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Strange 'Ring' of Water in Michigan Seen From Space

Apr 26, 2024 at 1:04 PM EDT

Satellite imagery picked up a strange ring of warm water identified in southern Lake Michigan on Thursday afternoon.

The phenomenon attracted the attention of National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration scientists at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, who shared thermal imagery of the ring on social media and then studied the warm water, revealing the cause in a blog on its website.

"A curious ring of warm water was revealed in southern Lake Michigan Thursday afternoon via #NOAA20 VIIRS derived Lake Surface Temperatures. Can you guess what caused it?" NOAA's Cooperative Institute for Meteorological Satellite Studies (CIMSS) at the University of Wisconsin-Madison posted on X, formerly Twitter, on Friday morning.

The image shows warmer water along the coastlines, where water temperature is around 50 degrees. The lake gets progressively cooler closer to its center, nearing 40 degrees, but suddenly, a strange ring of warm water appears away from the shore that measured around 50 degrees.

Newsweek reached out to the CIMSS by online contact form for comment.

Clear skies on Thursday permitted the CIMSS researchers to evaluate lake surface temperatures at the five Great Lakes, which revealed a ring of warm water in southern Lake Michigan.

"Relatively cool waters persist in eastern Lake Erie, Lake Superior is uniformly cold (37 to 38oF), and a curious warm ring has developed over southern Lake Michigan, 10oF warmer at its center than the surrounding lake waters!" the blog said.

At times, warm water patches can be observed because of solar radiation reflection, but that wasn't the case for this occurrence.

"In this case you don't see glint in the True Color, and the I04 imagery doesn't show spectacular warmth," the blog said. "The GOES-16 Land Surface Temperature does show a warm eddy moving westward across the Lake however, at fairly high speed! That earns this post the, "What the heck is this?" tag!"

Eventually, researchers revealed that the phenomenon has occurred in Lake Michigan before.

"Such isolated warm water features are associated with areas of very light winds—usually beneath the center of high pressure at the surface—that allowed the water surface to warm more rapidly," the blog said.

Winds were identified as the source for the ring of warm water.

Some social media users had responded to the post with their own theories—which ranged from the presence of cicadas or a large school of fish swimming through the area to jokes that the Loch Ness Monster was residing in Lake Michigan.

https://www.newsweek.com/wewarm-water-rising-temperatures-lake-michigan-winds-1894693

Nicaragua signs up to China’s ILRS moon program

April 25, 2024

Central American state Nicaragua has joined the ILRS moon base program as China continues its push to attract partners for the project.

The China National Space Administration (CNSA) also reached agreements April 24 with the Asia-Pacific Space Cooperation Organization, headquartered in Beijing, and the Arab Union for Astronomy and Space Sciences. The agreements were reported by Chinese state media.

The parties will engage in various aspects such as engineering implementation, operation, and application of the International Lunar Research Station (ILRS). Details of how ILRS members will engage in the project are likely to be determined with the formal establishment of a coordinating organization.

The backdrop for the development was the first “China-Latin America and Caribbean Countries Space Cooperation Forum,” in Wuhan, Hubei province. Wuhan is also hosting a China Space Conference, April 24-26, as part of the country’s national space day event.

APSCO, an intergovernmental organization with members including agencies from Bangladesh, China, Iran, Mongolia, Pakistan, Peru, Thailand and Turkey, is understood to have previously committed to joining the ILRS.

The China-led ILRS envisions constructing a permanent lunar base in the 2030s, with precursor missions in the 2020s. These include Chang’e-7 around 2026 and the later Chang’e-8 in-situ resource utilization technology test mission. Both multi-spacecraft missions will target the lunar south pole.

Nicaragua becomes the 10th country to join the ILRS. Nicaragua’s space-related activities are limited, due to its economic and technological constraints. It does however utilize space technologies and data, engages in regional and other space activities and fora, and is a signatory to the Outer Space Treaty.

China and Russia formally announced the joint ILRS project in St. Petersburg, Russia, in June 2021. Venezuela, Pakistan, Azerbaijan, Belarus, South Africa and Egypt signed up during 2023. Thailand signed up early this month. China has also attracted a number of organizations, universities and companies to join ILRS.

The trend of countries signing to the ILRS up reflects a wider Chinese diplomatic focus on the Global South. Subnational partners could also provide a route to wider influence and cooperation. The University of Sharjah of the UAE is a member, while the UAE itself is an Artemis signatory and involved in the Gateway.

New south pole mission partners

CNSA also announced new participants in the Chang’e-7 mission to the lunar south pole set for 2026. There will be at least five international payloads from countries and international agencies. These are Egypt, Bahrain, Italy, Russia, Thailand, and the International Lunar Observatory Association (ILOA).

