Physics in the News

Monday, June 30, 2014

NASA’s Curiosity Rover Brought Earth BUG to Mars

A software bug, that is, as Flaw turns up in popular compression imaging algorithm. (Credit: — A software bug turns up in popular compression imaging algorithm. (Credit: NASA)

via securitymouse

Did All of Earth’s Water Originally Come From Outer Space?

: An artist’s concept illustration shows a quasar, or feeding black hole, similar to APM 08279+5255, where astronomers discovered huge amounts of water vapor. (NASA/ESA); via theepochtimes

Two asteroids approach in the night

Map showing Ceres and Vesta as they approach each other closely this coming week. Both asteroids are near the easy-to-find star Zeta in Virgo not far from bright Mars. Although the asteroids appear very close together in the sky, they’re really about 51 million miles apart with Vesta in the foreground. (Credit: Chris Marriott’s SkyMap)

Two asteroids approach in the night / See Saturn’s elusive moon Iapetus – See more at: http://astrobob.areavoices.com/2014/06/28/two-asteroids-approach-in-the-night-see-saturns-elusive-moon-iapetus/#sthash.LxdFQzDm.dpuf

Two asteroids approach in the night / See Saturn’s elusive moon Iapetus – See more at: http://astrobob.areavoices.com/2014/06/28/two-asteroids-approach-in-the-night-see-saturns-elusive-moon-iapetus/#sthash.LxdFQzDm.dpuf

Novel Technique to Measure Quantum-Optical Effect in Light from the Sun

By filtering light from the sun, CQT researchers have made a strong detection of a quantum effect known as 'photon bunching' in its light. This is a hallmark of the sun radiating like a black body. (Credit: NASA/SDO) — By filtering light from the sun, CQT researchers have made a strong detection of a quantum effect known as ‘photon bunching’ in its light. This is a hallmark of the sun radiating like a black body. (Credit: NASA/SDO)

Researchers detect tiniest of force ever measured

Mechanical oscillators translate an applied force into measureable mechanical motion. The Standard Quantum Limit is imposed by the Heisenberg uncertainty principle, in which the measurement itself perturbs the motion of the oscillator, a phenomenon known as “quantum back-action.” (Credit: Kevin Gutowski) — Mechanical oscillators translate an applied force into measurable mechanical motion. The Standard Quantum Limit is imposed by the Heisenberg uncertainty principle, in which the measurement itself perturbs the motion of the oscillator, a phenomenon known as “quantum back-action.” (Credit: Kevin Gutowski)

Orion EFT-1 Work Progressing Toward Dec. 4 Launch Attempt

Orion, seen here with its heat shield installed, being maneuvered for stacking on the spacecraft’s service module at KSC earlier this month. (Credit: NASA)

via americaspace

Physics in the News

Sunday, June 29, 2014

Gravity is Driving Growth of the Universe

Astronomers Confirm from 600,000 Galaxies

via dailygalaxy

The Grandfather Paradox

The "grandfather paradox": Time travel raises the spectrum of possibly changing life events. Photo: Universal Studios — The “grandfather paradox”: Time travel raises the spectrum of possibly changing life events. Photo: Universal Studios

NASA ‘flying saucer’ Success: A better way to land on Mars?

via theguardian

NASA’s Robot Astronaut Inspiring Tech Advances Here on Earth

Aboard the International Space Station, astronaut Karen Nyberg indulges in a moment of levity with Robonaut 2. Image tweeted on June 28, 2013.

The Most Mathematically Perfect Day of the Year

The Paley graph of order 9 is a perfect graph, making it an appropriate object of veneration and study on June 28, a perfect day. Image: David Eppstein. (Credit: Wikimedia)

via scientificamerican

Delving into Dark Matter

Theory says there may be disk of it at center of galaxy. (Credit: Shutterstock) — Theory says there may be disk of it at center of galaxy.

via theepochtimes

Physics in the News

Saturday, June 28, 2014

The Space-Based Quantum Cryptography Race

: via technologyreview

Space football fever: NASA astronauts lose hair in World Cup bet (VIDEO)

STEREO probes operations will be curtailed for more than a year

Illustration of the positions of the two STEREO spacecraft show that they attain 180 degrees of separation in Feb. 2011, thus allowing the world to see the entire Sun for the first time. (Credit: NASA/STEREO/SSC)

via thewatchers

Oppenheimer’s Folly: On black holes, fundamental laws and pure and applied science

Einstein and Oppenheimer: Both men in their later years dismissed black holes as anomalies, unaware that they contained some of the deepest mysteries of physics (Image: Alfred Eisenstaedt, LIFE magazine)

via scientificamerican

Physicists Think They Can Solve the Mysteries of Quantum Mechanics, Cosmology, and Black Holes in One Go

Hubble Space Telescope image. (Credit: NASA, ESA, G. Illingworth, D. Magee, and P. Oesch (University of California, Santa Cruz), R. Bouwens (Leiden University), and the HUDF09 Team)

via scientificamerican

The Smallest Black Hole in the Universe (Synopsis)

A binary system containing a stellar-mass black hole called IGR J17091. The strong gravity of the black hole, on the left, is pulling gas away from a companion star on the right. This gas forms a disk of hot gas around the black hole, and the wind is driven off this disk(Credit: NASA/CXC/M.Weiss)

via scienceblogs.com

Physicists’ findings improve advanced material

A new technique developed by a Binghamton University physicist and his colleagues will improve the quality of flexible, conductive, transparent glass. — A new technique developed by a Binghamton University physicist and his colleagues will improve the quality of flexible, conductive, transparent glass. (Credit: NASA)

