Facebook interfered with U.S. elections almost 40 times since 2008: Study

Megyn Kelly Notices Something About the Trump’s Trial No One Noticed

Fetterman Endorses Romney for President of Harvard

Biden to Restart Deportations... to Haiti

Over the last several months‚ the most distant human-made object has been in trouble: Voyager 1 was still in communication with Earth‚ but scientists were receiving nothing but binary gibberish. The situation looked extremely serious – so serious that might have spelled the end of the decade-long mission. But thanks to hard work‚ the team has now been able to understand the issue on-board and even find a fix.For the first time since November 14‚ Voyager 1 is transmitting science and engineering data that can be understood. At the center of the problem is the Flight Data System (FDS)‚ one of the probe’s onboard computers. This device packages all the data – from the onboard system or from the science systems – before transmitting them to Earth.In March‚ the team sent a poke to the spacecraft and got back another weird message. But that time‚ it contained everything in the FDS memory‚ all of its code as well as science and engineering data. From that‚ they were able to understand the problem and find a solution: There is a single faulty chip that stores a portion of the FDS memory and some of its code.We can’t simply repair a chip on a spacecraft that is 24 billion kilometers (15 billion miles) from Earth. So the team had to migrate the affected code elsewhere‚ and adjust the code so that the system would function and not end up using the damaged portion. Given its distance‚ it takes a long time to get anything to the probe and back. Voyager 1 is 22.5 light-hours away. They sent the first fix on April 18‚ and on April 20 got a reply – and it looks like it worked. They had a clear readout.This is extremely good news after months of challenging work and uncertainty. The team is at work to complete the full restructure of the FDS software. Once that is completed‚ Voyager 1 will once again restart its scientific mission collecting data from interstellar space.Voyager 1 and its twin spacecraft Voyager 2 are the only two human-made objects to cross the heliopause‚ the region where the solar wind and the interstellar wind are in equilibrium. For years now‚ they have been traveling in interstellar space sending data back to Earth. And hopefully‚ they will continue to do so for a long time.NASA’s planned budget for the coming years shows commitment to keeping the Voyager mission going well past its 50th anniversary in 2027.

An island made of gemstones may sound like the daydream of a rum-addled pirate‚ but if you sail around the Red Sea you might be lucky enough to find Zabargad Island. The small island is formed of a barren surface brimming in peridotite‚ a rock that's laced with beautiful peridot gemstones. Zabargad Island is located around 50 kilometers (31 miles) off the coast of southern Egypt in an area of the Red Sea called Foul Bay. Measuring just 4.5 square kilometers (1.74 square miles) in size‚ it’s the largest of the islands found in this cove – and undoubtedly the strangest.Zabargad also has a reputation for being a “desert island”. It holds very little fresh water and hosts almost no life‚ except for some breeding seabirds and the odd osprey. What it lacks in biodiversity‚ however‚ it makes up for in geology and history.Throughout ancient times‚ peridot was harvested from the island and used in the jewelry of the kings who ruled over the Mediterranean's ancient kingdoms. Some of the earliest evidence of mining on Zabargad can be traced back to the Ancient Egyptians over 3‚500 years ago.  It's not hard to see why carved peridot was sought after in ancient times.Image credit: Chip Clark/Smithsonian Institution National Museum of Natural History (Public Domain)The ancient Greeks called the island “Topazios&;quot; as they believed it was a source of topaz gemstones. However‚ scientists have since identified the rocky substance of the island's surface as peridotite‚ a coarse-grained igneous rock that's rich in olivine and pyroxene. Within the peridotite rock‚ collections of gem-quality olivine can form‚ appearing as a vibrant green gemstone known as peridot.The rock was forged in the bowels of our planet over 150 kilometers (93 miles) below the surface in Earth's upper mantle. Buried in the scorching hot mantle and subject to extreme pressure‚ peridotite was once viscous magma that has since chilled‚ solidified‚ and been brought to the surface. It popped up on Earth’s surface due to a deep geological rupture that occurred tens of millions of years ago‚ most likely around the Early Cretaceous. Clashing tectonic plates resulted in part of the mantle rising to the crust‚ forming a freak island made largely of peridotite. Peridotite comes in a few different forms‚ such as the rocky dunite (left) and large olivine crystals (right).Image credit: -/Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0)The island still sits on top of a hub of tectonic activity as it’s located near the Red Sea Rift‚ a mid-ocean ridge that marks the crossroads between the African Plate and the Arabian Plate. The bottom of the ridge also intersects with the East African Rift Valley‚ a colossally important feature in Earth’s ever-shifting puzzle pieces.Given how important Zabargad was to the ancient world‚ it’s remarkable that it’s relatively unknown in the modern world. Mining for peridotite continued on the island into the early 20th century‚ but it almost entirely ceased since the Egyptian government nationalized the country’s mines in 1958. Today‚ the biggest producer of peridotite is Norway – Egypt doesn’t even appear in the top 10.

