2000-year-old measuring table-top discovered in Jerusalem
The top of a rare 2000-year-old measuring table used for liquid items such as wine and olive oil has been discovered in what appears to be a major town square along the Pilgrimage Road in Jerusalem, during excavations conducted by the Israel Antiquities Authority in the City of David National Park. The top part of the measuring table [Credit: Ari Levi, Israel Antiquities Authority]In addition to the measuring table, tens of stone... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]
Over-hunting walruses contributed to the collapse of Norse Greenland, study suggests
The mysterious disappearance of Greenland's Norse colonies sometime in the 15th century may have been down to the overexploitation of walrus populations for their tusks, according to a study of medieval artefacts from across Europe. Church ruins from Norse Greenland's Eastern Settlement [Credit: James H. Barrett]Founded by Erik the Red around 985AD after his exile from Iceland (or so the Sagas tell us), Norse communities in Greenland... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]
Egypt's plan to move Karnak temple statues causes a stir
For almost 3,000 years, dozens of sphinx-like statues with the body of a lion and the head of a ram have lived in the shadow of the majestic temple of Karnak in the ancient city of Luxor in southern Egypt. The sphinx-like statues with ram's heads and lion's bodies at the Karnak Temple Complex in Luxor, Egypt [Credit: Getty Images]Now four of the statues have been summoned to Cairo, Egypt’s modern-day capital 500 kilometres to... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]
Wildlife ravaged by Australia fires could take decades to recover
The bushfires raging across Australia have had a devastating impact on the country's unique flora and fauna, with some estimates putting the death toll at nearly half a billion animals in one state alone, and experts believe it could take decades for wildlife to recover. A kangaroo rushes past a burning house amid apocalyptic scenes in Conjola, New South Wales [Credit: Matthew Abbott/New York Times/Redux/eyevine]Unprecedented... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]
Scientists pin down timing of lunar dynamo's demise
A conventional compass would be of little use on the moon, which today lacks a global magnetic field. But the moon did produce a magnetic field billions of years ago, and it was likely even stronger than the Earth’s field today. Scientists believe that this lunar field, like Earth’s, was generated by a powerful dynamo — the churning of the moon’s core. At some point, this dynamo, and the magnetic field it generated, petered out. A new... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]
Scientists find evidence that Venus has active volcanoes
New research led by Universities Space Research Association (USRA) and published in Science Advances shows that lava flows on Venus may be only a few years old, suggesting that Venus could be volcanically active today—making it the only planet in our solar system, other than Earth, with recent eruptions. This figure shows the volcanic peak Idunn Mons (at 46 degrees south latitude, 214.5 degrees east longitude) in the Imdr Regio area... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]
Climate change and deforestation could decimate Madagascar's rainforest habitat by 2070
A study in Nature Climate Change has found that, left unchecked, the combined effects of deforestation and human-induced climate change could eliminate Madagascar's entire eastern rainforest habitat by 2070, impacting thousands of plants, mammals, reptiles, and amphibians that are endemic to the island nation. However, the study's authors also found that protected areas will help to mitigate this devastation while environmentalists... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]
Gigantic ring of hydrogen gas discovered around a distant galaxy
A team of astronomers at the National Centre for Radio Astrophysics (NCRA) in Pune, India have discovered a mysterious ring of hydrogen gas around a distant galaxy, using the Giant Metrewave Radio Telescope (GMRT). The ring is much bigger than the galaxy it surrounds and has a diameter of about 380,000 light-years (about 4 times that of our Milky Way). The optical image from the CFHT telescope with the distribution of neutral hydrogen... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]
New study estimates the global extent of river ice loss as Earth warms
More than half of Earth's rivers freeze over every year. These frozen rivers support important transportation networks for communities and industries located at high latitudes. Ice cover also regulates the amount of greenhouse gasses released from rivers into Earth's atmosphere. Ice cover on the Yukon River approaching its confluence with the Tanana River in Alaska [Credit: Landsat imagery/NASA Goddard Space Flight Center & U.S.... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]
eDNA expands species surveys to capture a more complete picture
Tiny bits of DNA collected from waters off the West Coast allowed scientists to identify more species of marine vertebrates than traditional surveys with trawl nets. They also reflect environmental shifts such as unusual ocean temperatures that affect the organisms present, new research shows. Scientists lower a set of sampling bottles into the ocean off the West Coast, collecting water to examine for traces of DNA [Credit: Collin... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]
Hubble views a galaxy with an active centre
This swirling mass of celestial gas, dust and stars is a moderately luminous spiral galaxy named ESO 021-G004, located just under 130 million light-years away. Spiral Galaxy ESO 021-G004 [Credit: ESA/Hubble & NASA, D. Rosario et al.]This galaxy has something known as an active galactic nucleus. While this phrase sounds complex, this simply means that astronomers measure a lot of radiation at all wavelengths coming from the center... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]
Giant magnetic ropes seen in Whale Galaxy's halo
Using the National Science Foundation's Karl G. Jansky Very Large Array radio telescope, a team of astronomers has captured for the first time an image of large-scale, coherent, magnetic fields in the halo of a faraway spiral galaxy, confirming theoretical modeling of how galaxies generate magnetic fields and potentially increasing knowledge of how galaxies form and evolve. Composite image of the galaxy NGC 4631, the "Whale Galaxy,"... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]
Wind conditions influence water circulation and CO2 concentrations in the Southern Ocean
