Black holes and baby universes and other essays

An international team of astronomers on Thursday unveiled the first image of a supermassive black hole called Sagittarius A*, or Sgr A*, at the center of the Milky Way. It comes three years after the very first image of a black hole from a distant galaxy was released. Black holes are regions of space whose gravity pull is so strong that nothing can escape it, including light. "For decades, we have known about a compact object that is at the heart of our galaxy that is four million times more massive than our Sun," Harvard University astronomer Sara Issaoun told a press conference in Garching, Germany. "Today, right this moment, we have direct evidence that this object is a black hole," she added. Watch video 05:02 Unravelling black holes Within Milky Way but far away The image was captured by the Event Horizon Telescope Collaborative and is the first direct visual rendering of the presence of this object, which is invisible to the naked eye. … [Read more...] about Astronomers produce first image of black hole at center of Milky Way

Scientists have taken the first ever image of the black hole at the heart of our galaxy, the Milky Way. The picture is not only our first glimpse at the supermassive black hole – known as Sagittarius A* – but also the first direct evidence it actually exists. Scientists have long suspected that our galaxy is the home to such a huge, violent object: stars have been observed to be orbiting around something compact and massive at the centre of the Milky Way. While it appeared to be behaving like a black hole, it was invisible and impossible to confirm. In the new image, the black hole itself stays invisible, because it is completely dark. But the picture shows the bright glowing ring that runs around it, and shows the way that light bends around the region. Recommended Prince William marks Father's Day with new image of George, Charlotte and Louis A ‘ghost’ black hole is moving around relatively nearby, scientists say Bitcoin could … [Read more...] about Supermassive black hole in our galaxy captured in first ever picture

The brightest lights in the universe blink because the violent expulsions of gas from dying stars wobble. That’s the finding of a study published Wednesday in The Astrophysical Journal Letters , which saw a team of astrophysicists at Northwestern University , in Illinois, use computational modeling to better understand collapsars — massive, dying stars in the process of collapsing to form black holes . It is believed that as the stars die, they generate gamma ray bursts, or GRBs, incredibly bright, but brief flashes of light that until now, puzzled scientists in that they also blinked on and off. The new study not only provides scientists with a better understanding of how black holes form, and why GRBs blink, but could force them to revise their understanding of the prevalence of GRBs in the cosmos entirely. When extremely massive stars run out of fuel to sustain their thermonuclear fires, they collapse under their own weight to form a black hole. But the … [Read more...] about How wobbling black holes explain blinking cosmic lights

IF you're a fan of sci-fi you're probably familiar with the number 42 theory. In Douglas Adams' famous novel The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, the answer to the meaning of life is given as 42. However, physicist Richard Feynman has a totally different theory and some scientific facts to support it. Feynman states that the most important number in the universe is around 1/137. According to IFL Science , the specific number he's referring to is 1/137.03599913. This is a number referred to in physics as the fine structure constant. Read more on weird science GHOST WHISPERER Some humans 'hear voices of the dead' and scientists think they know why HOLEY MOLEY Black hole discovered 'wandering' around Solar System like 'hungry lone wolf' In his book called QED: The Strange Theory of Light and Matter, the physicist explains: "All good theoretical physicists put this number up on their wall and worry about … [Read more...] about Most important number in the universe revealed by scientists – and it’s NOT 42

By Nuala McCann and Emma Canavan Published 19 hours ago Share close Share page Copy link About sharing A County Tyrone family has backed calls for a potentially life-changing, simple blood test at birth for children born with spinal muscular atrophy (SMA). SMA is a rare muscular-weakening condition - if it is not treated, 90% of children born with the most severe type do not live past two years old. Shauna McRory, whose son Ezra was diagnosed with SMA in November 2021, said new-born screening is "vital". It follows calls in the Republic of Ireland for similar services. Ms McRory said her family was "lucky" their healthcare visitor was "very on the ball". "She was out to visit us at two weeks and noticed his reflexes weren't what they should be. That was a Friday, we were seen by a paediatrician on Monday, had tests done Tuesday and received the results on Thursday". … [Read more...] about Spinal muscular atrophy: Baby heel prick test ‘could be life-changing’

