- Hawking and Einstein Confirmed: In a groundbreaking cosmic event, the collision of two black holes has validated predictions made by both Stephen Hawking and Albert Einstein. Observations from gravitational wave observatories confirmed Hawking's area theorem, showing that the surface area of the resulting black hole increased, and matched Einstein's predictions regarding the black hole's ring down, revealing a new Kerr black hole.
- Moss Survives in Space: Astonishingly, moss spores exposed to the harsh conditions of space on the International Space Station for nine months were able to germinate upon their return to Earth. This remarkable resilience of extremophiles supports theories like panspermia, suggesting that life's building blocks could survive interplanetary journeys.
- Balloon-Based Astronomy: The Excalibur mission is revolutionizing observational astronomy by utilizing a telescope suspended from a high-altitude balloon. Operating above 99% of Earth's atmosphere, it measures high-energy X-ray polarization from cosmic objects like the Crab Nebula and Cygnus X1, providing unprecedented insights into their magnetic fields and structures.
- Mystery of the Misaligned Exoplanet: Astronomers are puzzled by TOI 3884, a super Neptune with a bizarrely tilted orbit of 62 degrees. Lacking any nearby massive objects to explain its unusual trajectory, scientists are left with unconventional theories about its formation, highlighting the chaotic nature of planetary systems.
- Is the Universe Infinite? The question of whether the universe is infinite remains unresolved. While measurements of the cosmic microwave background suggest a flat geometry, which implies infinity, our observable horizon limits our ability to confirm this. The potential for a finite universe with complex topology adds further complexity to this profound inquiry.
- For more cosmic updates, visit our website at astronomydaily.io. Join our community on social media by searching for #AstroDailyPod on Facebook, X, YouTubeMusic, TikTok, and our new Instagram account! Don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts.
- Thank you for tuning in. This is Anna and Avery signing off. Until next time, keep looking up and exploring the wonders of our universe.
Black Hole Collision Insights
[NASA](https://www.nasa.gov/)
Moss in Space Study
[International Space Station](https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/main/index.html)
Excalibur Mission Overview
[NASA](https://www.nasa.gov/)
TOI 3884 Exoplanet Research
[NASA Exoplanet Archive](https://exoplanetarchive.ipac.caltech.edu/)
Cosmic Microwave Background Studies
[NASA](https://www.nasa.gov/)
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This episode includes AI-generated content.
00:00:00 --> 00:00:02 Avery: Hello, and ah, welcome to Astronomy Daily,
00:00:03 --> 00:00:05 the podcast that brings the cosmos down to
00:00:05 --> 00:00:08 Earth. I'm Avery, and as always, I'm
00:00:08 --> 00:00:10 here with the brilliant Anna.
00:00:10 --> 00:00:13 Anna: Hello, Avery, and hello to all our
00:00:13 --> 00:00:16 listeners. We have a fascinating lineup today
00:00:16 --> 00:00:18 covering everything from cosmic giants
00:00:18 --> 00:00:21 to microscopic survivors.
00:00:21 --> 00:00:24 Avery: That's right. We'll be talking about a major
00:00:24 --> 00:00:26 confirmation of a Stephen Hawking theory.
00:00:27 --> 00:00:29 Moths that survived the vacuum of space.
00:00:29 --> 00:00:32 A telescope on a balloon. A planet that's
00:00:32 --> 00:00:35 orbiting completely off kilter. And we'll end
00:00:35 --> 00:00:37 by tackling one of the biggest questions out
00:00:37 --> 00:00:40 there. Is the universe infinite?
00:00:40 --> 00:00:42 Anna: It's a packed episode.
00:00:42 --> 00:00:43 Shall we start with the giants?
00:00:44 --> 00:00:47 Avery: Let's do it. Our first story is a big
00:00:47 --> 00:00:49 one. Two of the greatest minds in physics,
00:00:49 --> 00:00:52 Stephen Hawking and Albert Einstein,
00:00:52 --> 00:00:54 both had some of their most fundamental
00:00:54 --> 00:00:57 predictions confirmed by a single cosmic
00:00:57 --> 00:00:57 event.