Sometimes the differences between related species are just as impressive as the animals themselves. Take the bats‚ for instance. From the truly enormous hammerhead bat that slurps up fruits‚ to bats found doing the deed without penetration‚ the world's only flying mammals have enormous species breadth. In the rainforest of Honduras‚ for example‚ you’ll find a teeny tiny collection of Honduran white bats building their own tent. Where does the Honduran white bat live&;#63;The Honduran white bat has the scientific name Ectophylla alba and is listed by the IUCN Red List as Near Threatened. They have an average length of just 3.7 to 4.7 centimeters (1.5-1.9 inches) and weigh only around 6 grams (0.2 ounces) according to the Rainforest Alliance. They are found only in Central America in Honduras‚ Costa Rica‚ Nicaragua‚ and Panama.                                The Honduran white bat is a part of the family Phyllostomidae that contains 17 species‚ eight of which exclusively roost in tents made of leaves. To make a tent‚ the bats find suitable leaves – belonging to plants in the genus Heliconia – to alter‚ so they overhang to create the perfect home for a family of white fluffy bats to hang out and hide from predators. The bats roost in groups of two to 15 individuals‚ usually a mother and offspring as well as unrelated adults. They nibble the edges of the leaves so that they fall perfectly. The sunlight through the living leaves of these plants makes the bats appear green‚ further camouflaging them against predators. What does the Honduran white bat eat&;#63;As might be expected from their name‚ these tiny bats are fluffy and white – but they are not albinos. Instead‚ they have bright orange-yellow faces‚ legs‚ and wings. They are picky eaters and consume pretty much only figs from the Ficus colubrinae species. The fig peel contains a yellow carotenoid pigment called lutein‚ which is likely responsible for the yellow color‚ suggests Bat Conservation International. A diet of pretty much only figs gives these bats their distinct color.Image credit: Rob Jansen/Shutterstock.comA study from 2019 showed that males with better body condition had brighter yellow noses‚ suggesting that there is sexual dichromatism within this bat species. Unfortunately‚ given their very specialist diet and roost preferences‚ conservationists are worried that the species will suffer from habitat loss more acutely if their food and shelter sources are affected. 

Breathtaking prehistoric paintings have been discovered on the walls of caves across Europe‚ Africa and Australasia‚ yet the meanings and functions of these Stone-Age masterpieces remain a topic of fierce debate. Recently‚ a team of researchers proposed that some of the most iconic examples of rupestral art are in fact lunar calendars‚ marked out by the world’s earliest known writing system‚ although a new study has challenged these remarkable claims.Put forward in January 2023‚ the hypothesis focuses on European rock art from the Upper Paleolithic‚ most of which was created between 45‚000 and 12‚000 years ago. Noting that these designs typically feature animals accompanied by abstract marks like dots or vertical lines‚ the first team of researchers proposed that these symbols represent days or months in the lunar calendar.To back up this claim‚ they pointed out that the total number of notations never exceeds 13‚ which is the number of lunar months in a year. They therefore suggest that these sequences mark out the annual cycles of certain prey species‚ with a ‘Y’ shape denoting the month in which a specific animal typically gives birth.However‚ according to the authors of the new critique‚ there are in fact several examples of sequences of lines and dots that exceed 13‚ thus undermining the entire concept of the cave art lunar calendar. They go on to say that these cases were deliberately excluded from the original analysis so as to not wreck the whole idea.Pouring further skepticism on the theory‚ the authors point out that all of the species present in these paintings give birth in the first or second month of spring‚ and that ancient hunter-gatherers would hardly have needed to devise an artistic or semantic system just to keep track of this. “Why would Palaeolithic people need a calendar to record or predict the mundane fact that all their major herbivores give birth one or two months after the snow melts&;#63;” they ask rhetorically.Noting these substantial holes in the theory‚ the researchers strongly argue against the conclusion drawn by the earlier study - namely that the &;quot;Y&;quot; symbol present in many ancient paintings functioned as the earliest known written word. Specifically‚ the proponents of the hypothesis had stated that the letter represented a noun and carried the meaning &;quot;to give birth&;quot;.Compiling a lengthy list of arguments‚ the authors conclude that there is no solid evidence to suggest that these prehistoric artworks document lunar calendars or archaic writing systems. Seeking out alternative possibilities in ethnographic studies of more recent rock art‚ they suggest that abstract symbols like dots are more likely to represent such elements as “bees‚ seeds‚ stars‚ raindrops‚ huts‚ fires‚ tracks or blood.”The study is published in the Cambridge Archaeological Journal.

