Dit is ons nieuw hondje Kira, een kruising van een waterhond en een Podenko. Ze is sinds 7 februari 2024 bij ons en druk bezig ons hart te veroveren. Het is een lief, aanhankelijk hondje, dat zich op een week snel aan ons heeft aangepast. Ze is heel vinnig en nieuwsgierig, een heel ander hondje dan Noleke.
This is our new dog Kira, a cross between a water dog and a Podenko. She has been with us since February 7, 2024 and is busy winning our hearts. She is a sweet, affectionate dog who quickly adapted to us within a week. She is very quick and curious, a very different dog than Noleke.
DEAR VISITOR,
MY BLOG EXISTS ALREADY 13 YEARS AND 2 MONTH.
ON 06/08/2024 MORE THAN 2.161.100
VISITORS FROM 135 DIFFERENT NATIONS ALREADY FOUND THEIR WAY TO MY BLOG.
THAT IS AN AVERAGE OF 400GUESTS PER DAY.
THANK YOU FOR VISITING MY BLOG AND HOPE YOU ENJOY EACH TIME.
The purpose of this blog is the creation of an open, international, independent and free forum, where every UFO-researcher can publish the results of his/her research. The languagues, used for this blog, are Dutch, English and French.You can find the articles of a collegue by selecting his category. Each author stays resposable for the continue of his articles. As blogmaster I have the right to refuse an addition or an article, when it attacks other collegues or UFO-groupes.
Druk op onderstaande knop om te reageren in mijn forum
Zoeken in blog
Deze blog is opgedragen aan mijn overleden echtgenote Lucienne.
In 2012 verloor ze haar moedige strijd tegen kanker!
In 2011 startte ik deze blog, omdat ik niet mocht stoppen met mijn UFO-onderzoek.
BEDANKT!!!
Een interessant adres?
UFO'S of UAP'S, ASTRONOMIE, RUIMTEVAART, ARCHEOLOGIE, OUDHEIDKUNDE, SF-SNUFJES EN ANDERE ESOTERISCHE WETENSCHAPPEN - DE ALLERLAATSTE NIEUWTJES
UFO's of UAP'S in België en de rest van de wereld In België had je vooral BUFON of het Belgisch UFO-Netwerk, dat zich met UFO's bezighoudt. BEZOEK DUS ZEKER VOOR ALLE OBJECTIEVE INFORMATIE , enkel nog beschikbaar via Facebook en deze blog.
Verder heb je ook het Belgisch-Ufo-meldpunt en Caelestia, die prachtig, doch ZEER kritisch werk leveren, ja soms zelfs héél sceptisch...
Voor Nederland kan je de mooie site www.ufowijzer.nl bezoeken van Paul Harmans. Een mooie site met veel informatie en artikels.
MUFON of het Mutual UFO Network Inc is een Amerikaanse UFO-vereniging met afdelingen in alle USA-staten en diverse landen.
MUFON's mission is the analytical and scientific investigation of the UFO- Phenomenon for the benefit of humanity...
Je kan ook hun site bekijken onder www.mufon.com.
Ze geven een maandelijks tijdschrift uit, namelijk The MUFON UFO-Journal.
Since 02/01/2020 is Pieter ex-president (=voorzitter) of BUFON, but also ex-National Director MUFON / Flanders and the Netherlands. We work together with the French MUFON Reseau MUFON/EUROP.
ER IS EEN NIEUWE GROEPERING DIE ZICH BUFON NOEMT, MAAR DIE HEBBEN NIETS MET ONZE GROEP TE MAKEN. DEZE COLLEGA'S GEBRUIKEN DE NAAM BUFON VOOR HUN SITE... Ik wens hen veel succes met de verdere uitbouw van hun groep. Zij kunnen de naam BUFON wel geregistreerd hebben, maar het rijke verleden van BUFON kunnen ze niet wegnemen...
02-07-2024
Alien structures on Mercury, NASA source in 4k, UFO Sighting News.
Alien structures on Mercury, NASA source in 4k, UFO Sighting News.
Guys, you got to see this video of a focused alien building on Mercury I found a few years ago. I decided to have AI focus it and it's just melting my brain at what I discovered. Please subscribe to my youtube channel. Thanks
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- Gemiddelde waardering: 0/5 - (0 Stemmen) Categorie:Ruins, strange artifacts on other planets, moons, ed ( Fr, EN, NL )
Another Baltic Sea UAP off Santa Monica, California, Google map, UFO Sighting News.
Another Baltic Sea UAP off Santa Monica, California, Google map, UFO Sighting News.
I found this UFO that measures 30 meters below the ocean off the coast of Santa Monica, California. I'm not sure why no-one else has ever seen it, but it's there, go check for yourself. 100% proof that aliens have visited earth.
Tall White Base Below Area 51 Found! Indian Springs Area! Google Earth Map - UFO Sighting News.
Tall White Base Below Area 51 Found! Indian Springs Area! Google Earth Map - UFO Sighting News.
Date of discovery: June 30, 2024
Location of discovery: 40 miles South of Area 51
Coordinates: 36°39'3.68"N 115°41'39.83"W
Ok, Charles Hall who worked with the USAF and Tall White aliens said the location of their base was the top area of Indian springs...in the old firing range...this is it! We found the location of a landing area where the entrance to the base will be. The base is 2-5 miles below the ground and can only be accessed at this point. 100% proof that Tall Whites exist and Charles Hall was telling the truth in his interviews on TV. See video location in my video I made today.
Massive triangle UFO over city: Eyewitnesses and photographic proof!
Massive triangle UFO over city: Eyewitnesses and photographic proof!
In this video, we delve into an extraordinary UFO sighting over Puerto Rico that left witnesses in awe. On May 15, 2005, an immense triangular object, comparable to the size of two ballparks, was photographed in Carolina, Puerto Rico. Witnesses reported the UFO caused their vehicle's engine and lights to fail as it silently passed overhead.
Editor's note: The UFO resembles the infamous TR-3B antigravity craft but given the size of the UFO compared to the size of TR-3B it is possible that the witnesses saw a real UFO.
(The TR-3B: This craft uses highly pressured mercury accelerated by nuclear energy to produce a plasma that creates a field of anti-gravity around the ship. Conventional thrusters located at the tips of the craft allow it to perform all manner of rapid high speed maneuvers along all three axes. Interestingly, the plasma generated also reduces radar signature significantly. So it'll be almost invisible on radar and remain undetected.)
We analyze the photographic evidence, recount the firsthand experiences, and explore the potential electromagnetic effects of this mysterious craft.
Antarctica’s Hidden Aliens: Government Secrets Unveiled!
Antarctica’s Hidden Aliens: Government Secrets Unveiled!
Are you ready to uncover the astonishing secrets about the alleged alien base under Antarctica? This theory has intrigued UFO enthusiasts and conspiracy theorists for decades, suggesting that extraterrestrial beings have been living beneath the icy surface, hidden from the public eye by government secrecy. Here, we delve into the riveting accounts and evidence that challenge our understanding of Earth’s most remote continent.
The Alleged Encounter of Admiral Richard Byrd
One of the most compelling pieces of this puzzle involves Admiral Richard Byrd, a notable U.S. Naval officer and explorer. Byrd was one of the first pilots to fly over both the North and South Poles. His participation in Operation High Jump, the largest expedition to Antarctica, is at the heart of this conspiracy. In 1946, Byrd led an impressive fleet consisting of 13 ships, 23 aircraft, and over 4,500 military personnel on a mission that lasted four months. The official objectives included military training, scientific research, and the search for potential Nazi bases.
However, Byrd’s diary, reportedly found by his son years later, suggests a startling discovery during this expedition. According to the diary, Byrd and his team found an entrance to an underground world at the South Pole. Inside, they encountered a temperate, lush environment, reminiscent of a tropical rainforest, complete with crystalline cities. They were soon met by advanced, disc-shaped aircraft that took control of their planes and guided them to land. Here, Byrd claimed to have met an alien leader referred to as “master,” who expressed disappointment in humanity’s use of nuclear weapons during World War II.
