W. Mtangi et al., Control of Electrons’ Spin Eliminates Hydrogen Peroxide Formation During Water Splitting, Journal of the American Chemical Society (30 January 2017). DOI: 10.1021/jacs.6b12971

A big obstacle in the production of hydrogen through water splitting is that H2O2 is also formed, which affects the efficiency stability of the reaction and the stability of the production. Researchers have now succeeded in controlling the spin of electrons in the reaction and thereby almost fully suppress the production of hydrogen peroxide in the electrochemical cell.

Led by professors Bert Meijer (Eindhoven University of Technology) and Ron Naaman (Weizmann Institute), the researchers are the first to have specifically investigated the role of the spin – the internal magnetic moment – of electron...

Something slammed into the surface of Mars 1 million years ago, hitting a volcano or lava plain. This impact ejected rocks into space. Fragments of these rocks crossed Earth’s orbit and fell as meteorites. Credit: Image courtesy of University of Houston

Analysis of a Martian meteorite found in Africa in 2012 has uncovered evidence of at least 2 billion years of volcanic activity on Mars. This confirms that some of the longest-lived volcanoes in the solar system may be found on the Red Planet. Shield volcanoes and lava plains formed from lava flowing over long distances, similar to the formation of the Hawaiian Islands. The largest Martian volcano, Olympus Mons, is nearly 17 miles high. That’s almost triple the height of Earth’s tallest volcano, Mauna Kea, at 6.25 miles...

This spectacular image from the VLT Survey Telescope shows the Cat’s Paw Nebula (NGC 6334, upper right) and the Lobster Nebula (NGC 6357, lower left). These dramatic objects are regions of active star formation where the hot young stars are causing the surrounding hydrogen gas to glow red. The very rich field of view also includes dark clouds of dust. With around two billion pixels this is one of the largest images ever released by ESO. Credit: ESO

NGC6334 is 5500 light-years away from Earth, while NGC6357 is more remote, at 8000 light-years. Both are in the constellation of Scorpius (The Scorpion), near the tip of its stinging tail...

Researchers have developed a new technology that could triple the resolution density of displays. The new technology could allow field-sequential color displays where a single subpixel can be quickly switched among red, green or blue. By eliminating the color filters traditionally used to spatially divide one pixel into red, green or blue subpixels, field-sequential color displays allow the three subpixels to become three independent pixels and thus triples the resolution density. Credit: Yuge Huang and Ruidong Zhu, CREOL, The College of Optics and Photonics, University of Central Florida

An international team of researchers has developed a new blue-phase liquid crystal that could enable televisions, computer screens and other displays that pack more pixels into the same space while also r...