MyUSTINET Science & Technology News

Space Station supply mission readied
PARIS, Jan. 28 (UPI) -- European Space Agency officials say the fuel and most of the cargo is loaded on a spacecraft preparing to launch to the International Space Station.

More Africa droughts as global temps rise
SANTA BARBARA, Calif., Jan. 28 (UPI) -- The increased frequency of drought conditions in Eastern Africa for the last 20 years is likely to continue while global temperatures rise, researchers say.

'Air laser' could find bombs at a distance
PRINCETON, N.J., Jan. 28 (UPI) -- U.S. scientists say a new "air laser" will allow soldiers to detect hidden explosives from a distance and help scientists measure airborne pollutants.

3D techonology helps study ocean waves
CORVALLIS, Ore., Jan. 28 (UPI) -- Researchers using so-called stereo vision will study waves pounding the shore to better understand a violent, ever-changing environment, U.S. scientists say.

Observances recall Challenger disaster
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla., Jan. 28 (UPI) -- Hundreds of people gathered at a Florida memorial to place flowers in commemoration of the crew killed 25 years ago in the space shuttle Challenger disaster.

Smog may lead to Milan traffic shutdown
MILAN, Italy, Jan. 28 (UPI) -- Ongoing air pollution in Milan, Italy, has lasted 16 days and will probably trigger a total ban on vehicular traffic in the city on Sunday, authorities said.

Fossil casts doubt on dinosaur extinction
EDMONTON, Alberta, Jan. 27 (UPI) -- Canadian researchers say a fossil found in New Mexico contradicts a long-held belief that dinosaurs went extinct abruptly 65.5 million to 66 million years ago.

Team drills toward hidden Antarctic lake
ST. PETERSBURG, Russia, Jan. 28 (UPI) -- Russian scientists drilling into the Antarctic's Lake Vostok, 13,000 feet beneath the continent's ice sheet, say they are in a race against the weather.

Digital topped paperbacks at Amazon
SEATTLE, Jan. 28 (UPI) -- U.S. retailer Amazon said Friday it sold more digital books in the fourth quarter than traditional paperbacks.

U.S. alfalfa decision faces court threat
WASHINGTON, Jan. 28 (UPI) -- Washington is endangering consumer and farmer rights and hurting the environment by green-lighting genetically modified alfalfa, a public-health group said.

People like cuddling if not in a 'hookup'
BINGHAMTON, N.Y., Jan. 28 (UPI) -- Sexual passion is exciting, but the vast majority of American men and women crave something deeper than just sexual behavior, U.S. researchers say.

Asteroid said cause of Jupiter 'scar'
PASADENA, Calif., Jan. 27 (UPI) -- An asteroid the size of an ocean liner caused a scar observed in Jupiter's atmosphere, U.S. and U.K. studies say.

Greenwich observatory sets admission fee
LONDON, Jan. 27 (UPI) -- Visitors to Britain's Royal Observatory will pay $16 beginning in March to stand with one foot in each of the eastern and western hemispheres, officials said.

Brazil gives go-ahead to controversial dam
BRASILIA, Brazil, Jan. 27 (UPI) -- Brazilian government environmental officials say they have approved construction of a giant hydroelectric dam project on an Amazon River tributary.

EU warns Britain on London air pollution
LONDON, Jan. 27 (UPI) -- The British government must convince EU officials London will meet European clean air standards if it is to avoid a court case, officials said.

Cocaine tied to Colombian deforestation
STONY BROOK, N.Y., Jan. 27 (UPI) -- Cultivating coca bushes, the source of cocaine, is destroying rainforests in Colombia and threatening the region's plant and animal diversity, researchers say.

Critics: Shark fishing nations fail pledge
LONDON, Jan. 27 (UPI) -- Many countries whose fishing fleets take large numbers of sharks have failed to meet a pledge on conserving the species, a wildlife advocacy group says.

Japanese cargo craft reaches space station
WASHINGTON, Jan. 27 (UPI) -- An unmanned Japanese cargo spaceship has safely arrived at the International Space Station, delivering tons of supplies for the station and its crew members.

Calls for regulation of rare-plant sales
SOUTH BEND, Ind., Jan. 27 (UPI) -- U.S. biologists are urging regulation of rare-plant sales, saying people obtain endangered or threatened plants and move them outside their native ranges.

Date of humans out of Africa pushed back
LONDON, Jan. 27 (UPI) -- Artifacts unearthed in the United Arab Emirates dating back 100,000 years imply modern humans first left Africa much earlier than believed, a report indicates.

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