Project Stargate and Remote Viewing
Adding to the intrigue is Project Stargate, a CIA initiative launched in 1978 during the Cold War. This project aimed to use psychic spies to gather intelligence through a technique called remote viewing. Patrick Price, one such psychic, allegedly reported seeing an alien base inside Mount Hayes, Alaska, where extraterrestrials were collaborating with military personnel in a sophisticated research facility. Price’s sudden and mysterious death following this revelation has fueled speculation about a potential government cover-up.
UFOs and Nuclear Sites
The theory extends beyond these encounters, suggesting a link between UFO sightings and nuclear sites. Many UFO sightings have been reported near nuclear launch sites and military bases, raising questions about the aliens’ motives. The narrative proposes that these extraterrestrial beings are monitoring human activities, particularly our use of nuclear weapons, out of concern for Earth’s future.
Government Suppression and Public Skepticism
The idea that governments are hiding information about extraterrestrial life is a common theme in UFO conspiracy theories. Byrd’s alleged encounter, for instance, was supposedly kept secret by the military to avoid mass panic. Similarly, the abrupt end to Patrick Price’s life after his remote viewing sessions hints at possible efforts to silence those who come too close to the truth.
While these stories are captivating, they lack concrete evidence and rely heavily on anecdotal accounts and speculative connections. The theories about an alien base in Antarctica or extraterrestrials working with the U.S. military are intriguing but should be approached with a critical mind.
As we continue to explore the mysteries of our world and beyond, it is essential to distinguish between verified facts and imaginative speculation. Whether or not there are hidden aliens in Antarctica, the fascination with such possibilities reflects our enduring curiosity about the unknown and the potential for discovering advanced civilizations beyond our own.
Stay tuned to Lab 360 for the latest revelations in space exploration and keep questioning the world around you.
Approximately 3 million years ago, during the Pliocene epoch, atmospheric carbon dioxide levels were similar to today. Global temperatures averaged about 2 to 3 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels (a temperature increase we’re on track for in coming decades, unless we significantly reduce global greenhouse gas emissions). And the global mean sea level was upwards of 65 feet higher than present, thanks to ice melt. That’s right: 65 feet higher, an increase that would submerge most of the state of Florida, and nearly all of New York City.
Yet most current-day models of sea level rise don’t indicate we’re headed towards anything like 65 feet of sea level rise in the near-future, even at 2 to 3 C of warming. The discrepancy between past and future projection has been an unsettling mystery for climate and ocean scientists for years. Many researchers in the field think the answer comes down to incomplete and inaccurate models. New study findings could be part of solving the puzzle.
The world’s ice sheets are subject to a never-before-identified and worrying climate tipping point, according to the study published June 25 in the journal Nature Geoscience. The discovery, based on a novel mathematical and computer model of ice melt and seawater movement, means we could be in for far more sea level rise in coming years than previously forecasted. “Our projections of sea level rise might be significant underestimates,” said Alex Bradley, lead researcher and a climate scientist with the British Antarctic Survey (BAS), in a press statement.
Here’s how: Coastal ice sheets are made up of floating shelves and grounded sections. This is where ice sits directly on land. In between is the so-called “grounding zone.” Ocean water rushing beneath the grounding zone triggers melt, which can change the structure of the ice mass, subsequently allowing more water to intrude farther and faster in a feedback loop, according to the new analysis. Generally, models assume that all ice sheets have a point of stability where they’ll stop receding, based on the topography of the land that underlies them. Thanks to gravity, it’s hard for water to flow uphill. But the new assessment suggests that, with enough warming and melt progression widening the grounding zone, ocean water will be able to continue intruding deep beneath ice sheets, even upslope.
Climate tipping points occur when a relatively small shift in something like temperature or atmospheric carbon rapidly leads to an outsized impact. In this case, climatologists behind the new research found that subtle increases in ocean warming could lead to very large ice losses and sea level rise. For every ice sheet, including the pivotal expanse of ice that covers Antarctica and contains about 6 million cubic miles of water, there is a point of ocean warming where that feedback loop of melt, structural shifts, and more melt will become a “runaway” process. At a certain ocean temperature, refreezing ice can’t make up for the losses, triggering “dramatic changes” in ice sheet behavior, according to the researchers’ analysis.
Making matters worse, the researchers suggest there will be little warning that Antarctica and other ice sheets are nearing their individual grounding-zone tipping points. Such changes will be “hard to detect…until the tipping point is passed,” they write. The resulting, fated sea level rise would unfold relatively quickly, on the order of decades to centuries.
“This is missing physics, which isn’t in our ice sheet models,” Bradley said, adding that BAS scientists are now working to incorporate it into revised models.
Surprisingly, the Thwaites “Doomsday Glacier” is less at risk of passing this particular tipping point than other ice shelves, per the assessment. (Though seawater intrusion is causing Thwaites to melt faster than expected, according to another recent study.) But other shelves like the Pine Island glacier, which is already Antarctica’s largest contributor to sea level rise, are highly susceptible.
The analysis offers just one initial and simplified model, which doesn’t account for all of the factors relevant for ice sheet melt. For instance, tides aren’t part of the researchers’ equations. And the scientists don’t expect melt triggered by intrusion to proceed indefinitely. Nonetheless, the findings are alarming.
“With every tenth of a degree of ocean warming, we get closer and closer to passing this tipping point, and each tenth of a degree is linked to the amount of climate change that takes place,” Bradley told The Guardian. “We need very dramatic action to restrict the amount of warming that takes place and prevent this tipping point from being passed.” The only way to stop such melt in its tracks is to halt the largest single driver of climate change and rapidly transition away from burning fossil fuels.
NASA Releases a New 3D Animation of the Lunar Gateway
A detailed 3D animation of NASA's Gateway space station, showcasing its modules and structural components from various angles against the backdrop of deep space. NASA/Bradley Reynolds, Alberto Bertolin
NASA Releases a New 3D Animation of the Lunar Gateway
To get to the Moon, NASA is building a Lunar Gateway in orbit to facilitate easier access to the Moon. With construction beginning in 2028 as part of Artemis IV there will be an ongoing programme of enhancements and additions. NASA has now released a fabulous new 3D animation of the Lunar Gateway to showcase what the final Gateway will look like. It includes modules from partner nations and an Orion lunar landers dock to carry astronauts.
NASA’s Artemis program marks a historic return to lunar exploration following on from the Apollo era. It aims to land “the first woman and the next man” on the Moon by 2025 and heralds a new era of space exploration focused on sustainability and international collaboration. This ambitious project will use advanced technologies, including the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket and the Orion spacecraft, to establish a long-term human presence on the surface of the Moon. The program also aims to develop the Lunar Gateway, a space station orbiting the Moon, to support missions and serve as a staging point for future expeditions to Mars.
Stacking SLS for Artemis 1. Credit: NASA/Cory Huston
The purpose of the Lunar Gateway is to facilitate the exploration of the many scientific mysteries of deep space with Gateway’s first lunar space station. Starting with the Artemis IV mission in 2028, the international teams of astronauts will live, conducting science, and preparing for various lunar missions to the South Pole.
NASA has released a fabulous computer generated video of the Gateway showing its exterior form in amazing detail. You can view the video here.
A detailed 3D animation of NASA's Gateway space station, showcasing its modules and structural components from various angles against the backdrop of deep space.
NASA/Bradley Reynolds, Alberto Bertolin
The propulsion and power systems are prominent in the video and with the solar array will make the most powerful solar electric spacecraft ever flown. The array will power the station’s systems and even ionise the xenon gas that will produce thrust using an ion system to maintain the spacecrafts polar orbit.
At the hub of the spacecraft though is the Habitation and Logistics Outpost otherwise known as HALO! This element controls and commands the spacecraft and provides communication links back to Earth and the lunar surface. It has been provided by the European Space Station (ESA) and will also support life support systems, exercise equipment and science payload banks.
Another element provided by ESA with support from the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) is the environmental control and life support systems. Without it, life on board simply would not survive.
There are a whole host of other systems on bard from a refuelling capability to ensure the power and propulsion system is topped up, a crew and science airlock system, science payloads and much more.
