General Science Thread

[willandi]

In an effort to spurn interest in science w/ fosters, looking for more compelling stories. How about bringing back supersonic airline travel? http://www.vox.com/energy-and-enviro...light-concorde












He says science fiction like it's a bad thing?

Just the other day I had to use my wife's flip open tri corder...er...cell phone. I much prefre my own, at least until they start using the liquid LED screens so they fold for storage and open for a large screen.

As a child my father emphasized that "Students taking physics should clean out their drawers at least 2-3 times a week".

[DZ]

Everybody say "Welcome" to our second moon!

NASA scientists discovered an asteroid that has been captured and is in stable Earth orbit, making it a constant near-Earth companion, or a second satellite. There are a lot of objects orbiting this planet—space stations, man-made satellites, and lots and lots of junk—but only one moon that we can see. Now, NASA has confirmed the existence of 2016 HO3.

The asteroid orbits very far from Earth and is more gravitationally affected by the Sun than Earth, but it does orbit Earth as well along its orbital path of the Sun. Don’t get too excited about walking on it one day, as it is considerably smaller than our natural satellite with dimensions of 40–100 meters (130–350 ft) across

[DZ]

Powerful Earthquake Rocks New Zealand http://www.seattletimes.com/nation-w...h-new-zealand/

A powerful earthquake struck New Zealand’s South Island early Monday, killing at least two people, causing damage to buildings and infrastructure, and prompting emergency services to warn people along the coast to move to higher ground to avoid tsunami waves.

The magnitude-7.8 earthquake struck just after midnight in a mostly rural area that’s dotted with small towns. Near the epicenter, it opened up snaking fissures in roads and triggered landslides

It caused damage in Wellington, the capital, more than 200 kilometers (120 miles) to the north and was also strongly felt in the city of Christchurch to the south. Residents said the shaking went on for about three minutes, and was followed by a number of strong aftershocks.

If that hit Southern California, (or Northern Cal), it would be "the big one" they've been fearing. It would kill thousands.

Tsunami threat: http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/ar...ectid=11747414

Scientists investigating the mechanics of the earthquake say it faulted in the same way the February 22, 2011, Christchurch Earthquake did.

GNS Science seismologist John Ristau said the quake, which struck at magnitude 7.5 severe earthquake has struck 15 km north-east of Culverden at 12.02am, was the result of what's called thrust faulting, a type of reverse faulting.

In reverse faulting, in a compressed area of the Earth's crust, one rocky block - called the "hanging-wall" block - is pushed up relative to rock - "the footwall block" - on the other side.

One almost has to wonder if it had anything to do with the fact that The Moon is the closest it's been in 67 years! : http://www.space.com/34712-closest-supermoon-full-moon-since-1948-webcasts.html

The supermoon (perigee full moon) on November 14, 2016, will bring the moon closer to Earth than it has been since January 26, 1948. What’s more, the moon won’t come this close to Earth again until November 25, 2034. That makes the November 2016 full moon the closest and largest supermoon in a period of 86 years!

Giant earthquakes and super moons? Now, don't ever say the science thread isn't the place to be.

[Martin Centre Mad Man]

This is freakin' amazing.

I saw all twelve dots with no effort.

[DZ]

I saw all twelve dots with no effort.

Wow! Nice job. I have not heard from anyone who could. I'm not close at all, I have to focus on 4, then lose all the other 8.

[DZ]

Unbelievable picture from New Zealand, post earthquake:

[Bogozags]

Powerful Earthquake Rocks New Zealand http://www.seattletimes.com/nation-w...h-new-zealand/

If that hit Southern California, (or Northern Cal), it would be "the big one" they've been fearing. It would kill thousands.

Tsunami threat: http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/ar...ectid=11747414



One almost has to wonder if it had anything to do with the fact that The Moon is the closest it's been in 67 years! : http://www.space.com/34712-closest-supermoon-full-moon-since-1948-webcasts.html






Giant earthquakes and super moons? Now, don't ever say the science thread isn't the place to be.

Extremely clear skies here in Hilton Head and that moon sure does look like it's moving towards us...but I am guessing that is just an optical illusion or so I hope...will let you know in the AM

[DZ]

NASA's going to check out Saturn's rings: https://www.yahoo.com/news/m/17fc0e5...mbarks-on.html

Consider it a cosmic carousel with countless rings up for grabs.

