Physics & Astronomy

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Physics & Astronomy

Squid Galaxy Elevates Neutrino Game with New Advances

An international team of researchers, including the Kavli Institute for the Physics and Mathematics of the Universe (Kavli IPMU, WPI), has used a mismatch between elementary particles and gamma rays from NGC 1068 to propose a new route by which neutrinos can be produced. Antarctic ice has eyes that can see elementary particles called neutrinos, and what they’ve observed is puzzling scientists: a remarkably strong neutrino signal accompanied by a surprisingly weak gamma ray emission in the galaxy NGC 1068,…

Singular and non singular
Physics & Astronomy

Exploring Black Holes: Insights Beyond the Singularity

Can we do away with the troublesome singularity at the heart of black holes? A new paper in JCAP reimagines these extreme objects in light of current knowledge. “Hic sunt leones,” remarks Stefano Liberati, one of the authors of the paper and director of IFPU. The phrase refers to the hypothetical singularity predicted at the center of standard black holes — those described by solutions to Einstein’s field equations. To understand what this means, a brief historical recap is helpful….

Galaxies M81 and M82. Image by rwittich, Envato.
Physics & Astronomy

Understanding Warm Galaxy Clusters and Giant Interstellar Structures

The XRISM science team, including members of Nagoya University, has explained how galaxy clusters maintain their heat despite emitting X-rays, which typically have a cooling effect on the hot gas. By observation of the Centaurus cluster of galaxies, the XRISM team discovered the existence of a fast-moving, high-temperature gas flow in the center of the cluster. Their findings, published by Nature, may solve the ‘cooling flow problem’, explaining why clusters of galaxies look like they do. Galaxy clusters are made…

A narrow-band image of the Sun at a wavelength of λ=588.9nm, that of a well known solar sodium line also known as the “NaD line.” The image was acquired during recent first light efforts with the VTF at the Inouye, and shows how precisely the structures within a sunspot are resolved. Each pixel in the original version of the image corresponds to 10 km (or 6.2 miles) on the Sun. Credit: © VTF/KIS/NSF/NSO/AURA
Physics & Astronomy

World’s Largest Solar Telescope Begins Operations

First Light! The spectro-polarimeter of the world’s largest solar telescope in Hawaii looks at the Sun for the first time. The instrument was developed in Germany With a primary mirror diameter of four meters, the Inouye Solar Telescope is the largest in the world. Thanks to the optimal observational conditions on the Hawaiian volcano Haleakala and the use of sophisticated methods of image stabilization and reconstruction, the Inouye Solar Telescope has been providing breathtakingly detailed views of our star since…

The SwRI-led NASA New Horizons mission’s extensive observations of Lyman-alpha emissions have resulted in the first-ever map from the galaxy in Lyman-alpha light. This SwRI-developed Alice spectrograph map (in ecliptic coordinates, centered on the direction opposite the Sun) depicts the relatively uniform brightness of the Lyman-alpha background surrounding our heliosphere. The black dots represent approximately 90,000 known UV-bright stars in our galaxy. The north and south galactic poles are indicated (NGP & SGP, respectively), along with the flow direction of the interstellar medium through the solar system (both upstream and downstream). Credit: Southwest Research Institute
Physics & Astronomy

First Lyman-Alpha Map of Galaxy V from New Horizons

SwRI-led NASA spacecraft’s scans offer surprising view of galactic surroundings The NASA New Horizons spacecraft’s extensive observations of Lyman-alpha emissions have resulted in the first-ever map from the galaxy at this important ultraviolet wavelength, providing a new look at the galactic region surrounding our solar system. The findings are described in a new study authored by the SwRI-led New Horizons team. “Understanding the Lyman-alpha background helps shed light on nearby galactic structures and processes,” said SwRI’s Dr. Randy Gladstone, the…

Researechers are testing superconducting microwire single-photon detectors (SMSPDs) for use in future particle physics exepriments. The detectors, which were designed and fabricated at JPL and commissioned at the INQNET-Caltech labs, were recently tested at Fermilab. They have the ability to detect single parties at a time, and may improve the precision of measurements made in particle accelerator collisions. Credit: Cristián Peña, Fermilab
Physics & Astronomy

Quantum Sensors Set to Transform Particle Physics Experiments

New research shows that the specialized sensors can detect particles more precisely To learn more about the nature of matter, energy, space, and time, physicists smash high-energy particles together in large accelerator machines, creating sprays of millions of particles per second of a variety of masses and speeds. The collisions may also produce entirely new particles not predicted by the standard model, the prevailing theory of fundamental particles and forces in our universe. Plans are underway to create more powerful…

Ana Carolina de Souza-Feliciano is an associate professor at the Florida Space Institute. Her research focuses on characterizing the surface properties of small bodies in our solar system. (Photo by Antoine Hart) Credit: Photo by Antoine Hart
Physics & Astronomy

UCF Scientists Explore Solar System Origins with James Webb Telescope

A newly published study shows varying levels of methanol, a molecule that is an important component of pre-biotic chemistry, in a spectral analysis of small celestial objects beyond Neptune University of Central Florida (UCF) scientists and their collaborators discovered new insights into the formation of distant icy objects in space beyond Neptune, offering a deeper understanding of our solar system’s formation and growth. Using the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), scientists analyzed far-away bodies — known as Trans-Neptunian Objects (TNOs)…

The Allen Telescope Array at Hat Creek Radio Observatory. Credit: Luigi Cruz
Physics & Astronomy

