August 13, 2022
Science

Repeating rapid radio eruptions from space is mysterious. This one is even weirder

Phathby Phath

We are driven to decide if “the truth is out there.” If we only had all the pieces, they could fit together and form the bridge to a greater understanding.

The team will gather evidence and analyze data for unexplained events in the sky from a scientific perspective to determine if they are natural or require another explanation. The nine-month study will start in the autumn, and the findings will be shared with the public.

“I’ve spent most of my career as a cosmologist. I can tell you we do not know what makes up 95% of the universe,” said astrophysicist David Spergel, who will lead the team.

To win you over, here are some other unusual things we learned this week.

Across the universe

Mysterious fast radio eruptions have long fascinated astronomers because they do not understand what causes the bright, millisecond flashes in space.

Now a pulsating eruption of radio waves has been detected in a galaxy about 3 billion light-years away – and it’s even weirder than the others.

The object of the sky emitted ever weaker radio waves between the repeated eruptions. There is only one other rapid radio eruption known to do this, which causes astronomers to ask if there is more than one type of these unexplained phenomena.

Breakthroughs

It’s a living thing.

For the first time ever, scientists have learned how to grow human-like skin on a robot finger.

This progress is a step closer to giving robots the look and touch of living creatures, according to the researchers.

The same cells that act as the building blocks for human skin were used in the experiments. The human-like skin was even able to repel water.

Researchers are interested in adding a vascular system that can help the skin maintain itself, grow nails and even sweat. Having human-like hands can one day enable robots to help us with a surprising variety of tasks.

Wonderful creatures

Fernanda now lives at the Fausto Llerena Giant Tortoise Breeding Center on the island of Santa Cruz in Ecuador's Galapagos National Park.

Meet Fernanda. She is in a way a big deal in the Galapagos Islands, and we do not blame you if you sing a version of ABBA’s “Fernando” in her honor.

The lone little female turtle was found on the island of Fernandina in the Galapagos archipelago in 2019. Her discovery shocked scientists because they thought Fernandina turtles were extinct, especially given the island’s very active volcano.

A new genetic study revealed that Fernanda is actually a native species on her island, especially compared to DNA from a male turtle sample collected from the island in 1906.

And Fernanda may not be the last of her kind. Recent evidence suggests that there are more like her on the island – but any future expeditions, and the turtles themselves, face formidable volcanic challenges.

Other worlds

The Ingenuity helicopter is fighting a hazy winter shadow on Mars.

The arrival of cyclical dust storms caused the NASA team to lose contact with Ingenuity for two days in May. The little hacker now encounters icy cold nights without a heater and has less solar energy due to lack of sunlight. But the helicopter team has a plan that can help Ingenuity survive and continue flying high on Mars.
Reports are that the Perseverance rover has adopted a pet stone in the meantime (and we’m not kidding).
Meanwhile, NASA’s DAVINCI spacecraft will encounter opposing conditions as it orbits and then attempts to land on the hellish surface of Venus in 2031, sinking through enormous pressures and scorching temperatures to capture never-before-seen images of the planet.

Dino-midd!

This illustration depicts the fearsome Isle of Wight spinosauride as it may have appeared in life.
Old bones recently excavated on the Isle of Wight once belonged to one of Europe’s largest predators. The Spinosauride, a two-legged dinosaur with the face of a crocodile, was larger than a two-story bus.

It is possible that the bones, from an animal that lived 125 million years ago, belonged to a newly discovered species instead. But researchers need more information to make that decision.

Thanks to a number of fossils recovered from the island, the Isle of Wight is known as Britain’s dinosaur capital. And if you’ve eager for more dinosaurs, “Jurassic World: Dominion” our released this week.

Discoveries

Dive into these stories:

– The giant golden mirror of the James Webb Space Telescope was destroyed by a micrometeoroid. Don’t worry: The Observatory is still preparing to share its first high-resolution color images on July 12.
– Abu Dhabi is full of ancient wonders. Explore some of the treasures of the Arabian desert that tell the story of the Emirati people’s connection to both land and sea.
– We promise that this is not a Dr. Seuss riddle, even if it sounds like one. A California court has ruled that bees can legally be considered fish under specific circumstances, especially to protect them.
Do you like what you have read? Oh, but there’s more. sign up here to receive in your inbox the next issue of Wonder Theory, brought to you by CNN Space and Science writer Ashley Stricklandwho find wonder in planets outside our solar system and discoveries from the ancient world.

Phath

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