The Alpha rocket, a two-stage, 96. 7-foot-tall (29. 6 meters) vehicle, took off from California's Vandenberg Space Force Base. Its goal was to send a technology demonstration into low Earth orbit (LEO) for aerospace company Lockheed Martin. The launch was the sixth for the Alpha rocket. It was part of a series of launches that took place over a short period. Four of ...
Antarctica is a place of extremes, and filming there is no easy task. Helen Hobin, a wildlife cinematographer, spent nine months in Antarctica, capturing the lives of emperor penguins. This was no ordinary filming job. It involved living in one of the coldest places on Earth, dealing with temperatures as low as -50 degrees Fahrenheit. Hobin was part of a small team t...
The chilly waters of King George Island, Antarctica, are home to a hidden world of microscopic warriors. These are not your typical bacteria. They are flavobacteria, and they are locked in a constant struggle for survival. This struggle has led to some surprising developments. These bacteria have shown a remarkable ability to resist antibiotics and even produce their...
A team of researchers in Antarctica is facing a serious issue. One of their members is accused of attacking and harassing colleagues. This is happening at the SANAE IV base, a remote research station in Antarctica. The team is stuck there for over a year, with the next supply ship not due until December. The problems started when an email was sent to authorities. It...
Imagine a giant iceberg, named A23a, weighing almost a trillion metric tonnes, which is roughly 1. 1 trillion tons. It’s been wandering the Southern Ocean since 2020. Recently, it stopped near the island of South Georgia. This island is a British Overseas Territory in the southern Atlantic Ocean. The iceberg is massive, covering an area of 3, 672 square kilometers, w...
The ozone hole over Antarctica in 2024 was one of the smallest in decades, showing that efforts to protect the ozone layer are working. NASA and NOAA data revealed that the ozone-depleted area reached a peak of 8. 5 million square miles in September, thanks to a decline in harmful chemicals like CFCs. This is great news, but there's still a long way to go. The ozone ...
Imagine looking at Antarctica from space and seeing what appears to be smoke billowing from a glacier. That's exactly what happened with Pine Island Glacier. But don't worry, it's not fire, but something called sea smoke. This happens when cold, dry air meets warm water. Strong winds push aside ice and cold water, letting warmer water rise to the surface. The clash o...