livescience--2020-09-23--'Pi planet' alien world takes 3.14 days to orbit its star

A newfound Earth-size drives home the close ties between math and astronomy .
Scientists have found an alien world that orbits its host star every 3.14 Earth days , a close approximation of the , the ratio between a circle 's circumference and its diameter .
( Pi is an irrational number ; the digits to the right of its decimal point go on forever . )
The exoplanet , called K2-315b , orbits a dwarf star that lies 186 light-years from Earth , a new study reports .
K2-315b was spotted in data gathered in 2017 , during the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and was confirmed using 2020 observations by a network of ground-based telescopes called SPECULOOS ( a creative acronym for `` Search for Habitable Planets Eclipsing Utra-cool Stars '' ) .
`` The planet moves like clockwork , '' study lead author Prajwal Niraula , a graduate student in the Department of Earth , Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology ( MIT ) in Cambridge , .
`` Everyone needs a bit of fun these days , '' co-author Julien de Wit , an assistant professor in the same department @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , which was released by the university .
That fun extends to the title of , which was published online Monday ( Sept. 21 ) in the The Astronomical Journal : `` Pi Earth : a 3.14-day Earth-sized Planet from K2 's Kitchen Served Warm by the SPECULOOS Team . ''
As its name suggests , K2-315b is the 315th alien world found using K2 data — meaning the discovery team was just one exoplanet away from even more serendipitous symmetry .
Niraula and his colleagues estimate that K2-315b is about 95 % @ @ @ @ @ @ @ suggests the alien planet is rocky , but this is n't certain at the moment because K2-315b 's mass remains unknown .
K2-315b 's host star is just one-fifth the size of our sun and not nearly as hot .
But the newfound exoplanet 's extreme orbital proximity still makes its surface quite toasty — about 350 degrees Fahrenheit ( 177 degrees Celsius ) , the research team estimated .
`` This would be too hot to be habitable in the common understanding of the phrase , '' Niraula said in the statement @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the MIT statement notes , perfect `` for baking actual pie . ''
( There 's another baking tie-in with this study , it should be noted : Speculoos are also a type of spiced shortbread cookie popular in Belgium and other parts of Europe . )
Kepler hunted for alien planets using the `` transit method , '' noting the tiny brightness dips they caused when crossing their host stars ' faces from the spacecraft 's perspective .
This same strategy is employed by Kepler 's successor , NASA 's .
NASA @ @ @ @ @ @ @ work .
Astronomers have discovered about 4,300 confirmed exoplanets to date , and Kepler , via its primary and K2 missions , is responsible for about two-thirds of those finds .
As the new study shows , the Kepler dataset keeps on giving , even though the spacecraft itself has been dead for nearly two years .
Mike Wall is the author of `` Out There '' ( Grand Central Publishing , 2018 ; illustrated by Karl Tate ) , a book about the search for alien life .
Follow him on Twitter @ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Spacedotcom or Facebook .

A newfound Earth-size exoplanet drives home the close ties between math and astronomy.
Scientists have found an alien world that orbits its host star every 3.14 Earth days, a close approximation of the famous mathematical constant pi , the ratio between a circle's circumference and its diameter. (Pi is an irrational number; the digits to the right of its decimal point go on forever.)
The exoplanet, called K2-315b, orbits a dwarf star that lies 186 light-years from Earth, a new study reports. K2-315b was spotted in data gathered in 2017, during the extended K2 mission of NASA's Kepler space telescope , and was confirmed using 2020 observations by a network of ground-based telescopes called SPECULOOS (a creative acronym for "Search for Habitable Planets Eclipsing Utra-cool Stars").
Related: Kepler's 7 greatest exoplanet discoveries
This Earth-size planet (shown in this artistic illustration) zips around its star every 3.14 days. (Image credit: NASA Ames/JPL-Caltech/T. Pyle, Christine Daniloff, MIT)
"The planet moves like clockwork," study lead author Prajwal Niraula, a graduate student in the Department of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in Cambridge, said in a statement .
"Everyone needs a bit of fun these days," co-author Julien de Wit, an assistant professor in the same department at MIT, added in the statement, which was released by the university.
That fun extends to the title of the new paper , which was published online Monday(Sept. 21) in the The Astronomical Journal: "Pi Earth: a 3.14-day Earth-sized Planet from K2's Kitchen Served Warm by the SPECULOOS Team."
As its name suggests, K2-315b is the 315th alien world found using K2 data — meaning the discovery team was just one exoplanet away from even more serendipitous symmetry.
Niraula and his colleagues estimate that K2-315b is about 95% as wide as Earth. This size suggests the alien planet is rocky, but this isn't certain at the moment because K2-315b's mass remains unknown.
K2-315b's host star is just one-fifth the size of our sun and not nearly as hot. But the newfound exoplanet's extreme orbital proximity still makes its surface quite toasty — about 350 degrees Fahrenheit (177 degrees Celsius), the research team estimated.
"This would be too hot to be habitable in the common understanding of the phrase," Niraula said in the statement.
But this temperature is, as the MIT statement notes, perfect "for baking actual pie." (There's another baking tie-in with this study, it should be noted: Speculoos are also a type of spiced shortbread cookie popular in Belgium and other parts of Europe.)
Kepler hunted for alien planets using the "transit method," noting the tiny brightness dips they caused when crossing their host stars' faces from the spacecraft's perspective. This same strategy is employed by Kepler's successor, NASA's Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite .
NASA decommissioned Kepler in November 2018 after 5 1/2 years of groundbreaking work. Astronomers have discovered about 4,300 confirmed exoplanets to date, and Kepler, via its primary and K2 missions, is responsible for about two-thirds of those finds. As the new study shows, the Kepler dataset keeps on giving, even though the spacecraft itself has been dead for nearly two years.
Mike Wall is the author of "Out There" (Grand Central Publishing, 2018; illustrated by Karl Tate), a book about the search for alien life. Follow him on Twitter @michaeldwall. Follow us on Twitter @Spacedotcom or Facebook.


livescience--2020-09-23--Prehistoric desert footprints are earliest evidence for humans on Arabian Peninsula

Humanity originated on the African continent at least years ago .
We know from fossil evidence in and the ( modern-day Israel ) that some early members of our species expanded beyond Africa around 200,000 years ago , and again between 120,000 to 90,000 years ago .
They likely travelled through the Sinai peninsula , which formed the only land bridge connecting the continent of Africa to the rest of the world , before moving north into a landscape with a Mediterranean climate .
But it was not known at what point humans turned south after crossing the Sinai peninsula @ @ @ @ @ @ @ It is also often assumed that they may have taken a coastal route , avoiding the currently harsh desert interior .
Previous show this was not the case , with humans moving into the heart of Arabia at least 85,000 years ago .
Now , pushes this date back even further .
Colleagues and I discovered human and other animal footprints embedded on an ancient lake surface in the Nefud Desert in Saudi Arabia that are around 120,000 years old .
These findings represent the earliest evidence for Homo sapiens on the Arabian @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Arabia for understanding human prehistory .
The Nefud Desert in modern-day Saudi Arabia lies around 500km to the southeast of the Sinai Peninsula .
Today , the Arabian deserts are some of the most inhospitable environments in the world .
They would form an impassable barrier for prehistoric humans or large mammals .
Imagine standing at the foot of a hyper-arid desert equipped with stone tools and not much else .
Could you get across ?
Probably not .
Scientific analysis shows that for most of their recent history , they were climatically @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
But there is also to show that at certain times in the past , the deserts transformed into savannah-like grasslands littered with freshwater resources .
These `` green '' phases were likely short , probably lasting no more than a few millennia .
Nonetheless , they provided windows of opportunity for humans and other animals to move into a new green landscape .
We know from fossil lake sediments that the Nefud Desert was one of those that periodically transformed into a more attractive landscape in the past , and the new @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of one such window .
We were able to date the footprints by using a technique called luminescence dating to a period of time 102-132,000 years ago .
Based on wider regional evidence for increased rainfall , we suggest they date to a period roughly 120,000 years ago , called the last interglacial .
We know that around this time that spread across the Sahara Desert , with Middle Palaeolithic archaeology scattered along them .
Other for increased rainfall at this time comes from fossil stalagmites found in caves in desert regions in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Nefud in the .
These features only grow in conditions where rainfall is greater than 300mm per year ; substantially more than the amount ( < 90mm per year ) they receive today .
While it is difficult to know for sure which species of human left these prints , we think they were most likely left by our own , Homo sapiens .
This is based on the fact that Homo sapiens were present in the Levant , 700km to the north of the Nefud Desert , at a similar time .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ this period and did not move back into the region until thousands of years later , when cooler conditions prevailed .
Estimates of the humans mass and statue based on the footprints are also more consistent with our species than Neanderthals .
In addition to human footprints , elephant , horse and camel prints were also found .
These footprints , studied in detail by Mathew Stewart at the Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology , provide a wealth of new information regarding prehistoric interactions between humans , animals and the environment .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ evidence as they provide precise snapshots in time that typically represent a few hours or days .
This is a resolution we do not get from other records .
They also allow us to understand the behaviour of their makers , which is something we can not get from fossils .
This allows us to understand the relationship between humans and other large mammals at a geologically precise moment in time .
Environmental analysis on the lake sediments show that the lake contained fresh `` drinkable '' water , while the variety of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ camels and horses were using this resource at a similar time .
Human and large-mammal movements would have been closely tied to fresh water and the pattern of footprints show both foraged on the lake bed when it was temporarily exposed .
Humans may have been drawn to the area as they , who would potentially serve as prey .
Surveys and analysis of fossils recovered from the site also shows that there are no stone tools or butchery of fossils .
This indicates that the footprint-makers only very briefly visited the lake @ @ @ @ @ @ @ their journey .
It is not clear what happened to the people who left the footprints , but evidence suggests that they , along with the other early Homo sapiens explorers , either died out or retreated to more favourable environments as aridity returned to the desert .
This article was originally published at The Conversation .
The publication contributed the article to Live Science 's Expert Voices : Op-Ed & Insights .

