We Must Start Preparing Now For How Climate Change Might End Civilization, Says Report

Speculating over humanity's demise is a sport we humans have enjoyed since forever. We build religions on our eschatological hopes, weave fiction out of our dystopian fears, and even write songs about the end of the world as we know it.

So it's surprising that in the midst of an escalating global climate crisis, one that impacts everything from the health of individuals to the sustainability of entire ecosystems and their resources, potential global catastrophes are so underexplored.

A report published recently in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences argues it's high time we start taking worst-case scenarios seriously and come up with a solid game plan on what happens if – or indeed, when – our current way of life collapses.

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@EverythingScience

Turn the lights up 💡

Check out the Cartwheel Galaxy as seen by NASAHubble in visible light and Webb in infrared. Complimentary views from complementary telescopes!

Download both images in full-resolution:
Hubble: https://bit.ly/3zjWjvO
Webb: https://bit.ly/3oV7lmd
Source: @NASAWebb

Cartwheel Galaxy (NIRCam and MIRI Composite Image)

This image of the Cartwheel and its companion galaxies is a composite from Webb’s Near-Infrared Camera (NIRCam) and Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI), which reveals details that are difficult to see in the individual images alone.

This galaxy formed as the result of a high-speed collision that occurred about 400 million years ago. The Cartwheel is composed of two rings, a bright inner ring and a colorful outer ring. Both rings expand outward from the center of the collision like shockwaves.

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⁣⁣Solar storm will hit Earth Today (Aug. 3)

High-speed solar winds from a "hole" in the sun's atmosphere are set to hit Earth's magnetic field Today (Aug 3.), triggering a minor G-1 geomagnetic storm.

As a G1 geomagnetic storm, it has the potential to cause minor fluctuations in power grids and impact some satellite functions — including those for mobile devices and GPS systems. It will also bring the aurora as far south as Michigan and Maine in the US.

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Curiosity turns 10 today! This curious robot set out to answer a big question: Could Mars have supported ancient life? Scientists have determined the answer is yes, and they’ve been working to learn more about the planet’s past habitable environment.
Source: @NASAJPL

Six toaster-size satellites will work together to form the largest radio telescope ever launched. SunRISE, the Sun Radio Interferometer Space Experiment, is an upcoming NASA mission aimed at detecting bursts of radio waves from the Sun’s atmosphere.

http://go.nasa.gov/3A8FTb4
Source: @NASAJPL

45 years ago, Voyager 2 (shown in the background) launched at 10:29 a.m., carrying this Golden Record and flag on its quest into deep space.

Voyager 2 is the only spacecraft to have visited Uranus and Neptune, and along with Voyager 1, is NASA's longest-lived mission!
Source: @NASAhistory

Is Civilization on the Brink of Collapse?

At its height, the Roman Empire was home to about 30 % of the world’s population, and in many ways the pinnacle of human advancement. Rome became the first city in history to reach one million inhabitants and was a center of technological, legal, and economic progress. An empire impossible to topple, stable and rich and powerful.

Until it wasn’t anymore. First slowly then suddenly, the most powerful civilization on earth collapsed. If this is how it has been over the ages, what about us today? Will we lose our industrial technology, and with that our greatest achievements, from one dollar pizza to smartphones or laser eye surgery? Will all this go away too?

Video (Kurzgesagt)
@EverythingScience

The sounds of a black hole

The misconception that there is no sound in space originates because most space is a ~vacuum, providing no way for sound waves to travel. A galaxy cluster has so much gas that we've picked up actual sound.

Here it's amplified, and mixed with other data, to hear a black hole!
Source: @NASAExoplanets

All systems go for Artemis 1 mission to Moon
Scheduled to launch at 12:33 UTC on the 29th of August.
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Prelaunch Checks

Read more about the mission here:
http://nasaspaceflight.com/news/artemis
Source: @NASA_Nerd

The launch of #Artemis I is no longer happening today as teams work through an issue with an engine bleed. Teams will continue to gather data, and we will keep you posted on the timing of the next launch attempt. https://blogs.nasa.gov/artemis/
Source: @NASA

📅 Next Attempt: September 2nd, 16:48 UTC*

*Subject to change