Webb observes exoplanet that may have an exotic helium and carbon atmosphere
#HackerNews #exoplanet #discovery #helium #atmosphere #carbon #science #news #NASA #Webb #telescope
Meljoann
boosted
All the essential ingredients to kick-start #life as we know it have now been found in samples from the #asteroid #Bennu.
Asteroids could have delivered all the prerequisites for life to Earth – and perhaps elsewhere.
In 2020, OSIRIS-REx mission extracted samples from Bennu, an asteroid that was orbiting the #sun between Mars and Jupiter, and returned the samples to Earth in 2023.
Since then, small amounts of the 121 grams collected have been sent out to labs across the globe for analysis, so specialists in detecting each type of biological compound could set to work.
The first studies revealed the presence of #water, #carbon and several organic molecules. Next came the detection of amino acids, formaldehyde and all five of the nucleobases found in #RNA and #DNA, as well as phosphates.
However, this isn’t quite enough to put together the molecules that carry genetic information.
Now, scientists have revealed the presence of #ribose, as well as other sugars, including lyxose, xylose, arabinose, glucose and galactose.
#astrobiology
https://www.newscientist.com/article/2506650-asteroid-bennu-carries-all-the-ingredients-for-life-as-we-know-it/
Paper by Furukawa et al. (2025): https://www.nature.com/articles/s41561-025-01838-6
TBM, a maker of carbon-capture technology and recycled materials, has started preparatory work for an initial public offering on the Tokyo Stock Exchange’s Growth Market. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/business/2025/12/11/companies/carbon-capture-startup-ipo/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #business #companies #tbm #tse #ipo #recycling #carbon #startups
Chewie
boosted
Coral reefs have stabilized Earth's carbon cycle for the past 250 million years, research reveals https://phys.org/news/2025-12-coral-reefs-stabilized-earth-carbon.html
All the essential ingredients to kick-start #life as we know it have now been found in samples from the #asteroid #Bennu.
Asteroids could have delivered all the prerequisites for life to Earth – and perhaps elsewhere.
In 2020, OSIRIS-REx mission extracted samples from Bennu, an asteroid that was orbiting the #sun between Mars and Jupiter, and returned the samples to Earth in 2023.
Since then, small amounts of the 121 grams collected have been sent out to labs across the globe for analysis, so specialists in detecting each type of biological compound could set to work.
The first studies revealed the presence of #water, #carbon and several organic molecules. Next came the detection of amino acids, formaldehyde and all five of the nucleobases found in #RNA and #DNA, as well as phosphates.
However, this isn’t quite enough to put together the molecules that carry genetic information.
Now, scientists have revealed the presence of #ribose, as well as other sugars, including lyxose, xylose, arabinose, glucose and galactose.
#astrobiology
https://www.newscientist.com/article/2506650-asteroid-bennu-carries-all-the-ingredients-for-life-as-we-know-it/
Paper by Furukawa et al. (2025): https://www.nature.com/articles/s41561-025-01838-6
Coral reefs have stabilized Earth's carbon cycle for the past 250 million years, research reveals https://phys.org/news/2025-12-coral-reefs-stabilized-earth-carbon.html
Tommi 🤯 → 39C3
boosted
Selected through an international call for science communicators, I’m working alongside an international team of scientists from #geology and #microbiology. Operated by JAMSTEC/MARE3, the Chikyu is coring sediment from more than 7,600 m water depth in the hadal zone. These cores help uncover megathrust earthquake and tsunami histories, and offer new insights into deep-sea trenches, the #carbon cycle, and #climate.
2/3
Nighttime drill floor — Night view of the Chikyu drill floor with towering blue-and-yellow structures and machinery lit by work lights.
Helideck and derrick — The Chikyu’s helideck and towering drilling derrick under a cloudy sky.
🧵 “Exciting” isn’t enough to describe what I currently have the privilege to take part in. From now until Dec 12, I’m joining "Expedition 503 – Hadal Trench Tsunamigenic Slip History: Buried in Trench" of the IODP³. We’re in the Japan Trench on board the deep-sea scientific drilling vessel D/V Chikyu, one of the most advanced research vessels in the world.
