ARAB TIMES, SUNDAY, AUGUST 22, 2021 SCIENCE 11

Space

China’s rover soldiers on Japan plans to bring samples by ’29

TOKYO, Aug 21, (AP): Japan’s space agency plans to bring soil samples back from the Mars region ahead of the US and Chinese missions now operating on Mars, in hopes of fi nding clues to the planet’s origin and traces of pos- sible life. The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, or JAXA, plans to launch an explorer in 2024 to land on the Martian Phobos to collect 10 grams (0.35 ounce) of soil and bring it back to Earth in 2029. The rapid return trip would put Japan ahead of the United States and in bringing back samples from the Martian region despite starting later, project manager Yasuhiro Kawakatsu said in an online news conference Thursday. NASA’s rover is op- erating in a Mars crater where it is to collect 31 samples that are to be returned to Earth with help from the European Space Agency as early as 2031. China landed a spacecraft on Mars in May and plans to bring back samples around 2030. JAXA scientists believe about 0.1% of the surface soil on Phobos came from Mars, and 10 grams could contain about 30 granules, depend- Kawakatsu ing on the consistency of the soil, Kawakatsu said. Tomohiro Usui, professor at the Institute of Space and In this April 30, 2021, file image taken by the Mars Perseverance rover and made available by NASA, the Mars Ingenuity helicopter, (right), flies over the surface of Astronautical Science, said soil on Phobos is likely to be a the planet. Japanese space agency scientists said, Aug 19, they planned to bring soil samples from the Mars region back to Earth ahead of the US Perseverance mixture of material from the moon itself and material from and Chinese missions now operating on the planet. (AP) Mars that was spread by sandstorms. Collecting samples from multiple locations on Phobos could provide a greater chance of obtaining possible traces of life from Mars than obtaining soil from a single location on Mars, he said. Any life forms that might have come from Mars will have Coronavirus died because of harsh solar and cosmic radiation on Phobos, JAXA scientists said. The NASA and the European Space Agency missions focus on potential life forms and evolution of the area of the Jezero crater, believed to be an ancient Virus surge raises fear as US schools open lake. By studying Phobos soil samples including material from Mars, scientists hope to learn about the evolution of the Martian biosphere, Usui said. Record delta wave hits children He said Japanese research on Phobos and NASA’s sam- ples from specifi c locations in the Martian crater can com- NEW YORK, Aug 21, (AP): The day plement each other and could lead to answers to questions before he was supposed to start fourth such as how Martian life, if present, emerged and evolved grade, Francisco Rosales was admitted ‘Blood plasma shows limited effect’ in time and place. to a Dallas hospital with COVID-19, Last December, a JAXA probe, , brought back This 2021 photo provided by Yessica struggling to breathe, with dangerous- more than 5 grams (0.19 ounce) of soil from the asteroid Gonzalez shows her son, Francisco ly low oxygen levels and an uncertain UK OKs first COVID antibody medicine Ryugu, more than 300 million kilometers (190 million Rosales, 9, in the intensive care unit outcome. miles) from Earth, in the world’s fi rst successful return of at Children’s Medical Center in Dallas, It wasn’t supposed to be like this, LONDON, Aug 21, (Agencies): nificant addition to our armoury to an asteroid sample. Texas. The day before he was sup- thought his frightened mother, Yessica The UK Medicines and Health- tackle COVID-19 - in addition to ❑ ❑ ❑ posed to start fourth grade, Francisco Gonzalez. Francisco was normally care products Regulatory Agency our world-renowned vaccination was admitted to the hospital due to se- healthy and rambunctious. At 9, he (MHRA) has given approval for the programme and life-saving thera- Mars: China’s Zhurong is soldiering on after vere COVID-19, struggling to breathe, was too young to get vaccinated, but first monoclonal antibody treatment peutics dexamethasone and tocili- completing its initial program to explore the red planet and with dangerously low oxygen levels most of the family had their shots. She for the prevention and treatment of zumab,” Javid said. search for frozen water that could provide clues as to wheth- and an uncertain outcome. (AP) had heard kids rarely got sick from the COVID-19 in the UK. “We are now working at pace with er it once supported life. coronavirus. “This is fantastic news from the the (National Health Service) NHS China’s National Space Administration said on its web- But with the highly contagious delta independent medicines regulator and expert clinicians to ensure this site Friday that Zhurong completed its 90-day program on variant spreading across the US, chil- and means the UK has approved treatment can be rolled out to NHS Aug. 15 and was in excellent technical condition and fully its first therapeutic designed spe- patients as soon as possible.” dren are filling hospital intensive care cifically for COVID-19,” British charged. beds instead of classrooms in record Also: It said it would continue to explore the area known as Health and Social Care Secretary numbers, more even than at the height Sajid Javid said in a press state- WALTHAM, MASS.: Blood plasma where it landed on May 14. Zhurong has of the pandemic. Many are too young ment. from COVID-19 survivors didn’t been consistently sending back photos and data via the to get the vaccine, which is available Developed by US biotech firm help newly infected patients when Tianwen-1 orbiter that crosses over it once a day. only to those 12 and over. Regeneron and Swiss company tested against a dummy infusion, After the United States, China is the second country to The