Determining the Safest Martian Caves for Future Astronauts
Image of a lava tube skylight entrance on the Martian volcano Pavonis Mons obtained by NASA’s HiRISE camera onboard the Mars reconnaissance Orbiter. (Credit: NASA/JPL/University of Arizona)
Determining the Safest Martian Caves for Future Astronauts
When astronauts land on Mars someday, they might have tolive in lava caves or lava tubes to survive the harsh radiation that rains down on the Martian surface every second. But which caves could offer them the best chance of survival? This is what arecent studypresented at the 55th Lunar and Planetary Science Conference hopes to address as Dr. Anatoliy P. Vidmachenko from the National University of Life and Environmental Sciences of Ukraine investigated where, how, and why lava tubes and lava caves could aid future Mars astronauts regarding their survival. This study holds the potential to help scientists and engineers help mitigate risks for future Mars astronauts and what steps that need to be taken to make that a reality.
For the study, Dr. Vidmachenko examined several locations across Mars that have been found to possess lava caves and lava tubes suitable for future first-time settlements, including Arsia Mons, which is one of three extinct volcanoes that comprise Tharsis Montes. It is here that a 2007 study presented at the 38th Lunar and Planetary Science Conference discussed seven alleged skylights observed from orbital images that were later interpreted to be entrances to lava caves. This recent study mentions that the diameters of these lava caves could be between 100-250 meters (328-820 feet) wide.
“Such reliable caves can be used to create the first permanent settlements,” the study notes. “They will allow you to reliably protect yourself from powerful radiation exposure. And a certain drawback will be the need to organize the delivery of water ice to provide the settlers with water resources and raw materials for extracting the much-needed oxygen and hydrogen fuel for rocket engines.”
The study mentions several other locations across Mars where pits or skylights have been observed, including Hebrus Valles, the Pavonis volcano, Ascraeus Mons, Acidalia Planitia (whose surface location was featured The Martian), and Cydonia Mensae. Additionally, the study discusses how lava channels, caves, or tubes close to sources of water ice would also prove beneficial for future astronauts, which could significantly reduce the costs of shipping and storing water on their spacecraft for the initial journey to Mars.
“The best case would be a lava tube with strong walls found next to powerful glacial structures,” the study notes. “The colony itself, most likely, will have the appearance of separate premises, with residential, engineering, elevator and greenhouse compartments. They will have to be connected to each other by small transition tunnels to control the pressure and composition of the artificially created atmosphere in them.”
Lava tubes were featured prominently in the National Geographic television series, Mars, which depicted the first astronauts to the Red Planet and their quest to survive the harsh environment. During their journey, lava tubes provided shelter from the cosmic and solar radiation while also having large deposits of water ice at their disposal which they used for drinking and rocket fuel while drastically reducing the amount of water they initially had to bring during their journey.
The reason why cosmic and solar radiation rains down on to the Martian surface daily is due to the lack of protective ozone layer and magnetic field that exists on Earth and helps deflect this deadly radiation from reaching our surface, enabling life to exist here for billions of years. While Mars might have had both mechanisms billions of years ago, the interior of the Red Planet has since cooled drastically, causing these protective features to be stripped away by the solar wind and lost to space.
This study comes as NASA plans to send humans back to the Moon for the first time in over 50 years, and eventually Mars, as part of the agency’s Moon to Mars Architecture. Therefore, adequate preparation prior to sending the first astronauts to the Red Planet would prove beneficial in increasing their chances of survival throughout the entire journey, and this study highlighted several ways lava tubes could do just that.
How will lava caves help future Mars astronauts in the coming years and decades? Only time will tell, and this is why we science!
Zijn er andere planeten zoals die van ons? De zoektocht naar buitenaards leven houdt de wereld al tientallen jaren bezig. Terwijl telescopen naar de hemel kijken en de uithoeken van de ruimte afspeuren, leggen sondes zoals Voyager 1 ongelofelijke afstanden af in de hoop buitenaards leven te vinden. Maar waar kan zulk leven gevonden worden? Wat zijn de ideale omstandigheden voor buitenaardse wezens om in te leven? En hoe vergelijkbaar zijn hun planeten met die van ons?
LEES door deze galerij om de antwoorden te vinden die verborgen liggen in de interstellaire ruimte.
Waar te beginnen met zoeken? Er zijn naar schatting een septiljoen sterren in het bekende heelal (dat is een 1 gevolgd door 24 nullen!). En om elk van deze sterren kunnen wel een dozijn planeten draaien. Dus hoe kunnen we buitenaards leven vinden? De eerste stap is om het dichter bij huis te zoeken.
De aarde en haar omstandigheden De aarde is astronomisch gezien de perfecte plek om te leven. Het bestaan van water en een stabiele atmosfeer heeft een ideale omgeving gecreëerd waarin leven kan floreren.
De bewoonbare zone De afstand van een planeet tot zijn ster is cruciaal voor het begrijpen van de leefbaarheid van een planeet. De aarde bevindt zich perfect in wat de bewoonbare zone wordt genoemd, waar de omstandigheden niet te warm of te koud zijn om te kunnen leven.
De 'Goldilocks zone' De bewoonbare zone wordt in het engels ook wel de 'Goldilocks zone' genoemd, vernoemd naar het sprookje. In het verhaal kiest Goudlokje tussen drie sets van items en negeert de items die te extreem zijn (groot of klein, warm of koud), in plaats daarvan neemt ze genoegen met het item dat "precies goed" is.
Venus Venus, dat qua massa vergelijkbaar is met de aarde, staat te dicht bij de zon om levensvatbaar te zijn. Planeetwetenschappers denken dat Venus ooit water aan het oppervlak heeft gehad, maar dat de planeet verstikt is door kooldioxide en een temperatuur van 462°C.
Mogelijkheden beperken Door de criteria voor de bewoonbare zone te begrijpen, konden astronomen achterhalen dat er zo'n 40 miljard planeten in de bewoonbare zones van de Melkweg zouden kunnen draaien.
In de sterren geschreven Tot nu toe hebben astronomen slechts 1.780 planeten buiten ons zonnestelsel kunnen bevestigen. En van al die planeten bevinden zich er maar 16 in hun bewoonbare zones.
Te groot of te klein Maar het is niet genoeg voor een planeet om zich op de juiste afstand van een ster te bevinden. De grootte doet er ook zeker toe. Een kleine planeet kan geen atmosfeer behouden, terwijl een te grote planeet een verpletterende atmosfeer zal hebben.
De aarde als schaal Om de juiste atmosferische druk te hebben, moet een planeet tussen 0,1 en 10 keer de massa van de aarde hebben. Dit is een zeer smalle bewoonbare zone, zeker als je bedenkt hoeveel planeten in het heelal honderden keren groter zijn dan de aarde.
Gliese 581c In 2007 werd de wetenschappelijke gemeenschap verblijd met het nieuws over Gliese 581c, de eerste superaarde in de bewoonbare zone. Al snel werd ontdekt dat de omstandigheden aan het oppervlak van de planeet veel leken op die van Venus.
Kepler-186f In 2014 werd een exoplaneet ter grootte van de aarde ontdekt die Kepler-186f heet en in de bewoonbare zone van een rode dwergster rondcirkelt. Astronomen proberen nog steeds vast te stellen of de planeet leefbaar is.
Proxima Centauri b De exoplaneet die het dichtst bij de aarde staat is Proxima Centauri b. Deze planeet draait rond de ster die het dichtst bij de zon staat, op een afstand van ongeveer vier lichtjaar. Hoewel het een gouden planeet is, weten wetenschappers niet zeker of het ook een atmosfeer heeft.
Andere belangrijke criteria Hoewel de bewoonbare zone en de atmosfeer van een planeet belangrijk zijn om de bewoonbaarheid te begrijpen, is dat zeker niet alles. Planeten moeten aan een groot aantal andere criteria voldoen, waaronder het vermogen om vloeibaar water te bevatten.
Mars Mars is de enige andere planeet in ons zonnestelsel die zich binnen de bewoonbare zone bevindt. Maar de juiste atmosferische druk is alleen te vinden op de lage punten van de planeet en er is nog geen bewijs dat de planeet vloeibaar water heeft.
Droge planeten Hypothetisch gezien zouden droge planeten water kunnen vasthouden via oases. Dit zou betekenen dat zulke planeten dichter bij een ster en buiten de bewoonbare zone kunnen draaien.
