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Hubble detects Celestial ‘String of Pearls’ Star Clusters in Galaxy Collisions

Image of galaxy collision in space
Galaxy AM 1054-325 has been distorted into an S-shape from a normal pancake-like spiral shape by the gravitational pull of a neighboring galaxy, seen in this Hubble Space Telescope image. A consequence of this is that newborn clusters of stars form along a stretched-out tidal tail for thousands of light-years, resembling a string of pearls. They form when knots of gas gravitationally collapse to create about 1 million newborn stars per cluster. Image credit: NASA, ESA, STScI, Jayanne English (University of Manitoba)

When spectacular cosmic events such as galaxy collisions occur, it sets off a reaction to form new stars, and possibly new planets that otherwise would not have formed...

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Discovery may enable an Effective Long-Term Lupus Treatment

Credit Dingzeyu Li via Unsplash.

Australian researchers have worked out how to fix a defect that causes lupus, and hope their world-first discovery will offer effective long-term treatment.

Published in Nature Communications, the Monash University-led study found a way to reprogram the defective cells of lupus patients with protective molecules from healthy people.

Using human cells, the new treatment restores the protective side of the immune system that prevents autoimmunity, which is when the immune system attacks its own cells.

The findings relate to the autoimmune disease lupus, a debilitating disease with no cure and limited treatments.

But researchers hope this new method, developed in test tubes and proven in pre-clinical models, can also be developed for other auto...

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New study finds ‘Sweet spot’ for Length of Yarn-shaped Supercapacitors

Yarn-shaped supercapacitors created by NC State researchers in the Wilson College of Textiles
Yarn-shaped supercapacitors created by NC State researchers in the Wilson College of Textiles. Photo courtesy of Nanfei He, NC State University.

As interest in wearable technology has surged, research into creating energy-storage devices that can be woven into textiles has also increased. Researchers at North Carolina State University have now identified a “sweet spot” at which the length of a threadlike energy storage technology called a “yarn-shaped supercapacitor” (YSC) yields the highest and most efficient flow of energy per unit length.

“When it comes to the length of the YSC, it’s a tradeoff between power and energy,” said Wei Gao, corresponding author of a paper on the work and an associate professor of textile engineering, chemistry and science at NC State.

“It’s not only...

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Mimas’ surprise: Tiny Moon holds Young Ocean beneath Icy Shell

Mimas' surprise: Tiny moon holds young ocean beneath icy shell
Mimas measurements and ocean models. The amplitude of libration in longitude ϕs and periapsis drift variation Δϖ for different internal structure models with an ocean. The colors represent the thickness of the ice crust hs. The gray areas correspond to the measured libration amplitude and perihelion longitude variation. The dispersion represents sensitivity to the crustal polar and equatorial flattenings (see additional tests in Methods). Credit: Nature (2024). DOI: 10.1038/s41586-023-06975-9

Hidden beneath the heavily cratered surface of Mimas, one of Saturn’s smallest moons lies a secret: a global ocean of liquid water. This astonishing discovery, led by Dr...

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