Air bubbles trapped in ice can store messages in cold places
For as long as humans have lived, they've found ways to store information for others to find. Cave paintings were perhaps the first examples, followed later by messages in bottles, semaphore, books, persistent URLs, and so on.
Now, a research team from China and Czechia has reported in Cell Reports Physical Science a way to store messages by freezing air bubbles into ice. The researchers were inspired by bubbles in glaciers that preserve ancient air. They developed a method that could be useful in cold places like the Arctic, the moon or Mars, where traditional storage like paper or electronics is hard to maintain.
The idea is based on the fact that when water freezes, it traps air bubbles. The shape and arrangement of bubbles depend on how fast the water freezes. By carefully changing the freezing speed, the scientists could create layers of bubbles at specific spots in ice. These layers can be used to represent information just like the dots and dashes in Morse code or the 1s and 0s in binary code.
The scientists found that a bubble started smaller, grew, and shrank just a little before finally freezing. The bubble's final shape depended on how fast the freezing front, the part of water turning to ice, moved.
The team discerned two main bubble shapes: egg-shaped and needle-shaped. By measuring the height and width of the bubbles, team members classified regions as containing egg-shaped only, both eggs and needles, needle-shaped only, and no bubbles.
Next, the team created bubble layers by rapidly changing the freezing speed. This was done by suddenly lowering the temperature of the plate the water sat on. Each sudden change formed a new layer of bubbles. The scientists could form multiple layers in one ice slice by repeating this trick.
Finally, they developed a seven-step process where a message, like letters, is turned into a temperature-control pattern. The pattern guided the freezing process to make bubble layers at the right positions. A camera then scanned the ice and a computer 'read' the layers using light and dark bands in the image. These bands encoded messages the way Morse code can.
In fact binary code turned out to be most efficient to deliver messages while Morse was easier to control. The team managed to record the letters 'FL,' 'CN,' and 'BJ' using this technique.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Hindu
6 hours ago
- The Hindu
Air bubbles trapped in ice can store messages in cold places
For as long as humans have lived, they've found ways to store information for others to find. Cave paintings were perhaps the first examples, followed later by messages in bottles, semaphore, books, persistent URLs, and so on. Now, a research team from China and Czechia has reported in Cell Reports Physical Science a way to store messages by freezing air bubbles into ice. The researchers were inspired by bubbles in glaciers that preserve ancient air. They developed a method that could be useful in cold places like the Arctic, the moon or Mars, where traditional storage like paper or electronics is hard to maintain. The idea is based on the fact that when water freezes, it traps air bubbles. The shape and arrangement of bubbles depend on how fast the water freezes. By carefully changing the freezing speed, the scientists could create layers of bubbles at specific spots in ice. These layers can be used to represent information just like the dots and dashes in Morse code or the 1s and 0s in binary code. The scientists found that a bubble started smaller, grew, and shrank just a little before finally freezing. The bubble's final shape depended on how fast the freezing front, the part of water turning to ice, moved. The team discerned two main bubble shapes: egg-shaped and needle-shaped. By measuring the height and width of the bubbles, team members classified regions as containing egg-shaped only, both eggs and needles, needle-shaped only, and no bubbles. Next, the team created bubble layers by rapidly changing the freezing speed. This was done by suddenly lowering the temperature of the plate the water sat on. Each sudden change formed a new layer of bubbles. The scientists could form multiple layers in one ice slice by repeating this trick. Finally, they developed a seven-step process where a message, like letters, is turned into a temperature-control pattern. The pattern guided the freezing process to make bubble layers at the right positions. A camera then scanned the ice and a computer 'read' the layers using light and dark bands in the image. These bands encoded messages the way Morse code can. In fact binary code turned out to be most efficient to deliver messages while Morse was easier to control. The team managed to record the letters 'FL,' 'CN,' and 'BJ' using this technique.