Russia will contribute a lunar dust and electric field detector developed by the Russian Academy of Space Sciences. Italy’s involvement will be a passive laser retro-reflector, also aboard the lander. A similar instrument will be on the Chang’e-6 mission due to launch May 3.

ILOA, already part of the ILRS, recently had a demonstration astronomical payload aboard Intuitive Machines’ Nova-C lander which landed on the moon in February. That landing mission backed by NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) program. ILOA will similarly have a telescope on the Chang’e-7 lander.

A hyperspectral imager is being jointly developed by the Egyptian Space Agency and the Bahrain National Space Science. A space weather global monitoring will be developed by National Astronomical Research Institute of Thailand (NARIT). Both will be aboard the Chang’e-7 orbiter.

Chang’e-7 will feature an orbiter, a lander, a rover, support from Queqiao-2, and a mini-flying probe. The mission will target Shackleton crater near the lunar south pole.

https://spacenews.com/nicaragua-signs-up-to-chinas-ilrs-moon-program/

Space Force opens bidding for classified communications satellites

April 26, 2024

The U.S. Space Force is kicking off a major procurement of next-generation communications satellites critical to the nation’s nuclear command, control and communications network.

This estimated $8 billion procurement, known as Evolved Strategic Satcom (ESS), will supplement and eventually replace the existing Advanced Extremely High Frequency (AEHF) satellite constellation. The new system will provide critical jam-resistant communication channels for the National Command Authorities and deployed forces worldwide, even in the North Polar region – a capability lacking in the current system.

The Space Systems Command on April 5 issued a pre-solicitation alerting that a final request for proposals will soon be released for the ESS satellites. The ground systems and user terminals are being acquired under separate procurements.

The Space Force is aiming to start production in 2025 and field a new constellation by 2030. The ESS constellation would have at least four interconnected satellites in geosynchronous and highly elliptical orbits.

Boeing-Northrop face off

Boeing and Northrop Grumman are the top contenders for this contract as both companies have been developing prototypes for ESS since 2020 under government contracts. But the Space Systems Command said the production phase will be an open competition, a fair game for any qualified competitor.

Northrop Grumman said the company “successfully completed a capstone technology demonstration in December” for its ESS prototype. “Northrop Grumman is in the final stages of incorporating lessons learned from the rapid prototype into our ESS production proposal, which we will deliver this year,” a spokesperson said April 25 in a statement.

Boeing also has been working on an ESS prototype using satellite bus and payload technologies developed for other military and commercial programs. A Boeing spokesperson said the company also completed a capstone demonstration in December.

The chosen contractor will receive a cost-plus, or cost-reimbursement contract. This approach, as opposed to a fixed-price contract, acknowledges design uncertainties remain in the program and commits the government to pay contractors for permitted expenses plus an agreed profit margin.

https://spacenews.com/space-force-opens-bidding-for-classified-communications-satellites/

Extraterrestrial Life In Universe? James Webb Telescope's Discovery Prompts Alien Investigation

Updated: APRIL 28, 2024, 05:00 IST

The biggest telescope ever sent into space, the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), was launched by NASA in 2021. Since then, we’ve seen a whole new perspective on stars, planets and galaxies deeper into the cosmos than humans had ever. But, there are much more pressing concerns that have plagued people for ages: Are we alone? Is life as we know it a cosmic accident, a one-time event on our distant planet? Is there an abundance of life and maybe even intellect and self-awareness in the universe? Now, science is in a position to answer them with a tremendous leap forward.

As per The Times report on April 26, the James Webb Space Telescope was all set to direct its gaze to a far-off planet in a different solar system in order to examine one of the most intriguing clues to extraterrestrial life that has ever been found. This follows the discovery of a planet by astronomers that was rich in gas that could “only be produced by life.”

Red dwarf star K2-18, which is roughly half the size of our sun, is located beneath the constellation Leo and is too dim to be seen with the naked eye. A planet known as K2-18b is thought to be an ocean-covered globe with a radius around 2.6 times that of Earth that is in orbit around it.

Scientists have detected clues of something hidden in the atmosphere that may eventually prove that life exists somewhere other than Earth. It is known as dimethyl sulphide (DMS), a gas. The gas has a single source on Earth. According to NASA, it is “only produced by life,” mostly by “phytoplankton in marine environments.”

The study’s lead astrophysicist from Cambridge, Dr Nikku Madhusudhan, told the British newspaper that while the researchers could say with more than 50% confidence that DMS was present based on preliminary data returned by the JWST last year, this is far from “conclusive evidence.”

