A year after scientists witnessed the "mind-boggling" collision of two giant black holes, they now suspect the event actually involved two even more bizarre objects – and could answer one of the biggest mysteries about our universe.
What could be weirder than black holes?
Astronomers have long suspected that our universe contains vast quantities of a substance unlike anything observed on Earth.
Studies of galaxies hint at the presence of invisible “dark matter” lurking between the visible stars, revealing its presence through its gravitational pull.
Quite what this dark matter consists of is one of the biggest of all cosmic mysteries. Now an international team of scientists think they may have an answer.
After re-examining what was thought to be the collision of two huge black holes announced last September, the scientists think the event was actually the merger of two colossal clumps of invisible dark matter known as boson stars.
What on Earth are boson stars?
All the matter we are familiar with consists of electrons, protons and neutrons – particles collectively known as fermions. All other particles are bosons, and they are best-known for transmitting forces like gravity and electromagnetism.
But attempts to solve the dark matter mystery have led theorists to suggest another type of boson might exist. Known as an ultralight boson, it would have a mass far below even that of the electron. But if such particles gather together in sufficient numbers they would form vast, invisible star-sized clumps called “boson stars”.
Spread across the whole cosmos, these could invisibly exert enough gravitational pull to account for dark matter.
So why do scientists now think boson stars exist?
Last September’s announcement of a collision between two giant black holes made headlines because even astronomers were shocked by what they had witnessed. Ripples in the very fabric of space and time were picked up by observatories in the US and Europe, which appeared to come from the collision of two black holes halfway across the universe.
Dozens of such events have been detected before, but the sheer size of the black holes involved made this one different – and perplexing.
Black holes are typically formed when huge stars run out of nuclear fuel and collapse under their own gravity. But calculations suggest that stars over 65 times the mass of the sun explode before they can form black holes. Last September’s event involved black holes 66 and 85 times the mass of the sun – both breaking this limit.
Now a team led by Dr Juan Calderón Bustillo of the University of Santiago de Compostela, Spain, believe the mystery can be solved if the collision actually involved two boson stars.
In research published in the leading physics journal Physical Review Letters, the team compare the observations with predictions of what would happen if two such objects collided. They found boson stars gave a better fit than assuming black holes were involved.
What are the implications?
Literally cosmic. First, the boson star explanation means there is no need to worry about how two “impossibly” massive black holes came to exist.
Second, the team calculates that the collision of the two boson stars would still have created a huge black hole around 250 times the mass of the sun. This opens up the possibility that truly colossal black holes may be formed by colliding clumps of dark matter, rather than lots of smaller black holes.
But most important of all, the boson star explanation would mean scientists have had their first-ever glimpse of what dark matter really is. Calculations by the team suggest the two objects each contained around 100 billion billion billion tonnes of dark matter in the form of ultralight vector bosons, particles each around a billion billion times lighter than the electron.
What happens next?
When two huge boson stars collide, they affect the surrounding space differently from colliding black holes – giving clues to their true identity. Astronomers will now be looking out for these in future events. Laboratory experiments have been set up to detect dark matter particles on Earth – so far without success. Now scientists have a better idea of what they may be looking for, this will help tune their detectors and design new experiments.
The hope is that, almost a century after the mystery of dark matter reared its head, scientists may soon have a good answer when schoolchildren ask: “What is the universe made of?”
Robert Matthews is Visiting Professor of Science at Aston University, Birmingham, UK
13 of the most incredible pictures from space
SPEC SHEET
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The%20specs
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BUNDESLIGA FIXTURES
Friday Hertha Berlin v Union Berlin (11.30pm)
Saturday Freiburg v Borussia Monchengladbach, Eintracht Frankfurt v Borussia Dortmund, Cologne v Wolfsburg, Arminia Bielefeld v Mainz (6.30pm) Bayern Munich v RB Leipzig (9.30pm)
Sunday Werder Bremen v Stuttgart (6.30pm), Schalke v Bayer Leverkusen (9pm)
Monday Hoffenheim v Augsburg (11.30pm)
How much of your income do you need to save?
The more you save, the sooner you can retire. Tuan Phan, a board member of SimplyFI.com, says if you save just 5 per cent of your salary, you can expect to work for another 66 years before you are able to retire without too large a drop in income.
In other words, you will not save enough to retire comfortably. If you save 15 per cent, you can forward to another 43 working years. Up that to 40 per cent of your income, and your remaining working life drops to just 22 years. (see table)
Obviously, this is only a rough guide. How much you save will depend on variables, not least your salary and how much you already have in your pension pot. But it shows what you need to do to achieve financial independence.
