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What if time is not as fixed as we thought? Imagine that instead of flowing in one direction -- from past to future -- time could flow forward or backward due to processes taking place at the quantum level. This is the thought-provoking discovery made by researchers, as a new study reveals that opposing arrows of time can theoretically emerge from certain quantum systems.

Jumping workouts could help astronauts prevent the type of cartilage damage they are likely to endure during lengthy missions to Mars and the Moon, a new study suggests. The researchers found that mice in a nine-week program of reduced movement experienced cartilage thinning and cellular clustering, both early indicators of arthritis. But mice that performed jump training three times a week showed the opposite effect -- thicker, healthier cartilage with normal cellular structure.

Researchers have developed a reactor that pulls carbon dioxide directly from the air and converts it into sustainable fuel, using sunlight as the power source.

Scientists have identified a new property, interface flexibility, that controls how certain molecules naturally self-organize into crystalline supramolecular networks. This significant discovery could change the design of synthetic molecules for network growth at the nanoscale.

Researchers have synthesized a Bi5-ring, a molecule with five bismuth atoms, and stabilized it in a metal complex. Their discovery fills a gap in chemical knowledge and enables future applications in materials research, catalysis, and electronics.

Researchers have made a breakthrough in the development of 'life-like' synthetic materials which are able to move by themselves like worms. Scientists have been investigating a new class of materials called 'active matter', which could be used for various applications from drug delivery to self-healing materials.

Biological motors, which aid microorganism movement in fluids, are composed of two components -- the rotor and stators. Despite much research, the exact molecular mechanism underlying stator function is yet unclear. In a new study, researchers analyzed the flagellar motor in Vibrio alginolyticus using cryo-electron microscopy and described how sodium ion flow through stators underlies stator function. Understanding biological motors better could lead to the development of efficient microscopic machines.

Biological motors, which aid microorganism movement in fluids, are composed of two components -- the rotor and stators. Despite much research, the exact molecular mechanism underlying stator function is yet unclear. In a new study, researchers analyzed the flagellar motor in Vibrio alginolyticus using cryo-electron microscopy and described how sodium ion flow through stators underlies stator function. Understanding biological motors better could lead to the development of efficient microscopic machines.

The possibilities for material design and production of plastic components are being expanded through 3D printing technology. However, there is a shortage of recyclable polymers that meet the performance requirements. A research team has now introduced a new class of polymers called polythioenones, which are mechanically and chemically recyclable and suitable for 3D printing. They also demonstrate better mechanical properties than conventional polyolefins -- thanks to a special, ring-shaped building block.

From predicting potholes to designing more durable concrete, artificial intelligence is paving the way for smarter infrastructure, new studies show.

From predicting potholes to designing more durable concrete, artificial intelligence is paving the way for smarter infrastructure, new studies show.

Researchers have quantified the role of the 'hydrogen economy' in making our society more sustainable. They present the results of extensive modelling of pathways to decarbonizing the European economy by 2050. They conclude that when it comes to providing a sustainable primary source of energy, electrification will prove to be the most cost-efficient route for most economic sectors with an average total share of around 60% in final energy consumption. In contrast, the projected share of direct hydrogen use will be 10% at the highest.

Researchers have discovered why LiNiO2 batteries break down, and they are testing a solution that could remove a key barrier to widespread use of the material. The team plans first to manufacture LiNiO2 batteries in the lab and ultimately to work with an industry partner to commercialize the technology.

Researchers have been trying to find new ways to produce and replicate the various useful features observed in nature. Fine hairs and fibers, which are ubiquitous in nature, are useful for various applications ranging from sensory hairs to the fibers that give hagfish slime its unique consistency.

Electronic textiles, such as heating pads and electric blankets, can keep the wearer warm and help ease aches and pains. However, prolonged use of these devices could possibly cause heat-related illnesses, including hyperthermia or burns. Recently, a group of researchers designed and tested a 'smart' jacket equipped with environmental sensors, heat-generating and color-changing yarns, and artificial intelligence (AI) to control temperature and prevent overheating.

Astronomers used a 3D global computer model to compare the climates of exoplanets in different stellar and orbital configurations. They found that a planet orbiting a white dwarf star would offer a warmer climate than one orbiting a main sequence star.

A new version of Cellpose -- the popular tool that maps the boundaries of diverse cells in microscopy images -- now works on less-than-perfect pictures that are noisy, blurry, or undersampled.

MSL Curiosity is primarily a rockhound. It’s at Gale Crater, examining the rocks there and on Mt. Sharp, which sits in the middle of the crater and rises 5.5 km above the crater floor. But Curiosity is also a skywatcher, and its primary camera, Mastcam, was built with Martian clouds in mind.

