Scientists discover that universe is awash in gravitational waves
By Will Dunham WASHINGTON Scientists on Wednesday unveiled evidence that gravitational waves, the ripples in the fabric of
2023-06-29 10:53
Scientists find entirely new kind of gravitational wave in unprecedented breakthrough
Scientists have “heard” a chorus of gravitational waves rippling through the universe, in what they say is an unprecedented finding that could fundamentally change our understanding of the universe. The discovery, described in a range of newly published journal papers, suggests that spacetime is being rocked by intensely powerful gravitational waves all the time. Those waves carry a million times more energy than the one-off bursts of gravitational waves that were detected from a black hole and were themselves hailed as a major breakthrough in our understanding of the universe. The new results suggest that everything is being slowly shrunk and expanded by a new kind of gravitational wave as they pass through our galaxy. Scientists describe it as being akin to hearing a “symphony” of waves echoing through the universe. “It’s like a choir, with all these supermassive black hole pairs chiming in at different frequencies,” said Chiara Mingarelli, a scientist who worked on the new findings while an associate research scientist at the Flatiron Institute’s Center for Computational Astrophysics. “This is the first-ever evidence for the gravitational wave background. We’ve opened a new window of observation on the universe.” The new findings have been described in a range of journal articles, published in different academic journals. The research is the result of 25 years of observations from six of the world’s most sensitive radio telescopes, and have been simultaneously published by different collaborations across the world. The findings are not only notable in themselves. They also offer the opportunity to find out some of the universe’s secrets, since they can be used to find information about the binary black holes that form when galaxies merge, for instance. “These results signify the beginning of an exciting journey into the Universe, where we aim to unravel its mysteries,” Michael Keith, a lecturer at Jodrell Bank Centre for Astrophysics, UK, and contributor to one of the new studies, published in Astronomy and Astrophysics. “After decades of tireless work by hundreds of astronomers and physicists worldwide, we are finally detecting the long-awaited signature of gravitational waves originating from the distant Universe.” Scientists made the discovery by analysing observations of pulsars, which are extinguished stars that can be used as reliable clocks in the distant universe. By bringing together such a large amount of detailed data, researchers were able to measure those pulsars with very high accuracy, allowing them to measure gravitational waves at a far larger scale than using detectors on Earth. “Pulsars are excellent natural clocks. We exploit the remarkable regularity of their signals to detect subtle changes in their rhythm, enabling us to perceive the minute stretching and squeezing of space-time caused by gravitational waves originating from the far reaches of the Universe,” said David Champion, a senior scientist at the MPIfR in Bonn, Germany, and contributor to the study, in a statement. For now, researchers are only able to “hear” the vast choir, rather than the individual pulsars that make up its singers. But together they are much louder than expected, meaning that there may be more or more heavy supermassive black holes to be found in the universe. Read More Astronomers find zombie planet that ‘shouldn’t exist’ Nasa to begin Moon mining within next decade Nasa rover spots bizarre donut shaped rock on Mars
2023-06-29 08:25
Virgin Galactic set to launch its first commercial rocket plane spaceflight
By Jose Luis Gonzalez and Steve Gorman TRUTH OR CONSEQUENCES, New Mexico A three-man crew from Italy is
2023-06-28 22:27
Actor Kevin Spacey goes on trial in London this week on sex offence charges
LONDON Oscar-winning actor Kevin Spacey is due to appear in a London court on Wednesday for the start
2023-06-28 07:16
Vladimir Putin says Wagner mutiny leaders will be 'brought to justice'
The Russian president said decisions were made during the rebellion to avoid bloodshed.
2023-06-27 05:52
The Suns Are Keeping Deandre Ayton. They Should Trade Him as Soon as Possible.
The Suns should trade Deandre Ayton as fast as they can while he still has value.
2023-06-26 04:51
Kentucky basketball: Undrafted Oscar Tshiebwe gets two-way contract in NBA
Kentucky basketball star Oscar Tshiebwe went undrafted at the 2023 NBA Draft but he'll get his shot with the Pacers after signing a two-way contract.NIL is changing the game in college sports. We all know that. But it's still wild to think that players can legitimately make more stayin...
2023-06-25 01:29
SpaceX tender offer values company at about $150 billion - Bloomberg News
Elon Musk’s SpaceX is offering to sell insider shares at a price that would raise the company’s valuation
2023-06-24 03:59
NBA Power Rankings: Which team is in the best position heading into free agency?
Every team's NBA roster is a work in progress in this period between the NBA draft and free agency. But our NBA Power Rankings look at who is in the best spot.The NBA Draft is behind us and while the mass of groundbreaking trades didn't materialize, there were plenty of surprises, some...
2023-06-24 02:56
NBA Draft 2023: 5 way-too-early Rookie of the Year favorites
The 2023 NBA Draft threw more than a few surprises our way. Here are the five most promising early candidates for Rookie of the Year.The 2023 NBA Draft is officially in the rearview mirror, which means teams will now shift their focus to the summer ahead. Free agency, trades, summer league, trai...
2023-06-24 01:59
Study reveals how immune system of astronauts breaks down
By Will Dunham WASHINGTON Evidence is growing about the many ways that traveling in the microgravity environment of
2023-06-22 12:45
Nuggets make trade to add depth to their title defense
Just days after winning their first title, the Denver Nuggets made a trade with the Indiana Pacers to get into the first round of the NBA Draft.According to Adrian Wojnarowski, the Nuggets and Pacers have made a trade. Denver was looking to get into this draft when they traded for a 2024 first-r...
2023-06-22 03:54