Tag: science
A star has gone supernova and astronomers get to see it from the very beginning, and even earlier!
A star has gone supernova and astronomers get to see it from the very beginning, and even earlier!
The star had erupted several times before but had not produced a real supernova explosion. On September 26 it finally did so. Moreover, astronomers have images of the star prior to any eruption, information that until recently was not available for any supernovae.
A star has gone supernova and astronomers get to see it from the very beginning, and even earlier!
The star had erupted several times before but had not produced a real supernova explosion. On September 26 it finally did so. Moreover, astronomers have images of the star prior to any eruption, information that until recently was not available for any supernovae.
NASA and the Russians have agreed to fly a two-person year long mission on ISS beginning in the spring of 2015.
It’s now official: NASA and the Russians have agreed to fly a two-person year long mission on ISS beginning in the spring of 2015.
NASA has denied that this agreement has any connection with the Sarah Brightman/Russian deal, but I still wonder. Either way, it is very good news. Not only will they finally be using ISS appropriately, a mission like this will generate some real excitement for space exploration that the repeated boring six month expeditions to ISS have failed to do. Even better would be to schedule a two year mission, simulating a journey to and from Mars.
It’s now official: NASA and the Russians have agreed to fly a two-person year long mission on ISS beginning in the spring of 2015.
NASA has denied that this agreement has any connection with the Sarah Brightman/Russian deal, but I still wonder. Either way, it is very good news. Not only will they finally be using ISS appropriately, a mission like this will generate some real excitement for space exploration that the repeated boring six month expeditions to ISS have failed to do. Even better would be to schedule a two year mission, simulating a journey to and from Mars.
Deep Impact fired its engines today to adjust its orbit, giving it the option of visiting a near Earth asteroid in the future.
Deep Impact fired its engines today to adjust its orbit, giving it the option of visiting a near Earth asteroid in the future.
The press release is very vague about this future mission. I suspect there is a question of funding, which means that even if they can go to the asteroid, they might not have the funds to staff the mission.
Deep Impact fired its engines today to adjust its orbit, giving it the option of visiting a near Earth asteroid in the future.
The press release is very vague about this future mission. I suspect there is a question of funding, which means that even if they can go to the asteroid, they might not have the funds to staff the mission.
A new study has found that scientific misconduct and fraud is on the rise.
A new study has found that scientific misconduct and fraud is on the rise.
A review of retractions in medical and biological peer-reviewed journals finds the percentage of studies withdrawn because of fraud or suspected fraud has jumped substantially since the mid-1970s. In 1976, there were fewer than 10 fraud retractions for every 1 million studies published, compared with 96 retractions per million in 2007.
The study’s authors suggest that the high pressure of big science might be a cause, combined with an overall decline in our culture itself. I wonder if the influence of government money, granted not because of good science but in the service of a political agenda, might also be a contributing factor.
A new study has found that scientific misconduct and fraud is on the rise.
A review of retractions in medical and biological peer-reviewed journals finds the percentage of studies withdrawn because of fraud or suspected fraud has jumped substantially since the mid-1970s. In 1976, there were fewer than 10 fraud retractions for every 1 million studies published, compared with 96 retractions per million in 2007.
The study’s authors suggest that the high pressure of big science might be a cause, combined with an overall decline in our culture itself. I wonder if the influence of government money, granted not because of good science but in the service of a political agenda, might also be a contributing factor.
Astronomers have identified the same kind of minerals found in comets in the dusty disk surrounding the nearby star Beta Pictoris.
Astronomers have identified the same kind of minerals found in comets in our solar system in the dusty disk surrounding the nearby star Beta Pictoris.
Astronomers have identified the same kind of minerals found in comets in our solar system in the dusty disk surrounding the nearby star Beta Pictoris.
Using data from the Spitzer Space Telescope astronomers have narrowed the universe’s rate of expansion to about 74.3 kilometers per second per megaparsec.