When the sun set on Mars’ Gale Crater on January 17th, MSL Curiosity spent 16 minutes capturing images of the sky with Mastcam, the rover’s primary camera system. The images are part of an effort to understand noctilucent clouds, which are made of CO2 ice and only form over certain regions.

In the animation below, the 16 minutes of images have been sped up by about 480 times. “The white plumes falling out of the clouds are carbon dioxide ice that would evaporate closer to the Martian surface,” NASA says in a press release. “Appearing briefly at the bottom of the images are water-ice clouds travelling in the opposite direction roughly 31 miles (50 kilometres) above the rover.”

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Earth has noctilucent clouds, too. They form in the upper atmosphere and are only visible during twilight when the atmosphere’s lower layers are in the shade and the upper atmosphere is sunlit. They form from water ice crystals between 76 to 85 km altitude and are the highest clouds in the atmosphere.

Mars’ noctilucent clouds are similar, but the main difference is that they contain carbon dioxide ice. They form at an altitude of around 60 to 80 km and are also classified as mesospheric clouds. On Mars, they occur in the Fall over the southern hemisphere. Only Mars’ high-altitude clouds containing carbon dioxide ice display iridescent colours.

This is the fourth year in succession that Curiosity has seen these noctilucent clouds. Its Mastcam instrument has different filters that let it see different wavelengths of light, and some of those filters are used to study the composition and particle size in clouds. It also has stereo vision, which helps scientists determine cloud height, shape, and the speed at which they’re moving. It can also observe the Sun through filters and determine how much sunlight the atmosphere is blocking. That tells scientists how much dust and ice is in the atmosphere and how it changes over time.

A November 2024 paper titled “Iridescence Reveals the Formation and Growth of Ice Aerosols in Martian Noctilucent Clouds” summarized Curiosity’s images and findings. The lead author is Mark Lemmon, an atmospheric scientist with the Space Science Institute in Boulder, Colorado.

“I’ll always remember the first time I saw those iridescent clouds and was sure at first it was some color artifact,” he said in a press release. “Now it’s become so predictable that we can plan our shots in advance; the clouds show up at exactly the same time of year.”

These clouds form only in early Martian fall and only in the southern hemisphere. Their iridescence is from uniform particle size, which indicates that the clouds had a brief evolution in a uniform environment. When clouds are both noctilucent and iridescent, they’re called nacreous clouds. It’s interesting to note that these colours would be easily seen by an astronaut on the Martian surface.

This figure from the paper shows iridescent clouds in cylindrical projections. Each image was taken on a separate day. (d) is twice the resolution of the others. (e) shows a corona in the clouds caused by low variance in CO2 ice particle size. Image Credit: Lemmon et al. 2024.

One of the mysteries behind these clouds concerns their location. They’re only seen in Mars’ southern hemisphere, and the Perseverance rover, which is in the Jezero Crater in the northern hemisphere, has never seen them. It seems pretty clear that they only form in certain locations, but the reasons why are unknown.

Lemmon says that gravity waves, which are atmospheric phenomena separate from astrophysical gravitational waves, could be responsible. They cool the atmosphere and could give rise to clouds of frozen CO2. “Carbon dioxide was not expected to be condensing into ice here, so something is cooling it to the point that it could happen. But Martian gravity waves are not fully understood, and we’re not entirely sure what is causing twilight clouds to form in one place but not another,” Lemmon said.

Scientists need more data to better understand these clouds. Curiosity wasn’t the only one to see them; the InSight lander did, too. But they could only see for a few hundred kilometres around their landing sites and their data is incomplete. “Orbiters capable of sunset and twilight times could constrain the cloud altitude,” Lemmon and his co-authors write in their paper.

There are unanswered questions about these clouds. Scientists would like to understand how quickly particles in these clouds evolve. They’d also like to know what the nature of the corona-forming layer is. A larger data sample could help answer these questions, as could more time-lapse imagery.

• Press Release: A Rainbow-colored “Feather” in the Martian Sky
• Press Release: NASA’s Curiosity Rover Captures Colorful Clouds Drifting Over Mars
• Published Research: Iridescence Reveals the Formation and Growth of Ice Aerosols in Martian Noctilucent Clouds

The post Curiosity’s Other Important Job: Studying Martian Clouds appeared first on Universe Today.

Bioethanol made from fermented agricultural waste can be turned into zero-carbon hydrogen through a new process that uses much less energy than other sources

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