Union2 compilation: Searching for dark energy with the whole world's supernova dataset

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The international Supernova Cosmology Project (SCP), based at the U.S. Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, has announced the Union2 compilation of hundreds of Type Ia supernovae, the largest collection ever of high-quality data from numerous surveys. Analysis of the new compilation significantly narrows the possible values that dark energy might take, but not enough to decide among fundamentally different theories of its nature.

NGC 6334 - VISTA captures Cat's Paw Nebula's hidden secrets

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Venus Express: Wind-surfing an alien atmosphere

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Venus Express has completed an 'aerodrag' campaign that used its solar wings as sails to catch faint wisps of the planet's atmosphere. The test used the orbiter as an exquisitely accurate sensor to measure atmospheric density barely 180 km above the hot planet.

During five aerodrag measurements last week, Venus Express' solar arrays and control systems were operated as one big flying sensor, with the solar arrays rotated at various angles to the direction of flight.

NASA's Terra satellite keeps eye on Eyjafjallajökull's ash plume

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NASA's Terra satellite captured an image of the ash plume from Iceland's Eyjafjallajökull volcano this morning, April 20, as it flew overhead from its vantage point in space.

The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) instrument on NASA's Terra satellite captured visible image of the ash plume (consisting of fine particles of pulverized rock) at 11:55 UTC (7:55 a.m. EDT). The plume appeared to be lighter in color than the previous few days, and it was drifting south and east over the Northern Atlantic Ocean.

NASA Satellites Capture Last 3 Days of Eyjafjallajokull's Ash Plume

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NASA's Aqua and Terra satellites fly around the world every day capturing images of weather, ice and land changes. Over the last three days these satellites have provided visible and infrared imagery of the ash plume from the Eyjafjallajökull-Fimmvörduháls volcano in Iceland.

Eyjafjallajökull is pronounced similar to "EYE-a-fyat-la-yu-goot," and it is still spewing ash into the atmosphere. Volcanic eruptions are important sources of gases, such as carbon dioxide and sulphur dioxide (SO2) and volcanic ash (aerosols) in the atmosphere.

Solved: Dilemma about the mass of infrared bright merging galaxies

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Scientists at the Naval Research Laboratory (NRL) have solved a long-standing dilemma about the mass of infrared bright merging galaxies. Because galaxies are the largest directly observable objects in the universe, learning more about their formation is key to understanding how the universe works.

Sports stars are no role models, say scientists

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The loutish and drunken behaviour of some of our sporting heroes – routinely reported in the media – has little or no effect on the drinking habits of young people, new research has found.

Researchers at the Universities of Manchester, UK, and Western Sydney, Australia, say their findings – published in Drug and Alcohol Review – rubbish the idea that sports stars act as role models for those who follow sport.

A gassy mystery: Researchers discover surprising exoplanetary atmosphere

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A Neptune-sized exoplanet orbiting a small star about 33 light years away could be a key stepping stone on the path to making sense of an Earth twin.

The finding is the latest advance in the quest to measure Earth-like planets that could possibly host signs of life, which researchers expect to find in the next few years.

Singapore scientists make breakthrough findings on early embryonic development

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Scientists at the Genome Institute of Singapore (GIS) have recently generated significant single cell expression data crucial for a detailed molecular understanding of mammalian development from fertilization to embryo implantation, a process known as the preimplantation period. The knowledge gained has a direct impact on clinical applications in the areas of regenerative medicine and assisted reproduction.

Advance made in thin-film solar cell technology

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CORVALLIS, Ore. – Researchers have made an important breakthrough in the use of continuous flow microreactors to produce thin film absorbers for solar cells – an innovative technology that could significantly reduce the cost of solar energy devices and reduce material waste.

The advance was just reported in Current Applied Physics, a professional journal, by engineers from Oregon State University and Yeungnam University in Korea.