A famous UAP video shows an unexplained object as it soars high along the clouds, traveling against the wind. 

Department of Defense via AP

While the US government is investigating unidentified anomalous phenomena, academic researchers studying them face stigma

President Donald Trump directed the Pentagon and other federal agencies to begin releasing government files related to UFOs and unidentified anomalous phenomena – called UAP – in February 2026, following years of pressure from Congress, military whistleblowers and the public.

Congress formally mandated UAP investigations through the National Defense Authorization Act in December 2022. The Pentagon’s official UAP investigative body, the All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office, AARO, now carries a caseload exceeding 2,000 reports dating back to 1945. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth confirmed this figure earlier this year.

The cases were submitted by military personnel, pilots and government employees describing aerial objects that could not be explained as known aircraft, drones or weather phenomena. Governments in Japan, France, Brazil and Canada also have their own formal UAP investigation programs.

Yet modern research universities remain almost entirely absent from this conversation. No major university has established a dedicated UAP research center. No federal science agency offers competitive grants for UAP inquiry. No doctoral programs train researchers in UAP methodology. The gap between what governments openly acknowledge and what universities are willing to study is, at this point, difficult to explain on purely intellectual grounds.

I have navigated this gap while conducting my own UAP research. My work developing the temporal aerospace correlation tool, a standardized framework for correlating civilian UAP sighting reports with documented rocket launch activity from Cape Canaveral, is currently under peer review at Limina: The Journal of UAP Studies.

Designing that framework meant making methodological decisions without community standards, without institutional funding and without the professional infrastructure many researchers in established fields take for granted. What is missing is not interest or data – it is the shared scaffolding that turns isolated curiosity into cumulative science.

Stigma is measurable

The most rigorous evidence for the gap between faculty interest in UAP and faculty willingness to study it comes from peer-reviewed studies by Marissa Yingling, Charlton Yingling and Bethany Bell, published in the scholarly journal Humanities and Social Sciences Communications.

Across 14 disciplines at 144 major U.S. research universities, 1,460 faculty responded to their 2023 national survey. Most surveyed believed UAP research was important. Curiosity outweighed skepticism in every discipline that was part of the study. Nearly one-fifth had personally observed something aerial they could not identify. Yet fewer than 1% had ever conducted UAP-related research.

The gap was not explained by intellectual dismissal, but it was in part explained by fear. Researchers were not primarily deterred by intellectual skepticism because they doubted the topic’s merits. Instead, they feared they might lose funding, face ridicule from colleagues or find their careers quietly derailed. Faculty reported being told to “be careful.”

A 2024 follow-up study found that roughly 28% said they might vote against a colleague’s tenure case for conducting UAP research, even when they personally believed the topic warranted study.

Historian and philosopher of science Thomas Kuhn argued that scientific communities suppress anomalous questions not because those questions are unanswerable, but because they fall outside the boundaries the community has collectively decided are worth investigating.

Sociologist Thomas Gieryn called this suppression “boundary work,” referring to the active process by which scientists police what counts as legitimate science.

For UAP researchers, the data and tools to study the phenomenon exist. What may not exist is social permission to use them without professional consequence.

Creating an academic discipline

Academic disciplines do not emerge spontaneously. They require dedicated journals, agreed-upon methods, graduate programs and professional societies.

The history of cognitive neuroscience demonstrates how disciplines emerge. Before the 1980s, researchers at the intersection of neuroscience and cognitive psychology faced resistance from both parent disciplines.

These fields achieved mainstream acceptance only after targeted funding from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, new brain-imaging tools and the gradual formation of academic programs that created career pathways for researchers. Researchers at the nexus of these fields did not wait for central questions to be resolved. They built infrastructure, and the infrastructure made progress possible.

UAP studies as a discipline is developing some of these elements, but largely outside universities. The Society for UAP Studies, a nonprofit of scholars and researchers, operates Limina as a double-blind, peer-reviewed journal and has convened international symposia drawing researchers from physics, philosophy of science and the social sciences. But a nonprofit scholarly society without tenured faculty does not constitute a discipline.

To turn UAP studies into a recognized academic field would require three things.

First, funding. The Yingling studies found that competitive research grants would do more to unlock faculty participation than any other single factor. Without grants, researchers cannot hire students to assist them, maintain instruments or sustain the multiyear projects that produce meaningful results.

Second, shared methodological standards – these would entail agreed-upon procedures for collecting, recording and evaluating UAP reports – would mean findings from one research group can be compared and built upon by others.

Third, institutions could publicly affirm that they will evaluate appropriately rigorous UAP scholarship on its scientific merits during tenure reviews. Several universities have already done this for gun violence research and psychedelic-assisted therapy studies.

These are not isolated examples. Research into near-death experiences and adverse childhood experiences followed similar trajectories, moving from being a professional liability to mainstream legitimacy after the removal of institutional barriers.

The international comparison

This gap in UAP scholarship is unique to the United States. France’s GEIPAN, a dedicated investigation unit within its national space agency, has operated since 1977. It has publicly archived approximately 5,300 French UAP cases, of which about 2% to 3% remain unexplained after rigorous analysis.

In 2020, Japan formalized UAP reporting protocols for its Self-Defense Forces, the branch of the Japanese military responsible for national defense. By June 2024, more than 80 lawmakers had formed a parliamentary UAP investigation group that by May 2025 had formally proposed a dedicated UAP research office to the defense minister. Canada launched its own multiagency UAP investigation survey in 2023.

None of these actions has produced a corresponding response from American research universities. Universities provide independent, peer-reviewed analyses that government programs structurally cannot.

The University of Würzburg in Germany became the first Western university to officially recognize UAP as a legitimate object of academic research in 2022, when it formally added UAP investigation to its research canon. Researchers at Stockholm University and the Nordic Institute for Theoretical Physics in Sweden have been actively publishing peer-reviewed UAP research since 2017, most recently in Scientific Reports in October 2025.

Congress has passed legislation, the Pentagon is reporting on its investigations, and the president has directed federal agencies to begin releasing records. So the question no longer is whether governments take UAP seriously – it is whether universities will follow, and which ones will get there first.

{ https://theconversation.com/europe }

'Defence act loophole': What is forcing the Pentagon to reveal its UFO secrets

 Edited By Tarun Mishra

{ https://www.wionews.com/photos }

Aliens, UFO’s, and the Demonic: Thinking Like Christians About the Weird Stuff

What we know from Scripture. 

John Stonestreet and Andrew Carico

Recently, Vice President J.D. Vance admitted that he is “obsessed” with UFOs and extraterrestrial visitors. He then suggested that what are often identified as aliens could be masquerading demons. As Vance put it, “I think one of the devil’s great tricks is to convince people he never existed.” 

Vice-president Vance is in a growing company of those, including many Christians, who are fascinated with aliens. And especially for Christians, right thinking about ET begins with getting our worldview right on the existence of the natural and supernatural. 

In fact, the rise of vague spiritualities not firmly rooted in Christian doctrine has fostered many modern beliefs about aliens. Decades ago, C.S. Lewis rightly stated why we often prefer vague spirituality over encountering the real God: 

An ‘impersonal God’—well and good. A subjective God of beauty, truth and goodness, inside our own heads—better still. A formless life-force surging through us, a vast power which we can tap—best of all. But God Himself, alive, pulling at the other end of the cord, perhaps approaching at an infinite speed, the hunter, king, husband—that is quite another matter. 

Recently, CBN News produced a documentary that explored aliens in terms of the supernatural. In an interview, well-known astrophysicist Dr. Hugh Rossclaimed that the strongest evidence for demons is asserted encounters with UFOs, and that, statistically, there is a high correlation between those who claim encounters with UFOs and those who have dabbled in the occult or who have had close relatives tied to the occult. It is not surprising, then, that scholars such as Diana Pasulka have identified what some call “UFOology” as a kind of religion, filling a void that Christians know can only be filled by God alone. 

It’s also not a coincidence that the rising interest in aliens and UFOs is happening at the same time as an increasing concern over AI. After all, some claim that trans-dimensional, non-human intelligences can use technology to communicate with humans. Between AI and alien life, conversations about demonic activity are more mainstream than they were just 100 years ago.  

In a couple of his books, the late historian Rodney Stark observed that early Christians condemned a fear of supernatural beings. Rather, they believed thatSatan’s defeat by Christ was definitive, and that Christ’s resurrection had enthroned Him above any and all other powers throughout the entire universe. That is, of course, what Scripture proclaims, which makes it an important starting point for Christians thinking about things like UFO’s, aliens, and AI demons. In short, Christians are to be people of hope. 

Another factor in making sense of the contemporary fascination with aliens is that a naturalistic worldview, even secular humanism in which man is considered the measure of all things, has brought the world to the ironic place of devaluing humanity. There must be other beings in the universe, or else we are the best there is? This drives, at least to some degree, the incessant search for other life forms. 

While there is much we do not know about aliens, UFOs, and unknown life “out there,” much of the unexplained activity could be explicable by other, simple means: drones, weather balloons, and government operations. And we must not rule out the very demonic activity described clearly in Holy Scripture, such as in Ephesians. Scripture is plain, that there is a God, that humans are made in his image, and that demons (who do exist) are jealous of that. 

Ephesians also teaches that we do not just wrestle against flesh and blood but against the spiritual forces of evil and their use of cosmic powers. Scripture also makes plain that through His work on the Cross, Christ disarmed all such authorities, put them to shame, and triumphed over them.  

In his book Not the Way It’s Supposed to Be: a Breviary of Sin, philosopher Neal Plantinga explained that Christians must talk about evil as if it is a real foe, because it is. We also, he said, should talk about evil as if it is a defeated foe, because Christ is risen. Thus, we should see even the unexplainable with this certainty; that the Christ who has risen is the Lord, who is eternally triumphant over all that is seen and unseen.

{ https://breakpoint.org/ }

Project Blue Beam: The 1990s Conspiracy Theory That Told Of Hologram Alien Invasions And A New World Order

The ideas in this particularly juicy conspiracy theory were considered impossible when it was first proposed, but they are broad enough that they get new life on the internet every now and then.

  Dr. Russell Mou

There is a recurrent conspiracy theory that pokes up its tinfoil hat on the internet whenever some supposedly unidentified something is spotted in the sky. This idea has multiple modern manifestations, but they all center on the belief that powerful institutions – such as NASA, the “global elite”, or international entities like the UN – are secretly planning to create a New World Order through advanced technology. This new order, so the theory goes, will result in the large-scale manipulation or replacement of existing religions and the erosion of national sovereignty in favor of a single, powerful world government.

Does any of this sound familiar? If so, you may have witnessed a bit of the legacy of Project Blue Beam. And while you may want to just dismiss it all as a load of bullshit, many elements of this conspiracy theory are actually shaping people’s interpretations of events and their subsequent political beliefs.

Project Blue Beam was the product of the Canadian conspiracy theorist, Serge Monast. Back in the early 1990s, Monast claimed he had seen secret documents that laid out plans for the creation of a New World Order. This plan was meant to have started in 1983 when the Age of Aquarius was, so Monast believed, due to start.