The uncertainty of science: Using data from the Spitzer Space Telescope astronomers have narrowed the universe’s rate of expansion to about 74.3 kilometers per second per megaparsec.
The importance of this number, also called the Hubble Constant, is that it allows astronomers to extrapolate more precisely backward to when they believe the Big Bang occurred, about 13.7 billion years ago. It also is a crucial data point in their effort to understand dark energy, in which this expansion rate is actually accelerating on vast scales.
Back in 1995 a team led by Wendy Freedman, the same scientist leading the work above, announced that they had used the Hubble Space Telescope to determine the expansion rate as 80 kilometers per second per megaparsec. Then, the margin of error was plus or minus 17 kilometers. Now the margin of error has been narrowed to plus or minus 2.1 kilometers.
Do I believe these new numbers? No, not really. Science has nothing to do with belief. I do think this is good science, however, and that this new estimate of the Hubble constant is probably the best yet. I would also not be surprised if in the future new data eventually proves this estimate wrong.
The uncertainty of science: Using data from the Spitzer Space Telescope astronomers have narrowed the universe’s rate of expansion to about 74.3 kilometers per second per megaparsec.
The importance of this number, also called the Hubble Constant, is that it allows astronomers to extrapolate more precisely backward to when they believe the Big Bang occurred, about 13.7 billion years ago. It also is a crucial data point in their effort to understand dark energy, in which this expansion rate is actually accelerating on vast scales.
Back in 1995 a team led by Wendy Freedman, the same scientist leading the work above, announced that they had used the Hubble Space Telescope to determine the expansion rate as 80 kilometers per second per megaparsec. Then, the margin of error was plus or minus 17 kilometers. Now the margin of error has been narrowed to plus or minus 2.1 kilometers.
Do I believe these new numbers? No, not really. Science has nothing to do with belief. I do think this is good science, however, and that this new estimate of the Hubble constant is probably the best yet. I would also not be surprised if in the future new data eventually proves this estimate wrong.
A vehicle powered by cheese has set a speed record for its class.
The new Milky Way
This is a wonderful article, outlining (with video!) the present state of knowledge about the past, present, and future of our home galaxy.
This is a wonderful article, outlining (with video!) the present state of knowledge about the past, present, and future of our home galaxy.
The head of Russia’s manned program said today that the first yearlong mission on ISS will begin in March 2015.
The head of Russia’s manned program said today that the first yearlong mission on ISS will begin in March 2015.
This appears to be another case of the Russians trying to use the media to pressure NASA into agreeing to the mission. I hope it works.
The head of Russia’s manned program said today that the first yearlong mission on ISS will begin in March 2015.
This appears to be another case of the Russians trying to use the media to pressure NASA into agreeing to the mission. I hope it works.
Diederik Stapel, the psychologist who had fabricated his results in numerous published papers and has since resigned, is now under investigation by Dutch prosecutors.
Diederik Stapel, the psychologist who had fabricated his results in numerous published papers and has since resigned, is now under investigation by Dutch prosecutors.
Twenty-five of Stapel’s papers have now been retracted.
Diederik Stapel, the psychologist who had fabricated his results in numerous published papers and has since resigned, is now under investigation by Dutch prosecutors.
Twenty-five of Stapel’s papers have now been retracted.
Polar bear fraud
The scientist famous for identifying drowning polar bears in the Arctic has been reprimanded for leaking emails and following “inappropriate” procurement procedures at his job at the Department of Interior.
The investigation also criticized the scientist, Charles Monnett, for fudging his data in reporting the death of the polar bears, a report that the global warming movement used extensively to falsely prove that global warming was causing the destruction of the polar bear population.
The Nature story above tries to make light of Monnett’s misconduct, especially in connection with his polar bear report as well as his work in awarding contracts. The report itself [pdf] is far more harsh.
In connection with Monnett’s contract work, it appears he actually helped one contractor write his proposal, then sat on the board that awarded the contract to that contractor.
» Read more
The weather in Gale Crater on Mars: warmer than expected.
