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How do Animals Detect Magnetic Fields? Worm Brain May Hold Answer

A research team from the University of Texas at Austin has discovered the presence of Earth’s magnetic field sensor in an animal for the first time. The identification of sensor in the brain of a tiny worm called C. elegans solved the long-standing mystery on the functioning of animals’ internal compasses.

18 Jun 2015

Aquarius/SAC-D Mission to Study Ocean Surface Salinity Stops Operations

An international Earth-observing mission launched in 2011 to study the salinity of the ocean surface ended June 8 when an essential part of the power and attitude control system for the SAC-D spacecraft, which carries NASA's Aquarius instrument, stopped operating. The Aquarius instrument successfully achieved its science objectives and completed its primary three-year mission in November 2014.

18 Jun 2015

PlanetiQ Commences Testing of "Pyxis" Satellite Weather Sensor Technology

PlanetiQ announced today that it has started testing of its first "Pyxis" weather instrument with successful processing of GPS signals. The Pyxis represents a new paradigm in satellite weather sensor technology that can penetrate through clouds and storms to produce the highly calibrated data required to dramatically improve weather forecasting, climate monitoring and space weather prediction, all at a much lower cost than traditional satellite weather instruments.

3 Jun 2015

NASA and JAXA Stop Operations of TRMM Rainfall Mission

In 1997 when the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission, or TRMM, was launched, its mission was scheduled to last just a few years. Now, 17 years later, the TRMM mission has come to an end. NASA and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) stopped TRMM's science operations and data collection on April 8 after the spacecraft depleted its fuel reserves.

13 Apr 2015

ISS-RapidScat Instrument Measures Sustained Winds of Typhoon Maysak

The RapidScat instrument that flies aboard the International Space Station saw Typhoon Maysak's strongest winds wrapped tightly around its center, extending outward to over 30 miles from the eye. Maysak weakened as a result of increasing wind shear.

3 Apr 2015

GPS and Satellite Data Can Be Used in Real-Time to Characterize Earthquake Fault Lines

When an earthquake hits, the faster first responders can get to an impacted area, the more likely infrastructure--and lives--can be saved.

24 Mar 2015

Space Radar Tracks Region's Risk of Groundwater Pollution

The next time you're digging for buried treasure, stop when you hit water. That underground resource is more valuable than all legendary hoards combined. Ninety percent of Earth's available fresh water is beneath the surface at any particular time. We drink it, we grow our food with it, and we power industries with it.

20 Mar 2015