Oceaanplaneten Er bestaat een theorie dat de oceanen op aarde zijn ontstaan nadat ijslichamen op onze planeet insloegen en vervolgens smolten. Er zouden nog meer van zulke planeten kunnen bestaan.
Manen Natuurlijke satellieten van planeten, of manen, zouden ook bewoonbaar kunnen zijn. Maar deze manen moeten zich binnen de bewoonbare zone van hun gastheerplaneten bevinden en ze moeten ver genoeg rond hun planeet draaien, zodat ze geen vulkanische planeten worden zoals Jupiters maan, Io.
Europa De op drie na grootste maan van Jupiter, Europa, zou een wateroceaan onder het oppervlak van de planeet bevatten, welke mogelijk buitenaards leven zou kunnen herbergen.
Magnetische velden Het magnetische veld van de aarde is een voorbeeld van een ander belangrijk criterium dat de levensvatbaarheid bepaalt, omdat het het oppervlak van de planeet beschermt tegen straling en kosmische stralen. Andere planeten zouden een vergelijkbaar veld moeten hebben om complex leven te kunnen laten floreren.
Zonnetweeling Tot op de dag van vandaag hebben astronomen nog geen ster kunnen vinden die op de zon lijkt, een fenomeen dat een zonnetweeling wordt genoemd. Dit heeft het de wetenschappelijke gemeenschap moeilijker gemaakt om buitenaards leven te vinden dat op het onze lijkt.
Buitenaards leven Maar welke soorten buitenaards leven zouden we kunnen vinden? Het is algemeen aangenomen dat op koolstof gebaseerde levensvormen de enige levensvatbare manieren zijn waarop leven kan bestaan.
Koolstof-chauvinisme Veel wetenschappers hebben kritiek geuit op het idee dat buitenaards leven gebaseerd moet zijn op koolstof. Hypothetisch gezien zouden buitenaardse wezens uit heel andere elementen kunnen bestaan die hen in staat stellen om op plekken te overleven die voor mensen onherbergzaam zijn.
Titan Titan, de grootste maan van Saturnus, bezit koolwaterstofmeren die mogelijk leven zouden kunnen ondersteunen. Titan is het enige andere object in de ruimte waarvan is ontdekt dat het oppervlak vloeistof bevat.
Zijn we uniek, of alleen de eerste? Natuurkundige Enrico Fermi (1901-1954) kwam met de theorie dat we nog geen buitenaards leven zijn tegengekomen omdat intelligent leven ofwel zeldzaam is, ofwel nog maar net was onstaan in het universum.
Dicht bij het einde Andere natuurkundigen hebben beweerd dat we nog geen buitenaards leven hebben gevonden omdat we al te laat zijn. In feite zeggen ze dat de meeste buitenaardse wezens al dood zijn en dat het heelal te ver uitbreidt om hun overblijfselen nog te kunnen vinden.
Het Grote Filter Veel antropologen en astronomen geloven dat de mensheid alleen is in het universum, vanwege Het Grote Filter. Dit betekent in feite dat er zoveel onwaarschijnlijke stappen nodig zijn voor leven om intelligentie te ontwikkelen, dat het onwaarschijnlijk is dat dit nog eens zal gebeuren.
De 'dierentuin hypothese' Andere wetenschappers veronderstellen dat buitenaards leven wel degelijk bestaat, maar dat ze de mensheid vermijden om ons primitieve bestaan zonder tussenkomst te laten verlopen. Hoe dan ook, de ruimte is een grote grens die heel goed buitenaards leven zou kunnen herbergen.
Bronnen:
(National Geographic)
(NASA)
(Astronomy.com)
(Earth How)
(Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences)
UFOs as ’bright as the sun’ spotted over Winipeg River in Canada
(Pixabay/kalhh)
A Canadian couple spotted two glowing UFOs above the Winipeg river, while driving through Fort Alexander on May 14. Justin Stevenson, and his wife Danielle Daniels-Stevenson spotted mysterious orbs with glowing yellow lights.
The objects, described “as bright as the sun,” were flying southwards above the river’s north shore before they disappeared behind a cloud.
“ Like being in a sci-fi movie," with the objects appearing as "super bright like a fire in the sky," Stevenson described his experience, who is a self-proclaimed fanatic of extraterrestrial life.
UFOs SPOTTED: WATCH VIDEO
A report by the New York Post mentions that the encounter has led Stevenson to believe there is life beyond earth. “I was sceptical before I saw this but now this has given me the proof I need that there's something out there other than humans,” said Stevenson, reported the NY Post.
While one user claimed it could be a “drone or a UFO,” someone else offered a more logical and analytical explanation, mentioning that a “swamp gas from a weather balloon was trapped in a thermal pocket and refracted the light from Venus.”
Another user was disappointed and expected more footage. “Why did you stop recording,” the person commented.
Increase in UFO sightings in Canada
Canada has witnessed a surge in "UFO sightings", with at least 17 reports filed in 2023.
In February 2023, a user on X had mentioned about Uruguayan Airforce being on red alert in South America, after spotting “spotting bright aerial vehicles in formation.”
Pilots and crews from airlines such as WestJet, Air France and British Airways, have further mentioned unexplained sightings. In February 2023, two airlines came forward with a strange account on the sky over Quebec, with one crew member describing the phenomenon as "a bit weird". The sightings are documented in an online aviation incident database maintained by Transport Canada, reported the NDTV.
UFOs: From psychology to air traffic, are we closer than ever to an answer?
UFOs: From psychology to air traffic, are we closer than ever to an answer?
By Shola Lee, BBC News
BBC/Twenty Twenty Productions LtdSian Eleri, pictured, investigates alleged UFO sightings in the late 1970s and early 1980s
As the new series of the BBC's Paranormal looks into alleged UFO sightings, one aerospace expert says accessible, modern technology puts us in a stronger position than ever to work out what's going on in the skies above us.
It was a rainy day in Pembrokeshire in February 1977 when a group of pupils from Broad Haven Primary School claimed to see an unidentified flying object (UFO) outside.
David Davies, who was just 10 at the time, remembers his fellow students coming inside throughout the day "trying to alert the headmaster that there was something strange going on".
The schoolboy was sure there was a logical explanation for what they had seen. "My intention was to go out there and completely prove them wrong," David says.
But when he went to investigate, he says he saw a "silver, cigar-shaped object" about the size of a bus, with a domed upper section and a "red pulsating glow" on top.
"I had this overwhelming urge to run away," David says of the sighting that lasted about 10 seconds.
BBC/Twenty Twenty Productions Ltd
David Davies was one of the children from Broad Haven Primary School who claimed to see a UFO in 1977
This event in south-west Wales is explored in the latest series of the BBC's Paranormal. Across four episodes, host Sian Eleri investigates alleged UFO sightings in the late 1970s and early 1980s.
And one aerospace expert tells the BBC that in 2024, thanks to everyone having a phone in their pocket and many people using apps to follow air traffic, we are in "a much stronger position to be able to track what's known and what's unknown".
So is there a simple explanation for why we see UFOs? And should they be investigated?
'A lot of UFO hunting'
UFOs have held our attention for decades, ever since reports of alleged extraterrestrial debris in Roswell, New Mexico in 1947, the movie The Flying Saucer being released three years later and the Space Race between the United States and the Soviet Union gaining steam throughout 1950s.
And stories about alien life would go on to influence popular culture in the years to come, from Steven Spielberg's Oscar-winning E.T. in 1982, to The X Files first airing in 1993 and even recent additions like Jordan Peele's 2022 film Nope feeding into the cultural obsession.
Dr Ciaran O'Keeffe - the head of the school of human and social sciences at Buckinghamshire New University - says there was also a "huge peak of interest" in UFO sightings around the 1980s that resulted in "a lot of UFO hunting".
BBC/Twenty Twenty Productions Ltd
The children at the Broad Haven Primary School were asked to draw what they had seen
Reported sightings were covered by media around the world - and the alleged sighting at Broad Haven Primary School was picked up by publications as far as New Zealand.
