News Feeds

For decades, we have seen Mars as a desolate landscape devoid of any signs of life. Attempt to identify ways of growing plants and food on the red planet have focussed on greenhouse like structures to enable plants to survive, that is, until now! A desert moss called ‘Syntrichia caninervis’ has been identified and it can grown in extreme environments like Antarctica and the Mojave Desert. A new study revealed the moss can survive Mars-like environments too including low temperatures, high levels of radiation and drought. 

Mars has often be referred to as the “Red Planet” for its distinct red hue. It is the fourth planet from the Sun and to some extent resembles the Earth. Polar ice caps, seasonal weather patterns, extinct volcanoes, ancient riverbeds and flood plains are among the many surface features and. This cold world has fascinated us for centuries and its thin atmosphere, mostly made up of carbon dioxide, has been subjected to lots of studies. It has been thought for many years that it experiences some of the harshest weather conditions, including planet-wide dust storms but the recent study suggests there may just be a plant on Earth capable of surviving these conditions. 

Mars, Credit NASA

Exploring and colonising planets like Mars can enhance human sustainability. Since no life forms have been found on Mars, introducing Earth organisms might be necessary for creating suitable conditions for human life in a process known as terraforming. This will involve selecting or engineering plants that can thrive in the harsh environments of an alien world. Few studies have tested organisms’ ability to withstand extreme environments of space or Mars, focusing mainly on microorganisms, algae, and lichens. However until recently, studies including mosses and whole plants have been lacking.

There have been many long term plans and even whimsical ideas to establish settlements on Mars. Pivotal to the success is the establishment of adapted crops that can grow in controlled, synthetic environments. However, to develop such a plant requires significant progress and development before plants are capable of growing in the soils and harsh conditions. In the report by lead author Xiaoshuang Li and team the incredible resilience of a moss called Syntrichia caninervis (S. caninervis) to survive a Mars-like environment even after having lost more than 98% of its water content. 

Studies into the resilience of the plants have shown they can withstand  extremely low  temperatures and regenerate even after being stored in a freezer at -80°C for five years or in liquid nitrogen for one month. S. caninervis also demonstrates high resistance to gamma radiation and can survive in simulated Martian conditions. 

The study concluded that S. caninervis is among the most stress-tolerant organisms known. It shows how it is a real potential species for the colonisation of alien worlds like Mars. The resilience to extreme conditions such as desiccation, low temperatures, and high radiation makes it an ideal for future terraforming efforts. It helps to understand the unique properties of this moss (in particular) and how it can form a foundational layer for biologically sustainable human habitats in space.

Source : The extremotolerant desert moss Syntrichia caninervis is a promising pioneer plant for colonizing extraterrestrial environments

The post The Rugged Desert Moss Best Equipped to Survive on Mars appeared first on Universe Today.

Anthropologists have been arguing for 20 years about whether Sahelanthropus, a hominin that lived about 7 million years ago, was one of the first bipedal apes

This video came from FYFD (fyfluiddynamics.com), which has the introductory note:

Personally, I’ve had some bad encounters with wasps, but Dr. Adrian Smith of Ant Lab feels the insects receive short shrift. In this video, he shows many species in the order — most of which are venomless and stingless. In high-speed video, their flight is mesmerizing. Wasps have separate fore- and hindwings, but during flight, they move them like a single wing. Velcro-like hooks on the edges of the wings hold the two together.

From a mechanics perspective, I find this fascinating. Aerodynamically, I’d expect much greater benefits from one large wing over two small ones, but outside of flight, separate wings are more easily tucked away. It’s so neat that wasps have a way to enjoy the benefits of both, enabled by a simple but secure line of hooks. (Video and image credit: Ant Lab/A. Smith)

As I recall, but can’t be arsed to check, insects evolved with four wings at the start, and two-winged insects evolved later, with some converting their wings into balance organs (halteres, as in Drosophila) or wing covers (elytra, like the wing covers of beetles). That’s why wasps had to evolved a velcro-like structure to keep their wings together.