If there are alien civilizations out there close enough to pick up our stray signals‚ there's a non-zero chance that amongst the first transmissions‚ they could receive the opening of the 1936 Olympic Games‚ meaning our first contact with another species (in the unlikely event that they picked them up) could include a speech by Adolf Hitler.&;quot;This wasn't the first broadcast‚ of course‚&;quot; senior SETI astronomer Seth Shostak explained to RealClearScience. &;quot;But it was at a high frequency that might make it through the ionosphere.&;quot;In the film Contact‚ this ended up being the first message humanity received from an alien civilization. The beings sent the signal right back at Earth‚ not realizing the impact sending broadcasts of Adolf Hitler from space would have on the species they were attempting to initiate contact with. It's a bit like if you said hello to a passing stranger‚ and in response they accidentally regurgitated a chapter of Mein Kampf. Thankfully‚ we likely won't have to go through this scenario‚ with signal strengths too weak to be detected by alien civilizations.&;quot;It would have been very low power‚ and with a non-directional antenna‚&;quot; Shostak continued. &;quot;The idea that aliens might pick it up is pretty far-fetched.&;quot;But‚ of course‚ we could end up receiving far more terrifying first transmissions‚ as people have been discussing over on X (Twitter) and Reddit.          IFLScience is not responsible for content shared from external sites.At the moment‚ likely due to a recent TV series that will not be named‚ people mainly seem to be focusing on hearing warnings from other civilizations.              IFLScience is not responsible for content shared from external sites.According to some solutions to the Fermi Paradox – or the question of &;quot;where is everybody&;#63;&;quot; – the answer is that advanced civilizations are deliberately hiding themselves‚ out of fear of their own destruction. Another fear is of an ambiguous message; that aliens will give us few details‚ other than that they are on their way.        IFLScience is not responsible for content shared from external sites.While not enough information is considered terrifying‚ people also appear to worry about alien civilizations that are overfamiliar with Earth.     IFLScience is not responsible for content shared from external sites.There is one theory – known as the Zoo Hypothesis – along these lines. It proposes that aliens are aware of us but keep us isolated in a &;quot;zoo&;quot; to let us evolve and progress‚ just as humanity sets aside land as nature reserves and does not contact uncontacted tribes. According to this hypothesis‚ we could then be contacted when we have achieved sufficient technological and societal maturity‚ perhaps welcomed into a galactic community.Despite the fear that contacting an alien civilization will likely involve (even if they are friendly‚ humans have a pretty solid track record of fearing the unknown)‚ there may be one idea that is scarier. IFLScience is not responsible for content shared from external sites.Perhaps (though we'd bet against it) there are no aliens at all‚ and Earth contains all sentient life.

NASA’s STEREO A spacecraft has spotted a powerful eruption on the Sun ripping the tail off comet Pons-Brooks‚ although it quickly regrew. This is far from the first time STEREO A has spotted the Sun toying with a dirty snowball like this‚ but the images are particularly dramatic.Comet tails are wispy things caused when the solar wind pushes the gas and dust released by subliming ice away from the comet’s head. It doesn’t take a lot to disrupt them; you sometimes see comets with two tails‚ one of gas and one of dust‚ pointing in somewhat different directions with the gas tail particularly sensitive to conditions.When solar flares lift coronal mass ejections (CMEs) off the surface of the Sun‚ the particles expelled can affect comet’s tails‚ and the STEREO spacecraft‚ which track solar storms‚ have often picked this up. See‚ for example‚ this case in 2013 when two comets could be seen in the same field of view‚ one of them waggling its tail like a tadpole or a frozen but particularly determined sperm.A 2013 coronal mass ejection that succeeded in influencing two comets at once‚ as seen by STEREO.Image credit: Karl Battams/NASA/STEREO/CIOCThe STEREO spacecraft don’t just watch comet tails for fun. As the their website notes‚ “Using comet tails as tracers can provide valuable data about solar wind conditions near the Sun.”As their name suggests‚ the STEREO spacecraft were designed to provide twin views of solar activity‚ one with an orbit a few weeks shorter than the Earth‚ the other a little longer. The usually long baseline between them gave NASA unprecedented insight into solar activity for a decade but contact was lost with STEREO B in 2016‚ and even once recovered attempts to restore it failed.STEREO A has kept plugging along‚ even if the acronym is now inaccurate. Its full name is Solar Terrestrial Relations Observatory A‚ and it has continued to help astronomers understand how the Sun’s variability affects the Earth. As these images show‚ it does the same for other components of the Solar System.On April 12‚ STEREO A spotted a major CME lift off the Sun. This event was headed almost directly opposite to the Earth‚ so did not trigger any auroras here‚ although another one around the same time lit up skies over Tasmania. A week later‚ however‚ Spaceweather.com noticed the effect the event had had on Comet Pons-Brooks. In astronomical speak this was a “disconnection event” where the extra strength in the solar wind caused the tail to break away from the nucleus of the comet and go sailing off like Rohan’s flag in The Two Towers.         The effect was so strong in part because the CME was so powerful‚ but also because Pons-Brooks was 120 million kilometers (75 million miles) from the Sun‚ 80 percent of the Earth’s distance. Although from STEREO A’s perspective the comet looks like it is almost touching Jupiter‚ the giant planet was almost a billion kilometers (620 million miles) further away‚ and would have been barely affected.Pons-Brooks hasn’t really been living up to its nickname recently. It got the “Devil’s Comet” tag because on its way in it exploded several times (as it has done on previous visits) and some of these produced what looked like devil’s horns. Sadly‚ the explosions stopped just when they would have done the most to allow more people to see the comet. It’s particularly unfortunate none coincided with this CME – imagine an eruption sweeping away something so much brighter and more intricate.The good news is that‚ while comets are often compared to cats‚ when it comes to their tails they are more like skinks‚ which can lose their appendages and grow them back.