Physics in the News

Friday, January 27, 2014

NASA: Sun’s corona much larger than previously thought

Scientists used these observations of the sun's atmosphere (the bright light of the sun itself is blocked by the black circle at the middle) from NASA's Solar Terrestrial Relations Observatory on Aug. 5, 2007, to define the outer limits of the solar atmosphere, the corona. (Credit: NASA/STEREO) — Scientists used these observations of the sun’s atmosphere (the bright light of the sun itself is blocked by the black circle at the middle) from NASA’s Solar Terrestrial Relations Observatory on Aug. 5, 2007, to define the outer limits of the solar atmosphere, the corona. (Credit: NASA/STEREO)

via NASA

“Ant-stronauts” Aboard The International Space Station

mage Caption: The Ants In Space CSI-06 investigation looks at how an ant colony responds to the extreme environment of microgravity aboard the International Space Station to solve their collective need for resources. Data gathered from this study may help with algorithms for robotics on Earth. (Credit: NASA) — The Ants In Space CSI-06 investigation looks at how an ant colony responds to the extreme environment of microgravity aboard the International Space Station to solve their collective need for resources. Data gathered from this study may help with algorithms for robotics on Earth. (Credit: NASA)

via NASA

This Superluminous Supernova Does Not Care About the Laws of Physics

Before (left) and after (center) images of the region where DES13S2cmm was discovered. On the right is the supernova. (Credit: Dark Energy Survey)

via motherboard.vice.com

NASA Just Detected Mysterious Signal 240 Million Light Years Away From Earth

This composite image of the Perseus Cluster combines data equivalent to more than 17 days of observation time over a decade. (Credit: X-ray: NASA, CXC, SAO, E.Bulbul, et al.)

via NASA

Nearby Alien Planet May Be Capable of Supporting Life

Potentially habitable Super-Earth Gliese 832 c appears in an artist's conception against a background of a stellar nebula. — Potentially habitable Super-Earth Gliese 832 c appears in an artist’s conception against a background of a stellar nebula.

‘Cosmic own goal’ another clue in hunt for dark matter

The visible galaxies in the Local Group simulation, shown in the lower right, only trace a tiny fraction of the vast number of dark matter halos, revealed in the upper left. Credit: John Helly, Till Sawala, James Trayford, Durham University — The visible galaxies in the Local Group simulation, shown in the lower right, only trace a tiny fraction of the vast number of dark matter halos, revealed in the upper left. (Credit: John Helly, Till Sawala, James Trayford, Durham University)

Physics in the News

Thursday, June 26, 2014

Confirmed: That Was Definitely the Higgs Boson Found at LHC

Candidate Higgs boson events from collisions between protons in the LHC. The top event in the CMS experiment shows a decay into two photons (dashed yellow lines and green towers). The lower event in the ATLAS experiment shows a decay into 4 muons (red tracks).[ — Candidate Higgs boson events from collisions between protons in the LHC. The top event in the CMS experiment shows a decay into two photons (dashed yellow lines and green towers). The lower event in the ATLAS experiment shows a decay into 4 muons (red tracks).(Credit: NASA)

via discovermagazine

Einsteins biggest blunder? The 25-year-old supernova that could change the speed of light forever

A time sequence of Hubble Space Telescope images, taken in the 15 years from 1994 to 2009, showing the collision of the expanding supernova remnant with a ring of dense material ejected by the progenitor star 20,000 years before the supernova. (Credit: NASA)

via extremetech

New Math Technique Improves Atomic Property Predictions to Historic Accuracy

Computational techniques developed by a team from NIST and IU could enable precise computation of atomic properties that are important for nuclear medicine, as well as astrophysics and other fields of atomic research. Image: Paco Ayala (Fotolia)

via sciencenewsline

We may have just glimpsed dark matter, about 240 million light years away

The Perseus galaxy cluster. — The Perseus galaxy cluster is one of the most massive objects in the universe, containing thousands of galaxies immersed in a vast cloud of multimillion degree gas. (Credit: NASA)

Supermassive black hole trio discovered

Two closely orbiting black holes in a galaxy about 4.2 billion light-years from Earth emit wavy jets, seen as a bluish spiral, while the third black hole in the trio is more distant, emitting linear jets off to the right.

Catching A Gravitational Wave

Monash and Warwick astronomers are searching for gravitational waves emitted by Scorpius X-1.

Clumped galaxies give General Relativity its toughest test yet

More than 600 000 galaxies from the BOSS survey were utilized to measure the strength of gravitational interactions of galaxies extremely far away from each other. This is a visual representation of that measurement; the amount that the circles are distorted, or squashed from perfect concentric rings, indicates the velocity that galaxies are falling towards each other and hence the strength of the gravitational interactions. Credit: BOSS/U. Portsmouth — More than 600 000 galaxies from the BOSS survey were utilized to measure the strength of gravitational interactions of galaxies extremely far away from each other. This is a visual representation of that measurement; the amount that the circles are distorted, or squashed from perfect concentric rings, indicates the velocity that galaxies are falling towards each other and hence the strength of the gravitational interactions. (Credit: BOSS/U. Portsmouth)