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Humans adapt to their environment, leading to the beautiful differences we find amongst people. This is not confined to Homo Sapiens, however, as other ancient humans also came in varying shapes and sizes. A tiny arm bone from the Homo floresiensis—the smallest ancient human—has been discovered on Flores island by the Geological Agency Indonesia, the University of Wollongong, and the University of Tokyo. This supports island dwarfism theory, which says that a smaller body size may have been advantageous on isolated islands.
Chinese scientists found molecular water in lunar soil samples from the Chang’e-5 probe. The teams found crystals with 41% water and ammonia which stabilizes the water to be able to survive the harsh lunar environment. This discovery could be a future resource for lunar habitation.
Researchers from China have really been reaching for the stars. In another space story, the first satellites of the Qianfan constellation (similar to Starlink) have been launched according to the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation. With 14,000 satellites planned to be launched, Qianfan aims to provide global internet coverage, orbiting at 500 miles above Earth.
We’re still talking about stars but this time they are under the sea. A new species of starfish, Paragonaster hoeimaruae, was discovered in Japan by a collaborative team of scientists, fishers, and museum staff from the University of Tokyo, Enoshima Aquarium, Marine Science Museum in Fukushima Prefecture, and the Yamaguchi Prefectural Fisheries Research Center. This stunning red and beige sea star adds to the 2,000 known species and highlights the rich, yet underexplored, marine diversity in Japanese waters.