Now this part probably needs a bit of explanation. For astrologers, the Age of Aquarius is/will be (there is disagreement among practitioners on whether it has happened or is yet to occur) a symbolic new era characterized by a shift in human consciousness towards technological innovation, humanitarianism, intellectualism, and collective cooperation.

However, for Monast and his followers, the opposite would happen. He believed the Age of Aquarius would be a darker era where traditional religions, national identities, and existing social structures would be replaced by a new unified global belief system (the UN was already a forum for this, he believed).

This version of the new era was a deeply coercive and weaponized version of the otherwise hopeful astrological one being envisioned in New Age circles and proposed by spiritual proponents from the 19th century onwards. Monast framed it as a cover story proposed by global elites in order to psychological manipulate the population.

When Monast first made his claims about Project Blue Beam, he explained that it had been delayed and that it would take place in the mid-1990s. As he explained in his publication, Project Blue Beam: Revival of the Fake Alien Invasion Technology:

“I have to say that the Blue Beam Project was set up for the year 1983. It has been delayed; we don't know exactly why. But, since 1983 (eighteen years before the publication of this report), they have really improved themselves with new technology and innovations in space hardware and software in which they are involved right now to make their systems possible.”

“So, the goals of the new age movement under which the United Nations operates right now, are the implementation of a new world ‘messiah.'”

As you can tell, this did not happen, and Monast died from a heart attack two years after the report came out so he was not able to explain why his predictions didn’t come true. Side note – those influenced by his beliefs often say he died under mysterious circumstances soon after its publication, but this simply isn’t the case.

But regardless of this backstory, how exactly was Project Blue Beam meant to deliver on this new world regime? An important clue is the above word – “messiah”. Monast alleged that highly advanced technology would be used to fool the world into believing a religious and extraterrestrial event had occurred which would unit and therefore control humanity.

Project Blue Beam would play out across four key stages.

Step 1: the manipulation of archaeological evidence

“The first step in the NASA Blue Beam Project,” Monast wrote, “concerns the breakdown [re-evaluation] of all archaeological knowledge. It deals with the set-up, with artificially created earthquakes at certain precise locations on the planet, of supposedly new discoveries which will finally explain to all people the "error" of all fundamental religious doctrines.”

In essence, he believed that faked earthquakes would be staged to allow them to plant false evidence that undermined all the supposedly accepted archaeological evidence that proves Christianity is true.

Another side note: Biblical scholars and religious apologists often make claims that certain archaeological finds verify biblical events, such as The Flood, or the Crucifixion and so on, but no credible, verifiable evidence has been identified for many such claims. 

It should be noted that Monast didn’t just believe this would impact the truth of Christianity, but rather all world religions (but particularly Abrahamic religions).

“Psychological preparations for that first step have already been implemented with the film, '2001: A Space Odyssey;' the Star Trek series, and 'Independence Day'; all of which deal with invasions from space and the coming together of all nations to repel the invaders. The last films, ‘Jurrassic [sic] Park,' deals with the theories of evolution, and claim God's words are lies.”

Monast was somewhat quiet as to how these earthquakes would be created, but he nevertheless held that new “arcane” information will be unearthed by scientists and used to discredit the established narratives.

Step 2: light shows in the sky

“The second step deals with the gigantic space show: 3D optical holograms and sounds, laser projection of multiple holographic images in different parts of the world, each receiving a different image according to predominating regional national religious faith.”

This is the stage that tends to get the most excitement online. UFOs, drones, or other miscellaneous aerial phenomena have become symbols of Monast’s stage two coming into effect. For instance, over the last year or so, there have been multiple reports from New Jersey of lights being seen in the sky. These lights, often recorded on shaky phones, have been interpreted using Monast’s conspiratorial prism, but they are kind of lackluster compared to the grand deity-riddled sky displays he warned of.

Across the world, people share footage of lights in the sky, but they are never accompanied by voices, messages, or awe-inspiring displays. If we are being generous to the conspiracy believers, these small-scale anomalous lights could be seen as the “tests” that Monast mentioned when discussing UFO sightings, but I don’t think we need to be generous.

Step 3: mind control

“The advancement of techniques propel us toward the third step in the Blue Beam Project that goes along with the telepathic and electronically augmented two-way communication where ELF [extremely low frequency], VLF [very low frequency] and LF [low frequency] waves will reach each person from within his or her own mind, convincing each of them that their own god is speaking to them from the very depths of their own soul.”

This lengthy word-chocked sentence introduces yet more technological marvels, though ones that are very much dated to the early 1990s. In this step, satellites will beam messages directly into the minds of every person living on Earth. These messages will be articulated in that person’s own language, conveying more simulated manifestation of that person’s “god”. 

Monast didn’t go into details about how this would be done. He merely stated that the CIA, FBI, and other US government agencies have “communications equipment” that could “make the blind see, the deaf hear and the lame walk”. But rather than using it for this greater good, such technologies will/are being used to control minds, to “torture” or “murder” politically important targets.

It is not clear to what extent Monast’s biblical reference to curing the blind, deaf, or lame was deliberate hyperbole or something he specifically believed – that there are hidden technologies that can “relieve the terminally ill from pain without the use of drugs or surgery”. But he nevertheless believed these technologies would be used to sow fear and doubt.

None of these technologies exist today and much of the brainwashing conspiracies he obliquely referred to from the 1960s and 1970s have, since the 1990s, become widely studied. In particular, the documents related to the US’s (and other countries’) once-secret mind control programs are actually publicly available now. The historical research into this topic has shown that “scientific” efforts to coerce people, replace minds, or create model citizens always failed.

Step 4: the “invasion” – The Night of The Thousand Stars

“The fourth step concerns the universal supernatural manifestation with electronic means”.

The fourth and final step laid out by Monast is a multi-pronged effort to convince the world that aliens have invaded – his so called “Night of The Thousand Stars”. The first operation involves making everyone believe that the invasion is imminent and will affect every major city across the planet. This, Monast claimed, would “provoke each major nation to use its nuclear weapons in order to strike back.”

But this is the trap – once a state has launched its weapons, the UN will force that country to disarm (overlooking that fact that only a handful of countries actually have nuclear weapons to use, and any use would be catastrophic).

The second operation involved making Christians believe that the Rapture is going to happen with the help of an “alien (off world) civilization” that will “rescue earthlings from a savage and merciless demon.” This, Monast urged, was to ensure that there was no “significant opposition to the implementation of the New World Order”.

Another side note: the Rapture is not a universally agreed upon doctrine within Christianity. In fact, it is rejected by the majority of Christians across the world and tends to be the mainstay of US Christian groups, especially Pentecostal, evangelical, and dispensational groups. The idea only emerged in the 1830s and was popularized in the 20th century. So, it is not clear why Monast thought this particular event would be effective for the world’s Christian population, nor what it would mean for the millions of people who follow other religions or none.

The third operation in this final step uses a mixture of “electronic and supernatural forces” to terrify the world’s population into obedience.

“The waves used at that time will allow 'supernatural forces' to travel through optical fibers, coaxial cables (TV) electrical and phone lines in order to penetrate to everyone at once through major appliances,” Monast wrote. “Embedded chips will already be in place. The goal of this deals with global Satanic ghosts projected all around the world in order to push all populations to the edge of hysteria and madness, to drown them into a wave of suicide, murder and permanent psychological disorders.”

After this world-wide haunting takes place, the population would be pliable and ready for the New World Order to come in, as they desperately seek stability again.

Why has it stuck around so long?

Anyone who has made it to this point has likely noticed that some elements of Project Blue Beam are the same types of tropes raised by conspiracy theorists today, especially those on the far right.

Conspiracy theories, which invariably try to explain specific events as the result of malignant secretive forces, have existed within the public sphere for centuries, but over the last decade they have crept further into mainstream political discourse. At the same time, researchers have explored what it is that makes conspiracy theories so compelling for some people, where they originate from, and how to address them.

One of the reasons why Project Blue Beam has been successful is that is deals with phenomena that are a) plausible and b) easily understandable. Firstly, the rapid development of technologies – especially with the speed at which AI is developing now – could make someone worry that there could be some easily choreographed large-scale deception at some point. Secondly, although Monast makes multiple references to the religions of the world, it is clear he was mostly concerned with Christians. His conspiracy theory taps into a pervasive apocalyptic concern for people who are already expecting some “end time” scenario to occur.

At the same time, this idea hits at the heart of the growing distrust of institutions, expertise, and authority. It therefore accommodates other conspiracy theories that are suspicious of scientific achievements - such as antivaccine groups - or the powers of specific organizations - like Flat Earthers.

But there is no evidence to verify pretty much anything Monast claimed. Decades later, our technology is much more advanced than it was in his day, and yet we still have no sign of this great end time, nor any of the terrifying technological abilities he prophesied. Nevertheless, its broad nature and widescale suspicions make it easily mutable, which is likely why we will see variations of it emerging in the years to come. 

{ https://www.iflscience.com/tags/culture }

Congressman Calls Death Of Air Force Whistleblower Planning To Reveal UFO Secrets ‘Suspicious’

by Douglas Charles

A 12th person can now be added to the list of those with connections to secret U.S. research who have mysteriously gone missing or passed away. At least that is the stance Congressman Eric Burlison of Missouri is taking.

On May 12, 2024, former U.S. Air Force intelligence officer Matthew James Sullivan, who was only 39 years old, reportedly took his own life. However, officials never made his cause of death public, nor did local media cover the case at the time.

Sullivan was going to be a witness for congressional investigators studying UFOs, or Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena [UAPs], as the government now refers to them, according to what Congressman Burlison told DailyMail.com.

Congressman Burlison expressed his “grave concerns” that Sullivan’s death seems “suspicious,” implying that the seasoned Air Force intelligence officer may have been targeted.

“Look at Matthew Sullivan’s credentials and his experience. He certainly was someone who was read in at the highest classification levels and knew some of our nation’s most important secrets. And so did a lot of these other people,” Burlison said.

Burlison also stated the Intelligence Community Inspector General found “severe allegations of misconduct and potentially unlawful activities” related to Sullivan’s death.

“The fact that he had been scheduled by the UAP Task Force. That he had been scheduled to come and speak… After hearing about this tragedy, I felt it was worth looking into,” he said.

Sullivan worked for the National Air and Space Intelligence Center as a deputy director at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base and also did work for the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA).

The government has asked the FBI to investigate the 12 missing or dead scientists and researchers

“The sudden and suspicious circumstances surrounding his death raise significant concerns about potential foul play and the safety of other individuals involved in this matter,” Congressman Eric Burlison wrote in a formal request to the FBI that he shared with DailyMail.com.

On Friday, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed that the government had asked the FBI to investigate the numerous cases of American researchers and scientists who have gone missing or died mysteriously.

“In light of the recent and legitimate questions about these troubling cases, and President Trump’s commitment to the truth, the White House is actively working with all relevant agencies and the FBI to holistically review all of the cases together and identify any potential commonalities that may exist,” she said.

{ https://brobible.com/category/culture/ }

The fungus that could contaminate Mars: Scientists discover spore that can survive trip to the Red Planet – and NASA's ultra–sanitised cleanrooms aren't enough to stop it

• READ MORE: Aliens have been trying to contact us for decades, scientists say 

By XANTHA LEATHAM, EXECUTIVE SCIENCE EDITOR

Scientists have long known that fungi are resilient, but research suggests some strains might even survive the long, brutal trip to Mars.

