Neutrons are really small and stars are really big. Francois Foucart is one of those people who thinks about both at once.
“In high-energy astrophysics, getting some handle on what happens inside neutron stars is a very big question. We know they are made of neutrons, of course, but we don’t know what they’re made of in the core,” said Foucart, an assistant professor in physics, when asked about hot topics in his field.
If you’ve ever wondered about this – or even if you haven’t, which I admit is more likely – the next Science Cafe NH in Concord is for you. The title is “Black holes, dark matter and other astrophysics mysteries,” a topic prodded by all the attention given to the first photo of a black hole when it was released last month by the National Science Foundation.
(Don’t forget: Reservations are now required because of overcrowding. Call Makris Lobster and Steak House at 225-7665 to save your spot.)
The black-hole buzz made me want to talk about what it meant but also led me to wonder what other cool stuff was happening in deep space. I’m not talking about planetary exploration, which we discussed last fall, but about research and findings on the stellar and galactic and universal scale, with lots of relativity and other mind-blowing concepts mixed in.
Turns out, there has been a lot.
“From my point of view the last few years have been pretty exciting, between the black hole, gravitational wave observations that are still coming, and neutron star mergers,” said Foucart, one of three UNH professors of astronomy and/or physics who will be at Science Cafe to answer your questions.
I prefer the term “neutron star crash” for that last one. Neutron stars are staggeringly dense objects left over from supernova explosions that weren’t big enough to create black holes. Recent research indicates that a collision between two such stars sent huge amounts of heavy elements like gold and uranium – “about equal in mass to all of Earth’s oceans” is one way I saw the amount described – into our solar system.
Don’t you think it’s mind-boggling that whenever we dig into the earth and find valuable bits of rock, we can thank cosmic explosions from millions of years ago and trillions of miles away? Of course you do; who wouldn’t?
Foucart admits that this sort of thing boggles his mind a bit, too.
“We are doing physics from observations of objects that are millions of light years away. Even after 10 years, that impresses me,” he said.
Gravitational waves are another amazing topic.
Anything that can be accurately described as “curvatures in the fabric of spacetime” and which was first predicted by Einstein deserves our attention. In the past few years we have actually measured these once-theoretical events but I’ll admit I don’t really know what that means. On Wednesday I plan to find out.
And what’s up with dark matter and dark energy? Are they really a thing, or are they just some math-intensive hand waving to cover our ignorance?
Questions, questions, questions. Good thing we have a chance to grab a beer and talk about it!
See you Wednesday.
Science Cafe New Hampshire, a free monthly gathering, will discuss “Black holes, dark matter and other mysteries,” with three UNH professors on hand to answer all our questions about what we know and don’t know about deep-space astrophysics. $15 charge for buffet dinner, if you choose.
Where: Makris Lobster and Steak House, 354 Sheep Davis Road (Rt. 106), Concord. Reservations are required: 225-7665
When: Wednesday, May 22, 6 p.m.
For more information: SciencecafeNH.org.
