Remove Atmosphere Remove Radiation Remove Technology
article thumbnail

New Federal Report on Research Into Sun-Dimming Technologies Delivers More Questions Than Answers

Inside Climate News

Some scientists worry that studying how to shade the Earth from some of the sun’s heat is a slippery slope toward deployment of ‘solar radiation management’ without fully understanding the risks.

article thumbnail

Carbon nanotubes help space-bound electronics resist radiation damage

Physics World

As space missions venture ever further afield, spacecraft will inevitably be exposed to greater amounts of cosmic radiation that can damage or even destroy their onboard electronics. Cosmic radiation is ionizing radiation made up of a mixture of heavy ions and cosmic rays (high-energy protons, electron and atomic nuclei).

Radiation 119
Insiders

Sign Up for our Newsletter

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

article thumbnail

Scanning the cosmos for signs of alien technology

Physics World

While neither idea was ever implemented, both were examples of a “technosignature” or a “technomarker” – a tell-tale indication of past or present technological activity, pointing out the existence of an advanced planetary civilization. Analogous to technosignatures, these are the signs of life on alien worlds, intelligent or otherwise.

article thumbnail

How Have Nuclear Weapons Evolved Since Oppenheimer and the Trinity Test?

Union of Concerned Scientists

After the war, the US conducted atmospheric nuclear tests in the Pacific Proving Grounds in the Marshall Islands and in Nevada and many more underground. But the nuclear tests, and particularly the atmospheric tests, were enormously destructive to the land and communities that were exposed to their explosive power and radiation.

article thumbnail

The Fuss about Methane

Legal Planet

OK, on to methane in the environment: The headline here – whether you’re talking about atmospheric concentrations, climate impacts, or emissions – is that there is a lot less methane than CO 2 , but it’s a more potent climate heater and it’s increasing faster. Atmospheric concentrations. Climate impact. W/m 2 from elevated CO 2.

article thumbnail

Liquid metal, ruby and sapphire could rain down on huge exoplanet

Physics World

That is the conclusion of astronomers who have developed a detailed 3D model of the atmosphere of WASP-121b, which is a “hot Jupiter” that is about 850 light-years from Earth. The team from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology observed WASP-121b using a spectroscopic camera aboard NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope.

article thumbnail

Glossary of Greenhouse Gas Terms

Greenbuilding Law

Albedo The amount of solar radiation reflected from an object or surface, often expressed as a percentage. Atmosphere The gaseous envelope surrounding the Earth. The dry atmosphere consists almost entirely of nitrogen (78.1% The dry atmosphere consists almost entirely of nitrogen (78.1%