Chinese workers walk on a section of the world’s largest floating solar farm project during construction. The lake was created by a collapsed and flooded coal mine in Huainan, Anhui province, China. Kevin Frayer | Getty Images News | Getty Images SINGAPORE — China, the world’s largest carbon-emitting country, has doubled down on its pledge
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The Ant Group Co. logo and the Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. logo are displayed behind a reception desk at the company’s headquarters in Hangzhou, China, on Monday, Sept. 28, 2020. Qilai Shen | Bloomberg | Getty Images GUANGZHOU, China — Ant Group has won approval from the Chinese securities regulator for the Hong Kong leg
Join the audience for a live webinar at 3 p.m. GMT/10 a.m. EST on 12 November 2020 exploring the Penta-Guide 2.0 software and why it is the preferred daily alignment tool Want to take part in this webinar? The QUASAR™ Penta-Guide Phantom is recognized globally as the preferred tool for commissioning and daily testing of
Forest African Elephants, the so-called engineers of the forest, create elephant trails needed by locals and plants and animals, which are now threatened because of elephant decline. Chengeta Wildlife sociocultural research & community engagement director Carolyn Jost Robinson worked at the DSPA or Dzanga-Sangha Protected Area, a UNESCO World Heritage Site at the Central African Republic, for many decades. She and Purdue University anthropology
Salvador Rodriguez/CNBC Among Us is a multiplayer PC and mobile game that has suddenly exploded in popularity, becoming one of the hit video games of 2020. Although it was released in June 2018, Among Us did not emerge as a hit until recently, when video game streamers on Amazon’s Twitch service realized it was the
Join NASA Psyche Mission Co-Investigator Dr. Tim McCoy as he takes us on a journey from his first geology class to his current role as Curator-in-Charge of the US National Meteorite Collection at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History and his role on the Psyche Mission Science Team. Along the way, McCoy highlights the
Among the windswept glaciers and icebergs of the western Antarctic Peninsula is an oasis of life. Threatened humpback and minke whales patrol the waters. Fish, squid and seals swim alongside noisy colonies of chinstrap, Adélie and gentoo penguins on the shore. It’s a complex web of life. All these species feed on small, shrimp-like crustaceans
WASHINGTON — A SpaceX Falcon 9 launched another set of Starlink satellites Oct. 18 as the investigation into another Falcon 9 launch abort more than two weeks ago continues. The Falcon 9 lifted off from Launch Complex 39A at the Kennedy Space Center at 8:25 a.m. Eastern. The rocket’s upper stage deployed the payload of
The solar energy trade is soaring. Invesco’s Solar ETF (TAN) has become one of the market’s hottest exchange-traded funds, up almost 139% year to date and counting as former Vice President Joe Biden leads President Donald Trump in presidential election polls. Biden’s $2 trillion infrastructure plan, which would focus on promoting clean energy, has been
Millions of citizens involved in the 2020 presidential campaign, including organizers, volunteers and fervent supporters, have downloaded a campaign app like Vote Joe or Trump 2020. When they download it, users give the app their phone number, thereby subscribing them to a stream of texts encouraging them to get more involved. The Biden app asks
Researchers are using the CLARA electron accelerator at the Daresbury Laboratory to study the potential of very high-energy electrons for radiotherapy. (Courtesy: STFC) Very high-energy electrons (VHEEs), typically defined as those above 40 MeV, provide a potential new radiotherapy modality with dosimetric advantages. Beams of such electrons penetrate deep into the patient, enabling treatment of
A godwit bird just broke the record for the longest non-stop bird flight, flying from Alaska to New Zealand, covering 7,500 miles (or 12,000 kilometers) over 11 days. This achiever is a bar-tailed godwit (scientific name: Limosa lapponica), a species capable of undertaking lengthy migratory flights between New Zealand and Alaska without any break. The Bar-Tailed Godwit The National Audubon Society says that the bar-tailed godwit is
Business as usual for the luxury industry is over. 2020 brings with it the end of a positive growth cycle, as analysts expect global luxury sales to contract 25-45 percent in 2020, with a recovery that could take up to three years. And yet, the coronavirus pandemic, for all the havoc it has wrought on
Tesla announced on October 19, 2016, that all cars being produced have Full Self-Driving hardware. Almost four years later, numerous over-the-air software updates have introduced new features. But there has yet to be a complete Full Self-Driving release. Tesla CEO Elon Musk tweeted this week that some “expert and careful drivers” will get beta of
Hello Nature readers, would you like to get this Briefing in your inbox free every day? Sign up here Russian President Vladimir Putin has announced the approval of a second coronavirus vaccine. The vaccine, EpiVacCorona, was described as a “peptide-based shot”. It was developed by biotechnology company State Research Center of Virology and Biotechnology VECTOR.
