ScienceDaily: Big Bang Theory News

Stacking up a clearer picture of the universe

Thu, 13 Jun 2013 09:23:23 EDT

Researchers have proven a new technique that will provide a clearer picture of the Universe's history and be used with the next generation of radio telescopes such as the Square Kilometer Array.

Scientists size up universe's most lightweight dwarf galaxy

Mon, 10 Jun 2013 13:35:35 EDT

The least massive galaxy in the known universe has now been measured, clocking in at just 1,000 or so stars with a bit of dark matter holding them together.

Simple theory may explain mysterious dark matter

Mon, 10 Jun 2013 13:28:28 EDT

The reason dark matter, which makes up 85 percent of all the matter in the universe, is invisible could be because it possesses a rare, donut-shaped type of electromagnetism instead of the more exotic forces that have been proposed, according to an analysis by theoretic physicists.

Black holes abundant among the earliest stars

Wed, 05 Jun 2013 19:07:07 EDT

By comparing infrared and X-ray background signals across the same stretch of sky, astronomers have discovered evidence of a significant number of black holes that accompanied the first stars in the universe.

Cat's Paw Nebula 'littered' with baby stars

Wed, 05 Jun 2013 13:36:36 EDT

Most skygazers recognize the Orion Nebula, one of the closest stellar nurseries to Earth. Although it makes for great views in backyard telescopes, the Orion Nebula is far from the most prolific star-forming region in our galaxy. That distinction may go to one of the more dramatic stellar nurseries like the Cat's Paw Nebula, otherwise known as NGC 6334, which is experiencing a "baby boom."

'Population census' of galaxies buried in dust

Fri, 31 May 2013 10:52:52 EDT

Conventional research on distant galaxies have been carried out mainly with visible light and near infrared light. However, it is possible that many galaxies in the universe have been overlooked as much of that radiation is largely absorbed by cosmic dust. That is why millimeter and submillimeter wave observations are important. Stellar light absorbed by dust is reradiated from the dust as millimeter/submillimeter waves. Therefore galaxies, even those which it has not been possible to observe with optical telescopes, can be detected using these wavebands.

NASA's Magnetospheric Multiscale team assembles final observatory

Thu, 30 May 2013 15:23:23 EDT

On May 20, 2013, the Magnetospheric Multiscale, or MMS, mission team at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md., reached an unprecedented milestone. The team mated the instrument and spacecraft decks to form the fourth and final MMS observatory. This is the first time Goddard has simultaneously engineered this many observatories, or spacecraft, for a single mission.

New mathematical model links space-time theories

Thu, 30 May 2013 09:46:46 EDT

Researchers have taken a significant step in a project to unravel the secrets of the structure of our Universe.

Cosmic glitch: Astronomers discover new phenomenon in neutron star

Wed, 29 May 2013 13:05:05 EDT

The physics behind some of the most extraordinary stellar objects in the universe just became even more puzzling. A group of astronomers has discovered a new kind of glitch in the cosmos, specifically in the rotation of a neutron star.

Cosmic swirly straws: Galaxies fed by funnels of fuel

Fri, 24 May 2013 15:48:48 EDT

Computer simulations of galaxies growing over billions of years have revealed a likely scenario for how they feed: a cosmic version of swirly straws. The results show that cold gas -- fuel for stars -- spirals into the cores of galaxies along filaments, rapidly making its way to their "guts." Once there, the gas is converted into new stars, and the galaxies bulk up in mass.

Research effort deep underground could sort out cosmic-scale mysteries

Fri, 24 May 2013 13:43:43 EDT

Scientists have begun delivery of germanium-76 detectors to an underground laboratory in South Dakota in a team research effort that might explain the puzzling imbalance between matter and antimatter generated by the Big Bang.

Detection of the cosmic gamma ray horizon: Measures all the light in the universe since the Big Bang

Fri, 24 May 2013 10:46:46 EDT

Radiation from all galaxies that ever existed suffuses the universe with a diffuse extragalactic background light (EBL). Measuring the EBL is as fundamental to cosmology as measuring heat from the Big Bang (cosmic microwave background) at radio wavelengths. Researchers describe the best measurement yet of the evolution of the EBL over the past 5 billion years, based on observations from radio waves to gamma rays from NASA spacecraft and ground-based telescopes.

