Mr Quiet's blog

International team discovers planet made of diamond #astronomy #science

via www.gizmag.com

An international research team led by the Swinburne University of Technology, identified a pulsar star (PSR J1719-1438) with a hidden planet. This small planet is much denser than any other planet and consists largely of carbon. Because of its density, scientists speculate the carbon must be crystalline. Effectively meaning a large part of the planet is diamond.

The planet is estimated to be the remains of a massive star that has lost its outer layers to the pulsar star it orbits (PSR J1719-1438), leaving behind the crystallized core.

The planet is located about 4,000 light years away in the constellation Serpens.

Earth May Once Have Had Two Moons | SkimThat.com

A new theory suggests that Earth may have had two moons in the distant past before one collided into the other, the BBC reports. The theory has been developed by several astronomers to explain why one side of the Moon, the one visible from Earth, is flat and cratered while the other has mountain ranges. The researchers say the second moon may have been formed when another large body the size of Mars collided with the Earth about four billion years ago, sending another chunk out into orbit. The smaller second moon orbited Earth before collided with the Moon. The report is published in the journal Nature. Scientists plan to test this theory by examining samples from probes NASA plans to send to the moon.

via skimthat.com

Nuclear Disasters - Photo Gallery - LIFE

via www.life.com

Nuclear Disasters
The age of the atom brought unprecedented amount of technological progress to the world, but it also brought a wholly new fear: nuclear devastation. And, on occasion, sources of atomic energy have also been the sites of nuclear tragedies, like at Three Mile Island, outside Harrisburg, Pa.

Endangered Status Sought for Lion - NYTimes.com

 

via http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/mammals/african-lion/

Although big game hunting might seem like a relic of another era, the petition documents the role that international trade in African lions and their parts is playing a role in the reduction of the population. “From 1998 through 2008, at least 7,445 wild lions were traded internationally, with the United States importing a minimum of 4,021,” the groups said.

“Additionally, 64 percent of the 5,663 wild lions traded internationally for recreational trophy hunting purposes were imported to the United States.”

via green.blogs.nytimes.com

Click! A Brief History of Computing - Photo Gallery - LIFE #computerscience #history

 

via www.life.com

1801: The Jacquard Weaving Loom
Designed by Joseph Marie Jacquard, the loom was the first machine to use punched cards to control a series of sequences. In order to change the pattern the machine made, all that had to be done was change the card -- a key step in the development of computer programming.

 

Dark Matter: New Data on How Starburst Galaxies Are Born - TIME #science #astrophysics #darkmatter

Dark Matter and Dark Energy

The collection of photos taken by the Hubble includes some of the most detailed photographs ever taken of the things in our universe. In the 20 years since its launch, the Hubble has made close to 100 million images, confirming the existence of black holes, exoplanets, supernovae, nebulae, proplyds, and more recently, the existence of dark matter and energy.
Read more: http://www.time.com/time/photogallery/0,29307,1984100,00.html#ixzz1ErKK6p8e

The creation of a starburst galaxy, says study co-author Asantha Cooray of the University of California, Irvine, is all a matter of blob size. If your blob is too big, hydrogen gas can't fall together efficiently enough to sustain a starmaking frenzy. Instead the gas breaks apart to make several separate, reasonably sedate galaxies. If the dark-matter blob is too small, by contrast, the hydrogen falls together too efficiently. Stars form so quickly and so furiously that their heat keeps the rest of hydrogen from falling in. The frenzy is short-lived.

Read more: http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,2052614,00.html#ixzz1ErKzVBE9

Emissions contributed to autumn 2000 flood risk - Met Office #eco #climate #change

Although the precise magnitude is still uncertain, the researchers found a 2-in-3 chance that the odds were increased by about a factor of two or more.

via www.metoffice.gov.uk

Relief well drill is only days away from leaking oil pipe | Environment | The Guardian #eco #oilspill

After 76 days, 190 million gallons of oil, and a $22.5bn (£15bn) clean-up and compensation bill so far, BP is poised to plug its leaking well in the Gulf of Mexico. Drilling engineers have only one chance to get it right.

One wrong move as engineers break through the cement and steel pipe of the Macondo well could increase the torrent of oil into the Gulf. In the worst case scenario, it could even trigger a blow-out in the relief well.

"They pretty much have one shot," said Wayne Pennington, the chair of geophysical engineering at Michigan Tech University. "Once they hit it and they try to kill it they really just have that one chance."

via www.guardian.co.uk

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Boston Molasses Disaster - Wikipedia #history #boston

Image via Wikipedia

The Boston Molasses Disaster, also known as the Great Molasses Flood and the Great Boston Molasses Tragedy, occurred on January 15, 1919, in the North End neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts in the United States. A large molasses storage tank burst, and a wave of molasses rushed through the streets at an estimated 35 mph (56 km/h), killing 21 and injuring 150. The event has entered local folklore, and residents claim that on hot summer days, the area still smells of molasses.[1]

via en.wikipedia.org

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• When Food Attacks: Two Killer Culinary Catastrophes (neatorama.com)

Google Crisis Response - Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill #eco #gulf #oilspill

Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill

Quick links

• Google Earth files
• How to Help
• News and Updates
• Upload your videos

On April 20, 2010, an explosion occurred on the semi-submersible offshore drilling rig Deepwater Horizon in the Gulf of Mexico, killing 11 rig workers and injuring 17 others. On April 24, it was found that the wellhead was damaged and was leaking oil into the Gulf. This significant spill poses a serious threat to wildlife, affecting as many as 400 species along the coastal areas of Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and Florida.

View Larger Map

Google Earth files (download these KML files and view them in Google Earth)

• MODIS satellite images, 4/21-4/29/2010. Download KML
• Animation of satellite imagery showing progression of oil slick. Download KML
  KML courtesy of NASA, the Gulf of Mexico Coastal Observing System, and EarthNC.
• Multi-layer data overlay showing projected slick expansion, boom placement, and habitats. Download KML
  KML courtesy of Louisiana Governor’s Office of Homeland Security & Emergency Preparedness
• Oil spill overview with spill extents from DLR-ZKI. Download KML

How to Help

• Read: U.S.News & World Report's 10 Things You Can Do To Help The Gulf Coast
• Volunteer: American Red Cross Panama City, FL; Audubon Society; Coalition to Restore Coastal Louisiana; Mobile Bay National Estuary; Mobile Baykeeper
• Donate: Alabama Coastal Foundation

News and Updates

• News: Google News, Real Time updates on Google Search
• Resources: Louisiana Bucket Brigade, Joint Information Center, Louisiana Shore Cleanup Facebook page

Upload your videos of the Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill

Videos will automatically be fed back to this page for others to see. You will need to log in to your YouTube account to upload.

Upload Your Story

via google.com