WASHINGTON — NASA has awarded more than $400 million in contracts to both demonstrate technologies needed for future lunar exploration and to send an ice-drilling payload to the south pole of the moon. NASA announced Oct. 16 that it awarded a task order worth $47 million to Intuitive Machines, one of 14 companies in the
The Foxconn logo is displayed on a Foxconn building in Taipei on January 31, 2019. Sam Yeh | AFP | Getty Images GUANGZHOU, CHINA — Foxconn, the Taiwan company that assembles Apple’s iPhone, has launched an platform to help automobile companies make electric cars. The technology giant is best-known for being a major assembler of
MRI biomarker: objectively segmented diffuse white matter abnormality (red) in the periventricular white matter displayed in sagittal (A), coronal (B), and axial orientations (C) in a 26 weeks’ gestation very preterm infant. (Courtesy: Nehal Parikh) A new software quantification tool has been developed by researchers in the US for analyzing white-matter abnormalities in very preterm
Officials lifted all evacuation orders and reopened the road on Thursday evening as fire crews were able to contain 50 percent of the Bruder fire in southern Redlands by about 5:15 pm. About 50 homes were under mandatory evacuation as a newly sparked Bruder Fire is burning in San Bernardino County Wednesday night. According to
The Apple iPhone 12 Pro Max is unveiled during a virtual product launch. Daniel Acker | Bloomberg | Getty Images The price Americans will pay for an iPhone 12 depends on what cell service they plan to use it with. The three U.S. carriers are actively competing for subscribers by discounting the new iPhone, which
Students observe social-distancing measures at Glasgow University, UK.Credit: Andy Buchanan/AFP/Getty Autumn heralds the start of a new academic year in much of the world, but in 2020, the term comes with the disruption of the COVID-19 outbreak and a surge in infections in many regions. Many universities have welcomed students and researchers back to campus
SAN FRANCISCO – Orbital Sidekick is speeding up its campaign to build and launch a constellation of six hyperspectral imaging satellites thanks to a $16 million U.S. government contract announced Oct. 15. The government funding, which Orbital Sidekick matched with private investment, comes from the U.S. Air Force commercial investment group AFVentures’s Strategic Financing program
I recently joined the most impressive group of clean energy leaders I’ve known, and it happens to have come together in support of Joe Biden for president. The network: Clean Energy for Biden (CE4B). It includes more than 9,500 clean energy professionals in the public, private and nonprofit sectors. There are entrepreneurs, engineers, policymakers, technicians and
Zhifeng Ren, director of the Texas Center for Superconductivity at UH. Credit: University of Houston With the world’s reserves of light oil diminishing, oil companies are increasingly turning to heavier varieties – which make up 70% of global oil reserves – to meet rising energy demands. Existing extraction technologies for heavy oil are, however, inefficient,
A new study explored the dynamics of cooperation among male lions in the Gir Forest in India. It is a complicated process that is not common, since according to natural selection, males should be competing with one another for mates and food. This is especially true in unrelated individuals. Studying Cooperation in Male Lions The Asian lions in India’s Gir Forest are
Twitter chief executive officer Jack Dorsey testifies during a Senate Intelligence Committee hearing concerning foreign influence in use of social media platforms, on Capitol Hill, September 5, 2018 in Washington, DC. Drew Angerer | Getty Images Twitter on Friday reversed its controversial editorial decision to block users from sharing a New York Post story that
A researcher scales the 100.8-metre tree named Menara in northern Borneo. The rarity of strong winds in the region has helped its rainforest to reach great heights. Credit: A. Shenkin et al./Front. For. Glob. Change (CC BY 4.0) Ecology 15 October 2020 Scientists find that strong winds constrain tropical forest height, but island’s gentle breezes
SAN FRANCISCO — AAC Clyde Space announced plans Oct. 15 to acquire SpaceQuest, a satellite technology developer based in Fairfax, Virginia, for $8.4 million, pending the approval of shareholders and the U.S. Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States. Luis Gomes, AAC Clyde Space CEO, and Craig Clark, AAC Clyde Space chief strategy officer,
From birds that can fly for months on end to giant redwoods stretching hundreds of feet into the air, the natural world inspires awe and wonder. For thousands of years, humanity’s appreciation of nature has led to countless works of literature, art, and even innovations in design and engineering. Examples of the latter include the
NASA’s OSIRIS-REx spacecraft is set to sample the diamond-shaped asteroid Bennu.Credit: NASA/Goddard/University of Arizona NASA is about to grab its first-ever taste of an asteroid. On 20 October, some 334 million kilometres from Earth, the agency’s OSIRIS-REx spacecraft will approach a dark-coloured, diamond-shaped asteroid named Bennu, with the aim of touching its surface for a
One of the most anticipated announcements is the official name of Space Force members WASHINGTON — The U.S. Space Force plans to make “a lot of announcements” during the month of December as the service approaches its one-year anniversary, Deputy Chief of Space Operations Lt. Gen. B. Chance Saltzman said Oct. 16. “We’re going to
Week in Review Stories discussed this week (4:08). Features Building the B Corp movement (16:40) While some large multinationals including Danone and Natura have embraced the B Corp certification, others have been slower to move. That was a catalyst for the new B Movement Builders initiative, launched in September. Marcelo Behar, vice president for sustainability
Amazon employees are told they can get health care on call Amazon Care, the company’s online medical clinic for its own employees, is trying to hire half a dozen people in business development roles to “build and grow relationships with commercial and public sector enterprises.” Most of the roles were posted in the past month.
