Science news

• Tim Peake has captured the enormity of the wildfire raging in Canada from space

  08-05-2016 23:44
  
  The astronaut has tweeted photos of smoke from the blaze, which is continuing to grow because of high temperatures, dry conditions and high winds.
  
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• Archeologists clash over King Tutankhamun tomb theory at Egyptian conference

  08-05-2016 23:05 via cbc.ca
  
  Archeologists have clashed at a conference in Egypt over a theory that secret burial chambers could be hidden behind the walls of King Tutankhamun's tomb.
  
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• Canadian officials hope to put "death grip" on fire

  08-05-2016 22:04
  
  FORT MCMURRAY, Alberta (AP) — Officials said Sunday they reached a turning point in fighting an enormous wildfire, hoping to get a "death grip'" on the blaze that devastated Canada's oil sands town of Fort McMurray amid cooler temperatures. Meanwhile, a massive evacuation of residents displaced by the blaze came to an end.
  
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• With Perlan 2 glider, Airbus claims mantle of space pioneer

  08-05-2016 21:50
  
  Airbus Group CEO Tom Enders pushes the Perlan 2 out of the hanger before he and chief pilot Jim Payne make a test flight on May 7, 2016 in Minden, Nevada
  
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• Crowds flock to car-free Champs Elysees

  08-05-2016 19:42 via bbc.co.uk
  Thousands of people have take advantage of a move by the authorities in Paris to close the famous Champs Elysees thoroughfare to traffic.
  
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• Massive Alberta wildfire expected to burn for months

  08-05-2016 19:08
  
  The images are ones of devastation — scorched homes, virtually whole neighborhoods burned to the ground. It rained a little Sunday morning in Fort McMurray, but Canadian officials say they expect to fight ...
  
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• Raging Canada fires now threaten second province, authorities say

  08-05-2016 19:07
  
  Wildfires that ravaged a vast area of western Canada's Alberta province now are threatening a neighboring region, authorities said Sunday, as the inferno -- which doubled in sized in the space of a day -- continued its advance.
  
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• No one can quite believe how hot it is in the UK

  08-05-2016 18:19
  
  And obviously Twitter loves talking about the weather – especially when it’s THIS nice.
  
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• The Mercury Transit: How to See the Rare Event Online on Monday

  08-05-2016 17:58
  
  Tomorrow, (May 9) Mercury will pass directly across the face of the sun — an event that won't happen again until 2019. As seen from Earth, Mercury will begin inching its way across the face of the sun at about 7:12 a.m. EDT (1112 GMT) Monday morning, and ending at about 2:40 p.m. EDT (1840 GMT). The event — which astronomers call a transit of Mercury — will be visible across all of North America, but it will begin before sunrise for those in the west.
  
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• Tributes paid to Attenborough at 90

  08-05-2016 17:24 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Tributes are paid to renowned naturalist and broadcaster Sir David Attenborough as he turns 90.
  
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• Archeologists clash in Egypt over King Tut tomb theory

  08-05-2016 15:48
  CAIRO (AP) — Archeologists have clashed at a conference in Egypt over a theory that secret chambers could be hidden behind the walls of King Tutankhamun's tomb.
  
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• The Mercury Transit of the Sun on Monday is a Science Smorgasbord

  08-05-2016 15:42
  
  Mercury's rare passage across the face of the sun on Monday, May 9, should be an exciting event for skywatchers and scientists alike. The planet's pass across Earth's nearest star may provide information about its thin atmosphere, assist in the hunt for worlds around other stars, and help NASA hone some of its instruments. As seen from Earth, Mercury appears to cross the disk of the sun — an event known as a transit — only about 13 times per century.
  
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• Mercury Transit: The History and Science of This Rare Celestial Event

  08-05-2016 15:42
  
  The event, which astronomers call a transit of Mercury, will occur only 14 times during the 21st century. As seen from Earth, only transits of Mercury and Venus are possible, because these are the only planets that lie between Earth and the sun. Transits of Mercury and Venus hold an interesting place in astronomical history, mostly because of the slightly different times when the events occur as seen from different locations on the surface of the Earth.
  