Humanity originated on the African continent at least 300,000 years ago. We know from fossil evidence in southern Greece and the Levant (modern-day Israel) that some early members of our species expanded beyond Africa around 200,000 years ago, and again between 120,000 to 90,000 years ago. They likely travelled through the Sinai peninsula, which formed the only land bridge connecting the continent of Africa to the rest of the world, before moving north into a landscape with a Mediterranean climate.
But it was not known at what point humans turned south after crossing the Sinai peninsula, reaching modern day Saudi Arabia. It is also often assumed that they may have taken a coastal route, avoiding the currently harsh desert interior. Previous fossil finds show this was not the case, with humans moving into the heart of Arabia at least 85,000 years ago. Now, new research pushes this date back even further.
Colleagues and I discovered human and other animal footprints embedded on an ancient lake surface in the Nefud Desert in Saudi Arabia that are around 120,000 years old. These findings represent the earliest evidence for Homo sapiens on the Arabian Peninsula, and demonstrates the importance of Arabia for understanding human prehistory.
The Nefud Desert in modern-day Saudi Arabia lies around 500km to the southeast of the Sinai Peninsula. Today, the Arabian deserts are some of the most inhospitable environments in the world. They would form an impassable barrier for prehistoric humans or large mammals. Imagine standing at the foot of a hyper-arid desert equipped with stone tools and not much else. Could you get across? Probably not.
Scientific analysis shows that for most of their recent history, they were climatically similar to today: hyper-arid and impassable. But there is also evidence to show that at certain times in the past, the deserts transformed into savannah-like grasslands littered with freshwater resources. These "green" phases were likely short, probably lasting no more than a few millennia. Nonetheless, they provided windows of opportunity for humans and other animals to move into a new green landscape.
We know from fossil lake sediments that the Nefud Desert was one of those that periodically transformed into a more attractive landscape in the past, and the new footprints prove that early humans took advantage of one such window.
This is the first human footprint discovered at Alathar, and its corresponding digital elevation model. (Image credit: Stewart et al., 2020)
We were able to date the footprints by using a technique called luminescence dating to a period of time 102-132,000 years ago. Based on wider regional evidence for increased rainfall, we suggest they date to a period roughly 120,000 years ago, called the last interglacial.
We know that around this time that vast river systems spread across the Sahara Desert, with Middle Palaeolithic archaeology scattered along them. Other evidence for increased rainfall at this time comes from fossil stalagmites found in caves in desert regions in Arabia and ~500 km north of the Nefud in the Negev Desert . These features only grow in conditions where rainfall is greater than 300mm per year; substantially more than the amount (<90mm per year) they receive today.
While it is difficult to know for sure which species of human left these prints, we think they were most likely left by our own, Homo sapiens. This is based on the fact that Homo sapiens were present in the Levant, 700km to the north of the Nefud Desert, at a similar time. Neanderthals were absent from the Levant in this period and did not move back into the region until thousands of years later, when cooler conditions prevailed. Estimates of the humans mass and statue based on the footprints are also more consistent with our species than Neanderthals.
High-res history
Elephant (left) and camel (right) trackways were also found at the site. (Image credit: Stewart et al., 2020)
In addition to human footprints, elephant, horse and camel prints were also found. These footprints, studied in detail by Mathew Stewart at the Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology, provide a wealth of new information regarding prehistoric interactions between humans, animals and the environment.
Footprints are a unique form of fossil evidence as they provide precise snapshots in time that typically represent a few hours or days. This is a resolution we do not get from other records. They also allow us to understand the behaviour of their makers, which is something we cannot get from fossils.
This allows us to understand the relationship between humans and other large mammals at a geologically precise moment in time.
Environmental analysis on the lake sediments show that the lake contained fresh "drinkable" water, while the variety of footprints shows that humans, elephants, camels and horses were using this resource at a similar time. Human and large-mammal movements would have been closely tied to fresh water and the pattern of footprints show both foraged on the lake bed when it was temporarily exposed. Humans may have been drawn to the area as they tracked large mammals , who would potentially serve as prey.
Surveys and analysis of fossils recovered from the site also shows that there are no stone tools or butchery of fossils. This indicates that the footprint-makers only very briefly visited the lake, foraging for resources before continuing on their journey.
It is not clear what happened to the people who left the footprints, but evidence suggests that they, along with the other early Homo sapiens explorers, either died out or retreated to more favourable environments as aridity returned to the desert.
This article was originally published at The Conversation. The publication contributed the article to Live Science's Expert Voices: Op-Ed & Insights.


