Here are today’s most important updates from the realm of Science and Space.
The cosmic adventures of SpaceX's history-making Polaris Dawn mission's four-member crew culminated with their return to Earth, splashing down the coast of Dry Tortugas in Florida on September 15. Traveling highest altitude in 50 years to first-ever spacewalk, the mission is one giant leap for science.
Dragon and the Polaris Dawn crew splash down off the coast of Florida, completing the @PolarisProgram's first human spaceflight mission pic.twitter.com/Sobt66zxnL
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) September 15, 2024
Credit - @SpaceX X handle
The crew has conducted around 40 experiments to understand human health reaction in microgravity. Understanding the impact of space travel on eye, kidney, respiratory tract & nerves were key objectives. The experiments also included the development of CPR procedures for future missions. SpaceX’s Starlink in-space connectivity was also tested through this mission, which is believed to be a gamechanger for upcoming missions.
Last week, international space station along with other space agencies has achieved a unique feat. "After Wednesday's launch to the @Space_Station, there are now 19 humans in orbit—a new record for humanity. We're proud to help expand the boundaries of human exploration. Ad astra," read a post by NASA on social media. The previous record was 17, achieved in 2023.
Those 19 astronauts are Don Pettit, Alexey Ovchinin, Ivan Vagner, Sunita Williams, Barry Wilmore, Michael Barratt, Tracy Caldwell-Dyson, Matthew Dominick, Jeanette Epps, Nikolai Chub, Oleg Kononenko and Alexander Grebenkin, Li Guangsu, Li Cong, Ye Guangfu, Jared Isaacman, Scott Poteet, Sarah Gillis and Anna Menon.
It has been the greatest mystery in science how life was formed on earth. As per newly formulated theory, the cosmic dust might have began life on our planet. Earlier theories predicted beginning of life on Earth from "prebiotic chemistry," where organic compounds were formed after self-organizing themselves till life developed. However the scientists detected no trace of reactive and soluble forms of the essential elements like phosphorus, sulfur, nitrogen and carbon, required for this process on the earth surface rocks.
The recent study hinted disintegration and vaporisation of comets causing fine-grained cosmic dust by collision of asteroids to be the precursor of life. Thus, the researchers are keen on investigating the cosmic dust thoroughly to solve the mystery.
The scientists were baffled due to mysterious 9-day earthquake worldwide in September 2023. As per the new study, the landslide, caused by the collapse of a glacier in Dickson Fjord, an extremely remote area of eastern Greenland, prompted a mega-tsunami, generating a rare seismic waves that reverberated across the globe. This is completely different to an earthquake as it kept appearing every 90 seconds for 9 days, mentioned lead author.
Researchers highlighted that impact of climate change could become more frequent in the Arctic with the rise of global temperature, destabilizing glaciers.
