Welcome to Sott.net
Sun, 19 Sep 2021
The World for People who Think

Science & Technology
Map

Galaxy

Why the sun's atmosphere is hundreds of times hotter than its surface

sun solar
© Mongta Studio/Shutterstock
The visible surface of the sun, or the photosphere, is around 6,000°C. But a few thousand kilometers above it — a small distance when we consider the size of the sun — the solar atmosphere, also called the corona, is hundreds of times hotter, reaching a million degrees celsius or higher.

This spike in temperature, despite the increased distance from the sun's main energy source, has been observed in most stars, and represents a fundamental puzzle that astrophysicists have mulled over for decades.


Comment: Perhaps part of the problem lies in the theory of where a star's energy comes from? Perhaps it's not coming from inside, but from outside?


In 1942, the Swedish scientist Hannes Alfvén proposed an explanation. He theorized that magnetized waves of plasma could carry huge amounts of energy along the sun's magnetic field from its interior to the corona, bypassing the photosphere before exploding with heat in the sun's upper atmosphere.

Comment: Recent studies are bringing mainstream scientists closer to the true nature of space, stars and planets, and we can find more clues as to what's going on by looking at Electric Universe theory. In their book Earth Changes and the Human-Cosmic Connection Pierre Lescaudron and Laura Knight-Jadczyk write:
External power sources of celestial bodies

The reason capacitors can repeatedly discharge and yet maintain an electric potential difference between their anodes and cathodes is because they are plugged into an external source of energy. So where does all the electricity in our solar system come from? University of Michigan astrophysicist Michael J. Longo has thoroughly studied more than 40,000 galaxies.1 Following numerous steps in data treatment and analysis - I'll spare you the details of his calculations, which you can check in his paper - his conclusion was the following:
The worrisome alignment of the equinoxes and ecliptic with the AE is now seen as an accident due to the ecliptic's definition along RA [right ascensions] =180° and 0°, near the Galactic poles. It is not a sign of a serious foreground bias in the WMAP data. All the alignments can be explained with a cosmic magnetic field that aligns electrons' cyclotron orbit axes and imprints its multipoles on the CMB.2
In simpler terms, what Longo concluded was that the rotation axes of galaxies are aligned along the same curve and that this alignment could not be due to random chance. Along with Longo, Alfven3, Campanelli4 and Schwarz5 have all strongly suggested that the alignment of galactic rotation axes is due to a giant ring of electric current. Although the ultimate source of this giant electric ring circling the cosmic 'void' is still unknown, the alignment of the galaxies' rotation axes is indirect proof of its existence. The picture below depicts this alignment of galactic rotation axes on a ring-shaped intergalactic current (pink color):


A recent study seems to confirm this, notably the results surprised scientists: Milky Way not unusual


This giant ring of Birkeland current (see next chapter on 'Currents in plasma') may be the external source of energy that powers galaxies. It may also explain the 'handedness' addressed by Longo in his paper, by electrically inducing a specific direction and speed of rotation in the galaxies located along its current6. As shown in the picture below, intragalactic space seems to follow the same process as intergalactic space:

[...]

In addition to aligning galaxies along the 'intergalactic ring' and making them spin, as well as grouping the stars within galaxies along galactic arms, Birkeland currents may also be the external electric source that powers the stars themselves8 and makes them spin. In their turn, stars may be the external electric source that powers planets and makes them spin.
Birkeland
© Sott.net
A Birkeland current crossing 'empty' interstellar space.
These remain hypotheses only. Today the external electric sources that power celestial bodies is still unknown. Even plasma cosmologists have no definite answer to this question:

Studies of magnetic fields in the spiral arms of galaxies shows that electrical currents flow along the arms in the form of spiraling Birkeland filaments.  Ultimately, we don't know where the power comes from.9

[...]

