I can't resist this story, even though it's not what you would call a prediction by science fiction authors. Quite.
The pioneering observatory just peered directly into the atmosphere of a giant exoplanet with two suns (like Tatooine from "Star Wars") known as VHS 1256 b — and found a roiling world with turbulent clouds made of silicates, similar to sand here on Earth, as announced in a recently published article in Astrophysical Journal Letters.
The spectra showed signs of clouds made of silicates, which periodically rain down into the depths of the planet, moving about in an atmosphere as hot as a flame, around 1,500 degrees Fahrenheit (815 degrees Celsius). Silicate clouds have no equivalent here on Earth, other than maybe being in a cloud of hot sand.
As science fiction fans know, the small world of Ceti Alpha V from Star Trek: The Wrath of Khan is indeed such a world of whirling sand. Although I couldn't quite find the video I wanted, I kind of like this one. Turn the sound up.
Scroll down for more stories in the same category. (Story submitted 3/15/2023)
Solar-Powered Space Trains On The Moon
'The low-slung monorail car, straddling its single track, bored through the shadows on a slowly rising course.' - Arthur C. Clarke, 1955.
Technovelgy (that's tech-novel-gee!)
is devoted to the creative science inventions and ideas of sf authors. Look for
the Invention Category that interests
you, the Glossary, the Invention
Timeline, or see what's New.
A System To Defeat AI Face Recognition
'...points and patches of light... sliding all over their faces in a programmed manner that had been designed to foil facial recognition systems.'
Smart TVs Are Listening!
'You had to live -- did live, from habit that became instinct -- in the assumption that every sound you made was overheard...'