surging virus is spreading anxi- Roch, the drug Ronapreve is ad- doctors reported. land and sustainably operate a spacecraft on Mars, where ety and causing turmoil and infighting ministered either by injection or in- The results of the experiment days are 40 minutes longer than on Earth. among parents, administrators and fusion and acts at the lining of the are the latest disappointment for a politicians around the US, especially respiratory system where it binds treatment known as convalescent At 1.85 meters (6 feet) in height, Zhurong is signifi cantly Trump Biden smaller than the American Perseverance rover, which is ex- in states like Florida and Texas, where tightly to the coronavirus and pre- plasma. The experimental treat- ploring the planet with a tiny helicopter. NASA expects its Republican governors have barred vents it from gaining access to the ment is not currently recommended schools from making youngsters wear cells of the respiratory system. in US guidelines and it’s been dif- rover to collect its fi rst sample in July for return to Earth as Clinical trial data assessed by ficult to study in a controlled way. early as 2031. masks. Ecology With millions of children returning a dedicated team of MHRA scien- The new study, published Concurrently, China is assembling its permanent space tists and clinicians has shown that Wednesday in the New England station, with three astronauts now aboard the Tianhe, or to classrooms this month, experts say the stakes are unquestionably high. Ronapreve may be used to pre- Journal of Medicine, ran a test in Heavenly Harmony, core that was put into orbit on April 29. Asian giant hornet nest found: vent infection, promote resolution about 500 patients with COVID-19 Two of the astronauts completed their second space walk on Authorities say they have found the fi rst Infection of symptoms of acute COVID-19 symptoms in hospital emergency Friday. All three are due to return to Earth in September and Asian giant hornet nest of 2021 in a rural infection and can reduce the likeli- rooms. Half received antibody-rich Very high infection rates in the com- hood of being admitted to hospital plasma donated by recovered CO- be replaced by a new crew. area in Washington state, about a quarter- munity “are really causing our chil- China earlier launched two smaller experimental space mile from where a resident reported see- due to COVID-19. VID-19 patients. Half received a dren’s hospitals to feel the squeeze,’’ “This treatment will be a sig- dummy infusion. stations. It has been excluded from the International ing one of the hornets earlier this month. said Dr. Buddy Creech, a Vanderbilt Space Station largely at the insistence of the United The Washington State Department of University infectious disease special- States, which is wary of the ’s Agriculture narrowed the search area and located the nest east of Blaine, department ist who is a helping lead research on almost 2,000 kids in the hospital, many ber. secrecy and close military links. Congressional approval Moderna’s vaccine for children under is also required for any cooperation between NASA and offi cials said. of them in ICU, some of them under At Texas Children’s Hospital in Crews found the nest after they fol- 12. Creech said those shots probably the age of 4,’’ Collins told Fox News Houston, the nation’s largest pediat- the CNSA. lowed a hornet that was equipped with a won’t be available for several months. China also recently brought back lunar samples, the fi rst on Sunday. ric hospital, the number of youngsters tracking device, KOMO reported. Crews “I’m really worried,’’ said Dr. Sonja Health experts believe adults who treated for COVID-19 is at an all-time by any country’s space program since the 1970s, and has were able to net and tag three hornets be- Rasmussen, a pediatrician and public landed a probe and rover on the moon’s less explored far have not gotten their shots are con- high, said Dr. Jim Versalovic, interim tween Aug 11-Aug 17. health expert at the University of Flor- tributing to the surge among grown- pediatrician-in-chief. In recent weeks, side. State entomologists will now develop a ida. “It’s just so disappointing to see China fi rst put an astronaut into orbit in 2003, becoming plan to eradicate the nest, most likely next those numbers back up again.” ups and children alike. It has been the vast majority have had delta infec- just the third country to do so. week. While pediatric COVID-19 hospi- especially bad in places with lower tions, and most patients 12 and up have The 2-inch-long (5-centimeter-long) talization rates are lower than those vaccination rates, such as parts of the not had shots, he said. Also: invasive insects, fi rst found near the US- for adults, they have surged in recent South. “It is spreading like wildfire across HONOLULU: The project director of a new solar telescope Canadian border in December 2019, are weeks, reaching 0.41 per 100,000 chil- While it is clear the delta variant is our communities,’’ he said. in Hawaii that will be the most powerful of its kind hopes native to Asia and pose a threat to honey- dren ages 0 to 17, compared with 0.31 much more contagious than the original At times this month, his hospital bees and native hornet species. While not version, scientists are not yet able to say system has diagnosed 200 children scientists will be able to start observations at the facility in particularly aggressive toward humans, per 100,000, the previous high set in three months. mid-January, according to an Aug. 13 with any certainty whether it makes peo- with COVID-19 a day, with about their sting is extremely painful and re- ple more severely ill or whether young- 6% of them needing hospital care. On The Daniel K. Inouye Solar Telescope, at the summit peated stings, though rare, can kill. (AP) report from the Centers for Disease of Haleakal volcano