The fascinating behind-the-scenes story of the exploits of the first team of private astronauts to cross the Kármán line is finally being told.

A newly released documentary film, “Beyond Blue Sky: The Untold Story of the First Private Astronauts,” now available on Apple TV and Amazon Prime, reveals the award-winning accomplishment and includes firsthand testimony from the pilots and engineers who made the inaugural private astronaut space flights possible.

The film also includes one of the two record-setting astronauts, U.S. Navy combat veteran Brian Binnie, sharing an unusual, life-altering experience for the first time on screen, an event that he credits for inspiring him to continue after a crushing setback almost ended his dreams of flying to space.

A Private Astronaut’s Failure and a UAP Encounter

In an email to The Debrief, documentary filmmaker Kevin Curran noted that his Emmy-nominated crew, “with a proven space pedigree,” including chronicling milestones of Blue Origin, SpaceX, Astrobotic, and NASA, was able to capture “razor’s-edge supersonic test flight footage” to reveal the story of the first team of private astronauts to join the small group of humans to have ventured into space.

Along the way, the documentary depicts the team’s successes and failures in their pursuit of reaching space for the first time—and then doing so two more times with extra ballast—to win a $10 million prize.

Although Binnie, a Princeton-educated aeronautical engineer and 20-year Navy pilot, would typically seem like the obvious choice for the award-winning space attempt, a difficult crash landing on the first rocket-powered test flight of the program had Binnie doubting whether he would get another opportunity to pilot SpaceShipOne for the remaining five test flights.

As incredible as the team’s historic accomplishments were, Curran told The Debrief that the story took an unexpected, but inspiring turn when Binnie revealed an out-of-this-world encounter that he credited with inspiring him to recover from that setback and ultimately make the historic flight.

“The rest of the documentary is pretty incredible/riveting, I think, but [Binnie’s] story makes it so topical right now with the Pentagon’s release of UAP files,” Curran told The Debrief.

“I Turned Around Expecting to See Them Behind Me”

According to Curran, his team had no idea about Binnie’s encounter when they started filming. As the ebullient filmmaker noted, the team was about six weeks into production on a film that he says “we thought would simply be an untold, feel-good story involving perseverance and redemption within the birth of private spaceflight.” Then, while the cameras rolled, Binnie made his revelation.

Although Curran notes that the pilot had previously confided in “dozens of people within the aerospace and test flight world over the years about his extreme close encounter,” this was the first time the veteran of 33 combat missions had “courageously” shared his experience on-screen.

“Like any good story, it simply became more fascinating the more we pulled on the thread,” Curran told The Debrief.

The tale began on December 17, 2003, when Binnie successfully piloted SpaceShipOne to nearly 68,000 feet on its first rocket-powered test flight, a critical early accomplishment that made him the first pilot to go supersonic in a privately funded vehicle. However, the flight ended in an extremely rough landing that damaged the craft’s landing gear, wing, and fuselage, putting Binnie’s future as one of three test pilots of SpaceShipOne in doubt.

“After the crash, the 47-year-old Binnie faced the reality that he may never fly the spaceship again on the remaining five test flights of the program,” a summary emailed to The Debrief explains.

Six days after the hard landing, Binnie was awake one morning at around 4 a.m., unable to sleep comfortably in his bed. Then, according to the astronaut’s account, he noticed that “bright lights were coming through my window blinds. I rose, opened the window blinds to find that daylight had manifested in my backyard.” The decorated Navy veteran noted that while his backyard was illuminated, everything else he looked at was dark.

The next part of Binnie’s story details the presence of around a dozen translucent, glowing “orbs” he said he could perceive within the lit area. However, the pilot recalled, the orbs did not seem bright enough to account for the inordinately bright light illuminating his backyard. During his on-screen recollection, the award-winning pilot also details the movement of the orbs, including two of them approaching him from approximately 50 feet away, passing through his bedroom window, and entering his chest.

“I turned around expecting to see them behind me, but they weren’t there,” he said.

Binnie described the pre-dawn experience as “the most incredible thing I ever witnessed.”

The Impact on Binnie and the Documentary Crew

When discussing the impact that the unusual experience had on him, Binnie told Curran’s team that he initially searched for a conventional explanation. With advanced engineering degrees and a 20-year Navy career that led him to become both a test pilot and manager of the SpaceShipOne program, he was well accustomed to evaluating unusual observations. However, after exhausting all prosaic possibilities, the trained scientist, pilot, and observer ultimately concluded that the mysterious glowing orbs represented an intelligent phenomenon that had somehow allowed him to perceive them.

“It gave me hope that I had a purpose, and that purpose was to not simply take defeat, but was to pick myself up and continue,” Binnie told the documentarian.

After what the team calls “a bizarre series of events” that offered Binnie a second chance to pilot SpaceShipOne, the newly reinvigorated aviator boarded the craft’s final flight on October 4, 2004. During the launch phase, when the pilot and craft are hauled to a high latitude by the mothership, White Knight, Binnie said he once again reflected on the apparent UAP experience, including how he felt the orbs had given him an intangible drive to complete his mission and make history.

By the time the flight was complete, winning both the Collier and Ansari XPRIZE, Curran said the accomplishment proved that a team of “renegade geniuses” could achieve a NASA-level feat for a fraction of the space agency’s typical cost. As far as the late pilot’s unusual UAP encounter, Curran credits Binnie’s courage for sharing his experience with UAPs, while also noting the effect the man’s retelling had on him and his crew.

Brian Confided in Colleagues for Years, But This is His First Filmed Account

“One thing I wish to clarify, in the event it matters, is that I believe Brian’s story,” Curran told The Debrief, while once again citing the combat veteran’s impressive credentials.

The documentarian also noted that there has been a stigma around the UAP subject for a long time, and that Binnie “was really brave to come out to me in 2020 before any of the House Oversight Committee testimonies or recent releases by the Pentagon.”

Brian confided in only a few aerospace colleagues about the experience for many years, and even learned of another astronaut with a similar experience, but the story’s inclusion in the film was the first time he shared it on record before passing away.

“I simply want to protect Brian Binnie’s memory and surviving family, as he was always kind to me, inspiring, and I’m proud to have called him a friend,” Curran concluded.

The project “is dedicated to the memory of test pilots Brian Binnie and Mike Melvill, the first two private astronauts who had the courage to fly stick-and-rudder to space,” the documentary team states.

“Thankfully, they shared their extraordinary stories on camera before they were lost forever in the Mojave sand,” the team concludes.

Christopher Plain is a Science Fiction and Fantasy novelist and Head Science Writer at The Debrief. Follow and connect with him on X, learn about his books at plainfiction.com, or email him directly at christopher@thedebrief.org.

Experiments exploring the effects of missing a night’s sleep on the human brain have found indications that a sleepless night actually increases connections between brain cells instead of impeding growth. However, the lack of sleep could also create brain “fatigue” and pressure, resulting in burnout.

The Forschungszentrum Jülich Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine team behind the discovery said that their findings might support the idea that sleep plays an important role in restoring the brain’s cellular balance.

Missing a Night’s Sleep Could Disrupt Cellular Balance

In a statement announcing the surprising discovery, study leader David Elmenhorst and colleagues note that scientists still are not in complete consensus about why humans and other animals need sleep. One proposal involves restoring synaptic connections between brain cells during certain stages of sleep, helping the brain maintain a form of cellular ‘homeostasis.’

For example, previous research has shown that synaptic connectivity increases during wakefulness. This increased activity also increases energy consumption, potentially resulting in problematic protein buildup. Conversely, scientists suspect that sleep helps restore baseline synaptic connections and protein levels, thereby maintaining a healthy cellular balance.

“Sleep is essential for synaptic homeostasis, a proposed mechanism whereby wake­fulness leads to synaptic potentiation, and sleep facilitates synaptic down-selection,” the research team explains in a recently published study.

Although previous studies suggest that missing a night’s sleep could disrupt this balance, the team notes that there is very little experimental data to support these conclusions.

Study Reveals Elevated Synaptic Activity After 28 Hours Awake

To explore the role of sleep in cellular homeostasis in the human brain, the researchers used an advanced brain-scanning technology called positron emission tomography (PET). According to the team’s statement, this tool can scan the human brain for signs of synaptic vesicle glycoprotein 2A (SV2A),  which they describe as a “marker” of brain synapses.

The team started by enlisting 40 study volunteers. Next, each volunteer was given a PET scan to establish baseline marker levels. After their first scan, 20 of the volunteers were told to get a normal night’s sleep. According to the study authors, the second half were assigned to “the sleep deprivation condition,” where they were told to miss a night’s sleep.

The next day, the team used the PET scan to search for telltale brain synapse markers. As hoped, the scans revealed a distinct difference between the two groups. Where the normal sleep group’s levels were within expected ranges, the synapse markers of the volunteers who had missed a night’s sleep were elevated.

A closer analysis found that once people passed 28 hours of continued wakefulness, their SV2A markers were higher “in several brain regions.” Notably, these increased markers were detected in the hippocampus, which plays an important role in memory, and in the thalamus, which is critical for information relay within the brain.

“Sleep deprivation led to significant increases in synaptic vesicle glycoprotein 2A binding in multiple brain regions, including the thalamus (+4.6%), hippocampus (+5.6%), and parietal cortex (+3.2%), whereas no changes were observed in controls,” the study authors write.

Sleep Deprivation Causes Fatigue and CHanges Neural COnnections

When discussing the study’s limitations, the authors note that the SV2A marker used is a “proxy” for connections between brain cells, not a direct measure. They also note that the observed changes after a missed night’s sleep “were relatively small.” Still, they add, the results in several regions across several study participants “suggest a biological connection between the need for sleep and the buildup of cell connections.”

“During sleep deprivation, the brain remains awake longer and continues to process stimuli and information,” they write. “Our study shows that after approximately 28.5 hours of wakefulness, a marker for synaptic density increases in several brain regions. This suggests that sleep deprivation not only causes fatigue but is also accompanied by measurable changes in neural connections.”

The study “Sleep deprivation increases levels of the synaptic density marker SV2A in the human brain” was published in PLOS Biology.

Christopher Plain is a Science Fiction and Fantasy novelist and Head Science Writer at The Debrief. Follow and connect with him on X, learn about his books at plainfiction.com, or email him directly at christopher@thedebrief.org.

A virtual tour of the historic UK monument, called the Virtual World of Stonehenge, which allows users to visit one of the world’s most iconic historical sites, has just been released online to coincide with the annual summer solstice.

Along with capturing the entire 2022 British Museum’s Stonehenge virtual tour, the new online experience developed by researchers at the University of Reading allows users to travel back in time to witness the site at various stages of construction on their phones, PCs, or other devices without leaving the comfort of their homes.

Building the Virtual World of Stonehenge with 3D scans

According to a statement announcing the new online Virtual World of Stonehenge experience, the museum’s original ‘World of Stonehenge’ exhibition, which opened on February 17, 2022, attracted over 190,000 visitors and brought together “over 400 objects from 36 institutions across Europe.”

“The original exhibition brought together an extraordinary collection of prehistoric objects, many of which had never been displayed together before,” explained team member and study author, Professor Duncan Garrow, Professor of Archaeology at the University of Reading. However, the team noted, viewing the entire complex, interactive exhibit required in-person attendance.