Fragile mega-galaxy is missing link in history of cosmos

Wed, 22 May 2013 13:11:11 EDT

Two hungry young galaxies that collided 11 billion years ago are rapidly forming a massive galaxy about 10 times the size of the Milky Way, according to new research.

NASA launching experiment to examine the beginnings of the universe

Tue, 21 May 2013 13:40:40 EDT

When did the first stars and galaxies form in the universe? How brightly did they burn their nuclear fuel? Scientists will seek to gain answers to these questions with the launch of the Cosmic Infrared Background ExpeRIment (CIBER) on a Black Brant XII suborbital sounding rocket between 11 and 11:59 p.m. EDT, June 4 from the Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia.

New method proposed for detecting gravitational waves from ends of universe

Thu, 16 May 2013 16:17:17 EDT

A new window into the nature of the universe may be possible with a device proposed by scientists that would detect elusive gravity waves from the other end of the cosmos.

NASA completes first part of Webb Telescope's 'eye surgery' operation

Wed, 15 May 2013 17:52:52 EDT

Much like the inside of an operating room, in the clean room at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md., engineers worked meticulously to implant part of the eyes of the James Webb Space Telescope. They scrubbed up and suited up to perform one of the most delicate performances of their lives. That part of the eyes, the MIRI, or Mid-Infrared Instrument, will glimpse the formation of galaxies and see deeper into the universe than ever before.

Exotic atoms hold clues to unsolved physics puzzle at the dawn of the universe

Wed, 08 May 2013 17:21:21 EDT

An international team of physicists has found the first direct evidence of pear shaped nuclei in exotic atoms. The findings could advance the search for a new fundamental force in nature that could explain why the Big Bang created more matter than antimatter -- a pivotal imbalance in the history of everything.

Astronomers discover surprising clutch of hydrogen clouds lurking among our galactic neighbors

Wed, 08 May 2013 13:17:17 EDT

In a dark, starless patch of intergalactic space, astronomers have discovered a never-before-seen cluster of hydrogen clouds strewn between two nearby galaxies, Andromeda (M31) and Triangulum (M33). The researchers speculate that these rarefied blobs of gas -- each about as massive as a dwarf galaxy -- condensed out of a vast and as-yet undetected reservoir of hot, ionized gas, which could have accompanied an otherwise invisible band of dark matter.

New kind of cosmic flash may reveal birth of a black hole

Fri, 03 May 2013 23:04:04 EDT

According to an astrophysicist, a new kind of cosmic flash may reveal something never seen before: the birth of a black hole.

'Shockingly bright' burst of gamma rays from dying star in distant galaxy

Fri, 03 May 2013 15:15:15 EDT

A record-setting blast of gamma rays from a dying star in a distant galaxy has wowed astronomers around the world. The eruption, which is classified as a gamma-ray burst, or GRB, and designated GRB 130427A, produced the highest-energy light ever detected from such an event.

New dark matter detector begins its search

Thu, 02 May 2013 18:53:53 EDT

Scientists heard their first pops this week in an experiment that searches for signs of dark matter in the form of tiny bubbles. Scientists will need further analysis to discern whether dark matter caused any of the COUPP-60 experiment’s first bubbles at the SNOLAB underground science laboratory.

Colossal hot cloud envelopes colliding galaxies

Tue, 30 Apr 2013 15:15:15 EDT

Scientists have completed a detailed study of an enormous cloud of hot gas enveloping two large, colliding galaxies. This unusually large reservoir of gas contains as much mass as 10 billion Suns, spans about 300,000 light years, and radiates at a temperature of more than 7 million degrees.

Deep, detailed image of distant universe

Tue, 30 Apr 2013 10:59:59 EDT

Staring at a small patch of sky for more than 50 hours with the ultra-sensitive Karl G. Jansky Very Large Array (VLA), astronomers have for the first time identified discrete sources that account for nearly all the radio waves coming from distant galaxies. They found that about 63 percent of the background radio emission comes from galaxies with gorging black holes at their cores and the remaining 37 percent comes from galaxies that are rapidly forming stars.

Herschel completes its 'cool' journey in space

Tue, 30 Apr 2013 10:24:24 EDT

The Herschel observatory, a European space telescope for which NASA helped build instruments and process data, has stopped making observations after running out of liquid coolant as expected. The European Space Agency mission, launched almost four years ago, revealed the universe's "coolest" secrets by observing the frigid side of planet, star and galaxy formation.

