Posted on 09/20/2006 6:40:57 PM PDT by annie laurie
A new discovery is casting doubt on the idea that a type of star explosion shines with equal brightness wherever it occurs in the universe. The finding could have implications for estimates of the size of the cosmos.
Type-1a supernovae are typically used as standard indicators of distance in the vast expanse of the universe. But the discovery of a Type-1a supernova more massive than was thought possible could force astronomers to rethink their ideas about the luminous objects, scientists reported today.
...
It was thought that all Type-1a supernovae emit equal amounts of light at their peak and fade at the same rate afterwards. Because of this they are used as "standard candles" for figuring out cosmic distances. In 1998, using these Type-1a supernovae, astronomers found that the expansion of the universe is accelerating.
But astronomers recently discovered a Type-1a supernova called SNLS-03D3bb that shines more than twice as brightly as its counterparts, researchers report in the Sept. 20 issue of the journal Nature. This along with the low kinetic energy of the star — the energy of the flying objects from the explosion — implies that the supernova originated from a white dwarf more massive than the Chandrasekhar limit ...
(Excerpt) Read more at msnbc.msn.com ...
Do you mean when I look at deep space objects with my Meade 10" Schmidt-Cassagrain, I am really looking into the past?
Before I was born! Before my ancestry became farmers. Wow!
Does it beat watching Johnny Carson in reruns? (Joking!)
So in your unbiased opinion, religion cannot be based on fact. I think you may need to rethink your definition of the word faith.
Viewers on a planet circling Sirius would just recently have heard the name Monica Lewinsky for the first time and are placing bets on how quickly Clinton will be forced to resign.
I guess they don't really know very much.
Do you believe the cognitive content of that definition, and if so, does that belief constitute religious faith?
Cordially,
Let's see if we can figure out what this is actually about.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/14924959/
Super-Chandrasekhar-masses should occur preferentially in young stellar populations, the researchers write.
SNLS-03D3bb comes from a pack of young stars in a distant galaxy when the universe was much younger than it is today. The color of young stars and their host galaxies are generally blue. This, in addition to other methods, is how scientists determined the age of the star.
You got the cajones to go to Saudi and teach the Theory of Evolution?
They are closely related to Marxists and Freudians,
This is a disgusting libel; you should be ashamed of yourself.
but have nothing at all to do with Reaganites.
some of us are in fact Reaganites. Again, a disgusting, shamworthy libel.
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