To capture the experience and make it available worldwide, Professor Garrow and colleagues joined forces with researchers at the University of Southampton. They also enlisted the services of ArtasMedia, a team of “digital heritage specialists” which employed laser scans to digitally capture every inch of the exhibit. According to the team, these 3D scans of the original World of Stonehenge gallery were taken during the exhibition’s final weeks.

Taking the Online Tour Makes History “More Accessible”

Along with capturing all the original exhibit, the team said that the new online experience allows users to “go inside Stonehenge itself and watch it change through time, explore Neolithic flint mines at Grimes Graves, and discover rarely seen prehistoric objects through animation, soundscapes and interactive content.”

“Timed to release alongside the summer solstice, the new virtual version goes well beyond a simple recreation of the gallery,” they explain.

Some of the most striking objects featured in the museum exhibit and the virtual tour include a 6,000-year-old elm leaf, a bracelet woven from cow hair, and the remains of what the team called a “prehistoric feast.” When scanned with 3D lasers and combined with their historical context, the team said the lesser-known objects and their stories suddenly become “more accessible.”

“Now anyone, anywhere they are, can not only see those objects but understand the world of Stonehenge and experience how it looked and felt thousands of years ago,” Professor Darrow said. “We hope it brings prehistoric Britain to life in a completely new way.” 

Release Intentionally Timed with the Summer Solstice

When discussing the value of putting the Virtual World of Stonehenge online, Dr Neil Wilkin at the British Museum said the project has prompted him and his colleagues to consider the future of virtual museum exhibitions, “not just at the British Museum but everywhere across the world.”

Funded by UK Research and Innovation and building on AHRC-funded research led by British Museum curator Dr Neil Wilkin, in partnership with Professor Duncan Garrow at the University of Reading, the June 21st release of the online experience was timed to coincide with the summer solstice. Although some aspects of the iconic structure’s function may remain in dispute, most historians and many enthusiasts believe the site has been home to solstice celebrations for several millennia.

“The launch coincides with the summer solstice, the moment when Stonehenge’s alignment with the rising sun has drawn people to the site for thousands of years,” the team explained.

The Virtual World of Stonehenge is free to access from Sunday 21 June: The World of Stonehenge: University of Reading and British Museum

Christopher Plain is a Science Fiction and Fantasy novelist and Head Science Writer at The Debrief. Follow and connect with him on X, learn about his books at plainfiction.com, or email him directly at christopher@thedebrief.org.

A joint expedition to the ancient Egyptian city of Elkab has unearthed several previously unknown ancient rock art inscriptions, including what the team believes are the earliest known monumental Egyptian hieroglyphs.

Written over 1,000 years before the Great Pyramid of Giza was constructed, these ancient Egyptian writings, discovered by archaeologists from Yale University and the Royal Museums of Art and History (Brussels), laid the foundation for the later, better-known hieroglyphic writing system.

Yale Professor John Coleman Darnell, the expedition’s leader and the co-director of the Elkab Desert Survey Project, said the newly discovered inscriptions, which were not recorded by any previous scientific expedition, include samples as far back as 4,000 BCE.

Although the team concedes that these are not the first examples of this specific style of rock art, they are the first of this ancient age and “monumental” scale, making them of great significance in the history of ancient Egyptian writing systems.

“This was not what I was expecting to find when I set out on this period of work on the expedition,” Professor Darnell said of the historic find. “It was completely shocking to me.”

Earliest Monumental Egyptian Hieroglyphs Depict Cosmological Concepts

In a Yale news story announcing the discovery, Professor Darnell noted that the newly discovered rock art site of El-Khawy preserved some of the earliest and largest signs “from the formative stages of the hieroglyphic script.” The professor added that the discovery includes “rare” evidence for how this enigmatic ancient society invented its internationally recognized ancient writing system.

The expedition, which was directed by Darnell and Dirk Huyge, was undertaken in cooperation with the Ministry of Antiquities and the Aswan and Edfu inspectorates.

After photographing the newly discovered inscription, Darnell and Alberto Urcia, a digital archaeologist and associate research scientist in the University’s Department of Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations, created a series of three-dimensional (3D) images. Darnell said the new technology allows archaeologists to record ancient sites and artworks “at a level of accuracy and detail that was absolutely impossible before.”

“It also means that we can record the site as a place, or a location, and not just as a series of inscriptions,” the professor added.

One of the more noteworthy examples of ancient monumental hieroglyphs, carved sometime between 4,000 and 3,500 BCE, depicted a herd of elephants. A closer examination also revealed that one of the elephants had an image of a smaller elephant inside of it, which Professor Darnell described as “an incredibly rare way of representing a pregnant female animal.”

A second discovery detailed by the joint expedition, which consists of four separate panels, was likely created sometime around 3,250 BCE. Written right to left, which ultimately became the dominant writing form in later Egyptian hieroglyphic languages, the panels show animal images of a bull’s head on a short pole, followed by two back-to-back saddlebill storks with a bald ‘ibis’ bird above and between them.

The research team said this arrangement of symbols is common in Egyptian representations created centuries after the newly discovered panels depicting the solar cycle. These same depictions typically include imagery of luminosity. Darnell suggested that the images may also express “the concept of royal authority over the ordered cosmos.”

“This is the First Time That Anyone Has Seen Them on Such a Massive Scale”

When discussing the importance of the new find, Professor Darnell noted the immense size of the individual tableaus and their elements. For example, each individual hieroglyph identified by the Yale-led team measures over half a meter in height. The professor also noted that the entire tableau “is about 70 centimeters (27.5 inches) in height,” whereas previously discovered signs of early Egyptian hieroglyphs were “only one or two centimeters in size.”

“This discovery isn’t new in the sense that this is the first time that anyone has seen these hieroglyphs,” Darnell explained, “this is the first time that anyone has seen them on such a massive scale.”

To offer a perspective on the discovery’s significance, the professor said a modern-world equivalent would be seeing smaller text displayed on your computer screen, “and then suddenly seeing very large ones made the same way,” only displayed up on a highway billboard.

When discussing the site’s location in the northeastern desert hinterland of Elkab, Darnell noted that it was a “very important” center in ancient Egypt, which demonstrates that the area’s budding communicative system “is not limited to the more commonly found small tokens or labels.”

The professor also said the study shows that ancient writing did not develop slowly “for bureaucratic use,” as researchers had previously believed. Instead, Darnell suggested that the discovery shows hieroglyphic-style writing “was more geographically widespread and topically diverse at the time of or shortly after its development.”

“This also suggests that there is a much more expansive use of the early writing system than is indicated from other surviving archaeological material,” the professor added.

Christopher Plain is a Science Fiction and Fantasy novelist and Head Science Writer at The Debrief. Follow and connect with him on X, learn about his books at plainfiction.com, or email him directly at christopher@thedebrief.org.

Electric Vertical Take-Off and Landing (eVTOL) pioneer Archer Aviation has confirmed that it is on track to perform Team USA transport duty during the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, California, aboard its Midnight aircraft.

In an email to The Debrief, a company spokesperson said Archer was selected as the Official Air Taxi Provider of the LA28 Olympic Games and Team USA, marking a historic first in the quest for commercial eVTOL operations before the end of the decade.

“Through this exclusive partnership, the two will look to integrate Archer’s Midnight eVTOL aircraft across theLA28 Games in a variety of ways, such as transporting VIPs, fans, and stakeholders, while electrifying vertiport take-off-and-landing hubs for key venues and providing support for emergency services and security,” a company spokesperson explained.

Archer CEO Announces ‘Progress’ Including Upcoming Midnight eVTOL Test Flight in 8 US Cities

Archer Aviation founder and CEO Adam Goldstein recently shared more specific updates about the company’s road to the Olympics and eventually government approval, noting that “we made tremendous progress towards beginning operations in the US later this year, with record FAA certification progress and our most expansive flight testing to date.”

Goldstein also highlighted the company’s recent winning applications to begin pre-certification test flights of Midnight in 8 US states later this year, including New York, Florida, and Texas. According to the CEO, those test flights are part of the eVTOL Integration Pilot Program (eIPP), “which was unlocked through the White House’s Executive Order in June last year.”

“Archer expects Midnight operations in American cities to begin this year as part of the White House’s eIPP and in preparation to serve as the Official Air Taxi Provider of the LA28 Olympic Games, in coordination with the DOT and FAA,” the CEO explained, adding that the two benchmarks “pave the way for Archer to showcase its air taxi technology in parallel with its continued work toward FAA Type Certification for Midnight.”

Six Independently Operating Engines Produce Over 1,500 Horsepower, Last 10,000 Flight Cycles

When asked about the technical aspects that have put Midnight on course to become the first commercial eVTOL air taxi provider in the U.S., the company spokesperson first noted that their aircraft are “designed and manufactured” domestically, which can shorten development timelines and improve quality control. This includes focusing the team’s research and development on what the company termed “differentiating technologies,” including the pioneering aircraft’s unique powertrain.

“Our world-class in-house team, coming with experience from Apple, Tesla, SpaceX and beyond, contribute to our efficient and certifiable electric propulsion design,” the company told The Debrief.

Some of the differentiating technologies the team said set it apart from the competition include rapid charging, long-lasting battery packs “and the capability of >1500 horsepower.” They also note that Midnight’s high-performance battery cells, patented high-voltage architecture, and gearbox are designed to operate reliably for roughly 10,000 “flight cycles” before the vehicle’s battery pack needs replacement.

“We are optimized for electric flight,” the company told The Debrief.

Due to the potential risks in premiering a new vehicle platform, with Archer Aviation telling The Debrief that “eVTOL aircraft are the first new category of aviation in more than 60 years,” the company said Midnight is built as a ‘fly-by-wire’ system, reducing the number of mechanical components that can fail. The company also said that each of Midnight’s engines operates independently “allowing for high levels of redundancy and safety.”

Although the current version of the Midnight eVTOL aircraft is flown by a human pilot, the company told The Debrief that it is “continuing to build the technology stack” required for its longer-term goal of a fully autonomous eVTOL aircraft.

Company Anticipating Final FAA Approval “in the Near Future”

With the 2028 Summer Olympics just two years away, the company said it has transitioned out of a successful Phase 3 of the FAA’s 4-phase Type Certification process, an industry first, and has “already been advancing its work in Phase 4 for some time now.”

“This is where Midnight’s compliance with FAA airworthiness requirements will be demonstrated through formal testing and analysis,” the company told The Debrief.

In his address to shareholders, Goldstein said the company’s flight test program “continued to expand this quarter.” The CEO said this expansion includes piloted VTOL and CTOL flights across its expanded fleet of test aircraft “occurring nearly every day, often multiple times a day.”

To expedite the testing phases leading up to the 2028 Olympics, the company recently took over operations of Hawthorne Airport in Los Angeles County. Goldstein said the move will help Archer develop the local airstrip “into the airport of the future.”

“Located near LAX and several major LA sports and entertainment venues, Hawthorne Airport is expected to anchor Archer’s planned LA air taxi operations while also serving as an innovation hub for next-generation aviation technologies,” the CEO explained.

When asked how soon the company expects to fulfill the FAA’s Phase 4 requirements and gain full certification, the spokesperson told The Debrief that Archer is in the final stages of the process, “and is anticipating approval in the near future.” However, the company also added that their focus is on building a safe, high-performance aircraft, and that once they can demonstrate the safety and versatility of Midnight, “it is the FAA’s job to certify it.”