on Maui, was supposed to open last ❑ ❑ ❑ Control and Prevention. sters are especially vulnerable to it. some days, the number of children in fall. But Thomas Rimmele told Hawaii Public Radio on Dr. Francis Collins, head of the Na- As experts work to answer those the hospital with COVID-19 has ex- Wednesday that COVID-19 travel restrictions set back con- Killer whale dies at SeaWorld: A tional Institutes of Health, calls the questions, many hospitals are reeling. ceeded 45. killer whale died unexpectedly at Sea- spike in cases among children “very Those in Texas are among the hard- Versalovic said he suspects hospi- struction on its critical systems. World San Diego and the reason was not He hopes the current schedule won’t be affected by newly worrisome.” est hit. On Tuesday, they reported 196 talizations of children are up simply immediately known, the aquarium and He noted that over 400 US children children being treated with confirmed because so many are getting infected, surging coronavirus cases and any additional restrictions. theme park said Friday. Rimmele was expecting to return to Maui as early as this have died of COVID-19 since the pan- COVID-19. That compares with 163 not because the delta variant makes The 6-year-old female orca named demic began. “And right now we have during the previous peak, in Decem- people more seriously ill. week. Amaya died Thursday and the cause of “November 15 is what we’re shooting for. We just had a death will not be known until results of big review, the fi nal construction review that was conducted a post-mortem examination are complete, which could take weeks, SeaWorld’s Joe Biden’s administration is sticking gray wolves across most of the US. But ing concern over aggressive wolf hunting by the National Science Foundation,” Rimmele said. ”(The a top federal wildlife offi cial on Friday scientists) are getting really anxious to get their observa- statement said. by the decision under former president seasons adopted for the predators in the “Amaya began showing signs of illness Donald Trump to lift protections for told The there is grow- western Great Lakes and northern Rocky tions and data done.” on Aug 18, and animal care specialists Mountains. The telescope has received about 100 proposals from and veterinarians began treating her im- Wolves under federal protection made researchers for an initial observing window of two-and-a- mediately. Despite her care team’s ef- a remarkable rebound in parts of the US half months. Picking which scientists get to go fi rst depends forts, Amaya’s condition continued to de- over the past several decades, after being heavily on atmospheric conditions and what objects are vis- cline rapidly. Her death was sudden and driven from the landscape by excessive ible on a given day. unexpected,” it said. hunting and trapping in the early 1900s. He said one quarter or even a fi fth of the proposals may be SeaWorld said the specialists who States took over wolf management last approved for the fi rst cycle. cared for Amaya were heartbroken. decade in the Northern Rockies and in “We are highly oversubscribed and people will have to “This is a very diffi cult time for those January for the remainder of the Lower who knew and loved Amaya. She inspired 48 states, including the Great Lakes and submit proposals again for the next cycle,” he said. “That’s millions of guests to appreciate and learn Pacifi c Northwest. just how it works.” more about this amazing species,” the The removal of Endangered Species The telescope is to be the largest and most powerful of its statement said. Act protections had been in the works for kind in the world. The National Solar Observatory said the Amaya was the youngest of 10 whales years and was the right thing to do when Inouye telescope will be able to reveal features three times at the San Diego park and spent time with fi nalized in Trump’s last days, US Fish smaller than anything scientists are able to currently see on her mother Kalia and father Ulises, ac- and Wildlife Service Assistant Director for the Sun. cording to its website. Ecological Services Gary Frazer told AP. The Hawaii Supreme Court in 2016 affi rmed a permit for Described as one of the most playful of On Friday, attorneys for the administra- the solar telescope’s construction. the whales, Amaya “helped us gather and tion asked a federal judge in California to share critical information about calf de- reject a lawsuit from wildlife advocate s that The next year, more than 100 protesters tried to block a velopment for researchers studying wild seeks to restore protections, signaling the construction convoy heading to the telescope site, citing the populations,” the site said. conclusion of Biden’s promise on his fi rst sacredness of Haleakala’s summit. Maui police arrested six SeaWorld announced the end of its day in offi ce to review the Trump move. people. orca breeding program in March 2016, But wolf management policies in place Protests against another telescope planned for a different following years of pressure from animal at the state level have shifted dramatically mountain and island — the Thirty Meter Telescope at the rights protests and shifting public opinion since protections were lifted, and Frazer summit of Mauna Kea on the Big Island — have prevented about orcas being held in captivity. (AP) An ICU nurse cares for a COVID-19 patient at Oregon Health and Science Uni- suggested the federal government could construction crews from working on that project. ❑ ❑ ❑ versity in Portland, Ore, Aug 19. Nurses and medical staff say that one of the take steps to restore protections if popula- hardest parts of this whole experience for them, is caring for people suffering tion declines put wolves back on the path ‘End wolf protections’: US President and dying of a syndrome that is preventable with a vaccine. (AP) to extinction. (AP)