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More than any other equation in physics, E = mc² is recognizable and profound. But what do we actually learn about reality from it? ===================================================================== This 1934 photograph shows Einstein in front of a blackboard, deriving special relativity for a group of students and onlookers. Although special relativity is now taken for granted, it was revolutionary when Einstein first put it forth, and doesn't even describe his most famous equation, which is E = mc². - Public Domain ====================================================================== Key Takeaways: * First introduced way back in 1905, Einstein’s most famous equation, E = mc², put forth the mathematical formula...

The carvings at Göbekli Tepe even show the movements of the constellations. Image credit: Dr Martin Sweatman Acataclysmic comet impact 13,000 years ago may have sparked the rise of civilization, according to the authors of a new study. The event – which many scientists believe never happened – may even be documented at the world-famous site of Göbekli Tepe, forming part of a series of carvings that the researchers say represent the world’s oldest solar calendar. Located in southern Türkiye, Göbekli Tepe is a pre-pottery Neolithic complex that is estimated to be around 12,000 years old. Analyzing an intricately carved...

The Hubble Telescope captured this extraordinary image of the galaxy LEDA 857074, driven by the detection of the supernova SN 2022ADQZ. Despite being an obscure galaxy with minimal prior data, this event highlights its significance in the cosmic landscape, showcasing the serendipitous nature of astronomical discoveries. Credit: ESA/Hubble & NASA, R. J. Foley ============================================================================ This ethereal Hubble Space Telescope image features the galaxy LEDA 857074, located in the constellation Eridanus. LEDA 857074 is a barred spiral galaxy, with partially broken spiral arms. It also has a particularly bright spot right in its bar: this is a supernova snapped by Hubble,...

Unofficial reports of 10 antihelium nuclei smacking into the International Space Station have inspired theoretical physicists to speculate beyond our current models in search of an explanation. While a small handful of cosmic particles might appear trivial, the signature of the antihelium shower is strange enough for researchers to treat the event like a rainstorm in a desert. In their recently published analysis, scientists from the Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics in Canada and Johns Hopkins University in the US make a case for considering physics outside of the currently accepted Standard Model, going as far as suggesting dark matter...

Artist’s depiction of the expected nova. Gif: NASA Visualization Studio ===================================================================================== T Coronae Borealis, a binary star system located 3,000 light-years from Earth, is a ticking time bomb waiting to explode. And if the recurring nova follows its usual pattern, we can expect to see a new, albeit temporary, star appearing in our night sky any day now. The moderator of a citizen scientist group I belong to recently emphasized, “T CrB remains our highest priority target every night.” His urgency is understandable; our “Cosmic Cataclysms” group needs to be on the lookout for the expected nova, gathering data before,...

Explanation: As Mars wanders through Earth's night, it passes about 5 degrees south of the Pleiades star cluster in this composite astrophoto. The skyview was constructed from a series of images captured over a run of 16 consecutive clear nights beginning on July 12. Mars' march across the field of view begins at the far right, the planet's ruddy hue showing a nice contrast with the blue Pleiades stars. Moving much faster across the sky against the distant stars, the fourth planet from the Sun easily passes seventh planet Uranus. Red planet Mars and the ice giant world were in...

Jupiter as seen by Hubble. Image credit: NASA, ESA, A. Simon (Goddard Space Flight Center) and M.H. Wong (University of California, Berkeley) ================================================================= The Great Red Spot is a storm larger than our whole planet. It is clearly visible on the Southern Hemisphere of Jupiter, even to small telescopes, and we have been observing it for centuries. It became clear in the last few years that it is shrinking. Now, new research suggests that the cause of this is a change in diet. Simulations suggest that the growth of the larger storm depends on continuously incorporating smaller storms that get...

A long-term Hubble Space Telescope study of the Draco dwarf galaxy’s stars suggests dark matter is concentrated at the galaxy’s center, supporting the density cusp theory. This finding challenges earlier observations and improves our understanding of dark matter’s role in galaxy formation. (Artist’s concept.) Credit: SciTechDaily.com =================================================================================== The Hubble Space Telescope’s longevity is an asset in gaining clarity about the universe’s invisible glue. When theory and observations favor different results, how can astronomers determine which one is more feasible? Increasing confidence in one theory over another oftentimes requires building a richer dataset to improve current models and lower uncertainties. A...

Scientists at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in Berkeley, California, announced today that they have for the first time used a beam of titanium to make a known superheavy element, livermorium — element 116. After upgrading the lab’s equipment, the team plans to use similar techniques to try to produce element 120. The heaviest element that has been made so far is oganesson, element 118, which was first synthesized in 2002.

The planet is as cold as ice and orbits far from its star. The observations from JWST of this cold giant planet. Image Credit: T. Müller (MPIA/HdA), E. Matthews (MPIA) ========================================================================== JWST has imaged a new planet directly and it is quite a fascinating object. It orbits one of the three stars in the Epsilon Indi system and it weighs six times the mass of Jupiter. This super-Jupiter is 20 to 40 times further from its star than Earth is from the Sun – so it is very cold. It also doesn't help that the star, Eps Ind A, is...

