DUBLIN--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug 16, 2023--

The Geminids meteor shower began in a “violent catastrophe”, scientists have found. Every winter, the world is delighted by the meteor shower, which brings some of the most intense display of ‘shooting stars’. But that spectacle has been rivalled by its mystery. The Geminids are unusual in that most meteor showers are created when a comet leaves behind a tail of ice and dust – but the Geminids come from an asteroid, which do not usually leave behind a tail. Asteroids are chunks of rock and metal flying around in space. The Geminids appear to originate with one called 3200 Phaethon, which for an unexplained reason is affected by the Sun and leaves behind a stream across the night sky. “What’s really weird is that we know that 3200 Phaethon is an asteroid, but as it flies by the Sun, it seems to have some kind of temperature-driven activity,” said Jamey Szalay, research scholar at the Princeton University space physics laboratory and co-author on the paper. “Most asteroids don’t do that.” Attempts to solve that mystery have struggled in part because the meteor shower has only been observed from Earth. Now, however, researchers using Nasa’s Parker Solar Probe have been better able to examine the the Geminids. They suggest that a violent, catastrophic event gave rise to the meteor shower. That could have been a high-speed collision with another object in space, for instance, or a gaseous explosion. Some researchers have previously suggested that 3200 Phaethon might really be a comet, and that it lost its snow to leave behind just a rocky core that looks like an asteroid. But the new study makes clear that the origins of the meteor shower are much more dramatic than that. In an attempt to understand the meteor shower, researchers simulated three possible formation scenarios and then compared them with models based on observations from the Parker Solar Probe. That included a less violent scenario, a more violent one, and another that was in line with a comet. When they compared those scenarios with the actual observations, they found that the violent one was the most similar. That suggests that it was the result a collision or similar dramatic event. Researchers still do not know for sure what happened. But the new study helps narrow down the possibilities – as well as shedding more light on such events in space. The findings are published in a new article, ‘Formation, Structure, and Detectability of the Geminids Meteoroid Stream’, published in Planetary Science. Read More Watch live as astronauts step out of ISS for latest spacewalk Major finding boosts hope for finding alien life in our solar system Astronomers find rare planet circling two stars like Star Wars’s Tatooine

TL;DR: As of September 19, you can get a grade-A refurbished Linksys Velop Whole Home

'Forza Motorsport' will not have a number of functions available in Feature Multiplayer mode upon its launch.

FREMONT, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug 22, 2023--

By Luc Cohen and Jody Godoy NEW YORK (Reuters) -FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried built the cryptocurrency exchange into a "pyramid

When Google Maps users navigated to the Rafah border crossing between Gaza and Egypt on Tuesday, they might have seen placenames that included, "F**k Israel," and "May god curse Israel's Jerusalem."

DALLAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug 26, 2023--

BRATISLAVA, Slovakia--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jul 17, 2023--

President Joe Biden's administration on Thursday announced plans to curb planet-warming emissions from the nation's power stations, as part of the United States'...

SEATTLE--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 9, 2023--

Republican US Rep Byron Donalds has repeatedly echoed other GOP officials in a specious crusade against “critical race theory” and “woke” indoctrination in American schools. But on 26 July, the Florida congressman called on Florida’s Department of Education to “correct” newly approved curriculum guidelines for middle school students to learn how enslaved people “developed skills” that could be “applied for personal benefit”. “The new African-American standards in FL are good, robust, [and] accurate,” he wrote on Twitter, now known as X. “That being said, the attempt to feature the personal benefits of slavery is wrong [and] needs to be adjusted. That obviously wasn’t the goal [and] I have faith that FLDOE will correct this.” In an interview with Florida’s WINK-TV, Mr Donalds, who is Black, suggested the standards need “some adjustments” and that Florida’s Board of Education could “bring refinement” to the curriculum standards for African American history lessons that the board unanimously approved earlier this month. The standards have been widely derided by educators, Democratic officials and the White House; Vice President Kamala Harris traveled to the state last week to condemn “propaganda” and the “extremist, so-called leaders” who support it, a not-so-thinly veiled strike against Governor Ron DeSantis and his 2024 campaign for the Republican nomination for president. After his comments, Mr Donalds felt the wrath of the DeSantis campaign and other state officials. “Did Kamala Harris write this tweet?” replied DeSantis aide Christina Pushaw. Florida’s Education Commissioner Manny Diaz Jr said that the state standards would not be changed “at the behest of a woke [White House], nor at the behest of a supposedly conservative congressman.” “Supposed conservatives in the federal government are pushing the same false narrative that originated from the [White House],” said DeSantis press secretary Jeremy Redfern. “Florida isn’t going to hide the truth for political convenience,” he added. “Maybe the congressman shouldn’t swing for the liberal media fences like [the vice president].” In March, Mr Donalds joined other prominent Florida Republicans to endorse Donald Trump for president. “The Congressman also calls it like he sees it, and if he thinks something is BS, he’ll tell you. That’s why we like him so much,” said Trump aide Jason Miller, who called attempts to “smear” Mr Donalds “a disgrace”. Mr Donalds responded to the inter-party backlash, stating that “anyone who can’t accurately interpret what I said is disingenuous and is desperately attempting to score political points.” Read More Why Florida’s new curriculum on slavery is becoming a political headache for Ron DeSantis DeSantis will headline barbecue billed as the largest annual gathering of South Carolina Republicans Watch: Diver rescues shark hooked to artificial reef Coast Guard calls off search for man who jumped off Carnival cruise ship