Posts

Showing posts with the label cosmology

Colliding Planets Near ASASSN-21qj: Maybe

Image
They were looking for supernovae. What they found may become a double planet, like the Earth-Moon system, once it cools down. Or a planet with a giant moon, again like the Earth-Moon system. Then again, an oddly-uneven dusty disk may be orbiting this young, very "Sun-like" star. Either way, ASASSN-2qj is much more interesting than it was a few years back. strong>Barycenters and Binaries: Briefly Rabbit Holes and an ‘Assassin Star’ Professional Scientists, Amateur Astronomers, Teamwork and Twitter/X "...So Slow Smart" ASASSN-21qj: Once Obscure, Now Intriguing A Very Sun-Like Star Uncertainty and Science '...A Star to Steer By...' More at A Catholic Citizen in America . (Scientists looking for supernovae noticed a very sunlike star that flared in infrared and then dimmed. It may be evidence of a planetary collision.)

Double Jupiters, a JuMBO Puzzle; Antimatter Falls Down

Image
Every time we develop new tech for studying this universe, we find something new. New to us, that is. This week, I'll be talking about unexpected Jupiter-size objects in the Orion Nebula, and why scientists at CERN dropped a few hundred antihydrogen atoms. Baffling Binaries, Planetary Problem: JuMBOs in Orion Low Expectations, a Pleasant Surprise A Planet by Any Other Name JuMBOs and Questions Antimatter, Gravity, the Universe: and an Experiment at CERN A Quick Look at Antimatter, From Hicks to Dirac, and Weirdness (Most) Antihydrogen Atoms Fell Down Mystery of the Missing Antimatter 'Where's the Antimatter?' — Broadening the Search Ptolemy, C. S. Lewis, the Universe, and Assumptions "...Its Inhabitants Like Grasshoppers...." More at A Catholic Citizen in America . (Unexpected Jupiter-size binaries in the Trapezium Cluster, antimatter and gravity experiment at CERN. New data, new puzzles.)

TRAPPIST-1 and the Mysterious Pea Pod Planets

Image
There may have been times when one generation's world was much like another's. This is not one of those times. Science textbooks of my youth included speculation that Earth's mountains exist because our planet has been cooling and shrinking. One of my geology professors didn't "believe in" continental drift, and that's another topic. Back then, we knew that planets orbit our star, but weren't sure how the star we call the Sun and the Solar System formed. We still don't, for that matter. Not for sure. But the nebular hypothesis, or something very much like it, is a pretty good fit with observations. I'll get back to that, and some of what we've been learning about planetary systems: including TRAPPIST-1 and its seven worlds. More at A Catholic Citizen in America . (New planetary system pattern discovered. TRAPPIST-1 worlds. Solar System formation and evolution ideas, from Descartes to pulsar planets. Psalms 115:3.)

Galaxies, Gravity and a Hot Terrestrial Planet

Image
...The Webb data had already been used in 21 research papers, back in February. I'd prefer looking up a few of them, picking out one that sounded interesting, and talking about it. But I've had a distracted week. So today I'll focus on some really cool pictures from the JWST/Webb telescope. Mostly. NGC 1433: Hubble Space Telescope's View Abell 2744, 'Pandora's Cluster': Closer Look, New Details of Distant Galaxies Galaxies, Gravity and More Galaxies Lensed Galaxies: Showing How Gravity Lenses Work Earth-Size, But Not Earth 2.0 LHS 475 b: Methane, No; Carbon Dioxide, Maybe; Or Maybe No Atmosphere At All Terrestrial, Telluric, Solid, or Rocky: There's No Place Like Home More at A Catholic Citizen in America . (A closer look at NGC 1433, Abell 2744: and distant galaxies. LHS 475 b, Earth-size but not Earth-like. Defining terrestrial planets.)

Exoplanets, Dust, and Who Sees Data First?

