In a stroke of luck, the SuperCam microphone on Perseverance was turned on the moment a dust devil swept directly over the rover.
News
Mission Could Lasso Amino Acids from the Icy Plumes of Enceladus
If geysers from Saturn’s moon Enceladus contain amino acids, new research shows that a spacecraft could collect them with signatures of possible life preserved.
Geohazard Education Trainings Foster Resilience in Rural Alaska
National Science Foundation-funded teacher and community workshops boost disaster preparedness optimism among coastal Alaskan educators, whose communities face an array of natural hazards.
Were Impressionist Masters Painting a Polluted Reality?
Image analysis suggests that artists’ styles evolved in sync with increasing air pollution during the Industrial Revolution.
Making Underwater Cables SMART with Sensors
Future cables that stretch across the ocean, transmitting cat videos and financial transactions, could also contain temperature, pressure, and seismic sensors that would allow scientists to spy on the seafloor.
Spurring Ocean Research with Open Data
Ocean data abound, but accessing them is a challenge, making tackling climate change difficult. One nonprofit is trying to compile them.
In the Deepest Ocean Reaches, a Potent Pollutant Comes to Rest
Surprising amounts of mercury settling into deep-sea trenches may provide a fuller picture of the metal’s path through the environment, but pulling it to the surface is no easy feat.
Could Floating Solar Panels Help Mitigate Climate Change?
“Floatovoltaics” are an emerging technology, but their environmental impacts are still unknown.
Glacial Ice Offers Polar Bears a Precarious Climate Refuge
An isolated polar bear population in southeastern Greenland survives in fjords, despite spotty sea ice. But this pocket of bears is not a sign of how the species could be saved.
Underwater Sounds Help Reveal Extent of Glacial Calving
If a glacier calves into the Arctic Ocean, does it make a sound? Some scientists say yes and have devised a clever way to use those sounds to calculate the size of the fallen ice chunks.