A “cagey” strategy to stack more hydrogen in nanoscale scaffoldings made of zinc-based boxes may yield a viable approach to storing hydrogen and, ultimately, replacing fossil fuels in future automobiles, according to new results from National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) researchers.
Using beams of neutrons as probes, NIST scientists determined where hydrogen latches onto the lattice-like arrangement of zinc and oxygen clusters in a custom-made material known as a
A new Hubble image – among the largest ever produced with the Earth-orbiting observatory – gives the most detailed view so far of the entire Crab Nebula. The Crab is arguably the single most interesting object, as well as one of the most studied, in all of astronomy. The image is the largest ever taken with Hubble’s WFPC2 workhorse camera.
The Crab Nebula is one of the most intricately structured and dynamic objects ever observed. The new Hubble image of the Crab was assembled
ATI and CEVP joint venture set to catalyse revolution in flat displays, ICs, high-brightness light sources, etc
CEVP has developed a fabrication tool to commercialise the revolutionary low temperature carbon nanotube growth process developed by the University of Surrey’s (UniS) Advanced Technology Institute (ATI). The new tool – NanoGrowth – is currently being trialled and characterised by UniS, and the two partners anticipate releasing the technology for commercial use in Ma
HARPS Instrument Finds Neptune-Mass Exoplanet Around Small Star
A team of French and Swiss astronomers [1] have discovered one of the lightest exoplanets ever found using the HARPS instrument [2] on ESO’s 3.6-m telescope at La Silla (Chile). The new planet orbits a star belonging to the class of red dwarfs. As these stars are very common, this discovery proves crucial in the census of other planetary systems.
“Our finding possibly means that planets are rather frequen
For the first time in the history of planetary exploration, the MARSIS radar on board ESA’s Mars Express has provided direct information about the deep subsurface of Mars.
First data include buried impact craters, probing of layered deposits at the north pole and hints of the presence of deep underground water-ice. The subsurface of Mars has been so far unexplored territory. Only glimpses of the Martian depths could be deduced through analysis of impact crater and valley wa
Substantial quantities of liquid water must have been stably present in the early history of Mars. The findings of OMEGA, on board ESA’s Mars Express, have implications on the climatic history of the planet and the question of its ’habitability’ at some point in its history.
These conclusions were drawn thanks to data on Martian surface minerals obtained by OMEGA (Observatoire pour la Mineralogy, l’Eau, les Glaces et l’Activité), the visible and infrared map
After a seven-year journey on board the NASA/ESA/ASI Cassini spacecraft, ESA’s Huygens probe was released on 25 December 2004. It reached the upper layer of Titan’s atmosphere on 14 January 2005 and landed on the surface after a parachute descent of 2 hours and 28 minutes.
Clear images of the surface were obtained below 40 km altitude – revealing an extraordinary world, resembling Earth in many respects, especially in meteorology, geomorphology and fluvial activity. The images
Strong turbulence in the upper atmosphere, a second ionospheric layer and possible lightning were among the surprises found by the Huygens Atmospheric Structure Instrument (HASI) during the descent to Titan’s surface.
HASI provided measurements from an altitude of 1400 km down to the surface of the physical characteristics of the atmosphere and surface, such as temperature and density profiles, electrical conductivity, and surface structure. The Huygens SSP made measurements just
The high-resolution images taken in Titan’s atmosphere by the Descent Imager/Spectral Radiometer (DISR) were spectacular, but not the only surprises obtained during descent. Both DISR and the Doppler Wind Experiment data have given Huygens scientists much to think about.
The irreversible conversion of methane into other hydrocarbons in Titan’s stratosphere implies a surface or subsurface ’reservoir’ of methane. Although the NASA/ESA/ASI Cassini orbiter has no
The Surface Science Package (SSP) revealed that Huygens could have hit and cracked an ice ‘pebble’ on landing, and then it slumped into a sandy surface possibly dampened by liquid methane. Had the tide on Titan just gone out?
The SSP comprised nine independent sensors, chosen to cover the wide range of properties that be encountered, from liquids or very soft material to solid, hard ice. Some were designed primarily for landing on a solid surface and others for a liquid landing,
GIOVE A, the first Galileo satellite, departed from ESA’s test facility at the European Space Research and Technology Centre in The Netherlands on the morning of 29 November, bound for the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.
The spacecraft, packed in its transport container and accompanied by its support equipment, was taken by road from the European Space Research and Technology Centre (ESTEC) to Amsterdam’s Schiphol airport, where it was loaded onto an Antonov transport plane.
Scientists at the Commerce Department’s National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have coaxed six atoms into spinning together in two opposite directions at the same time, a so-called Schrödinger “cat” state that obeys the unusual laws of quantum physics. The ambitious choreography could be useful in applications such as quantum computing and cryptography, as well as ultra-sensitive measurement techniques, all of which rely on exquisite control of nature’s smallest particle
Princeton group outlines novel mathematical approach
It has been 20 years since the futurist Eric Drexler daringly predicted a new world where miniaturized robots would build things one molecule at a time. The world of nanotechnology that Drexler envisioned is beginning to come to pass, with scientists conjuring new applications daily.
Now Salvatore Torquato, a Princeton University scientist, is proposing turning a central concept of nanotechnology on its head. If
This release contains a summary of some significant astronomical and space events that will be taking place during December. It has been written in order to assist the media in planning and researching future stories related to space science and astronomy, particularly those with UK involvement. It is not intended to be fully comprehensive. Dates and times may be subject to change.
1 DECEMBER: BEYOND EINSTEIN: LIVE WORLDWIDE WEBCAST
To celebrate Einstein Year (World Year of
Two studies on carbon nanotubes by CEA DRECAM researchers have just been published in Physical Review Letters and Applied Physics Letters. The first study presents an innovative and experimentally verified theoretical law to predict and characterize the deformation of a carbon nanotube subject to an electrical field. The second study applies this knowledge to produce a nano-switch using innovative dimensioning and positioning control techniques.
MEMs technologies (microelectromech
A team of astrophysicists from the CEA (Commissariat à l’Energie Atomique), the Université Paris 7 Denis Diderot and the CNRS in France has discovered that one of Saturn’s rings has a spiral shape and has published its results today in the American journal Science. This unusual astronomical configuration is perhaps the result of a collision with a recently formed small moon. The discovery is a great opportunity for astrophysicists who think that this ring is the only place in our solar s
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