The Broad Haven incident was one of a wave of sightings in the area in 1977 - dubbed the Dyfed Triangle. In the past, a number of theories have been put forward to explain them, including the work of a "local prankster".
While sightings like the one in Broad Haven captured mass attention, Dr O'Keeffe says there may be plausible explanations.
"The key fundamental psychological explanation for what's going on is around eyewitness testimony," says Dr O'Keeffe, who also consults on the BBC's Uncanny, adding that eyewitness testimony can be prone to errors.
"The nature of the interviewing of an eyewitness can distort the memory of the event significantly," he adds, especially if the questioning of a witness is poor. For example, leading questions and exposure to media coverage of an event can be distorting factors.
BBC/Twenty Twenty Productions Ltd
The children reportedly drew near identical images of the UFO, which captured widespread media attention
However, the UFO sighting at Broad Haven Primary School was not just one eyewitness, it was a group of pupils. Here, Dr O'Keeffe explains the idea of "contagion" and group conformity could be behind a mass UFO sighting.
"Contagion is this idea that thoughts, feelings and behaviours can spread amongst a group of people," Dr O'Keeffe says.
However, David feels he can "rule out" these psychological explanations for the 1977 sighting after the children reportedly drew near identical images of the UFO they had seen.
Before the incident, David adds, he did not have a "big interest in Sci-Fi". But in the years that followed, he would spend thousands of pounds on books and research materials to understand what happened.
'Not always publicised'
Dr Ryan Marks, an aerospace engineer who appears in Paranormal, says air traffic in the sky could also offer plausible explanations for UFO sightings, particularly around built-up areas where there are airfields.
According to the RAF Museum, between 1970 and 1990 there were five airfields in south Wales, with one being used as a missile testing range.
"There's a huge amount of air traffic at any one time and that's obviously increased over the last 40 years," Dr Marks explains, adding that there is "always a level of military activity" in the sky and that "not all of this is always publicised".
In March this year, for example, a US government report concluded that UFO sightings in the US in the 1950s and 1960s were caused by tests of advanced spy planes and space technology.
BBC/Twenty Twenty Productions Ltd
Dr Marks says today a lot of air traffic movements are recorded using apps
Around the mid-1970s to early 1980s, Dr Marks says developments were taking place in the UK exploring hot air balloons and airships - and some "would resemble traditional UFOs".
He notes, however, these were "small-scale" experiments that did not get outside of the air hangar.
Today, Dr Marks says, "a lot of air traffic movements are recorded," with free-to-download apps able to identify a plane, where it has come from and its destination. This "digital fingerprint" makes it a lot easier to track what is going on in the sky, he explains.
For his part, David remains confident in his UFO sighting.
"Unless somebody can explain to me what type of aircraft was flying at that time, that was 45-feet long, cigar-shaped and silver - I have no explanation for it," he says, adding that believing in UFOs can sometimes be "like you're banging your head against a brick wall, against society".
"It's still being dismissed as nonsense," he says.
The Ministry of Defence (MOD) closed their UFO desk in 2009 after saying it served no defence purpose and was taking staff away from more valuable defence-related activities.
In a statement, an MOD spokesperson added: "In over 50 years, no sightings of extraterrestrial intelligence, Unidentified Flying Objects and Unidentified Aerial Phenomena reported to us indicated the existence of any military threat to the United Kingdom."
UAP over Baytown, Texas on 6-25-2024, UFO Sighting News. It suddenly turns left into a cloud and flies away.
UAP over Baytown, Texas on 6-25-2024, UFO Sighting News. It suddenly turns left into a cloud and flies away.
Date of sighting: 6-25-2-24
Location of sighting: Baytown, Texas, USA
Now this was caught on a security cam this week and it not only shows a UFO but it shows a round sphere UFO that quickly flashes a bright green light in an attempt to fake eyewitnesses out and make them believe its a meteor. However the UFO then makes a hard left into the clouds and shoots away. Such maneuvers are impossible for meteors. The evidence is right there on security cam footage.
Could A Mound of Dust and Rock Protect Astronauts from Deadly Radiation?
Protecting the astronauts of the Artemis program is one of NASA’s highest priorities. The agency intends to have a long-term presence on the Moon, which means long-term exposure to dangerous radiation levels. As part of the development of the Artemis program, NASA also set limits to the radiation exposure that astronauts can suffer. Other hazards abound on the lunar surface, including a potential micrometeoroid strike, which could cause catastrophic damage to mission equipment or personnel. NASA built a team to design and develop a “Lunar Safe Haven” to protect from these hazards. Their working paper was released in 2022 but still stands as NASA’s best approach to long-term living on the lunar surface.
The two hazards mentioned above provided the primary impetus for the design, but there are some nuances to them—in particular, radiation. Astronauts will experience two main types of hazardous radiation on the lunar surface: cosmic rays and solar eruptions.
Cosmic rays are the more insidious of the two. They have a high energy range, so a shielding material that might work well for higher-energy particles might not do so for lower-energy ones. Moreover, some high-energy particles can interact with shielding, causing even more damaging radiation further down its path. Essentially, this increases the radiation risk inside the shielding compared to outside. The order in which the radiative particles are dealt with is one of the critical design considerations for dealing with this dangerous phenomenon.
Lunar regolith can be hard to deal with, as Fraser discusses with Dr. Kevin Cannon.
However, solar particle events (SPEs) are the more overtly dangerous of the two types of radiation. While rare, they can cause acute radiation sickness. Current astronauts must shelter in place inside a protected chamber on the ISS when these happen, and building something equivalent on the surface of the Moon is a necessity to ensure that astronauts don’t simply die of acute radiation poisoning within the first six months of arrival.
With the problems to solve firmly in hand, the design team moved on to other considerations—like what the habitat inside the LSH would actually look like and how it would be built. Consideration of the habitat shape focused on one primary distinction—should the habitat be horizontal or vertical? The answer is vertical based on modeling the risk of radiation and micrometeoroid strikes.
So, how do you build a structure around a vertical habitat on the Moon? You employ robots and remotely operated construction equipment. Other groups at NASA had been working on solutions like the Lightweight Surface Manipulation System (LSMS), essentially a large crane that can be constructed in lunar gravity, and the Lunar Attachment Node for Construction and Excavation (LANCE) – a bulldozer module designed to attach to the front of NASA’s Chariot exploration vehicle. Utilizing these ideas and other construction ideas, it’s possible to construct a protective dome of lunar regolith around a long-term habitat for the Artemis missions.
Fraser overviews the Artemis mission that LSH will attempt to help.
Such a protective habitat has significant advantages over digging one into the ground, which requires moving a massive amount of regolith or utilizing lava tubes with indeterminate structural integrity. But that means the LSH must have an above-ground design. The team developed two separate design ideas – a parabolic arch and a “Round Cake” design using polyethylene. The first is self-explanatory, but the second looks more like a typical cylinder with the radiation and micrometeoroid-blocking polyethylene stored in “beans” at the top of the structure. This could be made of waste materials from the mission, such as discarded food packaging.
Each design has advantages and disadvantages, and the team didn’t pick a final one as part of the paper. However, they did come up with a five-phase development process, from preparing the site in advance to living in interconnected habitats surrounded by regolith and protective shielding. Depending on the amount of automation involved and some real luck, those development phases could take anywhere from a few years to a few decades.
It remains to be seen if this system will be adopted as an official part of the Artemis program. But it serves a need of critical importance to humanity’s long-term existence on the Moon. If that is indeed NASA’s goal for the end of the 2030s, it would be good to consider how to start making the LSH a reality.
A video of a jellyfish-looking object flying over a military base was released by Jeremy Corbell during a docuseries. (Jeremy Corbell)
Screengrabs from Jeremy Corbell’s UFO video show the jellyfish-like object changing colour.
Jeremy Corbell/X
UFO whistleblowers are being threatened, and protections currently in place "are a joke," a congressman told Fox News Digital.
Lue Elizondo, who was the head of a secretive Pentagon unit that studied UFOs, said there have been threats against him and "several other whistleblowers formerly associated with the UAP [unidentified anomalous phenomena] effort for the U.S. Government."
"I would like to make this perfectly clear to the American people. I am not prone to accidents. I am not suicidal. I am not abusing drugs. I am not engaged in any illicit activities," Elizondo said in a statement to "The Good Trouble Show" on May 15.
