Scientists glimpse Einstein's gravitational waves

Yahoo – AFP, Jean-Louis Santini , and Pascale Mollard Chenebenoit in Paris, 11 February 2016

This image, taken December 14, 2015, shows a Laser Interferometer Gravitational 

Wave Observatory (LIGO) optics technician inspecting one of LIGO's core optics 

(mirrors) (AFP Photo)

Washington (AFP) - In a landmark discovery for physics and astronomy, scientists said Thursday they have glimpsed the first direct evidence of gravitational waves, ripples in the fabric of space-time that Albert Einstein predicted a century ago.

When two black holes collided some 1.3 billion years ago, the joining of those two great masses sent forth a wobble that hurtled through space and reached Earth on September 14, 2015, when it was picked up by sophisticated instruments, researchers announced.

"Up until now we have been deaf to gravitational waves, but today, we are able to hear them," said David Reitze, executive director of the LIGO Laboratory, at a packed press conference in the US capital.

A woman photographs a statue of Albert 

Einstein on February 11, 2016 in 

Washington (AFP Photo/Brendan 

Smialowski)

Reitze and colleagues compared the magnitude of the discovery to Galileo's use of the telescope four centuries ago to open the era of modern astronomy.

"I think we are doing something equally important here today. I think we are opening a window on the universe," Reitze said.

The phenomenon was observed by two US-based underground detectors, designed to pick up tiny vibrations from passing gravitational waves, a project known as the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-wave Observatory, or LIGO.

It took scientists months to verify their data and put it through a process of peer-review before announcing it on Thursday, marking the culmination of decades of efforts by teams around the world including some 1,000 scientists from 16 countries, according to the National Science Foundation, which funded the research.

Strain in space

Gravitational waves are a measure of strain in space, an effect of the motion of large masses that stretches the fabric of space-time -- a way of viewing space and time as a single, interweaved continuum.

They travel at the speed of light and cannot be stopped or blocked by anything.

As part of his theory of general relativity, Einstein said space-time could be compared to a net, bowing under the weight of an object. Gravitational waves would be like ripples that emanate from a pebble thrown in a pond.

While scientists have previously been able to calculate gravitational waves, they had never before seen one directly.

According to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's (MIT) David Shoemaker, the leader of the Advanced LIGO team, it looked just like physicists thought it would.

David Reitze, executive director of LIGO, speaks during an announcement that 

scientists have observed gravitational waves for the first time at the National 

Press Club in Washington, DC, February 11, 2016 (AFP Photo/Saul Loeb)

Wobbling like jelly

"The waveform that we can calculate based on Einstein's theory of 1916 matches exactly what we observed in 2015," he told AFP.

"It looked like a chirp, it looked at something that started at low frequencies -- for us low frequencies means 20 or 30 hertz, that's like the lowest note on a bass guitar, sweeping very rapidly up over just a fraction of a second... up to 150 hertz or so, sort of near middle C on a piano."

The chirp "corresponded to the orbit of these two black holes getting smaller and smaller, and the speed of the two objects going faster and faster until the two became a single object," he explained.

"And then right at the end of this waveform, we see the wobbling of the final black hole as if it were made of jelly as it settled into a static state."

Underground detectors

The L-shaped LIGO detectors -- each about 2.5 miles (four kilometers) long -- were conceived and built by researchers at MIT and Caltech.

One is located in Hanford, Washington, and the other is in Livingston, Louisiana. A third advanced detector, called VIRGO, is scheduled to open in Italy later this year.

Tuck Stebbins, head of the gravitational astrophysics laboratory at NASA's Goddard Spaceflight Center, described the detector as the "one of the most complex machines built by humans."

Physicists said the gravitational wave detected at 1651 GMT on September 14 originated in the last fraction of a second before the fusion of two black holes somewhere in the southern sky, though they can't say precisely where.

Physicist Benoit Mours of France's National Center for Scientific Research (CNRS), which is leading the VIRGO team along with Italian colleagues, described the discovery as "historic" because it "allows us to directly verify one of the predictions of the theory of general relativity."

LIGO co-founders Kip Thorne (R), and Rainer Weiss (L), speak about 

confirming a prediction of Albert Einstein's theory of relativity, during a press

 conference at the National Press Club in Washington, DC, February 11, 2016 

(AFP Photo/Saul Loeb)

New discoveries ahead

Einstein had predicted such a phenomenon would occur when two black holes collided, but it had never before been observed.

An analysis by the MIT and Caltech found that the two black holes joined about 1.3 billion years ago, and their mass was 29-36 times greater than the Sun.

The wave arrived first at the Louisiana detector, then at the Washington instrument 7.1 milliseconds later.

The two instruments are 1,800 miles (3,000 kilometers) apart, and since both made the same reading, scientists consider their discovery confirmed.

Accolades poured in from across the science world, as experts hailed a discovery that will help mankind better understand the universe.

"This expands hugely the way we can observe the cosmos, and the kinds of physics and astrophysics we can do," said professor Sheila Rowan, Director of the University of Glasgow's Institute for Gravitational Research.

Abhay Ashtekar, director of the Institute for Gravitation and the Cosmos at Penn State University, described the discovery as "breathtaking" and said it "will stand out among the major achievements of the 21st-century science."

"We can now listen to the universe rather than just look at it," said Professor B S Sathyaprakash of Cardiff University. "This window turns on the soundtrack for the universe."