Image
It's been a little over 10 years since scientists spotted Kepler-22 b. It was the first time we'd spotted a transiting exoplanet that's in its sun's habitable zone. That may or may not mean that Kepler-22 b is habitable. The odds are good that the exoplanet is a water world: covered with an ocean far deeper than Earth's Since then we've discovered quite a few water worlds. And, possibly because there's a 1995 action film called "Waterworld", they're often called ocean worlds. 1 This week I'll talk about two (probably) ocean worlds, Kepler-138 c and d; discovered in 2014, they're far to hot for life as we know it. But scientists recently published a new analysis of those two worlds. And that gave me something to talk about. So did a proposed change in when taxpayer-funded research projects release data. It's good news or bad news, depending on who's talking. That's this week's first item. I'll also look at
Image
We've found two new worlds, GJ 1002 b and c, that could be habitable. They're the right size and most likely around the right temperature. Actually, make that three new worlds. Another one, Wolf 1069 b, showed up in my news feed as I was writing this. 1 But Wolf 1069 b will wait for another time. What with one thing and another — including an unexpected visit from a daughter, son-in-law and granddaughter — I didn't ramble on as much as usual this week. So I'll take a brief, for me, look at GJ 1002 b and c. And I'll talk about literally cool data from the JWST: a look at ingredients for "the building blocks of life" in the Chamaeleon I dark molecular cloud. More at A Catholic Citizen in America . (GJ 1002 b and c may be habitable worlds orbiting a nearby red dwarf. JWST gives us new data about CHONS: key elements in the building blocks of life.)

Stars, Galaxies, XBONGs and Me

Image
As I write this, scientists have not made contact with an extraterrestrial civilization, cured the common cold, or developed a process for using pocket lint as a pollution-free sustainable energy resource. So I'll be looking at galaxies, black holes, and a place where stars are forming. Scientists figure that last item will help them work out how the earliest stars formed. But first, NASA's APOD (Astronomy Picture of the Day), almost five years back. Make that pictures: of the Cartwheel Galaxy Region and HST WFPC2. More at A Catholic Citizen in America . (Images from the Every Known Nearby Galaxy campaign, Chandra and James Webb Space Telescope. And how I see living in a vast and ancient universe.)

A Doomed World, Spiraling to Destruction

Image
Kepler-1658 b, KOI-4.01, is a "hot Jupiter". In another 2,500,000 years, give or take a bit, it won't be there any more. That makes it a hot subject for scientists: literally and figuratively. Kepler-1658 b is also the the Kepler space telescope's first confirmed exoplanet. ... ... today I'll be talking about Kepler-1658 b and why studying it matters. To scientists, at any rate.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America . (Looking at studies of Kepler-1658 b, first confirmed Kepler exoplanet; a hot Jupiter spiraling into its sun. Plus my take on pursuing truth.)

A Star by Any Other Name, and a Galilean Interlude

Image
I started writing about stars, names, designations and how we got to a point where Sirius is also known as BD-16°1591, ADS 5423 and GJ 244. That started me thinking about telescopes, Galileo, Aristotle and Dante.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

HD 63935: Two Sub-Neptunes and Maybe More

Image
Designations like HD 63935 b and c don't exactly roll of the tongue. Although with a little work I might pronounce them "trippingly on the tongue," as Hamlet put it. Maybe saying "sixty five ninety three five bee and cee" would do the trick. Then again, maybe not. I thought, briefly, of calling HD 63935, HD 63935 b and HD 63935 c "Sam, Fred and Chuck;" but thought better of it. At any rate, I'd been catching up on 'exoplanet' notes from the last year or so when I read about the HD 63935 planetary system. HD 63935's known planets there, sub-Neptunes, should help scientists learn more about how planets form. Or, rather, observing them and analyzing those observations should.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

Supernova Requiem: Reruns From a Gravity Lens

Image
Nothing in this universe lasts forever, including stars. Massive stars live fast and die young: exploding as supernovae. One of these, AT2016jka, nicknamed "Requiem," was first spotted in 2016. It showed up again in 2019. Scientists figure they'll get another look in 2037, give or take a few years But the supernova only exploded once. We're getting reruns of the event, thanks to gravitational lensing. I'll be taking about stars, including supernovae, gravitational lensing, and whatever else comes to mind. More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

"One Small Step" in a Long Journey

Image
"A journey of a thousand li starts with a single step." (Tao Te Ching," Laozi) "That's one small step for [a] man, one giant leap for mankind." (Neil Armstrong) I figure the journey to Earth's moon began when someone looked up and wondered what this world's "lesser light" might be. Uncounted ages, most likely, before folks like Laozi and Thales of Miletus added their thoughts to humanity's storehouse of knowledge. Thales of Miletus gets credit for figuring out that Earth's moon is roughly spherical. So does Anaximander, depending on who's talking. Those two lived about two and a half millennia back. A century later, Anaxagoras said Earth's moon was earthy, made of the same sort of stuff we stand on. He was right about that. Other details in his cosmology, not so much.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

No More Sunspots?