00:00:58 --> 00:01:00 Anna: This involves the collision of two black
00:01:00 --> 00:01:03 holes. Using gravitational wave
00:01:03 --> 00:01:05 observatories, scientists got their clearest
00:01:05 --> 00:01:07 observation yet of such a merger.
00:01:08 --> 00:01:11 Avery: And the first big confirmation relates to
00:01:11 --> 00:01:13 Hawking's area theorem. Um, he predicted that
00:01:13 --> 00:01:16 the surface area of a black hole, its event
00:01:16 --> 00:01:19 horizon can never, ever shrink. It
00:01:19 --> 00:01:21 can only stay the same or grow.
00:01:22 --> 00:01:25 Anna: Right. It's a law of black hole mechanics.
00:01:25 --> 00:01:27 And in this merger, they measured the surface
00:01:27 --> 00:01:30 area of the two original black holes and
00:01:30 --> 00:01:33 compared it to the new, larger one that
00:01:33 --> 00:01:33 formed.
00:01:33 --> 00:01:34 Avery: And?
00:01:34 --> 00:01:37 Anna: And the new surface area was indeed
00:01:37 --> 00:01:40 greater than the sum of the two initial ones.
00:01:40 --> 00:01:41 Hawking was right.
00:01:42 --> 00:01:44 Avery: It's just incredible to see a theoretical
00:01:44 --> 00:01:47 prediction made decades ago proven so
00:01:47 --> 00:01:50 precisely. But that wasn't all they saw, was
00:01:50 --> 00:01:50 it?
00:01:50 --> 00:01:53 Anna: No, it wasn't. The signal was so
00:01:53 --> 00:01:56 clear that they could observe the ring down
00:01:56 --> 00:01:58 of the new black hole. Think of it like
00:01:58 --> 00:01:59 striking a bell.
00:01:59 --> 00:02:01 Avery: Mhm. The ringing.
00:02:01 --> 00:02:04 Anna: Exactly. The new black hole wobbled
00:02:04 --> 00:02:07 and settled into its final shape, sending out
00:02:07 --> 00:02:09 gravitational waves that faded over time,
00:02:09 --> 00:02:12 just like the sound of a bell. The specific
00:02:12 --> 00:02:14 frequencies and decay patterns of that ring
00:02:14 --> 00:02:17 down matched the predictions of Einstein's
00:02:17 --> 00:02:19 general theory of relativity perhaps
00:02:19 --> 00:02:20 perfectly.
00:02:20 --> 00:02:22 Avery: So in one event, we get a check mark for
00:02:22 --> 00:02:25 Hawking and a check mark for Einstein.
00:02:25 --> 00:02:28 And this new object they observed is called a
00:02:28 --> 00:02:29 Kerr black hole, right?
00:02:30 --> 00:02:32 Anna: That's correct. A Kerr black hole is one that
00:02:32 --> 00:02:35 is rotating. Since the two smaller black
00:02:35 --> 00:02:38 holes were spiraling around each other, the
00:02:38 --> 00:02:40 resulting merged black hole inherited that
00:02:40 --> 00:02:43 spin. It's the type of black hole we expect
00:02:43 --> 00:02:45 to be common in the universe.
00:02:45 --> 00:02:48 Avery: Wow. What a powerful confirmation of our
00:02:48 --> 00:02:50 understanding of gravity and the universe.
00:02:50 --> 00:02:53 From the colossal to the well to the very,
00:02:53 --> 00:02:54 very small.
00:02:54 --> 00:02:57 Our next story is almost the polar opposite.
00:02:57 --> 00:03:00 Anna: It really is. This story comes from
00:03:00 --> 00:03:03 the International Space Station, but it's not
00:03:03 --> 00:03:06 about the astronauts inside. It's about
00:03:06 --> 00:03:08 something that was living on the outside.
00:03:08 --> 00:03:11 Avery: On the outside? Fully exposed to space.
00:03:12 --> 00:03:15 Anna: Fully exposed. Scientists placed moss
00:03:15 --> 00:03:17 spores in a container on an external platform
00:03:17 --> 00:03:20 of the iss. For nine months, these
00:03:20 --> 00:03:22 spores endured the vacuum of space,
00:03:23 --> 00:03:26 extreme temperature swings, and the full
00:03:26 --> 00:03:27 force of cosmic radiation.