Christopher Plain is a Science Fiction and Fantasy novelist and Head Science Writer at The Debrief. Follow and connect with him on X, learn about his books at plainfiction.com, or email him directly at christopher@thedebrief.org.

Scientists have released a series of previously unseen images of the asteroid Donaldjohanson captured by NASA’s Lucy spacecraft during an April 2025 flyby.

The team behind the photos’ release said the Lucy spacecraft, which was named for the infamous hominin fossil discovered by anthropologist Donald Johanson, captured critical details about the small main-belt asteroid’s surface features and motion that could help clarify the space rock’s origin and evolution.

The data could also inform studies of the Solar System’s formation, including how asteroids move and evolve over extended timescales.

Craters on Asteroid Donaldjohanson Confirm Its Age

According to a statement from team leader Simone Marchi and colleagues, images captured during the deep-space rendezvous revealed that the oddly shaped rock consists of two cratered ‘lobes’ connected by a comparatively smooth central “neck” section. The researchers noted that Donaldjohanson measured over 8.8 kilometers by 4.4 km by 3.1 km.

An analysis of the surface features helped the team pinpoint the asteroid’s likeliest age to a set of asteroids belonging to the Erigone family, a group that broke apart a larger “parent” body into smaller fragments. The team notes that this ancient age “implies that DJ is a fragment of a larger parent body that was destroyed in a collision about 155 million years ago.”

Although an examination of the craters helped place the asteroid’s likely age, they noted that craters less than 0.4 kilometers “have been preferentially erased.” The researchers suggest that this preferential erasure of smaller craters might have been caused by “seismic shaking” following a more recent impact event.

“DJ Rotates Slowly in a Tumbling State”

Along with surface features, the newly released images revealed the asteroid’s motion. Specifically, the team determined that Donaldjohanson has a slow, tumbling movement rather than a simple rotation.” Instead of an impact, the team suspects that the asteroid’s motion could have been produced gradually by “torques” resulting from thermal radiation.

“DJ rotates slowly in a tumbling state, likely owing to spin-down by radiative forces,” the team writes.

A spectral analysis of the rock’s cratered surface also revealed a similar composition to other Erigone family asteroids, particularly the presence of iron-bearing phyllosilicates. The team notes these phyllosilicates indicate an “aqueous evolution” on the parent body. However, they also note that the water-induced mineral alteration was likely halted “at an early stage” due to insufficient water or heat.

Next Mission Encounter Planned for 2027

Although the newly released Lucy images were captured in 2025, the team notes that the Donaldjohanson flyby mission was one leg of a larger set of 8 planned Lucy asteroid flybys, with the entire set expected to take 12 years to complete.

“Over its 12-year mission, Lucy will explore a record-breaking number of asteroids: it will fly by three in the belt of asteroids that circle the Sun between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter, and then eight Trojans, which includes five asteroid targets and the satellites of three of those,” a NASA statement explained. “Lucy also will fly by Earth three times to get a push from its gravity, making it the first spacecraft to return to the vicinity of Earth from the outer solar system.”

The study “​The Lucy flyby of asteroid (52246) Donaldjohanson:​ ​A bilobed object with a tumbling rotation” was published in Science.

Christopher Plain is a Science Fiction and Fantasy novelist and Head Science Writer at The Debrief. Follow and connect with him on X, learn about his books at plainfiction.com, or email him directly at christopher@thedebrief.org.

Scientists from Asia Pacific’s largest paint and coating manufacturer have developed a new “ultra-black” automotive coating using carbon nanotubes that absorbs over 99% of the light it receives, resulting in the darkest black of any currently available paint or coating.

The NIPSEA Group’s research team said its new ultra-black coating, which they describe as “deep, jet black,” meets stringent automotive standards, a critical requirement in markets like China, where trendy, luxury vehicles in the darkest colors are in high demand.

Carbon Nanotubes Absorb Light to Create Darkest Black “Ultra-Black” Coating

According to a statement announcing the new ultra-black coating, BMW first introduced a concept car in 2019 with a vertically aligned carbon nanotube (VACNT) array outer coating. Due to the unique material properties of carbon nanotubes, including the ability to bend or absorb light, the researchers said that its introduction “set off a race” among auto manufacturers to create a similar, ‘black hole’ effect with a pronounced dark appearance. 

“Automotive coating companies have been actively pursuing innovations in color technology to develop mass-processable ultra-black coating solutions with extreme blackness,” explained Zhiwei Liu, a research chemist with the company’s Color Technology Group, Core R&D, and an author on the study outlining the new coating.

The researchers note that ultra-black coatings are in unusually high demand in Asian countries, where having the darkest vehicle can represent a status symbol. has become a “key selling point” in China.

“Deep black finishes have long been the premium choice and signature color for luxury cars due to their elegant appearance, powerful visual impact, and luxurious undertone,” the researcher explained.

Although scientists have explored more practical ways to achieve the desired ultra-black effect, the new research once again leverages the unusual properties of carbon nanotubes to create an ultra-black coating that is darker than even the darkest commercially available alternative.

Creating a Stable Composite That Meets Automotive Standards

According to the team’s statement, they began by exploring methods to combine the benefits of carbon nanotubes with a black pigment that would serve as the coating’s color base. Critically, the team needed to create a nano-sized carbon black pigment-carbon nanotube composite that was also stable at a wide range of temperatures. and moisture conditions.

After exploring several formulations, Liu and colleagues succeeded in a stable nanotube-pigment composite. Next, the team incorporated the new carbon nanotube-based mixture into a coating binder and sprayed it onto a model car.

Because the new ultra-black coating uses structural absorption of light rather than the carbon black dispersion method used in current approaches, tests revealed an average absorption of 99.90% across all visible wavelengths. The team said its new coating also displayed “excellent long-term stability” during water and humidity tests.

Although the light absorption levels set a new standard for the darkest achievable automotive coating, Liu said advancements in dispersing technology and equipment leave his team “room for improvements.” The researcher highlighted potential advancements in “practical processability of carbon-nanotube-containing nanomaterials.”

Liu and colleagues also noted that increasing the proportion of carbon nanotubes in the material could further increase its light-absorbing capacity. However, they conceded, this approach “would also bring difficulties in industrial-grade processability.”

Future Improvements Include Even Darker Multi-Layer Options

When discussing potential future improvements, the team said scientists could fabricate multilayered ultra-black coatings. In theory, they note that this approach could result in a “gradient refractive index that reduces interface reflection and further enhances light absorption efficiency,” producing an even darker look than their single-layer version.

Although the ultra-black automotive coating is not yet commercially available, the team said they have already completed a “proof of concept” manufacturing design. Still, they conceded, given technical and regulatory challenges that remain, “it may still be a while before ultra-black cars made with this film will be able to hit the road.”

“Further efforts will focus on the verification of coating application window and the comprehensive film performance validations of carbon black pigment-carbon nanotube composite-based ultra-black automotive coating,” Liu concluded.

The study “Robust ultra-black automotive coating with structural absorption and high absorption efficiency based on waterborne carbon black/CNT composite” was published in Matter & Light.

Christopher Plain is a Science Fiction and Fantasy novelist and Head Science Writer at The Debrief. Follow and connect with him on X, learn about his books at plainfiction.com, or email him directly at christopher@thedebrief.org.

A research team from Wessex Archaeology, led by Phil Harding, has announced the discovery of a Stonehenge ‘prototype’ structure, similarly aligned with the solstices, that may have served as an early proof of concept for the more famous structure built 500 years later.

The team behind the historic discovery said that the ancient date represents the earliest known alignment with the solstices and offers potential insights into the religion, belief systems, scientific knowledge, and worship practices of the ancient monument builders.

Location of Stonehenge Prototype Excavated a Decade Earlier

According to a statement announcing the discovery of the Stonehenge prototype, the structure is located 5 kilometers from the better-known stone circle. They also note that Stonehenge’s earliest earthworks were beginning construction around this same time.

Previous expeditions to the site conducted between 2015 and 2017 unearthed 48 pits, which those researchers dated to more than 2,000 years before the new find, or roughly 2,950 BCE. Still, the team notes that earlier efforts uncovered samples of pottery, animal bones, flints, and charcoal, suggesting that “large numbers of people gathered here over a relatively short period of time” to celebrate the longest day of the year.

Notably, one of the pits unearthed in the earlier excavations included what the team described as a possible “viewing station.” The pit also contained a disc-shaped knife, which the team notes “was deliberately placed here possibly as a symbolic reference to the sun disc.”

Still, the original effort left several tantalizing clues, leading to the new excavations.

Wooden Poles Align With the Solstices to Within One Degree

Instead of exploring the previously discovered pits, the team focused on the rest of the site. This effort led to the discovery of a pair of wooden pole pits placed 120 meters apart. According to the Wessex Archaeology team’s statement, the site’s ancient builders positioned the poles in the pits “to form a line pointing directly at the rising sun during the summer solstice and at the setting sun during (the) winter solstice.”

Although little of the structure remains, except for the pits where the poles once stood, the team was able to extract enough organic material to date the likely construction period of the structure. A radiocarbon analysis showed that the summer solstice poles were likely set around 5,000 years ago, more than 2,000 years earlier than the other pits at the same site. Perhaps even more surprisingly, the date placed the construction of the wooden poles roughly 500 years before ancient engineers built the world-famous site of Stonehenge.

To confirm the astronomical alignment, the team reached out to archaeologist Fabio Silva. According to the team’s statement, Dr. Silva, a Skyscape Archaeologist at Stone x Sky and the Skyscape Academy, used ancient reconstructions of the sky and the landscape to show that the structure would have aligned with the summer solstice “within an accuracy of one degree.”

When discussing the site’s potential uses, the researchers note that it would have served as a temporary gathering place for ancient celebrations of the summer and winter solstices until a more permanent structure could take its place. They even suggest that a similar structure may have been used in Stonehenge’s earliest phases, while conceding that traces of any similar alignment would have been erased by later construction.

Harding, who led the excavations, said the discovery of a possible Stonehenge prototype “is probably one of the greatest finds of my career,” while adding that the early date is what makes it so exceptional.

“Up till now, our knowledge of this ancient feat of astronomy was based on Stonehenge and other monuments of a similar period, but what we’ve discovered at Bulford is 500 years earlier than the famous stones we know so well,” Harding explained. “It makes me incredibly proud to be an archaeologist.”

“Part of a Much Longer Conversation Between People, the Land, and the Sky”

Although the ancient structure revealed a scientific knowledge predating Stonehenge by several centuries, Dr Matt Leivers, Senior Research Manager at Wessex Archaeology, said the discovery of a clearly religious site is “fundamental” because it is the earliest example of people building structures at this historically significant location “that aim directly at the solstice.”

“When we talk about the solstice, we’re talking about religion,” Dr. Leivers said. “About how prehistoric peoples understood the cosmos, the world, and their place in it.”

“It’s likely their way of saying to their deities, please keep us in mind, keep us warm and safe,” he added.

Dr Silva noted the historical significance in relation to Stonehenge, since the site shows that ancient communities “were already engaging with both the summer and winter solstices” in the same general area hundreds of years before the larger, more famous stones were put in place. The researcher also said the findings allow historians to see Stonehenge as more than a singular creation, but “as part of a much longer conversation between people, the land, and the sky.”