livescience--2020-09-23--Coronavirus outbreak: Live updates

Coronavirus outbreak: Live updates

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90-year-old woman in the UK receives first dose of Pfizer vaccine, FDA review confirms vaccine is safe and effective A 90-year-old woman (who will turn 91 next week) became the first in the world to be given Pfizer's coronavirus vaccine outside of clinical trials, according to the BBC. Margaret Keenan, who is originally from Northern Ireland, was given the vaccine at the University Hospital in Coventry, England. She received the first of 800,000 doses expected to be administered in the U.K. in the coming weeks, according to the BBC. "I feel so privileged to be the first person vaccinated against Covid-19," Keenan said, according to the BBC."It's the best early birthday present I could wish for because it means I can finally look forward to spending time with my family and friends in the new year after being on my own for most of the year." "My advice to anyone offered the vaccine is to take it. If I can have it at 90, then you can have it too," she added. Up to four million doses of Pfizer's vaccine is expected to be given to people in the U.K. by the end of the month. Meanwhile, a 53-page Food and Drug Administration (FDA) review published Tuesday (Dec. 8) confirmed that Pfizer's vaccine is safe and effective, according to The Washington Post.
Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine starts to work just 10 days after 1st dose Pfizer's new COVID-19 vaccine starts to protect people from the novel coronavirus just 10 days after the first dose, according to new documents from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The documents were released on Tuesday (Dec. 8), two days before a meeting of the FDA's vaccine advisory panel, which will vote on whether to recommend authorization of the vaccine in the U.S, Live Science reported . The FDA analyzed data from Pfizer's phase 3 clinical trial, which included some 44,000 people in the United States, Brazil, Argentina, Germany and Turkey, about half of whom received the vaccine while the other half received a placebo. Both groups received two shots, 21 days apart. About 10 days after the first dose, there was a noticeable drop-off in new COVID-19 cases in the vaccine group compared with the placebo group, indicating that even one dose provides some protection, the report said. However, scientists don't know how long the protection from a single dose will last, so it will still be important for people to receive two shots, according to The New York Times . Overall, the vaccine was 52% effective after the first dose and 95% effective after the second dose, the report said.
People with significant allergies should avoid Pfizer vaccine, UK warns The U.K.'s Regulatory Agency is advising people with a history of "significant" allergic reactions to avoid Pfizer's coronavirus vaccine, after two National Health Service members developed severe allergic reactions to it on Tuesday (Dec. 8), Live Science reported. "As is common with new vaccines the MHRA (Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency) have advised on a precautionary basis that people with a significant history of allergic reactions do not receive this vaccination after two people with a history of significant allergic reactions responded adversely yesterday," Stephen Powis, the national medical director for England's National Health Service said in a statement on Wednesday (Dec. 9). Both workers have a history of severe allergies and carry adrenaline auto injectors (such as EpiPens) around with them, according to The Guardian. Shortly after receiving the vaccine, both NHS workers developed anaphylaxis-like symptoms, or severe allergic reactions, but have recovered after receiving treatment. The MHRA will investigate further and Pfizer and BioNTech will support their investigation, according to Reuters. "Allergic reaction occurs with quite a number of vaccines, and perhaps even more frequently with drugs. So it is not unexpected," Stephen Evans, a professor of pharmacoepidemiology at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine said in remarks to journalists published by Britain's Science Media Center. “What would be wise, as the MHRA have already advised, would be for anyone who has known severe allergic reaction such that they need to carry an EpiPen, to delay having a vaccination until the reason for the allergic reaction has been clarified," he said. For the general population this does not mean that they would need to be anxious about receiving the vaccination, he added. "One has to remember that even things like marmite [a quintessential British food spread] can cause unexpected severe allergic reactions.”
Canada approves Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine Canada has authorized Pfizer's new COVID-19 vaccine, with the first doses expected to be administered there as early as next week. Health Canada, the country's health regulatory agency, said in a statement on Wednesday (Dec. 9) that it had determined that the vaccine "meets the Department's stringent safety, efficacy and quality requirements for use in Canada," according to CTV News . "We expect vaccines to arrive maybe as early as Monday [Dec. 14]. It takes time to prepare the vaccine," said Maj.-Gen. Dany Fortin, the top military general leading the vaccine rollout for the Public Health Agency of Canada, according to CTV News. The first doses could be administered by the middle of next week, he said. Canada is the third country in the world to authorize the Pfizer vaccine, following the United Kingdom and Bahrain. The country should receive up to 249,000 doses of the vaccine by the end of December, and has purchased 20 million doses total, with the option to purchase more, CTV News reported.
Daily COVID-19 death toll in the U.S. reaches record-high, surpassed 9/11 On Wednesday (Dec. 9), the U.S. recorded 3,124 new COVID-19 deaths, the highest daily death toll to date, according to CNN . In comparison, 2,977 people were killed in the 9/11 attacks. The U.S. has now recorded 280,488 deaths related to the virus, according to The COVID Tracking Project . A forecast from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention predicts that the total death toll can increase to between 332,000 and 362,000 by January 2, according to CNN. There are currently 106,671 people hospitalized with the virus in the U.S.; 20,903 of them are currently in the ICU and 7,621 are currently on a ventilator, according to the COVID Tracking Project. On Thursday (Dec. 10), the Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee is set to meet to discuss an emergency use authorization for the Pfizer-BioNTech coronavirus vaccine.
FDA panel recommends authorization of Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine A panel of experts for the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has recommended that the agency authorize Pfizer's new COVID-19 vaccine in the United States. On Thursday (Dec. 10), the panel voted 17 to 4 to recommend that the vaccine receive emergency use authorization (EUA) for people ages 16 and older, according to The New York Times . The FDA typically follows the advice of its panels, and so today's vote is an important step towards the vaccine's authorization. It is anticipated that the agency will officially authorize the vaccine on Saturday (Dec. 12), the Times reported. Several countries have already authorized Pfizer's vaccine, including Canada, the United Kingdom and Bahrain.
Vaccine approval could come this weekend, as U.S. continues to record high daily death tolls On Thursday (Dec. 10), the U.S. recorded another 2,902 COVID-19 deaths, a day after the country set a record of 3,253 deaths, according to Reuters . “Probably for the next 60 to 90 days, we’re going to have more deaths per day than we had on 9/11 or we had at Pearl Harbor,” Dr. Robert Redfield, the director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, told the Council on Foreign Relations on Thursday, according to Reuters. "The reality is the vaccine approval this week is not going to really impact that, I think, to any degree for the next 60 days." On Thursday, the Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee discussed, voted and recommended that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) should grant an emergency use authorization for Pfizer's coronavirus vaccine. The Pfizer vaccine has already been approved in the U.K. and in Canada, and FDA approval for use in the U.S. could come this weekend.
Australia abandons local COVID-19 vaccine after it caused false-positive HIV tests An Australian COVID-19 vaccine that had shown promising results in early trials is being abandoned after researchers found that the shot caused false-positive results on HIV tests. On Friday (Dec. 11), Australian officials said they had canceled an order for some 51 million doses of the vaccine, which was being developed by The University of Queensland and CSL Ltd., a local biotech company, according to The New York Times . In an early trial with 216 participants, the vaccine appeared to be safe and to produce a robust immune response against COVID-19, according to a statement from CSL . But some volunteers falsely tested positive for HIV, which officials feared would undermine trust in the vaccine, the Times reported. The vaccine contained small fragments of an HIV protein, which helped stabilize the vaccine. Some of the participants developed antibodies against these fragments, and these antibodies triggered false positive results on some HIV tests. It's important to note that there is no way for the vaccine to cause an HIV infection, because it contains harmless fragments of the virus.
ICU nurse in New York becomes first person in the US to receive a coronavirus vaccine outside of clinical trials New York, the worst-hit state at the start of the pandemic, just became the first to administer a coronavirus vaccine outside of clinical trials, kicking off a long, massive effort to vaccinate the American people, Live Science reported. Around 9 a.m. E.T. on Monday (Dec. 14), the very first dose of Pfizer and BioNTech's coronavirus vaccine was given to Sandra Lindsay, an intensive care nurse in Long Island Jewish Medical Center in Queens, New York, according to The New York Times. This comes as the U.S. continues to battle a massive wave of the virus that has more than 109,000 people currently hospitalized, according to The COVID Tracking Project. Since the start of the pandemic, New York has recorded more than 780,000 cases of COVID-19 and more than 35,100 deaths, according to The Times. "This vaccine is exciting because I believe this is the weapon that will end the war," Gov. Andrew Cuomo said during a live broadcast of the first vaccination. "It's the beginning of the last chapter of the book, but now we just have to do it."
FDA analysis confirms Moderna's vaccine is safe and effective, emergency authorization is likely to come Friday A new briefing document from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) released on Tuesday (Dec. 15) confirmed that Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine is safe and effective, according to NPR . Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine is 94% effective and has "a favorable safety profile," according to the document. A panel of experts is set to meet on Thursday (Dec. 17) to discuss the effectiveness and safety of the vaccine and vote on whether or not the FDA should grant emergency approval to the vaccine. Last week, the same panel voted that the FDA should grant emergency approval to Pfizer's coronavirus vaccine; the authorization came a day late and the first doses were given on Monday (Dec. 15). The FDA will likely approve Moderna's vaccine for emergency use on Friday (Dec. 18), according to The New York Times .
FDA authorizes first over-the-counter COVID-19 test The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has authorized the first over-the-counter COVID-19 test, which can be done at home and does not need a prescription. The test, made by the Australia-based company Ellume, provides results in as little as 20 minutes, according to a statement from the FDA . It is a "lateral flow antigen test," meaning it works in a similar way to a home pregnancy test, by running a "liquid sample along a surface with reactive molecules," the FDA said. The test works in conjunction with a smartphone app. Users take a nasal swab and place their sample in an analyzer, which communicates to the smartphone app via Bluetooth. The results are delivered through the app, and also reported to public health authorities (based on a user's zip code) through a secure cloud connection, the company said . Ellume is ramping up production of its test, and expects to produce three million tests in January 2021, and 20 million within the first half of 2021.
A wild mink tested positive for the coronavirus, it may be the first wild animal to have a confirmed case A wild mink in Utah may be the first "free-ranging, native wild animal" confirmed to be infected with SARS-CoV-2, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Live Science reported. The mink was found near a mink farm and likely picked up the infection from the farmed mink. There's no evidence that the virus spread to other minks or wild animals; but if the virus does begin circulating in wild animals, it could pick up mutations that COVID-19 vaccines may not protect well against if it spreads back to humans, according to the report. "If it does [establish a reservoir], then we've got a long-term issue here, where this virus has the potential to be with us for millennia," Sarah Olson, associate director of the health program at the Wildlife Conservation Society, told Vox. The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service has screened other animal species for the virus near mink farms in Utah, Michigan and Wisconsin, but all of them have tested negative so far, according to a statement.
An FDA advisory panel will meet today to vote on whether to recommend Moderna's coronavirus vaccine for emergency approval On Thursday (Dec. 17), a Food and Drug Administration (FDA) advisory committee will meet to determine whether to recommend that Moderna’s coronavirus vaccine for emergency approval, according to The New York Times . This panel, composed of independent experts, will vote on whether to recommend the vaccine after hearing from the company, FDA scientists and the public, according to The Times. Last week, the same panel of experts met to discuss Pfizer’s coronavirus vaccine and voted to recommend emergency authorization; the authorization came the next day. There have now been more than 16.9 million cases of COVID-19 in the U.S. and more than 307,000 deaths, according to the Johns Hopkins dashboard . There are currently 113,090 people hospitalized across the country with more than 21,900 of them in the ICU and 7,778 on a ventilator, according to The COVID Tracking Project .
California becomes new epicenter of COVID-19 in U.S. California, once praised for its early pandemic response, is now the new U.S. hotspot for COVID-19 infections. The state has reported an alarming surge in cases, breaking previous records for daily cases. On Thursday (Dec. 17), the state reported some 50,000 COVID-19 infections in 24 hours, and nearly 100,000 in 48 hours, according to The Washington Post . That's more than the daily cases reported in many countries, including India, Germany and Britain, the Post reported. The state also set a record for daily deaths on Thursday, with 379 fatalities reported, up from the previous high of 293. Capacity in intensive care units has also dropped dramatically, with hospitals in Southern California reporting zero percent capacity on Thursday. "I want to be very clear: Our hospitals are under siege, and our model shows no end in sight," said Christina Ghaly, director of Los Angeles County's Department of Health Services, the Post reported.
FDA expected to authorize Moderna's vaccine on Friday The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is expected to authorize Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine on Friday (Dec. 18). Once authorized, it will be the second coronavirus vaccine to get the green light from the agency in just a week, with Pfizer's vaccine gaining authorization on Dec. 11. Moderna is expected to begin shipping 5.9 million doses of its vaccine on Sunday (Dec. 20), with the first deliveries arriving Monday (Dec. 21), according to The New York Times . Unlike the Pfizer vaccine, Moderna's vaccine does not require storage in extremely cold temperatures, and states are hoping to distribute the vaccine to rural hospitals and community health centers, the Times reported.
COVID-19 cases continue to surge across the U.S. There have now been more than 17 million cases of COVID-19 in the U.S. and more than 300,000 deaths, according to The COVID Tracking Project . There are currently 114,237 people hospitalized across the country and 21,900 people in the ICU. California is facing a massive surge in cases; the state reported 41,012 new COVID-19 cases and 300 new deaths on Thursday (Dec. 17), according to the state's COVID-19 dashboard . By comparison, at the start of November, California was reporting a seven-day average of 4,183 cases, compared to an average of 38,774 on Thursday, according to CNN . "We're experiencing an explosive and very deadly surge," Dr. Barbara Ferrer, Los Angeles County Public Health Director said, according to CNN. Intensive care unit beds are rapidly filling up across the state; there are only 1,234 ICU beds left available in California, according to the dashboard. Current closures across California are impacting around 98% of the state's population, according to CNN.
London and southeast England are under an emergency lockdown Following concerns of a new version of the coronavirus that might be more transmissible, London and most of southeast England are now under an emergency lockdown, according to The New York Times . Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced the lockdown on Saturday (Dec. 19) citing concerns that the mutated virus — which was detected a couple of weeks ago in southeast England — may be as much as 70% more transmissible than previous versions, according to the Times. The new version of the coronavirus is detected in more than 60% of new infections in London and have also been detected in several other countries, according to the Times. But it's not yet clear if this coronavirus version is any more infectious than the last and thorough analyses will need to be conducted before conclusions are made, scientists cautioned. In South Africa, a similar version of the virus has been found in up to 90% of new cases detected since mid-November, according to The Times . It's common for viruses to mutate, and this particular coronavirus has mutated many times since the start of the pandemic. But experts told The Times that it would take years for the virus to mutate enough such that it would make the current vaccines developed to fight COVID-19 ineffective.
Biden gets Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine President-elect Joe Biden received a dose of Pfizer's new COVID-19 vaccine on Monday (Dec. 21), according to The New York Times . He received the shot on camera at the Christiana Hospital in Newark, Delaware. "I'm doing this to demonstrate that people should be prepared when it's available to take the vaccine. There's nothing to worry about," Biden said.
Antarctica has its 1st COVID-19 outbreak The first COVID-19 cases have been reported in Antarctica , meaning the disease has now spread to every continent in the world. On Tuesday (Dec. 22), Chilean officials reported an outbreak of 36 COVID-19 cases at the Chilean research base General Bernardo O'Higgins Riquelme on the Antarctic Peninsula, according to the BBC . Of these, 26 cases were military personnel and 10 were maintenance workers, the BBC reported. All of these cases have been evacuated from Antarctica to Punta Arenas, Chile, according to The Guardian . Antarctica had been COVID-19 free up until the current outbreak. The continent has no permanent residents, but about 1,000 people, including scientists and other workers, stayed there this past winter, The Guardian reported.
Live updates will continue in 2021!