00:03:28 --> 00:03:29 Avery: That sounds like a recipe for total
00:03:29 --> 00:03:32 destruction. I can't imagine anything
00:03:32 --> 00:03:32 surviving that.
00:03:33 --> 00:03:36 Anna: That's what makes this so astonishing. When
00:03:36 --> 00:03:38 they brought the spores back to Earth, a high
00:03:38 --> 00:03:40 percentage of them were still able to
00:03:40 --> 00:03:41 germinate and grow.
00:03:42 --> 00:03:44 Avery: No way. They just started growing
00:03:44 --> 00:03:46 again after nine.
00:03:46 --> 00:03:49 Anna: Months in raw space as if nothing had
00:03:49 --> 00:03:51 happened. It speaks to the incredible
00:03:51 --> 00:03:54 resilience of life. Organisms like
00:03:54 --> 00:03:57 this, known as extremophiles, really
00:03:57 --> 00:03:59 push the boundaries of what we thought was
00:03:59 --> 00:03:59 possible.
00:04:00 --> 00:04:02 Avery: This has huge implications for theories like
00:04:02 --> 00:04:05 panspermia, doesn't it? The idea that life
00:04:05 --> 00:04:07 could travel between planets on asteroids or
00:04:07 --> 00:04:08 comets.
00:04:08 --> 00:04:11 Anna: It certainly makes it seem more plausible. If
00:04:11 --> 00:04:14 simple spores can survive the harshness of
00:04:14 --> 00:04:17 space for extended periods, it suggests
00:04:17 --> 00:04:19 that the building blocks of life might be
00:04:19 --> 00:04:21 tougher and more widespread than we ever
00:04:21 --> 00:04:22 imagined.
00:04:23 --> 00:04:25 Avery: From survivors in space to a new way of
00:04:25 --> 00:04:26 seeing in space.
00:04:27 --> 00:04:29 Our next story involves a very unusual
00:04:29 --> 00:04:32 observatory. We're not talking about a
00:04:32 --> 00:04:35 mountaintop or a satellite, but a telescope
00:04:35 --> 00:04:36 dangling from a giant balloon.
00:04:37 --> 00:04:40 Anna: This is the Excalibur mission. And while a
00:04:40 --> 00:04:43 balloon might sound low tech, it's actually
00:04:43 --> 00:04:46 an incredibly clever way to do astronomy.
00:04:46 --> 00:04:48 Avery: It carries a telescope up to about
00:04:48 --> 00:04:51 130ft, which is above
00:04:51 --> 00:04:54 99% of Earth's atmosphere. This
00:04:54 --> 00:04:56 gives it a much clearer view, especially for
00:04:56 --> 00:04:59 the kind of light it's designed to see. High
00:04:59 --> 00:05:00 energy X rays.
00:05:00 --> 00:05:03 Anna: Mm X rays that are blocked by our
00:05:03 --> 00:05:06 atmosphere. And Excalibur isn't just taking
00:05:06 --> 00:05:09 pictures. Its key function is to measure
00:05:09 --> 00:05:11 the polarization of these X rays.
00:05:11 --> 00:05:13 Avery: Can you break that down for us? What does
00:05:13 --> 00:05:16 measuring polarization actually tell?
00:05:16 --> 00:05:18 Anna: You think of light as a wave.
00:05:19 --> 00:05:22 Usually those waves are oriented randomly.
00:05:22 --> 00:05:25 Polarization is like filtering the light, so
00:05:25 --> 00:05:27 you only see waves oriented in a specific
00:05:27 --> 00:05:30 direction. For astronomers, the. The way X
00:05:30 --> 00:05:33 rays are polarized tells them about the
00:05:33 --> 00:05:36 powerful and complex magnetic fields
00:05:36 --> 00:05:37 near their source.
00:05:38 --> 00:05:40 Avery: So it's a way to map out invisible
00:05:40 --> 00:05:43 magnetic structures. And they pointed this
00:05:43 --> 00:05:45 thing at some pretty famous cosmic objects,
00:05:45 --> 00:05:45 right?
