Magazine Posts

Scarlet macaw (Ara macao cyanopterus), Copan Ruinas, Honduras.

Charles J. Sharp, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons. View source.

Turkish Proverb. Also known in other variants.

NASA Astronomy Picture of the Day:

What can a space rock tell us about life on Earth? NASA's OSIRIS-REx spacecraft made a careful approach to the near-Earth asteroid 101955 Bennu in October of 2020 to collect surface samples. In September 2023, the robotic spaceship returned these samples to Earth. A recent analysis has shown, surprisingly, that the samples contained 14 out of the 20 known amino acids that are the essential building blocks of life. The presence of the amino acids re-introduces a big question: Could life have originated in space? However, the protein building blocks themselves held another surprise -- they contained an even mixture of left-handed and right-handed amino acids -- in contrast to our Earth which only has left-handed ones. This raises another big question: Why does life on Earth have only left-handed amino acids? Research on this is sure to continue.

Galanthus nivalis double-flowered Snowdrop. Focus stack of 44 photos.

Dominicus Johannes Bergsma, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons. View source.

NASA Astronomy Picture of the Day:

Will the spider ever catch the fly? Not if both are large emission nebulas toward the constellation of the Charioteer (Auriga). The spider-shaped gas cloud in the image center is actually an emission nebula labelled IC 417, while the smaller fly-shaped cloud on the left is dubbed NGC 1931 and is both an emission nebula and a reflection nebula. About 10,000 light-years distant, both nebulas harbor young star clusters. For scale, the more compact NGC 1931 (Fly) is about 10 light-years across. The featured deep image, captured over 20 hours during late January in Berkshire UK, also shows more diffuse and red-glowing interstellar gas and dust. Explore Your Universe: Random APOD Generator

Photo by Dave Boddington

Nassarius arcularia (Linnaeus, 1758), Casket Nassa; length 2.2 cm; Originating from Madagascar.

H. Zell, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons. View source.

NASA Astronomy Picture of the Day:

Is this the largest hummingbird ever? Although it may look like a popular fluttering nectarivore, what is pictured is actually a beautifully detailed and colorful aurora, complete with rays reminiscent of feathers. This aurora was so bright that it was visible to the unaided eye during blue hour -- just after sunset when the sky appears a darkening blue. However, the aurora only looked like a hummingbird through a sensitive camera able to pick up faint glows. As reds typically occurring higher in the Earth's atmosphere than the greens, the real 3D shape of this aurora would likely appear unfamiliar. Auroras are created when an explosion on the Sun causes high energy particles to flow into the Earth's atmosphere and excite atoms and molecules of nitrogen and oxygen. The featured image was captured about two weeks ago above Lyngseidt, Norway.

Photo by Mickael Coulon

Self-portrait in White Dress by Jacek Malczewski, 1914.

Jacek Malczewski, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons. View source.

Eric Arthur Blair (1903 – 1950) Known for his work under the pen name of George Orwell, was an English novelist, essayist, journalist, poet, and critic. His work is characterized by lucid prose, social criticism, opposition to all totalitarianism (both authoritarian communism and fascism), and support of democratic socialism. Among his best known works are "Animal Farm and Nineteen Eighty-Four. More