The weather in Gale Crater on Mars: warmer than expected.
The weather in Gale Crater on Mars: warmer than expected.
James Hansen’s Goddard Institute of Space Studies has once again been caught changing its past climate temperature data without explanation.
James Hansen’s Goddard Institute of Space Studies has once again been caught changing its past climate temperature data without explanation.
Surprise of surprise, the change had the effect of making the long-term temperature record support conclusions of faster warming. The biggest changes were mostly pre-1963 temperatures; they were generally adjusted down. That would make the warming trend steeper, since post-1963 temperatures were adjusted slightly upward, on average. Generally, the older the data, the more adjustment.
Hat tip to reader jwing who alerted me to this story. As I commented to him, this “also is old news, to my mind, even though this is a new discovery of corruption. This kind of fraud has now been on-going for the past decade, with no signs of any effort to fix it. Worse, the climate science field even denies that it has a problem. Thus, I don’t trust anything they tell me. I check everything twice, and then have doubts besides. Which is why I remain entirely skeptical of any claims these climate scientists make.”
And in this case, the climate scientist in question is James Hansen.
James Hansen’s Goddard Institute of Space Studies has once again been caught changing its past climate temperature data without explanation.
Surprise of surprise, the change had the effect of making the long-term temperature record support conclusions of faster warming. The biggest changes were mostly pre-1963 temperatures; they were generally adjusted down. That would make the warming trend steeper, since post-1963 temperatures were adjusted slightly upward, on average. Generally, the older the data, the more adjustment.
Hat tip to reader jwing who alerted me to this story. As I commented to him, this “also is old news, to my mind, even though this is a new discovery of corruption. This kind of fraud has now been on-going for the past decade, with no signs of any effort to fix it. Worse, the climate science field even denies that it has a problem. Thus, I don’t trust anything they tell me. I check everything twice, and then have doubts besides. Which is why I remain entirely skeptical of any claims these climate scientists make.”
And in this case, the climate scientist in question is James Hansen.
It appears that Curiosity is traveling across an ancient streambed on Mars.
It appears that Curiosity is traveling across an ancient streambed on Mars.
“From the size of gravels it carried, we can interpret the water was moving about 3 feet per second, with a depth somewhere between ankle and hip deep,” said Curiosity science co-investigator William Dietrich of the University of California, Berkeley. “Plenty of papers have been written about channels on Mars with many different hypotheses about the flows in them. This is the first time we’re actually seeing water-transported gravel on Mars. This is a transition from speculation about the size of streambed material to direct observation of it.”
This discovery also confirms the wisdom of Gale Crater as a target. Satellite data and images had suggested the crater had once been water filled. Now this suggestion appears confirmed.
It appears that Curiosity is traveling across an ancient streambed on Mars.
“From the size of gravels it carried, we can interpret the water was moving about 3 feet per second, with a depth somewhere between ankle and hip deep,” said Curiosity science co-investigator William Dietrich of the University of California, Berkeley. “Plenty of papers have been written about channels on Mars with many different hypotheses about the flows in them. This is the first time we’re actually seeing water-transported gravel on Mars. This is a transition from speculation about the size of streambed material to direct observation of it.”
This discovery also confirms the wisdom of Gale Crater as a target. Satellite data and images had suggested the crater had once been water filled. Now this suggestion appears confirmed.
The sharpest ever ground-based image of Pluto and its moon Charon.
The sharpest ever ground-based image of Pluto and its moon Charon.
It is a great image of Pluto, but not quite as good as Hubble’s best, proving once again the value of either getting up above the atmosphere with a telescope, or even better, going there.
The sharpest ever ground-based image of Pluto and its moon Charon.
It is a great image of Pluto, but not quite as good as Hubble’s best, proving once again the value of either getting up above the atmosphere with a telescope, or even better, going there.
The troughs of Vesta: evidence of a failed planet.
The Martian weather, as recorded by the Curiosity weather station.