Birkeland noticed that before the discharge circle divided, discharges were mostly localized in the equatorial and polar regions of the electrodes, as indicated in the picture below. This strongly suggests that most of the current injected into the electrode at the level of the polar regions escaped through the equatorial region. This is consistent with observations of the Sun, which shows a predominant glow and faster rate of rotation19 around the equatorial region.

Birkeland
© Sott.net
Birkeland's terrella experiment.
Reasoning by analogy and applying the principles of the homopolar motor to celestial bodies like stars and planets, we find that the 'internal' magnet of the celestial body plays the role of the cylindrical magnet of the motor. The external power source of the celestial body plays the role of the battery. The partial vacuum generated in the lab plays the role of the partial vacuum that constitutes outer space. And the Birkeland current crossing the plasma that surrounds the celestial body plays the role of the electric wire which closes the circuit by connecting the battery to the magnet.

If a celestial body is a conductor crossed by an electric current and an electromagnetic field, it will also be subjected to the Lorentz force. In this sense, stars and planets are giant homopolar motors, hence their spin. Therefore, when electric current or magnetic field decreases in strength, the rate of rotation decreases as well.

Note that the Moon doesn't spin. As explained above, the Moon hasn't developed a Double Layer (DL) of its own. It has no plasmasphere because its electric potential is equal to that of its surrounding space. Electric potentials being equal, the Moon is not subjected to any electric current, so no Lorentz force can be generated, hence the absence of spinning20.

For plasma cosmologists the driving force of spinning stars is indeed electricity:
 within the visible universe we find magnetic fields linking galaxies, showing that the galaxies are 'threaded like beads on a string', along cosmic power lines. The galaxies and stars within them are driven to rotate like the very simplest of electric motors, known as the 'homopolar' or Faraday motor. The ubiquitous spiral arms of galaxies trace the current paths between the galactic nucleus and the periphery From an electrical standpoint we make the simple observation that increasing electric current input to stars results in increasing maximum rotational speeds.21
In Part III, we will see how the Lorentz force (the result of the interaction between electric current and magnetic field) plays a role in numerous natural phenomena on Earth.

