Phil Plait

Bad Astronomy

Snapshots from Space

Four jadeite tubular beads showing live and dead spider monkeys.
(Image Courtesty of Caracol Archeological Project/University of Houston)


jadeite figures

Learn more about Te K’ab Chaak, the first Maya king from Caracol whose tomb is rewriting the history of Maya-Mesoamerica relations.

1,600-Year-Old Tomb of Maya King Wearing a Jade Death Mask Discovered in Belize

Woolly rhinoceros or Elasmotheriinae, one of the ancient rhino species mentioned in this study.
(Image Credit: aleks1949/Shutterstock) 

Elasmotheriinae

Learn more about a rhino tooth that is changing the field of paleontology and providing crucial insights into rhinoceros evolution and conservation.

Protein Found in 20-Million-Year-Old Rhino Tooth is Oldest Ever Sequenced

(Image Credit: Vadim Sadovski/Shutterstock) 

asteroid

Learn about two major asteroid impacts from 3.5 million years ago that may not have had lasting environmental effects. 

Strikes From Two Eocene Asteroids May Not Have Changed Earth’s Climate Long Term 

Natural outcrop of red jasper in the Mgwayiza Valley, Eswatini. (Image Courtesy of Mbongeni Dlamini)

Red Jasper Outcropping

Learn more about the colorful and shiny stones that were turned into tools as many as 40,000 years ago, which were sometimes sourced from afar. 

Stone Age People Traveled Miles To Source Stunning Raw Materials, Like Red Jasper, for Tools

Collection of CRISPR-Cas mutagenised rice plants.

(Image Courtesy of the University of Milan) 

Moon-Rice

Learn about the Moon-Rice project, which aims to create rice crops that can grow in space and help keep astronauts healthy. 

Moon-Rice Could Soon Sprout in Space, Adding a Fresh Ingredient to Astronauts' Diets

An artist’s impression of the UK-led CosmoCube spacecraft, which would orbit and be tasked with listening out for an “ancient whisper” from the early universe on the far side of the moon.

(Image Credit: Nicolo Bernardini (SSTL Ltd) & Kaan Artuc (University of Cambridge))

Snapshots from Space

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