1/3
#climate #earthquake #tsunami #scicomm #podcast
Chikyu bow view — The bow of the D/V Chikyu with its Japanese name visible, seen from the dock.
Selfie in safety gear — Melanie wearing a JAMSTEC hard hat, safety goggles, and an orange coverall takes a selfie among yellow drilling machinery on the Chikyu.
Selected through an international call for science communicators, I’m working alongside an international team of scientists from #geology and #microbiology. Operated by JAMSTEC/MARE3, the Chikyu is coring sediment from more than 7,600 m water depth in the hadal zone. These cores help uncover megathrust earthquake and tsunami histories, and offer new insights into deep-sea trenches, the #carbon cycle, and #climate.
2/3
Nighttime drill floor — Night view of the Chikyu drill floor with towering blue-and-yellow structures and machinery lit by work lights.
Helideck and derrick — The Chikyu’s helideck and towering drilling derrick under a cloudy sky.
Liberia's "carbon credit" deal with a little-known Dubai company has stalled after over two years, with other accords with the company across Africa and elsewhere having also gone nowhere. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/environment/2025/11/26/climate-change/africa-carbon-deals/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #environment #climatechange #africa #carbon #climatechange #environment #liberia #unitedarabemirates
Sam Beebe
and 5 others
boosted
If this result holds up, it’s potentially big: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41558-025-02481-0
In short, it implies that #LightPollution is decreasing the efficiency with which #plants remove carbon from the atmosphere. It concludes that artificial light at night increases “ #ecosystem respiration” (plants, microbes, and animals releasing carbon dioxide through their activity and growth), but there is no corresponding increase in #photosynthesis.
The result is that plants exposed to ALAN emit more #carbon than they absorb from the #atmosphere. The authors write: “Our findings show that ALAN disrupts the fundamental energetic constraints on ecosystem metabolism, warranting the inclusion of light pollution in global change and carbon–climate feedback assessments.”
🌊🌿 #Marine scientists and Chumash tribal leaders are successfully restoring #California's #kelp #forests through collaborative efforts that combine traditional knowledge with modern techniques.
Researchers have achieved significant successes including an 80-acre restoration near #LosAngeles while developing kelp #farming for #carbon capture and agricultural biofertilizers that could help California reach #netzero #emissions.
Companies and groups backing carbon-capture technology, which critics slam as an excuse to keep burning fossil fuels, have deployed more than 500 participants to the COP30 climate talks, an NGO list has shown. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/environment/2025/11/17/climate-change/carbon-capture-cop30-ngo/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #environment #climatechange #carbon #cop30 #emissions #climatechange #environment #brazil
If this result holds up, it’s potentially big: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41558-025-02481-0
In short, it implies that #LightPollution is decreasing the efficiency with which #plants remove carbon from the atmosphere. It concludes that artificial light at night increases “ #ecosystem respiration” (plants, microbes, and animals releasing carbon dioxide through their activity and growth), but there is no corresponding increase in #photosynthesis.
The result is that plants exposed to ALAN emit more #carbon than they absorb from the #atmosphere. The authors write: “Our findings show that ALAN disrupts the fundamental energetic constraints on ecosystem metabolism, warranting the inclusion of light pollution in global change and carbon–climate feedback assessments.”
If this result holds up, it’s potentially big: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41558-025-02481-0
In short, it implies that #LightPollution is decreasing the efficiency with which #plants remove carbon from the atmosphere. It concludes that artificial light at night increases “ #ecosystem respiration” (plants, microbes, and animals releasing carbon dioxide through their activity and growth), but there is no corresponding increase in #photosynthesis.
The result is that plants exposed to ALAN emit more #carbon than they absorb from the #atmosphere. The authors write: “Our findings show that ALAN disrupts the fundamental energetic constraints on ecosystem metabolism, warranting the inclusion of light pollution in global change and carbon–climate feedback assessments.”
Alex Akselrod
boosted
🦠 Microbes may remove more than half of groundwater methane, curbing global emissions
https://phys.org/news/2025-10-microbes-groundwater-methane-curbing-global.html
#methane #carbon #climatechange #groundwater #microbes #microbiome #biology #ecology