Experts have put fungal microbes through simulations of the harsh conditions experienced during space travel and on the surface of the Red Planet.

The freezing temperatures, ultraviolet rays, ionizing radiation and low atmospheric pressure are enough to kill most living organisms.

But they found the spores of one fungus – Aspergillus calidoustus – survived.

This pathogen produces grey and brown mould and is already known for its resistance to drugs.

It can cause rare but severe and often fatal infections in immunocompromised individuals, such as transplant patients.

The findings suggest the unwanted hitchhiker could catch a ride to other planets and become an invasive species.

And it even managed to get past NASA's cleanrooms – one of the most sterile places on Earth – without issue.

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This pathogen produces grey and brown mould and is already known for its resistance to drugs. It survived simulations of the harsh conditions of space travel. Pictured: A. calidoustus from a previous study

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Wiping down hardware is part of the strategy to limit the number of Earth microbes going to other planets. Pictured: Experts working on NASA's Perseverance rover in a cleanroom ahead of its launch in 2020

This study is the first to show that microbes could persist through every part of a mission to Mars, from preparation to space travel to robotic exploration, the researchers warned.

For the study, the team collected fungal microbes from NASA's cleanrooms – facilities used in the assembly, testing and launch of spacecraft.

These are ultra–sanitised, highly controlled spaces designed to prevent any form of contamination and to stop unwanted microbes hitching a ride to space.

The researchers generated conidia – asexual reproductive spores – from 27 fungal strains.

These had been isolated from the assembly facilities used in the Mars 2020 program which led to the landing of the Perseverance rover on the Red Planet.

The scientists subjected the conidia to the intense conditions of space travel and Mars, including the loose, dusty rock on the Red Planet's surface.

And they found the conidia of A. calidoustus tolerated these harsh tests.

'This does not mean contamination of Mars is likely, but it helps us better quantify potential microbial survival risks,' study leader Kasthuri Venkateswaran, from NASA's Jet Propulsion laboratory, said. 'Microorganisms can possess extraordinary resilience to environmental stresses.'

Only the combination of extreme low temperature and high radiation was able to kill the fungus, the researchers found.

'Microbial survival is not determined by a single environmental stress but rather by combinations of stress tolerance mechanisms,' Dr Venkateswaran said.

The study, published in the journal Applied and Environmental Microbiology, builds on previous studies that have identified bacteria and fungi in NASA spacecraft surfaces after decontamination.

'Together, these investigations help refine NASA's planetary protection strategies and microbial risk assessment approaches for current and future space exploration missions,' Dr Venkateswaran concluded. 

The major implication with bringing Earth microbes to Mars is that they could be mistaken for alien lifeforms, throwing off decades of research.

There are also concerns that tiny organisms could form colonies in life–support equipment used by astronauts, which could malfunction in a life–or–death situation. 

Christopher Mason, a geneticist at Weill Cornell Medicine, has previously spoken of the dangers of transporting microbes to other planets. 

He said: 'It is important to ensure the safety and preservation of any life that might exist elsewhere in the Universe, since new organisms can wreak havoc when they arrive at a new ecosystem.'

Experts recently discovered dozens of tiny living organisms – all previously unknown bacterial species – in the Kennedy Space Center cleanrooms in Florida 

Experts recently discovered 26 tiny living organisms – all previously unknown bacterial species – in the Kennedy Space Center cleanrooms in Florida.

'It was a genuine 'stop and re–check everything' moment,' Alexandre Rosado, a professor of Bioscience at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) in Saudi Arabia , told Live Science .

Analysis of these microbes shed light on how they can live – and even thrive – in one of the harshest man–made environments on Earth.

And it turns out they have genes that help them resist the effects of radiation and even repair their own DNA.

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{ https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/index.html }

Who will be the next person to walk on the moon? The most likely candidates revealed, as NASA counts down to its return to the lunar surface for the first time in over 50 years

• READ MORE: NASA astronaut finds God after returning to Earth

By WILIAM HUNTER, SENIOR SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY REPORTER

With the crew of Artemis II safely back on Earth, the countdown is already on for the next big moon mission.

In 2028, during NASA's Artemis IV mission, two astronauts will become the first people to land on the moon since the end of the Apollo era more than 50 years ago.

The space agency has previously suggested that this crew would include the first woman and first person of colour to set foot on the moon.

But the big question remains: who could NASA select for this historic mission?

While the crew of Artemis II – Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and Jeremy Hansen – have only just finished their last mission, they aren't necessarily out of the running.

During the Apollo missions, NASA reused several crew members across multiple launches, with four astronauts having travelled to the moon twice.

To make things even more exciting, there is a good chance NASA will include a crewmember from another nation's space agency – and could even pick a British astronaut.

Here's a look at the most likely candidates for NASA's next generation of moonlanders.

With the crew of Artemis II – Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and Jeremy Hansen – back on Earth, the countdown has begun to find NASA's moon landing crew 

Dr Jessica Meir

In 2020, NASA unveiled what it called the 'Artemis Team', a list of 18 astronauts who were supposed to train for the moon landing.

The space agency appeared to have scrapped this list by choosing Reid Wiseman, who was not on the Artemis Team, as mission commander of Artemis II, but it still gives a good idea of who might be in the running.

Possibly the best candidate from those 18 is Dr Jessica Meir, a veteran astronaut with over 205 days in space and three spacewalks under her belt.

Dr Meir has a PhD in marine biology, specialising in the physiology of animals in extreme environments, and was selected for the astronaut programme in 2013.

During her mission aboard the International Space Station (ISS), Dr Meir also made history by taking part in the first all–female spaceflight alongside Artemis II crewmember Christina Koch.

Her extensive mission experience and connection to Koch make her a natural candidate for Artemis IV.

The only potential snag is that Dr Meir is currently in space, serving as commander aboard the ISS for NASA's SpaceX Crew–12 mission.

Jessica Meir: A veteran astronaut with over 205 days in space and three spacewalks under her belt. She made the first all–female spacewalk alongside Artemis II's Christina Koch 

Dr Jessica Watkins: In 2019, Dr Watkins became the first black woman to serve on the ISS for a long-term mission, spending a total of 170 days in space

But if she is back on Earth and ready in time, that extra leadership experience might make her an even better choice.

Dr Jessica Watkins

Another standout candidate from the Artemis Team roster is Dr Jessica Watkins, an astronaut who is no stranger to making history.

After completing her astronaut training in 2019, Dr Watkins was selected to serve as a mission specialist on the ISS during NASA's SpaceX Crew–4 mission.

In doing so, she became the first black woman to serve on the ISS for a long-term mission, spending a total of 170 days in space.

Even more importantly, Dr Watkins is a highly accomplished geologist who served as chief geologist for a NASA analogue mission at the Mars Desert Research Station.

Given that NASA wants to assess the landing site near the moon's south pole for suitability as a long–term base, those skills could prove invaluable.

Stephanie Wilson

Stephanie Wilson: The longest serving astronaut in the 2020 'Artemis Team', Ms Wilson is a veteran of four shuttle flights with 42 days in space 

If NASA wants to prioritise experience on its next mission to the moon, Stephanie Wilson would be an ideal candidate.

Having been selected as an astronaut in 1996, Ms Wilson is the longest–serving astronaut named on NASA's Artemis List.

After studying engineering at Harvard University and the University of Texas, Ms Wilson joined NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in 1992.

She is a veteran of three spaceflights aboard the shuttle and has logged more than 42 days in space.

In fact, Ms Wilson would have had more experience were it not for the infamous failure of the Boeing Starliner capsule in 2024.

NASA had announced that she would fly as a mission specialist on the SpaceX Crew–9 mission, but Ms Wilson gave up her spot to make room for the safe return of the stranded Butch Wilmore and Sunita Williams.

In another interesting connection, Ms Wilson actually served as ground controller at Houston during Christina Koch and Jessica Meir's first all–female spacewalk.

Christina Koch

Christina Koch: Although Ms Koch flew on Artemis II, NASA has reused astronauts for moon missions in the past, and she is easily the agency's most experienced astronaut 

While it might seem odd for NASA to reuse an astronaut who has already flown on Artemis II, this might be a great choice for the space agency.

NASA has no rule against re–using astronauts and, while no astronaut has ever walked on the moon twice, astronauts frequently served on repeat missions during Apollo.

Christina Koch is by far the agency's most experienced candidate, having spent 328 days in space during the longest single spaceflight by a woman and undertaking six spacewalks.

Having returned to Earth after Artemis II, Ms Koch and her crewmates have already started conducting simulations, testing the equipment for the lunar landing while their bodies are still adapted to space.

This means that they are currently the only astronauts with experience of travelling on the Orion crew capsule, and using the scientific equipment NASA intends to deploy during Artemis IV.

That valuable experience may well prove to be something that NASA cannot give up on for future missions.

Dr Andre Douglas

One of the top contenders to be the first man on the moon since Apollo is Andre Douglas.

Dr Andre Douglas: The backup astronaut for Artemis II, who trained alongside that crew and was ready to step in if anyone could not make the final launch

Dr Douglas has a PhD in systems engineering from George Washington University and served in the US Coast Guard as a naval architect.

When he was selected for NASA's astronaut programme, he was a senior staff member at the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Lab researching planetary defence and space exploration.

Dr Douglas has been involved in some of NASA's most important scientific projects of recent years.

He supported the Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) planetary defence mission for NASA and was part of the Lunar Surface Innovation Consortium that worked to develop technology for a return to the moon.

But most importantly, Dr Douglas was selected as a backup crew member for the Artemis II mission.

That means he trained alongside Wiseman, Glover, Koch, and Hansen and could have stepped in to fill their position.

Although he lacks spaceflight experience, NASA was clearly ready to trust him with Artemis II and could be prepared to put their faith in him again.

Randolph 'Komrade' Bresnik

Randolph 'Komrade' Bresnik: One of NASA's most experienced astronauts, Mr Bresnik serves as the space agency's Assistant-to-the-Chief of the Astronaut Office for Exploration

Randolph Bresnik is one of NASA's most experienced astronauts and already has a critical role in the Artemis program.

Bresnik was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the US Marine Corps in 1989, becoming a F/A–18 Test Pilot.

He was eventually deployed to Kuwait to fly combat missions as part of Operation Southern Watch and Operation Iraqi Freedom.

He has logged over 7,000 hours in more than 95 different types of aircraft, and 3,600 hours in spacecraft alone.

He has flown on multiple NASA missions, most recently serving as ISS commander for Expedition 53, logging over 149 days in space and 32 hours of space walks.

Critically, he is currently serving as the Assistant-to-the-Chief of the Astronaut Office for Exploration.

This means Bresnik manages the development and testing of everything that will operate beyond low–Earth orbit for the Artemis missions.

That means there is no other astronaut with a better understanding of what it will take to land on the moon in 2028.

Suwa Makoto: If NASA decides to partner with an international space agency, Japan's Suwa Makoto would be a strong contender 

Suwa Makoto

However, there is a good chance that it won't just be Americans returning to the moon with Artemis IV.

