Ozone Hole is The Smallest It’s Ever Been

NASA and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) have monitored the ozone hole since 1982, and are now reporting it shrunk to its smallest recorded size in late September. Currently measuring 3.9 million square miles, the hole decreasing in size is great news (especially for the Southern Hemisphere) as the ozone layer protects our planet from “harmful ultraviolet radiation that can cause skin cancer and …

Nikon’s Microscopic Photography Competition Winners

Formally titled the 2019 Small World Photomicrography Competition, Nikon’s Microscopic Photography Competition calls for entries as “a means to recognize and applaud the efforts of those involved with photography through the light microscope.” Thus, that means all of the images are shot under a microscope, using some variant of photomicrography. This year’s winning shot, by Teresa Zgoda and Teresa Kugler, depicts a turtle embryo in …

The US Air Force Leans on Biomimicry for New Body Armor

The US Air Force plans to research whether or not body armor can replicate the strength of an arapaima’s exterior. This Amazonian fish, native to places like Brazil, Peru, and Guyan, is capable of fending off deadly piranha with its scales. This natural self-defense system is courtesy of evolution over millions of years, and has made the fish’s body protective and incredibly flexible. Naturally, the …