So far, in Part I we have introduced some basic concepts of the Electric Universe theory and plasma cosmology: the primary role of electrically charged plasma, the way in which different electrical potentials form around celestial bodies and set up an electrical gradient through which current can flow, the relative charges of the bodies in our solar system, and the role of electricity (specifically the Lorentz force) in structuring galaxies and solar systems, making them spin. Now, in Part II, we'll take a closer look at the Nemesis theory, and how it might fit into the framework created by the above concepts.
  1. 1 Longo, M., 'Does the Universe Have a Handedness?', arXiv:0812.3437 [astro-ph], 2008
  2. 2 ccapp.osu.edu/workshops/GLCW8/glcw8/talks/mLongo.pdf
  3. 3 Alfvén, Hannes et al. (1978). 'Interstellar clouds and the formation of stars'. Astrophysics and Space Science 55 (2): 487-509.
  4. 4.Campanelli L. et al, 'Ellipsoidal universe can solve the cosmic microwave background quadrupole problem'. Phys Rev Lett. 2006 Sep 29;97(13):131302.
  5. 5 Schwarz Domink, 'Is the low-l microwave background cosmic?', Astrophysics Journal, November 24th, 2004
  6. 6 See Chapter 12: 'Homopolar motors'
  7. 7 Byrd, D., 'Which spiral arm of the Milky Way contains our Sun?', Earthsky
  8. See: earthsky.org/space/does-our-sun-reside-in-a-spiral-arm-of-the-milky-way-galaxy
  9. 8 Scott, Donald E., The Electric Sky, p. 85
  10. 9 Thornhill, W. & Talbott, D., The Electric Universe, p.61
  11. 10 Tsytovich, V.N., Elementary Physics of Complex Plasmas, p. 7
  12. 11 Luis Alvarez (1911-1988), University of Berkeley researcher, winner of the Nobel Prize in Physics, 1968.
  13. 12 Trower, W.P., 'Luis Walter Alvarez - A biographical memoir', p. 7
  14. 13 Ex-CNRS researcher and ex-secretary of the French section of IAGA (International Association of Geomagnetism and Aeronomy)
  15. 14 Nodon, A., 'Prévisions météo d'après les taches solaires'. See : albert-nodon.e-monsite.com/pages/recherche-au-20-siecle/previsions-meteo-d-apres-les-taches-solaires/
  16. 15 Pinches are created in the laboratory in equipment related to nuclear fusion. Pinches may also become unstable and generate radiation across the electromagnetic spectrum, including radio waves, x-rays and gamma rays, and also neutrons and synchrotron radiation. There are different kinds of pinches including theta pinch, the screw pinch and the Z-pinch. The name refers to the direction of the current in the devices, i.e., the Z-axis on a mathematical diagram. Any machine that causes a pinch effect due to current running in that direction is correctly referred to as a Z-pinch system, and this encompasses a wide variety of devices used for an equally wide variety of purposes including fusion power research. Pinches are used to generate X-rays, and they have applications to particle beams including particle beam weapons, and astrophysics.
  17. 16 Christian Birkeland had written in 1913 that what is now called the 'solar wind' generates currents in space that cause the auroras. Birkeland's theory was disputed at the time by the British geophysicist and mathematician Sydney Chapman, a senior figure in space physics, who argued the mainstream view that currents could not cross the vacuum of space and therefore the currents had to be generated by the Earth. However, in 1967 Birkeland's theory, referred to previously as 'fringe', was proved correct thanks to the data collected by U.S. Navy satellite 1963-38C. These magnetic field-aligned currents are now named Birkeland currents in his honor.
  18. 17 Anthony L. Peratt is a leading plasma physicist. He's the author of a foundational book titled Physics of the Plasma Universe. Peratt is currently investigating archaeological evidence for major space plasma events in prehistory.
  19. 18 Jago, L., The Northern Lights, Alfred a Knopf, NY, 2001.
  20. 19 According to the movements of the sunspots, the Sun rotates once every 27 days at the equator, but only once in 31 days at the poles.
  21. 20 However the moon has not always been devoid of a magnetosphere. The Moon's surface does bear remnant magnetism. The rocks returned to Earth by Apollo missions show evidence of this magnetism.
  22. Scott, D.E., The Electric sky, p. 214
  23. 21 Ibid, p.130
See also: And check out SOTT radio's:


Radar

Another 'extinct' animal found alive, this time it's the Galápagos tortoise

tortoise
© AFP
Conservationist and park rangers found the female in 2019
Genetic tests have confirmed that a giant tortoise found on the Galápagos Islands is from a species which scientists thought had died out more than a century ago.

The single female was discovered during a 2019 expedition to Fernandina Island.

To prove the link, scientists took samples from the female to compare to the remains of a male from the species Chelonoidis phantasticus.

The last previous sighting of the species had been in 1906.

Comment: Whilst it does appear that our planet is undergoing a significant shift, with species going extinct as a result - and this is of grave concern - the sheer number of 'rediscoveries' of species leads one to think that perhaps researchers are declaring extinction status far too early, and this may point to a certain ideological blind within their field:


Fireball 2

Meteor fireball over Brazil may have come from another solar system

Fireball over Brazil
A small space rock that slammed into Earth's atmosphere and flamed out as a spectacular fireball over Brazil may have traveled from beyond our solar system to put on the bright display.

Brazil's Meteor Watch Network (Bramon) captured the so-called Earth-grazer meteor on Sunday evening over the southern part of the country. Two cameras in the network captured the meteoroid burning up in a brilliant streak painting its way across the night sky.

The fireball is considered an Earth-grazer because it collided with our atmosphere at a very shallow angle. A statement from Bramon suggests the meteor may have interstellar origins. "Preliminary analyses indicate that it was generated by a meteoroid coming from outside the solar system," it said.

The science around interstellar objects visiting our solar system is nascent and controversial.