NASA's Saturn-orbiting spacecraft, Cassini, has begun an unprecedented mission to skim the planet's rings. On Tuesday, Cassini got a gravitational assist from Saturn's big moon Titan. That put the spacecraft on course to graze Saturn's main outer rings.

The first orbit of this new venture begins Wednesday night. Then on Sunday, an engine firing by Cassini should seal the deal, with the spacecraft making its first ring crossing.

I guess they save the most dangerous stuff for last, since if they do this right, the thank you the Cassini gets is to be dropped straight into the crushing gasses in Saturn.

[DZ]

Great stuff http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/d-.../#.WFG94eQzUtI

Soupy Mix of Minerals a ‘Jackpot’ on Mars

Recent findings from the Curiosity rover indicate that the clay and mineral deposits on the higher regions of Mount Sharp were ideal for hosting life. The rover regularly takes samples of the soil as it traverses the mountain and also uses its Chem-Cam laser to analyze the composition of rocks that are of particular interest.

Recently, Curiosity discovered something on the Red Planet that’s never been seen before: boron. This finding is of particular interest to scientists because boron is usually found in abundance of groundwater, and where we find water we tend to find life. NASA’s mission, after all, is to always “follow the water.”

[gu03alum]

A coworker was telling me about the Salton Sea. I googled it and came across this article. It was an interesting read.

Toxic Dust from a Dying California Lake

[DZ]

I sure hope people see this one: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/...b0d9a594570c03

Arctic temperatures 50 degrees above normal. Temps for Christmas eve, right near Santa's house might get very near melting point. Unreal.

Temperatures in the Arctic are predicted to soar nearly 50 degrees above normal on Thursday in a pre-Christmas heat wave that will bring the frozen tundra scarily close to the melting point.

It’s the second year in a row the North Pole ― now in perpetual darkness after saying goodbye to the sun in late October ― has seen abnormally high temperatures around the Christmas holiday. It’s also the second time this year. In November, temperatures in the region skyrocketed 36 degrees above normal.

[Martin Centre Mad Man]

I thought you science types might like this.

http://www.vox.com/science-and-healt...h-year-science

[DZ]

I thought you science types might like this.

http://www.vox.com/science-and-healt...h-year-science

Wow, wow - thanx for posting.

I knew that they'd been looking and looking and looking, not even sure how to look - and I had absolutely no idea they'd found evidence this year.

It truly is a breakthrough. I've known of the "missing parts" in Einstein's General Relativity. Not that it's wrong, we wouldn't have anywhere near such accurate satellite gps if they didn't factor in relativity even at that short distance, I don't understand any of it about anything other than the scientists saying there are holes to their understanding. And, pretty well anything truly new has to at least be part of a search for Dark Matter.

Just, wow. Great post.

[bullzag23]

A coworker was telling me about the Salton Sea. I googled it and came across this article. It was an interesting read.

Toxic Dust from a Dying California Lake

Ah yes, the Salton Sea. It was going to be a resort town decades ago, until the salinity levels in the lake increased to the point that all the fish died off and gave the lake 'lovely' aroma. Now it's surrounded by abandoned towns, and may dry up over the next 10-20 years. I've seen it with my own eyes from the inside of a car. Wouldn't really prefer to get any closer.

[DZ]

The HELL? http://www.sciencemag.org/news/2017/...ng-dark-energy

DARK ENERGY - A SOLUTION

For nearly 2 decades, cosmologists have known that the expansion of the universe is accelerating, as if some mysterious "dark energy" is blowing it up like a balloon. Just what dark energy is remains one of the biggest mysteries in physics. Now, a trio of theorists argues that dark energy could spring from a surprising source. Weirdly, they say, dark energy could come about because—contrary to what you learned in your high school physics class—the total amount of energy in the universe isn't fixed, or "conserved," but may gradually disappear

If you really want your mind blown, those "strings" or "webbing" are made up of clumps of galaxies - millions of light years apart

Now, however, Josset, Perez, and Sudarsky show that in unimodular gravity, if they just go with it and allow the violation of the conservation of energy and momentum, it actually sets the value of the cosmological constant. The argument is mathematical, but essentially the tiny bit of energy that disappears in the universe leaves its trace by gradually changing the cosmological constant. "In the model, dark energy is something that keeps track of how much energy and momentum has been lost over the history of the universe," Perez says.