In this week’s edition of Quirks & Quarks with Bob McDonald:
Voyager 1 nearing the landmark one light-day milestone
On November 18, Voyager 1 will be positioned 25.9 billion kilometers away from our planet, marking it as the first human-made object to cover a distance equivalent to one light-day. Bob McDonald recalls witnessing the launch of Voyager 2 from Cape Canaveral, Florida, on August 20, 1977, alongside Jon Lomberg, the space artist and design director for the Golden Record, which is carried on both spacecraft. They reconnect to discuss the launch and the mission’s significance. Joe Westlake, a space physicist and head of NASA’s heliophysics division, elaborates on how the Voyager missions continue to yield scientific insights about the galaxy beyond our solar system, nearly five decades later.
Accelerating renewable energy could avert a ‘global meltdown’
As the United Nations’ yearly climate change conference begins in Turkey, the world is on the brink of exceeding the Paris Agreement’s 1.5°C target. Experts assert that global initiatives to reduce carbon emissions must intensify to prevent a “global meltdown.” John Pomeroy, a hydrologist from the University of Saskatchewan, who recently conducted a study published in Science regarding the vulnerability of Earth’s icy regions, stated that maintaining the temperature at 1.5°C would still lead Canada into “a very bad spiral, into dysfunction.” Another study, released in Nature Climate Change, by Corinne Le Quéré, a climate scientist from the University of East Anglia, revealed that between 2019 and 2025, 59 nations, including Canada, managed to decrease their carbon emissions while simultaneously growing their GDP, but she emphasizes that a great deal of work remains in transitioning to renewable energy sources.
Recent findings indicate that while there have been strides in the global shift from fossil fuel emissions to renewable energy, a faster pace is essential to prevent a ‘global meltdown.’ (Jeff McIntosh/The Canadian Press)
Strongest evidence of dinosaur blood discovered by scientists
Scientists report the discovery of fossilized blood within a dinosaur leg bone estimated to be 115 million years old. A research team led by Kliti Grice, a geochemist from Curtin University in Australia, was astonished to uncover molecular evidence of heme, an iron-rich compound present in blood, within the dinosaur bone. Subsequent investigations revealed microscopic structures resembling red blood cells, along with additional chemical signatures of blood. After employing 30 distinct methods, the team shared their findings in the journal PNAS. Grice notes that the findings provide compelling evidence that certain biomolecules can endure far longer than previously assumed under specific burial conditions.
Traces of dinosaur blood have been discovered preserved in this unremarkable thigh bone for 115 million years. (Curtin University)
Exploring the feathered links between humanity and birds
Throughout human history, birds have been a constant presence — depicted in our art, worn as clothing, and served as food. However, this fascination has contributed to their decline and even extinction. Studies indicate that the North American bird population has experienced a loss of nearly three billion adult breeding birds from 1970 to 2019. Pete Dunne, the former director of the Cape May Bird Observatory in New Jersey, has penned over 20 books on birds, with his latest being Under Their Wing: How Birds Shape the Human Experience.
Prolific author and birder Pete Dunne examines the numerous ways in which human evolution is intertwined with birds in his book Under Their Wing: How Birds Shape the Human Experience. (Chelsea Green Imprint / Penguin Random House)
Genetic factors influence medication responses
It’s often uncertain how your body will respond to new medications until you try them. Some drugs can have varied effects based on an individual’s DNA. While researchers are aware of certain genetic associations with medications, this knowledge is not routinely implemented — partly due to the lack of comprehensive data on the prevalence of these genetic variations worldwide. In a recent study published in Science, Philip Empey, an associate professor at the University of Pittsburgh, and his team examined 100,000 Americans from diverse ancestral backgrounds to gain insights into the frequency of these genetic differences.
A digital representation of the human genome. (Mario Tama /Getty Images)