Comment: See also: Large meteor fireball recorded in Rio Grande do Sul and Santa Catarina, Brazil


Sun

A 'ring of fire' solar eclipse will be visible in the sky on Thursday

Ring of fire solar eclipse
© NASA
An annular solar eclipse.
A solar eclipse will be visible in the sky at 6:53 a.m. ET on Thursday, as the moon passes between the Earth and the sun.

During a total solar eclipse, the moon blocks the sun entirely. But Thursday's spectacle is an annular solar eclipse, which occurs when the moon is too far from Earth — and therefore too small in the sky — to fully cover the sun. That leaves room for a brilliant halo of light, often referred to as a "ring of fire" or annulus, surrounding the moon.

The phenomenon won't be visible everywhere: Parts of Canada, Greenland, and Russia will have the best views. People in the northeastern US, northern Europe, and northern Asia will be able to see a partial solar eclipse, which will look as if someone has taken a bite out of the sun.

This will be the only annular solar eclipse this year, though it's the first of two solar eclipses in 2021. The year's second solar eclipse — a total eclipse — will take place on December 4.

UFO

China military uses AI to track rapidly increasing UFOs

Saucers/China flag
© Shutterstock
The PLA has a dedicated task force to investigate sightings.
As the Pentagon prepares its report into UFOs, due later this month, Chinese military researchers have turned to artificial intelligence to track and analyse the increasing number of unknown objects in China's airspace.

To the People's Liberation Army, they are "unidentified air conditions" - a phrase which echoes the US military's "unidentified aerial phenomena" - but to the public they are better known as unidentified flying objects, or UFOs.

According to Wuhan-based researcher Chen Li from the Air Force Early Warning Academy, human analysts have been overwhelmed in recent years by the rapidly mounting sighting reports from a wide range of military and civilian sources across the country. Chen, in a 2019 report to a conference of senior information technology scientists in Beijing in 2019, said:
"The frequent occurrence of unidentified air conditions in recent years ... brings severe challenges to air defence security of our country."
The PLA's task force dedicated to the unknown objects increasingly relies on AI technology to analyse its data, according to Chen's report, which is in line with several other military studies published in domestic journals, most recently in August last year.

Better Earth

Is Earth's core growing lopsided? Strange goings-on in our planet's interior

earth core
© Marine Lasbleis
A new model by UC Berkeley seismologists proposes that Earth’s inner core grows faster on its east side (left) than on its west. Gravity equalizes the asymmetric growth by pushing iron crystals toward the north and south poles (arrows). This tends to align the long axis of iron crystals along the planet’s rotation axis (dashed line), explaining the different travel times for seismic waves through the inner core.
For reasons unknown, Earth's solid-iron inner core is growing faster on one side than the other, and it has been ever since it started to freeze out from molten iron more than half a billion years ago, according to a new study by seismologists at the University of California, Berkeley.

The faster growth under Indonesia's Banda Sea hasn't left the core lopsided. Gravity evenly distributes the new growth — iron crystals that form as the molten iron cools — to maintain a spherical inner core that grows in radius by an average of 1 millimeter per year.

But the enhanced growth on one side suggests that something in Earth's outer core or mantle under Indonesia is removing heat from the inner core at a faster rate than on the opposite side, under Brazil. Quicker cooling on one side would accelerate iron crystallization and inner core growth on that side.

Comment: See also: And check out SOTT radio's:


X

Two human flu virus strains may have gone extinct so say reports

H1N1
© NIAID/CC by 2.0
Electron micrograph of H1N1 flu strain
There's been so little flu transmission during the COVID-19 pandemic that some types of flu viruses may have gone extinct, according to news reports.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, flu cases dropped to historic lows - a phenomenon experts attribute to mask wearing and other precautions to combat the novel coronavirus.

Interestingly, two types of flu viruses haven't shown up on anyone's radar for a year, meaning there have been no reported cases of these viruses anywhere in the world, STAT reported.

