Heavens

NASA sees Tropical Storm Chantal develop quickly in Atlantic

The third tropical cyclone of the Atlantic Ocean season developed in the Atlantic and not in the Gulf of Mexico as the previous two systems,Tropical Storm Chantal.The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) instrument that flies aboard NASA's Aqua satellite captured a visible image of Tropical Storm Chantal on July 7 at 12:15 p.m. EDT when it was located off the coast of Brazil. The highest and strongest thunderstorms (that cast shadows on the surrounding lower storms) were around the center of circulation.

NASA satellite sees 2 views of Tropical Storm Soulik over Marianas Islands

When NASA's Aqua satellite passed over Tropical Storm Soulik in the Northwestern Pacific Ocean, the MODIS and AIRS instruments captured images that showed the storm's eastern quadrant covered the Marianas Islands and that the storm has become more organized in the last day.

NASA's TRMM satellite sees Tropical Storm Erick along Mexican coast

Tropical Storm Erick has been bringing some rain and rough surf along the southwestern coast of Mexico for a couple of days, and on July 7, 2013, NASA's TRMM satellite saw two areas of heavy rain within Erick on opposite ends of the storm. Meanwhile, the rainfall from the remnants of nearby Tropical Depression Dalila had dissipated.

Low-cost in-vitro fertilization method developed at CU may help couples in developing countries

A new low-cost method of in-vitro fertilization developed at the University of Colorado Boulder that performed successfully in recent human clinical trials in Belgium may help thousands of infertile couples in developing countries.

CPAP therapy reduces nightmares in veterans with PTSD and sleep apnea

DARIEN, IL – A new study suggests that CPAP therapy reduces nightmares in veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and obstructive sleep apnea (OSA).

Results show that the mean number of nightmares per week fell significantly with CPAP use, and reduced nightmare frequency after starting CPAP was best predicted by CPAP compliance.

Harvard researchers warn of legacy mercury in the environment

Cambridge, Mass. -- Environmental researchers at Harvard University have published evidence that significant reductions in mercury emissions will be necessary just to stabilize current levels of the toxic element in the environment. So much mercury persists in surface reservoirs (soil, air, and water) from past pollution, going back thousands of years, that it will continue to persist in the ocean and accumulate in fish for decades to centuries, they report.

Cosmochemist discovers potential solution to meteorite mystery

A normally staid University of Chicago scientist has stunned many of his colleagues with his radical solution to a 135-year-old mystery in cosmochemistry. "I'm a fairly sober guy. People didn't know what to think all of a sudden," said Lawrence Grossman, professor in geophysical sciences.

Sydney's urban areas to be hit hardest by global warming

Green spaces, trees and bodies of water are must-have design features for future development in Sydney's suburbs after researchers found that by 2050 global warming combined with Sydney's urban heat island effect could increase temperatures by up to 3.7°C.

The researchers from the ARC Centre of Excellence for Climate System Science found new urban developments, such as the multitude of new estates on Sydney edges expected to house more than 100,000 residents, were prone to the greatest temperature increases.

Deep-space flashes light up a new face of nature

CSIRO's Parkes radio telescope has detected brief flashes of radio emission from the distant Universe. Their origin is unknown.

CSIRO's Parkes radio telescope in eastern Australia has detected mysterious 'flashes' of radio energy from the distant Universe that may open up a whole new area of astrophysics. The surprising finding, made by a team of scientists from ten institutions in Australia, the USA, UK, Germany and Italy, is published in today's issue of the journal Science.

Cosmic dust belts without dust

Planets and asteroids, red giants and brown dwarfs -- there are all kinds of objects in our Universe. Debris disks are among them. These are belts consisting of countless dust particles and planetesimals, circling around one central star. "At least one fifth of stars are surrounded by dust belts like these," Prof. Dr. Alexander Krivov from the Friedrich-Schiller-University Jena explains. "They are the remains of the formation of planets, in which the unused, building materials are collected," the astrophysicist points out.

Using the sun to illuminate a basic mystery of matter

Antimatter has been detected in solar flares via microwave and magnetic-field data, according to a presentation by NJIT Research Professor of Physics Gregory D. Fleishman and two co-researchers at the 44th meeting of the American Astronomical Society's Solar Physics Division. This research sheds light on the puzzling strong asymmetry between matter and antimatter by gathering data on a very large scale using the Sun as a laboratory.

IVF for 200 euro per cycle

London -- A study performed in Belgium has shown that low-cost IVF for developing and poor resource countries is feasible and effective, with delivery rates not much different from those achieved in conventional IVF programmes. This proof-of-principle study, say the investigators, suggests that infertility care may now be "universally accessible"."We showed that the IVF methodology can be significantly simplified and result in successful outcomes at levels that compare favourably to those obtained in high resource programs," they note.

Evidence for Hesperian glaciation along the Martian dichotomy boundary

Alfonso F. Davila and colleagues analyzed images and topographic data from the Aeolis Mensae region of Mars.

Their analyses indicate that these terrains were eroded by glaciers emanating from the Martian dichotomy boundary.

Collectively, they say their observations suggest that glacial activity could have been an important mechanism of modification of equatorial regions on Mars for three billion years.

Alfonso F. Davila et al., SETI Institute, DOI:10.1130/G34201.1.

Recent observations of high mass density polar mesospheric clouds: A link to space traffic?

A recent increase in polar mesospheric clouds could be due to a recent increase in space traffic, a new study suggests.

Polar mesospheric clouds are diffuse collections of water ice crystals in the mesosphere near the poles at altitudes of about 80 kilometers (50 miles). The number and brightness of polar mesosphericice clouds is expected to decrease when the incoming flux of solar ultraviolet radiation increases. Increases in solar radiation both heat and dry out the atmosphere slightly, leading to a decrease in ice cloud formation.

Satellites see ups and downs of 2 tropical Eastern Pacific systems

There are two tropical cyclones in the Eastern Pacific Ocean on July 5 and one is powering up and one is powering down. NOAA's GOES-15 satellite captured Tropical Depression Dalila and Tropical Storm Erick, both off the western coast of Mexico. Because Erick is strengthening and is close to the coast, tropical storm warnings have gone into effect for Mexico.