TopNews

Earlier, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) had reported a short circuit in the arm of its Curiosity rover, a car-sized robotic rover which has been exploring the Red Planet. The rover halted work on February 27. Since then, the rover team was working to find the source of short circuit in hopes of repairing it and getting the rover back to work. Now, as per mission controllers, they have discovered the source of short circuits.

A new study has suggested that Milky Way galaxy is much larger than previously estimated. During the study, scientists re-examined the data from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey and found that the Milky Way is about 50% larger than previously believed.

In a news release, Heidi Newberg, one of the researchers associated with the study, said that the disk of star of the Milky Way is not just a disk in a flat plane. According to Newberg, the disk is corrugated. The scientists have seen about four ripples in the disk of the Milky Way, Newberg added. Newberg said the data allowed the scientists to look at only one part of the galaxy, but the scientists believed that the pattern would be same throughout the disk.

In a warning, swimmers were told to be careful regarding plumes of algae in Lake Mead and Lake Mohave, which could be harmful for them.

Officials with the National Park Service said that mats of blue-green algae have been observed on the surface of Lake Mead and Lake Mohave. A sample collected from the region consisted of low levels of a toxin called microcystin, which can lead to skin irritations, rashes and gastrointestinal illness.

The agency said that people should avoid swimming and playing in the lakes. They are also advised not to drink water, which consists of the algae. It has been advised that residual algae, which wash ashore, should also not be touched. People should also not allow their pets to play or drink water, which has the organisms.

UC Berkeley engineers have taken inspiration from nature and have created an ultra-thin film that can change colors easily like a chameleon's skin when pulled or twisted.

Connie Chang-Hasnai, professor of electrical engineering and computer sciences and lead researcher of the team, described their material in a study published in the journal Optica, this week.

Researchers have said that this thin-skinned material could be developed into active camouflage on vehicle exteriors, or a new class of display technologies.

The material is very useful, as it could also be used as an early warning system for structural fatigue, by changing color whenever there comes any kind of stress on the critical components on bridges, buildings or the wings of airplanes.

Researchers have recently developed a self-propelled liquid metal motor that could give rise to the creation of a robot like T-1000, the robot seen in Hollywood movie Terminator 2. The first liquid metal robot of the world was developed by researchers from the Tsinghua University in Beijing, China. The unique features of the robot include its ability to power itself and change shapes.

"The soft machine looks rather intelligent and [can] deform itself according to the space it voyages in, just like [the] Terminator does from the science-fiction film. These unusual behaviors perfectly resemble the living organisms in nature", said Jing Liu at the Tsinghua University.

Last week, a group of scientists and anglers captured an 800 pounds and 14 feet long stingray in Thailand's Mae Klong River. According to reports, the massive stingray could be the world's largest freshwater fish ever taken on rod and reel.

The capture was made in the Amphawa District. As per the reports, the stingray fights differently that other fish when hooked, but it wasn't an easy task for the anglers to catch the massive fish. The reports stated that it took several hours to catch the fish. About seven men fought in the epic battle. After catching, the fish was taken out of the water for further examinations.