Watch: Mysterious interstellar object passes through our solar system
Images from the Canary Islands Institute of Physics captured the object, which Nasa has confirmed is only the third interstellar object ever seen.
Nasa said that 3I/ATLAS will pass Earth at a distance of approximately 150 million miles, posing no threat to the planet.
The object is expected to be visible to ground-based telescopes through September, reappearing in early December for its closest approach to Earth.
Watch the video in full above.
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The Guardian
9 hours ago
- The Guardian
Did you solve it? The world's most fascinating number – revealed!
Earlier today I set three puzzles, and also explained why 108 is possibly the most fascinating number in the universe. Here are some more reasons: 108 = 62 + 62 + 62 108 is the smallest number that can be written as the sum of a square and a cube in two different ways. (108 = 23 + 102 = 33 + 92) Many ratios in Moon-Sun-Earth astronomy seem to be around 108: the distance between the Earth and the Sun is about 108 times the diameter of the Sun; The distance between the Earth and the Moon is about 108 times the diameter of the Moon. The upper frequency of FM radio is 108Mhz. (Examples taken from the book Exploring the Beauty of Fascinating Numbers by Shyam Sunder Gupta. For more reasons click here.) Here are the puzzles again with solutions. 1. Brilliant billions You have ten cards. On each of the cards is one of the digits 0 to 9. When you arrange the cards in a line you get a number between 0123456789 and 987654321 i) How many of these numbers are divisible by 2? ii) How many are divisible by 3? Solution. i) half of them, ii) all of them! The sum of the digits 0-9 is 45, which is divisible by three, hence all numbers made from these ten digits are divisible by three. 2. How low can you go? What is the smallest even number between 1000 and 9999 written with four different digits? Solution 1024 Most people will try to use the three lowest digits, i.e 1032. I hope you didn't fall into that trap. 3. All about me An autobiographical number is one where the first digit describes how many 0s it has, the second digit describes how many 1s it has, and so on, so that the (n + 1)th digit describes how many n's it has. For example, 1210 is an autobiographical number because it has 1 zero, 2 ones, 1 two and 0 threes. Find the only ten digit autobiographical number. Solution 6210001000 Let the solution be ABCDEFGHIJ. Each digit n + 1 describes how many times digit n appears. Since there are only ten possible positions for digits, we can deduce that A + B + C + D + E + F + G + H + I + J = 10. Let's proceed by trial and error. Image A = 9. Then J = 1, since there is a single 9 in the number. But that means A < 9, so we have a contradiction. Let A = 8. Then I is 1, which means B = 1, which means A <8, so this doesnt work either. Let A = 7. Then H = 1, so B must be either 1 or 2. (Since the digits must add up to ten.) If B = 1, then another digit must be 1, but this would mean B = 3, (since thee are three 1s) which is a contradiction. If B = 2, then C = 1 and we have another contridiction. Following this logic, we finally hit a solution that works when A = 6. I've been setting a puzzle here on alternate Mondays since 2015. I'm always on the look-out for great puzzles. If you would like to suggest one, email me. Sources of today's puzzles: 1) Leon Gelkoff, 2) SmartFriends, a daily IQ challenge, 3) An old classic.