livescience--2020-09-23--Earth's new minimoon might be a rocket humans launched into space in the 1960s

Earth is getting a small new moon , but it might have been made by people .
Astronomers at the Catalina Sky Survey in Arizona first detected the object back in February as a flash of light darting across space .
Right this moment , it 's not in orbit around the Earth , but it 's nearby .
And it 's going to enter Earth 's orbit for a while in 2020 before heading out to circle the sun again .
The initial assumption was that this mysterious blip was an asteroid .
The object , termed 2020 SO2 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to have been temporarily captured by Earth 's gravity .
Earth has captured `` minimoons '' like this before , and scientists have spotted them a couple times in recent years .
It 's a natural part of our planet 's movement through space .
But some observers now say this minimoon might not be natural after all .
People built it , they think , back in the 1960s .
There 's been some disagreement on this point , which played out on an astronomy message board known as the Minor Planet @ @ @ @ @ @ @ online community frequented by professionals and hobbyists .
The issue is that 2020 SO2 is in an orbit around the sun that closely matches Earth 's .
Objects like that sometimes fall into Earth 's gravity and end up orbiting for a little while .
There are plenty of natural asteroids that behave this way , and there are even rocket parts that humans have launched into space that have similar orbits .
By analyzing 2020 SO2 's current movements and extrapolating them backward in time by using computer simulations , observers have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ last orbited Earth in 1966 or 1967 .
That could mean that 1966 or 1967 is when it was launched into orbit in the first place , or when 2020 SO2 naturally approached Earth .
But distinguishing the two possibilities is tricky .
Initially , Sam Deen , an amateur astronomer in California , posted that no 1966 or 1967 launches match 2020 SO2 's behavior , meaning that the curious object was likely natural .
( Deen has been cited by NASA in the past . )
Then Paul Chodas , director @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Object Studies , told CNN that it was likely a rocket from Surveyor 2 , an uncrewed NASA moon mission that launched on September 20 , 1966 .
The object 's orbit is so similar to Earth 's , he said , that it probably came from Earth .
Others on the MPML agree .
Another amateur astronomer , Tony Dunn , created a simulation of the object 's path , which will take it very close to Earth in December and again in February .
It 's possible that as 2020 SO2 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ settle the matter .
But in the meantime , we 're left wondering whether Earth 's incoming minimoon is a long-lost thing from this planet , or a space rock dropping in for a short visit

The Catalina Sky Survey spotted this object moving against the starry background before realizing it was an incoming minimoon.
Earth is getting a small new moon, but it might have been made by people.
Astronomers at the Catalina Sky Survey in Arizona first detected the object back in February as a flash of light darting across space.
BIG NEWS (thread 1/3). Earth has a new temporarily captured object/Possible mini-moon called 2020 CD3. On the night of Feb. 15, my Catalina Sky Survey teammate Teddy Pruyne and I found a 20th magnitude object. Here are the discovery images. pic.twitter.com/zLkXyGAkZlFebruary 26, 2020 See more
Related: Top 10 ways to destroy Earth
Right this moment, it's not in orbit around the Earth, but it's nearby. And it's going to enter Earth's orbit for a while in 2020 before heading out to circle the sun again.
The initial assumption was that this mysterious blip was an asteroid. The object, termed 2020 SO2 by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, appears to have been temporarily captured by Earth's gravity. Earth has captured "minimoons" like this before, and scientists have spotted them a couple times in recent years. It's a natural part of our planet's movement through space.
But some observers now say this minimoon might not be natural after all. People built it, they think, back in the 1960s.
There's been some disagreement on this point, which played out on an astronomy message board known as the Minor Planet Mailing List (MPML), an online community frequented by professionals and hobbyists.
The issue is that 2020 SO2 is in an orbit around the sun that closely matches Earth's. Objects like that sometimes fall into Earth's gravity and end up orbiting for a little while. There are plenty of natural asteroids that behave this way, and there are even rocket parts that humans have launched into space that have similar orbits.
By analyzing 2020 SO2's current movements and extrapolating them backward in time by using computer simulations, observers have worked out that this object would have last orbited Earth in 1966 or 1967. That could mean that 1966 or 1967 is when it was launched into orbit in the first place, or when 2020 SO2 naturally approached Earth.
But distinguishing the two possibilities is tricky. Initially, Sam Deen, an amateur astronomer in California, posted that no 1966 or 1967 launches match 2020 SO2's behavior, meaning that the curious object was likely natural. (Deen has been cited by NASA in the past.) Then Paul Chodas, director of NASA's Center for Near Earth Object Studies, told CNN that it was likely a rocket from Surveyor 2, an uncrewed NASA moon mission that launched on September 20, 1966. The object's orbit is so similar to Earth's, he said, that it probably came from Earth. Others on the MPML agree.
Another amateur astronomer, Tony Dunn, created a simulation of the object's path, which will take it very close to Earth in December and again in February.
Asteroid 2020 SO may get captured by Earth from Oct 2020 - May 2021. Current nominal trajectory shows shows capture through L2, and escape through L1. Highly-chaotic path, so be prepared for lots of revisions as new observations come in. @renerpho @nrco0e https://t.co/h4JaG2rHEd pic.twitter.com/RfUaeLtEWqSeptember 20, 2020 See more
It's possible that as 2020 SO2 comes closer, more detailed observations will settle the matter. But in the meantime, we're left wondering whether Earth's incoming minimoon is a long-lost thing from this planet, or a space rock dropping in for a short visit
Originally published on Live Science.


livescience--2020-09-23--Mass stranding event beaches 450 whales in Tasmania

More than 450 pilot whales have become stranded off of Tasmania 's west coast , in what is the worst whale stranding event the Australian island has ever seen .
Earlier this week , 270 pilot whales were found stranded on sandbars and along the beach at Strahan , a coastal town in Tasmania around Macquarie Harbor .
But while rescue efforts were underway on the ground to pull the living whales back into deeper water , recent aerial surveys revealed another gruesome scene not far away .
Surveyors found an additional 200 whales that were stranded about 4.3 to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ) farther south in the dark waters of the Macquarie Harbour , bringing the count of stranded whales up to around 470 whales , released today ( Sept. 23 ) by the Tasmanian government 's Department of Primary Industries , Parks , Water and Environment .
`` From the air most of the additional whales detected appear to be dead , but a boat has headed over there this morning to do an assessment from the water , '' Incident Controller and Parks and Wildlife Service ( PWS ) regional manager Nic Deka @ @ @ @ @ @ @ rescuers , including a local fisher , have used equipment such as slings to pull the living whales back into deeper water , according to the BBC .
The rescuers have so far managed to save 50 of the whales and are working to save another 30 that are stranded but still living .
But strong tides have made rescue efforts difficult , as some of the rescued whales were brought back to shore , according to the BBC .
`` Our focus is on those animals that are still alive , '' @ @ @ @ @ @ @ increased , but there are a significant number that are alive so we will continue to work with those . ''
The additional whales discovered in Macquarie Harbor by aerial surveys are thought to be part of the same stranding event , according to the statement .
Before this mass stranding , the largest stranding event in Tasmania occurred in 1935 and involved 294 long-finned pilot whales in Stanley , a town on the northwest coast of the island state .
It might even be the largest Australia has ever had , Karen @ @ @ @ @ @ @ University in New Zealand .
`` It 's fair to say this will probably rank third or fourth globally , '' she said .
The largest documented stranding in the world occurred in 1918 , when around 1,000 whales beached themselves at the Chatham Islands , about 500 miles ( 800 km ) east of New Zealand , according to New Zealand 's Department of Conservation .
Scientists do n't know exactly why massive groups of whales end up stranded together , .
One hypothesis is that the pilot whales ' echolocation , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ objects , does n't work as well in shallow waters next to sloping coastlines , according to the New Zealand Department of Conservation .
The whales could have failed to detect the shoreline when , say , they followed fish — their food — to shore .
What 's more , pilot whales are highly sociable creatures , living in tight communities .
It 's possible that one of the whales could have misled the whole faithful group to shore , according to the BBC and the Department of Conservation .

