Science news 23 Feb, 2021

Perseverance's Descent & Touchdown on Mars: Rover Descent Camera POV (Official NASA Clip) - NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory

Asteroid the size of the Golden Gate Bridge will whiz past Earth in March - Space.com

Don't panic; it won't get that close.

Martian rover sends back 'overwhelming' video, audio from the Red Planet - Science Magazine

Audio recording is the first ever to be taken on the surface of Mars

FAA clears SpaceX Starship prototype for third launch and landing attempt - Teslarati

The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has already cleared Starship serial number 10 (SN10) for flight, cutting short any potential licensing drama facing SpaceX’s latest high-altitude Starship launch efforts. Less than three weeks ago, Starship serial …

SpaceX announces second crew member of its all-civilian space mission - The Verge

The second member of the SpaceX Inspiration4 mission will be Hayley Arceneaux, a physician assistant at St. Jude who survived bone cancer. She could be both the youngest American and the first person with a prosthetic body part to go to space.

Black hole releases radio flares years after it should be possible - The Jerusalem Post

Entirely new models will need to be developed to understand this new, unheard of phenomenon.

SpaceX’s Crew Dragon performing ‘beautifully’ on ISS as NASA eyes a backup ride - The Verge

NASA’s human spaceflight chief said SpaceX’s Crew Dragon capsule is performing “beautifully” on the ISS as the space agency looks for a backup Soyuz astronaut seat as a safety net.

Dust Storms on Mars Might Glow with Tiny Sparks, Study Shows - IGN - IGN

As if dust storms weren't ominous enough already, on Mars, they might glow due to electricity, according to a new study.

A spacecraft named for 'Hidden Figures' mathematician Katherine Johnson has arrived on the International Space Station - CNN

The S.S. Katherine Johnson, a Northrop Grumman Cygnus resupply spacecraft, launched on Saturday from a NASA facility in Virginia and made it to the space station early Monday morning.

Ghost particle that slammed into Antarctica traced back to black hole feast - CNET

A black hole gobbled up a star in deep space and flung a high-energy subatomic bullet at the Earth. Don't worry, the planet's doing fine.

NASA's Webb Telescope Will Show Us More Stars at Higher Resolution - NASA

The combination of high resolution and infrared-detecting instruments on NASA’s upcoming James Webb Space Telescope will reveal stars that are currently hidden even from the powerful Hubble Space Telescope.

Can the laws of physics disprove God? - The Conversation UK

If God could break the laws of physics, why haven't we seen any evidence of the laws ever being broken in the universe?

Astronomers find the fastest spinning black hole to date - Livescience.com

Closing in on a complete human genome - Nature.com

Advances in sequencing technology mean that scientists are on the verge of finally finishing an end-to-end human genome map.

New “metalens” shifts focus without tilting or moving - MIT News

An MIT-fabricated metalens shifts focus without tilting, shifting, or otherwise moving. The design may enable miniature zoom lenses for drones, cellphones, or night-vision goggles.

Stunning Photo Shows Perseverance's Mars Landing From Above! - Mashable India

NASA's Perseverance rover shared an exciting photo on Friday from right before its wheels first touched the surface of Mars. In the photo shared on the official Perseverance Twitter account, we get an extremely rare, close-up photo of an entire rover on (or a…

Life from Earth could temporarily survive on Mars - Phys.org

Some microbes on Earth could temporarily survive on the surface of Mars, finds a new study by NASA and German Aerospace Center scientists. The researchers tested the endurance of microorganisms to Martian conditions by launching them into the Earth's stratosp…

Scientists Discover 'Ingredients For Life' in 3.5 Billion-Year-Old Rocks in Australia - ScienceAlert

Researchers have discovered organic molecules trapped in incredibly ancient rock formations in Australia, revealing what they say is the first detailed evidence of early chemical ingredients that could have underpinned Earth's primeval microbial life

The White Dots in This Image Are Not Stars or Galaxies. They're Black Holes - ScienceAlert

The image above may look like a fairly normal picture of the night sky, but what you're looking at is a lot more special than just glittering stars. Each of those white dots is an active supermassive black hole.

Study warns solar farms could unleash unintended consequences on the environment, including global warming - TheBlaze

Large-scale solar and wind turbine farms could trigger negative affects on the climate around the world

New research suggests a polar flip could be catastrophic - BGR

Earth’s magnetic poles are constantly on the move, but they haven’t drifted far enough to actually flip in the modern age. Researchers know that Earth’s poles have flipped in the past, but opinion has been split over what effects such an event might have on t…

Mission Control Live: NASA Lands Perseverance Mars Rover (360 video) - NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory

Million-Year-Old DNA Rewrites Mammoths' Evolutionary Tree - WIRED

The oldest DNA ever sequenced shows how the genus split off into new species.

Europe is recruiting astronauts. Here’s what it takes to become one - Space.com

Engineers Place Thousands of Nanoscale Molecular Devices in Precise Orientation - SciTechDaily

Proof-of-concept project paves the way for the integration of molecules with computer chips. Engineers have developed a technique that allows them to precisely place microscopic devices formed from folded DNA molecules in not only a specific location but also…

Variations in Sunlight Have More to Do With Pollution Than Clouds, Says Study - ScienceAlert

The amount of sunlight reaching Earth's surface has been fluctuating for decades now, and a new study supports the idea that human activity is to blame.