Canadian Jeremy Hansen joined Artemis II, and the US space agency is likely to invite one of its international partners to send an astronaut again.

Scott Pace, Director of the Space Policy Institute at George Washington University, told the Daily Mail: 'I believe Japan will have some future slots for its astronauts.'

Of those Japanese astronauts, one of the best candidates would be Suwa Makoto.

Having graduated from Princeton University with a degree in geosciences, he worked at the World Meteorological Organisation and the World Bank before becoming an astronaut.

Mr Makoto only completed his astronaut training in 2024, but has already joined the European Space Agency for a cave training exercise.

He has already been nominated for a long–duration mission aboard the ISS, due to begin in 2027, and is in active training for that role.

That could mean he will be in top condition and fresh out of a mission working with NASA astronauts by the time Artemis IV is ready to launch.

Dr Rosemary Coogan: As Britain's only active astronaut, Dr Coogan would be the natural choice if NASA decides it wants to take a British crew member to the moon 

Dr Rosemary Coogan

While Japan's space agency has a good shot at providing the first international astronaut for a NASA mission, Britain still stands a chance.

In 2022, then deputy NASA administrator Pamela Melroy said she felt 'very confident we'll have an international partner' and singled out the UK for its role in helping to develop the Lunar Gateway project.

If NASA does choose to partner with Britain, our best hope is Dr Rosemary Coogan – currently the only active British astronaut.

Dr Coogan graduated from the University of Sussex in 2019 with a doctorate in astronomy before joining the French space agency CNES.

In 2022, Dr Coogan was selected as an astronaut candidate in the European Space Agency and became certified in 2024.

While she is yet to gain any spaceflight experience, Dr Coogan is still a highly qualified scientist and Britain's best hope for landing on the moon.

WHO HAS BEEN TO THE MOON?

In total 12 people have walked on the moon.

1 + 2. Apollo 11 - July 21, 1969

Neil Armstrong made history by becoming the first person to set foot on the lunar surface, before he he was followed by crewmate Edwin 'Buzz' Aldrin.

3 + 4. Apollo 12 - November 19 and 20, 1969

Pete Conrad and Alan Bean were the moon walkers on the Apollo 12 mission. 

The Apollo 12 crew experienced two lightning strikes just after their Saturn V rocket launched.

5 + 6. Apollo 14 - February 5, 1971 

Alan Shepard and Edgar Mitchell were part of the Apollo 14 mission. They launched on January 31, 1971, and landed in the Fra Mauro region of the moon, the original destination for Apollo 13.

7 + 8. Apollo 15 - July 31, 1971

Dave Scott and James Irwin landed on the moon and stayed for three days, until August 2.

 9 + 10. Apollo 16 - April 21, 1972

John Young and Charlie Duke were the next men to walk on the moon. When the crew reached lunar orbit, the mission almost had to be aborted because of a problem with the command and service module's main engine.

11 + 12. Apollo  17 - December 11, 1972

The final people to walk on the moon were Eugene (Gene) Cernan and Harrison (Jack) Schmitt. 

Before he left the moon, Cernan scratched the initials of his daughter Tracy into the lunar regolith. Since the moon does not experience weather conditions like wind or rain to erode anything away, her initials should stay there for a very long time. 

All the men who have been to the moon 

{ https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/index.html  }

During last year's shambolic Beijing robot half marathon, humanoid machines tripped, shuffled, and occasionally shattered into pieces as they collapsed under the strain.

But 12 months later, supporters looked on in awe as a new generation of speedy robotic racers left the human athletes in the dust.

More than 100 robots competed alongside 12,000 human counterparts, separated by a barrier to prevent collisions.

Lightning, the winning bot developed by Chinese smartphone maker Honor, not only beat the best human that day but smashed the world record, set only last month.

The robot completed the 13.1-mile (21 km) course in a blistering 50 minutes and 26 seconds, far faster than the 57 minutes and 20 seconds record set by Ugandan runner Jacob Kiplimo.

That was more than three times faster than last year's winning robot, which finished the race in a time of two hours and 40 minutes.

In another stark example of just how quickly robot technology has advanced, nearly half of this year's entries raced autonomously, navigating the winding course without human intervention.

Honor, a Huawei spin–off company, bagged all three podium spots with self–navigating robots – all of which posted world–record–breaking times.

A humanoid robot smashed the human competition at the Beijing half marathon, finishing the 13–mile (21 km) course in a blistering 50 minutes and 26 seconds 

Not every robot competitor performed quite as well as Lightning, and there were still a number of robots that crumbled under the pressure.

In one incident, a robot tripped and collapsed before crossing the start line, bursting into dozens of pieces as it continued to thrash on the ground.

There were also familiar navigation errors, with robots bumping into barriers or suddenly veering off in an unexpected direction.

However, the overall quality of the humanoid robots on display was an astonishing improvement over the last race just 12 months ago.

Xioadi Du, an engineer from Honor's winning team, said that the record–breaking bot had been developed intensively over the last year.

The engineer said that Lightning had been fitted with extra–long 90 to 95 cm legs to mimic the build of human elite runners.

The robot is also fitted with liquid cooling technology to help manage the intense heat generated by its massive leg motors.

According to the state media outlet Global Times, one Honor robot actually posted an even faster time of 48 minutes and 19 seconds but was pushed off the podium under the weighted scoring rules for being remotely controlled. 

Lightning, the winning robot designed by smartphone maker Honor, beat the human record of 57 minutes and 20 seconds set by Ugandan runner Jacob Kiplimo last month

More than 100 robots competed in the race, running separated by a barrier from their human competitors

Mr Du says: 'Running faster may not seem meaningful at first, but it enables technology transfer, for example, into structural reliability and cooling, and eventually industrial applications.'

However, he added that the technology was still in its nascent stage, with plenty more advancements ahead in the coming years.

Amongst the crowd of onlookers, the mood was a mixture awe and apprehension as fans considered the consequences of robots overtaking humans for the first time.

Han Chenyu, a 25–year–old student who watched the race from behind a safety barrier, told AFP she thought the event was 'pretty cool'.

However, Ms Han added: 'As someone who works for a living, I'm a little worried about it sometimes. I feel like technology is advancing so fast that it might start affecting people's jobs.'

Likewise, Xie Lei, 41, who watched Sunday's race with his family, said: 'For thousands of years, humans have been at the top on planet Earth.

'But now, look at robots. Just in terms of autonomous navigation, at least in this specific sport event, they're already starting to surpass us.

'On one hand, it does make you feel a little bit sad for humanity. But at the same time, technology, especially in recent years, has given us so much imagination.'

In a massive improvement from the 2025 robot half marathon, more than half of the entries ran the course autonomously and navigated without human intervention 

There were still a few robotic disasters, with a number of robots collapsing, tripping, or running into the barriers 

China has become increasingly keen to showcase national advances in humanoid robotics.

Earlier this year, during the CCTV Spring Festival gala, which is China's most–watched TV show, dozens of Unitree robots demonstrated their kung fu skills.

Wearing red vests, the robots performed kicks, flips, and even moves with nunchucks, swords, and poles.

Amazingly, their daring performance took place just metres away from human child performers.

In the future, it is hoped that robots will replace human workers in areas such as factory labour and even in caring for the elderly in social care settings. 

Three Chinese companies, AGIBOT, Unitree Robotics and UBTech Robotics Corp, are widely considered to be leading developers of this technology. 

This is particularly important for China, which has one of the fastest ageing populations on Earth and a dwindling supply of working–age adults.

According to the World Health Organisation, the population of people over 60 years old in China is projected to reach 28 per cent by 2040.

{ https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/index.html }

Stel je voor: Je vertelt je geleidehond dat je dorst hebt. Hij antwoordt dat er in de gang een fonteintje is en dat je twee deuren moet openen om daar te komen, maar dat er in de keuken een waterkoeler staat die sneller te bereiken is. Een echte hond kan dat niet, een robotgeleidehond van Binghamton University wel.

Onderzoekers van deze Amerikaanse universiteit ontwikkelden een systeem dat een robothond laat communiceren door middel van een taalmodel. Zo kan de ‘hond’ heen en weer communiceren met zijn gebruiker: hij vertelt wat de route is en stelt de snelste alternatieven voor en welke obstakels er onderweg zijn.

Veel blinden, weinig honden

Wereldwijd zijn er miljoenen mensen die blind of zeer slechtziend zijn. Veel van deze mensen hebben baat bij een blindengeleidehond. Deze honden zijn echter duur, het opleidingstraject is intensief en er is een beperkt aantal honden per jaar beschikbaar. Volgens KNGF Geleidehonden kost het opleiden van een hond gemiddeld 40.000 duizend euro. Niet elke hond haalt bovendien de eindstreep. Zodra de opleiding is gestart, valt ongeveer 20 procent van de honden alsnog af, bijvoorbeeld door medische redenen of gedrag. Ook werkt een blindengeleidehond met een vast aantal aangeleerde commando’s. Hoewel dit behulpzaam is in alledaagse situaties als het vermijden van obstakels of het instappen in de trein, zijn er door de grote opkomst van taalmodellen meer dingen mogelijk.

Toegevoegde waarde

Wat die taalmodellen vooral toevoegen, is iets wat echte honden simpelweg niet kunnen: uitleggen wat ze doen en waarom. Dat communiceren noemen de onderzoekers plan verbalization: het vooraf uitleggen van mogelijke routes. Tijdens het lopen gebeurt er nog iets anders. De robot blijft namelijk vertellen wat er om je heen gebeurt, zoals “we lopen nu door een lange gang” of “we naderen een deur”. Dat heet scene verbalization en helpt gebruikers om een beter beeld van hun omgeving te krijgen. Maar werkt het ook in de praktijk?

Getest met blinde deelnemers

Om te kijken of dit echt werkt, testten de onderzoekers het systeem met zes blinde deelnemers in een kantooromgeving. De robot vroeg waar iemand heen wilde, stelde verschillende routes voor en begeleidde diegene vervolgens stap voor stap naar de bestemming. De deelnemers waren vooral positief over de combinatie van uitleg vooraf en begeleiding onderweg. Juist die combinatie gaf hen meer controle en overzicht. Tegelijkertijd was er ook een kanttekening: sommige deelnemers voelden zich nog iets minder veilig dan met een echte hond, mogelijk doordat de technologie nog onbekend is.

Wat een hond niet kan vervangen

Een robotgeleidehond kan veel, maar volgens KNGF Geleidehonden zijn er ook aspecten die lastig of misschien zelfs onmogelijk te vervangen zijn. Het samenwerken tussen een gebruiker en een geleidehond is een voortdurend samenspel, waarbij de hond niet alleen obstakels vermijdt, maar ook subtiele signalen van de gebruiker oppikt. Die afstemming ontwikkelt zich in de loop van de tijd tot een sterke vertrouwensband, die bijdraagt aan zowel veiligheid als zelfstandigheid. Daarnaast speelt de hond ook een sociale rol: mensen stappen makkelijker op iemand af met een hond, wat het aangaan van contact vergemakkelijkt. Daarmee is een geleidehond niet alleen een praktisch hulpmiddel, maar ook een maatje, iets wat technologie voorlopig nog niet kan evenaren.