More than 450 whales have been stranded off the west coast of Tasmania in the largest stranding event the island state has had.
More than 450 pilot whales have become stranded off of Tasmania's west coast, in what is the worst whale stranding event the Australian island has ever seen.
Earlier this week, 270 pilot whales were found stranded on sandbars and along the beach at Strahan, a coastal town in Tasmania around Macquarie Harbor. But while rescue efforts were underway on the ground to pull the living whales back into deeper water, recent aerial surveys revealed another gruesome scene not far away.
Surveyors found an additional 200 whales that were stranded about 4.3 to 6.2 miles (7 to 10 kilometers) farther south in the dark waters of the Macquarie Harbour, bringing the count of stranded whales up to around 470 whales, according to a statement released today (Sept. 23) by the Tasmanian government's Department of Primary Industries, Parks, Water and Environment.
Related: Photos: pilot whales in trouble off Everglades
"From the air most of the additional whales detected appear to be dead, but a boat has headed over there this morning to do an assessment from the water," Incident Controller and Parks and Wildlife Service (PWS) regional manager Nic Deka said in the statement. Dozens of rescuers, including a local fisher, have used equipment such as slings to pull the living whales back into deeper water, according to the BBC .
The rescuers have so far managed to save 50 of the whales and are working to save another 30 that are stranded but still living. But strong tides have made rescue efforts difficult, as some of the rescued whales were brought back to shore, according to the BBC. "Our focus is on those animals that are still alive," Deka said. "The mortality has increased, but there are a significant number that are alive so we will continue to work with those."
Rescuers help a stranded whale, one of hundreds that were stranded in what became Tasmania's worst whale stranding in history. (Image credit: Courtesy of Tasmania Police)
The additional whales discovered in Macquarie Harbor by aerial surveys are thought to be part of the same stranding event, according to the statement.
Before this mass stranding, the largest stranding event in Tasmania occurred in 1935 and involved 294 long-finned pilot whales in Stanley, a town on the northwest coast of the island state. It might even be the largest Australia has ever had, Karen Stockin, an associate professor at Massey University in New Zealand told The Guardian .
"It's fair to say this will probably rank third or fourth globally," she said. The largest documented stranding in the world occurred in 1918, when around 1,000 whales beached themselves at the Chatham Islands, about 500 miles (800 km) east of New Zealand, according to New Zealand's Department of Conservation .
Scientists don't know exactly why massive groups of whales end up stranded together, Live Science previously reported . One hypothesis is that the pilot whales' echolocation, or the use of soundwaves to locate objects, doesn't work as well in shallow waters next to sloping coastlines, according to the New Zealand Department of Conservation.
The whales could have failed to detect the shoreline when, say, they followed fish — their food — to shore. What's more, pilot whales are highly sociable creatures, living in tight communities. It's possible that one of the whales could have misled the whole faithful group to shore, according to the BBC and the Department of Conservation.


livescience--2020-09-23--Gold miners discover 100 million-year-old meteorite crater Down Under

Gold miners in the Australian Outback recently discovered a gigantic crater dating to about 100 million years ago , back when dinosaurs roamed the Earth .
Found near the Western Australian town of Ora Banda , the newly dubbed Ora Banda Impact Crater is about 3 miles ( 5 kilometers ) across .
This huge hole was likely created by a meteorite up to 660 feet ( 200 meters ) wide , or longer than the length of two American football fields , , a Western Australia news outlet .
When geologists at Evolution Mining , an Australian gold mining @ @ @ @ @ @ @ cores at Ora Banda , they called Jayson Meyers , the principal geophysicist , director and founder of Resource Potentials , a geophysics consulting and contracting company in Perth .
Meyers examined the geologists ' drill core samples , as well as rock samples from the site , and he immediately noticed the shatter cones — telltale signs of a meteorite crash .
Shatter cones form when high-pressure , high-velocity shock waves from a large impacting object — such as a meteorite or a gigantic explosion ( such as would occur at a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ area , according to the Planetary Science Institute ( PSI ) , a nonprofit group based in Tucson , Arizona , which was not involved with the new find .
These shock waves shatter rock into the unique shatter cone shape , just like a mark that a hard object can leave on a car 's windshield .
Because `` we know they did n't do any nuclear testing at Ora Banda , '' the evidence suggests that an ancient impact crater hit the site , Meyers told Resourc.ly .
To learn more @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ( that is , its varying elevations ) and examined a gravity anomaly map , which shows how the field at a particular site differs from a uniform , featureless Earth , , which was n't involved in the finding .
Any gravitational anomalies that turn up on the map can give insight into hidden features that affect the amount of mass , and therefore gravitational pull , in a given area .
For instance , a mountain range would have more gravitational force than a featureless surface , while an ocean trench @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , the Earth Observatory explained .
Meyer 's work revealed a hidden impact crater with a pucker in the middle .
This pucker is where shattered rocks came back to the surface after the comet struck , like a compressed spring that bounces back , Resourc.ly reported .
When the geologists went to the `` pucker '' part of the site , they discovered shatter cones in the rocky outcrops .
Now , scientists from Curtin University in Perth are investigating the Ora Banda site on a microscopic level .
In particular , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the site were vaporized and then re-crystallized under high pressures .
`` The energy released when the [ meteorite ] impacted would have been more than the combined energy from every atomic test ever conducted , '' Meyers told Resourc.ly .
Research on zircons and other minerals from the crater will likely reveal when the meteorite struck — right now , Meyers thinks it hit between 250 million and 40 million years ago .
( If it struck after the Cretaceous period ended , about 65 million years ago , this meteorite would @ @ @ @ @ @ @ because they were already dead . )
The dinosaur-killing asteroid was much larger and more lethal .
That asteroid , which hit the area that is now Mexico 's Yucatan Peninsula , was about 6 miles ( 10 km ) wide and left an impact crater about 90 miles ( 150 km ) across .

A color-coded gravity image of the Ora Banda Impact Crater site. The crater (deep blue) is in the middle of the image.
Gold miners in the Australian Outback recently discovered a gigantic meteorite crater dating to about 100 million years ago, back when dinosaurs roamed the Earth.
Found near the Western Australian town of Ora Banda, the newly dubbed Ora Banda Impact Crater is about 3 miles (5 kilometers) across. This huge hole was likely created by a meteorite up to 660 feet (200 meters) wide, or longer than the length of two American football fields, according to Resourc.ly , a Western Australia news outlet.
When geologists at Evolution Mining, an Australian gold mining company, came across some unusual rock cores at Ora Banda, they called Jayson Meyers, the principal geophysicist, director and founder of Resource Potentials, a geophysics consulting and contracting company in Perth. Meyers examined the geologists' drill core samples, as well as rock samples from the site, and he immediately noticed the shatter cones — telltale signs of a meteorite crash.
Related: Meteorites: Rocks that survived fiery plunge to Earth
Shatter cones form when high-pressure, high-velocity shock waves from a large impacting object — such as a meteorite or a gigantic explosion (such as would occur at a nuclear testing site) — rattle an area, according to the Planetary Science Institute (PSI), a nonprofit group based in Tucson, Arizona, which was not involved with the new find. These shock waves shatter rock into the unique shatter cone shape, just like a mark that a hard object can leave on a car's windshield.
Because "we know they didn't do any nuclear testing at Ora Banda," the evidence suggests that an ancient impact crater hit the site, Meyers told Resourc.ly.
Image 1 of 3 A gravity anomaly map (left) of the newfound crater shows the "pucker" uplift in the middle of the crater; a map of the general area (right) pinpoints the Ora Banda Impact Crater. (Image credit: Resource Potentials) A map showing the elevation at the impact site. (Image credit: Resource Potentials) This satellite image shows the Ora Banda Impact Crater site and the surrounding landscape. (Image credit: Resource Potentials)
To learn more, Meyers examined the site's topography (that is, its varying elevations) and examined a gravity anomaly map, which shows how the gravity field at a particular site differs from a uniform, featureless Earth, according to NASA's Earth Observatory , which wasn't involved in the finding. Any gravitational anomalies that turn up on the map can give insight into hidden features that affect the amount of mass, and therefore gravitational pull, in a given area. For instance, a mountain range would have more gravitational force than a featureless surface, while an ocean trench or crater would have negative gravity anomalies, the Earth Observatory explained.
Meyer's work revealed a hidden impact crater with a pucker in the middle. This pucker is where shattered rocks came back to the surface after the meteorite struck, like a compressed spring that bounces back, Resourc.ly reported. When the geologists went to the "pucker" part of the site, they discovered shatter cones in the rocky outcrops.
Now, scientists from Curtin University in Perth are investigating the Ora Banda site on a microscopic level. In particular, the team will examine whether minerals at the site were vaporized and then re-crystallized under high pressures. "The energy released when the [meteorite] impacted would have been more than the combined energy from every atomic test ever conducted," Meyers told Resourc.ly.
Research on zircons and other minerals from the crater will likely reveal when the meteorite struck — right now, Meyers thinks it hit between 250 million and 40 million years ago. (If it struck after the Cretaceous period ended, about 65 million years ago, this meteorite wouldn't have bothered the non-avian dinosaurs, because they were already dead.)
The dinosaur-killing asteroid was much larger and more lethal. That asteroid, which hit the area that is now Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula, was about 6 miles (10 km) wide and left an impact crater about 90 miles (150 km) across.
Editor's note: The story mistakenly referred to the meteorite as a "comet" in one instance. This has been corrected.
Originally published on Live Science.


livescience--2020-09-23--Election Day vaccine unlikely: FDA to issue tougher standards for authorization