The Martian weather, as recorded by the Curiosity weather station.
The Martian weather, as recorded by the Curiosity weather station.
The prosecutor in the Italian trial of seven earthquake experts has requested four year jail sentences for their failure to properly warn the public about the possibility of an earthquake
The prosecutor in the Italian trial of seven earthquake experts has requested four year jail sentences for their failure to properly warn the public in advance about the April 2009 L’Aquila earthquake.
The prosecutor in the Italian trial of seven earthquake experts has requested four year jail sentences for their failure to properly warn the public in advance about the April 2009 L’Aquila earthquake.
The Hubble Space Telescope has taken its deepest image yet.
The Hubble Space Telescope has taken its deepest image yet.
This long exposure picture of a tiny patch of sky in the constellation Fornax spotted about 5,500 galaxies from the very beginning of the universe. Take a close look, because you will see that these early galaxies are often strange looking. I have cropped out one just example to the left to give you an idea.
The Hubble Space Telescope has taken its deepest image yet.
This long exposure picture of a tiny patch of sky in the constellation Fornax spotted about 5,500 galaxies from the very beginning of the universe. Take a close look, because you will see that these early galaxies are often strange looking. I have cropped out one just example to the left to give you an idea.
The next great comet?
Amateur astronomer Jason Lewis sent me an email today describing how the amateur astronomy community is abuzz with the discovery of a new comet, presently dubbed C/2012 S1, that is due to make its dive around the Sun in late November 2013 and pass closest to the Earth in January 2014 at a distance of about 37 million miles. Based on the preliminary numbers, this comet might be one of the brightest in years, almost certainly a naked eye object and visible to everyone from both the northern and southern hemispheres.
To quote the comments from one astronomy forum:
» Read more
Astronomers using the Chandra X-Ray Observatory have found that the Milky Way is surrounded by a halo of hot gas.The uncertainty of science: Astronomers using the Chandra X-Ray Observatory have found that the Milky Way is surrounded by a halo of hot gas.
The uncertainty of science: Astronomers using the Chandra X-Ray Observatory have found that the Milky Way is surrounded by a halo of hot gas.
This is the key quote:
The estimated mass of the halo is comparable to the mass of all the stars in the galaxy. If the size and mass of this gas halo is confirmed, it also could be an explanation for what is known as the “missing baryon” problem for the galaxy.
“Missing baryon” is another way to say “dark matter.” In other words, this discovery might prove that it isn’t necessary to invent exotic unknown particles of physics, such as the Weakly Interacting Massive Particles (WIMPs) to explain the missing matter. The missing matter might simply be this hot gas, previously undetected.
The uncertainty of science: Astronomers using the Chandra X-Ray Observatory have found that the Milky Way is surrounded by a halo of hot gas.
This is the key quote:
The estimated mass of the halo is comparable to the mass of all the stars in the galaxy. If the size and mass of this gas halo is confirmed, it also could be an explanation for what is known as the “missing baryon” problem for the galaxy.
“Missing baryon” is another way to say “dark matter.” In other words, this discovery might prove that it isn’t necessary to invent exotic unknown particles of physics, such as the Weakly Interacting Massive Particles (WIMPs) to explain the missing matter. The missing matter might simply be this hot gas, previously undetected.
This year’s Ig Noble Awards have been announced.
This year’s Ig Noble Awards have been announced.
I especially like the research where scientists performed MRI brain scans on pumpkins, Cornish hens, and dead fish. And they even got a signal from the dead fish!
This year’s Ig Noble Awards have been announced.
I especially like the research where scientists performed MRI brain scans on pumpkins, Cornish hens, and dead fish. And they even got a signal from the dead fish!
Newly released results from Dawn have found evidence of hydrogen on the surface of Vesta
Newly released results from Dawn have found evidence of hydrogen on the surface of Vesta, which also suggests that the asteroid once had water. More here.
The article focuses on the possibility that the hydrogen originally came from ice placed there by icy asteroids. While likely, this remains only one possible explanation.
