Mars’ Organic Mystery Unveiled, Parker Solar Probe’s Solar Close Encounter

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Kind: captions
Language: en

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this is Spaceime Series 28 episode 40


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for broadcast on the 2nd of April


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2025 coming up on Spaceime the largest


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organic molecule ever found on Mars


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NASA's Parker Solar Probe survives its


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close encounter with the sun and some


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interesting results from a new study


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looking at the earliest days of Earth's


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formation all that and more coming up on


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Spacetime


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welcome to Spaceime with Stuart


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[Music]




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Garry scientists analyzing pulverized


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rock using NASA's Mars Curiosity rover


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have discovered the largest organic


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compounds ever seen on the red planet


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and they could be the remains of fatty


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acids the findings reported in the


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journal of the proceedings of the


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National Academy of Sciences PNAS


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expands of the kinds of ancient


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molecules that can be preserved on the


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Martian surface and it suggests that


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prebiotic chemistry may have advanced


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much further on Mars than previously


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observed scientists reached their


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conclusion after probing an existing


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rock sample inside Curiosity's mini lab


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and found the molecules decain and


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dodicane these compounds are made up of


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10 11 and 12 carbon atoms respectively


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and it's thought they could be fragments


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of fatty acids that were preserved in


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the sample fatty acids are among the


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organic molecules that at least on Earth


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are the chemical building blocks for


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life living things produce fatty acids


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to help form cell membranes and perform


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various other biological functions of


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course the thing is fatty acids can also


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be made through chemical and geological


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processes using the interaction of water


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with minerals in hydrothermal vents so


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no life needed the problem is there's no


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way to confirm the original source of


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these molecules but still finding them


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at all is exciting the Curiosity


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scientists had previously discovered


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small simple organic molecules on Mars


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but finding these larger compounds


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provides the first real evidence that


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organic chemistry advanced towards the


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kind of complexity which is required for


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the origins of life to have evolved on


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the red planet the new study also


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increases the chances that bio


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signatures could survive and be


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preserved in the Martian soil thereby


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allaying concerns that these compounds


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would get destroyed and break down after


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millions of years of exposure to intense


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radiation and oxidation so the discovery


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bird's will for plans for a sample


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return mission to the red planet


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hopefully by the end of this decade we


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know the Chinese are planning for that


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in 2029 but a joint American and


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European mission has been put on the


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back burner because of costs


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nevertheless bringing Martian samples


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back to Earth would allow scientists to


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examine them using far more extensive


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and sophisticated equipment than what


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can be incorporated in a Mars rover the


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study's lead author Caroline Freezenette


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from the French National Center for


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Scientific Research says the discovery


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proves that even today by analyzing


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Martian samples one could detect


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chemical signatures of past life that is


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if it ever existed on the red planet


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back in 2015 Fzinet co-led a team that


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in a first conclusively identified


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Martian organic molecules in the same


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sample that was used for this current


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study the sample nicknamed Cumberland by


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the scientists has now been analyzed


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many times using a range of different


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techniques curiosity first drilled the


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Cumberland sample back in May 2013 from


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the Yellow Knife Bay formation inside


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Gal Crater scientists were so intrigued


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by Yellow Knife Bay which looks like an


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ancient lake bed they sent the rover


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there before heading in the opposite


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direction to its primary target Mount


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Sharp the central peak rising thousands


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of meters from the crater floor and the


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detour was worth it cumberland turned


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out to be jam-packed with tantalizing


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chemical clues to G crater's 3.7


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billionyear past scitus had previously


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found the sample to be rich in mineral


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clays which form exclusively in water it


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also has an abundance of sulfur and that


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can help preserve organic molecules and


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Cumberland has lots of nitrates which on


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Earth are essential to the health of


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plants and animals and it has methane


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made with a type of carbon that on Earth


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is associated with biological processes


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but perhaps most importantly scientists


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determined that Yellow Knife Bay was


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indeed the site of an ancient lake


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providing an environment that could


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concentrate organic molecules and


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preserve them in fine grain sedimentary


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rock called mudstone the study's


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co-author Daniel Glavin from NASA's


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Godard Space Flight Center in Green Belt


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Maryland says there's evidence that


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liquid water existed in Gale Crater for


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millions of years that means there would


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have been enough time for life forming


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chemistry to happen in these crater lake


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environments the recent organic


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compounds discovery was actually a side


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effect of an unrelated experiment to


