Compact thermal imager: a flight demonstration of infrared technology for Earth observations.

During 2019, an infrared camera, the compact thermal imager (CTI), recorded 15 million images of the Earth from the International Space Station. CTI is based on strained-layer superlattice (SLS) detector technology. The camera covered the spectral range from 3 to 11 µm in two spectral channels, 3.3-5.4 and 7.8-10.7 µm. Individual image frames were 26×21km2 projected on the ground, with 82 m pixel resolution. A frame time of 2.54 s created continuous image swaths with a 13% along-track image overlap. Upper limits determined on the ground and in flight for the electronic offset, read noise, and dark current demonstrated the stability of the SLS detector and camera over many months. Temperature calibration was established using a combination of preflight and in-flight measurements. A narrowband approximation of temperature as a function of photon counts produced an analytic relationship covering a temperature range of 0°-400°C. Examples of CTI images illustrate temperature retrievals over sea ice, urban and agricultural areas, desert, and wildfires.

Anterior urethroplasty and effects on sexual life: which is the best technique?

Established beliefs concerning outcomes following anterior urethral reconstruction are changing, both with regards to the genital cosmetics and to the impact on sexual activity. Today, the aim of stricture repair is not only to reinstate urinary function but also to safeguard sexual activity and guarantee genital cosmesis. A thorough evaluation of anterior urethroplasty results should include the sexual viewpoint which appears to play an important role in overall post-operative patient satisfaction. The most commonly reported sexual problems following anterior urethroplasty include: erectile and ejaculatory dysfunction, penile curvature or shortening, dissatisfaction with genital cosmetic appearance, sensorial impairment of glans. The prevalence of specific post-operative sexual problems may be related to the site of reconstruction (penile or bulbar) and to the technique of urethroplasty employed. In penile urethral reconstruction, the wide use of buccal mucosa grafts seems to excel the use of skin flaps which easily distort the cosmesis and elasticity of the penis. In bulbar reconstructions, graft augmentation techniques seem to impact less on sexual outcome than excision anastomotic techniques. Therefore, the policy of primarily indicating an excision anastomotic procedure, whenever possible, should come under scrutiny. Eventual sexual outcomes should be incorporated in the choice of the optimal anterior urethral reconstruction and in pre-operative patient counselling.

Detection of the characteristic pion-decay signature in supernova remnants.

Cosmic rays are particles (mostly protons) accelerated to relativistic speeds. Despite wide agreement that supernova remnants (SNRs) are the sources of galactic cosmic rays, unequivocal evidence for the acceleration of protons in these objects is still lacking. When accelerated protons encounter interstellar material, they produce neutral pions, which in turn decay into gamma rays. This offers a compelling way to detect the acceleration sites of protons. The identification of pion-decay gamma rays has been difficult because high-energy electrons also produce gamma rays via bremsstrahlung and inverse Compton scattering. We detected the characteristic pion-decay feature in the gamma-ray spectra of two SNRs, IC 443 and W44, with the Fermi Large Area Telescope. This detection provides direct evidence that cosmic-ray protons are accelerated in SNRs.

Glycogen storage disease type Ia and VI associated with hepatocellular carcinoma: two case reports.

Glycogen storage diseases (GSD) are inherited metabolic disorders of glycogen metabolism due to intracellular enzyme deficiency resulting in abnormal storage of glycogen in tissues. GSD represents an indication for liver transplantation (OLT) when medical treatment fails to control the metabolic dysfunction and/or there is an high risk of malignant transformation of hepatocellular adenomas (HCA). Herein we have reported two cases of GSD, type Ia and type VI, which were both associated with rapidly growing HCA, and underwent OLT because of suspect changes in their radiological features. Final histological findings in the explanted liver showed the presence of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in both cases. In GSD type Ia and VI, OLT is considered to be the treatment of choice when a liver neoplasm is suspected. While the association of HCC with GSD type Ia is well known, this is the first case of HCC in GSD type VI so far reported to the best of our knowledge.