After months of fighting with two stubborn fasteners, NASA scientists finally cracked open the canister containing precious pieces of an ancient asteroid. Click through for our top science stories from this week.
2 / 12
The aluminum canister containing bits of an ancient space rock has finally been opened, revealing the bulk of the asteroid Bennu sample in all its glory. - Passant Rabie Read More
3 / 12
Physics at the smallest scales is a challenge of observation: Particles are often fleeting, and the forces that govern their behavior are nearly imperceptible. But now, by exploiting decades-old data and a 50-year-old prediction about gravity’s import on subatomic particles, a team of physicists has teased out a measurement for a second mechanical property in the proton. - Isaac Schultz Read More
4 / 12
When Subway announced last year that it would be removing pre-sliced meat from its assembly line and adding automatic deli slicers to its more than 20,000 locations, the intention was to improve the chain’s overall sandwich quality. Just six months after this systemwide change, however, Restaurant Business reports Subway’s on-site deli slicers are not having the intended effect, and might even be hurting franchise locations. - Angela L. Pagán Read More
5 / 12
The new era of spaceflight is all about reaching orbit in the fastest and cheapest way possible, and reusable rockets have defined the future of the industry. That’s why so many companies are trying to get in on the action, including a Chinese startup that recently pulled off the first flight test of a reusable first stage prototype that lasted around a minute. - Passant Rabie Read More
6 / 12
On my commute to work today, I had the misfortune of being crammed into a narrow tube underground. But it could have been worse: I could’ve been squished into a single dimension. - Isaac Schultz Read More
7 / 12
Scientists say they’ve invented a piece of technology that will let us peer through an animal’s eyes better than ever before. The tech uses a combination of novel hardware and software to produce images and videos that accurately represent the colors seen by animals, such as bees and birds. In new research this week, the team found that its innovation nearly matches the accuracy of conventional, yet more limiting, methods used to capture an animal’s color vision. - Ed Cara Read More
8 / 12
The International Space Station is so hot right now, with no less than two movies out featuring the orbital lab, namely I.S.S. and Constellation. Indeed, the ISS is an absolute icon and a fixture of popular culture. But beyond its well-known status as a pioneering space laboratory, it harbors a wealth of lesser-known facts and features. - George Dvorsky Read More
9 / 12
NASA’s diligent lunar orbiter transmitted a laser beam to a dome-shaped aluminum device the size of a billiard ball on India’s Vikram lander, pinging its location on the Moon. This laser-enabled technique could one day help NASA astronauts find their way on the lunar surface. - Passant Rabie Read More
10 / 12
Scientists may have figured out one of the many mysteries surrounding everyone’s favorite microscopic survivor: the tardigrade. In new research, a team appears to have uncovered a key mechanism that these tiny critters use to withstand harsh conditions that would kill almost any other animal. - Ed Cara Read More
11 / 12
A popular class of weight loss drugs may offer more lasting success than assumed, new data from Epic Research suggests. The study of medical records found that a slight majority of people who took GLP-1 drugs like semaglutide either maintained or improved their weight loss in the year after they stopped using the medication. More than a third of former users did substantially regain much or all of their original weight, however. - Ed Cara Read More
12 / 12
Source: Gizmodo