The Columbian

Science & Technology

Tiny plastic pellets big threat to oceans

January 17, 2019, 6:03am Life

Environmentalists have identified another threat to the planet. It’s called a nurdle. Read story

Strange, cold future awaits our sun

January 17, 2019, 6:00am Life

Our sun and billions of stars just like it are headed for a strange, cold destiny. Read story

In this frame grab from Iranian state TV, a video, a rocket carrying a Payam satellite is launched at Imam Khomeini Space Center, a facility under the control of the country’s Defense Ministry, in Semnan province, Iran, Tuesday, Jan. 15, 2019. According to Telecommunications Minister Mohammad Javad Azari Jahromi, the rocket failed to reach the “necessary speed” in the third stage of its launch.

Iran satellite fails to reach orbit in U.S.-criticized launch

January 15, 2019, 3:12pm Nation & World

An Iranian satellite-carrying rocket blasted off into space on Tuesday, but scientists failed to put the device into orbit in a launch previously criticized by the United States as helping the Islamic Republic further develop its ballistic missile program. Read story

In this photo provided on Thursday, Jan. 3, 2019, by China National Space Administration via Xinhua News Agency, Yutu-2, China’s lunar rover, leaves wheel marks after leaving the lander that touched down on the surface of the far side of the moon. A Chinese spacecraft on Thursday, Jan. 3, made the first-ever landing on the far side of the moon, state media said. The lunar explorer Chang’e 4 touched down at 10:26 a.m., China Central Television said in a brief announcement at the top of its noon news broadcast.

China begins first surface exploration of moon’s far side

January 4, 2019, 9:19am Nation & World

A Chinese space rover explored the lunar terrain on Friday in the world’s first mission on the surface of the far side of the moon. Read story

Yutu-2, China’s lunar rover, leaves wheel marks after leaving the lander that touched down on the moon Thursday.

A space power is born as China lands on far side of the moon

January 3, 2019, 10:08pm Life

When China announced on Thursday that it had successfully landed on the far side of the moon, it wasn’t just a scientific breakthrough. To Beijing, its expanding space mission also carries an increasingly powerful symbolic message. Read story

This 2011 composite image shows the far side of Earth’s moon. The moon is what scientists call “tidally locked,” which means the same side always faces us, while another side always faces away.

‘Dark side’ of the moon a misnomer

January 3, 2019, 7:41pm Life

Despite the name of Pink Floyd’s best-selling album, the side of the moon you can’t see isn’t always dark. But it is far. Read story

Graphic shows how the Chinese lunar probe on the far side of the moon communicates with Earth; 3c x 3 3/4 inches; 146 mm x 95 mm;

China lands spacecraft on ‘dark’ side of moon in world first

January 3, 2019, 6:55am Latest News

China’s burgeoning space program achieved a first on Thursday: a landing on the so-called dark side of the moon that brings the country closer to its goal of becoming a space power. Read story

Francis Collins National Institutes of Health director

Rise of custom babies sets off ethics alarms

January 3, 2019, 6:02am Life

Danielle Lloyd, a former Miss Great Britain and celebrity mother of four boys, wants to guarantee that her next baby will be a girl. So, she revealed in a TV interview last year, she’s planning to get pregnant through in vitro fertilization. Read story