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Small-scale ocean features once overlooked are now seen as powerful forces shaping Earth’s climate and marine life. Developed in association with the French space agency CNES, the SWOT (Surface Water and Ocean Topography) satellite caught two-dimensional images of submesoscale waves and eddies about a mile across in a recent NASA-led study. Now clearly seen in before-unheard-of clarity, these currents are essential in moving carbon, nutrients, and heat across the ocean. The high-resolution data of the satellite provides the most comprehensive picture yet of how small-scale vertical currents affect the ecosystems and climatic systems of the world.

NASA SWOT Satellite Discovers Vertical Ocean Currents Driving Climate and Ecosystem Change

As per a recent report from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, SWOT revealed how vertical ocean circulation, previously too fine for satellite observation but too broad for ship-based tools, drives exchanges between ocean depths and the atmosphere. “Vertical currents can bring heat from deep layers to the surface, warming the atmosphere,” notes oceanographer Matthew Archer in a statement. SWOT tracked a submesoscale eddy in the Pacific’s Kuroshio Current and measured vertical circulation of up to 14 metres per day, showing how such features help sustain surface ecosystems.

The satellite also observed an internal solitary wave in the Andaman Sea with twice the energy of a typical internal tide, underscoring its ability to estimate energy movement in global waters. Scientists use sea surface height data from SWOT to infer wave slope and fluid pressure, which reveals current speed and the volume of energy or material being transported. “Force is the fundamental quantity driving fluid motion,” explained coauthor Jinbo Wang of Texas A&M University in the blog.

Researchers emphasise SWOT’s role in reshaping ocean modelling. “Now models must adapt to these small-scale features,” denotes JPL’s Lee Fu in the official NASA blog, adding that SWOT data is already being integrated into NASA’s ECCO ocean model. Through continuous monitoring, SWOT is intended to help clarify among environmental changes, ocean-atmosphere interaction, and climate behaviour.

The SWOT mission is a joint project between NASA and CNES, with contributions from CSA and the UK Space Agency, and represents a new era in observing Earth. Its snapshots of the globe every 21 days offer a one-of-a-kind glimpse of how small, dynamic ocean systems help control life and climate on Earth.

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Rocket Lab Launches Kushinada-I: A Leap Forward for Japan’s SAR Network

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August 5, 2025

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Rocket Lab Launches Kushinada-I: A Leap Forward for Japan’s SAR Network

In early August 2025, Rocket Lab successfully launched QPS-SAR-12 (nicknamed Kushinada-I), a synthetic-aperture radar (SAR) satellite built by Japan’s iQPS (Institute for Q-shu Pioneers of Space). This mission, called “The Harvest Goddess Thrives” in honor of a Japanese goddess of harvest and prosperity, was Rocket Lab’s fifth dedicated launch for iQPS. The 59-foot (18-meter) Electron rocket lifted the satellite into a 575-km circular orbit. QPS-SAR-12 will join an expanding constellation of SAR Earth-imaging satellites, enabling all-weather, day-and-night observation. The launch exemplifies Rocket Lab’s niche role in deploying small dedicated satellites and advances iQPS’s goal of a 36-satellite global SAR network.

The “Harvest Goddess Thrives” Mission

According to Rocket Lab’s press release, the Electron rocket lifts off on Aug. 5, 2025, from Mahia, New Zealand. The mission, nicknamed “Harvest Goddess Thrives,” carried the QPS-SAR-12 radar satellite (Kushinada-I) for iQPS. The 18-meter vehicle powered away at 12:10 a.m. EDT (4:10 p.m. NZT).The Electron injected Kushinada-I into a planned 575-km sun-synchronous orbit about 54 minutes after liftoff.

Kushinada-I honors a Shinto harvest goddess and is formally designated QPS-SAR-12. This was Rocket Lab’s fifth mission for iQPS and the 69th Electron flight overall. Rocket Lab is also developing a larger Neutron rocket and operates a suborbital test vehicle (HASTE) for hypersonic research.

iQPS SAR Constellation and Applications

By mid-2025, ten QPS-SAR satellites were in orbit, and Kushinada-I became the 12th launched. iQPS plans a total of 36 small SAR spacecraft. Each satellite carries high-resolution SAR capable of imaging through clouds or at night. The full constellation is designed to revisit any target region roughly every 10 minutes, providing near-real-time monitoring.

