Body of Evidence

 

Photograph courtesy P.T. Nicholson

Mummified dogs such as this aren't the only animals filling the Dog Catacombs.

"There are also some jackals, foxes, and, ichneumon [Egyptian mongooses]," said Cardiff's University's Nicholson. "But the overwhelming majority of animals here are dogs, so we believe this place was intended just for the cult of Anubis."

Elsewhere in Saqqara's so-called Sacred Animal Necropolis, there were many other cults—and many other mummified animals, including baboons, cows, bulls, and so on, said Nicholson, whose work was partly funded by the National Geographic Society's Committee for Research and Exploration. (The Society owns National Geographic News.)

(See pictures: Egypt’s Animal Mummies.)

Published April 6, 2011

DIRECCION: http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2011/04/pictures/110406-egypt-puppy-mummies-animals-dogs-science-catacomb-mummifie

Chasing Arcturus: Why Do You Twinkle, Little Star?

The star Arcturus, seen through a telescope. Picture copyright Robert J. Vanderbei

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Right now stargazers have the perfect chance to find an unusual speeding star by remembering this phrase: Follow the arc to Arcturus.

The key is the Big Dipper, a familiar grouping of stars that is currently in the northeastern sky in mid-evening.

If you draw an imaginary line from the Dipper’s handle, your eye should settle on a bright, orange star—congratulations, you found Arcturus!

This star, some 37 light-years from Earth, is noteworthy because—unlike most of its stellar kin—it is cutting perpendicularly across the relatively flat disk of the Milky Way. That means, millions of years from now, the star will have moved out of Earth’s line of sight.

Interested in observing Arcturus this spring? Consider the following:

by Robert J. Vanderbei

DIRECCION: http://newswatch.nationalgeographic.com/2011/

Pictures: Millions of Puppy Mummies in Egypt Labyrinth

Modern Mayfly

 Modern Mayfly

Photograph by Wildlife GmbH/Alamy

A male mayfly in the Ecdyonurus genus clings to a stem in an undated picture.

"If you look at a modern photograph of a mayfly, it would be the closest to the fossil one," Knecht told National Geographic News by email this week.

Knecht noted that mayflies usually sit with most of their abdomens touching the ground. "It is this behavior that has helped to create such an anatomically informative and complete impression," he said.

(Read more about the brief, lusty life of the mayfly in National Geographic magazine.)

Published April 6, 2011

DIRECCION: -science-fossils-insects-bugs-mayflies-mayfly-flying

Radiation in Japan Seas: Risk of Animal Death, Mutation?

Aboard a boat pulling a barge with water for Japan's overheating Fukushima nuclear plant ThursdayNational Geographic News

Published April 1, 2011

If radioactive material from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant—disabled by the March11 Japan earthquake and tsunami—continues to enter the ocean, marine life could be threatened, experts say.

(See related photos: "Japan Tsunami: 20 Unforgettable Pictures.")

In the past week, seawater samples taken near the nuclear power plant, on Japan's eastern coast, have shown elevated levels of radioactive isotopes, including cesium 137 and iodine 131, according to the New York Times. (See "Japan Tries to Avert Nuclear Disaster.")

All life on Earth and in the oceans lives with exposure to natural levels of ionizing radiation—high-frequency radiation with enough energy to change DNA. Most such genetic damage heals, but the addition of human-made radiation can make it harder for the body to repair broken genes.

Radiation concentrations in the Japanese seawater samples have fluctuated in past days, but on Wednesday the amount of iodine spiked to 3,355 times the legal limit for seawater, Japanese nuclear safety officials told the Associated Press