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probe Cumberland for signs of amino


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acids the building blocks of proteins


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however after heating the sample twice


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in Curiosity's onboard laboratory oven


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and then measuring the mass of the


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molecules released the authors found no


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evidence of any amino acids but they


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didn't notice that the sample released


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small amounts of decane undercane and


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dodicane because these compounds could


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have broken down from larger molecules


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during heating the scientists sort of


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worked backwards to try and figure out


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what structures they could have come


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from they hypothesized that these


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molecules were remnants of the fatty


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acids underinoic acid dotinoic acid and


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tridoconinoic acid so they tested their


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prediction in the lab mixing underinoic


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acid into a Mars-like clay and


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conducting a curiosity ovenike


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experiment after being heated the


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underininoic acid released decay just as


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predicted the authors then referenced


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experiments already published by other


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scientists that showed that the


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undercane could have broken off from


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dotinetic acid and docaine from


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tridotinetic acid the authors also found


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an additional intriguing detail in their


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study related to the number of carbon


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atoms that make up the presumed fatty


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acids in the sample see the backbone of


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each fatty acid is a long straight chain


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of between 11 and 13 carbon atoms


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depending on the molecule notably


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non-biological processes typically make


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shorter fatty acids with less than 12


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carbons but it's possible the Cumberland


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sample had longer chain fatty acids


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problem is Curiosity's Lab simply isn't


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optimized to detect these longer chains


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the authors say that ultimately there's


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simply a limit as to how much one can


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infer from molecule hunting instruments


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that can be fitted onto a Mars rover


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glavin says they now need to take the


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next big step and bring Mars samples


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back here to Earth so that bigger better


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equipped labs here can finally settle


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the debate about life on Mars once and


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for all this report about the explos of


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the Mars Curiosity Rover from NASA TV


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the Curiosity Rover set out to answer a


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big question could Mars have supported


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ancient life now we know the answer but


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there's still so much more to learn i'm


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Raquel Venewa here with Curiosity Deputy


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Project Scientist Abigail Framan well


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Curiosity landed at the base of a big


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mountain named Mount Sharp that is made


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of layers of rocks so we're climbing the


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mountain to give us a snapshot of


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Martian history we've climbed over 2,000


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ft in elevation up the mountain we're


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all the way up in these hills now it's


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pretty spectacular with all that


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climbing how is Curiosity doing pretty


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good actually the arm and the drill and


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the rover they're a little bit arthritic


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and our wheels are a little bit beat up


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and how do you decide where the rover is


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going to go do you work with other NASA


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missions you know the data from the Mars


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orbiters have been really helpful the


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spectrometers that's the kind of


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instrument on on Odyssey and Mars


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Reconnaissance Orbiter have told us


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where the interesting minerals are and


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where the best places to go to look at


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changing environments are and then in


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particular the cameras on the Mars


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Reconnaissance Orbiter they're so good


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and they're so helpful at allowing us to


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find the safest way that we can climb


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this mountain what would you say is the


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biggest discovery your team has made you


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know Curiosity was sent to Mars in order


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to answer a really big question did Mars


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have all of the ingredients that we know


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life needed and not only have we given


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that answer a definitive yes but we've


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also seen that those ingredients were


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around for tens of millions of years and


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what's next for Curiosity we can see


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from orbit that we're getting to a place


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in the mountain that likely records a


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pretty dramatic change in the sorts of


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environments that were around you know


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the lakes that once filled Gale started


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to dry out and we're getting to that


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period in time so we're really


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interested in answering how long did


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these habitable environments persist as


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Mars and Gail Crater went through these


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pretty big climate changes i just can't


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wait to see what's next we've seen hints


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that the rocks are going to be very


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different very soon and so I'm really


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curious what we're going to find


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and in that report from NASA TV we heard


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from Curiosity Deputy Project scientist


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Abigail Framan this is spaceime still to


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come nasa's Parker Solar Probe survives


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a close encounter with the sun and it


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turns out the earliest days of Earth's


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formation may have been very different


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from what we thought all that and more


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still to come on Spaceime


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[Music]


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nasa's Parker Solar Probe has just


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survived another close encounter with


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the sun swooping down to within 6.1


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million kilometers of the blistering hot


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solar surface as well as matching its


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previous distance record which was


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achieved back in December last year the


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spacecraft also equaled its previous


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speed record clocking some


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692,000 kilometers an hour that's three