The photography here is marvelous. Try to figure out how some wasps can detect a the larvae of a wood-boring insect inside a tree, and then use their ovipositors to inject an egg into the hapless insect through the wood. They have to be accurate, and do this through a substantial thickness of wood.

h/t: Erik

 

Age data for certain classes of meteorite have made it possible to gain new findings on the origin of small water-rich astronomical bodies in the early solar system. These planetesimals continually supplied building materials for planets -- also for the Earth, whose original material contained little water. The Earth received its actual water through planetesimals, which emerged at low temperatures in the outer solar system, as shown by computational models carried out by an international research teach with participation by earth scientists.

An assessment ranks the feasibility of converting 245 operational coal power plants in the U.S. into advanced nuclear reactors, providing valuable insights for policymakers and utilities to meet decarbonization goals, according to a new study.

A research team has developed an algorithm that analyses observational data from a plant identification app. The novel approach can be used to derive ecological patterns that could provide valuable information about the effects of climate change on plants.

Development of a new way to accurately measure human serum albumin (HSA) levels in people with chronic kidney disease has progressed in recent testing.

A small molecule that naturally serves as a binding site for metals in enzymes also proves useful for separating certain rare earth metals from each other. In a proof of concept, the process extracts europium directly from fluorescent powder in used energy-saving lamps in much higher quantities than existing methods. The researchers are now working on expanding their approach to other rare earth metals. They are in the process of founding a start-up to put the recycling of these raw materials into practice.

While not yet on the market, fully autonomous vehicles are promoted as a way to make road travel dramatically safer, but a recent study found that knowing more about them did not improve people's perception of their risk. They needed to have more trust in them too. This study adds to the evidence from other research that knowledge alone is not enough to sway people's attitudes toward complex technology and science, such as gene editing or climate change. In this case, researchers found that trust in the autonomous vehicles' reliability and performance played the strongest role in improving perceptions of the technology's risk.

While not yet on the market, fully autonomous vehicles are promoted as a way to make road travel dramatically safer, but a recent study found that knowing more about them did not improve people's perception of their risk. They needed to have more trust in them too. This study adds to the evidence from other research that knowledge alone is not enough to sway people's attitudes toward complex technology and science, such as gene editing or climate change. In this case, researchers found that trust in the autonomous vehicles' reliability and performance played the strongest role in improving perceptions of the technology's risk.

Researchers were involved in the development of a switch, an essential device in telecommunications, capable of operating at very high frequency with lower power consumption than conventional technologies. The technology has applications in the new 6G mass communication systems and is more sustainable in terms of energy consumption than current devices.

Researchers were involved in the development of a switch, an essential device in telecommunications, capable of operating at very high frequency with lower power consumption than conventional technologies. The technology has applications in the new 6G mass communication systems and is more sustainable in terms of energy consumption than current devices.

New research offers an enhanced understanding of common defects in transition-metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) -- a potential replacement for silicon in computer chips -- and lays the foundation for etching smaller features.

New research offers an enhanced understanding of common defects in transition-metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) -- a potential replacement for silicon in computer chips -- and lays the foundation for etching smaller features.

Material engineers have created a patent-pending process to develop ultrahigh-strength aluminum alloys that are suitable for additive manufacturing because of their plastic deformability. They have produced the alloys by using several transition metals that traditionally have been largely avoided in the manufacture of aluminum alloys.

Investigators sought to help figure out how to send materials like probiotics into space and to better treat a variety of gastrointestinal (GI) and metabolic diseases. The team's formulations allow microbial therapeutics, including those used to treat gastrointestinal diseases and improve crop production, to maintain their potency and function over time despite extreme temperatures.

Ice in nature is surrounded by liquid most of the time, and therefore it is key to understand how ice and liquid interact. A new study has now directly observe the precise shape of ice at the interface between ice and liquid -- by using antifreeze and a refrigerated microscope.

Lab-grown meat can be shaped into steaks and meatballs, but it can be lacking in the flavour department. Aromatic chemicals that are released when heated could offer a solution

Your body is home to trillions of beneficial viruses crucial for a healthy microbiome. We may one day be able to tweak this "virome" to treat obesity and anxiety

Your body is home to trillions of beneficial viruses crucial for a healthy microbiome. We may one day be able to tweak this "virome" to treat obesity and anxiety