Another breathtaking photo. Accustomed to unpublished high quality shots, the James Webb telescope has done it once more. This time, Uranus was immortalized. In this image released by NASA, the ice giant appears surrounded by eleven of its spectacular rings. Some of them, made entirely of dust, had so far only been photographed by the Voyager 2 space probe (1986) and the Keck observatory, located more than 4000 meters above sea level on Mount Mauna Kea , in Hawaii. A feat that is all the more impressive since these celestial objects are located at a distance of between 2.58 and 3.15 billion kilometers from Earth.
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A comet will be visible to the naked eye around February 1, a rare phenomenon
At the time of its discovery on March 2, 2022, using the camera of the Zwicky Transient Facility (ZTF) instrument, the comet had an apparent magnitude – read, luminous intensity – of 17.3. As a reminder, the brighter an object, the weaker, or even negative, its magnitude. After its closest passage to the Sun, on January 12, the star might finally exceed magnitude 6, indicates NASA on son site internet.
However, it is considered that the darkest object that the eye can observe must be of magnitude 6.5, with good observation conditions. If so, from a location sheltered from light pollution, the comet will appear as a speck in the sky, looking toward the north celestial pole in the constellation Camelopardalis. Even if it is not bright enough, it will be still possible to observe it with binoculars or a telescope.
Egypt… a place where civilization flourished on the banks of the fruitful Nile. When you hear the word Egypt, you think of the pyramids standing tall once morest a backdrop of long stretches of sand. Ancient Egyptians mummified their dead. Mummies hold a large place in the public consciousness of the country of Egypt.
Now scientists have recreated the face of the mummy named Mysterious Lady in Warsaw, Poland. The Mysterious Lady is the world’s first discovered pregnant mummy. There was a fetus with their mummy. This mummy is kept in Warsaw, Poland. Now the mummy’s face was recreated using special 2D and 3D imaging techniques.
∙ Mummy in Warsaw
Last year, scientists from the Warsaw Mummy Project in Poland announced the strange secret that the mummy of the mysterious woman was pregnant, shocking the world’s Egyptian culture enthusiasts. This mummy is estimated to be between 25 and 35 years old. At the time of its discovery, the researchers believed that it was the mummy of a male priest who lived in Egypt. However, the personal information regarding this mummy remained unknown.
One question that has puzzled scientists is how the unborn baby inside the mummy survived intact for two millennia. Scientists have answered the reason for this. A mummified body becomes acidic (presence of acid) over time. This acidic presence also occurs in the womb. An increase in the amount of chemicals like ammonia and formic acid leads to acidity. Scientists say that it is the acidic presence that covered the unborn child that protected it for two thousand years.
Mummification processes in Egypt also used a special type of natron soil mixed with salt. This earthen envelope prevented atmospheric air and oxygen from entering the body and provided further protection to the unborn child.
But this unborn child had very few bones. This was also the reason why the baby was not seen during the scan procedures. Scientists also have an answer as to why this happened. Scientists say that in general, there is not much bone formation in pre-born babies by six months. Over 2,000 years of exposure to acidic conditions can cause decay of existing bones. But the body tissues will remain.
The young woman’s internal organs were removed during mummification. Yet there is a question why the unborn child was not transferred. Scientists reply that it is due to the beliefs regarding the followinglife that prevailed among the Egyptians at that time.
∙ Cutting faces
Scientists have used modern technology to give faces to many mummies found in Egypt to know what they looked like when they were alive. The mummies of many famous ancient Egyptians, such as Tiye Rani, Meritamun, Hatsheput, Nefertiti, etc., were discovered following undergoing scientific tests.
Last January, scientists recreated the face of a 2,600-year-old Egyptian mummy using state-of-the-art computer technology with the help of CT scans and other information. At that time, the scientists were researching a very beautiful mummy named Schepanisis with big eyes with brown pupils and slightly protruding teeth. This mummy is kept in the library of Sao Gallo Abbey in the city of St. Gallen, Switzerland. The researchers spent months to reconstruct their faces. The research was conducted by a joint team of scientists from FAPAB Research Center in Sicily and Flinders University in Australia. Renowned 3D designer Brazilian Cicero Morais recreated the mummy’s face.
English Summary: Forensics reveal stunning face of ancient Egypt’s ‘Mysterious Lady’ mummy
Big challenge for astronauts, declining bone density – report | Astronaut | Space | International Space Station – ISS | Science News | Malayalam Technology News
Study shows decreased bone density in travelers who spend months in space. The researchers also found that a year following the travelers returned to Earth, the decrease in bone density did not resolve. The scientific community is now concerned that this might be a challenge for longer journeys such as future Mars missions.
Previous studies have found that for every month that travelers spend in space, their bone density decreases by one to two percent. In space, there is no pressure on the legs when walking or standing due to the lack of gravity. This causes a decrease in bone density.
The study was conducted on the last 17 astronauts on the International Space Station. The researchers measured their bone density before they left for the space station, while on the station, and following they returned.
In space, travelers lose bone density that would take decades to lose on Earth. The study found that the decrease in bone density of the shinbone, the large bone below the knee, was not compensated for by the travelers a year following returning to Earth. The study was led by Steven Boyd of the University of Calgary in Canada.
Astronauts who spent seven months on the International Space Station took the longest to recover. Those who spent longer in space took longer to recover. Boyd also expressed concern that travelers may face more of these problems on long-duration space missions such as the Mars mission.
Human missions to Mars can often require travelers to stay in space for several years. Will astronauts face more problems as time passes? We cannot say for sure now. It is possible that sometimes it will get fixed following some time. Sometimes bone density may continue to decrease. But will it be so lost that there is not even a little left? Steven Boyd says such a situation is unthinkable.
These problems can be reduced by doing some exercises. Robert Trisk is a Canadian astronaut who spent 205 consecutive days in space. Robert also testifies that his muscles and bones took the longest to get back into shape. Future astronauts may face challenges unknown to the scientific world. Evidence of this is demonstrated by the study of bone density.
English Summary: Astronauts Struggle to Regain Decades’ Worth of Bone Density After Space Travel