An image of the colliding galaxies known as The Antennae, taken in the optical and near-infrared. Astronomers using the ALMA submillimeter array have found evidence for shocked gas near the nucleus of the northern (upper) galaxy, and argue that it is due to material infalling onto the nuclear region. Credit: ESA/Hubble & NASA

Collisions between galaxies, especially ones rich in molecular gas, can trigger bursts of star formation that heat the dust and result in their shining brightly in the infrared. Astronomers think that there is also significant gas inflowing to the central regions of galaxies that can stimulate starburst activity. Inflowing gas, as it collides with the gas in the inner regions, should produce powerful shocks that should make the gas itself glow...

SpaceX regularly launches unmanned cargo ships to the International Space Station, and is working on a crew capsule that could carry humans into orbit as early as next year

SpaceX on Monday blasted off a secretive US government satellite, known as NROL-76, marking the first military launch for Elon Musk. The payload for the National Reconnaissance Office, which makes and operates spy satellites for the US, soared into the sky atop a Falcon 9 rocket at 7:15 am (1115 GMT). 10 minutes after launch, the scorched 1st stage of the rocket came back to Earth and landed upright at Cape Canaveral, marking the 4th successful solid ground landing for SpaceX.

“And we have touchdown,” a SpaceX commentator said on a live webcast as cheers broke out at mission control...

TDP1 promotes mitochondrial gene transcription in human cells.

A 5-yr study has found the mechanism responsible for repairing damage to mitochondrial DNA. This discovery could pave the way for new treatments for cancer and neurodegenerative diseases. This research may also have important implications for clinical advances in so called ‘three-parent baby’ mitochondrial donation. They also show how the enzyme TDP1- already known to have a role in repairing damaged DNA in the cell’s nucleus – is also responsible for repairing damage to mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA).

During the process of energy production and making proteins, a large amount of rogue reactive oxygen species are produced which constantly attack the DNA in the mitochondria...

A new technique for producing self-folding three-dimensional origami structures from photo-curable liquid polymer materials created these tiny samples, held in a hand for size comparison. Credit: Rob Felt, Georgia Tech

Researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology and Peking University have found a new use for the ubiquitous PowerPoint slide: Producing self-folding 3D origami structures from photocurable liquid polymers. The technique involves projecting a grayscale pattern of light and dark shapes onto a thin layer of liquid acrylate polymer placed in a plate or between 2 glass slides. A photoinitiator material mixed into the polymer initiates a crosslinking reaction when struck by light from an ordinary LED projector, causing a solid film to form...