Nog niet klaar voor de straat

De robotgeleidehond is dus veelbelovend, maar nog lang niet af. Voor de veiligheid werd de robot tijdens de test bestuurd door een operator. Ook moet het systeem nog leren omgaan met complexere en drukkere omgevingen, zoals buiten op straat.
Daarnaast werkt de robot nu nog met een vooraf bekende kaart van de omgeving. In nieuwe of onbekende ruimtes is dat dus nog een uitdaging.
Toch laat dit onderzoek zien waar het naartoe kan gaan. Waar een echte geleidehond vooral reageert op commando’s, kan een robot straks meedenken, uitleg geven en zelfs alternatieven voorstellen maar het is nog de vraag of hij ooit de rol van de hond volledig kan overnemen.

{ https://scientias.nl/nieuws/mens-gezondheid-psychologie/ }

The Vera C. Rubin Observatory has Discovered 11,000 New Asteroids, and It's Barely Even Started!

{ https://www.universetoday.com/ }

Ancient Egypt secrets emerge from breakthrough Giza discovery

©The Daily Digest

An important breakthrough
Egyptian officials declared a significant archaeological breakthrough in 2023 with the discovery of a previously unknown corridor within the Great Pyramid of Giza, one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. This marks the first such find in a millennium, potentially paving the way for further revelations about this ancient structure.

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A great discovery

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At the north entrance of the pyramid
At a press conference in front of the Pyramid of Giza in early March of 2023, Egypt's Minister of Tourism and Antiquities, Ahmed Issa, said that the tunnel was discovered on the north side of the pyramid.

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What does the tunnel look like?
Egypt's Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities said in the statement that the mysterious tunnel was nine meters long or 30 feet long and more than two meters or six feet wide.

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Groundbreaking technology
Thanks to an endoscopic camera with a diameter of 5 mm, which penetrated between the stones without causing any damage, scientists were able to take pictures. These show a stone cavity with a gabled roof.

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An international scientific mission
This secret room was discovered as part of an international research project called ScanPyramids. Since 2015, German, French, Japanese and Canadian universities have been collaborating with Egyptian archaeologists to study the pyramids and learn more about the construction methods used to build the pyramids more than 4,500 years ago.

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Look through the stones
ScanPyramids' mission is to use non-invasive technologies to look through the stones to discover previously unknown internal structures within the pyramids.

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"We didn't want to dig indiscriminately"
Ground-penetrating radar and ultrasonic testing are the techniques used to discover this space through the stones. "We already knew in 2017 that there was a cavity behind it, we just didn't want to dig indiscriminately (...), so additional measurements were needed," explains research engineer Sébastien Procureur, who worked on the project.

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A space that remains mysterious
"Discovering an empty space in a pyramid is something special," explains German professor Christian Große, leader of the research team. "But the fact that this space is large enough to accommodate several people makes it even more important."

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What was it for?
According to Zahi Hawass, a famous Egyptian archaeologist, it is "very possible" that this room is "protecting something". It could even house a huge treasure: "In my opinion, it protects the true burial chamber of the Egyptian monarch Khufu," adds the Egyptologist.

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"There is not the direct connection that we could hope for"
Sébastien Procureur remains more skeptical: "That's a bit of the bad news: there isn't the hoped-for direct connection to the 'Big Void' (the so-called 'great void' at the heart of the pyramid where the pharaoh's body is said to be)". However, research is ongoing to clarify this question.

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The Great Pyramid of Khufu
The Pyramid of Khufu is the largest of the Pyramids of Giza. For thousands of years it was the tallest, most voluminous and most massive man-made structure in the world. It was built about 45 centuries ago (ca. 2551-2528 BC) to house the body of the pharaoh Khufu, the second ruler of the dynasty.

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A fascinating construction
An achievement that has always impressed and fascinated scientists. Its many architectural features are further mysteries that have not been solved until now. The researchers' only certainty today is the relatively short construction period: just 25 years.

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The existence of the 'Big Void' was discovered in 2017
The "Big Void" is one of the questions that are still unanswered about the Khufu pyramid. Its existence was discovered by the Scan Pyramids teams in 2017. It is a "cavity at least 35 meters long and about 3 meters high," as Sébastien Procureur explains in an interview for Sciences et Avenir magazine.

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What is in the 'Big Void'?
Archaeologists don't yet know what's in the 'Big Void'. Hypotheses vary, it could simply be a cavity formed during the construction of the pyramid or, what scientists hope, the real burial chamber of the pharaoh Khufu.

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The Mystery of Pharaoh Khufu
The tomb of Khufu could contain all the treasures of this ancient king, but also the corpse of the pharaoh, which has not yet been discovered.

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The research goes on
Only one thing is certain: the pyramid has not yet revealed all its secrets to us. The Scan Pyramids teams intend to deepen their research to gather new data and make more discoveries.

{ © The Daily Digest }

Five years ago, a man-made machine made its first powered flight in the atmosphere of another celestial body. That machine was the Ingenuity helicopter. Its flights in the Martian atmosphere marked a true breakthrough in Earth science.

The Ingenuity helicopter on Mars. Source: Wikipedia

Spaceflight to other planets

On April 19, 2021, exactly five years ago, the Ingenuity helicopter made the first-ever flight on Mars. It lasted only 39 seconds, and all the craft did during that time was rise vertically 3 meters into the air, hover briefly, and land. Yet it is still compared to the Wright brothers’ first flight, which lasted about the same amount of time.

To understand why Ingenuity is so important for the advancement of global technology, we need to understand what aerodynamic flight is and why it is so important for our civilization.

In the little more than a century since the Wright brothers’ first flight, aviation has become the primary means of long-distance travel, reducing journeys between continents to a matter of days. And all because a lift, which arises on any surface with an aerodynamic profile moving through a gaseous medium, is generated relatively easily.

Aerodynamic profile. Source: Wikipedia

All you need to do is create a wing or blade with a flat underside and a convex upper surface, and the pressure difference between them will begin to lift the aircraft into the air. And there’s no real difference: this effect is created using either a static wing or a rotor blade.

The only problem is that it is practically impossible to use this effective method beyond Earth. In most cases, other celestial bodies either have no atmosphere at all, or their atmospheres are extremely thin, or the temperature and pressure increase extremely rapidly with depth.

Therefore, instead of wings and rotors, it has been proposed to use jet propulsion for flight on other planets. This is by no means an economical or simple solution, which is why most research vehicles continue to crawl across the surfaces of celestial bodies.

The Martian atmosphere. Source: Wikipedia

Mars and Saturn’s moon, Titan, are considered to be relatively well-suited for aerodynamic flight. And since the latter is far too distant from Earth, the Red Planet remained the leading candidate for the first flight beyond Earth for several decades.

The road to the Martian helicopter

AeroVironment has been developing Mars helicopter projects with NASA’s support since at least the early 1990s. The company is one of the leading developers of unmanned aerial vehicles and a regular supplier of drones to the U.S. military.

However, even for her, the task of building a helicopter for Mars was extremely challenging. Although at first glance, it all seemed relatively simple. All that was needed was to ensure that the rotor’s lift was 20–30 percent greater than the force of gravity. Gravity on Mars is 2.5 times weaker than on Earth, and it would seem that this greatly simplifies the task.

Early prototype. Source: Wikipedia

However, the Red Planet’s atmosphere is 100-160 times less dense than Earth’s. And this significantly alters many of the parameters taken into account in Bernoulli’s equation, which describes lift. Again, it seems that this can be compensated for by making the blades longer and increasing their rotational speed.

But this raises new problems. When the speed of a thin, long blade approaches the speed of sound in the medium in which it rotates, powerful vibrations occur that try to twist and destroy it. On Earth, experimental models have managed to partially overcome this barrier, but the solutions used in them are not suitable for Mars.

To make matters worse, the low density of the atmosphere means that the speed of sound there is about 250 m/s, compared to 340 m/s on Earth. This means that the rotors there must rotate even more slowly to avoid breaking apart.

All of this led to many at NASA doubting that a Martian helicopter made sense. However, in the early 2010s, AeroVironment did develop a concept for a craft with two rotors mounted on a single axis but rotating in opposite directions. Each rotor spins at just 2,600 RPM. According to calculations, this is sufficient to lift the aircraft above the Martian surface in most cases. However, NASA once again declined to send it to Mars, as it would have had to be transported to the Red Planet alongside the new rover, then simply called Mars 2020, and the latter was already overloaded with equipment.

Preparations for the Mars 2020 mission. Source: phys.org

However, the initiative group built a series of models and demonstrated through field tests that the autonomous helicopter would indeed fly. NASA relented, and it was soon announced that Ingenuity, the first flying drone in space, would land on Mars in February 2021 alongside the Perseverance rover, although mission engineers later said that it was the rover that should have been named “Perseverance.”

The Ingenuity design

Although the name, which means “ingenuity,” is also very fitting for this device, because its design is truly something else. The fuselage – essentially a platform housing electrical equipment, four landing gear legs, and a mast – measures 195×163×136 mm. In fact, it is a toy that weighs just 1.8 kg.

The mast is equipped with two rotors, each with a blade span of 1,210 mm. Above these two rotors is a rectangular solar panel with a total area of 544 cm². This panel supplies power to the batteries, which in turn drive the rotors.

The Ingenuity design. Source: Wikipedia

It carries no payload other than the Ingenuity camera. Its main objective is to demonstrate that the very concept of a Martian helicopter works. And this small helicopter has fully succeeded in doing so.

The fact that Ingenuity did not carry any scientific instruments does not mean that it had no sensors at all. It was equipped with accelerometers, three-axis tilt sensors, and other equipment. All of this was necessary to ensure its orientation in space.

The thing is, unlike Earth, no navigation satellites are orbiting Mars. So you cannot just turn on the GPS module. And a compass is useless on the Red Planet because of the weakness of its global magnetic field.

Therefore, an inertial navigation system was used. Simply put, the spacecraft calculated on its own how far and in which direction it had traveled from a predetermined point, and thus determined its location.

Ingenuity’s electrical diagram. Source: Wikipedia

However, it did not have a traditional onboard gyroscope system. The aircraft relied on accelerometers and other sensors. This method, however, is extremely imprecise. Therefore, after each flight, mission specialists manually refined the helicopter’s position by comparing the images it captured with a high-precision map of the area.

Thanks to the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter’s many years of operation in Martian orbit, even objects as small as 25 cm were identified. The engineers had plenty of time to do this, since the spacecraft itself flew by Mars approximately once every two weeks.

However, the duration of a single flight never exceeded 2 minutes. This was not due to battery capacity, but rather to the design of the rotor drive. Due to weight constraints, it was not equipped with any heat sinks. As a result, it heated up at a rate of approximately 1 °C per second. The thermal insulation used provided some protection for the rest of the equipment against this heat. However, Ingenuity generally could not fly for long, and in fact, its flights were more like very prolonged hops.

But the most significant feature of the Martian helicopter’s design was that it was impossible to control it directly. After all, the signal delay from Earth could be as long as 22 minutes. Therefore, instead of direct control, before each flight on Ingenuity.

Superior conjunction of the Sun and Mars. Source: phys.org

Moreover, due to weight restrictions, the rover simply did not have any serious antennas. It was physically incapable of communicating with either Earth or the relay satellite in Mars orbit. All it could do was maintain communication with Perseverance, through which all commands were transmitted.

