A Lego Telescope, Crumpled Graphene, And Other Amazing Images Of The Week
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panda colored elephants

Pandelephants

The Elephantstay, an elephant sanctuary in Thailand, painted its elephants to look like pandas. The makeup job was done in support of the “1600 Panda World Tour”, a worldwide exhibition of 1600 panda sculptures, currently in Thailand, whose aim is to raise awareness for the mere 1600 pandas left in the wild. According to China’s People’s Daily Online, this stunt triggered criticism among some groups who think elephants have their own threats and deserve individual recognition.
southern Texas night satellite

Southern Texas Nightlife

This arc of light (highlighted by pink dashes) across southern Texas, seen through nighttime satellite imagery, is the result of the Eagle Ford Shale Play, an area of active oil drilling. The light comes from drilling equipment, worker camps, and gas and oil infrastructures. It is wedged in between two cities, San Antonio and Austin. The image was captured this past February.
Legoscope

Legoscope

While you won’t see the European Extremely Large Telescope (ELT) in all its colossal glory until 2024, you could build your own miniature models out of Legos. The ELT Lego design has been out since 2014, but a design for its sibling, the Very Large Telescope (VLT) just came out. You can vote for both of them on Lego’s website and with enough votes, the company may come out with both–but not for cheap. The VLT will cost around 600 US dollars.
Patagonia From Space

Patagonia From Space

Scott Kelly may no longer be on the International Space Station, but we’re still getting great pictures from the floating laboratory. Astronaut Jeff Williams, who has been back on the station for about a week now, snapped this striking photo of lakes and glaciers in South America’s Patagonia.
Break The Ice

Break The Ice

The USS Hartford and USS Hampton, nuclear attack submarines, emerged from below frozen Arctic sea ice as part of a military exercise. In the photo above, sailors and civilians from the Arctic Submarine Lab help clear the ice from the Hampton’s hatch.
Crumpled Graphene

Crumpled Graphene

A team of researchers from Brown University figured out a way to make the super material graphene even more super. By crumpling the one-dimensional layer of carbon atoms, the material appears to be much more water repellant than its smooth version and has better electrochemical properties. The researchers used a polymer membrane that shrinks when heated up. If placed atop graphene, the graphene compresses as the material shrinks. This technique could pave the way for new hydrophobic materials, and better stretchable batteries for wearables.
Blowing In The Wind

Blowing In The Wind

This week General Electric showed off its 6-megawatt direct drive generator to be used in America’s first offshore wind farm that’s currently being built off the coast of Rhode Island. The 150-ton, 24-feet wide generator will hold a monstrous 500-foot wide rotor that will turn the beast. According to Gizmodo, GE says the farm is planned to be able to generate enough electricity to power 5,000 homes.
Claire Maldarelli
Claire Maldarelli

is the Science Editor at Popular Science. She has a particular interest in brain science, the microbiome, and human physiology. In addition to Popular Science, her work has appeared in The New York Times, Scientific American, and Scholastic’s Science World and Super Science magazines, among others. She has a bachelor’s degree in neurobiology from the University of California, Davis and a master’s in science journalism from New York University's Science, Health, and Environmental Reporting Program. Contact the author here.

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