[QUICKREADS]
After almost 40 years circling Earth, a retired NASA science satellite plunged harmlessly through the atmosphere off the coast of Alaska, NASA reported Monday. The Defense Department confirmed that the satellite ? placed in orbit in 1984 by astronaut Sally Ride ? reentered late Sunday night over the Bering Sea, a few hundred miles from Alaska. Space shuttle Challenger carried the satellite into orbit and the first American woman in space set it free.
A new study shows that humans give more viruses to animals than animals give to humans. The analysis of viral genome sequences revealed that 64% of human-to-animal transmissions and 36% were animal-to-human. This highlights the impact humans have on the environment and animals. Zoonotic diseases, like COVID-19, can have devastating effects when pathogens jump from animals to humans.
Earth's rotation is speeding up, possibly leading to a negative leap second by 2029. The Earth's core and melting ice at the poles are factors. This could disrupt global timekeeping systems, which have been using leap seconds to adjust the difference between astronomical and atomic time. Technology companies are developing their own solutions to this issue.
An American private lander named Odysseus failed to "wake up" on the Moon, ending its mission after landing at a wonky angle. Despite completing tests and sending back photos, the lander did not respond when sunlight was expected to power its radio. NASA and Intuitive Machines consider the mission a success, with plans for more lunar missions and eventual human exploration.
Astronomers have discovered two ancient streams of stars, named Shakti and Shiva, that are among the Milky Way's early building blocks. These structures may be remnants of galaxies that merged with the Milky Way 12 billion years ago. Identified using the Gaia space telescope, Shakti and Shiva offer insight into the galaxy's formation. The stars in these structures, located near the galactic center, are "metal poor" and formed 12-13 billion years ago.
Researchers have identified the earliest building blocks of the Milky Way galaxy from 12-13 billion years ago, close to when the first galaxies formed. Named 'Shakti' and 'Shiva', these star groups have low metal content and high angular momentum, suggesting they are among the galaxy's oldest ancestors. Data from the Gaia satellite and Sloan Digital Sky Survey aided the study.