Телеграм канал «Futurism: Science & Technology News»

A team of astronomers say they may have detected dark matter, the invisible substance thought to make up over 85 percent of all matter in the universe, for the first time in history. The claim is controversial, and the findings, published in a new study in the Journal of Cosmology and Astroparticle Physics, will need to be borne out by further observations.⁠ ⁠ But at least until it gets picked apart by other physicists, it’s one of the most exciting developments in the hunt for this omnipresent specter haunting the cosmos.⁠ ⁠ In their study, the team analyzed fifteen years worth of data that NASA’s Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope took in an overlooked region near the center of the Milky Way, and found a halo of gamma rays that couldn’t be explained by its surroundings. “The gamma-ray emission component closely matches the shape expected from the dark matter halo," Totani said in a statement.⁠ ⁠ The intensity of the emissions, the astronomers found, matches the emissions predicted from the annihilation of weakly interacting massive particles, suggesting that the particles have a mass around 500 times that of a proton. “It turns out that dark matter is a new particle not included in the current standard model of particle physics,” Totani added

The interstellar visitor 3I/ATLAS is back in view after swinging behind the Sun — and new observations are only deepening the mystery. Astronomers have spotted its strange “anti-tail,” a jet of material pointing *toward* the Sun instead of away from it. Most experts say it’s just dust dynamics… but one Harvard astronomer thinks there might be more going on. According to him, 3I/ATLAS could be firing thruster-like jets to accelerate out of the solar system faster than gravity alone would allow. If true, that would make it the second interstellar object in a row to behave in unusual, non-comet-like ways. Natural phenomenon — or something else entirely? The debate is just getting started. 🚀✨ #3IATLAS #Interstellar #SpaceMystery #Astronomy #CosmicPhenomena #AstroNews #ScienceUpdate #SpaceTalk #DeepSpace #Cosmos

Australia is generating so much solar power that it's now giving it out for free. Residents in three of the country's states — New South Wales, Queensland, and South Australia, representing approximately 14 million people, or roughly half of the country’s population — will be receiving at least three hours of free solar power every day, even if they don’t have panels mounted to their roofs.⁠ ⁠ The federal government even suggested that Australians should use the period to use their most electricity-intensive appliances, from air conditioners to electric car chargers — a renewable energy boon that less sunny parts of the world can only dream of, @guardian reported.⁠ ⁠ The initiative was designed to ensure that excess power during peak times doesn’t go unused. With countries making strides in building out solar farms and more households installing solar panels, there’s plenty of energy to go around. However, storing all of this power for later use remains a major logistical challenge.⁠ ⁠ To even out energy usage during the day, when solar power generation hits its peak, the government is hoping to encourage residents to shift their maximum usage — which conventionally isn’t in the middle of the day — to when there’s a surplus.⁠

A Russian firm unveiled a humanoid robot dubbed Aldol during a flashy showcase in Moscow, only for it to fall on its face. Figuratively *and* literally. All to the iconic soundtrack of Rocky, no less. 📽: @drivegreen_livegreen #futurism #robot #Ai

3I/ATLAS has dramatically intensified its mass loss after emerging from behind the Sun. New images show a huge anti-tail and a “smoking” trail stretching millions of miles. According to Avi Loeb, the comet’s jets likely lasted 1–3 months — and its mass shedding jumped from hundreds of pounds per second in August to around 4.4 million pounds per second near perihelion. #Space #Astronomy #3IATLAS