The Universe is out there, waiting for you to discover it.
“There will be days when we lose faith. Days when our allies turn against us…but the day will never come that we forsake this planet and its people.” ―Optimus Prime There was too much to simply keep it to a single article a day this week here at Starts With A Bang! The dynamic duo of Megan … Read moreComments of the Week #175: From future technology to the cause of dark energy
“It’s becoming clear that in a sense the cosmos provides the only laboratory where sufficiently extreme conditions are ever achieved to test new ideas on particle physics. The energies in the Big Bang were far higher than we can ever achieve on Earth. So by looking at evidence for the Big Bang, and by studying … Read more5 Facts We Can Learn If LIGO Detects Merging Neutron Stars (Synopsis)
“Presently thought to be the most powerful explosions in nature… their sources have only recently been localized by observations of associated afterglows in X-rays, visible light, and radio waves, delayed in that order.” -Richard Matzner, on the dictionary entry for Gamma Ray Burst It seems like an eternity ago, but it’s been under two years … Read moreBeyond Black Holes: Could LIGO Have Detected Merging Neutron Stars For The First Time? (Synopsis)
“Astronomers are greatly disappointed when, having traveled halfway around the world to see an eclipse, clouds prevent a sight of it; and yet a sense of relief accompanies the disappointment.” –Simon Newcomb On August 21st, a total solar eclipse will travel coast-to-coast across the United States, bringing darkness during the day to portions of 14 … Read moreAmerica’s Previous Coast-To-Coast Eclipse Almost Proved Einstein Right (Synopsis)
“The years of searching in the dark for a truth that one feels but cannot express, the intense desire and the alternations of confidence and misgiving until one breaks through to clarity and understanding, are only known to him who has himself experienced them.” -Albert Einstein In 2015, for the very first time, gravitational waves … Read moreRipples In Spacetime: From Einstein To LIGO And Beyond (Synopsis)
“Lord of Light! Come to us in our darkness. We offer you these false gods. Take them and cast your light upon us. For the night is dark and full of terrors.” -Melisandre, George R.R. Martin’s A Song of Fire and Ice Imagine a world where you know that winter is coming, but you don’t … Read more‘Game Of Thrones’ Home World Could Actually Exist, Says Science (Synopsis)
“Nobody ever did, or ever will, escape the consequences of his choices.” -Alfred A. Montapert So you’re passing by a black hole in a massive, fast-moving spaceship, and you want to do an experiment: you tether a small mass outside of the ship and let it fall into the black hole, just allowing it the … Read moreIs it possible to pull something out of a black hole? (Synopsis)
“Eddington had needed to make significant corrections to some of the measurements, for various technical reasons, and in the end decided to leave some of the Sobral data out of the calculation entirely. Many scientists were suspicious that he had cooked the books. Although the suspicion lingered for years in some quarters, in the end … Read moreHow a solar eclipse first proved Einstein right (Synopsis)
“Einstein’s gravitational theory, which is said to be the greatest single achievement of theoretical physics, resulted in beautiful relations connecting gravitational phenomena with the geometry of space; this was an exciting idea.” -Richard Feynman There’s no doubt that LIGO has given us one of the most incredible breakthroughs of the 21st century: the direct detection … Read moreLIGO’s Successor Approved; Will Discover Incredible New Sources Of Gravitational Waves (Synopsis)
“What’s really exciting is what comes next. I think we’re opening a window on the universe — a window of gravitational wave astronomy.” -Dave Reitze, executive director of LIGO It revolutionized our view of the Universe when the LIGO annoucements – and we’re up to three, now – came out. They indicated the direct detection … Read moreWas It All Just Noise? Independent Analysis Casts Doubt On LIGO’s Detections (Synopsis)