Category Archives: CNN – World

NASA spacecraft safely seals up asteroid sample to return to Earth

NASA spacecraft safely seals up asteroid sample to return to Earth

Pieces of the near-Earth asteroid Bennu are ready to return to Earth. The OSIRIS-REx spacecraft successfully stowed the sample collector head, which is full of surface material gathered from Bennu on October 20, in the sample return capsule on Wednesday. This will prevent any more of the sample from leaking into space. The mission team…… MORE

Koala populations are in decline due to increased human impacts on nature

Koala populations are in decline due to increased human impacts on nature

It has been a stressful year for Australia’s koalas. Their health and natural environment, however, have been under threat for a long time. Bushfires, habitat fragmentation, vehicle collisions and dog attacks — all which hurt koalas — have been getting worse over the last decade. That has led to species population decline and increased disease…… MORE

How octopuses taste their meals by touching them, according to a new study

How octopuses taste their meals by touching them, according to a new study

“A lot of people say an octopus is like an alien,” says filmmaker Craig Foster in his new Netflix documentary “My Octopus Teacher.” “But the strange thing is, as you get closer to them you realize that you’re very similar in a lot of ways.” One of those ways the octopuses are both familiar and…… MORE

These spiders lack ears. But they can hear you, study says

These spiders lack ears. But they can hear you, study says

Spooky season is here — so let’s talk about spiders. Ogre-faced spiders are believed to have the largest eyes of all known spider species, and they are known for their reported ability to see in the dark 2,000 times better than humans. That formidable eyesight, however, is just one of the sensory tools these arachnids…… MORE

Newly discovered Triassic lizard could float underwater to pick off prey

Scientists have discovered a new lizard-like species that lurked in shallow water to pick off its prey — with the help of a short, flat tail used as a float. Some 240 million years ago, the Triassic predator Brevicaudosaurus jiyangshanensis skulked, nearly motionless, in the sea — and researchers found clues in its skeleton that…… MORE

Unusual molecule found in atmosphere on Saturn’s moon Titan

Unusual molecule found in atmosphere on Saturn’s moon Titan

Saturn’s largest moon, Titan, is the only moon in our solar system that has a thick atmosphere. It’s four times denser than Earth’s. And now, scientists have discovered a molecule in it that has never been found in any other atmosphere. The particle is called cyclopropenylidene, or C3H2, and it’s made of carbon and hydrogen.…… MORE

Juno mission observes ‘sprites’ dancing in Jupiter’s atmosphere

Juno mission observes ‘sprites’ dancing in Jupiter’s atmosphere

Blue sprites and elves have been detected twirling in the upper atmosphere of Jupiter by NASA’s Juno mission. While it may sound like something out of a fantasy novel, sprites and elves are actually two types of quick, bright flashes of light, or transient luminous events. Although these lightning-like flashes happen on Earth, this marks…… MORE

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