(Credit: Shutterstock)
In the skies above Japan, scientists have detected lightning triggering nuclear reactions. These new findings are clear evidence that thunderstorms are a natural source of radioactive isotopes on Earth.
Thunderstorms are natural particle accelerators, capable of hurling electrons outward at nearly the speed of light. When these electrons strike atoms, they can generate gamma rays, the highest-energy form of light.
Previous research suggested that gamma rays from lightnin ...read more
Makame Makame from the Zanzibar Malaria Elimination Programme holds one of the drones used to map malaria vectors. (Credit: Andy Hardy)
On a typically hot and humid July day in Stonetown, the capital of Zanzibar, a gaggle of children, teenagers and the odd parents watched our small drone take flight. My colleagues Makame Makame, Khamis Haji and I had finally found the perfect launch spot.
With a high-pitched humming, the drone took to the air. It sounded like a big mosquito—appropriate, s ...read more
(Credit: Shutterstock)
Roughly one in five cancer patients struggle with post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in the aftermath of diagnosis and treatment.
A recent study from Malaysia indicates that PTSD is a fairly common result of the long and difficult process of living with and treating cancer. Though most commonly associated with soldiers returning from war, PTSD can result from many different forms of trauma. The disorder can sometimes go unnoticed, or be misdiagnosed, causing thos ...read more
Both prescription medications and illicit drugs such as heroin are fueling an opioid epidemic that’s affecting generations differently, say researchers. (Credit: Wikimedia Commons)
As the opioid epidemic rages in the U.S., the number of overdose deaths has nearly quadrupled since 1999. And according to a new study, baby boomers and millennials are at significantly higher risk.
Researchers from Columbia University analyzed drug overdose deaths in the United States between 1 ...read more
Researchers call it “stink flirting.” A male ring-tailed lemur rubs his signature scent onto his long, fluffy tail, then waves it over his head in the direction of a nearby female. Males seem to intend this gesture as a sexual overture. But it often gets them into fights—with lemurs of both sexes. In fact, scientists aren’t sure stink flirting helps male lemurs at all.
Smell is an important communication tool for ring-tailed lemurs (Le ...read more
The small, dark grey ash plume from the November 21, 2017 eruption of Agung in Indonesia. Pusdalops PB BPBD Prov Bali.
After weeks of unrest that has waxed and waned, Agung in Indonesia finally produced an explosive eruption today. This blast wasn’t anything close to the large blast that certain parts of the media have been claiming, but rather a relatively small eruption (see below) that was driven by water flashing to steam at the summit crater of the volcano.
pic.twitter.com/gJYqX ...read more
The giant Icelandic volcano Öræfajökull behind Jökulsárlón, a lake created by the meltwater of the Vatnajokull ice cap. Martin Peeks / Wikimedia Commons.
For being an island in the North Atlantic, Iceland has a lot of volcanoes. Some of them generate a lot of anxiety when they have the inevitable rumbles. An earthquake swarm at Katla or Hekla causes all sorts of media alarms to go off … which is surprising considering the last three eruptions in Iceland ...read more
The NOAA-20 satellite was to be the first of four, but the Trump Administration has sought to delay and massively cut the program
The Joint Polar Satellite System-1 lifted off from Vandenberg Air Force Base, California, at 1:47 a.m. PST on Saturday, Nov. 18, 2017. When it successfully reached orbit, it was officially renamed NOAA-20. (Click the image to watch a video of the liftoff.) The satellite is designed to help meteorologists produce more timely and accurate U.S. weather forecas ...read more
