Short Takes – 7-20-23

We could get large amounts of water from the moon by directing the sun at it.Phys.org article.  Pull quote: “Other risks also abound, including uncertainty about the total amount and location of water on the moon. There is undoubtedly some in the PSRs, but it might be that there isn't enough close to the surface, where it can be gathered by thermal mining, to support long-term human habitation, and water and other "volatiles" have to shipped in from Ceres or elsewhere in the asteroid belt. If that's the case, there is still an argument that the underlying thermal mining technique could be useful—it just might not be profitable.”

A Vast Lake Has Captivated California Where Farms Stood a Year Ago. NYTimes.com article. Pull quote: “First a trickle, then a flood, the water that coursed into the lake bed over a handful of months swallowed one of the nation’s largest and most valuable stretches of cropland in about the time it takes to grow a tomato. Thirty square miles, then 50. Then 100. Then more.”

Self-healing metal? It's not just the stuff of science fiction. Reuters.com article. Pull quote: “Scientists on Wednesday described how pieces of pure platinum and copper spontaneously healed cracks caused by metal fatigue during nanoscale experiments that had been designed to study how such cracks form and spread in metal placed under stress. They expressed optimism that this ability can be engineered into metals to create self-healing machines and structures in the relatively near future.”

As the world sizzles, China says it will deal with climate its own way. WashingtonPost.com article. Pull quote: “Still, Beijing made it clear that domestic concerns would shape its approach to energy. China’s world-leading emissions totaled 11.4 billion tons of carbon dioxide in 2022, according to the Global Carbon Project, a decline of less than 1 percent from 2021 levels.”

Ukraine counter-offensive is far from failure - US general. Reuters.com article. Pull quote: “"I think there's a lot of fighting left to go and I'll stay with what we said before: This is going to be long. It's going be hard. It's going to be bloody," Milley told reporters.”

Hotel-Sized Asteroid Undetected Until Two Days After Close Pass By Earth. Forbes.com article. Pull quote: “This asteroid [2023 NT1] was hard to see earlier because it approached Earth from the direction of the sun, just like the Chelyabinsk bolide, which was never noticed by humans until it was breaking up over Russia and sending out a shock wave that shattered glass and a few walls, injuring hundreds.”

House approves FAA reauthorization bill. TheHill.com article. Pull quote: “The measure [HR 3935] — formally titled the Securing Growth and Robust Leadership in American Aviation Act — passed in a bipartisan 351-69 vote. It now heads to the Senate, where lawmakers are considering their bill to reauthorize the FAA.”