Exact date Scots could spot Pluto as dwarf planet reaches peak brightness
SPACE OUT Exact date Scots could spot Pluto as dwarf planet reaches peak brightness
Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window)
Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
SCOTS may be able to catch a glimpse of Pluto this week as it reaches peak brightness.
The dwarf planet is set to be at its "best and brightest moment of the year", according to National Geographic.
Sign up for Scottish Sun
newsletter
Sign up
3
Pluto is set to be at its "best and brightest moment of the year"
Credit: Getty
3
Stargazers will need a telescope if they want to catch a glimpse
Credit: Alamy
Pluto will be reach opposition - which means a planet is opposite the sun as viewed from Earth.
This means that the object rises as the sun sets and remains visible all night.
Pluto is in the same solar system as the Earth, but much further out, beyond the farthest planet from the sun, Neptune.
It is around 3.7 billion miles from the sun, and one of many minor planets beyond Neptune's orbit, called trans-Neptunian objects.
Pluto is also in the Kuiper belt, a collection of hundreds of thousands of icy minor planets and asteroids orbiting the sun out beyond Neptune.
On Friday, July 25, the dwarf planet will reach opposition which makes it the ideal time to catch a glimpse.
It remains near peak brightness for several days before and after opposition.
However, stargazers have been warned that, even at its brightest, Pluto is a "barely-there speck" even with a telescope.
The sky must also be extremely dark to see Pluto.
Light pollution, whether from street lights or the moon, will easily wash it out.
Stunned scientists uncover super-Earth planet that could finally reveal existence of aliens
Make sure you take a look at a star chart to determine the planet's location in the sky.
It will look just like one of the faint stars.
Pluto's status as a planet is one of the most controversial issues in the world of astronomy.
It's not currently classed as a planet. It is a minor, or dwarf, planet.
Pluto used to be the ninth planet in our solar system until the International Astronomical Union created a new system for classifying space objects in 2006.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Scottish Sun
3 hours ago
- Scottish Sun
Elon Musk's Neuralink brain chip lets paralysed woman write her name after 20 YEARS ‘just by thinking'
Once inserted in the participants brain, the chip allows users to control digital interfaces through brain signals alone BRAIN TRAINING Elon Musk's Neuralink brain chip lets paralysed woman write her name after 20 YEARS 'just by thinking' Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) A PARALYSED woman has written her name for the first time in 20 years using only her mind. Audrey Crews is one of the participants in Elon Musk's Neuralink trial, having had a computer chip installed in her brain. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 4 The telepathic powers were granted to Crews as part of the company's PRIME study, which aims to test BCI chips in human subjects Credit: X / @NeuraNova9 4 Once inserted in the participants' brain, the chip allows users to control digital interfaces through brain signals alone Credit: Getty The chip, or brain-computer interface (BCI) as Neuralink calls it, connects Crews' brain to a computer and allows her to control the mouse on the screen. Crews lost movement at age 16, and is the first woman to receive the implant. Sharing the moment on X (formerly Twitter), Crews posted: 'I tried writing my name for the first time in 20 years. I'm working on it. Lol #Neuralink.' In shaky writing on her laptop screen is the word 'Audrey'. Musk, co-founder of Neuralink, replied to the post, saying: "She is controlling her computer just by thinking. Most people don't realise it is possible." It's hard for most people to imagine what it would be like writing - or even gaming - using only your mind. But Crews described it as "like writing your name in your head". The telepathic powers were granted to Crews as part of the company's PRIME study, which aims to test BCI chips in human subjects. Once inserted in the participants' brain, the chip allows users to control digital interfaces through brain signals alone. In a follow-up post, Crews explained: 'It was brain surgery, they drilled a hole in my skull and placed 128 threads into my motor cortex. 'The chip is about the size of a quarter.' While Musk hopes the technology will one day be used to help quadriplegics walk again, the company is still far away from this end result. What is Neuralink? Here's what you need to know... Neuralink is a project that aims to embed computer chips in people's brains The idea is to give humans hyper-intelligence by merging them with artificial intelligence Tiny threads thinner than a human hair would pump information into your noggin It would work a bit like an internet cable, transmitting data in and out at high speeds As well as making us smarter, the project promises to merge us with computers and phones That means you could control your gizmos with your brain Neuralink is bankrolled by billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk He's previously said the tech could save us from a machine uprising in future The device does not yet restore physical mobility. 'I also want to clarify this implant will not allow me to walk again or regain movement," said Crews. "It's strictly for telepathy only.' Crews is one of seven paralysed patients undergoing the trial. 4 How Neuralink works
