Japan begins space capsule analysis hoping for asteroid sampleScientists in Japan on Tuesday began analysing a capsule sent back to Earth by a probe, hoping to find asteroid material that could offer clues on how the universe was formed.Officials from Japan’s space agency said they were jubilant about the successful return of the capsule, which landed in Australia on Sunday after separating from the Hayabusa-2 probe.“I’m genuinely appreciative of the fact that the capsule came back, after a 5.24 billion-kilometre round-trip,” project manager Yuichi Tsuda told reporters.Scientists hope it will yield up to 0.1 grams of material collected from the asteroid Ryugu some 300 million kilometres from Earth — though they won’t know for sure until they look inside.“I’m really looking forward to seeing (the samples) with my own eyes,” Tsuda said.But that isn’t expected to happen before at least next week, with a series of steps required first to ensure the material is not contaminated.For now, the capsule is “in a secure location” at a space centre in Sagamihara, south of Tokyo, agency director general Hitoshi Kuninaka said.“Now we move to the matter-analysis phase,” he said. The samples — collected last year — are hoped to include both surface dust and pristine material stirred up when Hayabusa-2 fired an “impactor” into Ryugu.Scientists hope...
Japan begins space capsule analysis hoping for asteroid sample
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Weight-loss drugs draw Americans back to the doctor
FILE PHOTO: Injection pens and boxes of Novo Nordisk’s weight-loss drug Wegovy are shown in this photo illustration in Oslo, Norway, November 21, 2023. REUTERS/Victoria Klesty/IllustrationBy Deena Beasley(Reuters) -Powerful weight-loss drugs are expanding use of U.S. health care as patients starting prescriptions are diagnosed with obesity-related conditions or take the drugs to become eligible for other services, health records and discussions with doctors show.An exclusive analysis of hundreds of thousands of electronic patient records by health data firm Truveta found slight, but measurable, increases in first-time diagnoses of sleep apnea, cardiovascular disease, and type 2 diabetes within 15 days of an initial prescription for a GLP-1 weight-loss drug between 2020 and 2024.In addition to obesity-related conditions, some patients are being prescribed the drugs to lose weight and become eligible for services, including organ transplants, fertility treatments or knee replacements, according to interviews with seven doctors and five other health experts.Lung transplant patient Bensabio Guajardo and the team at UChicago Medicine’s ACTNOW weight loss clinic pose for a picture at the clinic, in Chicago, March 2023. Mark Black/UChicago Medicine/Handout via REUTERS“This is a population that previously felt stigmatized by health care...
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