The world is changing before our eyes. See Earth in transition, as viewed from space, with images courtesy of the Landsat mission and NASA’s Scientific Visualization Studio. Feel free to cry over what’s lost as well as what’s gained. These images provide a powerful snapshot of a planet that’s rapidly being shaped by both natural and human events. Haunting music by DigitalR3public.

Data in this video comes from Global Insight’s report to the United States Conference of Mayors and The Council on Metro Economies and the New American City. According to the report, economic growth in US metropolitan areas in the coming decades will test their infrastructures. Employment and population are two major drivers for congestion-related costs.

Over the next decade, the 15 metros with the largest increases in employment will be adding at least a quarter of a million jobs each. The strain on current transportation infrastructure cannot be understated as 12 of these 15 metros already rank among the 15 highest in congestion per commuter.

In addition to employment growth, which will put further strain on rush hour commutes, general population gains will also contribute to congestion. Population growth will be highest in the South, including Dallas, Houston, Atlanta, and Miami – four of the top five largest population gainers through 2020.

Over the longer-term, the picture is not any better. Total metro area population will grow by 32% from 2012-2042 and will be especially fast in some of the nation’s largest metros. Population will advance by over 50% in Dallas, Houston, Atlanta, Tampa, Denver, San Antonio, and by over 80% in Phoenix, Continue reading From Space: The Fastest Growing U.S. Cities →

Cutting-edge stories about the origins of the universe, black holes, exploding stars, the search for ET life, time and space, the solar system.

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Unknown to the general populace, young men and women from around the globe are being raised in a secret, underground facility. Using a library of alien knowledge that was uncovered early in the 21st century—code name: The Quantum Guide—these future astronauts prepare for the day when they will set out to colonize the galaxy. They must learn to decode the myriad of enigmas that exist in the great beyond if there is to be any hope of the human race becoming an interstellar power.

Jarl Quarkson is one such student. His first lesson starts now.

Watch this updated full res 1080p version of our classic show. Why did Earth thrive and our sister planet, Venus, died? From the fires of a sun’s birth… twin planets emerged. Then their paths diverged. Nature draped one world in the greens and blues of life. While enveloping the other in acid clouds… high heat… and volcanic flows. Why did Venus take such a disastrous turn?

For as long as we have gazed upon the stars, they have offered few signs… that somewhere out there… are worlds as rich and diverse as our own. Recently, though, astronomers have found ways to see into the bright lights of nearby stars.

They’ve been discovering planets at a rapid clip… using observatories like NASA’s Kepler space telescope… A French observatory known as Corot … .And an array of ground-based instruments. The count is approaching 500… and rising. These alien worlds run the gamut… from great gas giants many times the size of our Jupiter… to rocky, charred remnants that burned when their parent star exploded.

Some have wild elliptical orbits… swinging far out into space… then diving into scorching stellar winds. Still others orbit so close to their parent stars that their Continue reading Venus: Death of a Planet →

This is a parody of some over-the-top narrators we know. However, it touches on the subject of more straightforward 25-minute show we’re editing on plasma rockets and the future of spaceflight. In case you’re interested, here’s the introductory section of the script:

The ancients saw them as messages from the Gods… mysterious supernatural winds blowing from the realm of spirits. Modern science linked these polar light shows, auroras, to fierce, and lethal outbursts from the sun as they slammed into Earth’s atmosphere.

Today, researchers from a whole new generation believe they may one day tap into this cosmic energy source… to fuel humanity’s expansion into space. Can this mysterious and explosive form of matter provide the fuel to finally vault us out beyond our home planet?

Since the dawn of rocketry, we’ve relied on the same basic technology to get us off the ground. Fill a cylinder with volatile chemicals… then ignite them in a controlled explosion.

The force of the blast is what pushes the rocket up. Nowadays, chemical rockets are the only vehicles with enough thrust to overcome Earth’s gravity and carry a payload into orbit. But they are not very efficient. The heavier the payload, the more fuel you need Continue reading Doctor Plasma Explains the Universe (Parody) →

From EsoCast. Look closely and see a meteor shower captured in this series of timelapse shots. On 14–16 December 2012, the Geminid meteor shower made a spectacular appearance over ESO’s Paranal Observatory in Chile. As the meteors showered down over the site, photographer Gianluca Lombardi spent over 40 hours recording it.

The Geminids is a shower of shooting stars appearing to emanate from within the constellation of Gemini (The Twins). This shower occurs when the Earth cuts through the orbit of an asteroid named 3200 Phaethon, which happens once each year, in December. Particles in the trail of dust along the orbit of Phaethon burn up in our atmosphere, creating the brilliant, fast-moving points of light characteristic of meteor showers.

Deep underground, the training of the Earth’s new generation of space colonists continues. Jarl Quarkson has mastered his study of some of the workings of space; of pulsars, gamma rays, and the Earth’s capabilities to capture data using FERMI. But while he is comfortable with that knowledge, his instructor, Cerin Higami, has approached him with a new assignment—one that will reshape Jarl’s view of the very fabric of the cosmos.

To understand where we want to go, Jarl must first understand where we came from, starting with the quest to understand the beginnings of the universe.

The NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope — with a little help from an amateur astronomer — has produced one of the best views yet of nearby galaxy Messier 106, a striking spiral galaxy with a number of secrets.

Located a little over 20 million light-years away, practically a neighbor by galactic standards, Messier 106 is one of the brightest and nearest spiral galaxies to our Milky Way. Although it may not look particularly unique, some of its features have baffled astronomers for years.

Messier 106 has a supermassive black hole at its centre. Although this is true for most galaxies, this black hole is particularly active and hungry, gobbling up nearby material at a startling rate.

This huge black hole’s bottomless appetite is behind much of the galaxy’s unusual behavior. Messier 106 appears to be emitting powerful radiation from its centre — something we do not see with our Milky Way or other similar spirals. This is caused by the very active black hole at the galaxy’s centre, which violently drags gas and dust inwards. This material heats up, emitting bright microwave and X-ray radiation as it does so.
However, this emission is not the most intriguing Continue reading Black Hole Galaxy Sculptor →

This is a preview of our newest Cosmic Journeys episode. Ancient people saw them as messages from the Gods… as supernatural winds that blew from the realm of spirits. Modern science has linked these polar light shows, called auroras, to vast waves of electrified gas hurled in our direction by the sun.

Today, researchers from a whole new generation see this explosive substance, plasma, as an energy source that may one day fuel humanity’s expansion into space. What can we learn, and how far can we go, by tapping into the strange and elusive fourth state of matter?

Since the dawn of rocketry, we’ve relied on the same basic technology to get us off the ground. Fill a cylinder with volatile chemicals, then ignite them in a controlled explosion. The force of the blast is what pushes the rocket up.

Nowadays, chemical rockets are the only ones with enough thrust to overcome Earth’s gravity and carry a payload into orbit. But they are not very efficient. The heavier the payload, the more fuel a rocket needs to lift it into space. But the more fuel a rocket carries, the more fuel it needs. For long-range missions, most spacecraft rely heavily on the initial Continue reading Reinventing Space Flight – PREVIEW →