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The 7 greatest scienti c breakthroughs of 2016

Published time: 1 Jan, 2017 05:44

The SXS Project / Reuters

From the discovery of an Earth-like planet to the unraveling of one of the great
mysteries of physics, 2016 has been a blockbuster year for scienti c
breakthroughs.

Gravitational waves
Perhaps the biggest scienti c feat of 2016 was the detection of gravitational waves
in the fabric of space-time, from a pair of colliding black holes. The development
added more weight to Albert Einsteins theory of relativity.
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added more weight to Albert Einsteins theory of relativity.
The researchers backed up their ndings by repeating the feat a few months later.
The discovery was named Physics World Breakthrough of the Year and is hotly
tipped to earn a Nobel Prize.
READ MORE: New era of astronomy: Gravitational waves detected for 2nd
time, backing up theory of relativity
The possible existence of the waves had been one of the biggest mysteries of
physics over the past century and was predicted by Einstein in 1916. Their rst
detection was announced in February 2016.

Ripples in Spacetime Pond

In the collisions studied, the two black holes had many times the mass of the sun
and emitted the waves as they spiraled into one another and eventually collided. In
the moment of collision, the black holes reportedly released 50 times more energy
than all the stars from all the galaxies in the universe were releasing combined.
Earth-like planet Proxima b
In August, years of scienti c research culminated in the con rmation of the
existence of a potentially habitable planet orbiting the star closest to our sun.
Named Proxima b, the planet lies in the habitable zone of the star Proxima
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Named Proxima b, the planet lies in the habitable zone of the star Proxima
Centauri, a mere 4.2 light years away from Earth. It could potentially sustain life
even future human habitation.
READ MORE:Home from home: Scientists may have discovered an Earth-
like planet with water
However, dont pack your bags just yet: with current technology, it would take
around 137,000 years to reach the planet.

USA: NASA discover new Earth-like planet!

Researchers found that Proxima b, which is 1.3 times the size of Earth, could hold
water as it is far enough away from its star for liquid to not be gaseous, but not too
distant for it to be frozen. It was also found that the planet may be covered in
oceans.
The discovery lays the groundwork for further exploration and studies to determine
the planets habitability.
First of its kind dinosaur discovered
The tail of a 99-million-year-old dinosaur, complete with feathers, bones and soft
tissue, was found preserved in amber in Myanmar in December.
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The extraordinary nding is made even more remarkable by the fact that it was
discovered by chance, in a market.
READ MORE: 1st of its kind: 99 million-year-old feathered dinosaur tail
discovered in Myanmar
Researchers say that the tail belonged to a young coelurosaur they nicknamed
Eva, whose feathery tail became stuck in tree resin around 99 million years ago,
when the dinosaur was about the size of a sparrow. Had the coelurosaur reached
adulthood, it would have grown to be slightly smaller than an ostrich.

2016 Elsevier Ltd. / cell.com

Its the rst time that feathers and skeletal material from a dinosaur have been
found in amber.
Paleontologist Ryan McKellar said the nding is a spectacular little glimpse that
provides scientists with a pathway that gets us to modern feathers a particularly
useful development as theories on how feathers evolved have long been debated
among evolutionary scientists.
Four new elements named on Periodic Table
Four brand new elements were given names on the Periodic Table (yes, your
science textbook is now out of date).
Russian, American and Japanese scientists were behind the new additions, called
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Nihonium, Moscovium, Tennessine and Oganesson.

READ MORE: 4 brand new elements discovered by Russian, Japanese & US
researchers
They are the 113th, 115th, 117th and 118th elements on the table, lling out the
seventh row. These were the rst additions to the table since 2011, when two
elements were added.
The new elements, which are all synthetic, were discovered by smashing very light
nuclei into each other and tracking the elements left behind in the aftermath.
Scientists rst synthesized the new elements between 2002 and 2010 and they
were added to the table at the very end of 2015. Their new names werent
approved until the late November.
Juno spacecraft reached Jupiter
NASAs Juno spacecraft made record-breaking close contact with Jupiter this year.
In July, the spacecraft came within 2,600 miles (4,200km) of the largest planet in
the solar system, cruising by at a speed of 130,000 miles per hour (208,000kph).
READ MORE: NASAs Juno spacecraft makes rst close yby of Jupiter
Juno, launched in 2011, is the rst man-made object to orbit the giant planet since
the end of the Galileo mission in 2003.

Today is the day of my #Jupiter closest approach! Ill skim past the planet at
a mere 2,600 miles above the clouds. pic.twitter.com/QJ8u5aJWAF
NASA's Juno Mission (@NASAJuno) August 27, 2016

The solar-powered craft is designed to study Jupiters structure and intense

magnetic eld.
Scientists hope to shed light on how much water is in the planet's atmosphere.

Juno Orbital Insertion at Jupiter: Recorded live coverage

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What Juno's about is looking beneath that surface We've got to go down and
look at what's inside, see how it's built, how deep these features go, learn about its
real secrets, Scott Bolton, the principal investigator for Juno with the Southwest
Research Institute said.
The key to longevity?
A study found that getting rid of cells that no longer divide could be the key to
human longevity.
Scientists at the Mayo Clinic found that cells which no longer divide inside our
bodies, known as senescent cells,are linked to diseases of old age, such as
kidney failure and type-2 diabetes.
Disposing of 'cellular litter' could prolong life by up to 35% - study
The procedure increased the lifespan of mice by 17 to 35 percent. The drug also
delayed the formation of tumors and reduced age-related deterioration of several
organs. In addition, the mice looked healthier and had lower levels of in ammation
in fat, muscle and kidney tissue.

Cells intact, DNA stable: ISS experiment shows Antarctic fungi could survive
on Marshttps://t.co/1oyMjC2P4Jpic.twitter.com/FJzBGsqLeE
RT (@RT_com) January 31, 2016

A number of pharmaceutical companies are already working on developing drugs

aimed at disposing of cellular waste.
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aimed at disposing of cellular waste.

Mice created in petri dish
In October, reproductive experts hailed a breakthrough as scientists successfully
developed living mice from lab-created eggs.
Japanese scientists reprogrammed mouse tail cells as stem cells and turned them
into eggs in a petri dish. The eggs were then fertilized and the embryos implanted
in female mice, which went on to give birth to 11 healthy pups.
READ MORE:Arti cial eggs grown in science lab create living mice
Should the method work in humans, it could provide a new method of treating
infertility. The technique could also allow same-sex couples to produce biological
o spring.
Although we are a long way from making arti cial eggs for women at the moment,
this study also provides us with a basis for experimental models to explore how
eggs develop from other species, including in women, the University of
Edinburghs Richard Anderson said.

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