Researchers are identifying space debris by measuring its flickering patterns of reflected light.
light
Posted inFeatures
Why Sunlight Matters for Marine Oil Spills
A decade of research since the Deepwater Horizon disaster has revealed how sunlight—its importance long understated in oil spill science—substantially alters petroleum floating at the sea surface.
Posted inNews
Shedding Light on the Darkest Regions of the Moon
An international team of researchers is analyzing boulder tracks to learn more about some of the most elusive regions on the Moon.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Sunlight Stimulates Brown Algae to Release Organic Carbon
Sargassum and other brown algae might be an underappreciated contributor of organic compounds called polyphenols to the open ocean.
Posted inNews
Light Permeates Seasonally Through Arctic Sea Ice
The transmission of sunlight through Arctic sea ice depends on the presence of ice, snow, and melt ponds, data collected over 6 years reveal.
Posted inEditors' Highlights
3D Radiation-Topography Interaction Warms Up Tibetan Plateau
3-D radiation-topography interaction, which can increase the sunlight absorption by the surface, is missing in all climate models, causing strong cold biases over the Tibetan Plateau.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
How Yellowing Seas Will Affect Ocean Temperatures
Materials that trap solar heat at the sea surface could cause more extreme temperatures.
Posted inScience Updates
Looking at “Night-Shining” Clouds from the Stratosphere
One research group studied noctilucent clouds at large distances from a different point of view, using cameras aboard a meteorological balloon that sailed into the stratosphere.
Posted inNews
Could Life Be Floating in Venus’s Clouds?
If present, microbes could explain evolving patterns in the planet’s atmosphere when observed in ultraviolet light.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Yellow Detritus in the Oceans May Help Reduce Warming
Dissolved organic matter in the oceans absorbs light near the water’s surface, leading to cooler waters that may help mitigate regional climate warming.