Furthermore, from time to time, the Sun would come between Earth and Mars. In such cases, commands simply could not be sent to either spacecraft for several days. The rover would automatically collect data from the helicopter and transmit it to Earth.

Mars mission

The Mars 2020 Rover Mission launched from Earth on July 30, 2020. On February 18, 2021, Perseverance landed in the Jezero Crater region. Initially, it focused on activating and testing its own systems, but on March 21, it removed the protective cover from Ingenuity. Engineers began preparing it for launch. The first attempt to spin the rotors took place on April 9, but the motors shut down on their own. The next attempt was on April 11, but the onboard computer malfunctioned. Finally, on April 19, it made its first flight.

Ingenuity on Mars. Source: Wikipedia

In that flight and several that followed, it was demonstrated that rotorcraft can operate effectively on Mars, and with that, Ingenuity’s primary objective was accomplished. When it was first being prepared for the mission, engineers cautiously estimated that it would operate for only 30 days, during which time it would make several flights.

It was assumed that it would be able to continue flying. But at first, no one had given any thought to how to organize that. The thing is, as mentioned earlier, the helicopter could not stray too far from Perseverance, and the rover had its own mission – collecting samples in the bed of the ancient Neretva River. Fortunately, it was able to fly often enough and far enough to keep up with it.

The spacecraft successfully withstood seasonal changes, dust storms, and a loss of communication during the planet’s superior conjunction with the Sun. It continued to operate until January 2024 and completed a total of 72 flights. However, during the last of these flights, a failed landing destroyed one of its rotors and severely damaged the other. Shortly thereafter, NASA announced the end of the mission.

The combined path of Ingenuity and Perseverance. Source: Wikipedia

Nevertheless, it is still considered an enormous success. Ingenuity not only demonstrated that the concept of a helicopter on Mars works, but also exceeded its expected operational lifespan several times.

What’s next?

Ingenuity’s success means that scientists will continue to explore the use of helicopters in missions to other planets in the future. One of the first such missions will be the Dragonfly multirotor drone, which is set to explore Titan. The mission is scheduled to launch in July 2028, but it will not reach its destination, Saturn, until 2036.

Some other helicopter may already be operating on Mars by then. Scientists have already proposed several projects to NASA, but the agency says it has no plans to land new rovers on the Red Planet, which means it will not be transporting helicopters either. However, things could change in the future.

Aerodynamic flight is too efficient to be ruled out wherever it is feasible. It is quite possible that in the future it will be implemented not only on Mars but also on Venus, despite the harsh conditions that exist on that planet.

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The Divine Prodigy: Was the "Killer" Jesus of the Apocrypha the Real Version?

mariusalbertsen

For nearly two millennia, the global consciousness has been shaped by a specific, carefully curated image of Jesus Christ. We know him as the "Prince of Peace," the man of ultimate sorrows who preached forgiveness and turned the other cheek. Yet, there is a gaping hole in this narrative, a silence that lasts nearly eighteen years. While the canonical Gospels of the New Testament jump from his birth to his ministry at age thirty, early Christian history was once filled with stories of what happened in between.

These "missing years" were not always empty. In the second and third centuries, a collection of texts known as the "Infancy Gospels" circulated widely throughout the Roman Empire. The most famous, and perhaps the most disturbing, is the Infancy Gospel of Thomas. It does not describe a child of perfect, serene holiness. Instead, it presents a young Jesus who is volatile, impulsive, and possessed of a power so raw that it terrified everyone around him.

What if our modern perception of Jesus is sanitized? By examining these "lost" accounts, we are forced to ask a provocative question: Was the young Messiah a dangerous prodigy who had to learn the value of human life through trial and error? If so, the implications for theology and history are staggering.

• Why the Christmas Story’s Virgin Birth Wouldn’t Surprise Early Christians
• The Royal Lineage of Jesus, Descendant of Cleopatra

The Silent Gap: Why the Apocrypha Filled the Void

The silence of the four canonical Gospels regarding Jesus’ childhood is one of the greatest mysteries in religious history. Aside from a brief mention in Luke about a twelve-year-old Jesus debating in the Temple, the Bible leaves us with a total vacuum. For the early followers of Christ, this was unacceptable. They wanted to know: did the Son of God have to learn to walk? Did he play with other children? Did he ever get angry?

A photograph of folio 32 of Nag Hammadi Codex II, a 4th-century codex containing the beginning of the Gospel of Thomas. This is not the Infancy Gospel of Thomas, but it is highly relevant as a strong contextual image for non-canonical Jesus traditions.

(Public Domain) 

The Infancy Gospel of Thomas was likely written to satisfy this curiosity. However, the author did not write a "Sunday school" story. The text paints a portrait of a child who is fully divine but not yet fully "civilized." In this version of history, divinity is not a state of moral perfection, but a terrifying source of energy. The young Jesus is a god in the body of a boy, and like any boy, he is prone to tantrums, jealousy, and revenge.

This "Killer Jesus" narrative was not some fringe cult belief. It was a major tradition that forced the early Church to decide what kind of savior they wanted to present to the world. By choosing to exclude these stories, the Church may have buried a more complex, humanized version of divinity, one that reflects the messy, often violent reality of growing up.

• The Tring Tiles: Medieval Comics of Murder and Miracles in Jesus’ Childhood
• Earliest Manuscript of Gospel about Jesus's Childhood Discovered

Medieval tile discovered in Tring, UK, and drawing of the same, depicting an event from Jesus’ childhood. Two scenes: left, a boy dies because he spoilt a pool that Jesus made; right: he is brought back to life and walks away. 

 (CC BY NC SA 4.0)

The First Victim: The Curse of the Withered Boy

The most infamous story in the Infancy Gospel of Thomas occurs when Jesus is just five years old. The setting is a stream after a rainstorm. Jesus is playing in the mud, creating small pools of water and molding twelve sparrows out of clay. It is the Sabbath, a day when work and creation are strictly forbidden. When a fellow child, the son of Annas the scribe, sees Jesus "working" on the holy day, he takes a willow branch and destroys the pools.

In the canonical Gospels, we might expect Jesus to forgive the boy. But the Infant Jesus reacts with cold, divine fury. He looks at the child and says, "You insolent, godless dunderhead, what did the pools and the waters do to harm you? Behold, now you also shall wither like a tree, and you shall yield neither leaves nor root nor fruit." The text records that the boy immediately withered away entirely.

This was not a mistake; it was a deliberate use of power. It suggests an early Christian belief that the Messiah’s power was a double-edged sword. To have the power to save also meant having the power to destroy. This "unfiltered" Jesus challenges the idea that holiness and harmlessness are the same thing.

Violence in the Streets: The Boy Who Ran Too Fast

Image Source: upload.wikimedia.org

Papyrus 45 (P. Chester Beatty I), an early New Testament papyrus in codex form.

Shortly after the incident with the withered boy, Jesus is walking through the village when another child runs by and accidentally bumps into his shoulder. The reaction is instantaneous. Jesus cries out, "You shall go no further on your way!" and the boy falls dead on the spot.

The parents of the dead child, horrified and grieving, confront Joseph, Jesus’ earthly father. They cry out, "What kind of child is this? Every word he speaks becomes a finished deed!" This social tension is a recurring theme throughout the text. The community is not in awe of Jesus; they are in a state of constant, paralyzing fear. They beg Joseph to take his son away from the village or to "teach him to bless and not to curse."

This brings us to a radical interpretation: Was Jesus a "problem child" for the holy family? The text suggests that Joseph and Mary struggled to contain a force they did not fully understand. It presents a version of the Messiah who had to be taught how to be "good" by his human parents, reversing the traditional roles of teacher and student.

The Classroom Conflict: Striking the Teacher

Education in the ancient world was often characterized by strict discipline and rote memorization. In the Infancy Gospel of Thomas, Jesus is sent to a teacher named Zacchaeus to learn the alphabet. However, the child God refused to be a passive student. When the teacher attempted to explain the letter "Alpha," Jesus demanded to know the spiritual and mystical meaning behind the shape of the letter first.

When Zacchaeus, frustrated by the boy's perceived arrogance, struck him on the head, the result was catastrophic. Jesus did not submit to the discipline; he unleashed a curse that caused the teacher to fall into a deep, death-like stupor or blindness. A second teacher who tried to discipline him suffered a similar fate.

This highlights a key theme: the "Killer Jesus" was a figure who could not be controlled by human institutions. Whether it was the law of the Sabbath or the authority of a teacher, Jesus stood above them all. But this sovereignty came at a price, a trail of bodies and broken lives in his wake. It suggests that the path to becoming the "Good Shepherd" was paved with the mistakes of a powerful youth.

• Earliest Manuscript of Gospel about Jesus's Childhood Discovered
• Transcription of ancient manuscript suggests Jesus married Mary Magdalene and had two children

The Turning Point: Redemption and Restoration

A 6th-century icon of Christ from Saint Catherine’s Monastery in Sinai shows the authoritative sacred image that later Christianity elevated, in sharp contrast to the volatile child figure in apocryphal tradition.

(Public Domain) 

If the Infancy Gospel of Thomas ended there, it would be a horror story. However, the narrative has a profound arc of development. As Jesus grows older, his relationship with his power begins to change. He starts to realize the consequences of his actions. In the latter half of the book, Jesus begins to use his powers to undo the damage he has caused.

He raises the child who fell from the roof (Zeno), he heals his brother James from a poisonous snake bite, and he eventually restores the "withered" boy and the blinded teachers. This suggests that the "true" story of Jesus’ childhood was one of maturation. He was not born with the moral compass of a thirty-year-old; he had to develop it.

This version of Jesus is arguably more inspiring than the "perfect" version. It suggests that the Messiah truly understood the human struggle with anger and power because he had lived through it himself. He didn't just "act" human; he was human, complete with the flaws and growing pains of childhood, amplified by the power of a creator.

Archeology of the Forbidden: The 2024 Hamburg Fragment

For many years, critics dismissed the Infancy Gospel of Thomas as a late medieval invention, a collection of "fairy tales" that no early Christian could have possibly believed. This changed in June 2024, when a groundbreaking discovery was made in the State and University Library in Hamburg, Germany.

Two papyrologists, Lajos Berkes and Gabriel Nocchi Macedo, identified a small fragment of papyrus, codenamed P.Hamb.Graec. 1011, that contained the earliest known Greek version of the text. Dating back to the 4th or 5th century AD, this fragment is at least 600 years older than any other copy we possess. It measures 11 centimeters (4.3 inches) by 5 centimeters (1.9 inches) and describes the miracle of the clay sparrows.

Papyrus fragment of the Infancy Gospel of Thomas from the 4th to 5th century. 

(Staats- und Universitätsbibliothek Hamburg/Public Domain)

This discovery proves that these "shocking" stories were not a late invention. They were a central part of the Christian literary landscape during the very era when the Bible was being finalized. Early Christians were reading these stories of a "volatile" Jesus alongside the more peaceful accounts of Matthew and John. It shows that for centuries, the "Killer Jesus" was a legitimate, albeit controversial, way to understand the savior.

