responsible for the crash. The ice-covered volcano was effectively made invisible by flat light‚ which made it impossible to see against the backdrop of ice-caked ground and overcast skies. The pilot was unable to gauge any sense of distance and assumed the whiteout seen in front of the cockpit was ice and snow in the landscape below‚ not the face of a mountain.After several costly lawsuits and heaps of controversy‚ Air New Zealand discontinued its sightseeing flyovers of Antarctica.

An experimental drone has blasted off on its near-supersonic speed test flight‚ zipping through the sky at speeds of Mach 0.9 that';s 1‚111 kilometers (690 miles) per hour.This is just the beginning of things‚ though. Venus Aerospace‚ the company that developed the drone‚ ultimately wants to achieve speeds of Mach 9‚ nine times the speed of sound.On February 24‚ the 2.4-meter (8-foot) long missile-shaped drone was lifted to an altitude of 3‚657 meters (12‚000 feet) onboard an aircraft. Upon release‚ the drone fired up its hydrogen peroxide monopropellant engine at 80 percent thrust so as not to exceed Mach 1‚ then traveled for 16 kilometers (10 miles).Using an air-launched platform and a rocket-with-wing configuration allows us to cheaply and quickly get to the minimum viable test of our RDRE as a hypersonic engine. The team executed with professionalism and has a wealth of data to anchor and tweak for the next flight‚ Andrew Duggleby‚ the CTO &;amp; Co-Founder of Venus Aerospace‚ said in a statement.Based in Houston‚ Texas‚ Venus Aerospace is a startup aerospace company that hopes to pave the way toward hypersonic flight (speeds of Mach 5 and above).The latest test flight was one small part of testing for their Rotating Detonation Rocket Engine (RDRE)‚ which is being developed in partnership with DARPA (Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency)‚ the US State Departments research agency thats behind all kinds of weird and wonderful technologies.Up next is RDRE flight‚ and ultimately hypersonic flight‚ proving that the RDRE is the engine that unlocks the hypersonic economy‚ explained Sarah Sassie Duggleby‚ CEO &;amp; Co-Founder of the company.As mentioned‚ their end goal is to make a vehicle that can cruise at Mach 9 speed‚ around 11‚000 kilometers (6‚835 miles) per hour.This is an unbelievably fast speed. To date‚ the speediest airplane ever flown by a human is the NASA/USAF X-15. In 1967‚ pilot Pete Knight used this jet to reach an eye-watering speed of Mach 6.7‚ around 7‚274 kilometers (4‚520 miles) per hour.Concorde‚ the ill-fated supersonic commercial plane that flew paid passengers until 2003‚ traveled at a comparatively sluggish Mach 2‚ around 2‚179 kilometres (1‚354 miles) per hour.Crazier still‚ Venus Aerospace wants to put passengers on these Mach 9 flights. Theres still a huge amount of work before this pipe dream becomes reality‚ but Venus Aerospace believes its making solid progress.This is how you do hard things: one bite at a time‚ said Sarah Duggleby.

Male blue whales have been witnessed battling for the chance to mate with a female off the coast of Australia in arguably the most formidable combat on Earth.When male whales sense a female is fertile‚ they start to follow her. In many whale species‚ the female leads the males on a dance. The males use their bulk against each other to try and gain an advantage and be her escort. Collectively‚ all involved are known as a racing group.While such events have been witnessed many times for humpbacks‚ among others‚ blue whales are both rarer and more inclined to stay away from humans. Consequently‚ sightings of these events in the largest animals on Earth are exceptionally rare‚ but Dr Peter Gill of Blue Whale Study is one of the few to have seen it.In late March‚ Gill was surveying the waters off eastern South Australia and witnessed the classic signs of a racing group.The frequent changes of pace and direction were clearly dictated by the female‚ and the males did their best to stay close to her‚ while trying to outpace and physically displace each other‚ Gill wrote on Blue Whale Studys Facebook page. It was a spectacular display of massive power and grace‚ one of the great sights in nature.Just as the ground shakes when elephants make love‚ Gill told the ABC the race could be dangerous for anyone in the vicinity‚ such as a boat that unwisely ventured into the whales path. ";You';ve got three of these massive animals just engaged in this full-on combat between the two chasing males‚"; he said. ";They';re shouldering each other aside and hitting each other with their tails a bit.";The female whale gets some clear space‚ as the males were too focused on fighting each other to stay with her.Image courtesy of Blue Whale Study/Dr Peter GillGill could not definitely confirm the sex of the whales he was watching from that height‚ but his observations closely match those of a Canadian team who were able to get biopsies.Gill told IFLScience‚ Humpbacks take it to extremes‚ with seven or eight males in a racing group competing to be the escort‚ and southern right whales also have larger parties. However‚ in the rare cases blue whale racing groups have been reported‚ only two males have ever been involved. Blue whales are still slowly recovering from their decimation [by whaling] Gill said. We dont know what their social ecology was like before whaling really devastated them. Consequently‚ we cant tell if having only two suitors was how it was always done.Despite the excitement‚ Gill was alarmed to see the female looked very underweight‚ although the males looked healthy. He told IFLScience that since 2007 increasing numbers of skinny whales have been spotted among the blue whale population. We dont know if this is related to climate change or not‚ he added.The situation is unlikely to improve this year. The Australian blue whale population spends summer and autumn feeding off the southern coast where a major upwelling makes nutrients abundant at these times‚ usually leading to an explosion of krill. Unlike humpbacks‚ which get most of their food in one season before relying on their blubber to get them through the lean months‚ the blue whales cant fast as long. Instead‚ they migrate to Indonesia where there breeding grounds are also rich in food.This year the upwelling was particularly strong‚ Gill told IFLScience‚ but it brought very little krill‚ for reasons colleagues are still trying to work out. This follows a disturbingly late southward migration last year that may have been associated with reduced food in Indonesian waters‚ although Gill said the connection is still unconfirmed.Its been 21 years since Gill previously spotted blue whales racing off Australia. Aside from the Canadian encounter‚ the event has been reported off California since‚ but remains exceptionally rare.The Blue Whale Studyis a small non-profit that is contracted by other groups to search for whales of all species in the region. This flight was funded by Save Our Marine Life.