Indirect proof of gravitational waves was found in 1974 through the study of a pulsar and a neutron star. Scientists Russell Hulse and Joseph Taylor won the Nobel Prize for physics for that work in 1993.

Scientists glimpse Einstein's gravitational waves https://t.co/7Ioy62sRQA pic.twitter.com/fSYkPE7gKs

— AFP news agency (@AFP) February 11, 2016

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More wind power not biomass is key to Dutch energy needs: report

DutchNews, February 9, 2016

The Netherlands should build extra offshore wind farms if the government presses ahead with plans to close all coal-fired power stations, according to a new report for energy group Eneco and environmental group Natuur & Milieu. 

An additional offshore wind farm will be cheaper than the current plans to use more biomass, provide 6,000 jobs and will be better for the environment, the report states. The report was drawn up by research bureau CE Delft. 

Some 14% of the Netherlands’ energy needs are due to be derived from sustainable sources within the next four years. The current level is around 5%. 

A key plank of the government’s programme is increasing the use of biomass, such as wooden pallets and wood chips. However, the CE Delft report states this is an expensive alternative to wind and solar power. 

Coal closures

Some biomass is burned in coal-fired power stations which are more polluting than gas or biomass-focused electricity producers. Nor do the government’s current calculations take into account the fact that five of the country’s 11 coal-fired power stations are being shut down permanently. 

Last March parliament approved the construction of three large offshore wind farms 18 to 22 kilometres off the coast of Zeeland, Noord-Holland and Zuid-Holland. Many seaside resorts oppose the wind farms, saying they will spoil the view for holidaymakers and day-trippers. 

The energy agreement signed between ministers, industry and green groups in 2013 included major offshore wind farms.

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Shell confirms 10,000 job losses as profits plunge

DutchNews, February 4, 2016

Oil giant Shell has confirmed it is cutting 10,000 jobs worldwide after its profit plunged in the final quarter of the year. 

Over 2015 as a whole, Shell reported net profit of $10.7bn, compared with $22.6bn in 2014. 

The Anglo-Dutch company reported a massive profit warning two weeks ago and indicated jobs would go following the agreement to take over the smaller BG oil group.

‘We are making substantial changes in the company, reorganising our upstream, and reducing costs and capital investment, as we refocus Shell, and respond to lower oil prices,’ chief executive Ben van Beurden said in a statement. 

‘As we have previously indicated, this will include a reduction of some 10,000 staff and direct contractor positions in 2015-16 across both companies.’

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"Recalibration of Free Choice"–  Mar 3, 2012 (Kryon Channelling by Lee Caroll) - (Subjects: (Old) Souls, Midpoint on 21-12-2012, Shift of Human Consciousness, Black & White vs. Color, 1 - Spirituality (Religions) shifting, Loose a Pope “soon”, 2 - Humans will change react to drama, 3 - Civilizations/Population on Earth,  4 - Alternate energy sources (Geothermal, Tidal (Paddle wheels), Wind), 5 – Financials Institutes/concepts will change (Integrity – Ethical) , 6 - News/Media/TV to change, 7 – Big Pharmaceutical company will collapse “soon”, (Keep people sick), (Integrity – Ethical)  8 – Wars will be over on Earth, Global Unity, … etc.) - (Text version)

“…  4 - Energy (again)

The natural resources of the planet are finite and will not support the continuation of what you've been doing. We've been saying this for a decade. Watch for increased science and increased funding for alternate ways of creating electricity (finally). Watch for the very companies who have the most to lose being the ones who fund it. It is the beginning of a full realization that a change of thinking is at hand. You can take things from Gaia that are energy, instead of physical resources. We speak yet again about geothermal, about tidal, about wind. Again, we plead with you not to over-engineer this. For one of the things that Human Beings do in a technological age is to over-engineer simple things. Look at nuclear - the most over-engineered and expensive steam engine in existence!

Your current ideas of capturing energy from tidal and wave motion don't have to be technical marvels. Think paddle wheel on a pier with waves, which will create energy in both directions [waves coming and going] tied to a generator that can power dozens of neighborhoods, not full cities. Think simple and decentralize the idea of utilities. The same goes for wind and geothermal. Think of utilities for groups of homes in a cluster. You won't have a grid failure if there is no grid. This is the way of the future, and you'll be more inclined to have it sooner than later if you do this, and it won't cost as much.

Water

We've told you that one of the greatest natural resources of the planet, which is going to shift and change and be mysterious to you, is fresh water. It's going to be the next gold, dear ones. So, we have also given you some hints and examples and again we plead: Even before the potentials of running out of it, learn how to desalinate water in real time without heat. It's there, it's doable, and some already have it in the lab. This will create inexpensive fresh water for the planet.

There is a change of attitude that is starting to occur. Slowly you're starting to see it and the only thing getting in the way of it are those companies with the big money who currently have the old system. That's starting to change as well. For the big money always wants to invest in what it knows is coming next, but it wants to create what is coming next within the framework of what it has "on the shelf." What is on the shelf is oil, coal, dams, and non-renewable resource usage. It hasn't changed much in the last 100 years, has it? Now you will see a change of free choice. You're going to see decisions made in the boardrooms that would have curled the toes of those two generations ago. Now "the worst thing they could do" might become "the best thing they could do." That, dear ones, is a change of free choice concept. When the thinkers of tomorrow see options that were never options before, that is a shift. That was number four. ….”