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times closer to the sun and seven times


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faster than any other spacecraft has


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ever flown the flyby was actually


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Parker's 23rd science gathering solar


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encounter and each has been getting a


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little bit closer and closer this latest


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flyby allowed the mission's four


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scientific instrument packages to


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undertake a series of unique


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observations from inside the sun's


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corona during the encounter parker was


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out of contact with Earth and operating


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autonomously during the close approach


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but mission managers at the John's


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Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory in


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Lurel Maryland say the spacecraft sent


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back a series of special turn signals


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confirming that it had survived and was


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operating nominally more detailed data


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and information will be transmitted in


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the next few days that's when the probes


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further away from the sun and its


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extreme electromagnetic environment the


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flyby the second at this distance and


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speed allowed the spacecraft to conduct


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unrivaled scientific measurements of the


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solar wind and related activities at the


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same time scientists are continuing to


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dig into the data which is still


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streaming back from the December close


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approach it's all a major effort with


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three novel aerospace technology


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achievements critical to enabling Parker


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to become the first spacecraft to reach


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inside the sun's atmosphere the first of


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these is an amazing thermal protection


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system or heat shield it's designed to


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protect the spacecraft from the searing


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temperatures of its environment allowing


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it to withstand brutal temperatures as


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high as 1,400° C the thermal protection


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system allows the spacecraft's


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electronics and instruments to operate


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close to room temperature additional


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Parker innovations include firstofitkind


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actively cooled solar arrays that


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protect themselves from overexposure to


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the intense heat energy while powering


00:11:51.440 --> 00:11:53.670
the spacecraft and a fully autonomous


00:11:53.680 --> 00:11:55.590
spacecraft system that can manage its


00:11:55.600 --> 00:11:57.590
own flight behavior orientation and


00:11:57.600 --> 00:12:00.389
configuration for months at a time in


00:12:00.399 --> 00:12:01.910
fact Park has relied on these


00:12:01.920 --> 00:12:03.750
technologies ever since its launch


00:12:03.760 --> 00:12:07.509
almost 7 years ago back in August 2018


00:12:07.519 --> 00:12:09.750
parker's close-up observations of solar


00:12:09.760 --> 00:12:11.829
events such as coronal mass ejections


00:12:11.839 --> 00:12:13.990
and solar flares are crucial for


00:12:14.000 --> 00:12:15.990
advancing science's understanding of the


00:12:16.000 --> 00:12:18.069
sun and the phenomena that drive high


00:12:18.079 --> 00:12:19.870
energy space weather


00:12:19.880 --> 00:12:22.790
events so understanding the fundamental


00:12:22.800 --> 00:12:25.030
physics behind these events will enable


00:12:25.040 --> 00:12:27.190
more reliable predictions and lower


00:12:27.200 --> 00:12:28.949
astronaut exposure to hazardous


00:12:28.959 --> 00:12:30.870
radiation during future deep space


00:12:30.880 --> 00:12:32.870
missions to places like the moon and


00:12:32.880 --> 00:12:37.269
Mars this spaceime still to come a new


00:12:37.279 --> 00:12:39.190
study says the earliest days of Earth's


00:12:39.200 --> 00:12:40.870
formation may have been very different


00:12:40.880 --> 00:12:42.870
to what we thought and later in the


00:12:42.880 --> 00:12:45.030
science report we look at the golden


00:12:45.040 --> 00:12:48.069
keys to being healthy in old age all


00:12:48.079 --> 00:12:53.010
that and more still to come on Spaceime


00:12:53.020 --> 00:12:58.930
[Music]