Physicists at the University of Stuttgart, led by Professor Sebastian Loth, have developed a groundbreaking quantum microscope that can record the movement of electrons at the atomic level with incredibly high spatial and temporal resolution. This new method could significantly advance the way scientists develop materials. Their findings have been published in the journal Nature Physics. “With our new method, we can see things that no one has ever seen before,” says Prof. Loth, the Managing Director of the Institute for Functional Matter and Quantum Technologies at the University of Stuttgart. “This allows us to answer questions about electron movements...

An international team of researchers, including a chemist from Northwestern University, has discovered that metallic minerals on the deep-ocean floor can produce oxygen at depths of 13,000 feet. This finding challenges the traditional belief that only photosynthetic organisms, such as plants and algae, generate Earth's oxygen. The discovery suggests oxygen can also be produced at the seafloor, supporting aerobic sea life in complete darkness. The study will be published on Monday, July 22, in the journal Nature Geoscience. Andrew Sweetman from the Scottish Association for Marine Science (SAMS) discovered this "dark oxygen" during ship-based fieldwork in the Pacific Ocean. Franz...

A patented experimental propellantless propulsion drive is finally ready to go to space, according to its inventor, a veteran NASA scientist with decades of expertise in electrostatics. [Multiple Videos at Site] Dr. Charles Buhler, the technology’s creator, says the propulsion system may represent a working version of Quantized Inertia, a theory first proposed by University of Plymouth professor Mike McCulloch. The proposition has been subjected to criticism from mainstream scientists in the past because it seemingly violates Newton’s third law of motion. The controversial technology, which The Debrief covered in April, is privately owned by Exodus Propulsion Technologies and is...

Astronomers at Penn State University have identified an exoplanet with the most eccentric orbit ever observed among transiting planets...Named TIC 241249530, this newly discovered exoplanet exhibits a highly elongated orbit resembling a cucumber rather than a circle. Published in the journal Nature, the study provides significant insights into the formation and evolution of Hot Jupiters, a class of massive gas giants that orbit very close to their host stars...First detected using NASA's Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) in January 2020, the exoplanet's host star exhibited a dip in its brightness, indicating the presence of a Jupiter-sized planet passing in front...

The galaxy PJ0116-24, located 10 billion light-years away from Earth, appears to exhibit characteristics that contradict the standard view that galaxy mergers are required to produce such intense luminosity.The groundbreaking findings, which are detailed in a newly published paper in Nature Astronomy, seem to point to the occurrence of rapid star formation in HyLIRGs, revealing that it can occur through internal processes. The discovery presents new challenges to existing notions held by astronomers about how such formations occur...In the past, it was believed that the intense luminosity produced by HyLIRGs was exclusively the result of mergers between galaxies, which result...

JWST deep field vs hubble This region of space, viewed first iconically by Hubble and later by JWST, shows an animation that switches between the two. Both images still have fundamental limitations, as they were acquired from within our inner Solar System, where the presence of zodiacal light influences the noise floor of our instruments, and cannot easily be removed.Credit: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI, Christina Williams (NSF’s NOIRLab), Sandro Tacchella (Cambridge), Michael Maseda (UW-Madison); Processing: Joseph DePasquale (STScI); Animation: E. Siegel ======================================================================================= KEY TAKEAWAYS: * The darkest night skies, both from Earth as well as from interplanetary space, aren’t completely...

While the “Epoch of Reionization” sounds like the title of a sci-fi novel destined for a Hugo award, this very real era of the universe featured the first light from the very first stars. Before this epoch, the universe was nothing more than a dark void filled with a fog of primordial hydrogen gas—and then, suddenly, there was light. For decades, scientists have searched for a source of radiation powerful enough to have cleared away this fog and introduced light into the universe. Now, an international team of scientists have analyzed the first faintest galaxies ...

Electron neutrinos have been experimentally observed for the first time during recent experiments by physicists at CERN, which produced proton-proton collisions at the facility’s Large Hadron Collider (LHC). Neutrinos are neutral subatomic particles possessing almost no mass. First detected in 1956, they possess 1/2 integral spin like all fermions and rarely react with normal matter except through the weak force. Neutrinos come in three different varieties, associated with electrons, muons, and tau particles. Due to their sparring interactions with matter, all three types of neutrinos are regarded as being among the most elusive particles in the universe. Despite this, physicists...

The jet of this extreme object is changing direction creating an S-shape in the sky. ================================================================== One of the most iconic views of Circinus X-1. New research has revealed intriguing new details about this system. Image Credit: X-ray: NASA/CXC/Univ. of Wisconsin-Madison/S. Heinz, et al.; Optical: DSS Radio image of the S-shaped precessing jet launched by the neutron star in Circinus X-1. Image Credit: Fraser Cowie ================================================================== Astronomers have spotted a neutron star whose jet is changing direction for the first time. Likened to a garden sprinkler, the jet is coming from the phenomenal object Circinus X-1, one of the brightest...

Explanation: The galaxy was never in danger. For one thing, the Triangulum galaxy (M33), pictured, is much bigger than the tiny grain of rock at the head of the meteor. For another, the galaxy is much farther away -- in this instance 3 million light years as opposed to only about 0.0003 light seconds. Even so, the meteor's path took it angularly below the galaxy. Also the wind high in Earth's atmosphere blew the meteor's glowing evaporative molecule train away from the galaxy, in angular projection. Still, the astrophotographer was quite lucky to capture both a meteor and a galaxy...