ASTROPHYSICS
The material which fills the space between stars provides the raw materials for new stars to be born. It’s mostly hydrogen, some helium and a tiny amount of dust particles. Within the interstellar medium, there are clouds of varying densities that are rich in molecules like hydrogen and carbon monoxide. These molecularrich gas and dust clouds provide the ingredients that ultimately make up the building blocks of stars. In the densest regions of the interstellar medium, the core collapse of such a cloud can be triggered by a shock wave. These shock waves can be caused by a nearby supernova, by a collision with another molecular cloud or even by passing through the spiral arm of a galaxy, like our Milky Way. Such a shock wave can cause the rapid infall of the molecular material to produce the core of a new star, which continues to accrete as the star is born. These regions in the interstellar medium are stellar nurseries in the cosmos and are critical to the cycle of the life of a star.
SPACE EXPLORATION
Astrobotany is going to be critical for future space exploration, particularly in the realm of providing caloric support for extended spaceflight missions. In the near future, it’s unlikely we will use plants as an oxygen source in a bioregenerative life-support system because gas exchange is more easily controlled manually than relying on plants to produce enough oxygen to support a crew. The science is not precise or reliable enough to depend on just plants for oxygen. However, it will be of huge benefit to supplement caloric intake with plants in space. The sustainability of harvesting in space is another perk that cannot go overlooked. Resupplies to the International Space Station (ISS) are necessary, but resupplies beyond the relatively short distance to the ISS could become impossible, or not time or cost effective. Future missions will need to rely on sustainable plant growth to supplement caloric intake, and the added benefit is that it’s supposed to be an immense help for astronauts’ mental health.
SPACE EXPLORATION
Gold has a variety of properties which make it an extremely useful material when designing objects to go into space. It is very reflective of infrared radiation – a vital consideration for protecting astronauts’ eyes – hence the thin layer of gold in their visors. Infrared isn’t the only harmful type of radiation that visors need to protect against, though. There’s another thin layer specifically for reflecting ultraviolet radiation that is very similar to sunglasses used down here on Earth. Gold is also important in many other objects destined for space; many satellites ar