00:13:06.560 --> 00:13:07.910
scientists have found that planet


00:13:07.920 --> 00:13:09.590
Earth's lower mantle may have been


00:13:09.600 --> 00:13:11.509
formed under very different dynamics


00:13:11.519 --> 00:13:12.949
than what had originally been


00:13:12.959 --> 00:13:14.790
hypothesized with evidence of what


00:13:14.800 --> 00:13:16.710
appears to be low pressure rather than


00:13:16.720 --> 00:13:18.710
high pressure crystallization taking


00:13:18.720 --> 00:13:20.949
place the findings reported in the


00:13:20.959 --> 00:13:22.790
journal Nature shed new light on the


00:13:22.800 --> 00:13:24.790
earliest days of Earth's formation and


00:13:24.800 --> 00:13:26.470
potentially calls into question some


00:13:26.480 --> 00:13:28.150
previous assumptions in planetary


00:13:28.160 --> 00:13:29.990
science about the early years of


00:13:30.000 --> 00:13:32.790
terrestrial rocky planets establishing


00:13:32.800 --> 00:13:34.710
direct link between the Earth's interior


00:13:34.720 --> 00:13:36.389
dynamics occurring within the first 100


00:13:36.399 --> 00:13:37.750
million years of the planet's history


00:13:37.760 --> 00:13:39.509
and its present- day structure the


00:13:39.519 --> 00:13:41.110
work's one of the first in the field to


00:13:41.120 --> 00:13:43.030
combine fluid mechanics with chemistry


00:13:43.040 --> 00:13:45.310
to better understand the Earth's early


00:13:45.320 --> 00:13:47.509
evolution the study's lead author


00:13:47.519 --> 00:13:49.590
Charles Edward Bicare from York


00:13:49.600 --> 00:13:51.350
University says the research is the


00:13:51.360 --> 00:13:53.190
first to demonstrate using a physical


00:13:53.200 --> 00:13:54.949
model that the first order features of


00:13:54.959 --> 00:13:56.710
the Earth's lower mantle structure were


00:13:56.720 --> 00:13:59.509
established 4 billion years ago the


00:13:59.519 --> 00:14:01.829
mantle is a rocky envelopment sort of


00:14:01.839 --> 00:14:04.310
like slowmoving honey or molasses that


00:14:04.320 --> 00:14:07.269
surrounds the iron core of rocky planets


00:14:07.279 --> 00:14:08.790
the structure and dynamics of the


00:14:08.800 --> 00:14:10.870
Earth's lower mantle play a major role


00:14:10.880 --> 00:14:13.110
throughout Earth's history it dictates


00:14:13.120 --> 00:14:14.550
among other things the cooling of the


00:14:14.560 --> 00:14:16.150
Earth's core that's where Earth's


00:14:16.160 --> 00:14:18.710
protective magnetic fields generated


00:14:18.720 --> 00:14:21.110
picare says that while seismology


00:14:21.120 --> 00:14:23.110
geodnamics and prology have helped


00:14:23.120 --> 00:14:24.470
answer many questions about the


00:14:24.480 --> 00:14:26.310
present-day thermmochemical structure of


00:14:26.320 --> 00:14:28.550
the earth's interior a key question has


00:14:28.560 --> 00:14:30.470
always remained how old are these


00:14:30.480 --> 00:14:33.110
structures and how did they form he says


00:14:33.120 --> 00:14:35.189
that trying to answer this is a bit like


00:14:35.199 --> 00:14:36.870
looking at a person in the form of an


00:14:36.880 --> 00:14:39.189
adult versus a child and trying to


00:14:39.199 --> 00:14:40.870
understand how the energetic conditions


00:14:40.880 --> 00:14:43.829
will not be the same bar points out that


00:14:43.839 --> 00:14:45.829
sometimes kids do crazy things because


00:14:45.839 --> 00:14:48.790
