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https://nerdist.com/article/mars-has-green-glow-like-earth/

The European Space Agency (ESA) has just announced that its ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter (TGO) has identified a long-suspected “green glow” around Mars. The green glow is due to the interaction of sunlight with atoms and molecules in Mars’ atmosphere. To date, we’ve only observed the phenomenon around one other planet: Earth. Now, the scientists who’ve discovered the Red Planet’s green glow say it could help us better understand the planet’s atmosphere. And how to land safely on its surface.

An artist’s illustration of the green glow around Mars. ESA 

Futurism reported on the finding, which was outlined in a paper recently published in the journal, Nature. According to the paper, this discovery marks the first time scientists have observed the “day glow” and “night glow” that generate the “green line” around Earth around Mars. Or any other planet. The discovery also stands as long sought-after confirmatory evidence of predictions regarding the Martian atmosphere, which date back 40 years.

“Previous observations hadn’t captured any kind of green glow at Mars, so we decided to reorient the UVIS [aboard the TGO] to point at the ‘edge’ of Mars, similar to the perspective you see in images of Earth taken from the ISS,” co-author of the study, Ann Carine Vandaele of the Institut Royal d’Aéronomie Spatiale de Belgique in Belgium, said in an ESA press release. The UVIS is the “ultraviolet and visible spectrometer”. It serves as one observational tool aboard the TGO’s “NOMAD” suite of instruments.

The green glow around Earth. NASA

The green glow the TGO observed is the result of two different processes occurring in Mars’ atmosphere. The day glow occurs when sunlight directly excites atoms and breaks apart molecules in Mars’ thin atmosphere. The break-up of CO2 is most likely a big reason for this glow. The night glow, on the other hand, occurs when disintegrated molecules recombine. (Light energy is released in both the disintegration and reformation processes, much of which is in the visible part of the electromagnetic spectrum, at the wavelength we perceive as green.)

Moving forward, scientists will look to use measurements of this green glow as a way to glean more information about the composition and dynamics of the Martian atmosphere. The ESA says that these measurements of the atmosphere will, in turn, be “key to [operating] the missions we send to the Red Planet” because of, for example, the way parachuting probes will experience drag. And anybody who’s interested in the potential for life beyond Earth most definitely wants those probes to land safely.

What do you think about the ESA’s discovery of a green glow around Mars? Do you think we’ll find some exoplanets with the same kind of luminous ring in the near future? Light up the comments with your thoughts, people!

Feature image: European Space Agency

The post Mars Exhibits ‘Green Glow’ in Atmosphere, Just Like Earth appeared first on Nerdist.

http://www.afronerd.com/2020/06/sundays-grindhouse-airs-at-6pm-btalk100.html

Let's get to it!  Welcome to the latest episode of Afronerd Radio's The Grindhouse airing this Sunday at 6pm eastern at our new broadcasting home-BTalk 100.  Your AFROnerdist hosts are "b(l)ack by popular demand" and will be discussing the following issues:  still more "goings-on" relating to the global protests except now the Black Lives Matter movement is international and multi-racial; and is the current movement equally about police brutality and anti-blackness?;  And while we're on the topic of anti-blackness, some in the Indian acting community are simultaneously being applauded (for their stance on BLM) and critiqued for promoting skin bleaching products;  New Orleans Saints quarterback, Drew Brees formally apologizes for his perceived insensitivity toward African-Americans regarding his views about how kneeling equates to disrespecting the American flag; I guess this was always an obvious leap-if AI (artificial intelligence) will be driving cars in the near future, why not airplanes?  A piece from TheDrive.com highlights a planned test pitting a manned fighter jet against an autonomous drone; ; Fox News apologizes for using a graph to depict how stock performance spikes after the high profile killings of (or violent acts levied against) black men;  And in lighter blerd-pop culture news:  infamous (or is it problematic) director, Josh Trank opens up about his fight with studio execs when he pitched a black Sue Storm for his version of the Fantastic Four;   the MCU (Marvel Cinematic Universe) may be eyeing their interpretation of the Greek god, Hercules for the silver screen treatment;  noted actor, John Boyega speaks out against police malfeasance (with concerns of career suicide) and gets public support from black directors insuring that he will be able to work after all;  And lastly, if time permits we'll try to round up the black NYC surfing community that recently paid homage to George Floyd; and where there's surfers there's also black equestrians in Houston, Texas honoring Mr. Floyd; will activist/athlete, Colin Kaepernick get hired in the wake of all this pro BLM news?  Call the show LIVE at 508-645-0100. 

OH...and P.S.  Thoughts about TV mogul, Oprah Winfrey's OWN special, "Where Do We Go From Here?" Are there too many Progressive thought leaders in tow or should the black politically alternative voices develop there own platform? 


   
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http://www.thenerdelement.com/2020/06/15/babyteeth-review/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=babyteeth-review

• Director: Shannon Murphy
• Writer: Rita Kalnejais
• Cast: Eliza Scanlen, Toby Wallace, Emily Barclay, Eugenes Gilfedder, Essie Davis, Ben Mendelsohn
• Runtime: 117 min

Babyteeth is the coming-of-age story of Milla (Eliza Scanlen), a young girl battling a serious illness. She meets and quickly falls for Moses (Toby Wallace), a homeless small-time drug dealer and taker. Although it isn’t Milla’s parents (Essie Davis and Ben Mendelsohn) ideal scenario, they try to support their daughter as she goes through this difficult time.

