Top Signal: A new quasi-moon and a deadly rescue squirrel
Russian engineers have developed devices for cooling materials to record ultra-low temperatures. And aircraft designers have proposed a way to study the strength of parts based on their transparent polymer copies. At the same time, microbiologists have analyzed the structure and functions of the protein that is responsible for cell death. It will help treat cancer and diabetes. In addition, Russian astronomers noted an unusual magnetic storm, and their Spanish colleagues discovered a new quasi-satellite of the Earth. These and other events from the world of science can be found in the weekly Izvestia collection.
Powerful coolers for quantum computers have been created in Russia
Russian engineers have created two new highly productive cooling complexes — the Yurta optical cryostat, which cools materials to a temperature of 0.45 K, and the Yaranga dissolution cryostat, which is capable of reaching a level of about 0.01 K from absolute zero. The equipment was named after the traditional houses of the northern peoples and for solving other useful tasks in the field of precision instrumentation.
The development was carried out by specialists from the Bauman Moscow State Technical University, the All-Russian Research Institute of Automation named after N.L. Dukhov and the Cryotrade Engineering company. The new equipment is designed to ensure the operation of domestic quantum computers on superconducting qubits.
— Today we are talking about dry cryostats of ultra-low temperatures and ultra-high cooling capacity. Such installations are used in a wide range of fields, both in fundamental research and in applied fields. For example, in neuromorphic computers, astronomical observations, and various sensory systems. Therefore, it was necessary to develop such a complex," the chief designer, director of the Functional Micro Research Center, explained to Izvestia./Nanosystems" Bauman Moscow State Technical University and Ilya Rodionov All-Russian Research Institute of Automation.
As the scientists explained, previously equipment of this class was purchased abroad, which slowed down the development of domestic quantum technologies. The new complexes will eliminate this obstacle.
Transparent copies of planes and ships showed their weaknesses
The Moscow Aviation Institute has proposed an advanced technology for studying structural strength. The method involves 3D printing copies of the parts under study in a reduced or enlarged form.
Visualization of the effects applied to them takes place in polarized light. Under its rays, colored stripes appear in the samples, which reflect the pattern of internal stresses.
As the scientists explained, the method makes it possible to quickly identify loaded zones and vulnerabilities, after which new forms can be quickly developed and tested, adding improved parameters to them.
— Previously, epoxy resin casting was used to produce experimental models. They were heated, and then poured into molds and waited for solidification, which took weeks. At the same time, any mistake entailed stopping the process and redoing it from scratch. Now, thanks to 3D printing, it takes several hours to prepare a model. This makes experiments more reliable and flexible," said Roman Sabitov, developer, engineer and graduate student of the Department 203 "Engine Design and Engineering" at MAI.
According to him, the solution is suitable for analyzing the strength of aircraft elements, ships, buildings, monuments and other complex objects that are operated under high loads.
Cell Death Switch Protein helps Treat Cancer
For the first time in the world, Russian researchers from the Faculty of Fundamental Medicine of Lomonosov Moscow State University and the Engelhardt Institute of Molecular Biology of the Russian Academy of Sciences have comprehensively characterized the structure and functions of the BMF protein, a key regulator of apoptosis and natural programmed cell suicide.
— There is a special "death program" in every cell of the body. When stressful conditions occur (for example, damage to the genetic apparatus), it is triggered to destroy damaged or spent cells. The BMF protein belongs to the Bcl-2 family group, which control the activation of this program," explained Nikolai Pervushin, a researcher at the FFM Moscow State University.
There are two groups of proteins within the Bcl-2 family: some trigger the "death program," while others block it and help cells survive, the specialist added. BMF belongs to the first group. This system allows you to regulate the processes of renewal of body tissues.
According to scientists, the work lays the foundation for the creation of new methods for the diagnosis and treatment of cancer and diabetes, the most common and dangerous diseases in the world.
The imbalance of the Earth's magnetosphere gave rise to a substorm
The magnetic storm, which cannot be explained by traditional methods, was registered by specialists from the Laboratory of Solar Astronomy at the Institute of Space Research of the Russian Academy of Sciences and the Institute of Solar-Terrestrial Physics of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences. The event took place on the night of Wednesday, September 10th.
"The main cause of magnetic storms is external impacts from the Sun (the arrival of plasma clouds or fast solar wind streams from coronal holes). However, the solar wind graphs show that nothing came to Earth at all tonight," the laboratory's website says.
According to experts, one of the reliable hypotheses that explains what happened may be a large substorm. This is a phenomenon in which the energy of the magnetosphere is released without obvious external causes. This is usually due to an imbalance in the tail of the magnetosphere, an extended structure that stretches behind the planet from the far side of the Sun at a distance of more than 100,000 km.
— Such events happen quite often. Their power is weaker than that of conventional magnetic storms," Sergei Bogachev, head of the laboratory, explained to Izvestia, "And interestingly, substorms occur more frequently at the minimum of solar activity.
Maybe it's just easier to register them during these periods, he suggested.
The new quasi-moon will help us understand the evolution of the Solar system
Astronomers from the Complutense University of Madrid (Spain) have discovered a new quasi—satellite, the asteroid 2025 PN7. The discovery was made based on data from the Pan-STARRS-1 telescope located in Hawaii.
Quasi—satellites are asteroids that are in orbital resonance with the Earth, but are not bound to it by gravitational forces. They move next to the planet, creating the illusion of orbiting it. 2025 PN7 became the seventh known object of its kind.
In a scientific article, experts specified that the diameter of 2025 PN7 ranges from 15 to 30 m. It moves in an elongated orbit, and its distance from the Earth varies. At its minimum, it is about 4.5 million km (which is 12 times farther than the Moon), and at its maximum, it is about 60 million km. The asteroid has been accompanying the Earth for about 60 years, and the "date" will continue for the same amount.
2025 PN7 became the seventh open quasi-satellite. According to the researchers, these objects are convenient targets for new space expeditions. They can help to better understand the evolution of the Solar system.
In 2026, the Chinese Tianwen—2 spacecraft will travel to one of these objects, the Kamoaleva asteroid. It is assumed that he will photograph the surface of a celestial body, collect samples of its substance and deliver it to Earth. The mission will last more than a decade.
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