they have lots of energy but as humans


00:14:48.800 --> 00:14:50.949
get older they don't do so many crazy


00:14:50.959 --> 00:14:53.030
things because their activity levels or


00:14:53.040 --> 00:14:55.350
energy levels decrease and so the


00:14:55.360 --> 00:14:57.509
dynamics become really different but


00:14:57.519 --> 00:14:59.030
there are still some things that humans


00:14:59.040 --> 00:15:00.710
do when they're really young that end up


00:15:00.720 --> 00:15:03.189
affecting their entire lives and he says


00:15:03.199 --> 00:15:05.670
it's the same thing with planets there


00:15:05.680 --> 00:15:07.670
are some aspects in the early evolution


00:15:07.680 --> 00:15:09.670
of a planet that you could still find in


00:15:09.680 --> 00:15:12.230
their structure today so to better


00:15:12.240 --> 00:15:14.150
understand old planets scientists first


00:15:14.160 --> 00:15:17.030
need to learn how young planets behave


00:15:17.040 --> 00:15:19.030
since simulations of the Earth's matter


00:15:19.040 --> 00:15:20.949
focused mostly on present-day solid


00:15:20.959 --> 00:15:23.110
state conditions Bar had to develop a


00:15:23.120 --> 00:15:25.350
novel model to explore the early days of


00:15:25.360 --> 00:15:27.269
Earth when the matter was much hotter


00:15:27.279 --> 00:15:30.150
and substantially more molten bar's


00:15:30.160 --> 00:15:32.069
model is based on a multi-phase flow


00:15:32.079 --> 00:15:33.750
approach that allows for capturing the


00:15:33.760 --> 00:15:35.910
dynamics of magma solidification at a


00:15:35.920 --> 00:15:38.629
planetary scale using his model he


00:15:38.639 --> 00:15:40.790
studied how the early metal transition


00:15:40.800 --> 00:15:43.670
from a molten to a solid state but and


00:15:43.680 --> 00:15:45.509
his team was surprised to discover that


00:15:45.519 --> 00:15:47.269
most of the crystals formed at low


00:15:47.279 --> 00:15:49.269
pressure and that creates a very


00:15:49.279 --> 00:15:51.110
different chemical signature from what


00:15:51.120 --> 00:15:52.870
would have been produced at depth in a


00:15:52.880 --> 00:15:55.189
high pressure environment and this


00:15:55.199 --> 00:15:57.350
challenges the prevailing assumptions in


00:15:57.360 --> 00:15:59.509
planetary science as to how rocky


00:15:59.519 --> 00:16:02.710
planets form and solidify see until now


00:16:02.720 --> 00:16:03.990
science always assumed that the


00:16:04.000 --> 00:16:05.749
geochemistry of the lower mantle was


00:16:05.759 --> 00:16:07.829
probably governed by high pressure high


00:16:07.839 --> 00:16:10.310
temperature chemical reactions but based


00:16:10.320 --> 00:16:12.310
on these findings scientists may start


00:16:12.320 --> 00:16:14.509
to need to account for a low pressure


00:16:14.519 --> 00:16:17.269
scenario bar says the work's important


00:16:17.279 --> 00:16:18.790
because it could also help predict the


00:16:18.800 --> 00:16:21.350
behavior of other planets down the line


00:16:21.360 --> 00:16:23.670
he says if we know the kinds of starting


00:16:23.680 --> 00:16:25.110
conditions we have with planetary


00:16:25.120 --> 00:16:27.350
formation especially terrestrial worlds


00:16:27.360 --> 00:16:29.350
we know the main processes of planetary


00:16:29.360 --> 00:16:31.590
evolution and we can then predict how


00:16:31.600 --> 00:16:35.140
planets will evolve this is spacetime


00:16:35.150 --> 00:16:50.550
[Music]


