Focused search for science

3+ min ago (298+ words) SpaceX is closing out the weekend with a mid-morning Falcon 9 rocket launch from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. The Starlink 11-15 mission will add another 28 broadband internet satellites to its massive low Earth orbit constellation. This will be SpaceX's 115th launch of Starlink satellites so far in 2025. Liftoff from Space Launch Complex 4 East is scheduled for 9:58 a.m. PST (12:58 p.m. EST / 1758 UTC). The rocket will fly on a south-easterly trajectory upon leaving the launch pad. Spaceflight Now will have live coverage beginning about 30 minutes prior to liftoff. SpaceX will launch the mission using the Falcon 9 booster with the tail number 1088. This will its 12th flight following the launches of NASA's SPHEREx, Transporter-12 and two missions for the National Reconnaissance Office (NROL-57 and NROL-126). About 8.5 minutes after liftoff, B1088 will perform an autonomous landing on the drone ship, "Of Course I Still Love You.' If successful, this…...

13+ min ago (190+ words) Cold weather conditions intensified in the erstwhile Adilabad district, with the lowest temperature of 8 degree Celsius being recorded at Arli (T) village in Bheempoor mandal of Adilabad on Sunday morning. The minimum temperature at Arli (T) village was 19.2 degrees Celsius on the same day last year, according to the Telangana State Development Planning Society (TSDPS)s report. Ginnedari village in Tiryani mandal of Kumram Bheem Asifabad district recorded 9.1 degree Celsius minimum temperature on the intervening night of December 6 and 7. Kuntala village in Nirmal district, Rudrangi in Rajanna Sircilla district, Raghavapeta in Jagtial district, Nyalkal in Sangareddy district logged minimum temperatures of 10.5, 10.9 and 11.1 degree Celsius respectively during 24-hour period. Several villages, mainly the forest fringe villages in Adilabad and Kumram Bheem Asifabad districts along the inter-State border with Maharashtra continued to reel under the grip of the cold wave. Meanwhile, Agency areas in…...

14+ min ago (290+ words) A beaver has been spotted living at a nature reserve in Norfork. The animal was seen at Pensthorpe Natural Park near the town of Fakenham. It's thought to be the first wild beaver recorded in the county for centuries. Beavers became extinct in the UK in the 1500s because of hunting but scientists have been reintroducing them to parts of the UK over the last decade. Rare eastern black rhino calf born at zoo in Wales Staff at the nature reserve said that although they do not know where the beaver came from, they were delighted to see him living in their habitat. Reserve manager Richard Spowage explained: "The fact that it has chosen our land to establish a territory reflects the ongoing work we have been doing to improve our river and surrounding land for nature." "Wetlands are some of…...

15+ min ago (103+ words) In industrial filtration engineering, three parameters determine the performance of woven wire mesh: Defines how large particles can pass through. Small errors directly affect filtration accuracy. A thicker wire offers higher strength but reduces open area. Engineers need to balance strength and flow rate. Plain weave, twill weave, and Dutch weave each create different flow and pressure characteristics. Dutch weave, for example, provides extremely fine filtration by combining thicker warp wires with thinner weft wires. In many factories, woven mesh is used in filter elements, extruder screens, cone strainers, and pre-filtration systems. Understanding these parameters helps engineers design more efficient filtration solutions....

19+ min ago (203+ words) A zoo on Java island has released photos of Indonesia's first locally born giant panda cub, saying the male cub was showing signs of being in good health. The mother, 15-year-old Hu Chun, gave birth to Satrio Wiratama'nicknamed Rio'on Nov. 27 at the zoo's facility in Cisarua, West... Indonesian Zoo Shows Off Rio, Newborn Panda Cub "This birth is the result of a long-term international cooperation program that has been ongoing for a decade, since the arrival of giant pandas Hu Chun and Cai Tao to Indonesia in 2017 as part of a 10-year conservation partnership with China," said the statement. Rio is under 24-hour monitoring by zoo's team, showing healthy early signs such as strong vocalization, effective nursing, and steady weight gain. Over the next month or two, he is expected to develop better temperature control, fur growth, open his eyes,…...

