Heavens

Hurricane Season ends on November 30, and subtropical storm Melissa formed with less than two weeks to go. Melissa formed on Monday, November 18 about 695 miles/1,120 km east-southeast of Bermuda, near 29.3 north and 53.6 west. It had maximum sustained winds near 50 mph/85 kph and was moving to the northwest at 9 mph/15 kph.

"When the wind blows over the ocean, waves form," Michael Bussmann, head of a HZDR junior research group, starts to explain. "At high wind speeds, water and wind swirl about one another, which is how spray and froth arise. Spray is thus a turbulent mixture of water and air. A similar thing occurs in space when a star ejects hot gas. The jet created by the hot plasma mixes with other gas that surrounds the star.

Scientists have developed a new computer modeling technique that for the first time offers the promise of continually-updated daylong predictions of wildfire growth through the lifetimes of long-lived blazes.

The technique, devised by scientists at the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) in Boulder, Colo., and the University of Maryland, combines cutting-edge simulations of the interaction of weather and fire with newly available satellite observations of active wildfires.

CHEONGJU, SOUTH KOREA--In the life cycle of plants, most developmental processes are dependent on light. Significant biological processes such as germination, shade avoidance, circadian rhythms, and flower induction are all affected by light. Recent advancements in the use of LED lighting in plant and vegetable production systems has researchers looking for insights into the effects of these artificial lights on the growth and yield of crops.

New York City fashion scouts and police officers often rely on a well-honed gut instinct to help make critical judgments of total strangers.

One group hunts beauty; the other, criminality – all in the same concrete jungle.

But these apparently disparate groups of expert evaluators actually have a lot in common, according to research by the University of Cincinnati's Stephanie Sadre-Orafai.

CAMBRIDGE, MA -- For nearly as long as astronomers have been able to observe asteroids, a question has gone unanswered: Why do the surfaces of most asteroids appear redder than meteorites — the remnants of asteroids that have crashed to Earth?

NASA's Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution (MAVEN) mission began with a smooth countdown and flawless launch from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station's Space Launch Complex 41. The United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket carrying the 5,400-pound spacecraft lifted off at 1:28 p.m. EST, the mission's first opportunity. MAVEN's solar arrays deployed and are producing power.

"We're currently about 14,000 miles away from Earth and heading out to the Red Planet right now," said MAVEN Project Manager David Mitchell of NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center.

MOUNT VERNON, WA--In the mild coastal climate of western Washington, agricultural growers are learning more about the advantages of growing popular fresh-market vegetables in high tunnel production systems. High tunnels can offer many benefits for delicate vegetable crops, including protection from environmental stresses such as hail, frost, excessive rainfall, and high wind. Despite these obvious benefits, the use of high tunnels for growing both lettuce and tomato is currently limited in the region--estimated to be only 50 acres for tomato and less than 20 acres for lettuce.

Deep-space radiation is a significant danger for interplanetary human space flight. But now an instrument on NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) has learned more than ever before about the high-energy hazards at and around the moon. New findings from the Cosmic Ray Telescope for the Effects of Radiation (CRaTER) were published today in the journal Space Weather.

DURHAM, N.H. -- Scientists from the University of New Hampshire and colleagues have published comprehensive findings on space-based radiation as measured by a UNH-led detector aboard NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO). The data provide critical information on the radiation hazards that will be faced by astronauts on extended missions to deep space such as those to Mars.

The papers in a special issue of the journal Space Weather document and quantify measurements made since 2009 by the Cosmic Ray Telescope for the Effects of Radiation (CRaTER) radiation detector.

Hopes are high for Comet ISON, which has the potential to become the most spectacular comet seen in years. ISON is speeding through the inner solar system at about 120,000 miles per hour, on its way to a close approach to the Sun on November 28th. Assuming it survives its close encounter, it could become easily visible to the unaided eye in dawn skies.

Currently, maintenance and safety inspection of tunnels used for vehicular traffic is carried out by direct in situ observation. This process, which is slow and requires intensive labor, requires that traffic be stopped on entire streets or sections of the underground passageways, resulting in an inconvenience for users. "The automated ROBINSPECT system allows tunnel inspection to be carried out automatically without stopping traffic," highlights the head of the project at UC3M, Carlos Balaguer, a tenured professor in the department of Systems Engineering and Automation.

Researchers now have stronger evidence of granite on Mars and a new theory for how the granite – an igneous rock common on Earth -- could have formed there, according to a new study. The findings suggest a much more geologically complex Mars than previously believed.

New York, NY—November 17, 2013—A team of Columbia Engineering researchers, led by Mechanical Engineering Professor James Hone and Electrical Engineering Professor Kenneth Shepard, has taken advantage of graphene's special properties—its mechanical strength and electrical conduction—and created a nano-mechanical system that can create FM signals, in effect the world's smallest FM radio transmitter.

Just one minute of CPR video training for bystanders in a shopping mall could save lives in emergencies, according to research presented at the American Heart Association's Scientific Sessions 2013.

Researchers used a one-minute CPR video to improve responsiveness and teach compression only CPR to people with no CPR experience.