Addressing concerns that a COVID-19 vaccine might be rushed to the public before Election Day , the Food and Drug Administration ( FDA ) will issue stricter guidelines for a vaccine to earn `` emergency use authorization , '' according to .
Emergency use authorization ( EUA ) is not the same as full FDA approval , but grants permission to use unapproved products `` when there are no adequate , approved and available alternatives , '' .
In recent weeks , President Donald Trump has repeatedly hinted that a COVID-19 could earn authorization before Nov. 3 , raising concerns @ @ @ @ @ @ @ such a vaccine might be deployed without clearing all the necessary tests .
To bolster confidence in a future authorized vaccine , the FDA is expected to release the new EUA standards as soon as this week , according to The Washington Post .
The heightened standards should make it very unlikely that a vaccine would be authorized by or before November .
Related : Here are the most promising coronavirus vaccine candidates out there The new standards are expected to require vaccine manufacturers to monitor participants in late-stage trials for a minimum @ @ @ @ @ @ @ full course of the vaccine , according to two individuals familiar with the situation who spoke with the Post on the condition of anonymity .
During clinical trials , some participants receive the vaccine and some instead get a placebo , so the rate of COVID-19 infection can be compared between the two groups .
The FDA will now require that late-stage trials continue for long enough that five cases of severe COVID-19 occur in the placebo group and that some cases occur in older adults who receive the placebo , as well @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to better assess whether the vaccine truly protects both younger and older adults against the .
Given these standards and the time it takes to prepare , file and review an application for authorization , `` it 's hard to imagine how an EUA could possibly occur before December , '' Dr. Paul Offit , director of the Vaccine Education Center at Children 's Hospital of Philadelphia and a member of the FDA advisory board on vaccines , told The Washington Post .
That said , some experts question whether the public will @ @ @ @ @ @ @ with the new standards in place ; some argue that no vaccine should be given emergency use authorization , but that we should hold out for full approval .

Addressing concerns that a COVID-19 vaccine might be rushed to the public before Election Day, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will issue stricter guidelines for a vaccine to earn "emergency use authorization," according to The Washington Post .
Emergency use authorization (EUA) is not the same as full FDA approval, but grants permission to use unapproved products "when there are no adequate, approved and available alternatives," Live Science previously reported . In recent weeks, President Donald Trump has repeatedly hinted that a COVID-19 vaccine could earn authorization before Nov. 3, raising concerns from the public and health professionals that such a vaccine might be deployed without clearing all the necessary tests .
To bolster confidence in a future authorized vaccine, the FDA is expected to release the new EUA standards as soon as this week, according to The Washington Post. The heightened standards should make it very unlikely that a vaccine would be authorized by or before November.
Related: Here are the most promising coronavirus vaccine candidates out there
The new standards are expected to require vaccine manufacturers to monitor participants in late-stage trials for a minimum of two months after they receive the full course of the vaccine, according to two individuals familiar with the situation who spoke with the Post on the condition of anonymity.
During clinical trials, some participants receive the vaccine and some instead get a placebo, so the rate of COVID-19 infection can be compared between the two groups. The FDA will now require that late-stage trials continue for long enough that five cases of severe COVID-19 occur in the placebo group and that some cases occur in older adults who receive the placebo, as well. These requirements should allow the manufacturers to better assess whether the vaccine truly protects both younger and older adults against the virus .
Given these standards and the time it takes to prepare, file and review an application for authorization, "it's hard to imagine how an EUA could possibly occur before December," Dr. Paul Offit, director of the Vaccine Education Center at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia and a member of the FDA advisory board on vaccines, told The Washington Post.
That said, some experts question whether the public will readily accept any authorized vaccine, even with the new standards in place; some argue that no vaccine should be given emergency use authorization, but that we should hold out for full approval.
Read the full story at The Washington Post .
Originally published on Live Science.


livescience--2020-09-24--Beaked whales can hold their breath for over 3 hours (and possibly longer)

How long can you hold your breath ?
Even your best efforts ca n't come close to the breath-holding superpower of a Cuvier 's beaked whale .
These whales were already known to dive deeper and longer than any other mammal , but new research shows that their marathon dives can last even longer than once thought .
When scientists recently examined data from thousands of whale dives , they found that one of these extreme divers held its breath for more than 3 hours , shattering the previously reported record — also held by the Cuvier 's beaked whale @ @ @ @ @ @ @ an hour .
Equally intriguing was the deep-diving whales ' ability to recover relatively quickly from their exertions .
One whale rested for just 20 minutes after a 2-hour dive , hinting that even what appear to be extreme dives ( to us , at least ) may be no big deal for this species after all , researchers reported in a new study .
Related : Watch rare footage of whales blowing 'bubble nets ' to capture prey in a vortex of doom Cuvier 's beaked whales , also known as goose-beaked @ @ @ @ @ @ @ feet ( 7 meters ) long , and can weigh up to 6,800 lbs .
( 3,080 kilograms ) , according to the National Atmospheric and Oceanic Administration ( NOAA ) .
Mature males have two cone-shaped teeth that stick out from their lower jaws , and their bodies are often scored by long , pale scratches that are thought to be scars from mating competitions over females , according to the Alaska Department of Fish and Game .
The whales are found in deep ocean waters around most of the world , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ at the surface they are extremely challenging to observe in the wild , said lead study author Nicola Quick , a research scientist in the Duke Marine Lab at Duke University 's Nicholas School of the Environment , in Durham , North Carolina .
`` They spend 90 % of their time under the water , at depths or in shallower dives , '' Quick told Live Science .
When the whales do come up for a rare breath , they surface for around 2 minutes on average before diving again , leaving @ @ @ @ @ @ @ whales , deploy a satellite-linked location-tracking tag for data collection , or recover data from tags , Quick explained .
`` It 's like a blessing and a curse : No one knows a lot about beaked whales , so there 's lots of questions !
But then it 's really hard to get data , '' she said .
For the study , Quick and her colleagues reviewed more than 3,680 dives performed between 2014 and 2018 , by 23 tagged whales in waters off North Carolina 's Cape Hatteras .
The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ : foraging ( the whales dine on squid and deep-sea fish ) and non-foraging .
They found that during non-foraging dives , when the animals were not actively hunting prey , the whales descended to depths of about 980 feet to 1,600 feet ( 300 to 500 m ) on average , for an average of 30 minutes .
Foraging dives , by comparison , were deeper and longer , reaching depths of around 5,760 feet ( 1,450 m ) and lasting about 60 minutes on average , the researchers reported .
While @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the whales are doing in the ocean depths when they are n't hunting , they might have evolved the ability to linger in deeper ( and darker ) waters to avoid predators such as killer whales , which hunt visually , Quick said .
Diving mammals can remain submerged after they deplete stored oxygen by switching to anaerobic respiration , which causes to build up in body tissues , contributing to muscle fatigue .
Prior research on other mammalian deep-sea divers has shown that they complete about 95 % of their dives before @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , according to the study .
When the scientists applied that formula to their data , they estimated that Cuvier 's beaked whales could hold their breath for about 78 minutes before anaerobic respiration would take over .
And some of the whales ' dives were much , much longer than that .
Previously , in 2014 , another team of researchers reported a record-breaking Cuvier 's beaked whale dive that lasted 2 hours and 17.5 minutes .
However , when the new study 's authors examined data from 2017 , they discovered @ @ @ @ @ @ @ one whale that obliterated the existing record .
The first dive lasted 2 hours and 53 minutes , and that new record was quickly surpassed by an even longer dive of 3 hours and 42 minutes , according to the study .
`` It goes against what we think mammals should be able to do , '' Quick said .
Even more surprising was the discovery that the recovery time for whales that dove deep and long was n't necessarily longer than it was for whales that performed shorter and shallower dives .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ a cost , and typically requires a lengthy period of rest and recovery .
Data from the thousands of whale dives suggested that these extra-long dives were pushing the limit of the whales ' endurance , `` so we really did expect to see some sort of increased recovery time on those long dives , '' Quick said .
Instead , the researchers found no clear pattern in the whales ' resting times .
One whale dove for 78 minutes , followed by a stretch of nearly 4 hours during which it made @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Another whale completed a 2-hour dive , and resumed its deep diving within 20 minutes .
One possible explanation is that the whales have metabolically decoupled the mechanisms that resupply them with oxygen and address muscle fatigue — if they even are fatigued after these extreme dives , Quick said .
Then again , `` maybe what we think is extreme for these guys , based on what we know so far , is just not extreme for them , '' she added .
The findings were published online today ( Sept. 23 @ @ @ @