ACC 2019: The winners in full
Best Actress Maha Alemi, Sofia
Best Actor Mohamed Dhrif, Weldi
Best Screenplay Meryem Benm’Barek, Sofia
Best Documentary Of Fathers and Sons by Talal Derki
Best Film Yomeddine by Abu Bakr Shawky
Best Director Nadine Labaki, Capernaum
FIVE%20TRENDS%20THAT%20WILL%20SHAPE%20UAE%20BANKING
%3Cp%3E%E2%80%A2%20The%20digitisation%20of%20financial%20services%20will%20continue%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%E2%80%A2%20Managing%20and%20using%20data%20effectively%20will%20become%20a%20competitive%20advantage%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%E2%80%A2%20Digitisation%20will%20require%20continued%20adjustment%20of%20operating%20models%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%E2%80%A2%20Banks%20will%20expand%20their%20role%20in%20the%20customer%20life%20through%20ecosystems%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%E2%80%A2%20The%20structure%20of%20the%20sector%20will%20change%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
White hydrogen: Naturally occurring hydrogen
Chromite: Hard, metallic mineral containing iron oxide and chromium oxide
Ultramafic rocks: Dark-coloured rocks rich in magnesium or iron with very low silica content
Ophiolite: A section of the earth’s crust, which is oceanic in nature that has since been uplifted and exposed on land
Olivine: A commonly occurring magnesium iron silicate mineral that derives its name for its olive-green yellow-green colour
The Pope's itinerary
Sunday, February 3, 2019 - Rome to Abu Dhabi
1pm: departure by plane from Rome / Fiumicino to Abu Dhabi
10pm: arrival at Abu Dhabi Presidential Airport
Monday, February 4
12pm: welcome ceremony at the main entrance of the Presidential Palace
12.20pm: visit Abu Dhabi Crown Prince at Presidential Palace
5pm: private meeting with Muslim Council of Elders at Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque
6.10pm: Inter-religious in the Founder's Memorial
Tuesday, February 5 - Abu Dhabi to Rome
9.15am: private visit to undisclosed cathedral
10.30am: public mass at Zayed Sports City – with a homily by Pope Francis
12.40pm: farewell at Abu Dhabi Presidential Airport
1pm: departure by plane to Rome
5pm: arrival at the Rome / Ciampino International Airport
Company profile
Name: Tratok Portal
Founded: 2017
Based: UAE
Sector: Travel & tourism
Size: 36 employees
Funding: Privately funded
The Voice of Hind Rajab
Starring: Saja Kilani, Clara Khoury, Motaz Malhees
Director: Kaouther Ben Hania
Rating: 4/5
Frankenstein in Baghdad
Ahmed Saadawi
Penguin Press
Race card
5pm: Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 (Turf) 1,600m
5.30pm: Handicap (PA) Dh80,000 (T) 1,600m
6pm: Arabian Triple Crown Round-1 Listed (PA) Dh230,000 (T) 1,600m
6.30pm: Wathba Stallions Cup Handicap (PA) Dh70,000 (T) 1,400m
7pm: Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 (T) 1,200m
7.30pm: Handicap (TB) Dh100,000 (T) 2,400m
GOLF’S RAHMBO
- 5 wins in 22 months as pro
- Three wins in past 10 starts
- 45 pro starts worldwide: 5 wins, 17 top 5s
- Ranked 551th in world on debut, now No 4 (was No 2 earlier this year)
- 5th player in last 30 years to win 3 European Tour and 2 PGA Tour titles before age 24 (Woods, Garcia, McIlroy, Spieth)
The five stages of early child’s play
From Dubai-based clinical psychologist Daniella Salazar:
1. Solitary Play: This is where Infants and toddlers start to play on their own without seeming to notice the people around them. This is the beginning of play.
2. Onlooker play: This occurs where the toddler enjoys watching other people play. There doesn’t necessarily need to be any effort to begin play. They are learning how to imitate behaviours from others. This type of play may also appear in children who are more shy and introverted.
3. Parallel Play: This generally starts when children begin playing side-by-side without any interaction. Even though they aren’t physically interacting they are paying attention to each other. This is the beginning of the desire to be with other children.
4. Associative Play: At around age four or five, children become more interested in each other than in toys and begin to interact more. In this stage children start asking questions and talking about the different activities they are engaging in. They realise they have similar goals in play such as building a tower or playing with cars.
5. Social Play: In this stage children are starting to socialise more. They begin to share ideas and follow certain rules in a game. They slowly learn the definition of teamwork. They get to engage in basic social skills and interests begin to lead social interactions.