He was to hold off until the telescope’s eight hours of scheduled observations on Friday when it was going to look especially for DMS. Before he can confidently announce that it has been located, he will next spend months going through the data, according to The Times.

Despite their best efforts, scientists have been unable to come up with a natural geological or chemical mechanism that may produce DMS in the absence of live beings.

K2-18b is located 124 light-years from Earth. By galactic standards, this makes it a quite close neighbour, however, it would take a probe 2.2 million years to reach there at the Voyager spacecraft’s speed of 38,000 mph. To put it simply, it would take around 2175.44 years in human years for a probe travelling at the speed of the Voyager spacecraft to get to the planet K2-18b, which is located 124 light years away.

Thus far, research has revealed that certain colours of starlight are absorbed by clouds’ molecules as they travel through a planet’s atmosphere on its way to Earth. They leave an imprint in the spectrum that the JWST can analyse to determine the chemical composition of the atmosphere.

Dr Madhusudhan told The Times that the results clearly showed methane, carbon dioxide and a lack of ammonia.

“It solved a more than decade-long mystery, literally called the ‘missing methane problem’.” Though “theoretical work” on whether the gas may have a non-living source is ongoing, conclusions won’t be known for four to six months.

https://www.news18.com/viral/extraterrestrial-life-in-universe-james-webb-telescopes-discovery-prompts-alien-investigation-8868682.html

Las Vegas teen whose family was ridiculed for calling 911 to report alien in backyard speaks out

April 26, 2024

A teenager who was ridiculed after his family called 911 to report seeing a 10-foot-tall alien in their backyard has spoken out a year on – and is sticking by the story.

Angel Kenmore, 17, claimed that he was with his family in the yard of their Las Vegas home on the night of 30 April 2023, when a bright light came crashing into the ground and he saw a “giant creature”.

Other witnesses reported seeing the bright light, which was captured on a police officer’s body camera footage.

The family called 911, with the caller telling the dispatcher: “I swear to God this is not a joke, this is actually… we’re terrified”.

Multiple family members corroborated the story to police officers with one heard on bodycam recordings saying he saw a “shooting star and now these people say there are aliens in their backyard”.

The Kenmore family went public with their story last year and Angel revealed that he could make out a tall, very thin creature between 8ft and 10ft tall.

The Kenmores even created drawings of what they claimed to have seen, showing off the bizarre sketches to the media.

The family was relentlessly mocked for their claims by some but their story also brought UFO hunters to their home, forcing them to put “no trespassing” signs around the property.

Now, almost one year on, Angel has spoken again to insist that he was telling the truth. He said this week that he was left “paralysed by fear” by the apparent extraterrestrial encounter.

“It was moving and breathing. It was p***ed off, like it wanted to do something looking at me. I remember he was growling,” he told NewsNation this week.

While Angel originally said the creature was an alien, he said he now believes it was a “demon”.

“I couldn’t move,” he told the outlet, explaining how he looked at the creature for around 30 seconds.

Angel also hit out at the family’s critics, saying: “They can think whatever they want.”

“If I was doing it for fame, I would be on YouTube. I made no money off this. I don’t need money. It was a really bad and traumatising experience,” he said.

The Independent has contacted the American Meteor Society for comment but is yet to receive a response.

The organisation told NewsNation that it is certain the bright light seen that night was a meteor, because of the brief nature of the event.

While the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department initially investigated the family’s claim, it closed the case a few days later.

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/las-vegas-aliens-backyard-teenager-b2535420.html

'Nazca alien mummies are real, DNA evidence proves'

April 27, 2024

Nazca alien mummies are found to be real as DNA evidence proves that they co-existed with human beings, as per a claim by an investigator.

Jois Mantilla, who operated closely with the mummies in order to identify their origins, confirms that he has made a progressive DNA discovery that could "change the course of history" and which is more important than the moon landing, according to The Sun.

Known as Nazca mummies, several mysterious extraterrestrial-looking creatures, have been discovered across Peru in a set of thrilling findings.

Peruvian journalist Jois Mantilla who has been leading an investigation into the mummies, also confirms that they are thousands of years old and once walked among humans.

With some even saying they were aliens, the mummies were unearthed by astonished discoverers and caused mass doubts over where they originated from.

When Jois and fellow journalist Jaime Maussan presented two mummies discovered in Palpa and Nazca, Peru in 2016 to the Mexican Government, they made headlines last year.

As a presentation of their newest mummy — called Monserrat — descended into chaos, their investigation has caught the attention of the public once again.

However, the project has been slammed by the critics including the Peruvian Government, saying the bodies are nothing more than dolls made by artists.

https://www.geo.tv/latest/541330-nazca-alien-mummies-are-real-dna-evidence-proves