Reperceiving Jesus: The "Raw" Divinity

Why would early Christians write and read stories about Jesus killing children? From a modern perspective, it seems blasphemous. But in the ancient world, power was often equated with danger. The gods of the Greeks, Romans, and Egyptians were not "nice." They were majestic, terrifying, and often vengeful. To an ancient reader, a Jesus who could strike down his enemies as a child was a Jesus who was authentically divine.

By stripping away the "monstrous" aspects of his youth, the later Church may have accidentally distanced Jesus from the reality of power. The Infancy Gospel of Thomas offers a version where Jesus is a "holy terror" before he becomes a "holy savior." This suggests that the journey to holiness is a process of learning to restrain one's own ego and power for the sake of others.

Perhaps we have perceived Jesus wrong by insisting on his lifelong "meekness." If these ancient texts are to be believed, his ultimate sacrifice on the cross was not just a victory over death, but a victory over his own inherent, destructive power. He chose to die, even though he had the power to kill.

The Legacy of the Infancy Gospel

Even after the Church officially banned the Infancy Gospel of Thomas, its influence persisted. You can see echoes of these stories in medieval art, where Jesus is often depicted as a small adult with an intense, knowing gaze. In Islamic tradition, the Quran even includes the story of the clay sparrows, showing how far these "apocryphal" traditions traveled.

Today, the "Killer Jesus" remains a shadow in the back of our religious history. He is the Messiah that the official record tried to delete, but who refuses to stay buried. In an age where we value "authenticity" and "raw" human experience, the Jesus of the Infancy Gospel of Thomas feels strangely modern. He is a savior who is not a statue of white marble, but a living, breathing, and occasionally dangerous human being.

Whether we view these stories as historical fact or theological metaphor, they remind us that the story of Jesus is far older, darker, and more complex than the version we find in a standard pew Bible. The "missing years" are missing for a reason, but as archaeology continues to unearth the fragments of the past, the "Boy Who Could Kill" continues to haunt our understanding of the divine.

• Top Image: Tiles depicting stories from Jesus’s childhood recounted in the Infancy Gospel of Thomas. 
• Source: © The Trustees of the British Museum

By Marius Albertsen 

FAQs

• Why was the Infancy Gospel of Thomas left out of the Bible? The early Church leaders, such as Irenaeus, considered the text "heretical" and inconsistent with the character of Jesus as presented in the four canonical Gospels. They felt the portrayal of a vengeful Jesus did not align with the message of love and sacrifice.
• Does this mean Jesus was actually a violent child? Historically, there is no way to verify these events. Most scholars believe the text is "pseudepigraphal," meaning it was written by an anonymous author using Thomas’ name to give the stories authority. It is viewed as a theological exploration of Jesus' power rather than a literal biography.
• Where can I see the Hamburg Papyrus? The fragment is held at the State and University Library in Hamburg, Germany. Since its identification in 2024, it has become a focal point for researchers studying early Christian papyri and the evolution of the "Infancy" traditions.

References

• Cielontko, David, Tobias Nicklas, and Jan N. Bremmer, eds. The Infancy Gospel of Thomas. Studies on Early Christian Apocrypha 23. Leuven: Peeters, 2025. Available at: https://www.peeters-leuven.be/detail.php?id=9715
• Nicklas, Tobias. “Christian Apocrypha and the Exegesis of the New Testament.” Religions 17, no. 3 (2026 ): 370. Available at: https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/17/3/370
• Berkes, Lajos, and Gabriel Nocchi Macedo. “The Earliest Manuscript of the So-called Infancy Gospel of Thomas: Editio princeps of P.Hamb.Graec. 1011.” Zeitschrift für Papyrologie und Epigraphik 229 (2024): 68–74. Available at: (PDF) The Earliest Manuscript of the So-Called Infancy Gospel of Thomas: Editio Princeps of P.Hamb.Graec. 1011 [preview]

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Unlike the DoD, which is studying these events for threat identification purposes (something the US military has done on and off since 1947) or NASA and Galileo, who are both looking into the issue for scientific reasons, the August 6th panel that took place during the AIAA’s annual convention had a much more prosaic concern in mind: crew and passenger safety.

“We need everyone’s help on this, and we just do it in a way that is transparent,” said former US Navy Pilot Ryan Graves, one of the six panelists to speak at the safety session and a first-hand witness to the UAP phenomenon. “Because, at the end of the day, you know, like I said, very pragmatically, you know, we’re flying around objects out there at hundreds of miles an hour with people’s families on board. It’s just a matter of time, frankly [before we have a collision]. I’m surprised it hasn’t happened already.”

Three still images from videos of purported UAP released by the US Navy in 2018.

(Images: DoD)

The Panel

Alongside Graves, the session’s five other speakers included Dr. Ravi Kopparapu, a NASA Goddard Space Flight Center scientist, Dr. Kevin Knuth, an Associate Professor of Physics at the State University of New York (SUNY) in Albany, Peter Reali, an electrical engineer and Board Director of the Scientific Coalition of UAP Studies (SCU), Ted Roe, the Director of Research at the National Aviation Reporting Center on Anomalous Phenomena (NARCAP), and Philippe Ailleris, a veteran Project Controller for the European Space Agency (ESA).

Ed Stanton, Chair of the AIAA’s Air Traffic Management Integration Committee, moderated what would turn out to be a nearly five-hour session, highlighting the need for his committee and the entire association to take this emerging safety situation seriously.

“Professional conduct will be expected in this session,” declared Stanton at the day’s open. “Comments or questions that are outside of this will neither be tolerated nor permitted.”

Given the panel’s positive reactions, it was a welcomed message from the committee chair of such a staid, scientifically minded organization like the AIAA, and one that set the tone for the serious and often riveting discourse that would follow.

The Presentations

Dr. Kopparapu was the first to speak, leading off with a general discussion about the phenomenon’s history from a scientific perspective while also noting that “this is my first time attending an aeronautics conference.” Like Stanton, Kopparapu kept his message on point with potentially verifiable mathematical principles, periodically stating he wasn’t interested in explanations that relied on “exotic physics.”

Kopparapu was followed by Dr. Knuth, whose talk covered the potential real-world physics behind the unusual flight characteristics described by UAP observers dating back to the 1940s. Knuth’s talk mirrored many of the points made in his 2019 paper on the same subject, including a lengthy analysis of past and present cases. Like Kopparapu, the physics professor focused much of his discussion on the efforts made by scientists back in the 1950s and 1960s who were trying to explain what military and civilian aviators of that era were reporting. Also, like Kopparapu, Knuth noted how much of this data was recorded before there was a stigma attached while also outlining steps that can be taken in the future to help that stigma go away.

Following a riveting presentation by Graves, who once again recounted his own UAP experiences as well as those conveyed to him by his fellow aviators (including some unnamed US Air Force pilots), the SCU’s Reali focused his time on the 2004 USS Nimitz UAP incident. 

More commonly known as the Tic Tac incident, Reali’s recounting included a range of calculations done by his SCU group concerning the physics-defying descriptions of the craft’s movements purportedly captured on RADAR, as well as a discussion of the effects on the surrounding environment such extreme movements should have caused. Like previous presenters, Reali’s talk focused heavily on science and data, calling for an increase in both going forward.

NARCAP’s Director Roe gave a much broader analysis of the phenomenon, including highlighting his organization’s collection of witness accounts that date back to 1916. Roe also offered a harrowing account of an orb of light he personally witnessed up close when visiting a site where he was told others had seen similar things.

Another particularly interesting moment came when the NARCAP director discussed the occasional reports of electromagnetic (EM) interference purportedly caused by UAPs. Specifically, he noted that in all of the 57 cases on file with his organization where EM effects were connected to a UAP sighting, the crafts were all described the same way, as balls of light.

When asked by The Debrief to restate that statistic, Roe said, “all fifty-seven of the cases where pilots recorded concurrent failures of onboard electrical systems, as reported during the UAP incident, described the UAPs as balls of light.” When pressed further by The Debrief for clarification of this seemingly significant point, Roe repeated the claim. “We have no data that we’re detecting electrical interference from any of the other UAP.”

In response to another attendee’s question, Roe addressed historical reports of crashes potentially caused by UAPs, including possible collisions with “flying saucers.” He concluded that many such reports exist, but none have enough data or independent confirmation to be accepted as actual fact.

From July 12 to July 29, 1952, a series of UFO sightings occurred over Washington D.C. in one of the most publicized UFO “flaps” in U.S. history. (Source: The New York Times) ESA Project Director Philip Ailleris presented last, proposing that researchers comb existing satellite imagery databases to search for UAP, thus avoiding any equipment costs associated with other proposed efforts. “There’s a huge increase of observation satellites launched into orbit [annually],” said Ailleris. “And obviously, this results in a massive increase of data collected.

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While still in the experimental stage, the team said that their learning from demonstrations (LfD) framework could dramatically improve efficiency in multi-robot environments such as large retail warehouses and automotive assembly plants by reducing training times of robotic systems designed to work together.

Learning Complex Tasks Remains Challenging for Robots of Different Designs

According to a statement announcing the sci-fi-sounding framework that lets robots learn complex tasks by watching other robots, some LfD systems already exist. However, these earlier versions cannot be transferred between different robotic systems, limiting them to a single robotic platform learning from an identical ‘trained’ model.

“Most LfD methods remain tied to the robot they were trained on,” the research team explained in a published study detailing their work.

As robotic systems become more prevalent in the workforce, their complexity and capabilities are also expected to continue to increase. The research team notes that this increasing “freedom of motion” will open the door to training methods that allow differently constructed robotic platforms to learn to accomplish tasks regularly performed by robots of a different, but similarly versatile, design. However, they also note that this increasing complexity will only increase the need for simpler training methods that don’t require hours of human intervention.

“Teaching robots new skills should be as natural as showing rather than programming,” the researchers explained. “Learning from demonstration (LfD) moves toward this goal by allowing users to guide a robot or sketch a desired motion, enabling learning without writing a line of code.”

Embedding Kinematic Intelligence on Differently Constructed Platforms

To remove human trainers from the equation, the EPFL team evaluated and classified different 3-jointed robots based on joint spacing and movement constraints. After testing various autonomous learning approaches, the team designed a framework that models potential workplaces, identifies ‘feasible’ motion trajectories based on how they had previously classified the robot, and then executes a safe movement within each robot’s specific design capabilities.

“(We) embedded kinematic intelligence into the control policy, ensuring constraint-awareness and predictable behavior regardless of design variations,” they explained.

The team notes that this framework “endows robots with kinematic intelligence: an internal understanding of their own joint limits, singularities, and connectivity.”

“Instead of correcting for these constraints after learning, we embedded them directly into the control policy from the outset,” they explained. “

Tests Validate Learning From Their Demonstration Framework After a Single Observation

To validate their new framework, the team tested it across several industrial robots with varying abilities and limitations. According to the study authors, this included “diverse simulated and real robots, both redundant and nonredundant, with varied link geometries and joint configurations.”

During each test, a human ‘trainer’ would perform a specified task to demonstrate the desired result. For example, the researchers would trace out the letters of a word or manipulate objects as if they were on a simulated assembly line.