(Image credit: Photo: Danielle Waples and Duke University. All research activities were carried out under NOAA/NMFS Scientific Research Permits 17086 and 20605 (Robin Baird); NOAA/NMFS permit 14809-03 (Doug Nowacek); and NOAA General Authorization 16185 (Andrew Read).)
Elusive Cuvier's beaked whales (Ziphius cavirostris) spend only about 2 minutes at the sea surface to catch a breath for their marathon dives.
How long can you hold your breath? Even your best efforts can't come close to the breath-holding superpower of a Cuvier's beaked whale.
These whales were already known to dive deeper and longer than any other mammal, but new research shows that their marathon dives can last even longer than once thought.
When scientists recently examined data from thousands of whale dives, they found that one of these extreme divers held its breath for more than 3 hours, shattering the previously reported record — also held by the Cuvier's beaked whale (Ziphius cavirostris) — by over an hour.
Equally intriguing was the deep-diving whales' ability to recover relatively quickly from their exertions. One whale rested for just 20 minutes after a 2-hour dive, hinting that even what appear to be extreme dives (to us, at least) may be no big deal for this species after all, researchers reported in a new study.
Related: Watch rare footage of whales blowing 'bubble nets' to capture prey in a vortex of doom
Cuvier's beaked whales, also known as goose-beaked whales, can grow to be 23 feet (7 meters) long, and can weigh up to 6,800 lbs. (3,080 kilograms), according to the National Atmospheric and Oceanic Administration (NOAA). Mature males have two cone-shaped teeth that stick out from their lower jaws, and their bodies are often scored by long, pale scratches that are thought to be scars from mating competitions over females, according to the Alaska Department of Fish and Game .
The whales are found in deep ocean waters around most of the world, but because they spend very little time at the surface they are extremely challenging to observe in the wild, said lead study author Nicola Quick, a research scientist in the Duke Marine Lab at Duke University's Nicholas School of the Environment, in Durham, North Carolina.
"They spend 90% of their time under the water, at depths or in shallower dives," Quick told Live Science. When the whales do come up for a rare breath, they surface for around 2 minutes on average before diving again, leaving marine scientists little time to spot the whales, deploy a satellite-linked location-tracking tag for data collection, or recover data from tags, Quick explained.
"It's like a blessing and a curse: No one knows a lot about beaked whales, so there's lots of questions! But then it's really hard to get data," she said.
Deep dives
For the study, Quick and her colleagues reviewed more than 3,680 dives performed between 2014 and 2018, by 23 tagged whales in waters off North Carolina's Cape Hatteras. The scientists divided the dives into two categories: foraging (the whales dine on squid and deep-sea fish) and non-foraging. They found that during non-foraging dives, when the animals were not actively hunting prey, the whales descended to depths of about 980 feet to 1,600 feet (300 to 500 m) on average, for an average of 30 minutes. Foraging dives, by comparison, were deeper and longer, reaching depths of around 5,760 feet (1,450 m) and lasting about 60 minutes on average, the researchers reported.
While researchers don't know for sure what the whales are doing in the ocean depths when they aren't hunting, they might have evolved the ability to linger in deeper (and darker) waters to avoid predators such as killer whales, which hunt visually, Quick said.
Related: Photos: See the world's cutest sea creatures
A male Cuvier's beaked whale (Ziphius cavirostris) with a tag on the dorsal fin. (Image credit: Photo: Danielle Waples and Duke University. All research activities were carried out under NOAA/NMFS Scientific Research Permits 17086 and 20605 (Robin Baird); NOAA/NMFS permit 14809-03 (Doug Nowacek); and NOAA General Authorization 16185 (Andrew Read).)
Diving mammals can remain submerged after they deplete stored oxygen by switching to anaerobic respiration, which causes lactic acid to build up in body tissues, contributing to muscle fatigue. Prior research on other mammalian deep-sea divers has shown that they complete about 95% of their dives before they need to switch to anaerobic respiration, according to the study. When the scientists applied that formula to their data, they estimated that Cuvier's beaked whales could hold their breath for about 78 minutes before anaerobic respiration would take over.
And some of the whales' dives were much, much longer than that.
Previously, in 2014, another team of researchers reported a record-breaking Cuvier's beaked whale dive that lasted 2 hours and 17.5 minutes. However, when the new study's authors examined data from 2017, they discovered a pair of extreme dives performed by one whale that obliterated the existing record. The first dive lasted 2 hours and 53 minutes, and that new record was quickly surpassed by an even longer dive of 3 hours and 42 minutes, according to the study.
"It goes against what we think mammals should be able to do," Quick said.
Swift recovery
Even more surprising was the discovery that the recovery time for whales that dove deep and long wasn't necessarily longer than it was for whales that performed shorter and shallower dives. Extreme exertion for most mammals comes at a cost, and typically requires a lengthy period of rest and recovery. Data from the thousands of whale dives suggested that these extra-long dives were pushing the limit of the whales' endurance, "so we really did expect to see some sort of increased recovery time on those long dives," Quick said.
Instead, the researchers found no clear pattern in the whales' resting times. One whale dove for 78 minutes, followed by a stretch of nearly 4 hours during which it made shallower dives interspersed with surface breaks. Another whale completed a 2-hour dive, and resumed its deep diving within 20 minutes.
One possible explanation is that the whales have metabolically decoupled the mechanisms that resupply them with oxygen and address muscle fatigue — if they even are fatigued after these extreme dives, Quick said.
Then again, "maybe what we think is extreme for these guys, based on what we know so far, is just not extreme for them," she added.
The findings were published online today (Sept. 23) in the Journal of Experimental Biology .
Originally published on Live Science.


livescience--2020-09-24--Coronavirus mutations: what we've learned so far

In early January , the first genome sequence of Sars-CoV-2 — the virus that causes COVID-19 — was released under the moniker `` Wuhan-1 '' .
This string of 30,000 letters ( the A , T , C and Gs of the genetic code ) marked day one in the race to understand the genetics of this newly discovered coronavirus .
Now , a further 100,000 coronavirus genomes sampled from COVID-19 patients in over 100 countries have joined Wuhan-1 .
Geneticists around the world are mining the data for answers .
Where did Sars-CoV-2 come from ?
When did it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ virus mutating — and does it matter ?
Sars-CoV-2 genomics , much like the virus itself , went big and went global .
The term mutation tends to conjure up images of dangerous new viruses with enhanced abilities sweeping across the planet .
And while mutations constantly emerge and sometimes sweep — early mutations in Sars-CoV-2 have made their way around the world as the virus spread almost unnoticed — mutations are a perfectly natural part of any organism , including viruses .
The vast majority have no impact on a virus 's @ @ @ @ @ @ @ A mutation just means a difference ; a letter change in the genome .
While the Sars-CoV-2 population was genetically essentially invariant when it jumped into its first human host , over 13,000 of these changes are now found in the 100,000 Sars-CoV-2 sequenced to date .
Yet any two viruses from any two patients anywhere in the world differ on average by only .
This is a tiny fraction of the total 30,000 characters in the virus 's genetic code and means that all Sars-CoV-2 in circulation can be considered part of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ take some time for the virus to acquire substantial genetic diversity .
Sars-CoV-2 mutates fairly slowly for a virus , with any lineage acquiring a couple of changes every month ; than the number of mutations acquired by influenza viruses over the same period .
Still , mutations are the bedrock on which natural selection can act .
Most commonly mutations will render a virus non-functional or have no effect whatsoever .
Yet the potential for mutations to affect transmissibility of Sars-CoV-2 in its new human hosts exists .
As a result , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ which , if any , of the mutations identifiable since the first Sars-CoV-2 genome was sequenced in Wuhan may significantly alter viral function .
An infamous mutation in this context is an amino acid change in the Sars-CoV-2 spike protein , the protein that gives coronaviruses their characteristic crown-like projections and allows it to attach to host cells .
This single character change in the viral genome — termed — has been shown to increase virus infectivity in cells grown in the lab , though with no measurable impact on disease severity .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ found with three other mutations , and all four are now found in about 80 % of sequenced Sars-CoV-2 making it the most frequent set of mutations in circulation .
The challenge with D614G , as with other mutations , is disentangling whether they have risen in frequency because they happened to be present in viruses responsible for seeding early successful outbreaks , or whether they to their carriers .
While genomics work on a UK dataset suggests a subtle role of D614G in increasing the carrying it , our own work could @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the only mutation found at high frequency .
A string of three mutations in the protein shell of Sars-CoV-2 are also increasingly appearing in sequencing data and are now found in a third of viruses .
A single change at position 57 of the Orf3a protein , a known immunogenic region , occurs in a quarter .
Other mutations exist in the spike protein while myriad others seem induced by the activity of our .
At the same time , there remains no consensus that these , or any others , are significantly @ @ @ @ @ @ @ mutations are simply carried along as Sars-CoV-2 continues to successfully spread .
But replacements are not the only small edits that may affect Sars-CoV-2 .
Deletions in the Sars-CoV-2 accessory genes Orf7b/Orf8 have been shown to of Sars-CoV-2 , potentially eliciting milder infections in patients .
A similar may have behaved in the in Sars-CoV-1 , the related coronavirus responsible for the Sars outbreak in 2002-04 .
Progression towards a less virulent Sars-CoV-2 would be welcome news , though deletions in Orf8 have been present from the early days of the pandemic and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ frequency .
While adaptive changes may yet occur , all the available data at this stage suggests we 're facing the same virus since the start of the pandemic .
Chris Whitty , chief medical officer for England , was right to pour cold water on the idea that the virus has than the one that caused the UK to impose a lockdown in March .
Possible decreases in symptom severity seen over the summer are probably a result of younger people being infected , containment measures ( such as social distancing ) @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the virus itself .
However , while Sars-CoV-2 has not significantly changed to date , we continue to expand our tools to track and trace its evolution , ready to keep pace .
This article was originally published at The Conversation .
The publication contributed the article to Live Science 's Expert Voices : Op-Ed & Insights .