The sea encircling Antarctica acts as a huge mixer for water from all the ocean basins - and this circulating pattern influences the exchange of carbon dioxide (CO2) between the ocean and the atmosphere. A study by an international team of researchers, led by Dr. Torben Struve from the University of Oldenburg's Institute for Chemistry and Biology of the Marine Environment (ICBM), has now established that this complex equilibrium of... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]
Swords and spears of long-forgotten warrior tribe found in medieval cemetery
Archaeologists have discovered rare swords, spears and knives among hundreds of items belonging to a long-disappeared people famed for their warrior culture in the Suwałki region of eastern Poland. Some of the ancient weapons unearthed from the site of the cemetery [Credit: Jakub Mikołajczuk/Muzeum Okręgowe w Suwałkach]The weapons were among 500 items dating back around 1,000 years dug up on the site of a cemetery belonging to the... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]
First survey campaign at Amargeti in Paphos completed
The Department of Antiquities, Ministry of Transport, Communications and Works announced the completion of the first archaeological survey campaign of Graz University (Austria) in Amargeti, Paphos District, under the direction of Dr. Gabriele Koiner. The survey was conducted from 22 to 29 October 2019, in cooperation with the Department of Antiquities and the Cyprus University of Technology. Credit: Dept. of Antiquities, Republic of... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]
Early modern humans cooked starchy food in South Africa, 170,000 years ago
"The inhabitants of the Border Cave in the Lebombo Mountains on the Kwazulu-Natal/eSwatini border were cooking starchy plants 170 thousand years ago," says Professor Lyn Wadley, a scientist from the Wits Evolutionary Studies Institute at the University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa (Wits ESI). "This discovery is much older than earlier reports for cooking similar plants and it provides a fascinating insight into the behavioural... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]
Researchers learn more about teen-age T.Rex
Without a doubt, Tyrannosaurus rex is the most famous dinosaur in the world. The 40-foot-long predator with bone crushing teeth inside a five-foot long head are the stuff of legend. Now, a look within the bones of two mid-sized, immature T. rex allow scientists to learn about the tyrant king's terrible teens as well. The skull of the juvenile T. rex, "Jane", was slender with knife-like teeth, having not yet grown big enough to crush... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]
‘Prehistoric’ burials found in Mandalay
Several burials believed to be from the Bronze and Iron Ages have been found at an archaeological excavation site in Myanmar's Mandalay Region, an official of the Department of Archaeology and National Museum said. Credit: Dept. of ArchaeologyThe remains were discovered at the site in Kyi Kyi village in the Nwartogyi township in central Mandalay. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); U Kyaw Oo Lwin, director... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]
Shang Dynasty 'barn' site discovered in Central China
The site of a group of circular building foundations, which are believed to be the state barns of the Shang Dynasty (1600-1046 BC), has been discovered in Central China's Henan province. Aerial photo shows the excavations of circular building bases in the Yanshi ruins, Henan Province, central China [Credit: Xinhua]The site of the barns is located in the Yanshi ruins -- ruins of an ancient city which was built in the early Shang... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]
2,400-year-old pendants unearthed in Assos excavations
Archaeological excavations in Assos, one of the most important port cities of antiquity have unearthed 2,400-year-old pendants made from bone, shaped in human and animal figures. Credit: AAThe pendants date back to the fourth century BC, said Nurettin Arslan, professor at Çanakkale Onsekiz Mart University (ÇOMÜ) Faculty of Arts and Sciences Department of Archaeology and head of Assos excavations, in an interview with the state-run... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]
2,500-year-old Scythian warrior grave found in Siberian ‘Valley of the Kings’
The 2,500-year-old tomb of a Scythian warrior has been found in the ‘Siberian Valley of the Kings’ in Russia. The skeletal remains of the 2,500-year-old Scythian warrior was found buried with a bronze battle axe, arrows, an iron knife and fragments of a bow [Credit: Igor Pieńkos]Buried with his weapon and golden ornaments, the warrior discovered by archaeologists from Jagiellonian University in Krakow was found in an untouched grave... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]
Restoring the Rimini Altarpiece to new splendour
The Liebieghaus Skulpturensammlung has launched a large-scale conservation project that will focus on one of the collection’s most important works over the next few years. The Rimini Altarpiece, one of the most comprehensive and best-preserved late medieval figural groups in alabaster, will undergo a range of conservation and restoration treatments, including state-of-the-art laser technology. An in-depth technical analysis of the... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]
Early Islamic gold coins found in central Israel
A hoard of gold coins was found last week in Yavneh during excavations conducted by the Israel Antiquities Authority prior to the development of a new neighborhood at the behest of the Israel Lands Authority. The archaeologists were surprised to discover a broken clay juglet containing gold coins dating to the Early Islamic period. The excavations revealed an ancient industrial area which was active for several hundred years, and the... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]
1800-year-old inscribed votive stele found at Hadrianopolis in Paphlagonia
An ancient votive stele dating back around 1,800 years was unearthed in Turkey's northern Karabuk province. Credit: AAThe limestone slab that had a silhouette of a woman on it was found during excavation works in Church C and the necropolis in the ancient city of Hadrianopolis – now located 3 kilometers east of the Eskipazar district of the Karabuk province. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); Faculty Member of... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]
Greek authorities seize rare 6th century BC kouros head in Corinth
Investigators with the Hellenic Police’s (ELAS) department for the protection of cultural heritage and antiquities seized what is believed to be a rare 6th century BC statue fragment during a raid in Corinth, according to an announcement this week. Credit: ANA-MPA (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); The fragment is a 40 cm head and part of the neck of a larger-than-life kouros, a statue of a young man, dating from... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]
