Checking the Atmosphere and Changing the Climate
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We look to the skies in this week's Naked Scientists show, to uncover ways to monitor and change the chemistry of the atmosphere. We join researchers on board an air-sampling aeroplane to discover how atmospheric chemistry changes once the sun sets, and we discuss options for engineering the climate if things get too hot. In the news, the Ecuadorian population that may hold the genetic key to a disease-free life, and the rocks that move themselves around in Death Valley. Plus, a targeted muscle re-innervation strategy to afford amputees more powerful prosthetic control.
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An isolated population of people in Ecuador could hold the genetic key to a long and healthy life, according to research published in the journal Science Translational Medicine this week...
First picture of the Earth's plasma tail has been taken, and it is more dynamic than expected.
When someone loses a limb, although it's possible to replace the missing part with a prosthesis, making it move is another matter entirely. But a technique being pioneered at the University of Chicago could change that...
Alaskan black bears do not hibernate in the same way as other, smaller, mammals and an understanding of how they achieve their winter’s rest may help improve medical care and open the door to deep space travel...
Mysterious moving stones in a Death Vally lake bed may have been solved.
Scientists are keeping a close eye on the West Antarctic ice sheet because if it’s melts, we’re in big trouble from the resulting rise in sea level. But how vulnerable is it? Dr. David Barnes from the British Antarctic Survey has been trying to find out by studying small marin...
How do we study the atmosphere? We have a vast array of tools and chemical tricks that we can rely on, but the atmosphere is a very dynamic thing. So sampling the air in just one place can only tell us so much. Now, an international consortium of scientists and organisations ...
Another reason to try and understand atmospheric chemistry is in case there comes a time when we have to try and do some geo-engineering. Dr Peter Braesicke joins us to explain our options...
If a time came that we needed to alter our atmospheric chemistry, how physically could we do it? Meera and Dave explore the engineering behind one option - pumping particles up an absolutely enormous pipe...
What is the furthest man-made item in space that’s still sending information back to Earth?
Why are clouds different shades of gray color?
How are sudden gusts of air created?
Why is it cold in Space when the Sun is hundreds of thousands of degrees C?
Why does the moon have no atmosphere at all?
Ray from Rylstone Australia
Is there more water in the atmosphere or the oceans?
Hi, I have been trying to find out an answer to this question ever since I did Physics O-level in 1985!
If you were an average man, say 6 feet tall and weighing about 12 stone, if you took hold of a spoiler on the back of a car, how fast would the car have to go to ensure you...
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