“Rather than marking the beginning of a story, Stonehenge now more clearly appears to have emerged from traditions and practices with much deeper roots in this landscape,” Dr. Silva concluded.

Christopher Plain is a Science Fiction and Fantasy novelist and Head Science Writer at The Debrief. Follow and connect with him on X, learn about his books at plainfiction.com, or email him directly at christopher@thedebrief.org.

Scientists from the Southwest Research Institute’s Center for Lunar Origin and Evolution (CLOE) have revealed new models of the Moon’s oldest and largest impact crater, the South Pole-Aitken (SPA) basin, providing fresh insights into the event and resulting material deposition on the lunar surface.

The SwRI team behind the new models, which is part of NASA’s Solar System Exploration Research Virtual Institute, said such details will help prepare future Artemis astronauts for what they could encounter during their upcoming missions.

Impact Study Reveals Details About Moon’s Oldest and Largest Crater

In a statement announcing the new models, Dr. William Bottke, director of CLOE and executive director of SwRI’s Science Directorate in Boulder, Colorado, said that the basin is an attractive potential target for future Artemis missions since it offers a “rare opportunity” to study an earlier era in the Moon’s history.

“The collision struck the lunar surface with such force that it may have excavated material from deep inside the Moon, including portions of the lunar mantle,” explained the co-author of the impact study detailing the new research.

Although previous studies have modeled impacts that may have caused the Moon’s oldest and largest crater, the team’s new effort has revealed new evidence about the composition of the impacting object and its likely direction and angle.

“Our simulation produces the right shape and nature of the impact basin,” explained the impact study’s lead author, Dr. Shigeru Wakita of Purdue University. “It also tells us about the projectile that created it and the direction of the impact.”

For example, the new model suggests that the object was not a single, uniform object. Instead, the team found that the impactor was likely a “differentiated” object, such as a protoplanet or asteroid, composed of rock and surrounded by an iron core. The models also found that the object approached from the north “at a low angle” before impacting the Moon’s surface on a southward trajectory.

According to the impact study authors, the impact excavated a deep, “asymmetric” cavity and generated enough energy to melt the rock within the crater’s central basin, resulting in the SPA basin’s elongated, tapered shape. Their models also indicated that the object’s lunar collision “lofted” large amounts of material into the air. Critically, their models also revealed that material from both the lunar crust and mantle was likely ejected before ultimately settling back onto the basin floor.

Exploring Gravity’s Role and the Possibility of ‘Valuable’ Mantle in the Impact Ejecta

To help potential future lunar astronauts, including members of NASA’s Artemis mission, target the most scientifically valuable lunar samples, a second companion study explored the effects of gravity on ejecta distribution beneath and around the impact basin. According to the team behind that effort, their effort involved direct comparisons of high-resolution gravity data with models. Specifically, they wanted to determine if pieces of the Moon’s crust and mantle were included in the ejection.

After comparing the two, the authors of the second study determined that the SPA basin “likely contains substantial amounts of mantle-derived rocks” both within its interior and mixed into the wider ejecta blanket surrounding the basin. Also critical for future missions, the analysis revealed that this material was not all scattered during the initial impact.

Instead, the new models showed that subsequent, smaller impacts appear to have “excavated” these underlying mantle deposits. As a result, the team suggests that there is likely enough material on the surface of the Moon’s oldest and largest crater “where it could be readily sampled by robotic rovers or astronauts during future missions.”

The Studies Provide Future Lunar Missions with a “Powerful Roadmap”

When discussing the significance of the gravity study’s findings, lead author Dr. Gabriel Gowman of the University of Arizona said that before now, the “precise distribution” of lunar mantle material on the Moon’s surface “has been a big unknown.” For example, some previous theories suggested that the deepest ejecta might be found only in parts of the basin that are not currently included in planned Artemis missions.

Now, the team’s new models suggest that the impact that formed the SPA basin “ejected enough deep material to form a significant deposit that should still be accessible today.” More importantly, Dr. Gowman added, some of that scientifically valuable mantle material “at a trace level” may exist in regions currently under consideration for upcoming Artemis landings. Taken together, Bottke said, the two studies can provide a “powerful roadmap” for future lunar scientific missions to the Moon’s oldest and largest crater.

“It tells us not just how SPA formed, but where to look for the rocks that can answer some of our biggest questions about the Moon’s origin and evolution,” the researcher explained.

The Impact study “A southward differentiated impactor forms the tapered shape of the South Pole-Aitken impact basin on the Moon” was published in Science Advances.

The gravity study “Gravity Mapping of Lunar Mantle Material in South Pole-Aitken Basin Ejecta” was published in the Journal of Geophysical Research: Planets.

Christopher Plain is a Science Fiction and Fantasy novelist and Head Science Writer at The Debrief. Follow and connect with him on X, learn about his books at plainfiction.com, or email him directly at christopher@thedebrief.org.

New analysis of ancient frozen Greenland rubbish heaps, called middens, has revealed new insights into several ancient societies that have passed through the country over the last five millennia. The findings include insights into ancient diseases and animals that the inhabitants kept but didn’t eat.

Although the team noted the potential risk that climate change could release dangerous ancient microbes into the modern environment, their analysis found little evidence that the pathogens they identified could pose a threat beyond the immediate area around the middens.

Ancient Middens Offer Historical Insights Beyond Traditional Artifacts

Archaeologists have often excavated items discarded by ancient societies from trash heaps to learn more about the people who lived there. Although such excavations often unearth things like animal bones and mollusk shells, offering insights into diet and hunting habits, these ancient rubbish heaps can also contain human artifacts, such as discarded blades and other tools.

In a country like Greenland, where different peoples have settled the region since 2,500 BCE, the ancient middens may also contain microbes that could offer researchers an entirely different type of historical data. For example, microbial data from middens could reveal which diseases ancient populations had to survive. The team notes that microbes could also help determine what ancient societies kept “but perhaps didn’t eat.”

Still, studies of ancient midden microbes are limited, leaving a gap in historical knowledge. The authors of the new paper also highlight that rapidly increasing Arctic warming could release infectious diseases to which humans have lost immunity over the ensuing generations.

Over One Thousand New Species Were Identified

To bridge the information gap, Dr Frank Møller Aarestrup, a professor at the National Food Institute of Denmark Technical University and corresponding author of the article detailing the team’s research, examined samples collected during 2020 and 2021 expeditions in West and South Greenland. During those expeditions, scientists collected samples from middens locked in time by permafrost, dating back as far as 4,500 years.

Among the middens sampled were the ancient Norse sites of Kapisilit and Narsarsuaq, where researchers collected soil samples from what the new paper’s authors termed “historic winter enclosures.” The site also contained evidence that it was a summer grazing ground for livestock.

After selecting several soil samples, Dr. Aarestrup’s team sequenced the DNA of ancient microbes found in the midden samples. Next, they compared the data, including entire bacterial communities, to 143 soil samples previously collected from areas of permafrost far away from any known historical human settlements.

According to the team’s statement, the sequencing revealed a total of 1,207 species and differing ranges of bacterial species per midden. In denser areas, the team identified as many as 202 species, whereas less microbe-dense middens had as few as nine.

The team’s analysis also found several species that had not been previously identified. This resulted in the team labeling the unidentified microbes using what they termed “broad taxonomic categories” above the genus and species level, such as family and order.

Preserving the ‘Biological Legacy’ of Human Activity

When comparing the microbial communities in the ancient middens with those from samples collected away from human settlements, the team found a significantly richer community of ancient bacteria preserved in the middens. The team notes that this discrepancy confirms that the middens “preserved the biological legacy of human activity.”

The most soil-like bacterial communities were identified within the oldest Paleo-Inuit middens. The researchers said the finding suggests that the microbial “imprint” left behind by humans and animals diminishes over time.

Bacterial communities were also associated with the types of waste discarded in each ancient midden. For example, although most middens contained bacteria associated with human and animal hosts, middens from colonial-era Nuuk contained decomposing seal skins. The middens from colonial-era sites were also rich in the bacterium Clostridium perfringens, which the team notes is “a major cause of food poisoning.”

Risk of Ancient Pathogens is Low

Although the team identified strains of bacteria that can cause botulism or other life-threatening conditions, such as toxic shock syndrome, sepsis, and gangrene, they also found a diversity of antimicrobial-resistance genes in the genomes of bacteria collected from the same middens.

According to the study authors, finding the two sets of genes in ancient and modern soil layers “signaled that microbes resistant to antimicrobials can linger in permafrost for centuries.”

Fortunately, the team’s analysis found that most of the identified microbes, including potentially dangerous pathogens, don’t spread far from middens, even those undergoing defrosting. As a result, the team said that these ancient microbes  “pose little risk to public health,” at least for the time being.

“Here we show that the risk of release of ancient pathogens from ancient middens in Greenland is currently low,” Dr. Aarestrup explained.

Instead, the researcher noted that Arctic middens appear to function like “long-term natural experiments,” in which both human- and animal-associated bacteria, including “opportunistic” species carrying resistance genes, remain detectable centuries later as a broader “legacy of human activity.”

The study “Microbial composition of archaeological middens: Tracing Human Footprints Through Centuries in Greenland’s Ancient Settlements” was published in Frontiers in Microbiology.

Christopher Plain is a Science Fiction and Fantasy novelist and Head Science Writer at The Debrief. Follow and connect with him on X, learn about his books at plainfiction.com, or email him directly at christopher@thedebrief.org.

An international team of researchers led by Dr. Liora Kolska Horwitz of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem’s National Natural History Collections, working at the site of the oldest dated intentional use of fire by ancient human ancestors, South Africa’s Wonderwerk Cave, has found new evidence pushing that date even earlier into prehistory.

The research team behind the potentially history-altering findings said the discovery, which suggests that ancient hominins intentionally controlled fire, resulting in charred animal bones sometime between 1.07 and 1.79 million years ago, provides researchers with previously unavailable insights into how our ancestors first began to harness one of the most important tools in the evolution of human society and culture.

The study also introduced the archaeological community to a promising new method for analyzing burned bone samples by monitoring its light-emitting properties.

Intentional Use of Fire Provided Human Ancestors with a Critical Tool

According to a statement announcing the study, Dr. Horwitz, who is co-director of the Wonderwerk Cave project with Prof. Michael Chazan at the University of Toronto, and colleagues note the historical significance of fire, ranging from warmth and predator protection to extended daylight and the cooking of meat. However, historians have struggled to identify a single moment or historical period where humanity’s ancient ancestors first started to use fire intentionally.

“Evidence of fire from such ancient sites is often subtle and difficult to detect,” Dr. Horwitz explained.

Before the new analysis, the oldest agreed-upon evidence for intentional fire use also came from Wonderwerk Cave. Situated within the Kalahari Desert of South Africa, the cave provided evidence placing fire use to approximately 1 million years ago.

While that study used the most advanced techniques available, the team behind the new study decided to employ a non-invasive process that involves illuminating ancient bone fragments with specific wavelengths of light to determine whether they had been exposed to intense heat. In cases where bones have been heated to fire-like temperatures, the right wavelength of light will cause them to glow.

