Moons around Uranus may suddenly develop atmospheres

 

Image courtecy of NASA/JPL/USGS

Joel Kontinen

Some evolutionist believe that the moons of Uranus may have short-lived atmospheres every time the seasons change. The seasons there are so intense that these tenuous atmospheres, called exospheres, could exist briefly twice every Uranian year before freezing and falling back down to the surface.

Uranus’s poles are extremely tilted with respect to the planet’s orbit around the sun, which, along with its powerful magnetic field, makes the seasons there particularly extreme. 

Source:

Leah Crane 2023 Moons around Uranus may suddenly develop atmospheres in the spring | New Scientist 16 December. 

Intelligent design keeps the Arctic seals warm

 

Image courtesy of Ole Jorgen Liodden/naturepl.com

Joel Kontinen

Maze-like bones in the noses of Arctic seals turn out to be an adaptation for keeping warm in chilly conditions

Bearded seals have convoluted nasal bones that help keep heat in their bodies

Arctic seals have evolved a nifty adaptation for staying warm in icy climes: intricate, maze-like bones in their noses.

Many birds and mammals, including humans, have a pair of thin, porous nasal bones called maxilloturbinates or nasal concha, which are covered by a layer of tissue.

“They take the form of scrolls, or a branching form a little bit like a tree,” says Matthew Mason at the University of Cambridge.

This is a good example of the intelligent design.

Source:

Chen Ly 2023. Arctic seals have weird bones in their noses that help them stay warm | New Scientist 14 December. 

City-size comet racing toward Earth regrows 'horns' after massive volcanic eruption

 

Image courtecy of Comet Chasers/Richard Miles

Joel Kontinen

Evolutionists say that the cryovolcanic comet 12P/Pons–Brooks, which will make its closest approach to Earth next year, has re-sprouted its distinctive "horns" after its second major eruption in four months.

“An enormous volcanic comet the size of a small city has violently exploded for the second time in four months as it hurtles toward the sun. And just like the previous eruption, the cloud of ice and gas emitted what looked like a gigantic pair of horns.”

The comet, named 12P/Pons-Brooks, is a cryovolcanic - it is (17 kilometers), and is filled with a mix of ice, dust and gas known as cryomagma. The nucleus is surrounded by a fuzzy cloud of gas called a coma, which leaks out of the comet's interior. 

When solar radiation heats the comet's insides, the pressure builds up and the comet violently explodes, shooting its frosty guts out into space through large cracks in the nucleus's shell.

On Oct. 5, astronomers detected a large outburst from 12P, after the comet became dozens of times brighter due to the extra light reflecting from its expanded coma, according to the British Astronomical Association (BAA), which has been closely monitoring the comet 

Over the next few days, the comet's coma expanded further and developed its "peculiar horns," Spaceweather.com reported. Some experts joked that the irregular shape of the coma also makes the comet look like a science fiction spaceship, such as the Millennium Falcon from Star Wars.

Source:

Harry Baker 2023. City-size comet racing toward Earth regrows 'horns' after massive volcanic eruption | Live Science October 16,

 

Jumping spiders seem to recognise each other if they have met before

 

Image courtesy of FLPA/Alamy.

Joel Kontinren

Regal jumpers, a type of jumping spider, appear to be less interested in each other if they have met before, suggesting that the arachnids recognise individuals within their species

Some evolutionists believe that Jumping spiders seem to be able to tell each other apart, putting them among just a few other invertebrates that are thought to have this kill.

“Recognising individuals within your species is important for social animals, such as primates, but just a handful of invertebrates have been observed to have this recognition, for example Northern paper wasps (Polistes fuscatus). This is thought to help with social cohesion within the insects’ colonies.!!”

Source:

Chen Ly 2023. Jumping spiders seem to recognise each other if they've met before | New Scientist

8 December.

The moon may enter a new geological period thanks to human activity

 

Image courtecy of NASA

Joel Kontinen

Some evolutionist think that humanity’s influence on the moon is so great that we should define a new geological epoch, just as we are doing on Earth with the creation of the Anthropocene, researchers argue. We should also create lunar “national parks” to preserve areas for scientific study, they say.

“The Anthropocene is the name given to the epoch in which humans began having a significant impact on Earth’s geology and ecosystems. The definition is still being agreed upon, but most researchers suggest Earth entered this period in 1950, marked by the presence of plutonium isotopes from nuclear weapons tests in sediment at the bottom of a relatively untouched lake in Canada.”

Source:

Matthew Sparkes. 2023 The moon may enter a new geological period thanks to human activity | New Scientist. 8 December 

Elusive Planet Nine could be an alternative form of gravity masquerading as a planet, study claims

 

Image courtecy: Shutterstock

Joel Kontinen

Some astronauts think that the elusive Planet Nine, which is theorized to be lurking somewhere in the outer reaches of the solar system, may not be a planet after all, a new study suggests. Instead, what we assumed to be a massive object could be evidence that gravity doesn't work like we thought it does. But the new theory doesn't sit well with everyone.

“The Planet Nine hypothesis, first proposed in 2016, argues that the unusual orbits of objects in the Kuiper Belt beyond Neptune, which seem to be being pulled away from the sun, can be explained by the presence of an undiscovered ninth planet up to 10 times more massive than Earth. Astronomers have been looking for Planet Nine ever since. However, despite searching almost half of the night sky, they have so far come up empty-handed. “   

Source: 

Harry Baker 2023.

 October 16, Elusive Planet Nine could be an alternative form of gravity masquerading as a planet, study claims | Live Science

Largest stream of stars ever found could teach us about dark matter

 

Image courtecy of William Herschel Telescope/Román et al.

Joel Kontinen

The newfound Giant Coma Stream of stars stretches nearly 1.7 million light years across the cosmos, and it could have holes blasted through it by clumps of dark matter

The black streak is the newly discovered Giant Coma Stream, which is ten times as long as the Milky Way.

Some astromomers have found the biggest stream of stars ever recorded. This tendril of stars is extraordinarily faint, but it and others like it could eventually help us unveil the true nature of secrets of dark matter.

The stream of stars, called the Giant Coma Stream, appears to float unmoored from any particular galaxy in the Coma galaxy cluster, about 300 million light years away from Earth. 

Source: 

Leah Crane 2023. Largest stream of stars ever found could teach us about dark matter | New Scientist

2 December.