Newly released results from Dawn have found evidence of hydrogen on the surface of Vesta, which also suggests that the asteroid once had water. More here.
The article focuses on the possibility that the hydrogen originally came from ice placed there by icy asteroids. While likely, this remains only one possible explanation.
Hundreds of peer-reviewed papers in the field of anaesthesiology are about to be retracted because their data was fabricated.
Hundreds of peer-reviewed papers in the field of anesthesiology are about to be retracted because their data was fabricated.
After more than a decade of suspicion about the work of anesthesiologist Yoshitaka Fujii, formerly of Toho University in Tokyo, investigations by journals and universities have concluded that he fabricated data on an epic scale. At least half of the roughly 200 papers he authored on responses to drugs after surgery are in line for retraction in the coming months.
Like many cases of fraud, this one has raised questions about how the misconduct went undetected for so long. But the scope and duration of Fujii’s deception have shaken multiple journals and the entire field of anesthesiology, which has seen other high-profile frauds in the past few years.
Fujii’s work was published in many different journals, where it appears none of his referees ever checked his data. Worse, this is not the first such case in this field.
» Read more
Hundreds of peer-reviewed papers in the field of anesthesiology are about to be retracted because their data was fabricated.
After more than a decade of suspicion about the work of anesthesiologist Yoshitaka Fujii, formerly of Toho University in Tokyo, investigations by journals and universities have concluded that he fabricated data on an epic scale. At least half of the roughly 200 papers he authored on responses to drugs after surgery are in line for retraction in the coming months.
Like many cases of fraud, this one has raised questions about how the misconduct went undetected for so long. But the scope and duration of Fujii’s deception have shaken multiple journals and the entire field of anesthesiology, which has seen other high-profile frauds in the past few years.
Fujii’s work was published in many different journals, where it appears none of his referees ever checked his data. Worse, this is not the first such case in this field.
» Read more
After postponing Juno’s second midcourse correction burn, engineers have now successfully completed that burn.
After postponing Juno’s second midcourse correction burn last month, engineers have now successfully completed that burn.
NASA’s Juno spacecraft successfully executed a second Deep Space Maneuver, called DSM-2 last Friday, Sept. 14. The 30 minute firing of its main engine refined the Jupiter-bound spacecraft’s trajectory, setting the stage for a gravity assist from a flyby of Earth on Oct 9, 2013. Juno will arrive at Jupiter on July 4, 2016.
After postponing Juno’s second midcourse correction burn last month, engineers have now successfully completed that burn.
NASA’s Juno spacecraft successfully executed a second Deep Space Maneuver, called DSM-2 last Friday, Sept. 14. The 30 minute firing of its main engine refined the Jupiter-bound spacecraft’s trajectory, setting the stage for a gravity assist from a flyby of Earth on Oct 9, 2013. Juno will arrive at Jupiter on July 4, 2016.
Curiosity snaps a Martian lunar eclipse.
Curiosity snaps a Martian lunar eclipse.
Curiosity snaps a Martian lunar eclipse.
Pluto has another moon!
Pluto has another moon!
This makes six, with the most recent discovery, named Plutino 15810, an especially unusual one. From the paper’s [pdf] conclusion, published on the Cornell University Library astro-ph website:
» Read more
Pluto has another moon!
This makes six, with the most recent discovery, named Plutino 15810, an especially unusual one. From the paper’s [pdf] conclusion, published on the Cornell University Library astro-ph website:
» Read more
Weird Planet fractals
The scientists who took the first image of single molecule in 2009 have improved the resolution of their images.
The scientists who took the first image of single molecule in 2009 have improved the resolution of their images.
They not only can see the molecule, they can now detect the differences between the atomic bonds holding the different atoms together.
The scientists who took the first image of single molecule in 2009 have improved the resolution of their images.
They not only can see the molecule, they can now detect the differences between the atomic bonds holding the different atoms together.