Science

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X-ray Experiments Zero in on COVID-19 Antibodies

Scientists reveal potential coronavirus therapy using structural biology and the Advanced Light Source

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This transmission electron microscope image shows SARS-CoV-2 – the virus that causes COVID-19 – isolated from a patient in the U.S. The protrusions visible on the outside are the spike proteins that the virus particles use to fuse with and gain entry to host cells.

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Czech Republic drought visible from space

The prolonged period of dry weather in the Czech Republic has resulted in what experts are calling the ‘worst drought in 500 years.’ Scientists are using ESA satellite data to monitor the drought that’s gripped the country.

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Average soil moisture in Czech Republic.

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How Engineers at NASA-JPL Persevered to Develop a Ventilator

As coronavirus hit, JPL engineers teamed up to make a ventilator prototype that could be mass produced to fill a massive need. It's not rocket science; it's something more.

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Clockwise from bottom left: Brandon Metz, Shaunessy Grant, Michael Johnson, Dave Van Buren, Michelle Easter and Patrick Degrosse are among dozens of engineers at JPL involved in creating VITAL, a ventilator prototype specially targeted to coronavirus disease patients.

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Europlanet Telescope Network issues 1st Alert – A new north polar spot in Saturn

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Europlanet Telescope Network issues 1st Alert – A new north polar spot in Saturn

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Laser-powered rover to explore Moon’s dark shadows

A laser light shone through the dark could power robotic exploration of the most tantalising locations in our Solar System: the permanently-shadowed craters around the Moon’s poles, believed to be rich in water ice and other valuable materials.

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RAT rover by night.

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Tiny NASA Satellite Captures First Image of Clouds and Aerosols

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After several months of commissioning, the HARP CubeSat sent back a first light capture on April 16, 2020. The coastlines of Italy, Sardinia and southeastern Europe can be seen in the image.

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Magnetic north and the elongating blob

For some years now, scientists have been puzzling over why the north magnetic pole has been making a dash towards Siberia. Thanks, in part, to ESA’s Swarm satellite mission, scientists are now more confident in the theory that tussling magnetic blobs deep below Earth’s surface are at the root of this phenomenon.

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Swirling iron.

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NASA’s ICESat-2 Measures Arctic Ocean’s Sea Ice Thickness, Snow Cover

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Scientists have used NASA's ICESat-2 to measure the thickness of Arctic sea ice, as well as the depth of snow on the ice. Here, ridges and cracks have formed in sea ice in the Arctic Ocean.

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NASA Satellite Data Show Air Pollution Decreases over Southwest U.S. Cities

On March 19, California was one of the first states to set mandatory stay-at-home restrictions in an attempt to slow the spread of COVID-19. Arizona and Nevada followed suit around April 1. The Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI) on board NASA's Aura Satellite provide data that indicate that these restrictions have led to about a 31% decrease in NO2 levels in the Los Angeles basin relative to previous years. NO2, or nitrogen dioxide, is an air pollutant measured by OMI. The estimated reductions for other cities in the Southwest U.S. before and after the quarantine restrictions are 22% for the San Francisco Bay Area, 25% for San Diego and Tijuana, Mexico, 16% for Phoenix, and 10% for Las Vegas.

https://www.nasa.gov/feature/goddard/2020/nasa-satellite-data-show-air-p...

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The slider above shows satellite estimates of NO2 from Aura’s Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI) as an average of March 25 through April 25. The image on the left shows the mean of the 150-day period from 2015 through 2019, while the image on the right shows the mean of the 30-day period for 2020.

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Delta Scuti stars reveal some of their secrets

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The Delta Scuti-star beta Pictoris.