00:05:46 --> 00:05:49 Anna: They did. The mission focused on two
00:05:49 --> 00:05:52 main the Crab Nebula, which is the
00:05:52 --> 00:05:54 remnant of a supernova, and Cygnus
00:05:54 --> 00:05:57 X1, a famous system containing a
00:05:57 --> 00:06:00 black hole that's feeding off a companion
00:06:00 --> 00:06:00 star.
00:06:01 --> 00:06:04 Avery: And by measuring the X ray polarization.
00:06:04 --> 00:06:06 They are getting new insights into the
00:06:06 --> 00:06:09 physics of the neutron star powering the Crab
00:06:09 --> 00:06:12 Nebula and the geometry of the material
00:06:12 --> 00:06:15 swirling into the black hole in Cygnus X1.
00:06:15 --> 00:06:17 It's a whole new layer of information.
00:06:17 --> 00:06:20 Anna: It really is. Balloon based
00:06:20 --> 00:06:23 astronomy provides a fantastic, cost
00:06:23 --> 00:06:25 effective way to get above the atmosphere and
00:06:25 --> 00:06:27 test new technologies.
00:06:27 --> 00:06:30 Okay, from new views to new mysteries,
00:06:30 --> 00:06:33 our next story presents a real puzzle.
00:06:33 --> 00:06:35 Avery: Yeah, this one is a head scratcher.
00:06:36 --> 00:06:38 Astronomers have found an exoplanet system
00:06:38 --> 00:06:41 named TOI 3884
00:06:41 --> 00:06:43 where things just don't add up.
00:06:43 --> 00:06:45 Anna: The planet itself is a super
00:06:45 --> 00:06:48 neptune, larger than Neptune, but smaller
00:06:48 --> 00:06:51 than Saturn. It orbits its star quite
00:06:51 --> 00:06:54 closely. But that's not the strange part. The
00:06:54 --> 00:06:56 strangeness lies in its orbit.
00:06:57 --> 00:07:00 Avery: It's wildly tilted. Most planets
00:07:00 --> 00:07:03 in a solar system form in a flat disk,
00:07:03 --> 00:07:05 so they tend to orbit in the same plane
00:07:05 --> 00:07:08 aligned with the star's equator. This
00:07:08 --> 00:07:11 one is misaligned by about
00:07:11 --> 00:07:14 62 degrees. It's orbiting on
00:07:14 --> 00:07:16 a crazy diagonal path.
00:07:16 --> 00:07:19 Anna: Right. A 62 degree tilt is
00:07:19 --> 00:07:22 extreme. Usually to get an orbit that
00:07:22 --> 00:07:24 tilted, you need a powerful gravitational
00:07:24 --> 00:07:27 nudge from m, another massive object in the
00:07:27 --> 00:07:30 system. Like a giant planet farther out
00:07:30 --> 00:07:31 or a, uh, companion star.
00:07:32 --> 00:07:35 Avery: And the mystery is there isn't one.
00:07:35 --> 00:07:37 Scientists have looked and they can't find
00:07:37 --> 00:07:40 anything massive enough nearby to explain
00:07:40 --> 00:07:43 how this planet got knocked so far off
00:07:43 --> 00:07:43 kilter.
00:07:44 --> 00:07:47 Anna: Precisely. The usual suspects are all
00:07:47 --> 00:07:49 missing. It leaves them with some
00:07:49 --> 00:07:51 unconventional theories. Perhaps the
00:07:51 --> 00:07:54 stars protoplanetary disk was tilted
00:07:54 --> 00:07:57 from the very beginning by a passing star
00:07:57 --> 00:07:59 early in its history. Or maybe there was
00:07:59 --> 00:08:01 another planet that knocked this one aside
00:08:02 --> 00:08:04 and then got ejected from the system
00:08:04 --> 00:08:05 entirely.
00:08:05 --> 00:08:07 Avery: A, uh, cosmic hit and run.
00:08:07 --> 00:08:08 Anna: Exactly.
00:08:09 --> 00:08:11 Avery: And that theory of an ejected planet, A, uh,
00:08:11 --> 00:08:14 cosmic hit and run. Why is that
00:08:14 --> 00:08:15 so difficult to prove?
