August In Science: Latest Scientific News August 2022
Earth records its shortest day
This summer, the Earth had its shortest day ever as a result of an axis wobble that caused it to complete one spin in just a few hundredths of a second less than 24 hours.
According to the website timeanddate.com, 29th June 2022 was 1.59 milliseconds shorter than a full day, which is exactly 86,400 seconds. In recent decades, the Earth has slowed down, resulting in slightly longer days.
However, in recent years, this trend has changed, and the days have become increasingly shorter. If the trend continues, scientists may be forced to create the first ever negative leap second in order to keep our clocks in sync with the planet’s rotation.
Uncontrolled debris from Chinese rocket falls over the Indian Ocean
A Chinese Long March 5B rocket that had sent the newest component of the nation’s Tiangong space station to orbit on July 24th returned to Earth’s atmosphere on Saturday, generating a show as it came crashing down in the Indian Ocean. Astronomers properly recognized the wreckage as coming from a Chinese rocket after many initially mistook the spacecraft for a meteor shower on social medias like Twitter.
NASA shares Sharpest image of Andromeda Galaxy
The largest-ever image of the Andromeda galaxy put together by the Hubble Space Telescope was released by NASA on Sunday. The image was obtained seven years ago, and it is the sharpest composite image of the galaxy yet.
NASA to host briefings about Artemis 1
On August 29, NASA is scheduled to launch Artemis 1, an unmanned deep-space test flight using its Orion spacecraft and enormous Space Launch System megarocket. It will be the agency’s first big step in the Artemis program.
The Artemis program is a NASA-led human spaceflight initiative to explore the Moon, with a target date of 2024 for the first landing on the lunar south pole. If the Artemis program is successful, it will conduct the first crewed lunar landing mission since Apollo 17, the final crewed mission of the Apollo program, in December 1972.
NASA will hold a mission overview briefing on Wednesday, August 3, and a detailed mission briefing on Friday, August 5. You can watch both events for free online on NASA’s website.
