November 2006 in science

Events in Science and Technology

November 30, 2006

• Microsoft releases a new version of its operating system, called Windows Vista for volume license customers. This represents a two-year delay compared to the original schedule, and happens five years after the release of Windows XP. (BBCNews)

November 24, 2006

• Researchers publish the first estimate for the heat flow out of the Earths core in Science. They use latest experiments on Perovskite phase transitions and earthquake data that shows a lens-shaped layer of this material at a depth of about 2,900 km (1,740 mi). (Spaceref.com)

November 23, 2006

• An analysis of human DNA is published in the journal Nature that shows a much larger variation between individuals than was expected. (BBCNews)

November 21, 2006

• An international consortium signs a deal formally launching ITER, a project to develop an experimental nuclear fusion reactor. (BBC News)

November 15, 2006

• Scientists publish results from the first successful partial reconstruction of nuclear DNA from a Neanderthal fossil bone, that is about 38,000 years old. (BBCNews)

November 13, 2006

• Sun Microsystems announces the release of its Java technologies under the GNU General Public Licence by March 2007. (BBCNews)

November 10, 2006

• The full genome of the California purple sea urchin (Strongylocentrotus purpuratus) is published and contains many novel genes, but also many analogues to those found in vertebrates. (BBCNews)
• NASA's Cassini spacecraft records a hurricane-like storm on the south pole of Saturn which is the first time such an event has been observed on another planet. (ABC News Australia)

November 9, 2006

• Contact with the Mars orbiter Mars Global Surveyor is lost. The spacecraft, originally on a two-year mission, just passed its 10th anniversary of its launch. (SpaceRef)

November 2, 2006

• The journal Science publishes a study predicting the collapse of commercial fisheries in 2048, due to overfishing, pollution and other environmental factors. (BBCNews)(WaPo)

References