00:16:50.560 --> 00:16:52.310
and time now to take another brief look


00:16:52.320 --> 00:16:53.829
at some of the other stories making news


00:16:53.839 --> 00:16:56.269
in science this week with the science


00:16:56.279 --> 00:16:59.030
report a new study warns that the amount


00:16:59.040 --> 00:17:01.189
of dissolved oxygen in the world's lakes


00:17:01.199 --> 00:17:04.789
has declined profoundly since 2003


00:17:04.799 --> 00:17:06.630
the findings reported in the journal


00:17:06.640 --> 00:17:08.949
Science Advances shows that heat waves


00:17:08.959 --> 00:17:10.949
in the overall warming of the climate is


00:17:10.959 --> 00:17:13.669
contributing to this change the authors


00:17:13.679 --> 00:17:15.909
use climate data and satellite images to


00:17:15.919 --> 00:17:17.750
model how much climate factors have


00:17:17.760 --> 00:17:19.510
influenced the oxygen levels in more


00:17:19.520 --> 00:17:22.710
than 15,000 lakes they found a


00:17:22.720 --> 00:17:24.789
continuous reduction in oxygen levels in


00:17:24.799 --> 00:17:27.350
83% of the lakes they studied with


00:17:27.360 --> 00:17:29.190
oxygen levels in the lakes dropping


00:17:29.200 --> 00:17:31.110
faster than observations in either


00:17:31.120 --> 00:17:33.510
rivers or oceans the authors warned


00:17:33.520 --> 00:17:35.430
lower oxygen levels can disrupt lake


00:17:35.440 --> 00:17:37.830
ecosystems harming species living in the


00:17:37.840 --> 00:17:39.909
lakes and impacting economies on the


00:17:39.919 --> 00:17:42.549
shore and of course deoxxygenated lakes


00:17:42.559 --> 00:17:44.710
produce more nitrous oxide which can


00:17:44.720 --> 00:17:47.150
further exacerbate global


00:17:47.160 --> 00:17:49.270
warming well it's nothing you haven't


00:17:49.280 --> 00:17:51.350
heard before but a new study has


00:17:51.360 --> 00:17:53.270
confirmed that if you want to achieve


00:17:53.280 --> 00:17:55.590
healthy aging it's a good idea to eat


00:17:55.600 --> 00:17:57.430
more fruits and vegetables as well as


00:17:57.440 --> 00:17:59.990
whole grains unsaturated fats legumes


00:18:00.000 --> 00:18:02.950
and low-fat dairy products the findings


00:18:02.960 --> 00:18:04.870
reported in the journal Nature Medicine


00:18:04.880 --> 00:18:07.510
looked at data from over 105,000 people


00:18:07.520 --> 00:18:09.510
across the United States with an average


00:18:09.520 --> 00:18:12.710
age of 53 the authors looked at specific


00:18:12.720 --> 00:18:14.150
dietary patterns that help people


00:18:14.160 --> 00:18:16.710
achieve healthy aging these include


00:18:16.720 --> 00:18:18.230
maintaining cognitive physical and


00:18:18.240 --> 00:18:20.950
mental health after the age of 70 they


00:18:20.960 --> 00:18:22.789
found that after a 30-year follow-up


00:18:22.799 --> 00:18:25.590
only 9.3% achieved what the researchers


00:18:25.600 --> 00:18:27.909
defined as healthy aging with specific


00:18:27.919 --> 00:18:29.590
dietary patterns being closely


00:18:29.600 --> 00:18:32.470
associated with that healthy aging in


00:18:32.480 --> 00:18:34.150
contrast they found that eating more


00:18:34.160 --> 00:18:36.390
trans fats more salt more sugary


00:18:36.400 --> 00:18:38.549
beverages and lots of red or processed


00:18:38.559 --> 00:18:40.390
meats was all associated with a much


00:18:40.400 --> 00:18:42.150
lower likelihood of achieving healthy


00:18:42.160 --> 00:18:44.150
aging


00:18:44.160 --> 00:18:45.750
scientists have developed a way of


00:18:45.760 --> 00:18:47.750
purifying urban waste water and


00:18:47.760 --> 00:18:50.549
extracting valuable products from urine


00:18:50.559 --> 00:18:52.390
the new findings reported in the journal


00:18:52.400 --> 00:18:53.990
Nature could be used for a range of


00:18:54.000 --> 00:18:56.870
applications including fertilizing crops


00:18:56.880 --> 00:18:58.549
the new process involves using an


00:18:58.559 --> 00:19:00.950
electrochemical reaction to remove ura


00:19:00.960 --> 00:19:03.110
from waste water and transform it into a


00:19:03.120 --> 00:19:05.350
nearly pure perbomide which could then


00:19:05.360 --> 00:19:06.870
have various useful applications


00:19:06.880 --> 00:19:08.630
including environmental water treatment


00:19:08.640 --> 00:19:11.669
disinfection and improved crop growth so


00:19:11.679 --> 00:19:13.270
the new findings are presenting a new


00:19:13.280 --> 00:19:15.190
potentially scalable and cost-effective


