News Archive for November 2012

This Hubble-VLA image reveals spectacular jets powered by the gravitational energy of a super massive black hole in the core of the galaxy Hercules A (NASA / ESA / S. Baum / C. O'Dea / RIT / R. Perley / W. Cotton / NRAO / AUI / NSF / the Hubble Heritage Team / STScI / AURA)

Astronomers Capture Radio Galaxy Hercules A

Nov 30, 2012 by Sergio Prostak

Astronomers using the Wide Field Camera 3 aboard NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope and the Karl G. Jansky Very Large Array radio telescope in New Mexico...

Sunset at Grand Canyon (Tobias Alt / CC BY-SA 3.0)

Grand Canyon at least 70 Million Years Old

Nov 30, 2012 by Natali Anderson

The combined uranium/thorium/helium dating of minerals from the bottom of the Grand Canyon in Arizona, the United States, indicates it was largely carved...

This is a composite image of the record-setting X-ray jet produced by the quasar GB 1428+4217 (X-ray: NASA / CXC / NRC / C.Cheung et al; optical: NASA / STScI; radio: NSF / NRAO / VLA)

Chandra Detects Record-Breaking X-Ray Jet

Nov 30, 2012 by Sergio Prostak

An international team of scientists using NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory has discovered a jet of X-rays from a supermassive black hole about 12.4...

This is a temperature map of the north polar region of Mercury, calculated at the University of California in Los Angeles using topographic data collected by NASA’s MESSENGER spacecraft (NASA / UCLA / JHUAPL / Carnegie Institution of Washington)

MESSENGER Confirms Water Ice and Organic Material on Mercury

Nov 30, 2012 by Sergio Prostak

New data obtained with NASA’s MESSENGER spacecraft have provided evidence that water ice and deposits of organic material exist near the north pole...

This Hubble image shows the lenticular galaxy NGC 1277 (NASA / ESA / Andrew C. Fabian)

Astronomers Discover ‘Monster’ Black Hole in NGC 1277

Nov 29, 2012 by Sergio Prostak

An international team of astronomers has discovered a black hole that could shake the foundations of current models of galaxy evolution. This Hubble image...

The island of Favignana (Anto918 / CC BY-SA 3.0)

Study Reveals Origins and Food Habits of First Sicilians

Nov 29, 2012 by Enrico de Lazaro

Analysis of skeletal remains found in an island cave in Favignana, Italy, has revealed that modern humans first settled in Sicily around the time of the...

This artist’s impression shows the material ejected from the region around the supermassive black hole in the quasar SDSS J1106+1939 (L. Calçada / ESO)

Record-Breaking Black Hole Blast Discovered

Nov 28, 2012 by Sergio Prostak

An international team of astronomers using ESO’s Very Large Telescope (VLT) has found a quasar with the most energetic outflow ever seen, at least five...

Upper left: liver, heart and lung tissue of ARIH2-sufficent and -deficient mice. Upper right: ARIH2-sufficent and -deficient mice (Lin AE et al). Bottom: the red line on the lower image points to the location of the ARIH2 gene on the short arm of chromosome 3 (genecards.org)

Gene May Hold Key to Controlling Tuberculosis, Hepatitis and HIV

Nov 28, 2012 by Sergio Prostak

According to authors of a new study published in the journal Nature Immunology, a gene called the ariadne homolog 2 (Arih2) may hold the key to treating...

Scientists Sequence Watermelon Genome

Nov 28, 2012 by Sergio Prostak

An international team of geneticists has completed the genomic sequence of watermelon, Citrullus lanatus. Watermelon is one of the most important fruits...