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Space junk cascade
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SWARMS of cheap CubeSats set to deliver internet access to every corner of the globe could cause a 50 per cent rise in catastrophic collisions with other satellites, unleashing hazardous space junk.
PIUS UTOMI EKPEI/AFP/GETTY
Space junk cascade
60 SECONDS
Chinese supply mission China is getting ready for its first mission to bring supplies and fuel to its Tiangong-2 space lab, a step toward a planned Chinese space station. The cargo spacecraft, Tianzhou-1, is expected to launch aboard the Long March 7 rocket between 20 and 24 April.
“Debris fragments could collide with other spacecraft, causing a chain reaction”
Croc-like dino
DEAN SEWELL/OCULI/AGENCE VU/CAMERA PRESS
There are currently only 1300 working satellites orbiting Earth. But from 2018, firms such as OneWeb, SpaceX and Samsung plan to beam internet services around the globe using thousands WHO vector plan of tiny satellites. MOSQUITOES beware. The World Hugh Lewis at the University Health Organization is preparing of Southampton, UK, and his colleagues used a supercomputer a global “vector control” plan to track the movements of diseaseto simulate 200 years of possible orbits for 300 different scenarios. spreading organisms worldwide. “The idea is to prevent The results, presented this outbreaks of disease instead of week at a European Space Agency simply reacting to new ones,” conference on space debris in Darmstadt, Germany, suggest that says Raman Velayudhan, head of vector control for neglected these megaconstellations boost tropical diseases at the WHO. the risk of a catastrophic The plan particularly focuses collision – in which a satellite is on the Aedes mosquitoes that can destroyed – by 50 per cent. Worse, the CubeSats lack motors “Zika was a real wake-up or any other ability to avoid collisions. Debris fragments could call – we need to control Aedes mosquitoes collide with other spacecraft, wherever they live” causing a chain reaction. Stricter rules are needed on when and how to de-orbit satellites carry the viruses that cause Zika, at the end of their lives, says Lewis. dengue, chikungunya and yellow fever. Aedes have massively expanded their range in recent years – before 1970, they were a threat in seven countries, but have now reached 140, says Velayudhan. Now the WHO wants to control their numbers. “Zika was a real wake-up call – we need to mobilise mosquito control measures wherever Aedes mosquitoes live,” says Velayudhan. This plan will build on the success of bed net and insecticide spraying programmes that have helped curb malaria. Since 2000, cases of this mosquito-borne – disease have halved.
–Bed nets helped curb malaria–
The fight will focus on dense urban areas, where Aedes mosquitoes tend to breed. The plan, which will come up for approval at the World Health Assembly in May, will call on all countries to step up surveillance and control efforts and to improve diagnostics so that they can identify any outbreaks during the early stages.
US may quit Paris SCOTT PRUITT, the head of the US Environmental Protection Agency, said on 14 April that the US should back out of its commitment to the Paris climate agreement, the landmark global plan to curb greenhouse gas emissions in an effort to limit global warming to below 2˚C. “It’s a bad deal for America,” Pruitt told cable news show Fox & Friends. “China and India had no obligations under the agreement until 2030.” In fact, China and India have already taken action to reach the goals they have set for 2030, which include cutting greenhouse gas emissions by a higher percentage than the US committed to. President Trump said on his campaign trail he would “cancel” the Paris climate agreement. The decision will be made before the next G7 summit in May, and possibly as early as this week.
A dinosaur relative that lived 245 million years ago looked more like a crocodile than its dino cousins. Bird-like dinosaurs and crocodiles come from two branches of the Archosauria group, but there are few specimens of early ancestors on the dinosaur side. Teleocrater rhadinus had four short legs, a long neck and tail, despite being on the bird side of the split (Nature, doi.org/b5s3).
Fossilised faeces Droppings layered among volcanic ash suggest that eruptions repeatedly devastated gentoo penguin populations on Deception Island in Antarctica. Scientists drilling cores on nearby Ardley island found penguin fossils from three distinct periods over the last 8500 years (Nature Communications, doi.org/b5s5).
Dust counter The LISA Pathfinder spacecraft may be able to measure minuscule grains of asteroid dust, NASA has said. Its tiny thrusters fire in response to disturbances from sunlight or cosmic dust. Data from these thrusts could characterise the dust particles, turning useless “noise” into useful data about interplanetary debris.
Facebook ad hoax Hoax adverts on Facebook featuring celebrities are leading users to scam websites, the Press Association has found. The paid-for ads appear in the “sponsored” section of the Facebook newsfeed and draw users in with doctored images or fake news claims. The company says it has now removed the ads.