00:19:15.200 --> 00:19:17.190
approach to large-scale wastewater


00:19:17.200 --> 00:19:19.110
treatment with both economic and


00:19:19.120 --> 00:19:21.549
environmental


00:19:21.559 --> 00:19:23.750
values well looks like scientists may


00:19:23.760 --> 00:19:24.950
have come up with a practical


00:19:24.960 --> 00:19:27.750
replacement for lithium ion batteries


00:19:27.760 --> 00:19:29.909
the lithium ion battery has been a


00:19:29.919 --> 00:19:31.909
revolution in rechargeable portable


00:19:31.919 --> 00:19:33.909
storeable power primarily because it


00:19:33.919 --> 00:19:35.590
lacked the memory charging problems of


00:19:35.600 --> 00:19:38.150
earlier NIKAD batteries however


00:19:38.160 --> 00:19:39.990
lithium-ion batteries are a growing


00:19:40.000 --> 00:19:41.990
concern because their energy density and


00:19:42.000 --> 00:19:44.390
flammable electrolytes with cases often


00:19:44.400 --> 00:19:46.470
stemming from improper charging damage


00:19:46.480 --> 00:19:49.350
or exposure to extreme conditions now


00:19:49.360 --> 00:19:51.230
scientists have come up with a practical


00:19:51.240 --> 00:19:53.270
replacement it's called the lithium


00:19:53.280 --> 00:19:56.310
titanate oxide battery lithium titanate


00:19:56.320 --> 00:19:58.070
has the advantage of being safer and


00:19:58.080 --> 00:20:00.789
faster to charge they use lithium


00:20:00.799 --> 00:20:03.110
titanate nano crystals instead of carbon


00:20:03.120 --> 00:20:05.430
on the surface of the anode this gives


00:20:05.440 --> 00:20:07.590
the anode a surface area of around 100


00:20:07.600 --> 00:20:09.669
square m per gram compared with 3 square


00:20:09.679 --> 00:20:12.230
m per gram for carbon allowing electrons


00:20:12.240 --> 00:20:13.830
to enter and leave the anode more


00:20:13.840 --> 00:20:16.630
quickly also lithium titanate cells are


00:20:16.640 --> 00:20:19.430
longlasting between 6,000 and 30,000


00:20:19.440 --> 00:20:22.070
charge cycles they're already being used


00:20:22.080 --> 00:20:24.310
in many military applications and some


00:20:24.320 --> 00:20:26.310
Japanese electric cars are now also


00:20:26.320 --> 00:20:28.470
being fitted with them but lithium


00:20:28.480 --> 00:20:31.510
titanate isn't perfect the disadvantages


00:20:31.520 --> 00:20:33.669
include lower energy density resulting


00:20:33.679 --> 00:20:36.310
in lower inherent 2.4 volts instead of


00:20:36.320 --> 00:20:37.870
lithium ions


00:20:37.880 --> 00:20:40.549
3.7 with the details we're joined by


00:20:40.559 --> 00:20:42.630
technology editor Alexarovit from


00:20:42.640 --> 00:20:44.149
techadvice.life


00:20:44.159 --> 00:20:45.510
now these batteries actually have been


00:20:45.520 --> 00:20:47.590
in use by NASA and the military for some


00:20:47.600 --> 00:20:49.430
decades but they weren't commercial or


00:20:49.440 --> 00:20:50.630
commercially available because


00:20:50.640 --> 00:20:53.110
technology just hadn't advanced to a


00:20:53.120 --> 00:20:54.390
degree that you could replicate as


00:20:54.400 --> 00:20:56.470
easily as lithium ion now lithium ion


00:20:56.480 --> 00:20:58.549
has a problem in that if you put a nail


00:20:58.559 --> 00:20:59.669
through the battery in the back of your


00:20:59.679 --> 00:21:01.590
phone it'll have a runaway thermal


00:21:01.600 --> 00:21:02.870
reaction where you'll have this


00:21:02.880 --> 00:21:04.710
outgassing of very toxic gases and we


00:21:04.720 --> 00:21:06.310
hear about people with scooters they


00:21:06.320 --> 00:21:07.909
charge them inside their houses they


00:21:07.919 --> 00:21:09.430
leave them on the charger all night they


00:21:09.440 --> 00:21:11.350
may maybe have third party batteries or


00:21:11.360 --> 00:21:12.789
the batteries themselves have been


00:21:12.799 --> 00:21:13.990
damaged because on scooters you know


00:21:14.000 --> 00:21:15.750
you're banging on curbs and it's just a


00:21:15.760 --> 00:21:16.950
rough sort of environment for the


00:21:16.960 --> 00:21:19.110
battery and they go off and if you know


00:21:19.120 --> 00:21:20.950
people have died the houses have been


00:21:20.960 --> 00:21:23.669
burnt down and so people are wary of


00:21:23.679 --> 00:21:25.750
modern mobile batteries especially if


00:21:25.760 --> 00:21:27.190
it's very cold that don't charge i mean


00:21:27.200 --> 00:21:29.190
we heard about cars that don't charge in


00:21:29.200 --> 00:21:30.710
the very cold American winters and