Babyteeth is the debut feature from Shannon Murphy (Killing Eve).

Babyteeth is based on a play by Rita Kalnejais, who also wrote the screenplay. Although you can sense its theatrical beginnings, Babyteeth has been successfully adapted for the screen. Kalnejais was willing to alter her play when needed in order to make for a better film, something which many can struggle to do with their own work. Additionally, Shannon Murphy’s direction has given the material flair and turned it into a cinematic experience. Specifically, Murphy uses text, music and occasionally breaks the fourth wall to give the film more energy. Babyteeth treats the audience with respect, not laying everything out immediately but rather letting the viewer understand why the characters are the way they are as the film unfolds.

A tragic comedy is perhaps the best way to describe Babyteeth. Choosing to mix subtle comedic notes with the tragic setting of a family dealing with serious illness is not the most obvious choice but one that helps sets an appropriate tone for the more uplifting moments in the film. The characters are learning to enjoy the life they have. The film is a successful merger of genres.

The film really works because of the four leads, some of Australia’s best talents are on show. Ben Mendelsohn (Rogue One, The Outsider) and Essie Davis (The Babadook, Assassin’s Creed) play Milla’s parents, Henry and Anna. Their parenting style is somewhat unorthodox but their performances give credibility to their, at times, unbelievable actions. Eliza Scanlen is best known for supporting roles in Sharp Objects and Little Women but Babyteeth allows her to show off her talents in a lead role. Scanlen has to convey a lot of emotions, often through actions and expressions rather than words. Her portrayal of Milla is captivating and will hopefully set her up for many more lead roles in the future.

For his depiction of Moses, Toby Wallace (Netflix’s The Society) was the recipient of the Marcello Mastroianni Award at the Venice Film Festival awarded to the best young actor. Wallace is perhaps the least known of the central four but he holds his own alongside more established actors. He makes you empathise with a character who, on the face of it, is pretty unlikeable. The four actors have great chemistry together and it is their relationships with each other that really sells the story, even when the more farfetched plot points occur.

Babyteeth has an unpolished look, something that works for the nature of the film. The handheld camerawork draws the audience in and makes them a part of the story. In order to give the film a somewhat timeless look the filmmakers limited the use of technology on screen, something that can quickly date a film especially with regard to mobile phones. The production and costume design work well to aid in this aim and to make Babyteeth’s setting non-specific making it more relatable.

There is no formal score in Babyteeth but rather an emphasis on needle drops and the sounds of the environment. This music along with the visuals gives Babyteeth a vibrancy, perfect for a coming-of-age film, albeit one as unconventional as this.

Babyteeth is not without its flaws, some of the plot points are a little far fetched and the pacing can slow too much at times. However, for the most part it is well worth a watch. The quality of the acting and the overall look of the film are great. Shannon Murphy has proven herself as a talent to watch with Babyteeth.

Babyteeth is released in select theatres and on demand June 19 2020

Images courtesy of IFC Films

The post Babyteeth Review appeared first on The Nerd Element.

http://www.afronerd.com/2020/06/next-grindhouse-sun-8pm-et-miles.html

Greetings to our ever supportive listeners!  Check your clocks for another undoubtedly fiery episode of Afronerd Radio's Grindhouse airing this Monday at 8pm eastern.  Our AFROnerdist broadcasters will be discussing the following issues:  a new trailer for a Miles Morales Playstation 5 video game just hit the cyberwebs and not only does it have VG fans excited but does this also foreshadow a live action movie debut in the future?



Noted graphic novelist/screenwriter, John Ridley seems to have renewed the debate over legendary filmmaker, Quentin Tarantino's liberal use of the n-word in his art; Ridley was also somewhat responsible for the removal of film classic, Gone With The Wind from the new HBO Max streaming platform; ComicBookResources.com highlighted Japan's First Black Owned Anime studio but does that mean fans might be able to see more Black centric projects going forward in the genre?; yet another unarmed Black male gets killed at the hands of the police-this time in an ATL Wendy's drive thru;  comedian Dave Chappelle drops an impromptu 27 minute rant/stand-up routine for Netflix and Youtube discussing his thoughts on Black Lives Matter, police killings and subsequent protests;




influential comic writer, Denny O'Neil (most notably co-created the black Green Lantern, John Stewart and other iconic characters and story arcs) passes at 81; the popular Killing Eve UK series starring Sandra Oh (Grey's Anatomy) is catching criticism for what appears to be the show's all white writing staff in spite of its aforementioned star being of Asian descent; thoughts about President Trump's alleged race speech tentatively taking place on Juneteenth and in Tulsa, Oklahoma.  And lastly, Spike Lee's Da 5 Bloods premiered on Netflix this weekend.  Call in LIVE at 508-645-0100. 

PS:  If there's time (after all, it is a three hour show)...so now we started from the bottom, now we're here?  ABC's The Bachelor is now black.....but...there's always receipts.


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