Tag: earth
Phytocleaning our planet
Life on Earth has multiple forms. Humans make up only 0.01% of Earth’s total biomass, while plants total a whopping 82.4%. Yet the value of plants is often neglected. Humans have thrived on this planet because of the other life that Earth protects. Advances in human civilisation, such as industrialisation, have polluted the planet, thereby affecting all living organisms. Efforts […]
Robotics and autonomy: From space robots to applications in daily life
Robots are an integral part of our world, with mostly non-autonomous systems providing support in practically every aspect of modern life. These robots are used in industry, surgical procedures, and the household, with more autonomous robots developed for space and deep-sea applications which are more detached from human activities. Dr Sirko Straube and Professor Dr Frank Kirchner from the German […]
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How could we build a liveable space habitat?
In the not-too-distant future, humanity will be faced with the challenge of building permanent homes in space. For this to happen, space habitats will need to closely replicate Earth’s gravity, while dealing with the threat of radiation and meteorites from outer space. Through his research, Werner Grandl at Space Renaissance International in Italy considers how these challenges could be overcome. Through […]
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Atmospheric species and their effect on solar radiation and our health
Our atmosphere is a giant chemical reactor that helps keep us safe from the potentially damaging and warming effects of solar radiation. It consists of a hugely complex mixture of atmospheric liquids, gases, and particles with constantly varying compositions. Professor Jianhui Bai at the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Professor Rui Chen at the Beijing Academy of Science and Technology […]
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Supervolcano Forensics: unravelling the mysteries of the Earth’s biggest natural catastrophe
To many, if not most, the word ‘forensics’ invokes images of the very small – DNA, fingerprints, etc., – but for Professor Shanaka de Silva and his colleagues at the College of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences, Oregon State University, ‘forensics’ is being used to investigate something altogether bigger. The team is using a multidisciplinary approach to reveal the secrets […]