"If something happens to me or my family members in the future, you will know what happened."
Left: Photograph of the supposed Westall UFO encounter where more than 200 students and teachers at two Victorian state schools in Australia allegedly witnessed a flying object which descended into a nearby open wild grass field in 1966. Right: Lue Elizondo, who was the head of a secretive Pentagon unit that studied UFOs, said there have been threats against him and "several other whistleblowers."
(Universal History Archive/Universal Images Group via Getty Images | Fox News )
Rep. Tim Burchett, R-Tenn., who has been one of the lawmakers leading the push for full UFO disclosure, is a personal friend of Elizondo.
"There is whistleblower protection, but it's a joke, and we know it's a joke," Burchett told Fox News Digital.
The congressman and Elizondo had dinner around the time Elizondo made it known he was being threatened.
He didn't detail what the threats were, or who made them, but Burchett expressed his anger and said he's "alarmed."
"If something happens to me or my family members in the future, you will know what happened."
— Lue Elizondo
Rep. Tim Burchett, R-Tenn., attends a hearing with the House Subcommittee on Railroads, Pipelines, and Hazardous Materials in the Rayburn House Office Building in Washington, D.C., on June 6, 2023.
(Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
"Lou is a dear friend of mine, and I take any threat against anybody seriously, especially against friends and somebody that has given so much to this country and to this issue [UFOs]," Burchett said.
"So, I'm very much aware of it, and I'm very much alarmed. I'm pursuing every avenue I can to get to the bottom of it."
The threats aimed at Elizondo and UFO whistleblowers aren't new, but are the latest in a disturbing trend.
Last July, David Grusch testified in front of Congress that his life was threatened and he was instructed to keep quiet about a secret government-run crashed UFO retrieval program.
From left: former Navy pilot Ryan Graves, former U.S. intelligence officer David Grusch and ex-Navy commander David Fravor testify before the House of Representatives subcommittee focused on UFOs in Washington, D.C., on July 26, 2023.
(House subcommittee on National Security, the Border and Foreign Affairs)
"I can't get into the specifics in an open forum but… what I personally witnessed myself and my wife was very disturbing," said Grusch, a former U.S. intelligence officer and Air Force veteran.
"I've faced brutal, unfortunate tactics" of retribution that he called "administrative terrorism."
Elizondo was the former senior leader of the Advanced Aerospace Threat Identification Program (AATIP), a shadow government program created "from the ashes of the AAWSAP (Advanced Aerospace Weapons System Application Program)," veteran journalist George Knapp wrote in his testimony to Congress.
Then-Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., started the program in 2009 to "investigate potential next generation aerospace technologies," according to a March report by the Pentagon's UFO-focused office called AARO (All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office).
The U.S. Navy filmed "pyramid-shaped" UFOs hovering over the USS Russell off the coast of California in July 2019.
(@JeremyCorbell)
Specifically, the AATIP was focused on advanced lift, propulsion, the use of unconventional materials and controls, and signature reduction.
"Although investigating UFO/UAP was not specifically outlined in the contract’s statement of work, the selected private sector organization conducted UFO research," AARO's report says.
"This research included: reviewing new cases and much older Project BLUE BOOK cases, operating debriefing and investigatory teams, and proposals to set up laboratories to examine any recovered UFO materials."
READ FULL PENTAGON UFO REPORT
The same report concluded that there was no evidence of aliens, alien technology or secret government-run reverse engineering programs.
It was met with sharp backlash from experts, scientists and lawmakers, who said the 63-page report was incomplete and filled with holes.
"The historical review is an attempt to rewrite history and obscure the basic fundamental facts about the UFO phenomenon," Jeremy Corbell, an investigative journalist and pivotal figure in the fight for UFO transparency, told Fox News Digital in March after the report was released.
Chris Eberhart is a crime and US news reporter for Fox News Digital. Email tips to chris.eberhart@fox.com or on Twitter @ChrisEberhart48.
Mars is Bombarded by Meteoroids At More Frequent Rates than Previously Thought
Mars is Bombarded by Meteoroids At More Frequent Rates than Previously Thought
Current impact rates at Mars could be 2-10 times higher than previously estimated, depending on the size of the meteoroids, according to new research.
Mars; the center of the scene shows the entire Valles Marineris canyon system.
Image credit: NASA Goddard Space Flight Center.
“It’s possible Mars is more geologically active than we thought, which holds implications for the age and evolution of the planet’s surface,” said Brown University’s Dr. Ingrid Daubar.
“Our results are based on a small number of examples available to us, but the estimate of the current impact rate suggests the planet is getting hit much more frequently than we can see using imaging alone.”
Dr. Daubar and colleagues used the highly sensitive seismometer onboard NASA’s InSight lander to identify eight new impact craters from meteoroids not previously seen from orbit.
The frequency of these cosmic collisions challenges existing notions about how often meteoroids hit the surface of Mars and suggests a need to revise current Martian cratering models to incorporate higher impact rates, especially from smaller meteoroids.
The findings could ultimately reshape current understandings of the Martian surface — as batterings from small meteoroids continue to sculpt it — and the impact history of not just Mars, but other planets.
“This is going to require us to rethink some of the models the science community uses to estimate the age of planetary surfaces throughout the entire Solar System,” Dr. Daubar said.
Six of the craters the researchers detected were near the site where the stationary InSight set down.
A meteoroid impact on Mars formed Martian craters, seen in blue, on September 5, 2021. NASA's InSight mission detected the impacts, and the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter imaged the craters.
NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona
NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter captured an image of a meteoroid impact that was later associated with a seismic event detected by the agency's InSight lander. This crater was formed on May 27, 2020.
NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona
The two distant impacts they identified from the data were the two biggest impacts ever detected by scientists, even after decades of watching from orbit.
The larger impacts, each leaving a crater roughly the size of a football field, came just 97 days apart, underscoring the higher frequency of these types of geological events.
“This size impact, we would expect to happen maybe once every couple of decades, maybe even once in a lifetime, but here we have two of them that are just over 90 days apart,” Dr. Daubar said.
“It could just be a crazy coincidence, but there’s a really, really small likelihood that it’s just coincidence.”
“What’s more likely is that either the two big impacts are related, or the impact rate is a lot higher for Mars than what we thought it was.”
“Planetary impacts are happening all across the Solar System all the time.”
“We’re interested in studying that on Mars because we can then compare and contrast what’s happening on Mars to what’s happening on the Earth,”
“This is important for understanding our Solar System, what’s in it and what the population of impacting bodies in our Solar System looks like — both as hazards to the Earth and also historically to other planets.”
The orbiter spotted a meteoroid impact that occurred on February 18, 2021. InSight tracked a seismic signal from the event.
NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona
InSight data was matched with photos from orbiters, such as this one of an impact crater created on August 30, 2021, to pin down when and where meteoroid strikes happen on the red planet.
NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona
The study appeared today in the journal Science Advances.
Ingrid J. Daubar et al. 2024. Seismically detected cratering on Mars: Enhanced recent impact flux? Science Advances 10 (26); doi: 10.1126/sciadv.adk7615
50-Minute Global UFO Sightings Compilation: Explore the Unexplained
50-Minute Global UFO Sightings Compilation: Explore the Unexplained
Explore an incredible collection of UFO sightings from around the world! This 50-minute compilation features stunning videos and photos that capture mysterious objects in the sky. Witness firsthand accounts and unexplained phenomena that have intrigued and puzzled experts for decades. Dive into the unknown and join the quest to uncover the truth about UFOs!
De twee astronauten die met de Boeing-ruimtecapsule Starliner drie weken geleden aankwamen in het internationale ruimtestation ISS, zitten daar "niet geblokkeerd". Dat heeft het Amerikaanse ruimteagentschap NASA vrijdag benadrukt. De terugkeer van de Starliner naar de aarde is ondertussen herhaaldelijk uitgesteld en zal er nu pas komen na nieuwe tests.
NASA benadrukt dat astronauten Starliner niet geblokkeerd zitten in ISS
De terugvlucht was aanvankelijk ten laatste op 26 juni gepland. NASA gaf geen nieuwe datum, maar liet eerder al weten dat de terugkeer van de Starliner met de twee astronauten Butch Wilmore en Suni Williams niet meer voor juni zou zijn.