Time of India
4 days ago
- Time of India
Shocking discovery! 230 giant viruses found lurking in Earth's oceans; scientists say
Source: Yahoo Scientists have uncovered hundreds of new 'giant viruses' also known as ' giruses ', in oceans worldwide. They used advanced computer software to analyse and unravel many types of viruses present in waterways and oceans, and identified 230 unknown giant viruses. This finding is significant as it sheds light on the role of viruses in ocean ecosystems , particularly their impact on microscopic marine organisms like algae and amoeba, which are crucial to the ocean's food chain and health. This research advances our understanding of giant viruses and their role in shaping marine ecosystems. Giant ocean viruses discovered with the power to alter photosynthesis The study published in Nature npj Viruses , titled 'Expansion of the Genomic and Functional Diversity of Global Ocean Giant Viruses', reports the discovery of numerous previously unknown giant genomes and 530 novel functional proteins, significantly expanding the existing scientific understanding of viral diversity in the world's oceans. Notably, nine of these proteins involved photosynthesis , indicating that these viruses may have the ability to manipulate the host's photosynthesis during infection, providing new insights into the interaction between the virus and host, and complex relationships between their biological processes. Source: Yahoo ocean Insights from the study The study revealed that most of the giant viruses belonged to two classifications: Algavirales and Imitervirales. Algavirales, typically 100-200 nanometers in diameter, specialize in infecting photosynthetic algae, while Imitervirales possess a flexible genetic strategy that allows them to potentially survive in a wider variety of hosts. With their enormous genetic material, giant viruses may be able to manipulate their hosts more effectively, making them potentially more problematic than other viruses. Giant viruses have been discovered in various marine environments, with a notable concentration in colder regions. The study found that the Baltic Sea and Antarctic waters are rich reservoirs of these viruses, with 108 and 65 discoveries, respectively. Other locations, such as the Arctic, South Pacific, and North Atlantic, also yielded significant findings. This suggests that many more giant viruses remain to be discovered, particularly in colder marine environments. Source: Yahoo Researchers' take on the study of giant viruses found in ocean Researchers have made significant progress in understanding giant viruses through metagenomic approaches, but much remains to be discovered, particularly in the oceans. A new study used the BEREN tool to uncover 230 novel marine giant virus genomes and 398 partial genomes, providing insights into their functional potential and ecological impact. Mohammad Moniruzzaman, a co-author of the study said, "By better understanding the diversity and role of giant viruses in the ocean and how they interact with algae and other ocean microbes, we can predict and possibly manage harmful algal blooms, which are human health hazards in Florida as well as all over the world.' 'Giant viruses are often the main cause of death for many phytoplankton, which serve as the base of the food web supporting ocean ecosystems and food sources. The novel functions found in giant viruses could have biotechnological potential, as some of these functions might represent novel enzymes'. Another author, Benjamin Minch, said, 'This study allowed us to create a framework to improve existing tools for detecting novel viruses that could aid in our ability to monitor pollution and pathogens in our waterways'. Also read | Moon's volcanic history trapped in tiny glass beads: A valuable clue for NASA
Hindustan Times
12-06-2025
- Hindustan Times
Arctic sounds another warning on climate
The climate foghorn has been going off at increasingly shorter intervals over the past few years — from the 1.5 degrees C threshold being breached for the first time to record glacial melts. The latest warning sounded is the Arctic heatwave that has clocked historical highs, largely due to the climate crisis. The World Weather Attribution has concluded that climate change added 3 degrees C to heat conditions in the region — which caused Greenland's ice sheet to melt 17 times the normal rate last month. Arctic heat, as scientists have long warned, compounds planetary warming with severe climate impacts, given depletion of the sea ice cover will expose the darker ocean which will absorb significant heat from the sun instead of reflecting it (as ice does). The impact is well known, from rising sea levels to severely disrupted weather patterns, threatening coastal human habitations and marine ecosystems. In the short run, the latest bout of Arctic fever has implications far away from the region, given its association with the South Asian monsoon and extreme rainfall in this part of the world. The imperative for urgent climate action was clear a decade ago, which got the global community to sign the Paris accord. Now, even elementary agreements on actions and responsibilities lie in tatters, with the US under Donald Trump playing spoiler. The path from here to limit warming to avoid its worst impact isn't visible, with parties to the UN climate convention not even filing revised ambitions on climate action. With time running out, hesitation on rebuilding the consensus pushes the planet further towards climate peril — despite the momentum in energy transition and individual jurisdictions acting on climate goals. Concerted action has always been the cornerstone of climate efforts, and there is no wishing it away.
