Heavens

Using the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA), a team of researchers reports the first-ever detection of molecular gas -- the fuel for star formation -- in two galaxies that were previously rocked by gamma ray bursts (GRBs), the brightest explosions in the Universe. These new observations revealed that the molecular gas was concentrated toward the centers of the galaxies, while the GRBs occurred in unusual environments that were surprisingly bereft of gas yet rich in dust.

Tropical Cyclone 02A has consolidated and strengthened over a 24 hour period between June 10 and 11 and an image from NASA's Aqua satellite showed a more rounded tropical storm, despite wind shear.

Observations from the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) have for the first time directly mapped out the molecular gas and dust in the host galaxies of gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) — the biggest explosions in the Universe. In a complete surprise, less gas was observed than expected, and correspondingly much more dust, making some GRBs appear as "dark GRBs". This work will appear in the journal Nature on 12 June 2014 and is the first ALMA science result on GRBs to appear. It shows ALMA's potential to help us to better understand these objects.

Before Tropical Storm Cristina intensified into a hurricane, NASA's TRMM satellite passed overhead and gathered data that showed areas of heavy rainfall were occurring within.

Larvae of the marine bristle worm Platynereis dumerilii orient themselves using light. Early in their development, these larvae swim towards the light to use surface currents for their dispersal. Older larvae turn away from the light and swim to the sea floor where they develop into adult worms. Scientists of the Max Planck Institute for Developmental Biology in Tübingen have discovered that this change in the behavioural response to light is coupled to different neuronal systems underlying the eyes.

The potential value of turning the nation's freeways into "smart transportation systems" is enormous. Equipping the nation's concrete arteries with a nervous system of computers and sensors that directly control on-ramp signals to keep traffic moving smoothly can substantially reduce travel times, fuel consumption and air pollution, not to mention improve road safety. In California alone the economic penalty of traffic congestion has been estimated at $400 million in extra costs and $3.5 million in lost wages every day.

Large shell structures made of concrete or stone are hardly ever built any more. The reason is that their construction requires large, expensive supporting structures. At the Vienna University of Technology, a completely new construction method has been developed, which does not require any timber structures at all: a flat concrete slab hardens on the ground, and then an air cushion below the plate is inflated, bending the concrete and quickly forming a sustainable shell. Even large event halls could be built this way.

Satellite dwarf galaxies at the edges of the Milky Way and neighboring Andromeda defy the accepted model of galaxy formation, and recent attempts to pigeon-hole them into the model are flawed, an international team of scientists reports.

The mismatch raises questions about the accuracy of the standard model of cosmology, which is the widely accepted paradigm for the origin and evolution of the universe, the astrophysicists say.

Dwarf galaxies that orbit the Milky Way and the Andromeda galaxies defy the accepted model of galaxy formation, and recent attempts to wedge them into the model are flawed, reports an international team of astrophysicists.

Concentrating Solar Power (CSP) projects would add additional value of 5 or 6 cents per kilowatt hour to utility-scale solar energy in California where 33 percent renewables will be mandated in six years, a new report by the Energy Department's National Renewable Energy Laboratory has found.

Sacramento, CA, Tues 10th June, 2014. Work presented today at the Goldschmidt Geochemistry Conference in Sacramento, California shows that the timing of the giant impact between Earth's ancestor and a planet-sized body occurred around 40 million years after the start of solar system formation. This means that the final stage of Earth's formation is around 60 million years older than previously thought.

Particles of soot floating through the air and comets hurtling through space have at least one thing in common: 0.36. That, reports a research group at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), is the measure of how dense they will get under normal conditions, and it's a value that seems to be constant for similar aggregates across an impressively wide size range from nanometers to tens of meters.*

NASA's Aqua satellite captured a picture of newborn Tropical Storm Cristina on June 10, marking the birth date of the Eastern Pacific Ocean's third tropical storm of the season. The same image showed the severe weather affecting the south central U.S.

Although not at the coastline, the National Hurricane Center said that Cristina is near enough to cause dangerous surf conditions.

Tropical Cyclone 02A formed in the Arabian Sea as NASA-NOAA's Suomi NPP satellite passed overhead and captured a visible photo of the storm, spotting strongest storms south of its center.

On June 10 at 08:21 UTC (4:21 a.m. EDT), when Suomi NPP passed over 02A, the Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) instrument aboard captured a visible image of the storm. VIIRS collects visible and infrared imagery and global observations of land, atmosphere, cryosphere and oceans.

Wireless data connections that exploit millimetre wave radio spectrum (30GHz to 300GHz) are expected to be used in worldwide 5G networks from 2020. The University of Bristol's Communication Systems and Networks research group has partnered with Bristol start-up Blu Wireless Technology (BWT) to develop this technology and they will demonstrate their innovative work at the Small Cells World Summit in London this week [10-12 June].