22 April 2017 | NewScientist | 7
SWARMS of cheap CubeSats set to deliver internet access to every corner of the globe could cause a 50 per cent rise in catastrophic collisions with other satellites, unleashing hazardous space junk.
PIUS UTOMI EKPEI/AFP/GETTY
Space junk cascade
60 SECONDS
Chinese supply mission China is getting ready for its first mission to bring supplies and fuel to its Tiangong-2 space lab, a step toward a planned Chinese space station. The cargo spacecraft, Tianzhou-1, is expected to launch aboard the Long March 7 rocket between 20 and 24 April.
“Debris fragments could collide with other spacecraft, causing a chain reaction”
Croc-like dino
DEAN SEWELL/OCULI/AGENCE VU/CAMERA PRESS
There are currently only 1300 working satellites orbiting Earth. But from 2018, firms such as OneWeb, SpaceX and Samsung plan to beam internet services around the globe using thousands WHO vector plan of tiny satellites. MOSQUITOES beware. The World Hugh Lewis at the University Health Organization is preparing of Southampton, UK, and his colleagues used a supercomputer a global “vector control” plan to track the movements of diseaseto simulate 200 years of possible orbits for 300 different scenarios. spreading organisms worldwide. “The idea is to prevent The results, presented this outbreaks of disease instead of week at a European Space Agency simply reacting to new ones,” conference on space debris in Darmstadt, Germany, suggest that says Raman Velayudhan, head of vector control for neglected these megaconstellations boost tropical diseases at the WHO. the risk of a catastrophic The plan particularly focuses collision – in which a satellite is on the Aedes mosquitoes that can destroyed – by 50 per cent. Worse, the CubeSats lack motors “Zika was a real wake-up or any other ability to avoid collisions. Debris fragments could call – we need to control Aedes mosquitoes collide with other spacecraft, wherever they live” causing a chain reaction. Stricter rules are needed on when and how to de-orbit satellites carry the viruses that cause Zika, at the end of their lives, says Lewis. dengue, chikungunya and yellow fever. Aedes have massively expanded their range in recent years – before 1970, they were a threat in seven countries, but have now reached 140, says Velayudhan. Now the WHO wants to control their numbers. “Zika was a real wake-up call – we need to mobilise mosquito control measures wherever Aedes mosquitoes live,” says Velayudhan. This plan will build on the success of bed net and insecticide spraying programmes that have helped curb malaria. Since 2000, cases of this mosquito-borne – disease have halved.
–Bed nets helped curb malaria–
The fight will focus on dense urban areas, where Aedes mosquitoes tend to breed. The plan, which will come up for approval at the World Health Assembly in May, will call on all countries to step up surveillance and control efforts and to improve diagnostics so that they can identify any outbreaks during the early stages.
US may quit Paris SCOTT PRUITT, the head of the US Environmental Protection Agency, said on 14 April that the US should back out of its commitment to the Paris climate agreement, the landmark global plan to curb greenhouse gas emissions in an effort to limit global warming to below 2˚C. “It’s a bad deal for America,” Pruitt told cable news show Fox & Friends. “China and India had no obligations under the agreement until 2030.” In fact, China and India have already taken action to reach the goals they have set for 2030, which include cutting greenhouse gas emissions by a higher percentage than the US committed to. President Trump said on his campaign trail he would “cancel” the Paris climate agreement. The decision will be made before the next G7 summit in May, and possibly as early as this week.
A dinosaur relative that lived 245 million years ago looked more like a crocodile than its dino cousins. Bird-like dinosaurs and crocodiles come from two branches of the Archosauria group, but there are few specimens of early ancestors on the dinosaur side. Teleocrater rhadinus had four short legs, a long neck and tail, despite being on the bird side of the split (Nature, doi.org/b5s3).
Fossilised faeces Droppings layered among volcanic ash suggest that eruptions repeatedly devastated gentoo penguin populations on Deception Island in Antarctica. Scientists drilling cores on nearby Ardley island found penguin fossils from three distinct periods over the last 8500 years (Nature Communications, doi.org/b5s5).
Dust counter The LISA Pathfinder spacecraft may be able to measure minuscule grains of asteroid dust, NASA has said. Its tiny thrusters fire in response to disturbances from sunlight or cosmic dust. Data from these thrusts could characterise the dust particles, turning useless “noise” into useful data about interplanetary debris.
Facebook ad hoax Hoax adverts on Facebook featuring celebrities are leading users to scam websites, the Press Association has found. The paid-for ads appear in the “sponsored” section of the Facebook newsfeed and draw users in with doctored images or fake news claims. The company says it has now removed the ads.
22 April 2017 | NewScientist | 7