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Challenge over school science
Parents are encouraged to challenge their children’s science teachers over the origins of life.

US private space rocket crashes
A private space rocket launched from New Mexico malfunctions before it reaches space.

Astro Viz | Earth’s Magnetic Shield

Life on Earth depends on light and heat from the Sun. But the Sun emits more than just light and heat. Tiny particles—mostly protons and electrons—stream away from the Sun in a "solar wind" that can reach speeds of more than a million kilometers an hour. See how scientists are modeling interactions between solar winds and Earth’s magnetosphere, the magnetic shield generated by our planet’s rotation and molten core, which protects us from the full impact of these supersonic particles.

US private space rocket crashes
A private space rocket launched from New Mexico malfunctions before it reaches space.

New trees to reclaim Amazon land
The government of one of Brazil’s Amazonian states plans to reforest areas of land cleared for pasture.

Bio Snapshot | Oil Spill on the Lebanese Coast

Oil Spill on the Lebanese Coast
Mediterranean Sea

The conflict in Lebanon has caused an oil spill feared to be the worst environmental disaster in the country’s history.

On July 13 and 15, bombs hit storage tanks at an oil-fueled power plant. Between 10,000 and 15,000 tons of oil leaked from the tanks and is drifting in the Mediterranean Sea. Satellites have helped monitor the spill, but due to the instability of the area, site visits and initial cleanup began only recently.

Scientists are concerned about the hazards the oil poses to biodiversity in the Mediterranean Sea. It may coat bluefin tuna eggs floating in the water, and block young green sea turtles from swimming out to sea after hatching.

Image Credits 
Middle East, August 2004 (Blue Marble Next Generation: satellite: NASA Terra, sensor: MODIS)
Lebanon, July 16, 2006 (Satellite: NASA Terra, sensor: MODIS)
Lebanon/Syria (satellite: NASA Landsat 7, sensor: ETM+)
Oil slick data July 21/Aug 3, 2006 (Satellite: ENVISAT, sensor: ASAR, map: ©DLR 2006)
Oil fire and spill (AP)
Bluefin tuna (Tuna Research & Conservation Center, Stanford University)
Green sea turtle (U. Keuper-Benett/P. Bennett, www.turtles.org)

Related Science Bulletins
Massive Oil Spills Stain Louisiana (September 26, 2005)
Alaskan Oil Spill Cleanup Continues (January 17, 2005)

Sustainable Developments: Fiddling While the Planet Burns

Jeffrey D. Sachs

Artificial Life
Are scientists on the verge of making living things from little more than dust?
NOVA scienceNOW

Creating the measure of Chandrasekhar’s life

Web watch
In memoriam Kempelen Farkas; SStardust@home; The Physics of Baseball