The Sun
12 hours ago
- The Sun
Historic attraction where ‘time began' in the UK reveals £77million redevelopment
THE Royal Observatory in Greenwich is undergoing a multi-million pound transformation. Work will start in September to upgrade the observatory building with new gardens as well as accessibility routes to the telescope for the first time. 5 5 The observatory, which is within Royal Museums Greenwich, is marking its 350th anniversary with a transformation. The project called 'First Light' will upgrade and create new spaces around the observatory. Of the £77million budget, £50.5 million has been secured so far, with the money going towards an entry pavilion for visitors as well as a garden walk. Accessibility will increase around the site with new routes set to be created to the Great Equatorial Telescope and Planetarium. This will include a lift tower, which will provide full accessibility to the Great Equatorial Telescope for the first time. The existing galleries will be refreshed with new and interactive astronomy displays being installed. A new space called 'Astronomers Court' will be created and used for events, retail and a cafe. Outside, there will be new landscaping and the planting of trees and plants to blend the observatory into its surroundings in Greenwich Park. The project is set to begin in autumn 2025 with all work set to be completed by spring 2028. There are warnings of phased closures while work on the project is taking place throughout the observatory. Deer have returned to Greenwich Park 5 5 The observatory building was designed by Christopher Wren in 1675 and is Britain's oldest building that was purpose-built for science. The Royal Observatory is the birthplace of astronomy, and is considered where 'time began' because it's the home of Greenwich Mean Time, and the Prime Meridian. Since 1884, the world's time zones have been measured from a line at the Royal Observatory. And GMT, which means Greenwich Mean Time, is what we all set our clocks to. Outside of the Royal Observatory, near the courtyard, is The Meridian Line, and if you put one foot either side of it, you'll be standing in both the western and eastern hemispheres. The Royal Observatory sits on a hill in Greenwich Park in south east London, overlooking the River Thames. For anyone wanting to visit, the Great Equatorial Telescope is in the Octagon Room, and is the oldest part of the observatory. Entry to the Royal Observatory costs £24 for adults and £12 for children (4-15). Tickets for students are £18 and children under four go free. There's a planetarium there, too, which does a variety of shows and are bookable online. Guided tours around the observatory are an additional £5 per adult and £2.20 for children, which take visitors to see the observatory's most treasured objects. But make sure to check in on the website for opening dates and times as the upgrades might change these. Plus, here's the UK's newest national museum is more like an IKEA store. And attractions across the UK that are the most-visited, and completely free to enter.
Scottish Sun
14 hours ago
- Scottish Sun
‘Death date' of universe revealed as scientists predict when ‘shrinking' will start before ‘Big Crunch' wipes us all out
It's a reverse Big Bang of sorts, which scientists have dubbed the "Big Crunch" GOING, GONE! 'Death date' of universe revealed as scientists predict when 'shrinking' will start before 'Big Crunch' wipes us all out THE universe will start to shrink in just 7billion years, a new study has claimed, upending the prediction that space is ever-expanding. The study, published by physicists from Cornell University, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, and other institutions, suggests that the universe will reach a peak size. 2 The researchers' theory hinges on dark energy, a mysterious force that makes up about 70 per cent of the known universe Credit: NASA/WMAP Science Team After that point, the universe will begin contracting until everything collapses back into a single point. A reverse Big Bang of sorts, which scientists have dubbed the "Big Crunch". Using data from a number of astronomical surveys including the Dark Energy Survey and the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument, the researchers predict that this "Big Crunch" will occur in approximately 33.3billion years. With the universe currently 13.8billion years old, this gives Earth and everything else roughly 20billion years before entering oblivion, according to the study. The theory is that the universe expands like a "rubber band" - eventually, the elastic force becomes stronger than the expansion, causing everything to snap back together. The researchers' theory hinges on dark energy, a mysterious force that makes up about 70 per cent of the known universe. Dark energy has long been believed to be the driving force behind the expansion of the universe. However, recent observations suggest the force might actually be dynamic - meaning it can only expand so much until it shrinks again. The new model proposed by researchers suggests the universe will continue expanding but at a gradually slowing rate. At its maximum size, about 69 per cent larger than the size it is today, a gradual contraction will begin. Mystery Martian hills found on Mars sparking hope 'time capsule' mounds will solve biggest mystery from 4BILLION yrs ago Several major astronomical projects launching in the coming years aim to provide more information on the behaviour of dark energy. These missions could confirm or rule out a "Big Crunch" scenario. Even if the terrifying outcome is confirmed, a 20billion year countdown is hardly a reason to panic. For context, complex life on Earth has existed for only about 600million years - a fraction of time in comparison. 20billion years down the line, the Sun will have died and our galaxy will have collided with the neighbouring Andromeda galaxy long before 'the great end'. The prediction also comes with a significant level of uncertainty. The researchers have acknowledged that their model has large margins of error due to limited observational data. So, alternative scenarios - including eternal expansion - are still possible.
