Physics in the News Tuesday, August 26, 2014 Pluto bound spacecraft crosses Neptune’s orbit(VIDEO) via nasa Mars, August 27, moon hoax is fake This image sometimes circulates on Facebook, with the claim that Mars will appear as big and bright as a full moon on August 27, 2014. It’s a hoax. Don’t believe it. Mars never appears as large as a full moon in Earth’s sky. (Credit: Unknown) via bnlive Physicists ‘freeze time’ to manipulate spin information in graphene A optical microscope image of the spintronic device (top view). The top electrode (tg) and cobalt electrodes (1 to 5) are yellow. The boron nitride layers (in green) encapsulate the graphene flake, which is outlined by the dotted line. Credit: Fundamental Research on Matter (Credit: FOM) via phys.org Radical new theory could kill the multiverse hypothesis Alessandro Strumia of the University of Pisa, pictured speaking at a conference in 2013, has co-developed a scale-symmetric theory of particle physics called “agravity.” (Credit: Thomas Lin/Quanta Magazine) via simonfoundation New technique for measuring nanostructures X-ray interference pattern measured while studying complex nano-layer structures. The sketch inserted illustrates the path of the x-ray beam relative to the surface of the sample. (Credit: Sebastian Macke) via rdmag SpaceX primed to launch second AsiaSat mission in three weeks Three weeks after launching the AsiaSat-8 communications satellite, SpaceX is primed to deliver its sibling, AsiaSat-6, into geostationary transfer orbit at an altitude of 22,236 miles (35,786 km) on Wednesday, 27 August. (Credit: AsiaSat) via americaspace Cosmic rays on the sky – where do they come from? Relative intensity (top row) and pre-trial significance (bottom row) of the cosmic-ray flux in the vicinity of Region A (left), Region B (center), and Region C (right). (Credit: Abeysekara et al) via astrobites Imprint of primordial monster star found The very first stars in the Universe might have been hundreds of times more massive than the Sun. (Credit: National Astronomical Observatory of Japan) via scientificamerican Nuclear fusion reactor at the Princeton Plasma Physics Lab will be operational again after $94 M upgrade Jonathan Menard, a principal research physicist and program director for the National Spherical Torus Experiment (NSTX), and Masa Ono, a principal research physicist and project director of the NSTX, stand in front of the experiment during a tour of the facility. The device has been shut down since 2011 while it undergoes a $94 million upgrade that will make it the most powerful device of its kind in the world. (Credit NSTX) via nj.com Roscosmos intends to spend about $298 million on removing orbital clutter The agency intends to deploy the spacecraft, codename Liquidator, to clear up the geostationary orbit over the equator, which is 36 thousand kilometers above sea level. (Credit: Roscosmos) via spacemart How the computer of the future keeps its cool “When you start to make electronics smaller and denser, not only are you making much more heat in the same amount of volume, but it’s much harder for the heat to flow outward,” says Peter Nalbach, a theoretical physicist at the University of Hamburg, Germany. (Credit: Mehau Kulyk/Getty) via popularmechanics The plan to build a massive online brain for all the world’s robots Researchers hope to create a massive online “brain” that can help all robots navigate and even understand the world around them. “The purpose,” says Saxena, who dreamed it all up, “is to build a very good knowledge graph—or a knowledge base—for robots to use. (Credit: Thinkstock, Hernandez ) via wired Physics research removes outcome unpredictability of ultracold atomic reactions Probability density of an Efimov trimer state at different three-body geometries that are characterized by the polar angle — indicated by the trimer legends. The key feature in the probability density is that unlike ordinary molecular binding that mostly has a single geometry, the Efimov trimer covers have a broad range of geometries. The atoms in such states behave more like in a fluid drop. (Credit: Yujun Wang, Kansas State University) via phys.org Share this:TweetShare on TumblrRedditEmailLike Loading...