Entire galaxies feel the heat from newborn stars: Bursts of star birth can curtail future galaxy growth

Thu, 25 Apr 2013 10:33:33 EDT

Astronomers have shown for the first time that bursts of star formation have a major impact far beyond the boundaries of their host galaxy. These energetic events can affect galactic gas at distances of up to twenty times greater than the visible size of the galaxy -- altering how the galaxy evolves, and how matter and energy is spread throughout the Universe.

Using black holes to measure the universe's rate of expansion

Mon, 22 Apr 2013 12:30:30 EDT

Scientists have developed a method that uses black holes to measure distances of billions of light years with a high degree of accuracy. The ability to measure these distances will allow scientists to see further into the past of the universe than ever before.

Distant blazar is a high-energy astrophysics puzzle

Thu, 18 Apr 2013 12:57:57 EDT

Blazars are the brightest of active galactic nuclei, and many emit very high-energy gamma rays. New observations of the blazar known as PKS 1424+240 show that it is the most distant known source of very high-energy gamma rays, but its emission spectrum now appears highly unusual in light of the new data.

X-ray view of a thousand-year-old cosmic tapestry

Wed, 17 Apr 2013 16:50:50 EDT

A long Chandra observation reveals the SN 1006 supernova remnant in exquisite detail. By overlapping 10 different pointings of Chandra's field-of-view, astronomers have stitched together a cosmic tapestry of the debris field that was created when a white dwarf star exploded, sending its material hurtling into space as seen from Earth over a millennium ago. In this new Chandra image, low, medium, and higher-energy X-rays are colored red, green, and blue respectively.

Astronomers discover massive star factory in early universe

Wed, 17 Apr 2013 16:49:49 EDT

A team of astronomers has discovered a dust-filled, massive galaxy churning out stars when the cosmos was a mere 880 million years old -- making it the earliest starburst galaxy ever observed.

Massive galaxy had intense burst of star formation when universe was only 6 percent of current age

Wed, 17 Apr 2013 13:18:18 EDT

Astronomers find the most prolific star factory yet seen, in a far-distant galaxy that reveals important information about the cosmic environment in the early history of the Universe.

ALMA telescope pinpoints early galaxies at record speed

Wed, 17 Apr 2013 09:20:20 EDT

Astronomers have used the new ALMA (Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array) telescope to pinpoint the locations of over 100 of the most fertile star-forming galaxies in the early Universe.

Strange new bursts of gamma rays point to a new way to destroy a star

Tue, 16 Apr 2013 14:47:47 EDT

Scientists have pinpointed a new type of exceptionally powerful and long-lived cosmic explosion, prompting a theory that they arise in the violent death throes of a supergiant star.

'Post-mortem' yields insight into Kepler's supernova

Mon, 08 Apr 2013 18:46:46 EDT

An exploding star observed in 1604 by the German astronomer Johannes Kepler held a greater fraction of heavy elements than the sun, according to an analysis of X-ray observations from the Japan-led Suzaku satellite. The findings will help astronomers better understand the diversity of type Ia supernovae, an important class of stellar explosion used in probing the distant universe.

Listening to the Big Bang -- in high fidelity

Thu, 04 Apr 2013 17:01:01 EDT

Physicist have updated the decade-old re-creation of the sound of the Big Bang that started the universe.

Hubble breaks record in search for farthest supernova

Thu, 04 Apr 2013 10:45:45 EDT

NASA's Hubble Space Telescope has found the farthest supernova so far of the type used to measure cosmic distances. Supernova UDS10Wil, nicknamed SN Wilson after American President Woodrow Wilson, exploded more than 10 billion years ago.

Green Pea galaxies could help astronomers understand early universe

Wed, 03 Apr 2013 14:14:14 EDT

The rare Green Pea galaxies discovered by the general public in 2007 could help confirm astronomers' understanding of reionization, a pivotal stage in the evolution of the early universe.

Search for dark matter: Experiment measures antimatter excess in cosmic ray flux

Wed, 03 Apr 2013 11:53:53 EDT

The international team running the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer (AMS) today announced the first results in its search for dark matter. They report the observation of an excess of positrons in the cosmic ray flux. The results are consistent with the positrons originating from the annihilation of dark matter particles in space, but not yet sufficiently conclusive to rule out other explanations.

