‘Celestial monsters’: James Webb telescope detects stars 10,000 times the mass of the Sun

Plus: Nearly 20% of academics have seen a UFO or knows someone who has, according to a new survey. Sponsored by The first half billion years of the cosmos was a time of giants. The early universe was lit up by stars with 10,000 times the mass of our Sun. These celestial titans left traces that our most capable space telescope is only now beginning to uncover. Dive in to learn more about the discovery of the first "[celestial monsters]( and how they’re reshaping our understanding of the universe's ancient past. Also today, we learn that nearly 20 percent of academics questioned in a survey say [they’ve seen a UFO]( themselves, or know somebody who has. More on both of these stories below. Good morning. I’m Tim, an Editor at IE. Don’t miss tomorrow’s free [Engineering Careers Webinar]( it only takes a moment to register. Last Sunday, Blueprint subscribers learned how new laser imaging techniques are revealing the secrets of early life. Don't miss out — [subscribe to IE+]( today to receive exclusive interviews, features, and much more. VIDEO OF THE DAY [ROPA’s Tiger 6S]( [Why ROPA’s Tiger 6S sugar beet harvester is the world market leader]( Today, we delve into the remarkable capabilities of the Tiger 6S, highlighting its game-changing telematics system that is shaping the future of sugar beet harvesting. MUST READ [Celestial monsters]( [James Webb detects ‘celestial monster’ stars 10,000 times the mass of the Sun]( NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) has discovered the first direct evidence of supermassive stars, each roughly 10,000 times the mass of our Sun, existing at the dawn of the universe. These colossal stars, referred to as “celestial monsters,” were present just 440 million years after the Big Bang. The discovery could provide significant insights into the early evolution of the cosmos. These supermassive stars, despite their brightness, are challenging to detect as they exploded in hypernovas long ago. However, the JWST's capacity to observe the distant past has provided the first direct evidence of their existence. The researchers now plan to investigate more ancient globular star clusters for further traces of early supermassive stars. To learn which telltale sign of a supermassive star researchers identified, click below. [Read More]( INNOVATION A self-healing lens that can stop driverless vehicle accidents Researchers in Korea have devised a revolutionary self-healing lens material that can help to avert a safety issues in self-driving cars. According to the team, "traffic accidents caused by recognition and malfunctions of vision systems [...] of self-driving cars have repeatedly occurred. As a result, confidence in the safety of self-driving cars is rather low." [Read More]( THE SPONSOR OF THE DAY [MyGrid]( [Losing too much money on energy bills? It’s time to take control]( The volatility in rising energy prices is downright worrisome, simply because it directly affects your pockets and your lifestyle in general. Not being able to control your energy consumption may lead to bills going north and out of control. Also, if sustainable living is the goal, that’s not exactly how we can help the current climate crisis and play our part in safeguarding the environment. ModuleOne was built by MyGrid to combat these issues. Without needing any complex installations, you can plug it into any socket and start conserving energy for future use. Also, it can be charged with low-cost energy from solar panels. Using the MyGrid app, you can take full control over energy consumption to optimize savings. Having won the Red Dot Award 2023, this portable, plug-and-play battery can be taken anywhere. It’s also suitable for camping trips, barbecue parties, or as a backup power source for emergencies. [Save money on monthly energy bills]( and safeguard the environment with ModuleOne. [LEARN MORE]( CULTURE Nearly 20% of academics surveyed say they’ve seen a UFO or knows someone who has A remarkable new study published this week surveyed 1,460 US academics and found that almost 20 percent of tenure-track faculty have personally observed or know someone who has observed a so-called unidentified aerial phenomena (UAP), the official US government designation for a UFO. [Read More]( SCIENCE Astronomers propose the potential structure of ‘Next Generation Arecibo Telescope’ The iconic Arecibo Telescope, built in the early 1960s, collapsed in 2020, and astronomers have been hoping to rebuild this valuable astronomy tool with advanced features and a flexible design ever since. A new paper, which has not yet been published in a scientific journal, proposes replacing the original dish with as many as 102 smaller dishes spread across its existing location in Puerto Rico. [Read More]( MAIL & MUSINGS Have you ever witnessed a UFO? [Yes, I'm certain]( [No, never]( [I know someone who has]( [Possibly, I'm not sure]( YESTERDAY'S RESULTS Visiting the moon in a SpaceX lunar lander was the clear favorite in yesterday's poll, with 47 percent of the vote. NASA also fared well, but Blue Origin appealed to only 9% of lunarnauts. 47% SpaceX 38% NASA 9% Blue Origin 6% China National Space Administration QUOTE OF THE DAY Two possibilities exist: either we are alone in the Universe or we are not. Both are equally terrifying. Arthur C. Clarke THINGS WE LOVE [Ostrichpillow]( [ROCKPALS RP82 Solar Panel]( [BLACK + DECKER Remote Control Air Conditioner]( [Furrion Lippert RV Air Conditioner]( AND ANOTHER THING - Ultrafast imaging tech [unlocks 'impossible' pathway in photosynthesis for new clean fuels]( [premium] - [Human cells are making a vital mistake]( and this is why we are aging - [As many as 1.7 billion T-rexes once dominated the planet]( finds new study - SETI: [Earth to receive a simulated 'alien transmission' tomorrow]( - [Could 'reviving' 100,000-year-old bacteria be key to future antibiotics?]( Biotech says yes [premium] - Barcelona-based startup launches [first-ever 5G standard low-Earth orbit satellite]( [premium] - Online search data shows [Russian morale remained low and ‘dissent’ spiked after invasion of Ukraine]( (University of Cambridge) [Subscribe to IE+]( [About Us]( [Advertise]( [Contact Us]( © Copyright 2023 | The Blueprint is by Interesting Engineering, Inc. 205 Hudson St New York, NY, 10013, USA | All Rights Reserved You are receiving this email because you have subscribed to our newsletter. Manage you e-mail preferences or unsubscribe [here.](