Remains Likely Left by Homo Erectus

Because evidence from ancient sites is scarce, the team’s non-invasive technique allowed them to study tiny fossilized rodent bones left in the cave by owls without damaging them. The team noted that using remains that accumulated naturally on the ancient cave floor provides an “independent, non-anthropogenic record” of ancient events within the local area.

After exposing the ancient bone to specific wavelengths of light, the team found what they described as “clear signs of burning.” Dr. Horowitz confirmed the findings, noting that the team’s analysis reveals “fire was repeatedly present deep inside Wonderwerk Cave.”

Because the deposits were found over 30 meters deep in the cave, the team ruled out wildfires as a possible source of combustion. The layer also lacked bat guano remains, which the team noted “rules out spontaneous combustion.”

A chemical analysis of the charred bones dated them to between 1.07 and 1.79 million years ago, redating the 2012 findings. Critically, the evidence for ancient fire use was in an archaeological layer “associated with artifacts” from the initial Acheulean period, which is consistent with the dating. If correct, this would make the likeliest early human ancestor that used fire Homo erectus.

Although the findings appear to extend the chronology of one of the earliest known records of fire use associated with hominins by as much as 790,000 years, the research team said the findings do not suggest that these early proto-humans could create fire “at will.” Instead, the likeliest scenario involves early human ancestors collecting fire from natural sources, such as lightning-induced wildfires on the African savanna, and bringing it into the cave.

“The early humans introduced this fire into the cave on multiple occasions and maintained it there before it eventually died out,” the team’s statement explained.

The team did not immediately pinpoint what methods these early hominins used to maintain a burning fire. However, they suggested that burning owl pellets as additional fuel may inadvertently have scorched the rodent bones.

A New Tool for Identifying Traces of Burning

When discussing the implications of the new, earlier date for the first intentional use of fire, Dr. Horwitz said the discovery shows that early human ancestors “were not simply passive observers of natural fires,” but instead were “actively engaging with fire and incorporating it into their lives.”

Beyond offering an earlier date range for early fire use, the work provides clues into how our ancestors used fire before they could make it on their own. The study also debuted a new, non-invasive, portable tool for investigating early fire use, which the study authors note “can be applied to large collections of fossils without damaging them.”

“Our study provides new tools for identifying traces of ancient burning,” Dr. Horwitz explained, with the team adding that application of this new technique to sites around the world “may help clarify the origins and development of one of the most consequential technologies in human history.”

The study “New evidence for Early Pleistocene use of fire at Wonderwerk Cave (South Africa)” was published in PLOS One.

Christopher Plain is a Science Fiction and Fantasy novelist and Head Science Writer at The Debrief. Follow and connect with him on X, learn about his books at plainfiction.com, or email him directly at christopher@thedebrief.org.

Scientists from Goethe University, Frankfurt, studying alternatives to black holes have suggested a mathematically viable formation mechanism for one proposed alternative called a ‘Gravastar.’

Although the team behind the newly proposed gravastar formation mechanism conceded that black holes still represent the simplest and most natural solution to gravitational collapse, they also suggest that the physics behind the alternative, which doesn’t require a single point where spacetime curves infinitely, called a “singularity,” can make them “easier to accept” than black holes.

If correct, and some or all black holes are, in fact, gravastars that mimic their expected properties, the work would establish a valid formation mechanism that could rewrite decades of accepted science and open a new field of research dedicated to understanding this previously misunderstood phenomenon.

Meet Gravastar: The Black Hole Mimicker without a Singularity

According to standard cosmology theories, black holes form when extremely massive stars stop generating energy, allowing the force of gravity to take over and collapse the remaining matter into a single point, or singularity. Unfortunately, the research team behind the new study notes that “the laws of physics break down” within the singularity, making the formation of the resulting black hole a difficult phenomenon to predict.

“How can spacetime be curved infinitely at that point, the singularity?” asks the team’s statement announcing the new approach. They also note that no information escapes a black hole, including light, making studying its inner workings effectively impossible, and opening up the possibility that “black holes are in fact entirely different objects.”

Some options have been proposed, including ‘horizonless’ black hole mimickers. The team notes that these proposed options are “mathematically consistent alternatives” that also address the physics challenges posed by traditional black holes. 

Still, how these alternative objects form has remained largely unclear. The research team said this lack of a formation mechanism constitutes “a significant open problem” since understanding how they form is the “first step” to determining if they truly exist.

New Model Creates a ‘Big Bang’ Inside a ‘Mini-Universe’

In the new formation model, theoretical physicists Daniel Jampolski and Theoretical Astrophysics Professor Luciano Rezzolla from Goethe University showed that the collapse of a dying star may not go far enough that it reaches the point of no return, where “the collapse to a black hole is inevitable.”

Instead, the collapse slows down near a point scientists call the Schwarzschild radius, then stops. The result is what the team termed a “miniature universe” within the collapsing matter, which they compared to the dynamics of the Big Bang, which most theorists agree formed the entire universe.

Since the universe’s expansion was driven by dark energy, the new model proposes that the dark energy within the mini-universe establishes an “equilibrium” with the counteracting force of gravity, therefore halting the collapse of the star “before a black hole can form.”

“The Big Bang of the emerging universe can unfold once the star has already collapsed almost to the point of becoming a black hole,” explained Jampolski, who discovered the black hole alternative gravastar solution in his master’s thesis while under the supervision of Professor Rezzolla.

Maintaining an Unbiased Approach Toward “What We Do Not Know”

When discussing the impact of their proposed black hole alternative formation model, Jampolski said that from a mathematical and physics standpoint, it is “easier to imagine that the Big Bang occurs only at a very late stage, when matter has already been compressed to an extreme degree, thereby giving rise to new effects.” The team also notes that the unresolved behavior of matter in this environment “leaves room for new physics.”

Although the team’s model offers a mathematically sound formation for an alternative to black holes, Rezzolla notes that the search for gravastars or other alternatives “should not suggest a skepticism towards black holes,” which, he adds, “still represent the most natural and simplest solution to the fate of gravitational collapse.”

Instead, the Goethe professor explained, his general role as a scientist and his specific discipline as a theoretical physicist make it essential that he and his colleagues “maintain an unbiased approach towards what we do not know and hence explore both the accepted wisdom and the more exotic interpretations.”

“History teaches us that it is not unusual for the latter to become the former,” the professor added.

The paper “Formation of gravastars” was published in the journal Physical Review D.

Christopher Plain is a Science Fiction and Fantasy novelist and Head Science Writer at The Debrief. Follow and connect with him on X, learn about his books at plainfiction.com, or email him directly at christopher@thedebrief.org.

Over two years after Japan’s Smart Lander for Investigating Moon (SLIM) mission deployed a tiny, shape-shifting rover on the Moon, the country’s space agency JAXA has finally revealed previously unreleased details about the first-of-its-kind autonomous robotic lunar exploration.

According to a statement announcing the recently published mission account, the SLIM team deployed the rover on the Moon’s surface, “after which the rover transformed from a tiny sphere into a wheeled robot that took images of the lander and its environment.” A second rover transmitted the data back to Earth, with all steps occurring autonomously.

The team behind the historic mission said their success could pave the way for swarms of small, transformable robots capable of exploring high-scientific value areas that larger spacecraft and robots cannot reach, including caves, tunnels, lava tubes, vents, and deep extraterrestrial craters.

The Benefits of Tiny Robots and Autonomous Shape-Shifting Rovers

In the published study, the JAXA team explains that robotic technologies like SLIM “are expected to drive substantial advancements in planetary exploration and resource prospecting” by performing tasks in extraterrestrial environments that are inaccessible to other platforms, including human astronauts. For example, the team noted that miniature robots offer tremendous weight savings over bulkier platforms, especially when added to missions with “strict payload limitations.”

“Miniature robots have the potential to reduce payloads and to reach cramped spaces such as small vents and craters that are inaccessible to larger, conventional robots,” they explain.

Still, the SLIM team notes that building tiny, shape-shifting rovers capable of exploring a variety of complex environments presents its own set of challenges. The most limiting constraints involve computational power and battery capacity. The team also observed that smaller robotics platforms inherently suffer from “reduced locomotion performance” due to their small size.

Now, when revealing the details of the SLIM mission, the researchers note that advancements in miniaturization and computational performance spurred by the Internet of Things “have catalyzed the emergence of smaller, lighter, and more intelligent rovers at lower costs.”

Introducing the ‘Hopping’ Lev-1 and the ‘Transforming’ Lev-2

To build a tiny, shapeshifting robot capable of exploring the lunar surface autonomously, team leader Daichi Hirano and colleagues designed the Lunar Excursion Vehicle (LEV) system, which comprises LEV-1 and LEV-2. According to the team’s statement, LEV-1 can communicate directly with mission planners back on Earth. For locomotion, the robot moves via what the team termed “a controlled hopping mechanism.”

The second robot, LEV-2, starts out as a compact sphere 8 inches in diameter. However, once on the Moon, the mission controllers said that the tiny robot can transform into a “two-wheeled rover with cameras and a tail stabilizer.”

“Here, we introduce a two-wheeled centimeter-scale rover, designated Lunar Excursion Vehicle 2 (LEV-2), also known as SORA-Q (named after the Japanese words for space and sphere), which transforms into a wheeled configuration from a compact spherical form, enabling efficient traversal of soft lunar terrains,” they write.

Transformers Make Autonomous Robotic Exploration History

According to the new mission details, the SLIM lander deployed LEV-2 “immediately before its landing on the lunar surface.” In the mission details, the team explained that upon deployment, the rover autonomously extended its wheels, tail stabilizer, and cameras, “thereby enhancing its mobility and stability on soft lunar terrain.”

After deployment, LEV-2 navigated the lunar surface in the immediate area around the lander. According to the published study, “the palm-sized rover accomplished autonomous lunar exploration by navigating around the SLIM lander, capturing images of both the SLIM lander and its environment.” Critically, the rover’s exploration was autonomous and “without reliance on ground-based teleoperation,” marking a historic first in lunar exploration.

After finishing its exploration, the tiny robot transmitted images of its adventures to LEV-1. The hopping rover then transmitted the data to Earth. The team notes that all these steps were also accomplished autonomously.

The team notes that the LEV-2 shape-shifting rover operated for “more than 100 minutes: before losing communication with LEV-1. Although determining the exact cause may require direct examination of the two robots, Hirano’s team suspects that issues caused by LEV-1’s hopping motions or battery depletion “may have contributed to connectivity issues.”

Exploring High-Risk, Scientifically Valuable Environments

When discussing the implication of an autonomous, shape-shifting rover successfully navigating the lunar surface and completing its mission directives, the team concedes that the capabilities of a single, small rover like LEV-2 “are inherently limited.” However, they also note that their mission success highlights the potential of this category of robotic platform “as independent explorers, capable of accessing environments beyond the reach of a primary large spacecraft.” 

“Swarm-controlled small robots are poised to be deployed in high-risk yet scientifically valuable environments, such as vents, caves, and steep slope craters, that are inaccessible to larger, conventional rovers,” the researchers conclude. “This approach promises to enhance both the efficiency and safety of future planetary surface exploration.”

The study “From ball to rover: Transformable palm-sized rover SORA-Q for autonomous lunar exploration” was published in Science Robotics.

Christopher Plain is a Science Fiction and Fantasy novelist and Head Science Writer at The Debrief. Follow and connect with him on X, learn about his books at plainfiction.com, or email him directly at christopher@thedebrief.org.

