Category Science & Technology

No man-made object has survived on Venus for more than 127 minutes. A Soviet spacecraft called Venera 13 lasted for 127 minutes when it arrived on the planet: it was eventually crushed by the enormous heat and pressure of the planet. Venus’ 470 degree Celsius temperature, sulphuric acid atmosphere, and overwhelming air pressure (90 times greater than our home planet’s) have left scientists with the challenge to develop technology to withstand such a harsh environment.

After a four-month journey to Venus, the spacecraft descended through the planet’s atmosphere, plunging through the clouds toward the surface. Venera 13 then popped a parachute and rode it all the way down.

Venera 13 touched down safely on March 1, 1982, in the southern hemisphere of Venus, on an area that the Lunar and Planetary Institute describes as “a typical expanse of Venusians’ plains.” The broad area around the landing site is known to contain lava flows and small dome volcanoes, which may indicate an active surface.

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The Naica mine in Chihuahua, Mexico, yields zinc, lead, and silver – and giant gypsum crystals, some reaching more than 30 feet long, that have made the Cueva de los Cristales or Cave of Crystals famous.

Recently, NASA researchers found microbes that thrive on iron, sulphur, and other chemicals, trapped in fluid pockets inside the massive crystals. Analysis suggests that the microbes may have been tucked away in these tiny time capsules for 10,000 to 50,000 years and may have been dormant for some or all of that time. But they “remained viable and were able to be regrown”. The microbes that ended up growing were genetically distant from any known living microbes.

The microbes could represent some of the toughest extremophiles on the planet – dwelling at depths 100 to 400 metres below Earth’s surface and enduring temperature of 45 degree to 65 degree Celsius. Studies like these show that some microbes are hardy creatures, willing to turn just about any habitat into a home.

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Indian long pepper may soon be used as a potential cancer treatment drug, according to a new study. It contains a chemical that could stop the body from producing an enzyme that is commonly found in tumors in large number, according to a study in Journal of Biological Chemistry.

Long pepper’s medicinal properties date back thousands of years. Its benefits were even cited by Hippocrates, the ancient Greek physician known as the father of medicine. Its cancer-fighting secret lies in a chemical called Piperlongumine (PL), which has shown activity against many cancers including prostate, breast, lung, colon, lymphoma, leukemia, primary brain tumors and gastric cancer.

Using x-ray crystallography, researchers were able to create molecular structures that show how the chemical is transformed after being ingested. PL converts to , an active drug that silences a gene called GSTPI. The GSTPI gene produces a detoxification enzyme that is often overly abundant in tumors.

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Marne biologists working on the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Okeanos Explorer spotted this beautiful deep-sea jellyfish at Utu Seamount in the National Marine Sanctuary of American Samoa. Looking like a flying saucer with tentacles, rhopalonematid trachymedusa is primarily found in the deep ocean, and is identifiable by its umbrella-like appearance. The translucent creature’s reproductive organs can be seen in bright yellow, and its digestive system appears in red. The creature’s two unique set of tentacles – one facing up and one facing down – likely help it to catch prey.

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A new spider species discovered by three Mumbai researchers in the Kans forest area of Karnataka has been named after a popular wizard in J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter book series.

Eriovixia gryffindori, ,measuring barely 7 mm in length, has been named after the wizard Godric Gryffindor, one of the four founders of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, mainly because it resembles the magical sorting hat worn by the wizard. The spider’s shape allowed it to resemble a dried leaf and protect itself from predators.

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The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) recently launched an unmanned cargo ship bound for the International Space Station (ISS). Along for the ride was the vessel Kounotori 6, which is embedded with a 2300-foot electrodynamic tether (EDT) meant to swat space junk out of orbit.

“To preserve the outer space environment for future generations, it is necessary to remove existing large pieces of space debris,” according to JAXA.

Uses fishnet plaiting technology developed by local fishnet manufacturer Nitto Seimo, the length of the cord is currently about 2,300 feet, but eventually must extend to between 16,400 and 32,800 feet long, “to show down the targeted space junk.”

The idea is that one end of the cord will be attached to debris; the electricity generated by the tether as it swings through Earth’s magnetic field is expected to have a slowing effect on the space junk, which should pull it into a lower and lower orbit. Eventually, the debris will enter Earth’s atmosphere, burning up long before it crashes on land or into the sea.

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