Scottish Sun
4 hours ago
- Scottish Sun
‘Game-changing' Alzheimer's drug could STOP disease in its tracks – as the ‘most powerful weapon' against condition yet
Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) A NEW "game-changing" drug could stop the progression of Alzheimer's disease, early trials suggest. Scientists say the treatment - called trontinemab - could be the most powerful weapon yet against dementia, as they look into giving the drug to people with no symptoms in the hopes of preventing disease. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 1 Trontinemab is formulated to bypass the blood-brain barrier to target plaques clogging up brain cells Credit: Getty Phase two trial results for trontinemab were presented at he Alzheimer's Association International Conference in Toronto. Researchers said the drug seemed to clear plaques - the abnormal build-up of proteins around brain cells that cause damage and disrupt function - quicker than other drugs licensed to treat Alzheimer's. Trontinemab cleared out plaques and eliminated visible signs of the the disease within 28 weeks for nine out of 10 patients. Drug-maker Roche is now conducting another trial to see if plaque clearance also improves patients' memory. The 18-month study includes 1,600 people, the Telegraph reported. Separate research will examine whether the drug could be given to people without any signs of dementia, just as statins are used to ward off heart disease. Experts hope the drug could stop patients from developing dementia symptoms at all, if it is given early enough. They described the findings so far as 'very promising', suggesting that the drug was much more powerful than existing ones while leading to fewer side effects - as it was able to clear plaques better within seven months that other drugs can in 18 months. Roche's chief medical officer Levi Garraway said: 'Alzheimer's disease represents one of the greatest challenges in healthcare today and tackling it requires early detection and effective therapeutics. 'Trontinemab is designed to target a key driver of Alzheimer's disease biology more effectively in the brain. Common painkiller used for back pain ups risk of dementia by 29%, scientists warn "Combining new treatment avenues with advanced diagnostics may enable earlier and potentially more effective intervention. "With plans for phase three trials in both early symptomatic and pre-clinical Alzheimer's disease, we are advancing science with the goal of delaying - and ultimately preventing - progression of this devastating condition.' Prof Sir John Hardy, the chairman of molecular biology of neurological disease at University College London's Institute of Neurology told the Telegraph trontinemab could be 'game-changing'. The scientist, who was the first to identify the role of amyloid plaques in Alzeheimer's, said: 'This is absolutely great news. "It sucks the plaque out of the brain really quickly, much faster than we have seen with lecanemab or donanemab.' Both are Alzheimer's drugs approved for used in the UK, which target amyloid proteins in the brain to slow disease progression. However, neither treatment is offered on the NHS, as the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (Nice) deemed them too expensive - in large part because patients need frequent scans to monitor for brain swelling and bleeds. Prof Hardy added: 'There is no doubt [trontinemab] could be game-changing. "We hope that if we can use these drugs to people early, we can halt the progression of disease, even before people have symptoms. "Now we need to see the size of the clinical effect. 'These results show it is much faster and safer than previous drugs, which means less monitoring. "That brings down the cost significantly, it means fewer MRI scans, so that would surely mean it would get Nice approval.' Early signs of dementia It's not unusual for your memory to lapse a bit as you get older. But dementia is different from 'just getting old' as it will cause noticeable - rather than gradual - changes to mental abilities and make managing everyday tasks and activities increasingly difficult. The symptoms of dementia may be small to start with, but get worse over time. Below are some examples of possible signs. Memory loss Memory loss is a key sign of dementia. This can include: Forgetting something you were only recently told. You may ask for the same information repeatedly – for example, 'Are the doors locked?' Putting objects in unusual places – for example, putting your house keys in the refrigerator. Being unable to learn new tasks, like how to use a new washing machine. Planning and decision making issues People with dementia can have difficulty with planning and decision making. This can include: Getting