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Micro- and nanoplastic Polluted Earth

According to estimates, by 2040 the level of plastic pollution could reach 80 million metric tons per year. Plastic particles have now been detected in virtually all spheres of the environment, e.g. in water bodies, the soil and the air. Via ocean currents and rivers, the tiny plastic particles can even reach the Arctic, Antarctic or ocean depths. A new overview study has now shown that wind, too, can transport these particles great distances -- and much faster than water can: in the atmosphere, they can travel from their point of origin to the most remote corners of the planet in a matter of days. In the journal Nature Reviews Earth and Environment, an international team of researchers -- including experts from the Alfred Wegener Institute, the Institute for Advanced Sustainability Studies in Potsdam, and the GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research in Kiel -- describes how microplastic finds its way into the atmosphere and how it is subsequently transported.

NASA- 'VIPER' will find water at Moon

NASA is planning to search for water and other resources on the moon in the year 2023. The US-based organization said on Friday that it plans to send its first mobile robot VIPER in late 2023 in search of ice and other resources under the surface of the moon and under its Artemis program. The rover will collect VIPER data, which will help NASA map resources to the Moon South Pole. It will be used for human exploration for a long time on the moon one day.

By examining the data collected from the Viper as part of the Artemis Program, scientists will find out what resources are on the South Pole of the Moon. The gathering of information here is also considered interesting because a large part of it is covered in shade compared to the North Pole. NASA will send the first female and one male to the moon in 2024 under the Artemis program. But before this, Viper Rover will be launched in 2023.