This article is supported by the ESET Foundation, which awards the ESET Science Award to exceptional scientists every year. Scientists around the world are making the effort to answer the biggest challenges faced by humankind in the 21st century – and Slovak science is part of it. The Slovak Spectator asked Slovak scientists about their research and how it can contribute to society. In this overview of the successes of Slovak science, you will find what progress they made. This overview of the successes of Slovak science will be compiled regularly. To stay up to date with what scientists in Slovakia or Slovak scientists around the world are doing, subscribe to the Slovak Science newsletter , which will be sent to readers free of charge four times a year. Skryť Remove ad Article continues after video advertisement Skryť Remove ad Article continues after video advertisement Ingredients: meat, packaging. Add both, … [Read more...] about Edible packaging and hydrogen buses. What has Slovak science been up to?

July 4th marks 10 years since scientists at CERN, the world’s largest research centre based near Geneva, announced the existence of the Higgs Boson. A team of 6000 researchers working with the world's first atom splitter, the Large Hardron Collider. The discovery of the long-sought for particle behind the origin of mass saw François Englert and Peter Higgs awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics. 45 years later after they proposed the theory, they cracked the practical side too. For this iconic anniversary, CERN has announced it will restart its Large Hadron Collider, the machine which studies the origins of matter, and the universe. Halting its research for three years, CERN took the time to upgrade itself. On July 5th, For the third time in its history, the Large Hadron Collider, will restart to an unprecedented level of collision energy (13.6 trillion electronvolts). Delphine Jacquet, an engineer in charge of the Large Hadron Collider (LHC), explains the … [Read more...] about Higgs Boson researchers mark 10 year anniversary with return to particle studies

When one takes the size of our universe into consideration, Earth can feel really small and insignificant. Compared to our sun alone, Earth is already just a tiny blue dot, but our sun is just one of at least 100 billion stars in our galaxy, which itself is only one of around 100 billion galaxies in the small fraction of the universe we have discovered so far. In all that vast space full of dangerous flying rocks and gigantic fire balls, there have got to be zillions of things that could possibly go wrong and bring the entire cosmos down in a split second. READ MORE: Everything you need to know about the asteroid that could bankrupt the world The universe has been around for approximately 14 billion years, while Earth is around 4.5 billion years old. So far, we’ve been quite lucky, but any of the following cosmic events could result in the total destruction of our planet. 1) Solar Flares From time to time, bursts of energy from the sun’s surface reach Earth and get … [Read more...] about Six theories about cosmic events that could wipe out life on Earth debunked

Image above: A Palestinian worker in Shiloh tends to the grounds of what some Jews believe was the first capital of the Israelite kingdom. I was here to report on Jewish settlers, the 600,000 citizens of Israel living beyond its pre-1967 borders. My main concern was whether the normally guarded and cautious settler community would open up and talk to me: a brown-skinned, practicing Muslim from the United States. To hear more feature stories, see our full list or get the Audm iPhone app. I. The Old City Should I lie to an Israeli soldier in order to be allowed to pray? This was a theological dilemma I never studied in Sunday school, one I never thought I would have to confront. Anxious and on edge, the soldier was standing in front of me, rifle in hand, blocking my way, and all I had to do was tell him I was 50 years old, and then I could pray at one of Islam’s holiest sites. One minor problem: I’m 37. Typically, when violence happens in the Old City of Jerusalem, … [Read more...] about A Muslim Among Israeli Settlers

The sea has long tugged at the human imagination, inspiring stories of hubristic individuals seeking to tame the inhabitants of that seemingly endless expanse. The ocean has also borne the consequences of excessive modern consumption—commercial fishing, microplastics —paradoxically transforming many of its dwellers into martyrs, pet causes to be championed and protected. Yet an emergent narrative complicates both these perspectives, positing instead a deep, co-equal bond between humans—particularly those who feel discomfort with rigid taxonomies, or who exist at the margins of society—and sea creatures of the deep. In the new essay collection Voice of the Fish , Lars Horn wonders “how common [it is] to feel completely at odds with being human,” and uses a long-standing fascination with marine life to reimagine the body’s potential. And in the 2020 book Undrowned: Black Feminist Lessons From Marine Mammals , the poet and scholar Alexis Pauline Gumbs argues that the lives of … [Read more...] about The Freedom of Imagining Yourself as a Fish