20+ min ago (950+ words) The PocketQube satellite, created by 7th9th grade students under the SPACE Academy of Azercosmos, was launched into orbit aboard SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket. Azerbaijan has launched it's first-ever student satellite The PocketQube satellite, created by 7th9th grade students under the SPACE Academy of Azercosmos, was launched into orbit aboard SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket. Baku, Azerbaijan, December 7, 2025 -- Azerbaijan has reached a new milestone in its space journey with the successful launch of the country's first-ever satellite designed and built entirely by school students. The PocketQube satellite, created by 7th9th grade students under the SPACE Academy of Azercosmos, was launched into orbit aboard SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket. This achievement marks a transformative moment for national space education, symbolizing the emergence of a new, technologically skilled generation eager to contribute to the country's future in space. Symbolically dedicated to the 5th Anniversary of Azerbaijan's Victory in the Patriotic War, the…...

21+ min ago (290+ words) A new study from the National Institute of Standards and Technology, or NIST, has revealed how time flows on Mars, and exactly how out of sync it is compared to our flow of time here on Earth. It sounds minor, and it is in a vacuum, but it is a major pain to have to account for when you rely on absolute precision timing for a wide variety of scientific purposes. As for why it's happening, it's because Mars doesn't neatly orbit around the sun as much as it kind of meanders around. Its own gravity, the sun's influence, the Earth's pole on Mars, and even our Moon's teeny tiny gravitational influence all come together to tug Mars out of a neat and tidy orbit, thus throwing off its flow of time just enough to be annoying. This is a…...

24+ min ago (564+ words) Tiny flying robots may soon help rescue people trapped after earthquakes or explore dangerous, hard-to-reach places. But until now, these microrobots were slow, fragile, and unable to match the quick and acrobatic flight of real insects. That has changed with a breakthrough from MIT researchers, who have created an aerial microrobot capable of flying with the speed, agility, and precision of a bumblebee. Their new robot, described in Science Advances, can perform rapid turns, aggressive accelerations, and even gymnastic flips'completing 10 somersaults in just 11 seconds. This represents an enormous leap in performance: speed increased by nearly 450% and acceleration by 250% compared with previous versions. The microrobot is tiny'about the size of a microcassette and lighter than a paperclip. It flies using four rapidly flapping wings powered by soft artificial muscles. These muscles contract and expand so quickly that the wings beat hundreds…...

25+ min ago (242+ words) We've officially entered Meteorological Winter, so let's do a Meteorological Fall recap. It was generally below average for temperature and precipitation, which probably doesn't come as a surprise." Temperatures for Cleveland Hopkins came in about 1" below average. The hottest temperature was 87" on September 21st and the coldest was 24" on November 11th. Average highs dropped from 80" to 45" through this time period. That really sets up a lot of change through Fall." Precipitation was below average by 4.18" through this three month stretch. It's no surprise we started the season with drought in place for much of the area - September alone was over 4" below average. October brought some good rain that helped end drought conditions for most of the area." Precipitation was below average at Hopkins for November, but we did get our first snow on November 9th. That's right around average for the first snow…...

25+ min ago (242+ words) We've officially entered Meteorological Winter, so let's do a Meteorological Fall recap. It was generally below average for temperature and precipitation, which probably doesn't come as a surprise." Temperatures for Cleveland Hopkins came in about 1" below average. The hottest temperature was 87" on September 21st and the coldest was 24" on November 11th. Average highs dropped from 80" to 45" through this time period. That really sets up a lot of change through Fall." Precipitation was below average by 4.18" through this three month stretch. It's no surprise we started the season with drought in place for much of the area - September alone was over 4" below average. October brought some good rain that helped end drought conditions for most of the area." Precipitation was below average at Hopkins for November, but we did get our first snow on November 9th. That's right around average for the first snow…...