Cosmic oddball

Some bodies have a very disturbing effect on the order in the solar system - P/2013 P5 is one of them. With several clearly visible tails, it may look like a comet, but orbits around the Sun within the asteroid belt - and ...

Phaethon confirmed as rock comet by STEREO vision

The Sun-grazing asteroid, Phaethon, has betrayed its true nature by showing a comet-like tail of dust particles blown backwards by radiation pressure from the Sun. Unlike a comet, however, Phaethon's tail doesn't arise through ...

A new state of Venus's ionosphere

Observations from NASA's Pioneer Venus orbiter, which reached Venus in 1978, suggested that Venus's ionosphere had two states: a magnetized state with a large- scale horizontal magnetic field and an unmagnetized state with ...

Solar storms can destabilize power grids at midlatitudes

The Sun is capable of disrupting electrical systems on Earth in a variety of ways, from solar flares and coronal mass ejections to proton storms. Typically, it is only objects far above the Earth's surface, or systems at ...

Setting sail in the sun

Propelled by sunlight pressure, large lightweight sails made of ultrathin aluminum-coated plastic could one day take probes to the edge of our solar system and other stars.

More sustainable gas turbines thanks to ut research

The new generation of gas turbines is more reliable, produces less harmful emissions and generates less vibrations and pressure fluctuations. Thanks to the European Limousine Project, in which six different universities (18 ...

Portrait Earth: Wave at Saturn and Cassini July 19

Smile and say, "Cosmic cheese!" From 898 million miles away, NASA's Cassini-Huygens spacecraft will snap a portrait of Earth July 19 from between Saturn's rings as North America and the Atlantic Ocean repose on the sunny ...

Nanostructures improve solar cell efficiency

To make solar cells a competitive alternative to other renewable energy sources, researchers are investigating different alternatives. A step in the right direction is through new processes that change the surfaces of silicon ...

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