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    Mars’ Atmosphere well Protected from the Solar Wind

    December 11, 2017, Categories  Astronomy/Space

    Left: Charged particles from the sun (the solar wind) form an induced magnetosphere round Mars, which unlike the sun does not have its own intrinsic magnetic field (artwork: Anastasia Grigoryeva). Right: Robin Ramstad points out the position of the Swedish instrument ASPERA-3 on a model of the Mars Express spacecraft (photo: Anastasia Grigoryeva)

    Left: Charged particles from the sun (the solar wind) form an induced magnetosphere round Mars, which unlike the sun does not have its own intrinsic magnetic field (artwork: Anastasia Grigoryeva) Larger file Right: Robin Ramstad points out the position of the Swedish instrument ASPERA-3 on a model of the Mars Express spacecraft (photo: Anastasia Grigoryeva)

    Despite the absence of a global Earth-like magnetic dipole, the Martian atmosphere is well protected from the effects of the solar wind on ion escape from the planet. New research shows this using measurements from the Swedish particle instrument ASPERA-3 on the Mars Express spacecraft. Present-day Mars is a cold and dry planet with less than 1% of Earth’s atmospheric pressure at the surface...

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    Galaxy Growth in a Massive Halo in the 1st Billion years of Cosmic history

    December 11, 2017, Categories  Astronomy/Space

    The Aurora Australis, or Southern Lights, over the South Pole Telescope at NSF's Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station. Credit: Dr. Keith Vanderlinde, NSF

    The Aurora Australis, or Southern Lights, over the South Pole Telescope at NSF’s Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station. Credit: Dr. Keith Vanderlinde, NSF

    Observations of two galaxies made with ALMA radio telescope suggest that large galaxies formed faster than scientists had previously thought. The two galaxies, first discovered by the South Pole Telescope at NSF’s Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station in Antarctica, were massive and star-filled at a time when the cosmos was < 1B years old. The observation came as a surprise, considering astronomers had thought that the first galaxies, which formed just a few hundred million years after the Big Bang, were similar to today’s dwarf galaxies – collections of stars much smaller than the Milky Way...

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    Breath Test could be possible for Drugs and Disease

    December 10, 2017, Categories  Health/Medical, Biology/Biotechnology

    A schematic presentation of the PExA® instrument (after Larsson et al [21]).

    A schematic presentation of the PExA® instrument (after Larsson et al [21]).

    Testing for drug use and disease in humans could soon be much simpler, thanks to new Swedish research. Whereas drug tests currently rely on blood or urine samples, researchers from the University of Gothenburg have identified a method for drug testing by analysing various compounds in exhaled breath. They demonstrate how collecting and analysing externally-produced compounds in the lining fluid of the airways allows for non-invasive testing and monitoring.

    Dr Göran Ljungkvist said: “Exhaled breath contains particles carrying non-volatile substances. The main components, lipids and proteins, are derived from the respiratory tract lining fluid...

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    Guanidinium stabilizes Perovskite Solar Cells at 19% Efficienc

    December 10, 2017, Categories  Technology/Electronics, Chemistry/Nanotechnology

    Stability test of the novel MA(1-x)GuaxPbI3 perovskite material under continuous light illumination compared with the state-of-the-art MAPbI3. A schematic of the device architecture and the simulated crystalline structure is also provided. Credit: M.K. Nazeeruddin/EPFL

    Stability test of the novel MA(1-x)GuaxPbI3 perovskite material under continuous light illumination compared with the state-of-the-art MAPbI3. A schematic of the device architecture and the simulated crystalline structure is also provided.
    Credit: M.K. Nazeeruddin/EPFL

    Incorporating guanidinium into perovskite solar cells stabilizes their efficiency at 19% for 1,000 hours under full-sunlight testing conditions. With the power-conversion efficiency of silicon solar cells plateauing around 25%, perovskites are now ideally placed to become the market’s next generation of photovoltaics...

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