An accurate method for spacecraft navigation takes a leap forward today as the National Physical Laboratory (NPL) and the University of Leicester publish a paper that reveals a spacecraft’s position in space in the direction of a particular pulsar can be calculated autonomously, using a small X-ray telescope on board the craft, to an accuracy…
Veins on Mars Were Formed by Evaporating Ancient Lakes
Mineral veins found in Mars’s Gale Crater were formed by the evaporation of ancient Martian lakes, a new study has shown. The research, by Mars Science Laboratory Participating Scientists at The Open University and the University of Leicester, used the Mars Curiosity rover to explore Yellowknife Bay in Gale Crater on Mars, examining the mineralogy…
Hubble Captures Vivid Auroras in Jupiter’s Atmosphere
Astronomers are using the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope to study auroras — stunning light shows in a planet’s atmosphere — on the poles of the largest planet in the Solar System, Jupiter. This observation programme is supported by measurements made by NASA’s Juno spacecraft, currently on its way to Jupiter. Jupiter, the largest planet in…
Black holes Could Grow As Large As 50 Billion Suns
Black holes at the heart of galaxies could swell to 50 billion times the mass of the sun before losing the discs of gas they rely on to sustain themselves, according to research at the University of Leicester. In a study titled ‘How Big Can a Black Hole Grow?’, Professor Andrew King from the University…
Scientists solve planetary ring riddle
In a breakthrough study, an international team of scientists, including Professor Nikolai Brilliantov from the University of Leicester, has solved an age-old scientific riddle by discovering that planetary rings, such as those orbiting Saturn, have a universally similar particle distribution. The study, which is published in the academic journal Proceedings of the National Academy of…
Scientists Trial System to Improve Safety at Sea
A space scientist at the University of Leicester, in collaboration with the New Zealand Defence Technology Agency and DMC International Imaging, has been trialling a concept for using satellite imagery to significantly improve the chances of locating ships and planes, such as the missing Malaysian flight MH370, lost at sea. A preliminary study published this…
Scientists Develop ‘Electronic Nose’ for Rapid Detection of C. Diff Infection
Research from University of Leicester sniffs out smell of disease in feces A fast-sensitive “electronic-nose” for sniffing the highly infectious bacteria C. diff, that causes diarrhoea, temperature and stomach cramps, has been developed by a team at the University of Leicester. Using a mass spectrometer, the research team has demonstrated that it is possible to…
Experts Create 3D Map of Richard III’s Grave
University of Leicester experts are combining two scanning techniques to create a highly-detailed 3D reconstruction of Richard III’s grave. Researchers are combining laser scanning with digital photogrammetric techniques to produce an interactive map of the grave discovered at the Grey Friars church by Leicester archaeologists in September. The remarkably accurate reconstruction will preserve the grave…