Emmy Noether: a new book celebrates the life of the mathematician. (Courtesy: Kids Can Press) Tuesday was Ada Lovelace Day, which celebrates achievements of women in science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM). Named after the 19th-century polymath Ada Lovelace, the annual initiative also seeks to engage with the challenges of attracting more women into STEM
A Michigan poacher who illegally hunted wildlife, including three bald eagles and 18 wolves, was jailed, fined, and had his hunting license and hunting privileges invalidated for life. Guilty The man from Michigan pleaded guilty to multiple nature and wildlife crimes after a thorough investigation. Upon being proven guilty of the illegal activities, the Michigan
The placenta is a defining feature of being a mammal, and its formation is one of the first steps in mammalian development. The embryo begins to make its placenta without direct guidance from its mother — rather, it follows a set of molecularly encoded, do-it-yourself assembly instructions. Whether these instructions are universal or unique to
WASHINGTON — The Federal Aviation Administration released Oct. 15 the final version of updated commercial launch and reentry regulations, although those in industry say the regulatory reform process is far from over. The FAA released the final version of its Streamlined Launch and Reentry Licensing Requirements, or SLR2, regulations on its website, with formal publication
Like many large businesses, dairy company Arla Foods has grand plans to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions and the firm aims to be carbon net zero by 2050. Around 85% of Arla’s total emissions come from the co-operative of 10,000 farms it has across Europe, a combination of the methane and nitrous oxide from the
Jack Dorsey, CEO of Square Inc., holds an Apple Inc. iPhone while standing outside of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York, U.S., on Thursday, Nov. 19, 2015. Yana Paskova | Bloomberg | Getty Images Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey on Friday reiterated his apology for how the company handled an unverified New York
A spacecraft bound for Mercury swung by Venus on Thursday, using Earth’s neighbour to adjust its course on the way to the solar system’s smallest and innermost planet. Launched almost two years ago, the European-Japanese probe BepiColombo took a black-and-white snapshot of Venus from a distance of 17,000 kilometers (10,560 miles), with some of its
Pressure-temperature (P-T) phase diagram of a NaYbSe2 single crystal. Courtesy: Run-Ze Yu Researchers in China report that they have observed both superconductivity and an insulator-to-metal transition in sodium ytterbium (III) selenide (NaYbSe2) simply by applying pressure to it. This inorganic substance, which is also a quantum spin liquid (QSL) candidate, could therefore become a new
Members of the Native American Tribe based in California named Karuk Tribe has been urging the government to use indigenous burning techniques that they have been practicing for centuries to control forest fires but to no avail. Lately, however, scientists and authorities are listening to how they have been doing it. Dozens of Karuk Tribe members, a
Credit: Jussi Puikkonen/KNAW Georgina Mace shaped two cornerstones of modern ecology and conservation. One was the global inventory of species threatened with extinction, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List. The second was the United Nations Millennium Ecosystem Assessment. One of the sharpest minds of her generation, she strove to document and
With less than a month to go in this election cycle, the public is awash in big issues, COVID and healthcare to national defense and economic recovery. Lest we forget, an issue also on the ballot is space – with national unity, security, and economic implications in tow. America’s future is intimately tied to our
San José is rolling out the green carpet for biking, thanks to the city council’s unanimous passage of the Better Bike Plan 2025. With the plan’s adoption, the city commits to building a 550-mile network of bike lanes, boulevards and trails to help thousands more people ride safely. The plan is realistic about the past,
Chris Ratcliffe | Bloomberg | Getty Images Twitter has changed its policy on hacked materials. It comes on the heels of it controversial decision to block links to a New York Post story about Joe Biden’s son. The unverified story alleged that Hunter Biden — the son of Joe Biden who was vice president at
Every five or so years, it rips me apart to watch the same tragedy: a La Niña weather cycle brings devastating drought and hunger to East Africa, threatening the lives and livelihoods of millions of people in Ethiopia, Somalia and Kenya. Using climate models and Earth observations, we can now predict these droughts. And once
WASHINGTON — NASA is planning a hotfire test of the core stage of the Space Launch System in the middle of November, a schedule it says keeps it on track for its first launch late next year. During an Oct. 13 media teleconference, officials with NASA, Boeing and Aerojet Rocketdyne said they are making good