🛰️ AT&T challenges SpaceX’s space-based broadband dominance, bisons could be the newest climate warriors, JWST spots oldest and most distant black hole collision ever

AT&T and AST SpaceMobile have announced a commercial partnership to establish the first space-based broadband network for mobile phones in the US.

Several big companies, including Elon Musk’s SpaceX, are in the race to provide this space-based service. Reportedly, Musk signed a similar contract with T-Mobile US Inc. a few years back.

T-Mobile signed the deal to use its Starlink service. The report adds that the cell provider stated that its calling-via-satellite service would likely debut this year. For more on this development, check out today’s Must-Read.

🔥Today’s job of the day as featured on jobs.interestingengineering.com:

> Software Engineer (Expert)
> Engineer III - Collaboration & Messaging

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MUST READ

🛰️ AT&T challenges SpaceX’s space-based broadband dominance with new deal

The commercial agreement between AT&T and AST SpaceMobile is in effect until 2030. It succeeds a previous partnership under a Memorandum of Understanding in 2018.

“Space-based direct-to-mobile technology is designed to provide customers connectivity by complementing and integrating with our existing mobile network,” said Jeff McElfresh, Chief Operating Officer of AT&T.

This technology will offer expansive connectivity in diverse locations across the United States, including national parks, rural highways, and other remote areas that are typically difficult to access.

🦬 170 bison could tackle CO2 emitted by 2 million cars, says study

Over 170 European bison, once extinct in Romania’s Tarcu mountains for over two centuries, now roam freely, reshaping ecosystems and potentially altering the course of climate change.

Recent research suggests that these amazing animals could be super helpful in reducing carbon pollution, maybe even as much as modern technology can.

The study reveals that the bison’s grazing activities across nearly 50 square kilometers of grasslands within the Tarcu mountains could potentially capture an additional 2 million tonnes of carbon annually. This is equivalent to the emissions from about 1.88 million regular American cars running on petrol.

🔭 Webb Space Telescope spots most distant, oldest black hole collision ever

Researchers have made a surprising find using the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST). They’ve detected the most distant black hole merger ever seen.

This finding, happening when the universe was only 740 million years old, marks the farthest detection ever of black hole merging. It’s also the earliest instance of such a phenomenon observed in space.

The discovery of such huge black holes so soon after the Big Bang means they grew very quickly.

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HOT TOPICS OF THE DAY

SCIENCE

> Researchers at Binghamton University in New York have taken inspiration from spiders to develop what they believe could be the world’s most advanced microphone and sound system. (More)

> Deep-sea mining has led to the forming of “dust clouds” at the bottom of the ocean, severely impacting the clarity of the ocean and deep-sea life. (More)

> AlphaFold2, an artificial intelligence system that predicts protein structures, has made it possible for scientists to identify and conjure an almost infinite number of drug candidates for the treatment of neuropsychiatric disorders. (More)

ENERGY

> One of the major natural gas supplying firms in China has announced it will build a facility to turn kitchen food waste into green methanol. According to Shi Pingyang, vice president of Shenergy, the facility, which could produce 70,000 to 100,000 tons of methanol, will be ready by the end of 2025. (More)

> A statement released by the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) claims that the US has officially exceeded five million solar installations, hailing it as an achievement in the nation’s clean energy transition. (More)

> After spinning for under two years, a wind farm can offset the carbon emissions generated across its entire 30-year lifespan, when compared to thermal power plants, a study reveals. (More)

INNOVATION

> Australia-based HEO Robotics captured an incredible image of the International Space Station (ISS) with one of its satellites. The ISS and the satellite were moving at 3.7 miles (6 km) a second relative to each other. They came within 43 miles (69.06 km) of each other. (More)

> Researchers at the RMIT University in Australia have successfully doubled the amount of coal fly ash used in low-carbon concrete to 80 percent, reducing the cement requirement by half. (More)

> Researchers from the University of Houston and Rice University report a new approach to predict the realization of band convergence in a series of materials. (More)

VIDEO

> Researchers at Google claim its Med-Gemini AI, trained in and aimed directly at the medical profession, already outperforms OpenAI’s GPT-4 in clinical understanding and nuance, even though it’s still in its research phase. (More)

> A startup has launched a plan to stabilize future energy grids by creating giant air batteries on the sea floor. (More)

> Using the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), astronomers have found the most distant merger between supermassive black holes ever detected. (More)

IE QUIZ: THE RESULTS

In yesterday’s quiz, we asked, Solve the problem?

The answer is: First row: (21/3)+3=10 , Second row: (32/8)+8=12, Third row: (45/5)+5=14

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FROM THE WEB

> The last piece of privately owned land in the strategic Svalbard archipelago in the Arctic is up for grabs, a property likely to entice China

> A new study has found that individual sea otters that use tools—most of whom are female—are able to eat larger prey and reduce tooth damage when their preferred prey becomes depleted

> A devastating fire 2,200 years ago preserved a moment of life and war in Iron Age Spain, down to a single gold earring

> Using the Lulin One-meter Telescope (LOT), astronomers have observed a newly detected ultra-faint dwarf galaxy known as Virgo III

> A recent study examines the real sustainability of alternative materials which are perceived as more sustainable than plastics

> A new sensor is giving researchers the best look yet at ATP levels inside living cells, enabling scientists to study in greater detail how fluctuations in this cellular currency affect the cell and contribute to disease