The SAR network will image both fixed terrain and moving objects (vehicles, ships or livestock). Rocket Lab notes this continuous data stream “has the potential to revolutionize industries and reshape the future,” unlocking economic insights and predictive analytics for agriculture, urban security and other markets.

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Could dark matter come from a mirror world or the cosmic horizon?

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August 5, 2025

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Could dark matter come from a mirror world or the cosmic horizon?

Now there are two more options available for theoretical physicists mulling over the mystery of what dark matter is, and with them come another two pointers towards how to narrow down our search. UC Santa Cruz Professor of Physics Stefano Profumo published a paper examining whether dark matter was always there or instead could have come from a ‘mirror world’ or the edge of space ballooning along with the rest of the universe. Whatever its truth, it would produce dark matter that does not interact with ordinary particles and significantly modify our modern view of the cosmos.

New Theories Suggest Dark Matter Emerged from a Mirror World or Cosmic Horizon Radiation

As per Physical Review D reports, Profumo’s July study theorises that dark matter could form in a shadow sector that mirrors known particles and forces yet remains completely undetectable. The theory is like quantum chromodynamics (QCD), but the dark sector has new quarks and gluons, and it imagines that heavy “dark baryons” are being held together by gravity. This debris could have collapsed into Planck-mass black hole–type objects that would be undetectable but still able to influence the universe’s structure thanks to gravity.

His earlier May study, published in the same journal, suggests another path: that dark matter particles might have been emitted from the universe’s expanding cosmic horizon. It allows for a brief epoch of formation, thermal synthesis of stable cold dark matter, which decouples from the standard model following inflation, and is consistent with quantum field theory in curved spacetime. That ties in neatly with the radiation from black holes and implies that other universes resembling our own might have started out as invisible seeds of matter.

Profumo stressed that these are speculative-theory-specific hypotheses, based on physics principles already there for dark matter or other gravitational channels or quantum phenomena beyond the standard model.

UC Santa Cruz is leading the way in connecting quantum concepts to astrophysics, developing new models to potentially solve a challenging scientific puzzle.

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Sun Roars Back with Three M-Class Flares in 24 Hours

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August 5, 2025

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Sun Roars Back with Three M-Class Flares in 24 Hours

After three weeks of calm, the Sun roared back to life on Aug. 3–4, 2025, unleashing three moderate M-class solar flares in just 24 hours. These midday flares – including a 2.9-M flare on Aug. 3 and two more (M2.0 and M1.4) on Aug. 4, all erupted from sunspot region AR 4168. While not as intense as the largest X-class events, M-class flares are still powerful bursts of radiation capable of briefly disturbing Earth’s upper atmosphere. Experts say we may see minor effects, such as short-lived radio blackouts or a brush of auroras at high latitudes.

Solar Eruptions Ignite

According to space weather website SolarHam.com’s post on X, the flares marked a sudden end to a 22-day quiet spell on the Sun. Sunspot AR 4168, a magnetically complex region, rapidly grew active and unleashed the chain of flares. According to Space.com, the M2.9 flare at 10:01 a.m. EDT on Aug. 3 was the first moderate flare since mid-July, and it was followed by M2.0 and M1.4 flares on Aug. 4.
Each flare released intense X-rays and ultraviolet light.

M-class flares are ten times more energetic than the more common C-class flares, although far weaker than the most extreme X-class eruptions. Scientists noted that these eruptions likely hurled two coronal mass ejections (CMEs) into space, which are huge clouds of charged particles that can impact Earth if they arrive.

Potential Earth Effects

Scientists say these eruptions should have only minor impacts on Earth. By NOAA’s space-weather scale, M1–M4 flares correspond to R1–R2 (minor) radio blackouts, so any HF radio outages would be weak and brief. Satellite communications and power grids are expected to be unaffected.
However, the ejected CMEs may still skim past Earth.

EarthSky reports a possible glancing blow around Aug. 5–6, which could trigger a minor G1 geomagnetic storm. That could briefly light up auroras at high latitudes (for example, far-northern Europe or Canada). So far models suggest only a small chance of impact. In other words, NOAA forecasters classify this as a minor event, unlikely to cause disruptions.

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