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[Richard230]

I just heard on my local news that gravity waves had been detected by researchers.  Einstein is right again.   

[mrwilsn]

Not only were gravity waves detected but they detected waves from two black holes colliding, which is also a first!

Sent from my XT1060 using Tapatalk

[NEW2elec]

So my DS now has double the range?

[Justin Andrews]

So my DS now has double the range?

Yes, but only when two super massive black holes collide in our local galaxy though... 
(don't laugh, its *going* to happen, as we are on a collision course with the Andromeda galaxy, but it won't happen for another few billion years)

[MrDude_1]

So my DS now has double the range?

Yes, but only when two super massive black holes collide in our local galaxy though... 
(don't laugh, its *going* to happen, as we are on a collision course with the Andromeda galaxy, but it won't happen for another few billion years)

the models of it happening are pretty cool... they pass through each other and interact, but most objects dont physically touch other objects.

[benswing]

Gravity wave surfing!!!

[Justin Andrews]

Gravity wave surfing!!!

Now I have a mental image of Stephen Hawking riding a surf board on the edge of a black hole...

[Justin Andrews]

While we are disscussing science stuff.

My I introduce you to Moments of Wonder, just one program in a long tradition of British science documentaries...

[Richard230]

I just heard that the gravity waves were the result of two black holes colliding 1.2 billion light years away. It is a mystery to me how they determined that location and distance, considering that black holes are pretty tough to see and I doubt you can tell the direction and distance from their gravity wave detection system.   

[Justin Andrews]

Dunno, but black holes tend to be fairly bright objects in the radio portions of the spectrum, so its possible they might have traced it using that.

I've a friend who's into Exo-planet hunting (one of the co-discoverers of KIC 8462852) he might know more, I might ask him next time I see him.

[mikeisted]

I wouldn't worry about black holes colliding in a few billion years. I've just read that the universe might itself tear apart before then, due to an ever increasing rate of expansion. Ride while the sun shines!

[Justin Andrews]

I think the expansion death of the universe is slated for long after a mere few billion years, I'd have to check, but I think the available free energy in the universe (so called "heat death") will even have mostly happened by then. Its all just hypothesis though.

More interestingly is that recent runs at CERN's LHC means the standard model theory may have finally been busted (physicists have been trying to invalidate their Standard Model for decades) which means everything is up for grabs again. Given we currently have no good theory for why gravity works, this is a good time to be a Physics undergrad!

[MostlyBonkers]

I love science, but I often wonder why they spend so much money on things like the Large Hadron Collider when money could be better spent on saving the planet, curing diseases etc. No one really seems to care about that and I don't consider myself that much of a greenie.

[Richard230]

I love science, but I often wonder why they spend so much money on things like the Large Hadron Collider when money could be better spent on saving the planet, curing diseases etc. No one really seems to care about that and I don't consider myself that much of a greenie.

Well, the U.S. tried building the Super Collider (in Texas?) and that was canceled so that the money could be used to save the planet (or was it something else?). And how did that work out again? I kind of like the LHC.  Big science is fun.   

[MostlyBonkers]

Don't get me wrong, I love the LHC! It's a marvel of engineering. To answer my own question, I think it gives humanity a chance to make the kind of breakthroughs that will save the planet, one way or another. Or destroy it... [emoji6]