Researchers from the Université Polytechnique Hauts-de-France have revealed a technique that successfully analyzed several Vincent van Gogh artworks at a microscopic level to correctly identify well-known, previously identified forgeries from recently authenticated ones

The research team behind the pioneering, non-invasive art authentication process said their approach could provide museums, collectors, and art auction houses with a previously unavailable tool with a proven, scientifically based track record for identifying fake or counterfeit art.

Using Microscopic-Level Surface Scans to Foil Art Forgery

According to a press release announcing the successful counterfeit identification tests, art forgery is an increasingly complex problem. However, the traditional approach of expert opinion combined with historical research and invasive pigment analysis has not always proven successful, with the study authors noting that such methods are “often inconclusive,” leaving museums and collectors to shoulder most of the risk for difficult-to-authenticate works.

More recently, collectors and auctioneers have turned to science for answers, including a report showing that AI may have identified as many as 40 counterfeit artworks sold on online marketplaces. Although no counterfeit versions of Van Gogh’s works were found, that same effort identified potentially fake versions of paintings by Monet and Renoir that were indistinguishable from authentic ones.

In 2023, researchers at the University of Sydney announced the development of a cutting-edge microscope capable of surpassing the diffraction limit. In that story, study co-author Professor Boris Kuhlmey noted that the method, which is ideal for identifying microchip irregularities, “could even be used to reveal hidden layers in artwork, perhaps proving useful in uncovering art forgery or hidden works.”

Last month, The Debrief reported the discovery of a mathematical pattern in many famous expressionist artworks, noting that many abstract artists may naturally arrange shapes and patterns in similar ways, even without knowing the mathematics behind them. If correct, this concept could use science and mathematics to separate fake Impressionist works.

Now, the Université Polytechnique Hauts-de-France team says their new approach takes modern technology a step further, resulting in an unprecedented level of accuracy.

“Fractal Analysis Gives Us a Measurable Fingerprint of an Artist’s Brushwork” 

Unlike the above techniques, the new approach analyzes the texture of a painting’s surface at the microscopic level by converting high-resolution images into three-dimensional surface ‘maps’ of the painting’s upper layers. According to the study authors, the extracted “texture” of a painting allows them to measure an image’s roughness and detail using fractal math. For example, the team said that the subtle patterns of an artist’s brush stroke are so consistent “that they act like a morphological signature unique to that artist.” 

“Fractal analysis gives us a measurable fingerprint of an artist’s brushwork without needing to sample or disturb the painting,” explained Francois Berkmans, the study’s lead researcher.

To test their approach, the researchers scanned several artworks attributed to Renaissance artist Vincent van Gogh. The researchers also used their technique to study the mathematical texture of an artwork called The Plowmen, which the team noted is a “well-documented fake.” Last, they used their method to analyze another Vincent van Gogh work, Sunset at Montmajur, which was authenticated in 2013.

After running their microscopic surface analysis, the team’s new system identified The Plowmen as a “strong outlier” compared to the artist’s other works. Conversely, the new method determined that the two newly authenticated paintings “aligned closely with Van Gogh’s known works.”

New Method “Strengthens” Traditional Analysis as a Complimentary Tool

When discussing the study’s results, Berkmans said their technique “can clearly point out genuine artists and reliably detect known forgeries.” Along with identifying fakes and authentic works, the team said that the new approach successfully separated Van Gogh’s stylistic signatures from those of 17th‑century painter David Klöcker Ehrenstrahl, an achievement they heralded as demonstrating the technology’s “wider potential.” 

Although the new approach had successes, the team said it is not designed to replace current approaches, including complementary analyses such as the chemical examination of materials. Instead, they said their surface-texture approach should be used as a complementary tool to strengthen authentication, resulting in a multifaceted approach that can reduce risk for collectors, museums, and auction houses alike.

“This approach won’t replace traditional expertise, but it significantly strengthens it.”

The study “Preserving Van Gogh’s Painterly Heritage: Topographical and Fractal Insights in Authentication” was published in Surface Topography Metrology and Properties.

Christopher Plain is a Science Fiction and Fantasy novelist and Head Science Writer at The Debrief. Follow and connect with him on X, learn about his books at plainfiction.com, or email him directly at christopher@thedebrief.org.

Archaeologists working with the Israeli Antiquities Authority have announced the discovery and excavation of a cave located just outside the town of Fureidis, which has revealed signs of early human presence dating back to between 250,000 and 400,000 years ago.

The team of researchers behind the ongoing excavation said the fortuitous discovery could represent a “time capsule” that has remained sealed for hundreds of thousands of years, offering researchers an unprecedented glimpse into a critical period in human evolution.

Ancient Cave Contains Evidence of Critical Period in Human Evolution

According to a statement emailed to The Debrief, the ancient cave, which lies south of Haifa, near the Zikhron Ya’akov interchange, likely dates back to sometime between 400,000 and 250,000 years before present. The team notes that the range would mean it was sealed since the time of the Acheulo-Yabrudian culture, a period when ancient human ancestors began to display several complex tool-making skills, including various stone blade designs which were in use by hominins until around 300,000 years ago, marking the end of the Lower Paleolithic period.

“The culture we are investigating here was characterized by a variety of advanced methods for producing flint tools, including small sharp handaxes, scrapers, and blades,” explained Dr. Kobi Vardi, head of the Prehistory Branch at the Israel Antiquities Authority and the study’s co-director.

Most archaeologists put the African departure date of the last common ancestor of humans and Neanderthals between 700,000 and 500,000 years ago, and the first genetic interbreeding between the two species around 130,000-1,000,000 years ago. Therefore, finding a sealed cave containing relics from the period between these two critical evolutionary junctures offers the research team an unprecedented opportunity.

“We have been fortunate to excavate a unique site of global importance that has been protected from the ravages of time thanks to the exceptional conditions that existed here,” said team member Professor Ron Shimelmitz of the Zinman Institute of Archaeology and the School of Archaeology and Maritime Cultures at the University of Haifa.

Dr. Vardi agreed, noting that “It is very rare to find a site in such a state of preservation.”

“Every prehistorian who visits the site is absolutely thrilled,” he added.

“The Seeds That Led to the Development of Our Complex Culture”

In that same statement, Prof. Shimelmitz noted that the end of the Lower Paleolithic was a “unique time period” before Neanderthals and modern humans became the dominant hominids of the era and spread across “many regions.”

“Only a handful of sites from this important phase have been uncovered in Israel, and the wider Levant, and most of them are inaccessible for research,” the professor explained, adding that marked changes in human physiology, technology, and social organization “foreshadowed the traits and complex behavioral patterns that developed later and characterize both Neanderthals and modern humans.”

One component that helped facilitate the development of complex culture, highlighted by Prof. Shimelmitz, is the transition from ancient humans living in larger groups. He also emphasized the advent of human ancestors “spending longer periods at the same sites.”

Early excavations have already uncovered evidence of what the researcher termed “intensive use of fire.” These early forays have also found signs of prolonged human activity. Prof Shimelmitz said these signs suggest a “complex and rich camp life.”

Dr Vardi said that the ongoing excavation is uncovering animal bones, including ancient specimens of fallow deer, gazelle, and an ancient variety of horse.

Dr. Vardi also noted that these finds were discovered “alongside evidence of the presence of water,” which he suggests may have made the ancient cave an attractive location for hunter-gatherer groups inhabiting the region at the time.

High Resolution Studies of How Ancient Humans Lived

When discussing the implications of their findings, Prof. Shimelmitz first expressed the team’s appreciation for the financial support and enthusiasm shown by the project’s sponsor, the Ayalon Highways Company, “in enabling us to undertake the excavation.”

As for the scientific value of their initial discoveries and the potential for further insights into this period in human history, the professor noted that findings to date are typically associated with “the development of social cooperation and the transmission of knowledge, as part of the processes of human evolution.”

Dr. Vardi echoed those sentiments, while also noting that the ancient cave’s archaeological value “is no less important” than that of the well-known Nahal Me’arot site from the same evolutionarily critical period.

“(This site) will allow us to study in high resolution how humans lived at that time,” the researcher added.

Given the importance the research team put on the site, which included co-leader Amit Gabbay, the Israel Antiquities Authority and the University of Haifa are already putting forth what they describe as a “large-scale research program that seeks to reconstruct how humans lived, adapted to their environment, and developed new lifestyles and technologies over the course of human evolution.”

Along with heralding the site’s scientific value, the researchers highlighted its cultural importance by declaring their goal to make the site “open and accessible to all: to the residents of Fureidis, students at the nearby school, and anyone interested in the prehistory of the region,” once the formal excavations are completed.

Christopher Plain is a Science Fiction and Fantasy novelist and Head Science Writer at The Debrief. Follow and connect with him on X, learn about his books at plainfiction.com, or email him directly at christopher@thedebrief.org.

Researchers from the private nuclear fusion energy company Commonwealth Fusion Systems have published a series of papers that they claim confirm that their flagship ARC reactor will produce more usable energy than it consumes if built as designed.

Although the company projects it will deliver the first commercial fusion plants by the early 2030s, other researchers say there are remaining challenges to overcome, and won’t declare the ARC reactor successful until an operational version is constructed to validate the research team’s theoretical predictions.

ARC Fusion Reactor ‘Will Work’ When Built

Scientists have long dreamed of capturing the nuclear fusion reaction that fuels our Sun and using it to generate clean, renewable power. Private fusion firms like CFS have received nearly $10 billion in funding over the last decade alone.

The first laboratory “net-energy” controlled fusion reaction, which fusion scientists call “ignition,” didn’t occur until 2022, when physicists at the US National Ignition Facility in Livermore, California, successfully produced more energy than was used to generate the reaction. Although brief, that moment has fueled speculation that practical fusion energy generation may be right around the corner.

Now, the Commonwealth team, which includes 58 researchers from the company and partner institutes, has published scientific papers outlining the physics of their ARC reactor, including new models that they say account for the “expected behavior” of the superhot plasma at the heart of the design.

Brandon Sorbom, the company’s chief science officer, said that the published works  “confirm that when we build the ARC fusion power plant, it will work”.

Company Claims ARC Will Produce 400 Megawatts of Net Electricity

After nearly a decade of research, CFS, founded in 2018, is currently preparing its prototype for a 2027 demonstration it calls ‘SPARC.’ The company said they expect that trial run, which will demonstrate their technology’s ability to generate more energy than it needs to heat the plasma, will help them fine-tune ARC’s final design.

According to the Commonwealth-led team, ARC will generate more energy than is required to operate the entire facility, including plasma heating, resulting in a true net-positive power-generation facility. This includes producing approximately 400 megawatts of net electricity, which the team noted is enough to power 280,000 average US homes. For comparison, recent census data indicates that Boston, Massachusetts, near the company’s headquarters in Cambridge, has around 271,000 U.S. homes.

Like SPARC, the ARC reactor uses high-temperature superconducting magnets to compress the plasma, which remains suspended by the magnetic fields, preventing it from damaging the chamber walls and terminating any potential fusion reaction. Under this extreme pressure, the nuclei of heavy hydrogen trapped inside the chamber fuse to form helium, the same reaction that takes place inside the Sun.

