The Corona, the outer edge of the sun's atmosphere, is hundreds of times hotter than the sun's surface.

Why?

NASA is determined to find out, with its new Solar Probe +, designed to withstand the intense heat and million mile an hour solar wind ...

What will it find and will it survive?

We'll have to wait until 2021 to find out ... in the mean time, check out the article for more.

Filed under: solar probe +, sun, exploration, and corona

To fund his search for the legendary Titanic, Bob Ballard asked the US Navy for money. They said no ... unless you help us out by looking for two lost submarines.

And that's exactly what he did, finding debris from the USS Scorpion and USS Thresher, two subs that sunk with all hands during the 1960s. He discovered that contrary to the Navy's fears, there was minimal environmental damage from radiation from the two ship's reactors. He also determined that the Scorpion was sunk by one of its own torpedos and not Soviet activity as suggested.

Then, using the same techniques he perfected finding the subs, he was able to locate the Titanic.

Filed under: titanic, submarines, ships, and exploration

What's it like to prospect for oil, where a balmy day is -11degF, and your only companions are the frozen wastelands?

This article tells us about the current situation in Alaska: Dwindling reserves and people searching for crumbs of oil in the vast inhospitable place.

ANWR, unexplored thanks to Acts of Congress, beckons ... I would love to see it explored and more oil found. After all, the Alaskans want it and shouldn't they control their own destiny?

Filed under: alaska, oil, and exploration