Physics in the News Monday, August 25, 2014 Galileo satellites go into wrong, lower orbit(VIDEO) via bbc Nobel prize winner: Let’s find dark matter and dark energy Dark matter and dark energy continue to be cosmological conundrum for physicists worldwide. Nobel prize winner Brian Schmidt offers his perspective in an interview. The image shown here is of the ALMA antennas and the constellations of Carina (The Keel) and Vela (The Sails). The dark, wispy dust clouds of the Milky Way streak from middle top left to middle bottom right. (Credit: ESO, B. Tafreshi) via sciencenordic Pluto and the other dwarf planets could have astrobiological potential “Our model predicts different fracture patterns on the surface of Charon depending on the thickness of its surface ice, the structure of the moon’s interior and how easily it deforms, and how its orbit evolved,” said Alyssa Rhoden of NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center. (Credit: NASA) via dailygalaxy Soft infrastructure challenges to scientific knowledge discovery Open network environments have become essential in the sciences, enabling accelerated discovery and communication of knowledge. Yet, the real revolution began when open community databases allowed researchers to build on existing contributions and compare their results to established knowledge. (Credit: King, Uhlir) via acm Physicists attempt quantum clean-up experiment to right old error Indian physicists propose a tabletop experiment that will provide scientists their first opportunity to measure the probability that particles can move through slits in a twisted path, depicted by the purple ray. (Credit: Aninda Sinha and Urbasi Sinha) via telegraphindia Vision correcting displays could spell the end of wearing glasses via crazyengineers World’s largest laser compresses diamond to pressures of 50 million Earth atmospheres Physicists in the US have compressed a synthetic diamond to pressures of 50 million Earth atmospheres to recreate conditions in the cores of giant planets. (Credit: National Ignition Facility) via sciencealert An interesting glimpse into how future state of the art electronics might work . A novel class of electronic materials – the so-called transition-metal oxides – hold promise for exciting, new applications. Where layers of this novel class of electronic materials touch, often a unique, and unprecedented phenomenon occurs: for instance, the interface between two insulators can become superconducting, or a strong magnetic order can build up between two non-magnetic layers. via phys.org Share this:TweetShare on TumblrRedditEmailLike Loading...
Physics in the News Sunday, August 24, 2014 Atomic clocks on the International Space Station will study time and space NIST-F1 contributes to the international group of atomic clocks that define Coordinated Universal Time (UTC), the official world time. Because NIST-F1 is among the most accurate clocks in the world, it makes UTC more accurate than ever before. (Credit: Time and Frequency Division of NIST’s PML) via guardianlv Powerful solar flare reaching M5.9 erupted from Region 2149 via thewatchers Solving Stephen Hawking’s black hole paradox via davidreneke In search of alien life? Seek out the smog Artist’s conception of the atmosphere of an Earth-like planet displaying a brownish haze as the result of widespread pollution. (Credit: Christine Pulliam/Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics) via npr Stellar snow globe mystery solved with Hubble’s help This new NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope image shows the globular cluster IC 4499. A cosmic archaeological dig has unfolded within a giant ball of stars some 55,000 light-years away. (Credit: NASA) via nationalgeographic Squeezed light for advanced gravitational wave detectors and beyond(PDF) Top: A typical set-up for squeezing injection in the first demonstrations of squeezing atGEO600 and LIGO, both using DC readout [36,37]. Bottom: Proposed design for future detectors. This design features an in-vacuum OPO. The remainder of the squeezed light source remains outside of vacuum. (Credit: E. Oelker, L. Barsotti, S. Dwyer, D. Sigg, and N. Mavalvala) via opticsinfobase Mercury’s transit: An unusual spot on the sun What’s that dot on the Sun? If you look closely, it is almost perfectly round. The dot is the result of an unusual type of solar eclipse that occurred in 2006. Usually it is the Earth’s Moon that eclipses the Sun. This time, the planet Mercury took a turn.(Credit: D. Cortner, NASA, K. Schmidt) via spacefellowship The invisible galaxies: Radio images of the whirlpool galaxy and beyond “Maybe we will see how galaxies are magnetically connected to intergalactic space. This is a key experiment in preparation for the planned Square Kilometre Array (SKA) that should tell us how cosmic magnetic fields are generated,” says Rainer Beck, lead astronomer with the Max Planck Institute. via dailygalaxy Researchers make color-shifting surface modeled on squid Researchers have developed a flexible structure that can sense ambient conditions and adjust its color to match them. At the moment, it only works in black and white. (Credit: PNAS, Timmer) via arstechnica Share this:TweetShare on TumblrRedditEmailLike Loading...