This fusion reaction results in the release of energy, primarily high-speed neutrons. At its hottest, the donut-shaped ring of plasma reaches seven times the temperature of the Sun.

Critics Applaud Publication While Highlighting Unproven Concepts and Systems

Tony Roulstone, a nuclear engineer at the University of Cambridge, UK, conceded that the CFS team and its collaborating authors are “some of the best in the fusion business” and noted the company’s ARC reactor concept is the result of “good work over many years.” However, Roulstone also warned of the pressure on researchers in privately funded companies to “claim things before the evidence is fully in place.”

David Hammer, a nuclear engineer at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York, said it is a good sign that the team is publishing at a high volume, but also warned that published papers will not guarantee that the built device will work as intended.

Their modeling “has to be proven correct by a fusion reactor that works as designed”, he adds. If the firm can get SPARC operating successfully next year, “it will be an important step forward”, he says.

Hamner also noted that several of the design’s subsystems require further development before it can be declared complete. This includes addressing how plasma will behave in the real world when it becomes unstable versus its modeled behavior, proving out the process for extracting usable energy from the generated heat, and demonstrating that the reactor is robust enough to operate for long periods.

The scientists also noted the challenges in sourcing tritium, the isotopic fuel the reactor requires to operate. Although CFS has outlined its tritium generation process, Hamner noted that the series of published papers neither details the process nor demonstrates its viability.

“There are candidate blanket materials and blanket designs, but there are many engineering person-years needed” to bring a functional ARC-style plant to fruition, he explained.

“We certainly have to build more on top of that foundation laid out in these papers,” a company spokesperson said, adding that they will “be able to produce tritium for operations and for future power plants.”

The following articles were published by the CFS-led team: “Overview of the physics basis for the ARC fusion power plant“; “ARC disruption physics and strategy“; “Performance and Transport in the ARC Tokamak“; “Power and particle exhaust for the ARC fusion power plant“; “ARC Physics Basis-Magnetohydrodynamics.”

Editor’s Note: This article was updated to correct a previous version that described neutrinos, rather than fast-neutrons, in the context of the reporting, and to clarify that the first achievement of a “net-energy” controlled fusion reaction (ignition) occurred in 2022. 

Christopher Plain is a Science Fiction and Fantasy novelist and Head Science Writer at The Debrief. Follow and connect with him on X, learn about his books at plainfiction.com, or email him directly at christopher@thedebrief.org.

A new study has taken a fresh look at a late 2025 Yonsei University study claiming the universe’s expansion is stalling out and instead has found that the universe is still expanding as previously believed.

Led by researchers from the University of Southampton, the team behind the new analysis acknowledged the scientific value of the 2025 team’s work, noting that their calculations were not wrong but lacked the additional data needed to confirm the universe’s expansion rather than refute it.

The lead author of the 2025 study, Dr. Chul Chung, told The Debrief that he and his colleagues “have already submitted our response to Wiseman, Riess et al. 2026 on May 14,” adding that the paper, “Still accelerating: age bias correction in supernova cosmology is robust to host-progenitor age mapping,” has also been posted on arXiv.

“The abstract summarizes the two main issues we identify in Wiseman et al., so I think it provides a concise overview of our position,” Chung told The Debrief.

Challenging Universal Expansion

According to a statement announcing the findings, scientists first confirmed the universe’s expansion was accelerating in 2011, a discovery that won astrophysicists Professor Adam Riess and Professor Brian Schmidt the Nobel Prize in Physics. Since that discovery, cosmological models have incorporated this accelerating expansion, with experiments on dark matter and dark energy attempting to explain it.

Then last year, a separate team of astronomers announced that a new analysis of stellar phenomena indicated that the universe was no longer expanding. Adding to the controversy was the team’s claim that dark energy may not exist, citing the lack of concrete evidence for a universe undergoing accelerating expansion.

According to the Southampton-led team behind the new study, the 2025 study suggested that previous methods used to measure the universe’s expansion, such as measuring supernovae, “were fundamentally flawed.”

“This points to a time-varying dark energy and a universe that is no longer accelerating, representing a potential paradigm shift in cosmology if confirmed,” explained Professor Chul Chung, co-lead author on the study, in a 2025 email to The Debrief.

The claims sent shockwaves through the scientific community, a result that the researchers note could have dismantled the Nobel Prize-winning team’s historic findings, and “nearly three decades of astronomical progress.”

When discussing the 2025 team’s work, the lead author of the new study, Dr Phil Wiseman, said the team’s findings and the resulting debate were not necessarily incorrect. Instead, the Southampton researcher said it was primarily a result of a scientific understanding.

“The previous and well-accepted measurements were, in fact, fine and our current understanding of the fate of the universe remains robust.”

Recalculating Galaxy Masses and White Dwarf Star Ages Reestablishes Expansion

In their reanalysis, the Southampton-led team recalibrated the original data to account for variables not in the original study. According to Wiseman, these included “different host environments and populations.”

For example, the research team looked at Type 1a supernovae, which are violet, extremely bright explosions of white dwarf stars. The authors of the 2025 study claimed that this class of supernova had “different maximum brightness,” which had tricked astronomers into thinking the cosmos was accelerating, when their analysis said it was actually slowing down.

When they took a fresh look at the data, the Southampton team found that they had incorrectly estimated the age of these stars. The new study also says the 2025 team didn’t account for the mass of the galaxies hosting these cosmological phenomena, which they described as “a standard correction used in modern cosmology to prove accuracy.”

When his team factored those data points in, Wiseman said the evidence for a stalling expansion was not supported. Instead, the researcher observed that “the evidence for cosmic acceleration remains remarkably consistent.”

In their reply on ArXiv, the Yonsei University team said the new research failed to factor in two variables of their own, adding that “when these two effects are consistently combined in computing the redshift-dependent magnitude correction, the final correction, and hence the resulting cosmological impact, remain largely unchanged,” from the original 2025 calculations.

“Extraordinary Claims Require Especially Careful Testing”

When discussing the new study’s findings, Southampton Professor Mark Sullivan highlighted the benefits of scientific review, noting that “this is how progress is made.”

“Although this idea did not turn out correct, it has opened up new ways of thinking about how supernovae explode and how we can measure dark energy more accurately,” the researcher added.

Paper co-author, Dr Brodie Popovic agreed, noting that the 2025 study provided astronomers a good opportunity to “go back over all of our assumptions,” adding that “it turns out, yes, we do understand this stuff, and we’re accounting for it in our cosmology measurement.”

In a salute to the Sagan Standard established by astronomer Carl Sagan, which says “extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence,” Reiss seemed to celebrate the new findings that reestablish his original work by quipping that “extraordinary claims require especially careful testing.”

With the accelerating expansion of the universe seemingly reestablished, at least for now, Dr Wiseman said: “we can get back to trying to understand what dark energy actually is, rather than wondering if it exists at all.”

“Thankfully we have averted this crisis, but the mystery about why the universe is still accelerating in size remains,” he added. 

The study “Still Accelerating: Type Ia supernova cosmology is robust to host galaxy age evolution” was published in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society.

Christopher Plain is a Science Fiction and Fantasy novelist and Head Science Writer at The Debrief. Follow and connect with him on X, learn about his books at plainfiction.com, or email him directly at christopher@thedebrief.org.

Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) engineers are testing a new category of advanced-propulsion “electrospray” thrusters that combine the benefits of modern chemical and electrical thrusters used to drive satellites and other spacecraft into one hybrid system.

The team behind the novel propulsion technology said that electrospray thrusters could allow mission planners to design smaller, more nimble satellites and spacecraft capable of performing faster, more powerful maneuvers or slower, more precise adjustments, depending on mission requirements.

Electrospray Combines the Best of Chemical and Electric Propulsion

Launching rockets into space still requires chemical thrusters, but once spacecraft and satellites reach orbit, engineers continue to develop novel propulsion methods that are more efficient than chemical propulsion technologies. Given the strict weight requirements of spacecraft launches, finding alternatives to chemical propellants has opened up a wider range of mission profiles.

Among the most common alternatives to chemical thrusters are designs that combine electrical energy with small amounts of propellant to produce small but sustainable thrust. Although electric thruster designs require less fuel, saving significantly on launch weight, they also lack both the power and the rapid, quick burst performance of chemical thrusters.

According to study author Amelia Bruno, a former postdoc in MIT’s Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AeroAstro), combining chemical and electrical propulsion into a single system is “the best of both worlds.”

“This opens the door for small satellites to do even more science, more observations, and more interesting missions, all on a smaller and cheaper platform,” Bruno explained to MIT News.

Study co-author Paulo Lozano, the Miguel Alemán Velasco Professor of Aeronautics and Astronautics at MIT, agreed, noting that combining both technologies could enable a CubeSat mission to Mars “where they could make the journey slowly, using electrospray thrusters.”

“You could then use your chemical thrusters to quickly move to look at interesting features,” the professor added. “You could have a lot more flexibility to do a lot more things.”

ASCENT Rocket Fuel as the Thruster’s Ionic Liquid Propellant Enables Hybrid Design

According to a statement detailing the new electrospray thruster’s design, the ones developed by the MIT team are about the size of a thumbnail. Each thruster is also placed directly above a small fuel reservoir. For the MT electrospray thrusters, the fuel is an ionic liquid propellant, a liquid composed of salts that remain dissolved in a solution.

“Ionic liquids are very stable and can even remain a liquid in space, which not a lot of materials can do,” Bruno explained. “And it’s basically a sea of ions, which is why we base our technology around it, so we can pull those ions out into an electrospray.”

When a spacecraft’s battery delivers an electric charge to the fuel reservoir, the ions within the fuel also become charged. The thruster’s design channels the charged particles from the reservoir and through the thruster tips, expelling them into space.

Although the team has tested several types of ionic propellant in its electrospray propulsion thrusters, Bruno and Lozano have collaborated with the U.S. Air Force to synthesize an all-new ionic liquid propellant, which they are calling the Advanced SpaceCraft Energetic Non-Toxic propellant, or ASCENT.

Originally designed as a “green” alternative to extremely hazardous hydrazine rocket fuel that has been the staple in the rocket industry for decades, Bruno notes that ASCENT “happens to be an ionic liquid mixture.”

“And we said, hey, that’s the stuff we typically use,” the researcher added. “Theoretically, this should work. Let’s go figure out how.” 

Tests: Chemical Propellant Equally Efficient as Conventional Ionic Liquids

To test their electrospray design, each tested thruster was attached to a small reservoir about the size of a single Lego brick, and then the reservoir was filled with ASCENT. Next, electrospray thrusters were mounted on opposite sides of a traditional CubeSat.

To simulate the microgravity environment of Near-Earth Orbit, the team placed the thruster-equipped CubeSat on a MagLev stand. The team noted that the MagLev in Lozano’s lab is installed inside a large vacuum chamber. This design allows the researchers to fine-tune the environment to best mimic the conditions in space.

During a series of tests, the team applied varying voltage levels to the electrospray thrusters. As expected, the reaction produced a spray from the thruster nozzles, which spun the CubeSat around on the MagLev stand like a freely spinning top.

During each thruster firing, the team measured the amount of thrust produced. This data, combined with the voltage and fuel data, allowed the team to calculate ASCENT’s fuel efficiency during continuous operation. Some tests lasted up to 100 hours.