00:21:30.720 --> 00:21:32.470
lithium titanate has a few serious


00:21:32.480 --> 00:21:35.110
advantages one it operates in those - 20


00:21:35.120 --> 00:21:38.470
- 30° C temperatures which are very bad


00:21:38.480 --> 00:21:39.909
for lithium ion batteries and they


00:21:39.919 --> 00:21:41.270
operate at high temperatures as well


00:21:41.280 --> 00:21:43.909
they recharge to full in approximately


00:21:43.919 --> 00:21:45.830
20 minutes if you damage them with a


00:21:45.840 --> 00:21:48.310
nail or if they get broken in a airplane


00:21:48.320 --> 00:21:49.750
seat they will not have the runaway


00:21:49.760 --> 00:21:51.830
thermal reaction and then on top of all


00:21:51.840 --> 00:21:53.909
of that a normal mobile phone battery


00:21:53.919 --> 00:21:56.149
lasts about 1500 cycles before it starts


00:21:56.159 --> 00:21:57.909
getting to about 80% of its life and you


00:21:57.919 --> 00:21:59.830
know discharges very quickly we've all


00:21:59.840 --> 00:22:01.830
experienced a phone that is not holding


00:22:01.840 --> 00:22:03.430
anywhere near the charge you got when it


00:22:03.440 --> 00:22:04.870
was new and of course you can buy a new


00:22:04.880 --> 00:22:06.390
or third party battery but imagine if


00:22:06.400 --> 00:22:08.070
you could have a battery that lasted 10


00:22:08.080 --> 00:22:09.750
or even 20 years before you needed to


00:22:09.760 --> 00:22:11.590
replace it lithium Titanate batteries


00:22:11.600 --> 00:22:13.909
have a recharge cycle not of 1500 but of


00:22:13.919 --> 00:22:15.990
20,000 cycles or more there are some


00:22:16.000 --> 00:22:17.990
robot prototypes from 30 years ago that


00:22:18.000 --> 00:22:19.590
are still working to this day because


00:22:19.600 --> 00:22:21.190
they had lithium titan AA batteries so


00:22:21.200 --> 00:22:22.710
Toshiba is one of the companies that is


00:22:22.720 --> 00:22:24.070
commercializing this going to be using


00:22:24.080 --> 00:22:26.070
it in power tools that use rechargeable


00:22:26.080 --> 00:22:27.990
batteries we'll see these things in cars


00:22:28.000 --> 00:22:29.669
and in scooters and the company behind


00:22:29.679 --> 00:22:32.310
it is called proper voltage.com used to


00:22:32.320 --> 00:22:35.029
be known as zapbat b-t.com and they


00:22:35.039 --> 00:22:36.230
actually have an operating system that


00:22:36.240 --> 00:22:38.310
can interface with any sort of battery


00:22:38.320 --> 00:22:39.909
and produce the correct sort of voltage


00:22:39.919 --> 00:22:41.830
for any sort of application so it's kind


00:22:41.840 --> 00:22:43.750
of this universal translator between


00:22:43.760 --> 00:22:44.950
different sorts of batteries and


00:22:44.960 --> 00:22:46.230
different sorts of electronics in the


00:22:46.240 --> 00:22:47.430
past you had to match them very


00:22:47.440 --> 00:22:48.950
carefully and closely together but with


00:22:48.960 --> 00:22:50.710
this operating system merged with this


00:22:50.720 --> 00:22:52.230
lithium titanate batteries it's going to


00:22:52.240 --> 00:22:53.909
be the revolution we've been waiting for


00:22:53.919 --> 00:22:55.430
in battery technology but it'll still


00:22:55.440 --> 00:22:57.510
take a few years before it's everywhere


00:22:57.520 --> 00:22:59.270
but that's a great example of that


00:22:59.280 --> 00:23:00.950
famous saying that from William Gibson


00:23:00.960 --> 00:23:02.230
the guy who wrote neurommancer he said


00:23:02.240 --> 00:23:04.789
"The future has already been invented it


00:23:04.799 --> 00:23:06.710
just hasn't been widely distributed


00:23:06.720 --> 00:23:09.110
yet." Well lithium titan 8 time is on


00:23:09.120 --> 00:23:10.710
the very cusp of being widely


00:23:10.720 --> 00:23:12.710
distributed and the battery problems of


00:23:12.720 --> 00:23:14.789
the past 10 years are going to fade away


00:23:14.799 --> 00:23:17.110
into non-existent they'll be distant


00:23:17.120 --> 00:23:19.110
memories that's Alexar of Roit from


00:23:19.120 --> 00:23:22.730
techadvice.life


00:23:22.740 --> 00:23:36.149
[Music]


00:23:36.159 --> 00:23:39.110
and that's the show for now spaceime is


00:23:39.120 --> 00:23:41.029
available every Monday Wednesday and


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Spacetime with Stuart Garry this has


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been another quality podcast production


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from byes.com