Science

Here's what you need to know about rare-earth metals: WHAT ARE RARE-EARTH ELEMENTS? There are seventeen rare-earth elements: cerium (Ce), dysprosium (Dy), erbium (Er), europium (Eu), gadolinium (Gd), holmium (Ho), lanthanum (La), lutetium (Lu), neodymium (Nd), praseodymium (Pr), promethium (Pm), samarium (Sm), scandium (Sc), terbium (Tb), thulium (Tm), ytterbium (Yb), and yttrium (Y). Despite their name, these elements are actually plentiful in the Earth's crust, with the exception of the radioactive promethium. However, because of their geochemical properties, these elements are typically not found in large concentrations, as a result of which economically exploitable deposits are less common. WHERE ARE THEY FOUND? Most of the world's rare-earth elements were sourced from placer sand deposits in India and Brazil until 1948, but South Africa emerged as the leading producer through the 1950s. Through the 1960s until the 1980s, California was the leading producer. Today, China is the … [Read more...] about What you need to know about rare-earth metals

NASA's Juno spacecraft has played a crucial role in broadening human understanding about Jupiter, the gas giant. Previous data sent by the Juno probe had revealed that Jupiter's lightning is very similar to that of the one we experience here on earth, and now the probe has hinted about another aspect of the gas giant that seems more like earth. In a new study report published in the journal 'Nature Astronomy', scientists have revealed that the magnetic field of Jupiter used to change in the course of time, a phenomenon which has been observed on the earth. During the study, NASA, the United States space agency compared the recent readings of Jupiter's magnetic field with data that was gathered years ago by other missions like Pioneer and Voyage. As per scientists, it is a phenomenon called 'secular variation' that is resulting in the shifting of the magnetic pole. "Secular variation has been on the wish list of planetary scientists for decades. This discovery could only take place due … [Read more...] about NASA says Jupiter shares something in common with earth

PARIS (AFP) - How we measure the world underwent a quantum leap on Monday (May 20) as scientists adopted new hyper-accurate definitions for units of weight, electricity and temperature derived from the universal laws of Nature. The change, on the occasion of World Metrology Day, sees one of science's most influential objects - a metal cylinder used to define what a kilogram is - retired in favour of an infinitely more precise measurement taken from a quantum ratio. "Le Grand K", as the platinum-iridium object is known, stood as the world's benchmark of the kilogram for nearly 130 years before a decision was taken in November to bring several units of measurement into the 21st century. "The kilogram is the last unit of measurement based on a physical object," Thomas Grenon, director of France's National Laboratory of Metrology and Testing, said after the decision last year. "The problem is that it's had a life, it could fluctuate. That's not good enough, given the level of precision we … [Read more...] about Mass movement: Scientists adopt new kilogram definition

NASA, the United States space agency is now busy preparing plans to land humans on the moon and experts believe that this is the first step to achieve the ultimate goal - Mars colonization. Even though there are uncertainties regarding funding, NASA aims to land on the moon by 2023 and Mars in 2033. However, several experts believe that landing humans on Mars will be undoubtedly a Herculean task, and NASA may not achieve this goal within the stipulated deadline. "A lot of people want us to have an Apollo moment, and have a president stand up like Kennedy and say, we've got to do it and the entire country comes together. If that happened, I would actually say 2027. But I don't think that's going to happen. I think in our current approach, we are going to be lucky to do it by the 2037 date," said Robert Howard, a researcher who works at the Johnson Space Center in Houston, Phys.org. Howard also suggested that this deadline may be extended to 2060s if the space agency faces various other … [Read more...] about NASA’s Mars colonization mission may be delayed, experts say

Experts believe that several possibilities including climate change, death of the Sun and a rogue asteroid hit will bring doomsday on Earth in the future. If such an event happens in its full fury, the entire humankind and the entire living forms on the planet will face extinction, and the Earth will turn into an inhabitable barren land, as depicted in post-apocalyptic movies like 'Mad Max: Fury Road'. To combat such an event and to protect humanity, experts have already put forward several plausible plans. One such plan is to colonise a different planet, and the most potential candidate for interplanetary colonisation is Mars. Experts believe that moving to our planet's next door neighbour is quite easy, and this planet may even survive the sun's destruction. It should be also noted that humans have already landed Rovers on Mars, and this ease in assailability makes Red Planet the perfect spot for human colonisation. Space agencies like NASA and private companies like SpaceX have … [Read more...] about Which is the better option to protect humanity from doomsday