In this artist's impression of Voyager 2's 1989 encounter with Neptune, the gas giant's Great Dark Spot is visible in the distance. Thought to be a hole in the giant planet's cloud cover, winds in that area have been clocked at 1,500 miles per hour, the fastest in the solar system (not the subject of this study). (Photo: NASA)
Storms on Uranus, Neptune Confined to Upper Atmosphere Applying newly developed analysis techniques to data obtained by NASA's Voyager 2 spacecraft in 1989, a team involving two UA planetary scientists discovered that weather phenomena on Uranus and Neptune are confined to the upper 680 miles of atmosphere instead of reaching deeper into the planets' interior as was previously thought.
Scheduled for launch in 2016, the OSIRIS-REx will travel to asteroid Bennu, scoop up a sample of pristine material leftover from the formation of the solar system, and return it to Earth in 2023.
UA-Led Asteroid Mission is a Go NASA has granted final approval of the OSIRIS-REx sample return mission led by the UA. The target asteroid, uniquely interesting scientifically, is one of the most potentially hazardous objects known - it has a one-in-2,000 chance of colliding with Earth in the late 22nd century. The asteroid could hold clues to the origin of the solar system.
One of many fresh impact craters spotted by the UA-led HiRISE camera, orbiting the Red Planet on board NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter since 2006. (Photo: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS/UA)
UA Mars Camera Reveals Hundreds of Impacts Each Year Taking before and after pictures of the Martian terrain, researchers with the UA-led HiRISE camera have identified nearly 250 fresh impact craters on the Red Planet. The results provide scientists with a better yardstick to estimate how frequently craters are blasted on Mars, allowing them to assess recently formed features with greater accuracy.
A scanning electron microscope image shows the tiny, 1-millimeter-long bladders used to catch small organisms by Utricularia gibba, the humped bladderwort plant (color added). The submerged growing plant is a voracious carnivore, with its bladders leveraging vacuum pressure to suck in tiny prey at great speed. (Photo: Enrique Ibarra-Laclette and Claudia Anahí Pérez-Torres)
Carnivorous Plant Throws Out ‘Junk’ DNA UA genomics experts have helped decipher the DNA of the carnivorous bladderwort. This genome is the smallest ever sequenced from a higher plant, and scientists say that nearly all of it - 97 percent - comprises genes that code for proteins, suggesting the majority of noncoding DNA may not be crucial for complex life.
Much more suited for arid environments than rubber trees, the guayule plant is a promising candidate for more sustainable, high-yield natural rubber production. (Photo: Jack Dykinga/USDA)
UA Receives $3M Grant for Sustainable Biorubber Production The UA's Dennis Ray will lead the effort of breeding guayule, a rubber-producing plant suited for arid environments, to achieve higher yields and reduced harvest cycle time. Tech Launch Arizona, a technology commercialization center at the UA, assisted with the UA partnership with Yulex Corporation, which is providing the grant.
In this artist's impression of Voyager 2's 1989 encounter with Neptune, the gas giant's Great Dark Spot is visible in the distance. Thought to be a hole in the giant planet's cloud cover, winds in that area have been clocked at 1,500 miles per hour, the fastest in the solar system (not the subject of this study). (Photo: NASA)
Scheduled for launch in 2016, the OSIRIS-REx will travel to asteroid Bennu, scoop up a sample of pristine material leftover from the formation of the solar system, and return it to Earth in 2023.
One of many fresh impact craters spotted by the UA-led HiRISE camera, orbiting the Red Planet on board NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter since 2006. (Photo: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS/UA)
A scanning electron microscope image shows the tiny, 1-millimeter-long bladders used to catch small organisms by Utricularia gibba, the humped bladderwort plant (color added). The submerged growing plant is a voracious carnivore, with its bladders leveraging vacuum pressure to suck in tiny prey at great speed. (Photo: Enrique Ibarra-Laclette and Claudia Anahí Pérez-Torres)
Much more suited for arid environments than rubber trees, the guayule plant is a promising candidate for more sustainable, high-yield natural rubber production. (Photo: Jack Dykinga/USDA)

UA Tech Park Gains World-Class Solar Panels

  • Arizona Daily Star
  • May 3, 2011
Tucson has added to its growing solar-energy credentials with the dedication of one of the world's most efficient photovoltaic systems at the UA Science and Technology Park. The 2-megawatt photovoltaic system, designed and built by California-based Amonix Inc., is the largest of its kind in the nation.

Engineering Design Day 2011 to Showcase UA Innovations

  • UANews
  • May 2, 2011
More than 50 innovative design projects will be displayed at this year's Engineering Design Day 2011 on May 3 at the UA Student Union Memorial Center. The projects have the potential to improve the environment, maximize energy usage, solve medical challenges and much more.

Fire Potential Above Normal for Southern Arizona

  • UANews
  • April 29, 2011
Most of Southern Arizona and New Mexico are forecast to have above-normal significant fire potential now through mid-July, according to a newly released report.

New UA Center to Help Wild Cats Worldwide

  • UANews
  • April 28, 2011
Dedicated to studying and protecting the world's wild cats, the UA Wild Cat Research and Conservation Center is the latest addition to the UA's School of Natural Resources and the Environment.

'Tweezers' Stretch UA Gene Studies

  • Arizona Daily Star
  • April 28, 2011
Cells control the way genetic information plays out in several ways, but UA researchers have found their own way to manipulate genes: by stretching DNA. Their findings may help show how cells function at a basic level.

UA to Develop Investigative Screening Tools via Partnership

  • UANews
  • April 28, 2011
A UA-USIS team will develop new investigative tools to conduct comprehensive interviews and inquiries of current and prospective employees, including those of U.S. Customs and Border Protection and other federal agencies, with an eye toward commercialization.

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