00:08:16 --> 00:08:19 Anna: Because the getaway car is long gone
00:08:19 --> 00:08:21 and completely invisible. A planet
00:08:21 --> 00:08:24 ejected from its solar system would become a
00:08:24 --> 00:08:27 rogue planet, drifting cold and dark through
00:08:27 --> 00:08:29 interstellar space. There's no star to light
00:08:29 --> 00:08:32 it up. So finding it, let alone tracing
00:08:32 --> 00:08:35 it back to its home system, is practically
00:08:35 --> 00:08:36 impossible with our current technology.
00:08:37 --> 00:08:40 Avery: So scientists have a pretty big mystery.
00:08:40 --> 00:08:42 Anna: On their hands, essentially.
00:08:42 --> 00:08:45 For now, it's an open case file.
00:08:46 --> 00:08:49 It's a reminder that planet formation is a
00:08:49 --> 00:08:51 chaotic and complex process. And
00:08:51 --> 00:08:54 our own solar system systems neat alignment
00:08:54 --> 00:08:56 might be less common than we think.
00:08:57 --> 00:08:59 Avery: Speaking of things being less common than we
00:08:59 --> 00:09:02 think, our final story tackles maybe the
00:09:02 --> 00:09:05 biggest astronomical question of Is
00:09:05 --> 00:09:06 the universe infinite?
00:09:07 --> 00:09:09 Anna: It's a question that feels almost
00:09:09 --> 00:09:12 philosophical, but scientists are trying
00:09:12 --> 00:09:14 to answer it with actual measurements.
00:09:15 --> 00:09:18 The Key lies in determining the overall
00:09:18 --> 00:09:21 shape or geometry of the universe.
00:09:22 --> 00:09:24 Avery: And their best tool for that is the cosmic
00:09:24 --> 00:09:26 microwave background, or cmb.
00:09:26 --> 00:09:29 That's the leftover heat from the Big Bang,
00:09:29 --> 00:09:30 which fills all of space.
00:09:32 --> 00:09:34 Anna: Correct. By studying the tiny
00:09:34 --> 00:09:36 temperature fluctuations in the cmb,
00:09:37 --> 00:09:40 cosmologists can measure the universe's
00:09:40 --> 00:09:42 geometry. There are three basic
00:09:42 --> 00:09:45 possibilities. It could be closed,
00:09:46 --> 00:09:48 like the surface of a sphere, open
00:09:49 --> 00:09:52 like the surface of a saddle, or flat,
00:09:52 --> 00:09:53 like a sheet of paper.
00:09:54 --> 00:09:56 Avery: And so far, every measurement we've made
00:09:56 --> 00:09:58 points to one answer.
00:09:58 --> 00:10:01 Anna: Flat to within a very small
00:10:01 --> 00:10:04 margin of error. The universe appears to be
00:10:04 --> 00:10:07 geometrically flat. If the
00:10:07 --> 00:10:09 universe is truly flat, then in
00:10:09 --> 00:10:12 principle, it would extend infinitely in
00:10:12 --> 00:10:13 all directions.
00:10:14 --> 00:10:17 Avery: Case closed, then, the universe is infinite.
00:10:17 --> 00:10:20 Anna: Not quite. Here's the catch.
00:10:20 --> 00:10:23 We are limited by our observable
00:10:23 --> 00:10:25 horizon. We can only see the part of
00:10:25 --> 00:10:28 the universe from which light has had time to
00:10:28 --> 00:10:30 reach us since the Big Bang.
00:10:31 --> 00:10:34 Avery: The mind just reels at that. If it's truly
00:10:34 --> 00:10:36 infinite, that means that somewhere out
00:10:36 --> 00:10:39 there, an infinite distance away, there's
00:10:39 --> 00:10:42 another solar system exactly like ours, with
00:10:42 --> 00:10:44 another Earth and, and another you and I
00:10:44 --> 00:10:46 having this exact same conversation.
