Science news this week: Artemis II splashes down, the world’s fattest parrot bounces back, and the Shroud of Turin is contaminated
This week’s science news was hit by updates from the Artemis II Missionwhich saw four astronauts swinging around the far side of the Moon before amassing safely in the Pacific Ocean.
This exciting final stage of the mission, which Live Science covered with minute-by-minute live updateswas a key test of the Orion capsule’s heat shield. Despite some concernsthe protective layer withstood scorching heat, and the crew members’ return at just under 25,000 mph made them contenders for the title of fastest humans in history.
The biggest parrot in the world bounces
While people were gliding around the moon and back, Live Science also devoted time to New Zealand’s portly, flightless parrots coming back from the brink of extinction with a record breeding season.
The Kakapo (Strigops habroptilus) The species almost disappeared in the 1990s due to hunting, habitat destruction and the introduction of new predators. But thanks to a major recovery program, the species has just celebrated its 105th egg hatching this season, the largest number in 30 years.
Not all of these chicks will survive their reintroduction, and their time in the wild will prove difficult, but it’s still news that should help the world’s heaviest parrot keep its beak up.
Discover more news about animals and planet Earth
—Fossil site in China reveals multitude of complex creatures that lived before the Cambrian Explosion, including a ‘dune-like’ sandworm
—“On every continent where man is present, the failure of water is manifest”: Iranian scientist in exile Kaveh Madani speaks of our desperate need to preserve our most precious resource
—California declared war on smog in the 1970s. The repercussions were enormous.
The little mysteries of life
Our gut bacteria affect more than just digestion; they are also linked to our mood, our weight, our sleep, our immune system and even our smell. But can gut microbes also play a role in the foods we crave?
—If you liked this, sign up for our newsletter Life’s Little Mysteries
The war in Iran is a climate catastrophe
The Shroud of Turin, which some claim is the burial cloth of Jesus, has been the subject of DNA analysis with intriguing results, we recently learned.
First, the shroud contains DNA from several people and many other species, including carrots, melons, and red coral. Some of this DNA suggests the shroud may have come from India, but other experts disagree.
Overall, scientific evidence still supports arguments that the Shroud of Turin is a medieval forgery, researchers tell us.
Discover more news on archeology
—DNA reveals ancestry of man buried in Stone Age monument in Spain, but his religion remains a mystery
—“They could spend 4 or 5 hours a day underwater”: how humans adapted to the most difficult environments
—16th-century silver coin discovered near Strait of Magellan marks location of doomed Spanish colony
Also in science news this week
—We went to Finland to hear about the new ‘sand battery’ that will turn stored renewable energy into electricity for the power grid.
—Western states are facing higher than normal wildfire threats this summer. New maps reveal which areas are most at risk.
—“No one knows what it is”: Researchers discover a new type of cells visible only during pregnancy
—AI ‘mirages’ mean tools used to analyze medical scans could fabricate their results
Spotlight on science
Scientists have been proclaiming for some time that a cure for type 1 diabetes is imminent, but with working cures on the horizon, they might finally be right.
Someone who knows Type 1 diabetes well is Live Science’s premium reporting editor. Tia Ghosewhose sixth grade student has the disease. In this Science Spotlight, she wrote a take a deep dive into cutting-edge therapies aimed at making daily disease management a thing of the past.
Something for the weekend
If you’re looking for something a little longer to read over the weekend, here are some of the best interviews, crosswords and opinion pieces published this week.
—Live Science Crossword #38: The largest non-polar desert in the world – 10 in diameter [Crossword]
—I have witnessed almost 100 rocket launches. Artemis II was unlike anything I had ever experienced. [Opinion]
Scientific news in pictures
NASA released its first batch of photos taken by the Artemis II astronauts during their historic lunar flyby this week, and they are absolutely stunning.
There are so many amazing images from the mission to choose from, but the most notable remains the enlarged photo from “Earthset,” which shows our planet disappearing behind the pockmarked face of the moon, an advancing shadow demarcating the night side where billions of humans slept.
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