After a single human demonstration, the robotic platforms with the embedded kinetic intelligence framework showed the uncanny ability to adapt their own tools to achieve the same result, regardless of design limitations. The researchers said this included demonstrating the ability to reproduce the traced characters, and to “push, pick-and-place, and throw objects successfully.”

“The Demonstrated Skill Executes Safely and Consistently Across Robots”

When discussing the successful tests, the researchers noted that robots imbued with kinetic intelligence could observe one or more demonstrations, extract a “globally stable dynamical system,” and produce behaviors that remain valid across robots with different physical tools and limitations. They also noted that one robot could watch another perform the skill and adapt its unique configuration to achieve the same result, without accidents or damage.

“The demonstrated skill executes safely and consistently across robots without retuning, thereby achieving cross-robot skill transfer,” they explained.

When discussing possible applications of their LfD framework that lets robots learn by watching other robots, they note that the entire design was grounded in the category of three-revolute (3R) robots, “which form the building blocks of many commercial robots.”

“This classification enables a joint space policy that preserves user intent and adapts to robot-specific constraints,” they conclude.

The study “Demonstrate once, execute on many: Kinematic intelligence for cross-robot skill transfer” was published in Science Robotics.

• Christopher Plain is a Science Fiction and Fantasy novelist and Head Science Writer at The Debrief. Follow and connect with him on X, learn about his books at plainfiction.com, or email him directly at christopher@thedebrief.org.

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We’re used to seeing Mars as a static world, almost frozen in time. In most classic photographs, we see a monotonous desert—a rust-brown surface covered by a thick layer of dust and scattered rocks, through which jagged cliffs are visible. This landscape seems to have remained unchanged for millions of years. However, new data obtained by European researchers debunks this myth. Recent images of the Red Planet have revealed an astonishing sight: a vast “blanket” of volcanic ash that is rapidly spreading across the surface.

Viking vs. Mars Express

Comparison with an image of a section of Mars captured by the Viking lander. The white frame marks the area of the panorama shown below Comparison with an image of a section of Mars captured by the Viking lander. The white frame marks the area of the panorama shown below

The comparison of modern photographs with archival images from 50 years ago caused quite a stir. When NASA’s Viking orbiters imaged the same region in 1976, they captured a classic scene: light, ochre-colored plains dotted with barely visible dark spots. However, in new detailed images sent by the European Space Agency’s (ESA) Mars Express spacecraft, the planet appears to be split in two.

A panoramic view of the Martian surface captured during the Viking and Mars Express missions. Photo: ESA

The dark cloud of ash now covers a much larger area than it did in the mid-1970s. This suggests that the geological “face” of Mars can change incredibly quickly by cosmic standards—literally in just a few decades. This trend underscores the fact that Mars is not a barren “dead rock,” but a planet where active atmospheric and, possibly, subsurface processes continue to shape its landscape.

Chemistry of Darkness

A close-up of a crater on Mars at the boundary between light and dark terrain. Photo: ESA

So what exactly is this dark layer? ESA scientists explain that the material is of volcanic origin. It is rich in so-called mafic minerals—compounds containing large amounts of magnesium and iron. It is these minerals that give the ash its characteristic dark color, which contrasts sharply with the surrounding light-colored terrain.

A bird’s-eye view of an impact crater on the ash-brown surface, which has changed since the Viking mission. Photo: ESA

Mars is known for its turbulent volcanic history. It is home to Olympus Mons, the tallest volcano in the Solar System, standing 20 km high. Billions of years ago, the planet was undergoing an era of super-eruptions that spewed an incredible amount of ash and gases into the atmosphere. Over time, the activity subsided, giving way to a period of calm lava flows, but the remnants of those ancient eruptions did not disappear. They remained buried beneath layers of dust, biding their time.

Two theories of the same transformation

The scientific community is currently considering two main scenarios as to why the dark ash has become so noticeable right now.

The first theory attributes this to the famous Martian winds. It is possible that global or local dust storms picked up ancient ash deposits from craters or faults and carried them to new areas, “painting” the rust-colored surface in dark hues.

The second theory posits the opposite process: the ash has always been where we see it now, but it was previously hidden beneath a thin layer of golden dust. Strong air currents may have simply blown away this top layer, exposing the dark volcanic “substrate.” In any case, these changes demonstrate the immense power of the Martian atmosphere.

Mysteries of Utopia Planitia

A wider view of the area of Mars shown in the main image, located in the Utopia Planitia basin. Source: ESA

The main focus of the study was the region surrounding Utopia Planitia—a massive impact plain that is one of the oldest basins on the planet. It is believed that in the distant past, this low-lying area may have been the floor of a vast ocean or a network of lakes. 

Mars Express images clearly show a large crater in this region, surrounded by a bright ring—the so-called “ejection veil.” This is material that was ejected from the planet’s interior during the meteorite impact. Although the surface of the basin appears dry and rocky, ESA data confirm that vast deposits of water ice still lie beneath the volcanic ash and sand.

Supporting this hypothesis are the “scalloped depressions” visible at the bottom of the images. These unusual, wavy depressions are a typical feature of a periglacial landscape. They form as a result of regular cycles of freezing and thawing (or sublimation) of ice beneath the surface. Thus, the dark ash not only changes the planet’s color but also helps scientists better understand how water is distributed in the Martian soil.

The mission continues

The spacecraft launched from Earth toward Mars on June 2, 2003. It reached its destination after a six-month flight and has been exploring the planet since early 2004. Photo: ESA

The Mars Express spacecraft has been in orbit around Mars since 2003. Over the course of more than twenty years of operation, it has created the most detailed map of the planet to date, with unprecedented resolution. Each of these photos is not just a beautiful landscape, but an important piece of the puzzle in the history of our neighbor’s geological and climatic evolution. As we watch ash and dust wage their eternal battle on the plains of Utopia Planitia, humanity has the chance to learn what Mars was once like and what it will become in the future, when the first human sets foot on its surface.

We previously discussed the changes experienced by the Martian Sphinx since it was first photographed.

• According to ESA 

• Posted in News, Science

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The newest images of this geological marvel, captured on March 5 and 6, 2026, were recently featured as NASA Earth Observatory’s Image of the Day for April 16.

According to a commentary by Adam Voiland accompanying the newest images, the Richat Structure is “a deeply eroded geologic dome formed by the uplift of rock above an underground intrusion of igneous material.”

“Over time, differing erosion rates among rock types in the exposed upper dome led to the development of circular ridges known as cuestas,” Voiland adds. “The orange and gray colors reflect differences in sedimentary and igneous rock types across the structure and the surrounding landscape.”

The Richat Structure is not the only unique feature in the Sahara Desert that features striking concentric geology similar to this. Another example, Jabal Arkanū’s concentric rock rings, found in southeastern Libya, also bear a unique circular appearance, though not quite as striking as its massive Mauritanian counterpart.

A Cold War Discovery

On June 3, 1965, at the height of both the Cold War and the great Space Race between the United States and the Soviet Union, the Gemini IV mission lifted off from Launch Complex 19  at Cape Kennedy Air Force Station in Florida, carried into orbit aboard the Gemini–Titan II, a modified Intercontinental Ballistic Missile.

Only the 10th manned American spaceflight at that time, astronauts James McDivitt and Ed White spent four days in orbit, during which White performed the first American spacewalk, spending nearly 20 minutes outside the spacecraft. The pair made a total of 66 trips around the Earth and conducted several scientific experiments in space.

“The objective of the mission was to test the performance of the astronauts and capsule and to evaluate work procedures, schedules, and flight planning for an extended length of time in space,” reads an official NASA historical summary of the mission. “Secondary objectives included demonstration of extravehicular activity in space, conduct stationkeeping and rendezvous maneuvers, evaluate spacecraft systems, demonstrate the capability to make significant in-plane and out-of-plane maneuvers and use of the maneuvering system as a backup reentry system, and conduct 11 experiments.”

Prior to entering space, McDivitt and White had been asked to photograph the Earth from space, and while doing so, to pay attention to what appeared to be “any large circular features which might be the roots of impact structures.” While passing over one of the planet’s hottest and most unforgiving regions—the Sahara desert—the astronauts spotted something which, to them, did look like it might have been evidence of a crater of some kind, albeit a strange one.

Peering at the astronauts like a massive eye emerging from the Saharan sand was a huge, circular object or structure with a large central area encircled by rings of stone and sand extending in every direction for miles. At nearly 30 miles across, what the Gemini IV astronauts had easily observed—and photographed for the first time from space—had been a feature known as the Richat Structure.

Image taken during the Gemini IV mission of the Richat Structure as seen from space

(NASA/Public Domain).

Impact Crater, Ancient Volcano, or Something Else?

Although the Apollo era provided Earth with the first images of the mysterious feature, it had actually been discovered decades earlier, at least as early as the 1930s. By 1948, French scientist Jacques Richard-Molard was arguably the first to propose that the mysterious feature might have resulted from a sheet-like intrusion known as a laccolithic thrust.

However, upon its “rediscovery” by the Gemini IV crew in 1965, it was initially thought to have been an impact crater when it was observed from space. However, further studies showed it to have a flat central area and no shock-altered rock, which would have been a telltale indicator of an impact event. Other theories proposed included a volcanic eruption, which was later ruled out in favor of an uplifted region of rock sculpted over time by erosion, although its unusual circular appearance remains mysterious.

According to a Business Insider article from 2016, although questions remain about the structure’s formation, a pair of Canadian geologists speculate that the Eye of the Sahara’s origins began more than 100 million years ago, “as the supercontinent Pangaea was ripped apart by plate tectonics and what are now Africa and South America were being torn away from each other.”

According to the theory, the present dome of rock layers resulted from molten rock that was thrust upward, but never actually reached the surface. Thus, the Sahara’s strange Eye is essentially the geological equivalent of a pimple, surrounded by “ripples” in the form of fault lines. Limestone that was dissolved near the center of the formation by the accumulation of molten rock caused it to collapse, resulting in the breccia formation geologists observe there today.

Archaeology of the Richat Structure

In addition to being a geological wonder, the Richat Structure has yielded a wealth of archaeological data over the years. Ongoing studies at the site continue to assess the duration and extent of human occupation of the Sahara Desert’s most peculiar geological feature. An abundance of Acheulean artifacts has been recovered there, indicating the presence of early archaic humans who lived and hunted in the vicinity of the peculiar formation.

However, most of the archaeological sites observed in the area are associated with quartz outcrops from which early humans may have gathered material for making stone tools. The majority of archaeological locations around the feature lie along its outer ring on the northwestern side, and surveys beginning around 1974 have found little archaeological evidence of human presence within the inner depressions of the structure.

The mysterious Eye of the Sahara has become a landmark for spacefaring shuttle crews since McDivitt and White first spied it from space in 1965. Today, although many unusual natural phenomena have been detected from Earth orbit, the Sahara’s famous Richat Structure remains one of the most impressive natural features visible from space.

• Editor’s Note: This is an updated version of an article originally published by The Debrief on April 16, 2021.
• Micah Hanks is the Editor-in-Chief and Co-Founder of The Debrief. A longtime reporter on science, defense, and technology with a focus on space and astronomy, he can be reached at micah@thedebrief.org. Follow him on X @MicahHanks, and at micahhanks.com.

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