very confused when planning or thinking things through. Struggling to stay focused on a single task. Not making informed, careful decisions when dealing with money or looking at risks. Finding it hard to manage regular payments, budgets or monthly bills. Problems with language and understanding In people with dementia, this can manifest as: Having frequent problems finding the right word or regularly referring to objects as 'that thing'. Finding it hard to take part in conversations. Regularly being unable to follow what someone is saying even without distractions. Losing sense of time and place Dementia can cause problems with orientation, including: Losing track of the date, season or the passage of time. Getting lost in a place that is familiar or that should be easy to find your way around – for example, a supermarket. Regularly being unable to follow what someone is saying even without distractions. Problems with vision and perception This can mean having problems making sense of what you see. For example, having difficulty judging distances on stairs, or mistaking reflections or patterns for other objects. Mood and behavioural changes Finally, dementia can also make people act differently or shift their mood. This can mean: Becoming withdrawn and losing interest in work, friends or hobbies. Feeling unusually sad, anxious, frightened or low in confidence. Getting easily upset at home, at work, with friends or in places that usually feel comfortable or familiar. Source: Alzheimer's Society Trials for lecanemab and donanemab showed the drugs helped clear toxic clumps out of the brain and slow nerve damage caused by Alzheimer's by 27 per cent and 35 per cent respectively, over the course of 18 months. But the treatments did present a risk of brain swelling and brain bleeds, meaning patients needed intense monitoring. Trontinemab appears to be safer and cause fewer side effects, with less than five per cent of patients showing abnormal results on their brain scans. All of these cases were quickly resolved, researchers said. The drug - administered by infusion into the bloodstream - also doesn't need to be given a frequently. Upcoming trials will examine the impact of giving the drug to patients once a month for six months, then every three months. Trontinemab has been designed to efficiently bypass the blood-brain barrier, a protective layer of cells that stops harmful substances in the blood stream from attacking the brain and spinal cord. This barrier can make it hard for many drugs to reach the brain. Prof Jonathan Schott, the chief medical officer at Alzheimer's Research UK, told the Telegraph: 'We urgently need a range of treatments for Alzheimer's that are effective and safe for the people affected by this devastating disease. 'Evidence presented at the Alzheimer's Association conference in Toronto on trontinemab is very promising, showing that the drug can effectively and rapidly clear amyloid from the brain, seemingly with very few side effects. 'We now need to see whether these early stage results carry through to later stage clinical trials, which are planned to start later this year, including in the UK. "These trials will show whether the drug is not only safe, but impacts on memory, thinking and quality of life.' He said it was 'exciting' that the drug would now be tested in some people without symptoms under the phase three trials.
Scottish Sun
15 hours ago
- Scottish Sun
Zapping the brain could improve fitness without having to do any exercise
The findings also indicate out-of-shape people could work up to regular activity with the gadget's help HEART FIX Zapping the brain could improve fitness without having to do any exercise Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) ZAPPING the brain could improve fitness without people having to lift a finger, research suggests. Electrical stimulation for just 30 minutes a day for a week was found to boost heart and lung performance in tests. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up In the trial on 28 people, a device on the ear was used to stimulate the vagus nerve. It helps to control bodily processes such as the heartbeat, breathing and digestion. After a week, participants saw increases in their oxygen uptake. It also boosted the maximum breathing rate by an average of four breaths per minute, and maximum heart rate by four beats per minute during exercise. Blood tests also suggested lower levels of harmful inflammation. The findings also indicate out-of-shape people could work up to regular activity with the gadget's help. Study author Prof Gareth Ackland of Queen Mary University said: 'Increased vagus nerve activity can improve fitness and reduce inflammation.' The trial in London was funded by the British Heart Foundation. Its chief scientific and medical officer Prof Bryan Williams added: 'This may one day be used to improve well-being for people with heart failure.' GP-approved tips to really lose weight safely - and keep it off 1 Zapping the brain could improve fitness without having to do any exercise Unlock even more award-winning articles as The Sun launches brand new membership programme - Sun Club.
