For most of the part, the images of space we see come from radio or IR telescopes, it is very rare to actually come across an image that was captured with a visible light telescope. ESO’s VLT Survey Telescope (VST) has a visible-light telescope at its heart. And the 268-megapixel camera OmegaCAM has captured some [...]
Researchers create holograms that can be touched
Researchers in Japan have managed to give the sense of touch to holograms. Generally visible as only 3-dimensional images, the holograms were given a touch of ultrasonic waves by the researchers. Pressure created by these ultrasonic waves can give the sense of touch to the user. Currently, researchers are making use of Nintendo Wiimotes to [...]
Scientists plan to harvest fuel from Uranus to power space missions, earth
Scientists working on Project Icarus are looking into the possibilities of harvesting gas from another planet. Uranus may have the most unfortunate name in the solar system, but the planet has a good supply of Helium-3, a great source of energy if used as a fuel. Harvesting gas from Uranus could possibly fuel probe missions [...]
Imaginary smartphone interface works better than the emperor’s new clothes
Students at the Hasso Plattner Institute in Potsdam, Germany have created a new concept for smartphones they call the “imaginary phone” concept. The premise of the idea is to allow users to be able to do micro interactions with their phones, without actually having to interact with their phone. Working with the phone on a [...]
Astronomers create 3D map of the local universe
After more than a decade of work, astronomers have managed to create a massive 3D map of the universe. Named 2MASS Redshift Survey (2MRS), it is based on University of Massachusetts’ Two-Micron All-SkySurvey (2MASS). They scanned the entire sky through infrared wavelengths, peering through space dust and managing to look through the disturbance in observation [...]
The unconventional Skylon rocketplane could be the next generation space shuttle
European and UK regulators have given approval to the design of Skylon, a space shuttle in making for nearly three decades. It has had its share of hiccups and problems, but the unconventional design may finally see the light of the day. Conventional flights take those huge orange tanks filled with hydrogen and oxygen to [...]
Researchers see a possibly habitable planet in our neighborhood
Twenty light years sounds like a massive distance, but it is just a stone throw away when talking in astronomical distances. That happens to be our distance from Gliese 581d, a planet orbiting a red dwarf star, with a stable atmosphere, comfortable temperatures and plenty of water. Gliese planetary system has been of particular interest [...]
The brain in love [pic]
Frankly, the heart gets too much credit for love. While its boss, the brain sits there doing a lot of hard work, and never getting any credit. This image of the brain was made using MRI scans of people who claimed they were experiencing passionate love, material love or unconditional love. It is this situation [...]
Iceland’s ash plume as captured by weather satellites
Explosion of Iceland’s Grimsvötn volcano has already made news, sending off a 7 mile high plume of ash and dust into the atmosphere. These series of images were captured by US GOES 13 satellite, and stitched together to create this video-effect for us. So how massive is the ash plume? For comparison, the blue lines [...]
X-Ray sees dog slurping, understands the mechanics involved [video]
Exploiting the magic of X-Ray cameras and high frame rate, scientists evolutionary biologist Alfred Crompton and some Harvard colleagues have found the exact way a dog drinks. It is generally believed that dogs scoop liquids into their mouth from the underside of their tongues, but now it seems they are quite similar to cats, pulling [...]