In early January, the first genome sequence of Sars-CoV-2 — the virus that causes COVID-19 — was released under the moniker "Wuhan-1". This string of 30,000 letters (the A, T, C and Gs of the genetic code) marked day one in the race to understand the genetics of this newly discovered coronavirus. Now, a further 100,000 coronavirus genomes sampled from COVID-19 patients in over 100 countries have joined Wuhan-1. Geneticists around the world are mining the data for answers. Where did Sars-CoV-2 come from? When did it start infecting humans? How is the virus mutating — and does it matter? Sars-CoV-2 genomics, much like the virus itself, went big and went global.
The term mutation tends to conjure up images of dangerous new viruses with enhanced abilities sweeping across the planet. And while mutations constantly emerge and sometimes sweep — early mutations in Sars-CoV-2 have made their way around the world as the virus spread almost unnoticed — mutations are a perfectly natural part of any organism, including viruses. The vast majority have no impact on a virus's ability to transmit or cause disease.
A mutation just means a difference; a letter change in the genome. While the Sars-CoV-2 population was genetically essentially invariant when it jumped into its first human host in late 2019 , over 13,000 of these changes are now found in the 100,000 Sars-CoV-2 sequenced to date. Yet any two viruses from any two patients anywhere in the world differ on average by only ten letters . This is a tiny fraction of the total 30,000 characters in the virus's genetic code and means that all Sars-CoV-2 in circulation can be considered part of a single clonal lineage.
Slowly mutating
It will take some time for the virus to acquire substantial genetic diversity. Sars-CoV-2 mutates fairly slowly for a virus, with any lineage acquiring a couple of changes every month ; two to six-fold lower than the number of mutations acquired by influenza viruses over the same period.
Still, mutations are the bedrock on which natural selection can act. Most commonly mutations will render a virus non-functional or have no effect whatsoever. Yet the potential for mutations to affect transmissibility of Sars-CoV-2 in its new human hosts exists. As a result, there have been intense efforts to determine which, if any, of the mutations identifiable since the first Sars-CoV-2 genome was sequenced in Wuhan may significantly alter viral function.
An infamous mutation in this context is an amino acid change in the Sars-CoV-2 spike protein, the protein that gives coronaviruses their characteristic crown-like projections and allows it to attach to host cells. This single character change in the viral genome — termed D614G — has been shown to increase virus infectivity in cells grown in the lab, though with no measurable impact on disease severity. Although this mutation is also near systematically found with three other mutations, and all four are now found in about 80% of sequenced Sars-CoV-2 making it the most frequent set of mutations in circulation.
The challenge with D614G, as with other mutations, is disentangling whether they have risen in frequency because they happened to be present in viruses responsible for seeding early successful outbreaks, or whether they truly confer an advantage to their carriers. While genomics work on a UK dataset suggests a subtle role of D614G in increasing the growth rate of lineages carrying it, our own work could find no measurable impact on transmission.
Simply carried along
D614G is not the only mutation found at high frequency. A string of three mutations in the protein shell of Sars-CoV-2 are also increasingly appearing in sequencing data and are now found in a third of viruses. A single change at position 57 of the Orf3a protein, a known immunogenic region, occurs in a quarter. Other mutations exist in the spike protein while myriad others seem induced by the activity of our own immune response . At the same time, there remains no consensus that these, or any others, are significantly changing virus transmissibility or virulence. Most mutations are simply carried along as Sars-CoV-2 continues to successfully spread.
But replacements are not the only small edits that may affect Sars-CoV-2. Deletions in the Sars-CoV-2 accessory genes Orf7b/Orf8 have been shown to reduce the virulence of Sars-CoV-2, potentially eliciting milder infections in patients. A similar deletion may have behaved in the same way in Sars-CoV-1, the related coronavirus responsible for the Sars outbreak in 2002-04. Progression towards a less virulent Sars-CoV-2 would be welcome news, though deletions in Orf8 have been present from the early days of the pandemic and do not seem to be increasing in frequency.
While adaptive changes may yet occur, all the available data at this stage suggests we're facing the same virus since the start of the pandemic. Chris Whitty, chief medical officer for England, was right to pour cold water on the idea that the virus has mutated into something milder than the one that caused the UK to impose a lockdown in March. Possible decreases in symptom severity seen over the summer are probably a result of younger people being infected, containment measures (such as social distancing) and improved treatment rather than changes in the virus itself. However, while Sars-CoV-2 has not significantly changed to date, we continue to expand our tools to track and trace its evolution, ready to keep pace.
This article was originally published at The Conversation. The publication contributed the article to Live Science's Expert Voices: Op-Ed & Insights.


livescience--2020-09-24--NASA and US Space Force team up for planetary defense, moon trips and more

NASA and the are banding together for the future of human spaceflight .
As the agency moves forward with its Artemis program , which aims to return humans to the lunar surface by 2024 , NASA is also working on its relationship with the newly-minted Space Force , which was formed Dec. 2019 .
Today ( Sept. 22 ) , NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine and U.S. Space Force Chief of Space Operations Gen. John `` Jay '' Raymond ( MOU ) between NASA and the U.S. Space Force .
This agreement officially joins the two entities in collaboration with regard @ @ @ @ @ @ @ policy , space transportation , standards and best practices for safe operations in space , scientific research and planetary defense , '' .
Related : What is the Space Force ?
NASA and the Space Force have penned this MOU to `` affirm a strong interest in continuing their longstanding partnership for mutually beneficial collaborative activities in furtherance of space exploration , scientific discovery , and security , '' .
While NASA is focused on exploration , science and technology , the Space Force is a military operation .
But while the two @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , `` we share the same domain and we 're operating in the same environment .
So there 's a lot of synergies , a lot of overlap , '' Bridenstine said today during a Mitchell Institute virtual event .
`` NASA and the military share a long history dating back to the late 1950s ; there is power in our partnership , '' Raymond said in the same statement .
`` A secure , stable , and accessible space domain underpins our nation ’ s security , prosperity and scientific achievement .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ , as NASA pushes farther into the universe for the benefit of all . ''
`` In the case of NASA , it 's way more than just sharing data ... we sit on the floor together , we do the analytical work together , it 's a partnership that is really , really tight , '' Raymond added during the event today .
While NASA does n't dabble in military power and defense , the agency , especially now with this collaboration , is an integral piece of National power , which @ @ @ @ @ @ @ economic powers , in the U.S. , Bridenstine explained .
`` We are an instrument of national power , '' Bridenstine added .
`` It is soft power , it is diplomatic power , information power , economic power , '' he said about NASA 's role in working with other nations in space through ongoing programs like the International Space Station , the steps the agency has taken in commercializing space and more .
`` This is really a tool of diplomacy for the nation , '' he said about the agency @ @ @ @ @ @ @ any of those things if space is not secure .
And that 's why it was important to create the Space Force , that 's why it 's important for NASA to partner with the Space Force . ''
In `` securing '' space , NASA aims to , with the support of the U.S. Space Force , `` have their international collaborators `` agree to basic norms of behavior , '' which will ultimately be `` what will preserve space for humanity , '' Bridenstine said .
With this MOU , the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ adhere to but take it even further , by collaboratively creating these `` norms '' so that , as companies and space agencies work to launch their own missions to space , they take into account `` what are are the norms of behavior that all nations need to abide by in order for us to be able to sustain space for a long time , '' Bridenstine said .
Email Chelsea Gohd at cgohd @ space.com or follow her on Twitter @ chelsea_gohd .
Follow us on Twitter @ Spacedotcom and on @ @

NASA and the United States Space Force are banding together for the future of human spaceflight.
As the agency moves forward with its Artemis program, which aims to return humans to the lunar surface by 2024, NASA is also working on its relationship with the newly-minted Space Force, which was formed Dec. 2019. Today (Sept. 22), NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine and U.S. Space Force Chief of Space Operations Gen. John "Jay" Raymond announced a memorandum of understanding (MOU) between NASA and the U.S. Space Force.
This agreement officially joins the two entities in collaboration with regard to "human spaceflight, U.S. space policy, space transportation, standards and best practices for safe operations in space, scientific research and planetary defense," NASA said in a statement .
Related: What is the Space Force?
NASA and the Space Force have teamed up to sign a memorandum of understanding. (Image credit: U.S. Space Force)
NASA and the Space Force have penned this MOU to "affirm a strong interest in continuing their longstanding partnership for mutually beneficial collaborative activities in furtherance of space exploration, scientific discovery, and security," the MOU reads .
While NASA is focused on exploration, science and technology, the Space Force is a military operation. But while the two have very different missions and overall goals, "we share the same domain and we're operating in the same environment. So there's a lot of synergies, a lot of overlap," Bridenstine said today during a Mitchell Institute virtual event.
"NASA and the military share a long history dating back to the late 1950s; there is power in our partnership," Raymond said in the same statement. "A secure, stable, and accessible space domain underpins our nation’s security, prosperity and scientific achievement. Space Force looks forward to future collaboration, as NASA pushes farther into the universe for the benefit of all."
"In the case of NASA, it's way more than just sharing data ... we sit on the floor together, we do the analytical work together, it's a partnership that is really, really tight," Raymond added during the event today.
While NASA doesn't dabble in military power and defense, the agency, especially now with this collaboration, is an integral piece of National power, which comprises diplomatic, informational, military and economic powers, in the U.S., Bridenstine explained.
Today @SpaceForceCSO and I announced we signed a broad agreement between @NASA & SpaceForceDoD to collaborate in areas such as human spaceflight, U.S. space policy, space transportation and more: https://t.co/fkNtZ7hySrSeptember 22, 2020 See more
"We are an instrument of national power," Bridenstine added. "It is soft power, it is diplomatic power, information power, economic power," he said about NASA's role in working with other nations in space through ongoing programs like the International Space Station, the steps the agency has taken in commercializing space and more.
"This is really a tool of diplomacy for the nation," he said about the agency, "but we can't do any of those things if space is not secure. And that's why it was important to create the Space Force, that's why it's important for NASA to partner with the Space Force."
In "securing" space, NASA aims to, with the support of the U.S. Space Force, "have their international collaborators "agree to basic norms of behavior," which will ultimately be "what will preserve space for humanity," Bridenstine said.
With this MOU, the agency and the military branch aim to adhere to the Outer Space Treaty but take it even further, by collaboratively creating these "norms" so that, as companies and space agencies work to launch their own missions to space, they take into account "what are are the norms of behavior that all nations need to abide by in order for us to be able to sustain space for a long time," Bridenstine said.
Email Chelsea Gohd at cgohd@space.com or follow her on Twitter @chelsea_gohd. Follow us on Twitter @Spacedotcom and on Facebook.