Compared to ecosystems in many other parts of the world, the blanket bogs of the Flow Country in northern Scotland are unassuming—soggy, treeless landscapes dominated by hummocky mosses, grasses, and heathers. Yet, to ecologists, the seemingly desolate areas are nothing short of extraordinary. The bogs store tremendous quantities of carbon. That’s because their soils are
Explanation: Not all those who wander are lost. A night sky example is that planets wander, and in fact the very word “planet” comes from “wandering star” in Greek. As planets shift relative to fixed stars, they may appear from our perspective to get closer to other astronomical objects. Such meetings are called conjunctions. They
The best kitchen gifts solve one specific problem, and you can usually explain exactly how. The HORL3 Cruise holds a knife against a magnet at a fixed 15- or 20-degree angle while a diamond disc rolls along the edge. The ThermoWorks Thermapen Nano gets a reading in about 0.4 seconds, so you can stop guessing
The world’s oceans are crisscrossed by thousands of miles of deep sea fiber-optic cables. This immense infrastructure is the foundation for much of the planet’s international power transmission and telecommunications, but marine biologists say the lines can provide an unexpected conservation benefit. With a bit of creative retooling, the ocean cables can also function as
Written by William Farrand, Senior Research Scientist, Space Science Institute Earth planning date: Friday, Nov. 6, 2026 This week Curiosity has been completing its drill campaign at the “Nazca” drill hole. This is an area characterized by bedrock containing disk-shaped (or in a liberal interpretation, potato chip shaped … see linked image) crystal forms. A
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