​Unprecedented phenomenon caught on Enceladus ● What NASA says about the possibility of extraterrestrial intelligence ● Decoding the DNA of a woman who does not feel pain, a medical milestone

An unprecedented phenomenon recorded on Enceladus

As early as 20 years ago, since the Cassini spacecraft took the first “big-picture” pictures of Saturn’s moon Enceladus, humanity knew that geysers existed, spewing water in the form of steam and ice. But never, until now, a geyser of such magnitude has been surprised.

More precisely, in the images obtained by the James Webb telescope, it was possible to observe a geyser that ejected water to a height of 10,000 kilometers. And if that seems small to you, compare it to the diameter of the Moon, which is only 504.2 kilometers. That is, 20 times the diameter of Enceladus.

This information not only raises many questions about the forces at work on and within the moon in question, but also explains certain aspects. In 2011, for example, researchers from the Herschel Observatory using infrared images observed that there is a real ring (torus) of water vapor, ice, as well as silicates, carbon dioxide and ammonia around the mentioned moon. All signs of the possible existence of microbial life.

New images from the James Webb Telescope not only explain the presence of this torus, but also explain the presence of some ice in Saturn’s rings. In fact, according to the authors of a study published in the journal Nature Astronomy, about 70% of the water ejected into space by Enceladus ends up in Saturn’s rings, and only 30% remains around the moon.

According to the authors, the images are too blurry to identify molecular life forms, but they can detect traces of hydrogen peroxide, particles that could also indicate the existence of life. Given all this evidence, Enceladus is currently a leading candidate for supporting extraterrestrial life, even if only on a microbial level.

What NASA says about the possibility of extraterrestrial intelligence

As we announced yesterday, NASA held a public debate, accessible to anyone via the NASA TV online channel, during which a team of 16 specialists from various fields of science expressed their opinion on the so-called UAP (Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena) – term. which replaces the somewhat more limited UFO (UFO).

Literally yesterday, I told you not to expect unknown revelations, which was confirmed during the mentioned event. In particular, the team, which was created last June after analyzing hundreds of unexplained phenomena observed in outer space, in the atmosphere or in the oceanic environment, says that the data is still not enough to express an opinion in favor of the existence of an extraterrestrial intelligence.

At the moment, we can say that only a small part of these phenomena do not yet have a plausible explanation, that is, natural causes, and this is against the background of a lack of data. Another obstacle could be the fact that the sharper images are classified for security reasons and are only available to the Pentagon, which also created a commission last year to analyze such cases.

And last but not least: experts present at the conference stated that some of them were harassed by people from the public environment, given the great interest in such topics, as well as due to conspiracy theories. A fact that only made their work more difficult.

As I said, there was no need to entertain any illusions that NASA specialists were coming with some alien on TV. Instead, a final report with all the data collected and explained by experts will be released in the coming weeks.

DNA decoding of a pain-free woman, a milestone in medicine

75-year-old Scotsman Jo Cameron is a special character who has interested doctors and geneticists all over the world. why Because, as I said in the title, a woman does not feel pain.

I didn’t even feel it during childbirth. Also, if her hand had caught fire, she wouldn’t have known it until she smelled it, which happened in 2019, as she herself reported. Obviously, he is not the only one who knows about such anomalies, but the exact decoding of the genome of such people, Joe Cameron, can lead to a real revolution in medicine and help hundreds of thousands of patients suffering from excruciating pain.

A team of London researchers, whose research has already been published in the journal Brain, claims that the anomaly presented by Joe Cameron comes from a gene mutation called FAAH-OUT. The gene, which until now, according to specialists, did not play a big role.

Well, look, there is, and another very important one is that even this evolution does not create random genes. Recent evidence suggests that FAAH-OUT plays a key role in modulating another gene, FAAH, also called the “forgetfulness” or “happiness” gene. why Because it’s purpose is to reduce anxiety (hence the dreaminess of some).

In the case of a mutation like the one discussed by Joe Cameron, the sensation of pain is completely destroyed. In addition, it also affects lipids that affect the wound healing process, or proteins in the brain that determine mood.

Based on all these observations, doctors hope to have a treatment that will relieve pain and speed up the recovery process in the rest of the patients. However, all research is still in its infancy. So it will be some time before we know whether we have a certain result or not.

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