When the MIT group evaluated the results, they first determined that the choice of ASCENT was correct, as it successfully fueled each electrospray thruster. Even more significantly, the tests revealed that the readily available chemical propellant was equally efficient as conventional ionic liquids.

“Compared to our normal electrospray propellants, ASCENT can provide similar performance in terms of thrust,” Bruno explained. “Now that we know our thrusters work with ASCENT, we can start thinking of all the ways we can make them even better.”

Testing Electrospray Thrusters on NASA’s Green Propulsion Dual Mode Mission

When discussing the benefits of their successful electrospray thruster tests, Lozano noted that a spacecraft with electric and chemical thrusters can share a single fuel tank. Due to its compact design, this hybrid electrospray thruster could be mounted on a small satellite.

Fortunately, the team won’t have to wait long to see their thruster in action. According to the research team, whose work was partially supported by NASA, their design will be incorporated into NASA’s upcoming Green Propulsion Dual Mode mission scheduled to launch in November. The Green Propulsion Dual-Mode mission will carry a briefcase-sized CubeSat with a primary chemical thruster and specially designed electrospray thrusters, making it the first attempt to combine electrical and chemical propulsion in a small spacecraft.

“This will be the first time that a satellite will have a shared propellant tank,” Lozano explained.

Although a large portion of proposed electric propulsion missions that might employ the new electrospray thruster are designed to explore deeper into the Solar System and beyond, Lozano also highlighted the technology’s possible applications closer to home. For example, satellites equipped with both technologies could rapidly respond to environmental or climate changes in real time with a speed and efficiency unavailable with current propulsion options.

“Say there’s a storm coming, and you’d want to deploy your constellation of small satellites to observe over one location,” the researcher explained. “You could choose to send them quickly or slowly, depending on the nature of the observation.”

“And the only way to do that is if you have two propulsion systems, which is now possible,” he added.

Although the mission will not launch before November, Bruno noted that a successful test could allow engineers to consider missions they never thought possible.

“Now that we know our thrusters work with ASCENT, we can start thinking of all the ways we can make them even better,” the researcher explained.

The study “Performance Characterization of Electrospray Thrusters with Energetic Ionic Liquid Monopropellant” was published in the Journal of Propulsion and Power.

Christopher Plain is a Science Fiction and Fantasy novelist and Head Science Writer at The Debrief. Follow and connect with him on X, learn about his books at plainfiction.com, or email him directly at christopher@thedebrief.org.

A multi-institutional team of researchers led by University of Connecticut Professor Zhe Zhu has developed a method for measuring the dynamic, real-time activity of urban environments from space, which they are calling an “Urban Pulse.”

The research team behind the novel urban activity metric said that monitoring a city’s Urban Pulse could help mitigate uncontrolled urban sprawl or decay and enable environmentalists and urban planners to intervene before disasters become unavoidable.

Measuring an Urban Pulse Could Reveal Neighborhoods ‘Not Doing Well”

Although environmentalists and urban planners have a wide range of tools to measure the activities within a city, Zhu notes that scientists have spent decades merely capturing the “outcome of urbanization,” such as a finished road or a newly completed home. However, the researcher and lead author of a study detailing the Urban Pulse methodology added that, even with all the current tools, “you don’t really see the dynamics within an urban area.”

According to a statement detailing the new approach, a city’s pulse is determined by all construction activity within it. Along with new construction, the metric includes repairs, infrastructure improvements, or expansion into previously undeveloped green spaces. When used correctly, the researchers said that it can help determine “if and where their city is not doing well.”

“This would allow (authorities) to be proactive rather than conducting a metaphorical autopsy after the decay of an area is evident,” the team explained.

Bridging the Gap Between Abstract Urban Theories and Measurable, Real-World Data

To test their approach, the team evaluated the Urban Pulse of six cities: Seattle, Shenzhen, Lagos, Mumbai, Dubai, and Mexico City. This involved a deep examination of what the team termed “decades of dense time-series data” collected by NASA’s Harmonized Landsat and Sentinel-2 (HLS)  satellites for physical transformations in an urban environment, such as new construction, measurable infrastructure improvements, and demolition.

Instead of analyzing each city’s changes manually, the team evaluated the above changes on what they called “the neighborhood level” using a deep-learning and time-series-analysis approach called CAPES, developed by former UConn postdoctoral researcher Ji Won Suh. The team said that, by observing these “high-frequency rhythms of development” from a broad ‘outer space’ perspective, their approach “bridges the gap between abstract urban theories and measurable, real-world data.”

After examining CAPES’ results, the team found several key markers within the Urban Pulse. For example, the view from space revealed that growth within cities is not smooth and steady. Instead, Zhu and colleagues said that development happens in “abrupt, intense, and episodic bursts of construction.”

CAPES also revealed that the rhythms of an urban environment are cyclical. For example, while a city may show relatively steady growth on a broader level, individual neighborhoods go through “dramatic boom-and-rest cycles” of expansion and dormancy that don’t appear to follow predictable annual seasons.

The third pattern revealed by measuring the six cities’ Urban Pulse from space was that cities are “asynchronous,” meaning a single city does not ‘beat’ in unison. The team noted that neighborhoods “pulse at completely different times.” When it functions properly, this “uncoordinated rhythm” helps prevent the city’s infrastructure and labor markets from “overheating.”

Unlike previous methods for tracking a city’s evolution, the team noted that their Urban Pulse approach can help researchers “visualize a city’s reaction to global shocks.” For example, the team said that their analysis captured “the exact moment the COVID-19 pandemic triggered a widespread, synchronized ‘cardiac arrest’ in urban development worldwide.”

However, their new tool also revealed what the researchers termed “profound inequalities” in how individual cities recovered from the dramatic halt to urban growth. For example, the team said that the Urban Pulse of Shenzhen revealed synchronized ‘dips’ in activity, followed almost immediately by “rapid, policy-driven rebounds.” However, the same Orban Pulse analysis showed that the reactions in Mumbai and Mexico City were much more “muted.”

“It’s like in human beings,” Zhu explained. “When you get a disease, it’s not going to show up exactly the same in different people.”

A ‘Very Impactful Tool’ for Navigating Cities

Although the Urban Pulse metric offers a tantalizing tool for academics, the team noted real-world benefits for global policymakers, urban planners, and environmentalists, adding that “it serves as an early warning system.”

“By monitoring the rhythm, rate, and amplitude of neighborhood pulses, governments can identify early signs of urban decay or unsustainable sprawl and intervene before crises become entrenched,” they explained.

The team also suggested that making Urban Pulse data publicly available could “revolutionize how everyday people interact with their cities.” For example, an urban family considering a move to a new city or a new part of their current city could track a target neighborhood’s pulse to spot early warning signs of decay or early indicators of positive-trending growth. The same data could help business owners plan new locations or expanded service routes, depending on the business profile and the local Urban Pulse trends.

“This is going to be a very impactful tool influencing not only top-down policy decisions from governments but also bottom-up decisions from everyday people navigating their cities,” Zhu explained.

In a recent study, “The Urban Pulse: Diagnosing the urbanization process as spiky, cyclical, and asynchronous” was published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Christopher Plain is a Science Fiction and Fantasy novelist and Head Science Writer at The Debrief. Follow and connect with him on X, learn about his books at plainfiction.com, or email him directly at christopher@thedebrief.org.

Northwestern University engineers have unveiled an extremely energy-efficient 3D camera, called SpiderCam, inspired by how jumping spiders judge depth before making a calculated leap.

The research team behind the novel device said their technology could help engineers build wearable technologies, assistive devices, robots, drones, and other futuristic technologies that benefit from quickly and efficiently gauging their surroundings.

How Jumping Spiders Inspired Energy-Efficient SpiderCam

According to a statement announcing SpiderCam, 3D cameras typically estimate image depth in two ways. The first approach involves captured images from multiple viewpoints and comparing them, and the second involves projecting a light source, often an infrared (IR) laser, and then measuring the reflection.

Although both methods can produce realistic three-dimensional images, they can require significant computing power, additional operational energy, and often expensive hardware such as lasers.

Fortunately, millions of years of evolution have resulted in a creature that possesses a hyper-efficient way of estimating depth: the jumping spider.

“Jumping spiders jump to catch prey, to avoid predators and to get around, and that requires excellent vision,” said Northwestern’s Emma Alexander, the study’s corresponding author and an expert in bio-inspired computer vision. However, the researcher notes that their brains are extremely small, requiring the ability to calculate distances in an energy- and computationally efficient way.

According to Alexander, jumping spider eyes have multiple layers of retinas in each eye, rather than just one as in human eyes. When measuring distance, each retina focuses on an image at a slightly different distance, resulting in some images being blurrier than others.

“They see multiple levels of focus at all times,” Alexander explained. “So, they are always collecting pairs of images.”

After collecting these images in real time, the fly’s poppyseed-sized brain compares their sharpness, yielding a surprisingly accurate depth estimate, as evidenced by the creature’s ability to jump with precision.

Prototype Captures Images at Two Distances and Compares Their Blurriness

Inspired by nature’s hyper-efficient, extremely accurate depth estimation method, Alexander’s team decided to build a 3D camera using the same basic approach.

“We wanted to understand whether we could borrow some of the same principles to create an extremely energy-efficient depth sensor that could be used in resource-constrained situations where users don’t have unlimited access to power,” Alexander explained.

Instead of capturing images at multiple distances, as the jumping spider’s eye does, the Northwestern team’s initial design captures two images of the same scene at different focal lengths. Next, the system uses a custom algorithm to analyze the sharpness of the edges and textures captured in each image. The team said this analysis acts as a “translator between blur and distance” in the fly’s brain, resulting in “depth measurements in real time.”

To best approximate the naturally evolved energy efficiency of a jumping spider’s eye, Alexander’s team built the algorithm directly into a customizable computer chip specifically optimized for energy efficiency called a field-programmable gate array (FPGA).

The final prototype integrating the team’s dual-lens system generates depth maps at 32.5 frames per second. Critically, it generates this level of accurate 3D maps while consuming 624 milliwatts of power. For comparison, the team notes that 624 milliwatts is “less energy than used by a standard nightlight.”

Future Versions Could be Even More Energy Efficient

Although the team said that the current version of the SpiderCam is the “first passive FPGA-based 3D camera system to operate below one watt,” they hope to improve its optics and expand its field of view. Once they have a commercial-grade version, the team hopes to integrate SpiderCam into wearable devices and small robots.

Beyond proposed applications, the Northwestern team said that they “envision” a future, ultra-energy-efficient version  of the chip capable of “bringing 3D vision to applications where conventional depth sensors are impractical.”

“I’m very interested in settings where you’re very resource constrained and can’t just plug a camera into a wall,” Alexander explained. “For example, it could be deployed in field settings with limited power.”

“Separately, I also think it’s particularly exciting for applications like augmented reality where you’re interfacing with the physical world and need to know the locations of objects around you,” the researcher added.

The study’s co-first authors, Marcos Ferreira and Tianao Li, presented this work at the Computer Vision Foundation’s Conference on Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition (CVPR) in Denver. Complimentary registration is available for members of the media.

Christopher Plain is a Science Fiction and Fantasy novelist and Head Science Writer at The Debrief. Follow and connect with him on X, learn about his books at plainfiction.com, or email him directly at christopher@thedebrief.org.