Voyager Online: Sci Facts

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So you're into sci fi? But what about sci fact? Sometimes fact is stranger than fiction...

Each month our very own Voyager Science Queen* will bring you interesting, quirky and downright bizarre tid bits from the world of science. And its all completely, totally, 100% true!

February Sci-Facts

Living in Interesting Times

There is a famous Chinese curse: May you live in interesting times. You could say that the Astronomical Community is suffering from this curse…the last month has been a mixed bag for Astronomers and Astrophysicists. I am going to give the bad news first, so that I can end on a high note and not leave anyone too depressed.

The Destructions of the Mount Stromlo Observatory

In its eyrie above Canberra, there once was the little observatory that could. It wasn’t a big observatory. It wasn’t a vital resource to the worldwide astronomical community. But it had been the first one in a newly federated country, with its nine-inch telescope donated in 1911. The larger observatory was founded in1924, and the Mount Stromlo Observatory had since gained an internationally recognised and respected reputation for its work, both before and after WW2.
In 1952, the dome was nearly swept away by bushfire. The astronomers on site successfully fought off that threat. In fact, only last year, the 50th anniversary of that event was celebrated.

But, the threat was never truly beaten. On the 18th of January, the Canberra fires swept through the observatory and it was destroyed, along with the telescopes, irreplaceable research books and volumes of recording data. The building housing the computer hardware wasn’t destroyed, but only time will tell if the heat didn’t affect the data.

To add to theses losses, Mike Bessell, one of the observatory’s veteran astronomers, tried to save some of the current research by taking it home in Duffy; his house was also claimed by the fires. This tragedy may not compare to the horror caused by the loss of human life, but it is still a terrible blow to the tiny community of Australian astronomy professionals.
So now, on the hilltop, all that remains is a sad dome of blackened struts forming an iron net…but this net will never catch a falling star. And for this little castle in the air, this dome of the ivory tower, there is no ‘happily ever after’.

The True Gravity of the situation

As I’ve previously brought up in other Science pages, Einstein developed a theory of the universe relating to space and time, where the speed of light and the speed of gravity is a constant, and this was in conflict with the Newtonian universe, where the speed of gravity was infinite. This meant, in Newton’s universe, that gravity travelled instantaneously to everywhere from everything else...and this theory gives us a pretty accurate model for how our solar system works. Until now, no one has been able to measure the speed of gravity, and prove which theory provided the better ‘picture’ of the real universe.

It has now been discovered, thanks to Edward B Fomalout of the National Radio Astronomy Observatory and Sergei Kopeikin of the University of Missouri. Using a series of ten radio telescopes, scattered across the Earth from Hawaii to Germany, they measured precisely how light from a quasar was bent as it passed by Jupiter on its way to the Earth. And, they discovered that the light and gravity match in speed.

The alignment of the Earth, Jupiter and the quasar occur once a decade, so it was a rare astronomical event that allowed the discovery to occur.

The discovery has many benefits to Science. Not only is Einstein’s theory receiving a boost to its validity, but also other theories can now be further researched. Super strings (as previously mentioned in another Science Page), the existence of blackholes, and other gravity-related phenomena can have new experiments designed with the new constant incorporated into the data. The Hubble Constant - approximately the 73 + 10 km/second per mega parsec – can be confirmed. These new avenues of research mean that astrophysics is now one the most active and exciting area of scientific research.

***

So, as you can see, the last month has been very exciting. Excitement is not necessarily a good thing, all in all.
There are only 100 fulltime astronomers in Australia, and their research in sadly under funded. The Stromlo Observatory may never be as it was, unless we get behind it. Please write to your Federal Member of Parliament, and ask them what is being done to rebuild the dome, as your interest will help keep the issue alive.

*The Voyager Science Queen is also known as Lynne Green

So, who is this woman who attempts to entertain us with Science?

Well, I really am a scientist. I have a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Queensland, in Zoology. And, at the moment, I am working in a Pathology laboratory.

I have always been intensely curious about every aspect of our universe, from the teeny tiny workings of the gene right up to the mind-bending forces that are twisting and knotting inside a blackhole. So, now I am sharing a brain stuffed full of trivia…and hopefully entertaining people at the same time.

As well, I write Fantasy stories and novels. One day, I hope to have a book published, but don't hold your breath. Reading is my other major love, and my favourite authors are Terry Pratchett and Isaac Asimov, though I could list hundreds of others. If I had one wish, I ask for more time to write!

Read previous Sci-Facts:

New Hope for Our New Year
The Meaning of Life…
As the worm turns
Forensics
A Grab Bag of Facts
Bits and Bobs
Australian Achievements
Getting Your Attention
May Sci-Facts
After the Big Bang
The Big Bang
Ashes to ashes; Dust to dust
Twists in the tale
Robots in the Swim and other things
The Tachyon and other things

Looking for more scientific oddities? Have you checked out Dr Steven Juan's website? He is, quite literally, the wizard of odds!