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- Scientific concern: carbon fiber for rockets of the future and the diet of a nimble lizard

Scientific concern: carbon fiber for rockets of the future and the diet of a nimble lizard

The diet of the nimble lizard has helped Siberian scientists understand important biochemical processes that will solve the problems of omega-3 deficiency in humans. Rosatom scientists have created a new generation of material for space, nuclear and other strategic industries, and MSU has developed a new polymer for flexible X-ray detector screens. Read about this, as well as how "micromollar" influenced the origin of life and why the landing on the Moon of the Japanese private spacecraft Hakuto-R M2 ended in an accident, in the rating of science news from Izvestia.
Materials for future spacecraft
A new generation of material for space, nuclear and other strategic industries was created by scientists from the Rosatom Chemical Technology Cluster. The development consists of carbon fibers that are highly rigid, do not deform under stress and do not change shape even under strong temperature fluctuations.
Composite materials using new carbon fibers, in particular, will be in demand for creating large—scale space structures (with linear dimensions of about 200 m) - solar sails for interstellar flights, huge radio telescopes and antennas for exploring deep space, as well as massive reflectors for orbital power plants.
— The new filaments also have one of the highest thermal conductivity values. This will make it possible to create structures that can quickly take heat from hot parts and remove it by radiating from a large surface. This is the only way to cool in space, so the development will be useful when creating powerful power plants," Artur Gareev, Deputy Director for Science and Innovation of the Rosatom Chemical Technology Cluster, told Izvestia.
The new fibers are based on mesophase pakes (a product of the coal industry). With certain processing, they turn into almost perfect crystals.
Flexible screens for X-ray machines
Materials scientists from Lomonosov Moscow State University have proposed a polymer that effectively converts hard X-rays into visible light. It can be used to create flexible screens for diagnostic transmission devices.
During the development, the researchers used commercially available substances — copper(I) iodide and urotropin — to produce particles that glow under the influence of ionizing radiation. Then they were embedded in a polymer matrix made of ethylene vinyl acetate (a popular, lightweight, plastic and flexible material).
"Our material demonstrates a combination of unique properties — high luminosity, mechanical flexibility, and resistance to moisture and harsh radiation, which makes it a universal solution for X—ray imaging tasks," said Sergey Fateev, one of the authors of the work.
The new material, the developers noted, provides photoluminescence of up to 98.5%, is resistant to moisture and temperatures up to 300 ° C, and is stable when exposed to high doses of X-rays. Flexible X-ray screens are useful in medicine and mechanical engineering, where they can be used to more effectively study the structure of geometrically complex objects.
Scientists have traced the cycle of omega-3 fatty acids in nature
The human body does not synthesize omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) and receives them only with food. Their deficiency leads to pathologies and diseases. Investigating this problem, specialists from the Siberian Federal University (SibFU) and the Institute of Biophysics of the Krasnoyarsk Scientific Center of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences studied the diet of a nimble lizard. This species lives in the south of the Krasnoyarsk Territory and in Khakassia.
According to scientists, omega-3 is synthesized by some microalgae. Then, moving up the trophic chain, these compounds can enter the body. However, it is unclear how PUFA is obtained by individuals who live far from reservoirs.
"It is possible that these lizards have certain precursor substances in their bodies, from which they can synthesize essential acids, since they do not get them from food," said Anastasia Rudchenko, co—author of the work, associate professor of the Department of Aquatic and Terrestrial Ecosystems at SibFU.
In the course of scientific work, experts have suggested a backup mechanism for omega-3 synthesis, which is most likely most active in lizards during the breeding season — in May and June. Now scientists are identifying the "accumulation points" of these compounds in the body of animals and identify the types of activities for which lizards spend "omega capital". Studying these processes will help solve the problem of deficiency of these fatty acids in the human diet.
Scientists have proposed a new model of the origin of life
Researchers from Stanford University (USA) have proposed a new mechanism by which life could arise from simple chemicals on Earth. Previously, it was believed that lightning could trigger the reaction. However, she rarely gets to the same place for this.
Therefore, scientists have drawn attention to "micromolls" — tiny electric charges that are formed when water droplets break into smaller ones (for example, when a wave hits rocks or a waterfall). Unlike a large one, such charges occur all the time.
They could affect the molecules around the water droplets — excite them, split them, turn them into ions, triggering chemical reactions. This contributed to the creation of conditions for the combination of carbon, nitrogen, hydrogen, and oxygen atoms, which were present in the atmospheric gases of the early Earth (methane, ammonia, hydrogen, carbon dioxide, and others).
They could form simple organic molecules called amino acids. Combining them into long chains of polymers (for example, proteins and RNA) probably occurred in rock cracks, where periodic wetting and drying would help the molecules to polarize.
Japanese private spacecraft crashed during moon landing
The June 5 moon landing of the Japanese private Hakuto-R M2 spacecraft, developed at Ispace, ended in an accident. This is the second unsuccessful attempt for the company and the third for the country.
The mission lasted five months. The spacecraft was launched on January 15, 2025 using a Falcon 9 rocket from the LC-39A site of the Kennedy Space Center in conjunction with the American lunar lander Blue Ghost M1. The last one appeared on the moon on March 2. Japanese experts have chosen a longer, but energy-efficient trajectory.
According to Ispace CEO Takeshi Hakamada, the purpose of the mission was to develop a commercial model for delivering cargo to the moon. This is one of the stages of building a system in which the Earth and its natural satellite will become economically and socially interconnected.
The Hakuto-R M2 was intended to land in the Cold Sea in the northern part of the Moon. On board the lander were the Tenacious mini-lunar rover, equipment for experiments on obtaining oxygen and hydrogen from lunar ice and for growing algae. The module was supposed to work for two Earth weeks before nightfall on the satellite.
However, communication with Hakuto-R was interrupted 105 seconds before landing. The device crashed to the moon at a speed of 187 km /h. The company explained that the cause of the accident was a laser rangefinder that transmitted data with a delay. As a result, the device began to slow down too late.
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