00:10:47 --> 00:10:50 Anna: That's the logical, if unsettling,
00:10:50 --> 00:10:53 conclusion. With an infinite number of
00:10:53 --> 00:10:56 chances, any event with a non zero
00:10:56 --> 00:10:59 probability must occur an infinite
00:10:59 --> 00:11:02 number of times. It pushes the boundaries
00:11:02 --> 00:11:04 of physics into the realm of philosophy.
00:11:05 --> 00:11:08 Avery: Oh, okay, so it's like standing in Kansas. It
00:11:08 --> 00:11:10 looks perfectly flat as far as you can see.
00:11:11 --> 00:11:13 But you know that on a large enough scale,
00:11:13 --> 00:11:14 the Earth is cur.
00:11:15 --> 00:11:18 Anna: That's a perfect analogy. The universe could
00:11:18 --> 00:11:21 be curved on a scale much, much
00:11:21 --> 00:11:24 larger than our observable horizon. It
00:11:24 --> 00:11:26 could be a steer or a saddle so vast
00:11:27 --> 00:11:29 that our little patch of it just looks flat.
00:11:30 --> 00:11:32 Avery: And there's another wrinkle, too, isn't
00:11:32 --> 00:11:34 there? The idea of topology.
00:11:35 --> 00:11:38 Anna: Yes. Even a flat universe
00:11:38 --> 00:11:41 might not be infinite. It could have a
00:11:41 --> 00:11:44 complex topology. For example, it could
00:11:44 --> 00:11:47 be shaped like a donut. If you travel in a
00:11:47 --> 00:11:49 straight line, you eventually end up back
00:11:49 --> 00:11:52 where you started. In that case, the universe
00:11:52 --> 00:11:54 would be flat but finite.
00:11:54 --> 00:11:57 Avery: Have scientists looked for evidence of that
00:11:57 --> 00:11:59 donut shape? For instance, by looking for
00:11:59 --> 00:12:02 repeating patterns in the cosmic microwave
00:12:02 --> 00:12:04 background, as if we were seeing the same
00:12:04 --> 00:12:06 region of space from different directions.
00:12:07 --> 00:12:10 Anna: They have, very carefully. So
00:12:10 --> 00:12:12 far, no such repeating patterns have been
00:12:12 --> 00:12:15 found. While this doesn't rule out a, uh,
00:12:15 --> 00:12:18 finite universe, it does mean that if
00:12:18 --> 00:12:21 the universe is finite, it must be
00:12:21 --> 00:12:23 vastly larger than the part we can see.
00:12:24 --> 00:12:26 So for all practical purposes, it might
00:12:26 --> 00:12:29 as well be infinite from our perspective.
00:12:30 --> 00:12:32 Avery: So in the end we're left without a definitive
00:12:32 --> 00:12:35 answer. Our measurements say flat, which
00:12:35 --> 00:12:38 points towards infinite, but we can't be sure
00:12:39 --> 00:12:39 exactly.
00:12:40 --> 00:12:42 Anna: It's possible that because of the horizon
00:12:42 --> 00:12:45 problem, this is a question we may never
00:12:45 --> 00:12:48 be able to answer for certain. It's one of
00:12:48 --> 00:12:50 the profound limits of cosmology.
00:12:51 --> 00:12:53 Avery: And what a profound place to end our journey
00:12:53 --> 00:12:56 today. From the laws of black holes to the
00:12:56 --> 00:12:59 hardiness of moss, from balloon telescopes to
00:12:59 --> 00:13:01 tilted worlds, and finally to the ultimate
00:13:01 --> 00:13:04 fate and size of the universe itself.
00:13:05 --> 00:13:07 Anna: It really shows you the incredible range of
00:13:07 --> 00:13:09 questions that astronomy seeks to answer.
00:13:10 --> 00:13:12 Thank you all for joining us on, um, this
00:13:12 --> 00:13:12 exploration.
00:13:13 --> 00:13:15 Avery: That's all for this episode of Astronomy
00:13:15 --> 00:13:17 Daily. You can find us wherever you get your
00:13:17 --> 00:13:19 podcasts. And we'll be back next time with
00:13:19 --> 00:13:21 more news from across the universe. Until
00:13:21 --> 00:13:22 then, I'm Avery.
00:13:23 --> 00:13:25 Anna: And I'm Anna. Keep looking up.