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    Telescopes and spacecraft Join forces to probe deep into Jupiter’s Atmosphere

    May 10, 2020, Categories  Astronomy/Space

    Credits: NASA, ESA, and M.H. Wong (UC Berkeley) and team

    NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope and the ground-based Gemini Observatory in Hawaii have teamed up with the Juno spacecraft to probe the mightiest storms in the solar system, taking place more than 500 million miles away on the giant planet Jupiter.

    A team of researchers led by Michael Wong at the University of California, Berkeley, and including Amy Simon of NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, and Imke de Pater also of UC Berkeley, are combining multiwavelength observations from Hubble and Gemini with close-up views from Juno’s orbit about the monster planet, gaining new insights into turbulent weather on this distant world.

    “We want to know how Jupiter’s atmosphere works,” said Wong...

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    Vitamin D levels appear to play role in COVID-19 Mortality Rates

    May 8, 2020, Categories  Biology/Biotechnology

    covid backman vitamin D

    Patients with severe deficiency are twice as likely to experience major complications. Researchers analyzed patient data from 10 countries. The team found a correlation between low vitamin D levels and hyperactive immune systems. Vitamin D strengthens innate immunity and prevents overactive immune responses. The finding could explain several mysteries, including why children are unlikely to die from COVID-19.

    After studying global data from the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, researchers have discovered a strong correlation between severe vitamin D deficiency and mortality rates.

    Led by Northwestern University, the research team conducted a statistical analysis of data from hospitals and clinics across China, France, Germany, Italy, Iran, South Korea, Spain, Switzerland, ...

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    Shedding New Light on Nanolasers using 2D Semiconductors

    May 8, 2020, Categories  Physics, Technology/Electronics

    The process Cun-Zheng Ning and his team used to create nanolasers with 2D semiconductor materials.
    In research conducted by Cun-Zheng Ning and his ASU and Tsinghua University collaborators, a single layer of 2D material was placed on a carefully designed substrate with gold as a back-gate to control the number of electrons in the material. Another laser pumps the 2D material to create excitons, some of which form trions with the pre-existing electrons. The reflected light is monitored to find the signature of amplification. Graphic courtesy of Cun-Zheng Ning

    Scientists have discovered a process of physics that enables low-power nanolasers to be produced in 2D semiconductor materials. Understanding the physics behind lasers at nanoscale and how they interact with semiconductors can have major implications for high-speed communication channels for supercomputers and data centers.

    I...

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    Astronomers find Jupiter-like Cloud Bands on Closest Brown Dwarf

    May 8, 2020, Categories  Astronomy/Space

    Artist’s illustration of the brown dwarf Luhman 16A. Astronomers have inferred the presence of cloud bands on Luhman 16A using a technique called polarimetry, in which polarized light is measured from an astrophysical object much like polarized sunglasses are used to block out glare. This is the first time that polarimetry has been used to measure cloud patterns on a brown dwarf. 
    (Image: © Caltech/R. Hurt (IPAC))

    A team of astronomers has discovered that the closest known brown dwarf, Luhman 16A, shows signs of cloud bands similar to those seen on Jupiter and Saturn. This is the first time scientists have used the technique of polarimetry to determine the properties of atmospheric clouds outside of the solar system, or exoclouds.

    Brown dwarfs are objects heavier than planets but ...

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