SETI Institute Launches ARISE Lab for Community Colleges

Bringing SETI science to community colleges SETI Institute Launches ARISE Lab, Bringing SETI and Radio Astronomy to Community Colleges The SETI Institute announced it will expand its pilot program funded through a grant from the Amateur Radio and Digital Communication (ARDC) Foundation now called ARISE Lab (arise.seti.org). This initiative brings SETI science to community colleges and provides hands-on training for community college instructors and students in astronomy, digital signal processing, and radio science. “Hands-on experiences are proven to improve student…

A team of Penn State researchers are developing solutions to some of the biggest problems currently facing satellite technology with the help of a Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency grant. Credit: Poornima Tomy/Penn State
Physics & Astronomy

The New Era of Space Exploration: A Shorter Race

Another race to space is on, but the competitors aren’t reaching for the moon. Instead, multiple national agencies and private companies across the world are aiming for the edge of Earth’s atmosphere. Launching satellites into this very low Earth orbit (VLEO) environment — the altitude between 60 and 280 miles above Earth — could solve spacecraft crowding in traditional orbits, according to Sven Bilén, Penn State professor of engineering design, of electrical engineering and of aerospace engineering. Bilén said satellites in traditional…

An artist rendering of what a future cosmic ray radar instrument could look like, attached to a satellite orbiting the Moon.
Physics & Astronomy

Innovative Approaches Boost Moon Ice Search Efforts

Scientists and space explorers have been on the hunt to determine where and how much ice is present on the Moon. Water ice would be an important resource at a future lunar base, as it could be used to support humans or be broken down to hydrogen and oxygen, key components of rocket fuel. University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa researchers are using two innovative approaches to advance the search for ice on the Moon. ShadowCam scouts for surface ice Water…

Skyrmions of light: The researchers are able to manipulate light fields to create entirely new shapes.
Physics & Astronomy

Extraordinary Light Fields: Exploring Plasmonic Skyrmion Bags

Team from University of Stuttgart publishes results in Nature Physics “Our results add another chapter to the emerging field of skyrmion research,” proclaims Prof. Harald Giessen, head of the Fourth Physics Institute at the University of Stuttgart, whose group achieved this breakthrough. The team demonstrated the existence of “skyrmion bags” of light on the surface of a metal layer. A better understanding of physical phenomena Skyrmions are a mathematical description of vortex-like structures that help researchers better understand fundamental physical…

The image of Zhúlóng shows its spiral arms, an old central bulge and a large star-forming disc, which resembles the Milky Way. Credit: © NASA/CSA/ESA, M. Xiao (University of Geneva), G. Brammer (Niels Bohr Institute), Dawn JWST Archive
Physics & Astronomy

Most Distant Milky Way Twin Observed: A New Cosmic Discovery

An international team led by the University of Geneva (UNIGE) has discovered the most distant spiral galaxy candidate known to date. This ultra-massive system existed just one billion years after the Big Bang and already shows a remarkably mature structure, with a central old bulge, a large star-forming disk, and well-defined spiral arms. The discovery was made using data from the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) and offers important insights into how galaxies can form and evolve so rapidly in…

Dasom Kim Credit: Photo by Jorge Vidal/Rice University
Physics & Astronomy

Scientists Discover Exotic Quantum Phase Previously Thought Improbable

Discovery in a magnetic crystal could enable breakthroughs in quantum tech A team of Rice University researchers reported the first direct observation of a surprising quantum phenomenon predicted over half a century ago, opening pathways for revolutionary applications in quantum computing, communication and sensing. Known as a superradiant phase transition (SRPT), the phenomenon occurs when two groups of quantum particles begin to fluctuate in a coordinated, collective way without any external trigger, forming a new state of matter. The discovery…

The optical rotatum's logarithmic spiral follows a pattern found often in nature, including nautilus shells. Credit: Capasso Lab / Harvard SEAS
Physics & Astronomy

Nautilus Shell-Inspired Light Innovates Home Lighting Design

‘Optical rotatum’ describes new structure of light Beams of light that can be guided into corkscrew-like shapes called optical vortices are used today in a range of applications. Pushing the limits of structured light, Harvard applied physicists in the John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS) report a new type of optical vortex beam that not only twists as it travels but also changes in different parts at different rates to create unique patterns. The way the light behaves…

Artist’s impression of the accretion disc around the massive black hole Ansky and its interaction with a small celestial object Credit: European Space Agency
Physics & Astronomy

Giant Black Hole Awakens: A New Era of Cosmic Innovation

Although we know that supermassive black holes (millions of times the mass of our Sun) lurk at the centre of most galaxies, their very nature makes them difficult to spot and study. In contrast to the popular idea of black holes constantly ‘gobbling up’ matter, these gravitational monsters can spend long periods of time in a dormant, inactive phase. This was true of the black hole at the heart of SDSS1335+0728, a distant and unremarkable galaxy 300 million light-years away…

This artist's concept of a lake at the north pole of Saturn's moon Titan illustrates raised rims and rampartlike features as seen by NASA's Cassini spacecraft. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech
Physics & Astronomy

Titan: Study Reveals Potential for Tiny Life on Saturn’s Moon

Despite its uniquely rich inventory of organic molecules, the moon may be able to support only a minuscule amount of biomass, a bioenergetic modeling study suggests. Titan, Saturn’s largest moon, is a strange, alien world. Covered in rivers and lakes of liquid methane, icy boulders and dunes of soot-like “sand,” its topography has long fascinated scientists and invited speculation on whether lifeforms might lurk beneath the moon’s thick, hazy atmosphere. An international team of researchers co-led by Antonin Affholder at…

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