| Politics aside (for now) here are the technical marvels to look forward to... |  | ||
| Re: With the James Webb space telescope (Hubble's replacement) fully operational, it's now possible for the first time to see objects in the universe older than Joe Biden. -- LateForLunch | Post Reply | Top of thread | Forum |
Posted by: LateForLunch ®  07/13/2022, 13:27:19 Author Profile Mail author Edit |
...mostly for astrophysics and of course astronomy. One of the fun things the scope will be able to do (because it has greater magnification power than Hubble) is observe light that passes through atmospheres of distant planets. The reason that's fun is spectroscopic measurements will show the chemical make-up of the air on those planets. Some chemicals are naturally occurring without life, but some gases like chlorophyl, specific isotopes of oxygen, methane, carbon dioxide and other gases are only known to appear in the presence of homeostatic organic activity (life). IOW, if they see some types of gas in the atmospheres in sufficient amounts, it will indicate the likelihood (virtual certainty) that life (as we know it) is present on that planet. The other value of the scope aside from planetology, is to astrophysics. That's because the further back in time one looks in the cosmos, the less difference is found between the elementary forces and the more information physicists who study the basic structure of the universe can obtain. It seems paradoxical that to gain insight into the tiniest spaces of reality (quantum/Planck length) one may observe the largest structures in the universe (galaxies/vast regions of space) but that is true. See, by observing the way cosmic objects behave, theorists may deduce specific information about basic elementary forces such as gravity, electromagnetism, the strong atomic and the weak atomic forces. Of particular interest to scientists is the behavior of the universe in the immediate aftermath of the Big Bang - (from 13.9 billion years to 13.2 billion years ago) because it was during that time that the universe became transparent (light energy separated from solid objects)and the first stars/galaxies formed. There are cosmic forces know as Dark Energy* (which theoretically pushes the fabric of space apart) and Dark Matter (which theoretically holds the fabric of space together). These forces may interact to affect Gravity. The elementary nature of those Dark Energy and Dark Matter are not understood by physicists. It's hoped that observations of the earliest universe will help physicists better understand the basic structure and dynamics of those obscure forces. Gravity is especially interesting to physicists because if it were possible to understand the quantum (most basic) structure of gravity, it might also be possible to modify, change or block its effect on matter. In other cases of elementary forces, once the quantum form was discovered, it then eventually became possible to alter, change, channel and block the forces. Understanding the quantum form of atoms (the Strong Atomic Force) gave us thermonuclear weapons. Understanding the quantum form of light (photons/electromagnetic energy) produced lasers, radar, x-ray machines, phase-state chemistry, super-conductors and other marvels. If gravity could be removed as a factor from equations, it would theoretically be possible to accelerate an object (such as a ship) to infinite velocity. Remove gravity as a force and one could theoretically move an object the size of an entire mountain with a finger or accelerate a ship fast enough to cross intergalactic space in minutes. *Dark Energy is also known as "the Cosmic Constant" from Einstein's work on the subject.
Modified by LateForLunch at Wed, Jul 13, 2022, 13:52:59 |
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