Onderweg naar het ISS had de Starliner te maken gekregen met talrijke technische problemen. Er waren bijvoorbeeld heliumlekken opgetreden. Na problemen met de motoren slaagde het ruimteschip er pas bij de tweede poging in om aan te meren bij het ISS.
"Butch en Suni zijn niet geblokkeerd in de ruimte", benadrukte Steve Stich, een hoge verantwoordelijke van NASA, vrijdag tijdens een ongewoon gespannen persconferentie. De twee astronauten zouden aanvankelijk slechts iets meer dan een week in de ruimte blijven. In Amerikaanse media werd dan ook de vraag gesteld of de astronauten nog wel konden terugkeren naar aarde.
NASA benadrukt dat astronauten Starliner niet geblokkeerd zitten in ISS
"We kunnen Starliner op elk moment terughalen", benadrukte Mark Nappi, een hoge verantwoordelijke bij Boeing. De eerste bemande vlucht van de Starliner was de ultieme testvlucht van de Boeing-ruimtecapsule, alvorens er reguliere vluchten mee uitgevoerd kunnen worden van en naar het ISS.
De Starliner, ontwikkeld en gebouwd door de Amerikaanse vliegtuigbouwer Boeing, maakte zijn eerste succesvolle onbemande vlucht in 2022.
NASA benadrukt dat astronauten Starliner niet geblokkeerd zitten in ISS
NASA benadrukt dat astronauten Starliner "niet geblokkeerd" zitten in ISS, al is er voorlopig geen nieuwe datum voor terugkeer
NASA benadrukt dat astronauten Starliner "niet geblokkeerd" zitten in ISS, al is er voorlopig geen nieuwe datum voor terugkeer
Artikel door Belga
De terugvlucht was aanvankelijk ten laatste op 26 juni gepland. NASA gaf geen nieuwe datum, maar liet eerder al weten dat de terugkeer van de Starliner met de 2 astronauten Butch Wilmore en Suni Williams niet meer voor juni zou zijn.
Onderweg naar het ISS had de Starliner te maken gekregen met talrijke technische problemen. Er waren bijvoorbeeld heliumlekken opgetreden. Na problemen met de motoren slaagde het ruimteschip er pas bij de tweede poging in om aan te meren bij het ISS.
De capsule kon pas bij een tweede poging aanmeren bij het ISS
"Butch en Suni zijn niet geblokkeerd in de ruimte", benadrukte Steve Stich, een hoge verantwoordelijke van NASA, vrijdag tijdens een ongewoon gespannen persconferentie. De 2 astronauten zouden aanvankelijk slechts iets meer dan een week in de ruimte blijven. In Amerikaanse media werd dan ook de vraag gesteld of de astronauten nog wel konden terugkeren naar aarde.
"We kunnen Starliner op elk moment terughalen", benadrukte Mark Nappi, een hoge verantwoordelijke bij Boeing. De eerste bemande vlucht van de Starliner was de ultieme testvlucht van de Boeing-ruimtecapsule, alvorens er reguliere vluchten mee uitgevoerd kunnen worden van en naar het ISS.
De Starliner, ontwikkeld en gebouwd door de Amerikaanse vliegtuigbouwer Boeing, maakte zijn eerste succesvolle onbemande vlucht in 2022.
Microfossils, tiny fossil fragments also known as palynomorphs that are only visible under a microscope, can be found almost anywhere on the Earth one chooses to look. Although these ubiquitous fossils play an essential role in telling the geological and organic story of Earth’s ancient past, studying them is no simple matter, mainly because there are billions of them.
Artist's reconstruction of Gangtoucunia aspera as it would have appeared in life on the Cambrian seafloor, circa 514 million years ago. The individual in the foreground has part of the skeleton removed to show the soft polyp inside the skeleton. Reconstruction by Xiaodong Wang.
Credit: Reconstruction by Xiaodong Wang.
An exceptionally well-preserved collection of fossils discovered in eastern Yunnan Province, China, has enabled scientists to solve a centuries-old riddle in the evolution of life on earth, revealing what the first animals to make skeletons looked like. The results have been published today inProceedings of the Royal Society B.
The first animals to build hard and robust skeletons appear suddenly in the fossil record in a geological blink of an eye around 550-520 million years ago during an event called the Cambrian Explosion. Many of these early fossils are simple hollow tubes ranging from a few millimeters to many centimeters in length. However, what sort of animals made these skeletons was almost completely unknown, because they lack preservation of the soft parts needed to identify them as belonging to major groups of animals that are still alive today.
The new collection of 514 million year old fossils includes four specimens of Gangtoucunia aspera with soft tissues still intact, including the gut and mouthparts. These reveal that this species had a mouth fringed with a ring of smooth, unbranched tentacles about 5 mm long. It's likely that these were used to sting and capture prey, such as small arthropods. The fossils also show that Gangtoucunia had a blind-ended gut (open only at one end), partitioned into internal cavities, that filled the length of the tube.
These are features found today only in modern jellyfish, anemones and their close relatives (known as cnidarians), organisms whose soft parts are extremely rare in the fossil record. The study shows that these simple animals was among the first to build the hard skeletons that make up much of the known fossil record.
Because of this, researchers are now turning to artificial intelligence for help in classifying these minuscule preserved remnants of Earth’s ancient past.
Typically ranging from 5 to 500 micrometers in size and anywhere from a couple of million years to over 500 million years old, these tiny fossils are found mostly in sedimentary rocks, making them invaluable both to geologists and paleontologists. They help determine the age of rock layers, reconstruct past environments, and understand the evolutionary history of life on Earth. For instance, the presence of certain microfossils can indicate whether a rock layer was formed in a marine or terrestrial environment, providing insights into past climate conditions and geological events. Simply put, they offer a glimpse into what a specific area was like all those years ago.
Fossil specimen (left) and diagram (right) of Gangtoucunia aspera preserving soft tissues, including the gut and tentacle. Image credit: Luke Parry and Guangxu Zhang.
Credit: Luke Parry and Guangxu Zhang.
Fossil specimen of Gangtoucunia aspera preserving soft tissues, including the gut and tentacles (left and middle). The drawing at the right illustrates the visible anatomical features in the fossil specimens. Image credit: Luke Parry and Guangxu Zhang.
Credit: Luke Parry and Guangxu Zhang.
According to the researchers, Gangtoucunia would have looked similar to modern scyphozoan jellyfish polyps, with a hard tubular structure anchored to the underlying substrate. The tentacle mouth would have extended outside the tube, but could have been retracted inside the tube to avoid predators. Unlike living jellyfish polyps however, the tube of Gangtoucunia was made of calcium phosphate, a hard mineral that makes up our own teeth and bones. Use of this material to build skeletons has become more rare among animals over time.
Corresponding author Dr. Luke Parry, Department of Earth Sciences, University of Oxford, said, "This really is a one-in-million discovery. These mysterious tubes are often found in groups of hundreds of individuals, but until now they have been regarded as 'problematic' fossils, because we had no way of classifying them. Thanks to these extraordinary new specimens, a key piece of the evolutionary puzzle has been put firmly in place."
The new specimens clearly demonstrate that Gangtoucunia was not related to annelid worms (earthworms, polychaetes and their relatives) as had been previously suggested for similar fossils. It is now clear that Gangtoucunia's body had a smooth exterior and a gut partitioned longitudinally, whereas annelids have segmented bodies with transverse partitioning of the body.
The fossil was found at a site in the Gaoloufang section in Kunming, eastern Yunnan Province, China. Here, anaerobic (oxygen-poor) conditions limit the presence of bacteria that normally degrade soft tissues in fossils.
Ph.D. student Guangxu Zhang, who collected and discovered the specimens, said, "The first time I discovered the pink soft tissue on top of a Gangtoucunia tube, I was surprised and confused about what they were. In the following month, I found three more specimens with soft tissue preservation, which was very exciting and made me rethink the affinity of Gangtoucunia. The soft tissue of Gangtoucunia, particularly the tentacles, reveals that it is certainly not a priapulid-like worm as previous studies suggested, but more like a coral, and then I realized that it is a cnidarian."
