technology

(quote) The hourglass shape of the supernova remnant SN 1987A isn't as well balanced as thought, according to an August picture of the exploded star... when massive stars explode, some of the ejected material gets shot into space faster than other debris.

A colorful, craggy column of dust and gas dubbed the Mystic Mountain stars in a picture from the Hubble Space Telescope released April 23 as part of celebrations for Hubble's 20th anniversary.

On Dec 21, 2010, the total lunar eclipse falls on the same day as the winter solstice, a rare cosmic event that hasn't occurred in centuries - the last time the solstice coincided with a total lunar eclipse on the same calendar day was 1638.

Mars shines like a bright red star over a "moonbow" in fog surrounding Hawaii's Haleakala volcano in January. Mars was about to make its closest pass by Earth for 2010.

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The long-awaited rescue of Ireland has failed to calm nerves about the unsustainable levels of debt blighting many European countries. Leaders across the continent hope that the crisis that started in Athens will stop in Dublin and that there is no danger of Lisbon, Madrid or even Rome passing round the hat.  read more »

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L.A. County passes sweeping ban on plastic bags - "You cannot recycle your way out of the plastic bag problem.. The cost of convenience can no longer be at the expense of the environment."
Enacting one of the nation's most aggressive environmental measures, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors voted Tuesday to ban plastic grocery bags in unincorporated areas of the county. The vote was 3-1.  read more »

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Fishing industry joins with 39 lawmakers who wrote to the FDA this week asking the agency to stop its approval process for the genetically modified salmon. They cited concerns about "human health and environmental risks" from the AquAdvantage salmon. Alaska Gov. Sean Parnell slammed the idea of allowing genetically engineered salmon to be sold in supermarkets. "We are concerned genetically engineered salmon could jeopardize the health of wild-salmon stocks."

Senator Mark Begich (D-Alaska): Serious health and environmental questions regarding the fish cannot be adequately evaluated by the public, Begich wrote. Led by Sen. Mark Begich (D-Alaska), the senators complained to FDA Commissioner Margaret A. Hamburg that the agency is using the wrong process for evaluating the safety of the modified fish and that the public is being left out.  read more »

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The Trouble With Trash
It's been 53 years and over 4,500 launches since the dawn of the space age, and Earth's orbit is a junkyard. Our orbit is littered with spent rocket stages, lens caps, broken-up satellites, frozen urine, the odd glove, bits of foil, and the tool kit dropped by astronaut Heide Stefanyshyn-Piper during a spacewalk in 2008. You name it; the low Earth orbit has probably got it.

Millions of pieces of this space debris orbit the globe at break-neck speeds, and the spacecraft that pass through orbit are in jeopardy from even the smallest objects. But while the problem is evident, the solution remains elusive. Will Earth's orbit forever resemble a scene from WALL-E? Many scientists have now turned their attention to cleaning up the clutter.

Every satellite that goes up to orbit is the pride and joy of some company, lab, or nation. But once it has outlived its purpose, it's nothing but junk.  read more »