Astronomy Picture of the Day - Confirmed Muon Wobble Remains Unexplained

APOD.NASA.gov ^ | 13 Apr, 2021 | Image Credit: Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory; Photographer: Reidar Hahn

[MtnClimber]

Explanation: How fast do elementary particles wobble? A surprising answer to this seemingly inconsequential question came out of Brookhaven National Laboratory in New York, USA in 2001, and indicated that the Standard Model of Particle Physics, adopted widely in physics, is incomplete. Specifically, the muon, a particle with similarities to a heavy electron, has had its relatively large wobble under scrutiny in a series of experiments known as g-2 (gee-minus-two). The Brookhaven result galvanized other experimental groups around the world to confirm it, and pressured theorists to better understand it. Reporting in last week, the most sensitive muon wobble experiment yet, conducted at Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory (Fermilab) in Illinois and pictured here, agreed with the Brookhaven result. The unexpected wobble rate may indicate that an ever-present sea of virtual particles includes types not currently known. Alternatively, it may indicate that flaws exist in difficult theoretical prediction calculations. Future runs at Fermilab's g-2 experiment will further increase precision and, possibly, the statistical difference between the universe we measure and the universe we understand.

[MtnClimber]

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[MtnClimber]

[MtnClimber]

Pinging the APOD list.

🪐 🌟 🌌

[Hot Tabasco]

How fast do elementary particles wobble?

I'll have to ask my bowling team Friday night.......

[Nateman]

The Muon has a half life of 2.2 microseconds. It is amazing it is even known to exist much less measure a property to 12 digits on it.

[null and void]

Muon
Mu off
2.2 µS

[ETL]

[Seruzawa]

I’m going to be pedantic here. This is not an astronomy picture.

[BenLurkin]

What’s all this I hear about a wobbling moomoo.

[Noumenon]

More phlogiston...

[MtnClimber]

They only drink a little. Then they wobble a little.

[ETL]

The Muon has a half life of 2.2 microseconds.

They are or can be created in our atmosphere as a result of collisions between incoming cosmic rays and elements in the upper atmosphere. Amazingly, more of them reach detectors on the ground than would be expected given their extremely short life spans. The reason that they do involves their high rate of speed, a significant portion of light speed. And so, from their perspective, or frame of reference, the distance between their point of creation and the ground is shortened by a phenomenon known as the Lorentz Contraction. And from an earthbound point of view, again, due to their high rate of speed, their internal 'clock' is slowed by a reciprocal known as Time Dilation, allowing them to live long enough to make the trip to the ground. Both of these phenomena are part of Einstein's theory of relativity.

[ETL]

They only drink a little. Then they wobble a little.

Speaking of drinks, looks like these cowpokes have had a few!

[ETL]

Sometimes they wobble and DO actually fall down!

[reviled downesdad]

Amazing how Einstein proved time for an object is relative to its speed.

[ETL]

Paraphrasing Einstein, “A moving clock ticks out time more slowly than a stationary clock at your side”

However, from the quickly moving object’s frame of reference, it is the distance yet to travel that actually shortens (physically) as a result of its high rate of speed. Incredibly, they would actually see OUR clocks ticking time more slowly than theirs. And, crazily, BOTH would be correct! That is, so long as the two are in a state of uniform relative motion with respect to each other (ie, constant speed AND constant direction, aka “inertial motion”.

[MtnClimber]

Not a convincing ad for the new Ronco Wobble Shoes!

[AFB-XYZ]

The wobble is easily explainable. Stacey Abrams had yet another temper tantrum. :-)

[MtnClimber]

Gravity waves!

[infool7]

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