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• 'Boaty McBoatface' Vessel Named for David Attenborough

  08-05-2016 14:10
  
  A research vessel meant to ply the polar seas has been graced with the name Sir David Attenborough, just days before the famed naturalist turns 90, U.K. Science Minister Jo Johnson announced today (May 6). In March, the U.K.'s Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) put out a call for the public to submit and vote for names for their forthcoming polar research vessel, which received funding of 200 million British pounds (about $289 million) from the U.K. Department for Business, Innovation a
  
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• When measuring lead in water, check the temperature

  08-05-2016 13:00
  
  Lead contamination in drinking water can be much higher during summer than winter, new research suggests.
  
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• YouTube update to automated copyright checking cheers independent video creators

  08-05-2016 11:00 via cbc.ca
  
  YouTube's automated "Content ID" system is meant to catch potential copyright violations, but it doesn't always work as advertised. Now, YouTube has plans to update Content ID in a way that could improve revenue flow to video creators when their work is stuck in a copyright dispute.
  
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• YouTube to update 'Content ID,' bringing hope to professional YouTubers

  08-05-2016 11:00 via cbc.ca
  
  YouTube's automated "Content ID" system is meant to catch potential copyright violations, but it doesn't always work as advertised. Now, YouTube has plans to update Content ID in a way that could improve revenue flow to video creators when their work is stuck in a copyright dispute.
  
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• Mercury transit a rare celestial event, but don't look directly at it: Bob McDonald

  08-05-2016 11:00 via cbc.ca
  
  The planet Mercury will pass in front of the sun on Monday in a rare event called a transit. It will be visible across Canada during the day, but don’t look directly at the sun with your eyes to see it, Bob McDonald writes.
  
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• Thirty-four missing in China landslide - Xinhua

  08-05-2016 09:29
  BEIJING (Reuters) - Thirty-four people are missing after a landslide triggered by heavy rain hit a construction site in China's southeastern Fujian province on Sunday, the official Xinhua news agency reported. About 100,000 cubic metres of mud and rocks flowed downhill in Taining county early on Sunday, burying a hydroelectric power station that was under construction there, Xinhua said. Seven people were injured, it said, and President Xi Jinping had demanded county officials to step up rescue
  
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• Large-scale study of Super Storm Sandy utility damage shows 'small' failures, big impact

  08-05-2016 06:00
  
  (Georgia Institute of Technology) A new study of the utility system impact of Super Storm Sandy shows the extent of the challenge faced by the upstate New York distribution grid and suggests what might be done to make the system more resilient against future storms.
  
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• Electric vehicle and roadway conference to showcase wireless charging

  08-05-2016 06:00
  
  (Utah State University) Organizers will welcome automotive industry leaders and academic experts from around the world for the two-day conference at Utah State University in Logan, Utah, May 16-17. The event will feature in-motion electric vehicle charging and panel and presentation sessions with industry leaders and experts discussing wireless power and related innovative charging systems for electric vehicles.
  
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• Digital media may be changing how you think

  08-05-2016 06:00
  
  (Dartmouth College) Tablet and laptop users beware. Using digital platforms such as tablets and laptops for reading may make you more inclined to focus on concrete details rather than interpreting information more abstractly, according to a new study published in the proceedings of ACM CHI '16, the ACM Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, May 7-12, 2016. The findings serve as another wake-up call to how digital media may be affecting our likelihood of using abstract thought.
  
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• Airbus sets sights on the stratosphere with glider flight

  08-05-2016 02:49
  
  Airbus completed a test flight of a glider set to eventually travel to the edge of space, in a pioneering step into the stratosphere.
  
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• Tourists asked to fight wildlife trade

  08-05-2016 01:33 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Conservationists have launched a global campaign asking the public to use a smartphone app to help tackle the illegal trade in wildlife.
  
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• Researchers in 4 states unite for rare wolverine study

  08-05-2016 01:33
  GREAT FALLS, Mont. (AP) — Researchers are working on a plan to study wolverines in four Rocky Mountain states to see if the animals that look like small bears with big claws can be reintroduced to some regions to boost their numbers and see how they might travel between mountain ranges.
  
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• Starfish babies return in droves following massive die-off

  08-05-2016 00:43
  
  EUREKA, Calif. (AP) — Droves of baby starfish are returning to Oregon and Northern California's shores after a wasting disease decimated whole populations of the creatures over the past two years along the West Coast.
  
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