All posts tagged: Catastrophic

Physicists warn of ‘catastrophic’ impact from UK science cuts

Physicists warn of ‘catastrophic’ impact from UK science cuts

Published by skeptic

The Large Hadron Collider at CERN could be affected by UK spending cuts Traczyk, Piotr/CERN 2021-2024 UK scientists are warning of a “catastrophic” impact on physics research due to budget cuts at public funding bodies. Research groups around the country face average cuts of 30 per cent, but have been asked to plan for up to 60 per cent. It is understood that many groups will entirely lose funding, the number of research positions will fall and the UK will withdraw from international projects such as the CERN particle physics laboratory near Geneva, Switzerland. UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) is a public body that funds science and business, under the control of the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology. It has announced a budget of £38.6 billion over the next four years, which it claims is actually a slight rise, though this doesn’t factor in inflation. But it has also warned that physics research is due for significant cuts. UKRI spending is intended to further scientific research but also generate a return for the country. …

Astronomers Appear to Have Caught a Star Splitting In Half, With Catastrophic Results

Astronomers Appear to Have Caught a Star Splitting In Half, With Catastrophic Results

Published by José Betancourt

Credit: Caltech/K. Miller and R. Hurt (IPAC) A team of astronomers believe they’ve witnessed a star split in half before merging back together again, triggering an ungodly double explosion that’s sending seismic ripples through both the scientific community and spacetime itself. The incredible event, designated AT2025ulz, may represent an entirely new class of astrophysical phenomena: a “superkilonova,” meaning an even more spectacular iteration on the already elusive kilonova. Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence, and the findings, described in a study published in The Astrophysical Journal Letters, aren’t hard proof — but they undoubtedly point to something strange afoot. “Everybody was intensely trying to observe and analyze it, but then it started to look more like a supernova, and some astronomers lost interest. Not us,” lead author Mansi Kasliwa, an astronomer at Caltech, said in a statement about the finding. Massive stars typically die in an explosion called a supernova, seeding the cosmos with heavy metals and producing a distinct signature. Sometimes, the blasts leave behind an ultra-dense core called a neutron star, which contains more …

Doomsday Glacier Approaching Catastrophic Collapse

Doomsday Glacier Approaching Catastrophic Collapse

Published by José Betancourt

The Thwaites Glacier, an enormous shelf of ice in the Antarctic, has been given the ominous nickname of the “Doomsday Glacier” — because if it were to change collapse, it could have profound implications for the future of sea level rise and the fate of coastal communities. Scientists have watched in horror as its retreat has accelerated significantly. Now, as detailed in a study published by the International Thwaites Glacier Collaboration (ITGC) and spotted by Wired, large cracks forming in the ice shelf are continuing to weaken its structural integrity. Doomsday has never been closer. If it were to collapse under its own weight, scientists suggest it could ultimately trigger up to 11 feet of global sea level rise, meaning certain devastation for tens of millions of people. Now, a team of researchers from the University of Manitoba have analyzed satellite data from 2002 to 2022, and observed how cracks in the Thwaites Glacier continued to grow around a shear zone. “Over the past two decades, the shelf has experienced progressive fracturing around a prominent …