Nature Hub

 From - Popular Mechanic,  By  - Robert Lee, Eddited by - Amal Udawatta, When it comes to making predictions,  Albert Einstein’s theory of general relativity   is pretty much unbeatable, at least in physics. The theory says that objects of mass “warp” the very fabric of spacetime, and that this warp gives rise to the force of gravity. The theory also led to the suggestion of a multitude of phenomenons, events, and objects that astronomers and physicists would eventually discover in the   cosmos . Yet one major cosmic object still hasn’t been found: a wormhole. Unlike black holes, wormholes remain purely hypothetical. If they exist, they have remained undetected. But physicists have just discovered a promising new way to possibly find them. Predicting the Existence of Wormholes General relativity predicted  black holes  as objects of tremendous mass so densely packed they create a region of space with such intense  gravity  that not even light is fast enough to escape them, well before

 From - Sky & Telescope, By - Monika Young Edited by - Amal Udawatta, These "postage stamp" images (each 1 arcsecond wide) were captured with Keck Observatory’s NIRC2 instrument and adaptive optic. They show X7’s motion and elongation between 2002 and 2021. Sgr A*'s position is marked with a black "X" in the top right panel. A. Ciurlo et al. / UCLA GCOI / W. M. Keck Observatory Two decades of observations show a dusty gas cloud elongating as it approaches our galaxy’s supermassive black hole. If you’ve ever wondered what it’s like to fall into a black hole, a dusty gas cloud in the galactic center can give you an idea. Observations of the cloud dating back to 2002 show it’s coming apart in the presence of the supermassive behemoth residing there. That black hole, called Sgr A*, exerts  tidal forces  on any objects nearby, pulling harder on the nearer side than on the farther side, and stretching — or  spaghettifying  — them in the process. The extent of the

  By Brandon Drenon BBC News, Washington, Edited by Amal Udawatta, IMAGE SOURCE, NASA Image caption, Asteroid 2023 DW has a better chance of hitting a date of 14 February than our planet, NASA says. By Brandon Drenon BBC News, Washington A newly detected asteroid has a very small chance of impacting the Earth in 2046, Nasa tweeted on Tuesday. If it does hit, the asteroid, roughly the size of an Olympic swimming pool, may arrive on  Valentine's Day 2046  according to Nasa calculations. The closest the asteroid is expected to get to Earth is about 1.1 million miles (1.8m km), Nasa says. But researchers are still collecting data, which they say may change predictions. The asteroid, dubbed 2023 DW, has about a 1 in 560 chance of hitting Earth, according to Nasa. It's the only space rock on Nasa's risk list that ranks a 1 on the Torino Impact Hazard Scale. The scale, which goes from 0-10, measures the risk of space objects colliding with Earth. All other objects on the scale ran

  By Jonathan Amos BBC Science Correspondent, Edited by - Amal Udawatta,       Watch: Astroscale would try to deorbit two satellites on the same mission The Astroscale-UK company has unveiled its concept to remove a defunct British satellite from orbit. The Oxfordshire-based company wants to send up a sophisticated robot arm to grab hold of the dead hardware. This junk would then be sent downwards to burn up in the atmosphere. The UK government is running a competition to find the best solution to clear up historic debris. The winner will run demonstrate its technology in late 2026 or early 2027. The UK Space Agency is also looking at plans being developed by ClearSpace. This Swiss company, too, has a UK subsidiary that has received R&D funds from the agency. There's an ever-increasing amount of garbage in orbit - everything from old rocket segments to accidentally dropped astronaut tools, and even flecks of paint. And with thousands of satellites due to be launched in the next

 From - Sky & Telescope By  Bob King, Edited by - Amal Udawatta, Towering red rays and green arcs explode across the northwestern sky during the height of an auroral display on February 15–16, 2023, over Duluth, Minnesota. Increasing solar activity as the Sun heads toward solar maximum (predicted for July 2025) bode well for aurora-watching. Bob King After a gradual decline in solar activity over the past few solar cycles, the current Cycle 25 appears to be bucking the trend and spawning more sunspots than originally anticipated. I can attest to the increase. Regular checks with my #14 welder's glass have netted naked-eye sunspots nearly every month since last spring. Escalating solar activity is often tied to more frequent and intense aurora sightings with displays penetrating deep into U.S. mid-latitudes. Naked-eye sunspots and sunspot groups (circled) speckled the Sun from April through early December 2022. The trend has continued into 2023. Sunspots are cooler regions on th