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Using data from NASA's Kepler mission, astronomers have estimated there could be as many as six billion Earth-like planets in Milky Way. An astronomer said Milky Way has as many as 400 billion stars, with 7% of them being G-type (Sun-like). Michelle Kunimoto, The University of British Columbia astronomer, placed an upper limit of 0.18 Earth-like planets per G-type star.  Continue... 

Researchers said they have discovered the earliest known evidence of bow-and-arrow usage by prehistoric humans outside of Africa, in a Sri Lankan cave. They said the discovered fragments of arrowheads, made from bones, were likely used to hunt difficult-to-catch rainforest prey like squirrels, about 48,000 years ago. The oldest known evidence for bone-and- arrow use was unearthed in South Africa. continue...

Scientists have detected vast structures made of "unusually dense, hot" material occupying the boundary between Earth's molten core and the solid mantle layer above it. They analysed echoes of seismic waves travelling beneath the Pacific Ocean basin. It revealed an unknown structure beneath the Marquesas Islands and showed the structure beneath the Hawaiian Islands is larger than previously known. continue...

Researchers have suggested some species of ancient crocodiles walked on their two hind legs like dinosaurs and measured over three metres in length. Their fossilised footprints found were initially thought to be made by pterosaurs. They dated between 110-120 million years ago and measured around 24 centimetres, suggesting the track-makers had legs about same height as human adult legs. For more:-  factrend@info

A study led by the University of Plymouth suggests that coral reefs could naturally adapt to survive the impact of rising sea levels. With the rising waves, islands made of gravel material could evolve with sediment from the beach face being transferred to the island's surface, study concluded. This means island's crest will rise as sea-level rises. continue...

Paleontologists claim to have discovered fossilised remains of a rare species of frog that lived two million years ago in Argentina. The remains consisted of a "very small humerus (arm bone) of a tiny amphibian, distinct from horned and tree frogs", a researcher said. The fossil was found 144 feet underground during the digging of a well in Argentina. For more:-  factrend@info

New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has said she "did a little dance" when she heard the country was COVID-19 free. Ardern announced that her government would abandon all restrictions except border controls from midnight tonight, adding, "There's no denying this is a milestone." She also praised New Zealanders for having "united in unprecedented ways to crush the virus". For more:-  factrend@info

Palaeontologists claim to have found fossils of a new dinosaur species, that lived 90 million years ago, in Patagonia, Argentina. The fossil remains are less than a metre and a half long and belong to a new species of carnivorous Paraves theropod that has been named Overoraptor chimentoi. The species had upper limbs similar to modern birds, a researcher said. For more :-  factrend@info

SpaceX launched second Falcon 9 rocket in the span of just four days on Wednesday at 9:25 PM EDT (6:55 AM IST, Thursday) carrying 60 more satellites for Starlink constellation. This brings the total Starlink broadband internet satellites currently in operation on orbit to 480. SpaceX also successfully landed first stage of reusable Falcon 9 rocket used for the launch. For more :-  factrend@info

Scientists claim to have discovered the last meal of an over 110-million-year fossilised armoured dinosaur by observing the contents of its well-preserved stomach. They said its last meal was mostly fern leaves, 88% chewed leaf material and 7% stems and twigs. Scientists said thin sections of stomach contents had "beautifully preserved and concentrated plant material". For more:-  factrend@info

Colorado State University scientists claim to have identified an atmospheric region "unchanged by human-related activities" in the first study to measure bioaerosol composition of Southern Ocean south of 40 degrees south latitude. They found the boundary layer air free from aerosols produced by human activities or transported from distant lands. Bacteria in the air were used for a diagnosis. For more:-  factrend@info

China's Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical Telescope (FAST) will start looking for signals of alien life in September, said Chief scientist Zhang Tongjie. It officially went live for general science in January. FAST is the world's largest single-aperture radio telescope and consists of 4,450 individual panels that scan the sky. It's cradled in a natural depression the size of 30 soccer fields. For more:- factrend@info

The fossil of an ichthyosaur was discovered in Nevada by German palaeontologist Martin Sander, with evidence the extinct marine reptile was pregnant when it died. Reconstructions found the ichthyosaur to be 12-foot long, while smaller vertebrae in her trunk region indicated that it had at least three fetuses. The 246- million-year-old ichthyosaur is the second-oldest pregnant specimen ever found. For more:-  factrend@info

NASA astronomers have captured a black hole hurling hot material into space at 80% the speed of light. The strong gravity of the black hole, which has eight times the Sun's mass, pulls material away from its companion star into a disk around itself. Some of this is blasted away from the black hole in pair of powerful beams. For more :-  factrend@info