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Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS). Image: NASA

Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS). Image: NASA

Issue no. 33, 2009 Published: Oct 09, 2009
In search of water, NASA prepares 'to bomb' the moon
EU launches free satellite system to fine-tune GPS
Tiny 'nuclear batteries' unveiled
New printing method takes a cue from nature
There's gold in them there modified bacteria
Beating traffic jams 'like a fish'
Scientist reproduces Turin shroud

In search of water, NASA prepares 'to bomb' the moon
NASA is preparing a violent return to the moon today as part of a mission to send a satellite and a rocket booster crashing into the planet's surface to look for water. Conspiracy theories aside - a 'do not bomb the moon' website is already campaigning against the move - there is no actual bomb, but the US space agency's LCROSS satellite and heavier Centaur upper-stage rocket will still leave huge impact sites where NASA hopes to find evidence of water or ice. At 1130 GMT, the rocket and four minutes later the spacecraft will separately race into the moon at 9,000 km per hour to kick up approximately 10 km of lunar dirt from the Cabeus crater floor near the south pole. The flash that will follow the impact will last about 30 seconds. A camera mounted on the 891-kilogram Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS) will beam live footage back to Earth. The carnage is the first preparatory mission of the Constellation program that aims to bring Americans back to the moon by 2020. NASA says it will take several days for analysts to evaluate the data and several weeks to determine whether and how much hydrogen-bearing compounds were found.
Yahoo News / AFP Oct 09, 2009	back to top

EU launches free satellite system to fine-tune GPS
The EU launched a free satellite navigation network last week that could help pilots, drivers and blind people by fine-tuning the accuracy of the US global positioning system (GPS) to around 2 metres. The EGNOS system will use three satellites and 34 ground stations to narrow the horizontal accuracy of GPS from around 7 metres previously and improve its vertical accuracy to help pilots during landings. The 'Safety-of-Life' service for aircraft navigation could be in place next year, the EU executive said in a statement. Farmers could also benefit from improved precision for spraying fertilisers, and new applications could emerge on roads, such as automatic tolling and pay-per-use car insurance. The system was pioneered by the Commission, the European Space Agency and aviation safety authority Eurocontrol. It paves the way for the better known Galileo project, a European satellite system which will rival GPS and could be up and running in 2014.
Reuters Oct 01, 2009	back to top

Tiny 'nuclear batteries' unveiled
Researchers at the University of Missouri have demonstrated a penny-sized 'nuclear battery' that produces energy from the decay of radioisotopes. As radioactive substances decay, they release charged particles that when properly harvested can create an electrical current. The batteries hold a million times as much charge as standard batteries. The researchers have developed it in an attempt to scale down power sources for the tiny devices that fall under the category of micro- and nano-electromechanical systems. Nuclear batteries are an attractive proposition for many applications because the isotopes that power them can provide a useful amount of current for phenomenally long times - up to hundreds of years or more. As a result, they have seen use in spacecraft that are fired far off into the cosmos. But for applications here on Earth, their size has limited their use. The Missouri team employed a liquid semiconductor to capture and utilise the decay particles. Most nuclear batteries use a solid semiconductor to harvest the particles, but the particles' extremely high energies means that the semiconductors suffer damage over time. This means that to build a battery that can last as long as the isotope inside, they must be built larger. The team's solution incorporates a liquid semiconductor, in which the particles can pass without causing damage. They are now working to further miniaturise the batteries.
BBC News Oct 08, 2009	back to top

New printing method takes a cue from nature
By mimicking the 'structural colours' found in butterfly wings and peacock feathers, researchers in South Korea and the US have developed a high-resolution patterning technique that produces multiple colours within seconds. Structural colours, such as those on butterfly wings and peacock feathers, differ from traditional pigments or dyes in that the colour results from the interaction of light with periodic structures on the surface of the material. Advantages of structural colour are that it cannot be mimicked by chemical pigments or dyes and it is immune to photobleaching. Multiple colours can be displayed using a single material simply by varying the dimension of the periodic nanostructures. Such properties make structural colour printing attractive for a range of applications, including forgery protection and the design of new materials. To date, however, attempts to manufacture artificial structural colour have proved time-consuming. Now, researchers at Seoul National University and the University of California, have found a way to produce a single ink of any desired colour within a few seconds. The material, dubbed 'M-Ink', changes colour when a magnetic field is applied. What is more, the colour can be rapidly locked into the material by shining patterned ultraviolet light onto its surface.
PhysicsWorld / Nature Photonics Sep 30, 2009	back to top

There's gold in them there modified bacteria
A genetically modified version of a bacterium that extracts gold from its environment can signal the presence of the precious metal. The result could be a boon for prospectors. Researchers at the University of Adelaide, South Australia and the University of Nebraska have found that dissolved gold is harmful to the bacterium Cupriavidus metallidurans, as it forms a toxic sulphur- containing compound when it is absorbed from the environment. This compound inhibits the bacterium's enzyme function, prompting the distressed microbe to activate a cluster of 'gold detox' genes that produce enzymes able to convert the soluble gold compounds into harmless particles of metallic gold. The researchers have developed a genetically modified version of C. metallidurans that produces a visible response when the detox genes are switched on. When the microbes come into contact with gold, they flash a light that can be detected using a hand-held photometer. The researchers envisage that prospectors will be able to detect whether gold is present simply by taking a sample of soil and adding modified bacteria to it.
New Scientist / Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences Oct 05, 2009	back to top

Beating traffic jams 'like a fish'
Robots that mimic the behaviour of fish have been developed by Japanese car firm Nissan, who believe the technique can be used in crash avoidance systems. The tiny robots, called Eporo, can move in a fleet without bumping into their travelling companions. It is the second time the firm has looked to the animal kingdom for inspiration for its designs. Last year, the manufacturer unveiled its BR23C robot, which was modelled on the behaviour of bumblebees. The bee also displays anti-collision behaviour but tends to fly solo. The new three-wheeled robot is designed to travel in a group of up to seven vehicles. Each uses a laser range-finder to measure the distance between obstacle. The data is constantly shared between peers via radio, allowing the group to travel as a 'shoal' without bumping into each other. The technique allows the cars to travel side-by-side or quickly switch direction as a group.
BBC News Oct 02, 2009	back to top

Scientist reproduces Turin shroud
The Shroud of Turin has been reproduced by an Italian scientist in another attempt to prove that the cloth bearing an image of Christ's face is a fake. A professor of organic chemistry at the University of Pavia said he had used materials and techniques that were available in the Middle Ages. These included applying pigment to cloth and then heating it in an oven. Tests 20 years ago dated the fabric to between 1260 and 1390, but believers say it is an authentic image of Christ. The linen cloth, measuring about 4.4m by 1.1m, holds the concealed image of a man bearing all the signs of crucifixion, including blood stains. Tests in 1988 have been repeatedly challenged, and scientists remain unsure how the image came to be on the cloth. Garlaschelli reproduced the shroud by placing a linen sheet flat over a volunteer and then rubbing it with a pigment containing traces of acid. A mask was used for the face. The pigment was then artificially aged by heating the cloth in an oven and washing it. This removed the pigment from the surface but left a half-tone image similar to that on the Shroud. Blood stains, burn holes, scorches and water stains were then added to achieve the final effect.
BBC News Oct 06, 2009	back to top