Life in the clouds sounds romantic, except when those clouds are made of sulphuric acid. Yet scientists are pondering whether life could exist around Venus after a rare chemical was found in its atmosphere. Key points: Astronomers have discovered a gas in the atmosphere of Venus that is only produced by microbes and industrial processes on Earth The gas could be a hint of life or it could be a geological or chemical process that we don't know about The finding has implications for the quest to find life elsewhere in our solar system and beyond The discovery, published today in the journal...…Life in the clouds sounds romantic, except when those clouds are made of sulphuric acid. Yet scientists are pondering whether life could exist around Venus after a rare chemical was found in its atmosphere. Key points: Astronomers have discovered a gas in the atmosphere of Venus that is only produced by microbes and industrial processes on Earth The gas could be a hint of life or it could be a geological or chemical process that we don't know about The finding has implications for the quest to find life elsewhere in our solar system and beyond The discovery, published today in the journal...WW…

Japan's Hayabusa2 space capsule to fall back to Earth after six-year asteroid missionShareA space capsule carrying dust and rocks from an asteroid is due to land in the South Australian desert early on Sunday morning. The Japanese Hayabusa2 capsule, which is returning from its mission to the asteroid Ryugu, is due to touch down on the Woomera Prohibited Area about 500 kilometres north-west of Adelaide at about 4:00am (local time).It will put on a spectacular show in the early morning twilight as it streaks towards Earth.Then the hunt will be on to find its landing spot."This is the grand...…Japan's Hayabusa2 space capsule to fall back to Earth after six-year asteroid missionShareA space capsule carrying dust and rocks from an asteroid is due to land in the South Australian desert early on Sunday morning. The Japanese Hayabusa2 capsule, which is returning from its mission to the asteroid Ryugu, is due to touch down on the Woomera Prohibited Area about 500 kilometres north-west of Adelaide at about 4:00am (local time).It will put on a spectacular show in the early morning twilight as it streaks towards Earth.Then the hunt will be on to find its landing spot."This is the grand...WW…

NASA gets ready to land on asteroid Bennu as new studies confirm it is a rich source of carbonShareIt may look like a grey space rock, but the asteroid known as Bennu is turning out to be far from boring.Later this month, a NASA spacecraft will land on this lumpy rock and suck up some dirt from its surface to bring back to Earth.The OSIRIS-REx probe has been circling the small asteroid between Earth and Mars preparing for this moment.When the spacecraft first sidled up to Bennu in 2018 it found the fast-spinning diamond-shaped rock was and there was evidence of on its surface. Now, six new...…NASA gets ready to land on asteroid Bennu as new studies confirm it is a rich source of carbonShareIt may look like a grey space rock, but the asteroid known as Bennu is turning out to be far from boring.Later this month, a NASA spacecraft will land on this lumpy rock and suck up some dirt from its surface to bring back to Earth.The OSIRIS-REx probe has been circling the small asteroid between Earth and Mars preparing for this moment.When the spacecraft first sidled up to Bennu in 2018 it found the fast-spinning diamond-shaped rock was and there was evidence of on its surface. Now, six new...WW…

Want to go to Mars? We hope you like blue sunsets, mind-melting g-forces and living undergroundShareCongratulations, you've won a ticket to Mars.You may have to wait a while before you can get on a flight. Launch opportunities only come around every couple of years when Earth and Mars line up.Your first challenge will be to actually get off Earth.That's not as easy as it sounds (It's a hell of a ride. To break free of Earth's gravitational pull, you need to reach escape velocity — that's 40,000 kilometres per hour, or 11km per second.That means you'll have to train yourself to tolerate high...…Want to go to Mars? We hope you like blue sunsets, mind-melting g-forces and living undergroundShareCongratulations, you've won a ticket to Mars.You may have to wait a while before you can get on a flight. Launch opportunities only come around every couple of years when Earth and Mars line up.Your first challenge will be to actually get off Earth.That's not as easy as it sounds (It's a hell of a ride. To break free of Earth's gravitational pull, you need to reach escape velocity — that's 40,000 kilometres per hour, or 11km per second.That means you'll have to train yourself to tolerate high...WW…

Quantum experiment in China breaks through distance barrier in optic fibresShareChinese scientists have transmitted the quantum version of computer memory between two entangled clouds of atoms over 50 kilometres.The feat, which was achieved using standard fibre optic cables, breaks through the 1.3-kilometre barrier achieved by previous quantum memory experiments.Entanglement — dubbed "spooky action at a distance" by Einstein — is a cornerstone of quantum physics. The ability to manipulate the spin, position and momentum of two — or more — entities separated by distance underlies future...…Quantum experiment in China breaks through distance barrier in optic fibresShareChinese scientists have transmitted the quantum version of computer memory between two entangled clouds of atoms over 50 kilometres.The feat, which was achieved using standard fibre optic cables, breaks through the 1.3-kilometre barrier achieved by previous quantum memory experiments.Entanglement — dubbed "spooky action at a distance" by Einstein — is a cornerstone of quantum physics. The ability to manipulate the spin, position and momentum of two — or more — entities separated by distance underlies future...WW…

'Hot' qubits crack quantum computing temperature barrierShareThe race to build a quantum computer that works in the real world is heating up. Literally.Many of the quantum computing technologies around the world operate at around 0.1 Kelvin — just a fraction above absolute zero (-273 degrees Celsius).To keep the technology that cold, scientists need to use special cryogenic refrigeration techniques.But now, two teams of physicists — one in Australia, the other in the Netherlands — have developed quantum technology in silicon that operates up to 1.5 Kelvin, they report in the journal...…'Hot' qubits crack quantum computing temperature barrierShareThe race to build a quantum computer that works in the real world is heating up. Literally.Many of the quantum computing technologies around the world operate at around 0.1 Kelvin — just a fraction above absolute zero (-273 degrees Celsius).To keep the technology that cold, scientists need to use special cryogenic refrigeration techniques.But now, two teams of physicists — one in Australia, the other in the Netherlands — have developed quantum technology in silicon that operates up to 1.5 Kelvin, they report in the journal...WW…

ShareFor 30 years and counting, the Hubble Space Telescope has taken us on a journey through the cosmos from auroras on Jupiter to some of the earliest galaxies in the universe."It's just given us an extraordinary window on the universe that really has been unmatched ... by ground-based telescopes, said Fred Watson, Australia's Astronomer-at-large.Since it was launched on 24 April 1990, the Hubble Space Telescope has captured hundreds of thousands of stunning images."The science that comes out of the pretty pictures is amazing," Professor Watson said.Named after astronomer Edwin Hubble, the...…ShareFor 30 years and counting, the Hubble Space Telescope has taken us on a journey through the cosmos from auroras on Jupiter to some of the earliest galaxies in the universe."It's just given us an extraordinary window on the universe that really has been unmatched ... by ground-based telescopes, said Fred Watson, Australia's Astronomer-at-large.Since it was launched on 24 April 1990, the Hubble Space Telescope has captured hundreds of thousands of stunning images."The science that comes out of the pretty pictures is amazing," Professor Watson said.Named after astronomer Edwin Hubble, the...WW…