New insights on how spiral galaxies get their arms

Tue, 02 Apr 2013 12:48:48 EDT

Spiral galaxies are some of the most beautiful and photogenic residents of the universe. Our own Milky Way is a spiral. Our solar system and Earth reside somewhere near one of its filamentous arms. And nearly 70 percent of the galaxies closest to the Milky Way are spirals. But despite their common shape, how galaxies like ours get and maintain their characteristic arms has proved to be an enduring puzzle in astrophysics.

NASA provides a super-speed look at Webb Telescope progress

Wed, 27 Mar 2013 11:39:39 EDT

NASA released a new sped-up, 32-second video that shows engineers working on some of the James Webb Space Telescope's flight components to integrate them together to ensure they will work perfectly together in space.

Young, hot and blue: Stars in the cluster NGC 2547

Wed, 27 Mar 2013 09:27:27 EDT

The Universe is an old neighborhood -- roughly 13.8 billion years old. Our galaxy, the Milky Way, is also ancient -- some of its stars are more than 13 billion years old (eso0425). Nevertheless, there is still a lot of action: new objects form and others are destroyed. In a new image, you can see some of the newcomers, the young stars forming the cluster NGC 2547.

Hubble digs up galactic glow worm

Sun, 24 Mar 2013 09:51:51 EDT

The image of a charming and bright galaxy, known as IRAS 23436+5257, was captured by the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope. It is located in the northern constellation of Cassiopeia, which is named after an arrogant, vain, and yet beautiful mythical queen.

Supercomputer helps Planck mission expose ancient light

Thu, 21 Mar 2013 13:02:02 EDT

Like archeologists carefully digging for fossils, scientists with the Planck mission are sifting through cosmic clutter to find the most ancient light in the universe. The Planck space telescope has created the most precise sky map ever made of the oldest light known, harking back to the dawn of time. This light, called the cosmic microwave background, has traveled 13.8 billion years to reach us. It is so faint that Planck observes every point on the sky an average of 1,000 times to pick up its glow. The task is even more complex than excavating fossils because just about everything in our universe lies between us and the ancient light. Complicating matters further is "noise" from the Planck detectors that must be taken into account. That's where a supercomputer helps out. Supercomputers are the fastest computers in the world, performing massive amounts of calculations in a short amount of time.

'Sideline quasars' helped to stifle early galaxy formation

Thu, 21 Mar 2013 11:10:10 EDT

Astronomers targeting one of the brightest quasars glowing in the universe some 11 billion years ago say "sideline quasars" likely teamed up with it to heat abundant helium gas billions of years ago, preventing small galaxy formation.

Best map ever made of universe's oldest light: Planck mission brings universe into sharp focus

Thu, 21 Mar 2013 08:42:42 EDT

The Planck space mission has released the most accurate and detailed map ever made of the oldest light in the universe, revealing new information about its age, contents and origins.

Life in the universe: Foundations of carbon-based life leave little room for error

Wed, 13 Mar 2013 18:23:23 EDT

Life as we know it is based upon the elements of carbon and oxygen. Now a team of physicists is looking at the conditions necessary to the formation of those two elements in the universe. They've found that when it comes to supporting life, the universe leaves very little margin for error.

'Monster' starburst galaxies discovered in early universe

Wed, 13 Mar 2013 14:25:25 EDT

Astronomers have discovered starburst galaxies earlier in the Universe's history than they were previously thought to have existed. These newly discovered galaxies represent what today's most massive galaxies looked like in their energetic, star-forming youth.

Rewriting history of Universe's stellar baby boom: Ancient, highly active galaxies discovered

Wed, 13 Mar 2013 14:25:25 EDT

New observations show that the most vigorous bursts of star birth in the cosmos took place much earlier than previously thought.

Astronomers discover extremely rare triple quasar

Tue, 12 Mar 2013 09:25:25 EDT

For only the second time in history, astronomers have discovered an extremely rare triple quasar system. Quasars are extremely bright and powerful sources of energy that sit in the center of a galaxy, surrounding a black hole. In systems with multiple quasars, the bodies are held together by gravity and are believed to be the product of galaxies colliding.

