An Ignoble Experiment: The universe could stop expanding 'remarkably soon,' study suggests

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May 2, 2022

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The universe could stop expanding 'remarkably soon,' study suggests

(NASA)

After nearly 13.8 billion years of nonstop expansion, the universe could soon grind to a standstill, then slowly start to contract, new research published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences suggests.

In the new paper, three scientists attempt to model the nature of dark energy — a mysterious force that seems to be causing the universe to expand ever faster — based on past observations of cosmic expansion. In the team's model, dark energy is not a constant force of nature, but an entity called quintessence, which can decay over time.

Full Story: Live Science (5/2)

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Russia-Ukraine War

Russia is using military-trained dolphins in the Black Sea, according to satellite images

Russia has deployed military-trained dolphins to protect its Black Sea naval base in Crimea from underwater attack, new satellite images reveal.

The images, taken by the U.S. satellite company Maxar and analyzed by the nonprofit professional military association U.S. Naval Institute, show that two dolphin pens were placed at the entrance to Sevastopol harbor around the beginning of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February. The harbor, which sits at the southern tip of Crimea, is a major port and of vital military importance to Russia. While many of the Russian ships anchored there are safely out of missile range from Ukraine, they could still be attacked underwater, giving trained bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) an important role to play in their defense.

Full Story: Live Science (4/30)

History & Archaeology

Stonehenge was a hunting hotspot long before the monument was built

(Karl Hendon via Getty Images)

Long before Neolithic people erected Stonehenge's majestic bluestones and sarsen stones, Mesolithic, or Middle Stone Age hunter-gatherers frequented the site, using it as a hunting ground. Later, farmers and monument builders moved into the region, a new study finds.

Earlier research had suggested that before Stonehenge was built, the surrounding landscape included a closed-canopy forest. "There has been a long-running debate as to whether the monumental archaeology of Stonehenge was created in an uninhabited forested landscape or whether it was constructed in an already partly open area of pre-existing significance to late Mesolithic hunter-gatherers," the researchers wrote in the study.

Full Story: Live Science (4/29)

Life's Little Mysteries

Why do microwaves cook food so much faster than ovens do?

(FG Trade via Getty Images)

You might love charred, broiled sirloin; crisp, oven-roasted veggies; or flaky, baked salmon, all of which generally require an oven. But when you are in a hurry or famished, you may turn to a faster cooking method, the hallmark of culinary convenience: the microwave.

The microwave has made it possible to nourish ourselves with cooked food in a matter of seconds. But how, exactly, does it work so much quicker than an oven?

Full Story: Live Science (5/2)

Where does Earth end and outer space begin?

(studio023 via Getty Images)

When mountaineers climb Mount Everest, they routinely carry oxygen cylinders, devices that allow them to breathe freely at high altitudes.

This is necessary because the closer you get to the edge of Earth's atmosphere, the less oxygen there is available compared with the plentiful amounts found at sea level. This is just one example of how variable Earth's atmosphere is and showcases the elemental makeup of its layers, from the troposphere, near sea level, to the exosphere, in its outermost regions. Where each layer ends and begins is defined by four key traits, according to the National Weather Service: temperature change, chemical composition, density and the movement of the gases within it.

So, with this in mind, where does Earth's atmosphere actually end? And where does space begin?

Full Story: Live Science (5/1)

Your Health

H5N1 bird flu strain strikes 1st person in US

(Tim Graham via Getty Images)

An inmate of a Colorado state prison has become the first person in the U.S. to test positive for a strain of H5N1 bird flu that's currently spreading in birds around the world.

The man, a prisoner at a state correctional facility in Delta County in western Colorado, tested positive with H5N1 flu after handling infected poultry at a farm in nearby Montrose County, the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment announced on Thursday (April 28). The man is isolating while being treated with the influenza antiviral drug oseltamivir. The risk posed to the public is low given that this virus does not usually infect humans or spread between people, according to the department.

Full Story: Live Science (4/29)

In the Sky

Black Moon solar eclipse looks otherworldly in stunning images

(timeanddate)

A rare solar eclipse Saturday (April 30) stunned viewers across Antarctica, the southern tip of South America, and the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans.

While much of the event took place in remote areas, live cameras on Earth and satellites in space allowed people around the world to witness the moon blocking as much as 64% of the sun. The eclipse happened during a Black Moon, which is the second new moon in a single month.

Full Story: Live Science (5/1)

Curious Creatures

Newfound species of wee frogs found in Mexico can fit on your fingertip

(Jeffrey W. Streicher)

Six newly-described species of miniature frogs from Mexico and Guatemala are so tiny that each can fit comfortably on a human thumbnail. Two of the species are smaller than 0.7 inches (18 millimeters) long, and the tiniest of them — Craugastor candelariensis — is Mexico's smallest frog, measuring no more than 0.5 inches (13 mm) long.

The wee frogs live in moist leaf litter on forest floors and are known as direct-developing frogs, which means that they don't undergo a tadpole stage as part of their life cycle, the researchers who described the species wrote in a new study. Rather, the frogs hatch from eggs as miniature versions of their adult forms.

Full Story: Live Science (4/30)