Astronomers' wish list for the next 10 years

+ new data-sharing rules in science; Arctic growing season gets longer US Edition - Today's top story: Astronomy's 10-year wish list: Big money, bigger telescopes and the biggest questions in science [View in browser]( US Edition | 30 March 2022 [The Conversation]( Given the explosion in exoplanet discoveries in recent years, you might expect funding to build bigger telescopes is high on astronomers’ and astrophysicists’ wish list. It is, but as University of Arizona astronomer Chris Impey writes, there’s quite a bit more. Impey breaks down the [top priorities of the latest decadal survey of research priorities](. What will this exploration of the cosmos bring us here on Earth? “Only the value of knowing how the universe works better, and illuminating our situation on Earth with a wider perspective,” Impey writes in response to a reader. For parents with very young children, the pandemic has no doubt been frustrating and concerning, as a COVID-19 vaccine is still not available for children under 5. Debbie-Anne Shirley, a pediatric infectious disease doctor at the University of Virginia, explains the status of the [vaccines now going through clinical trials and why vaccine makers’ tests need to consider how immune systems differ by age](. Traditionally, Tornado Alley encompasses the Great Plains states, but there’s been an eastward shift in the location of most tornadoes. “Oklahoma still has tornadoes, of course. But the statistical center has moved,” writes Purdue University atmospheric scientist Ernest Agee. Agee explains [why the shift toward Dixie Alley is occurring]( and the role climate change is having on severe storms, such as tornadoes. Also in this week’s science and research news: - [How quickly could warming slow if emissions stopped?]( - [A new COVID-19 drug for high-risk individuals]( - [Opioid use disorder treatments, explained]( If there’s a subject you’d like our team of science editors to investigate, reply to this email. Martin La Monica Director of Editorial Projects and Newsletters The Hubble Space Telescope was born from a previous decadal survey. What leaps forward will come from this one? NASA Johnson/Flickr [Astronomy’s 10-year wish list: Big money, bigger telescopes and the biggest questions in science]( Chris Impey, University of Arizona The astronomy and astrophysics decadal survey for the 2020s lays out plans to search for life on distant planets, understand the formation of galaxies and solve deep mysteries of physics. Millions of U.S. children ages 5-11 have already received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. Keith Birmingham/MediaNews Group/Pasadena Star-News via Getty Images [COVID-19 vaccines for the youngest children may be inching closer to authorization – a pediatrician explains how they’re being tested]( Debbie-Ann Shirley, University of Virginia Moderna will ask the FDA to allow emergency use for its vaccine in children as young as 6 months, a step many parents have been anticipating. The heart of U.S. tornado activity, once Tornado Alley, has shifted eastward. Brent Koops/NOAA Weather in Focus Photo Contest 2015 [Tornadoes, climate change and why Dixie is the new Tornado Alley]( Ernest Agee, Purdue University Studies show tornadoes are getting more common and more intense, and they’re shifting eastward to a new tornado hot spot. - [New data-sharing requirements from the National Institutes of Health are a big step toward more open science – and potentially higher-quality research]( Stephen Jacobs, Rochester Institute of Technology Starting in 2023, all research proposals funded by the NIH will need to include a data sharing and management plan. An expert on open science explains the requirements and how they might improve science. - [Arctic greening won’t save the climate – here’s why]( Donatella Zona, San Diego State University The growing season on the tundra is starting earlier as the planet warms, but the plants aren’t sequestering more carbon, a new study finds. - [How does the COVID-19 prevention drug Evusheld work and who should receive it? An infectious disease specialist explains]( Patrick Jackson, University of Virginia Evusheld is an antibody drug from AstraZeneca intended to help prevent COVID-19 infection for immunocompromised and other vulnerable patients. - [Drugs that treat opioid use disorder are a good use for multibillion-dollar settlement funds]( Elizabeth Chiarello, Saint Louis University After battling drug manufacturers and distributors in court for years, local and state governments are about to receive a windfall that could expand access to treatments that can save lives. - [How fast can we stop Earth from warming?]( Richard B. (Ricky) Rood, University of Michigan If fossil fuel burning stopped, emerging research suggests air temperatures could level off sooner than expected. But that doesn’t mean the damage stops. - [Thousands of undiscovered mammal species may be hidden in plain sight, new research finds]( Danielle Parsons, The Ohio State University; Bryan Carstens, The Ohio State University Roughly 90% of species on Earth are believed to be undiscovered. Whether researchers will be able to identify them before they go extinct is unclear. - [Even after lockdowns eased, pandemic depression persisted across social classes – new study]( Catherine Ettman, Boston University; Sandro Galea, Boston University Adults in the US reported the same levels of depression a year into the pandemic as they did at the outset. - [How did cockroaches survive the asteroid that led to the extinction of dinosaurs?]( Brian Lovett, West Virginia University Cockroaches have been on Earth far longer than humans and may outlast us. Here are a few reasons why. Like this newsletter? 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