Strategies for possible survival on Mars: Scientists found differences in core proteins from a microorganism that lives in a salty lake in Antarctica

Mon, 11 Mar 2013 17:39:39 EDT

Research has revealed key features in proteins needed for life to function on Mars and other extreme environments. Scientists studied organisms that survive in the extreme conditions of Antarctica. They found differences between the core proteins in ordinary organisms and Haloarchaea, organisms that tolerate severe conditions such as high salinity, desiccation, and extreme temperatures. The research provides a window into how life could adapt to exist on Mars.

Hubble finds 'birth certificate' of oldest known star

Thu, 07 Mar 2013 14:51:51 EST

Astronomers have taken an important step closer to finding the birth certificate of a star that's been around for a very long time. The star could be as old as 14.5 billion years (plus or minus 0.8 billion years), which at first glance would make it older than the universe's calculated age of about 13.8 billion years, an obvious dilemma.

Universe measured more accurately than ever before: New results pin down distance to galaxy next door

Wed, 06 Mar 2013 13:40:40 EST

After nearly a decade of careful observations astronomers have measured the distance to our neighboring galaxy, the Large Magellanic Cloud, more accurately than ever before. This new measurement also improves our knowledge of the rate of expansion of the Universe — the Hubble Constant — and is a crucial step towards understanding the nature of the mysterious dark energy that is causing the expansion to accelerate.

Herschel space observatory to complete its mission soon

Wed, 06 Mar 2013 13:17:17 EST

The Herschel space observatory is expected to exhaust its supply of liquid helium coolant in the coming weeks, after spending more than three years studying the cool universe and surpassing the expectations of the international team of scientists involved.

Gravitational telescope creates space invader mirage

Tue, 05 Mar 2013 10:09:09 EST

The NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope is one of the most powerful available to astronomers, but sometimes it too needs a helping hand. This comes in the form of Einstein's general theory of relativity, which makes galaxy clusters act as natural lenses, amplifying the light coming from very distant galaxies.

Fermi's motion produces a study in spirograph

Wed, 27 Feb 2013 18:35:35 EST

NASA's Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope orbits our planet every 95 minutes, building up increasingly deeper views of the universe with every circuit. Its wide-eyed Large Area Telescope sweeps across the entire sky every three hours, capturing the highest-energy form of light -- gamma rays -- from sources across the universe. These range from supermassive black holes billions of light-years away to intriguing objects in our own galaxy, such as X-ray binaries, supernova remnants and pulsars.

White dwarf supernovae are discovered in Virgo Cluster galaxy and in sky area 'anonymous'

Wed, 27 Feb 2013 13:44:44 EST

Observation of two bright exploding stars has improved the astronomical "tape measure" that scientists use to calculate the acceleration of the expansion of the universe.

NASA's NuSTAR helps solve riddle of black hole spin

Wed, 27 Feb 2013 13:25:25 EST

Two X-ray space observatories, NASA's Nuclear Spectroscopic Telescope Array (NuSTAR) and the European Space Agency's XMM-Newton, have teamed up to measure definitively, for the first time, the spin rate of a black hole with a mass 2 million times that of our sun.

NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory to lead U.S. science team for dark energy mission

Tue, 12 Feb 2013 14:01:01 EST

The European Space Agency (ESA) has selected three NASA-nominated science teams to participate in their planned Euclid mission, including one team led by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif.

Does probability come from quantum physics?

Tue, 05 Feb 2013 15:14:14 EST

Ever since Erwin Schrodinger put his unfortunate cat in a box, his fellow physicists have been using quantum theory to explain and understand the nature of waves and particles. But a new article makes the case that these quantum fluctuations actually are responsible for the probability of all actions, with far-reaching implications for theories of the universe.

Hubble catches the moment the lights went out

Tue, 05 Feb 2013 12:37:37 EST

The further away you look, the further back in time you see. Astronomers use this fact to study the evolution of the Universe by looking at nearby and more distant galaxies and comparing their features. Hubble is particularly well suited for this type of work because of its extremely high resolution and its position above the blurring effects of Earth's atmosphere. This has allowed it to detect many of the most distant galaxies known, as well as making detailed images of faraway objects.

Astronomers ask 'where are all the dwarf galaxies?'

Fri, 01 Feb 2013 09:03:03 EST

Astronomers have identified “Cosmic Web Stripping” as a new way of explaining the famous missing dwarf problem: the lack of observed dwarf galaxies compared with that predicted by the theory of Cold Dark Matter and Dark Energy.