Although the fossil clearly shows that Gangtoucunia was a primitive jellyfish, this doesn't rule out the possibility that other early tube-fossil species looked very different. From Cambrian rocks in Yunnan province, the research team have previously found well-preserved tube fossils that could be identified as priapulids (marine worms), lobopodians (worms with paired legs, closely related to arthropods today) and annelids.
Co-corresponding author Xiaoya Ma (Yunnan University and University of Exeter) said, "A tubicolous mode of life seems to have become increasingly common in the Cambrian, which might be an adaptive response to increasing predation pressure in the early Cambrian. This study demonstrates that exceptional soft-tissue preservation is crucial for us to understand these ancient animals."
The paper "Exceptional soft tissue preservation reveals a cnidarian affinity for a Cambrian phosphatic tubicolous enigma' will be published inProceedings of the Royal Society Bon Nov. 2.
Traditionally, the classification of microfossils has been a manual, time-consuming process requiring expert knowledge, with scientists staring into a microscope or at a computer screen for hours at a time. Given the sheer volume of data—potentially billions of microfossils from numerous slides—manual classification is tedious work, and attempting to classify all these microfossils is an insurmountable and impossible task. There are just too many of them, hence the advantage of letting AI assist in that process.
Spearheaded by a team from the University of Tromsø, The Arctic University of Norway, researchers have developed a novel method to automate the classification of microfossils.
The study introduces a two-stage AI-driven pipeline to automate the detection and classification of microfossils from microscope images.
The first stage involves using a pre-trained object detection model, YOLOv5, to identify and extract individual microfossils from high-resolution slide images. This model efficiently generates bounding boxes around each microfossil, a task that would be labor-intensive if done manually.
In the second stage, the researchers employ self-supervised learning (SSL) techniques to train models that can extract features from the detected microfossils. SSL is particularly advantageous in scenarios with limited labeled data, as it allows the model to learn useful representations from unlabeled data. The study compares two SSL frameworks, SimCLR and DINO, and finds that both significantly improve classification performance.
An image of the same slide of microfossils. On the left, the Machine learning approach. On the right, the pipeline of standard image processing methods. As the study notes, more fossils are separated with the machine learning approach as it is better able to differentiate the various fossil types.
(Image: Artificial Intelligence in Geosciences)
Basically, the AI is able to differentiate between different fossils and classify them. According to the study, this method is fast and computationally light, making it feasible to process and classify millions of microfossils efficiently. This scalability is crucial for handling the vast datasets typical in geological research. Moreover, as the AI classifies more fossils, it labels them and learns from its data, continuously adding to its own knowledge base.
“This work shows that there is great potential in utilizing AI in this field,” explained Iver Martinsen, one of the study’s authors, in a press statement. “By using AI to automatically detect and recognize fossils, geologists might have a tool that can help them better utilize the enormous amount of information that wellbore samples provide.”
The ability to automate microfossil classification has profound implications for earth sciences. It can accelerate research in subsurface exploration, aiding in oil and gas exploration and carbon capture and storage projects. Moreover, the insights gained from microfossil analysis can contribute to broader scientific inquiries, such as studying past climate changes and mass extinction events. Understanding these historical patterns is essential for predicting future environmental changes and developing strategies to mitigate their impacts.
Close up photograph of the mouth region of Gangtoucunia aspera showing the tentacles that would have been used to capture prey. Image credit: Luke Parry and Guangxu Zhang.
Credit: Luke Parry and Guangxu Zhang.
“We are very happy with our results,” Martinsen concluded. “Our model exceeds previous benchmarks available out there. We hope that the present work will be beneficial for geologists both in industry and academia.”
MJ Banias covers space, security, and technology with The Debrief. You can email him at mj@thedebrief.org or follow him on Twitter @mjbanias.
Researchers in Antarctica report a concerning new discovery that had not been anticipated in their existing models involving ice melting on Earth’s southernmost continent.
According to new findings, relatively warm water that can make its way beneath Antarctica’s ice sheets can cause additional melting from below that had not been previously known to scientists.
The new research, undertaken by scientists with the British Antarctic Survey (BAS), reveals the problems posed by warm seawater. This water seeps into the lower portions of ground-based ice, thereby accelerating not only ice melt but also its movement into the surrounding ocean.
Additionally, the results could help climate researchers develop a clearer picture of how Antarctic ice melt contributes to rising sea levels and other changes that could impact far-reaching areas around the world in the years ahead.
BAS researcher Alex Bradley, who specializes in ice dynamics and served as lead author of the new study, says his team has identified what they believe could be “a new tipping point in Antarctic ice sheet melting.”
“This means our projections of sea level rise might be significant underestimates,” Bradley recently warned in a statement.
CHILLING DISCOVERIES WITHIN THE GROUNDING ZONE
Bradley and his team’s study focuses on the grounding zone, which describes an area beneath the Antarctic ice sheet where the ground-based ice on the continent meets the sea.
Land-based ice in Antarctica moves gradually over long periods, making its way into the ocean, where it begins to melt once it meets the seawater. However, over time, climate change has been accelerating both the movement of the ice sheets and warming the surrounding seawater. Such processes are identified as major contributors to sea level rise, which can affect coastlines all around the world.
“We reveal a sensitive dependence of the grounding-zone dynamics,” the team writes in their new paper, noting that “as the grounding zone widens in response to melting, both temperature and flow velocity in the region increase, further enhancing melting.”
“We find that increases in ocean temperature can lead to a tipping point being passed, beyond which ocean water intrudes in an unbounded manner beneath the ice sheet, via a process of runaway melting.”
“Additionally,” they add, “this tipping point may not be easily detected with early warning indicators.”
SEAWATER WORKING ITS WAY BENEATH ANTARCTICA
In the team’s new study, they modeled how seawater makes its way into the areas between the land and the ice sheet above, effectively lubricating the ice bed and quickening its movement toward the nearby ocean.
This process of speeding along the movement of Antarctica’s ice is further quickened by the presence of warmer seawater.
“Ice sheets are very sensitive to melting in their grounding zones,” Bradley recently said, adding that grounding zone melt he and his colleagues have observed “displays a ‘tipping point like’ behaviour, where a very small change in ocean temperature can cause a very big increase in grounding zone melting, which would lead to a very big change in flow of the ice above it.”
When warm water begins to seep into the grounding zone, cavities open up, allowing additional water into the area, precipitating the melt. Even a small increase in water temperature would likely significantly impact the amount of melting that occurs.
“Our results point towards a stronger sensitivity of ice-sheet melting,” Bradley and his co-author write in their recent study, emphasizing that such dynamics contribute to “higher sea-level-rise contribution in a warming climate” than scientists had previously been able to discern from past studies.
Satellite image of the ice surface from Radarsat with the valleys and ridges of the buried ancient mountains mapped.
(Supplied: Stewart Jamieson, Durham University)
ABSENT FROM EXISTING MODELS
Given that such factors are currently absent from models scientists rely on to determine the amount of melt that can occur, it seems likely that warm seawater and its impact on ice within the grounding zone can account for some of the accelerated shrinkage of ice sheets observed by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and others. This would also relate to ice sheets in other parts of the world apart from Antarctica such as Greenland, where similar ice melt has been observed to occur at rates faster than scientists expected based on existing models.
Bradly called the new data “missing physics” that, while remaining absent from current models, prohibits scientists from accurately projecting the potential impact of ice melt in the Earth’s polar regions.
“They don’t have the ability to simulate melting beneath grounded ice, which we think is happening,” Bradley says, adding that he and his colleagues are “working on putting that into our models now.”
This illustration shows what Antarctica would look like if the ice sheet were lifted from the continent. Highland A is a series of three hills in the East Antarctic.
(Supplied: Stewart Jamieson, Durham University)
Bradley and his team’s findings were detailed in a new study, “Tipping point in ice-sheet grounding-zone melting due to ocean water intrusion,” co-authored with Ian J. Hewitt and published in the journal Nature Geoscience on June 25, 2024.
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Ik ben Pieter, en gebruik soms ook wel de schuilnaam Peter2011.
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