Image
Sunspots come and go in an 11-year cycle. Our sun has acted that way for centuries. With a few exceptions. The sunspot cycle changed about 23 years back. I think we'll learn a great deal by studying what's happening, but at this point scientists aren't quite sure what to make of the new 'normal.' More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

Science, Faith, and Me

Image
This universe is bigger and older than some folks thought, a few centuries back. I don't mind, at all. Besides, it's hardly new information. We've known that we live in a big world for a long time. " 4 Indeed, before you the whole universe is as a grain from a balance, or a drop of morning dew come down upon the earth." ( Wisdom 11:22 ) If that bit from Wisdom doesn't sound familiar, I'm not surprised. It's not in the Bibles many Americans have. The one I read and study frequently is the unexpurgated version.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

Finding New Worlds

Image
We could detect oxygen in Proxima Centauri b's atmosphere. It's a biosignature, but not proof of life. Some extrasolar planets are like Earth, almost. Many are unlike anything in the Solar System. I'll be looking at recently-discovered worlds; some almost familiar, others wonderfully unexpected. Also an informal 'top 10 best exoplanets' list. More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

Einstein's Waves: New Views

Image
Einstein's theories gave scientists good reasons for thinking gravitational waves exist. A century later, instruments detected the elusive radiation. Three American scientists won this year's Nobel Prize in Physics for work that led to the discovery. Observatories in America and Italy have detected three more gravitational wave signals. What they learned wasn't quite what they expected.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

Adam and the Animals

Image
I think pursuing knowledge and truth is a good idea. That's probably why Tennyson's "Ulysses" is one of my favorite poems. It's the source of my Google Plus tagline: "To follow knowledge like a sinking star, Beyond the utmost bound of human thought." ( March 26, 2017 ) I'll be talking about science, faith, and why I see no problem with admiring God's work. Also the Flat Earth Society's origin, and my own silly notion: a doughnut-shaped Earth. But first, an excerpt from Apollodorus that reminded me of the pottery metaphor in Genesis 2:7 : "...Prometheus moulded men out of water and earth and gave them also fire...." (Apollodorus, The Library, Book 1, 1.7.1 ; via The Theoi Classical Texts Library) Bible translations I grew up with often called the material in Genesis 2:7 "clay." The Hebrew the word is אדמה , adamah /adama. It means ground, land, or earth — dirt. I use the The New American Bible these days, wher

Mars: Leaky Red Planet

Image
What we're learning about Mars, and a new type of really small spacecraft, reminded me of earth, air and kilts. Also pharaohs, Thomas Paine, and Lord Kelvin. By then I was running out of time to write something more tightly-organized. I figured you might be interested in some of what I have written. On on the other hand, maybe not. So I added links to my ramblings before and after what I said more-or-less about the science news, and figure you can decide what's interesting and what's not. More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

Baryons, Gravity Waves

Image
These are exciting, or disquieting, times. Which it is depends partly on how much a person likes living in a world where scientific knowledge is rapidly changing. I like it, a lot.... ...Since this is a "religious" blog, I'll be discussing — briefly, for me — how my faith relates to experiments using CERN's Large Hadron Collider and science in general.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

Europa, Mars, and Someday the Stars

Image
Scientists think they've detected more plumes of water, shooting up from near Europa's south pole. It's early days, but we may have found a comparatively easy way to collect samples from the Jovian moon's subsurface ocean. Stephen Hawking says humanity needs to keep exploring space. I agree, although not quite for the reasons he gave. SpaceX tested an engine they plan to use on their Mars transport, and Gaia's data seems to have raised as many questions as it answers. More at A Catholic Citizen in America .