Physics in the News Saturday, August 23, 2014 SpaceX rocket malfunctions, then explodes over texas In a conversation with Mashable via Twitter, McGregor resident @EthansMommy17, who tweeted the above image of the explosion, claimed cows had been killed by debris from the explosion. She was unable to provide images or other confirmation of the affected livestock, however. (Credit: @EthansMommy17) via mashable NASA, Russia squabble over International Space Station sea plankton claim The space specialist said that the ISS surface was polluted very strongly due to operation of space engines and other factors. “We are conducting special works to polish somehow and put illuminators in order. This is particularly needed during long space flights,” Solovyev added. (Credit: Tracy Caldwell Dyson) via forbes Space’s quantum physics confound scientists Although they are gigantic, ranging from one to a few hundred lightyears in size, the physical process that causes these nebulae to emit their own light (rather than merely reflect light from nearby stars) occurs at the atomic level. It is the same process that makes familiar florescent lights shine here on Earth. (Credit: NASA, Prozesky) via mg Why NASA launched one of the blackest materials ever Made into space On July 29th, the the Automated Transfer Vehicle launched carrying samples of the stuff to the ISS, where it docked on August 12th. There, astronauts will conduct tests on the paint, which absorbs 99.5 percent of visible light (and 99.8 percent of longer wavelength light). (Credit: NASA, Campbell-Dollaghan) via gizmodo The first metamaterial superconductor: One step closer to futuristic physics-defying contraptions(VIDEO) via extremetech ‘Robot overlords’ job-stealing exaggerated Google Inc. has conducted more than 300,000 miles of driverless car testing with vehicles. They navigate by collecting real-time sensor data and comparing it to pre-loaded maps that specify exact locations for roads and signs, while adapting to obstacles such as people and cars. (Credit: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images, Kearns) via bloomberg X-ray laser probes tiny quantum tornadoes in superfluid droplets A patterned 3-D grid of tiny whirlpools, called quantum vortices, populate a nanoscale droplet of superfluid helium. Researchers found that in a micron-sized droplet, the density of vortices was 100,000 times greater than in any previous experiment on superfluids. An artistic rendering of a wheel-shaped droplet can be seen in the distance. (Credit: SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory) via phys Scientists Found a Way to Email Brain Waves(VIDEO) via plsone Space Station inspired robot to help heal sick children The suturing tool demonstrates image-guided anastomosis, which means the connecting of parts such as vessels. The target on the top of the tool is used to lead the tool’s tip. This is the same technology used to track the robotic systems on the space shuttle and the International Space Station. (Credit: MDA and CIGITI) via phys Spectacular Auroras Captivate Astronaut in Space An aurora dances in the atmosphere on Aug. 20, 2014, as the International Space Station flew over North America. This image was captured by astronaut Reid Wiseman from his vantage point on the ISS. (Credit: NASA/Handout/QMI Agency) via cbc Share this:TweetShare on TumblrRedditEmailLike Loading...
Physics in the News Friday, August 22, 2014 Traces of one of the Universe’s first stars detected The first stars were born a few hundred million years after the Big Bang, as this artist impression shows. (Credit: NASA) via bbc Scientists pulled hydrogen from water using an AAA battery The nickel-based catalyst is just as effective as platinum. (Credit: Tunnicliffe, Stanford) via tcetoday Cyborg moths can be controlled mid-flight by scientists(VIDEO) via motherboard Study finds that human subjects prefer when robots give the orders(VIDEO) via mit Asteroid had active volcanoes, reveal researchers New meteorite evidence shows volcanic activity began much earlier in the history of the solar system than previously thought. (Credit:USGS) via abc Telescope captures spectacular view of nebula, star cluster This mosaic of images from the Wide Field Imager on the MPG/ESO 2.2-metre telescope at ESO’s La Silla Observatory in Chile shows two dramatic star formation regions in the southern Milky Way. (Credit: ESO/G. Beccari) via forbes The next space race is for a rental car into orbit Boeing in among three companies bidding for the next NASA contract to take astronauts into space. The company is offering its CST-100 space capsule in the competition. (Credit: Boeing) via washingtonpost Quantum gravity expert says “philosophical superficiality” has harmed physics Carlo Rovelli: “Theoretical physics has not done great in the last decades. Why? Well, one of the reasons, I think, is that it got trapped in a wrong philosophy.” (Credit: Horgan) via scientificamerican Pairing old technologies with new for next-generation electronic devices The scientists reported a 40-times-larger effect than previously achieved in semiconductor materials, with the largest value measured comparable to a record high value of the spin-Hall effect observed in heavy metals such as Platinum. (Credit: UCL London Centre for Nanotechnology) via spacemart Share this:TweetShare on TumblrRedditEmailLike Loading...