Experts don't yet know if these types have gone extinct, but if so, officials could have an easier time picking the strains of flu viruses included in the seasonal flu shot, STAT reported.

To explain which flu viruses may have gone extinct, it helps to understand how flu viruses are classified. Two families of flu viruses cause seasonal flu: influenza A and influenza B. Influenza A viruses are divided into "subtypes" based on two proteins on their surface known as hemagglutinin (H) and neuraminidase (N), according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Info

Nearby gamma-ray burst defies expectations

gamma-ray burst
© DESY, Science Communication Lab
An artist's depiction of a gamma-ray burst's relativistic jet full of very-high-energy photons breaking out of a collapsing star.
A team of scientists has gotten their best look yet at a gamma-ray burst, the most dramatic type of explosion in the universe.

Astronomers think some of these explosions occur when a massive star — five or 10 times the mass of our sun — detonates, abruptly becoming a black hole. Gamma-ray bursts may also occur when two superdense stellar corpses called neutron stars collide, often forming a black hole. And conveniently, a gamma-ray burst that scientists watched during a few nights in 2019 likely occurred only about 1 billion light-years away from Earth, relatively close by for these dramatic events.

"We were really sitting in the front row when this gamma-ray burst happened," Andrew Taylor, a physicist at the Deutsches Elektronen-Synchrotron (German Electron Synchrotron, or DESY) and co-author on the new paper, said in a statement. "We could observe the afterglow for several days and to unprecedented gamma-ray energies."

Two NASA space-based observatories, Fermi and Swift, first detected the event, which is known as GRB 190829A because it was detected on Aug. 29, 2019. The fireworks came from the direction of the constellation Eridanus, a large swath of sky in the Southern Hemisphere.

When the scientists behind the new research heard about the gamma-ray burst detection, they mobilized a set of five gamma-ray telescopes in Namibia, called the High Energy Stereoscopic System (HESS). Over three nights, the telescopes observed the explosion for a total of 13 hours, in an attempt to understand what took place.

Seismograph

Giant diamonds may hold the secret to understanding superdeep earthquakes

giant diamond deep earthquakes
© Evan Smith/ GIA
Imperfections such as the inclusions (dark flecks) in this diamond reveal that tectonic slabs can carry water deep into Earth's mantle.
Earthquakes shouldn't occur more than 300 kilometers below Earth's surface, according to most geophysical models. Yet they commonly do — a phenomenon that has mystified seismologists for decades. Now, researchers suggest water carried by tectonic plates shoved beneath continents could be triggering these deep temblors. The find may also explain another marvel: why a huge number of fist-size diamonds form at this depth.

Earthquakes typically occur when the two sides of a fault, or the opposite sides of a tectonic plate boundary, scrape past each other. But far beneath our planet's surface, the pressures are too high for such slippage, and rocks are typically so hot they ooze and flow rather than break. That has led geophysicists to come up with alternate explanations for deep seismic activity, which can be very strong but largely too far away for us to feel.

One idea is that some minerals, under the extreme heat and pressure deep within our planet, can suddenly lose volume, with the runaway collapse over large distances causing strong quakes. A second notion is that once a quake gets going — because of the sudden collapse of minerals or another cause — rocks near the tip of the rupture heat up even further and weaken, fueling the quake. A third cause might be water released from rocks deep below Earth's surface, which could weaken other rocks nearby, allowing them to fracture more easily. Researchers have largely dismissed that explanation, however, because it wasn't clear where such water would come from.

Comet 2

New Comet C/2021 J1 (Maury-Attard)

CBET 4972 & MPEC 2021-L11, issued on 2021, June 02, announce the discovery of a new comet (magnitude ~19.0) on CCD images taken by A. Maury and G. Attard on May 09.3 UT with the 0.28-m f/2.2 Rowe-Ackermann Schmidt astrograph at San Pedro de Atacama, Chile in the course of the MAP (W94) survey. The new comet has been designated C/2021 J1 (Maury-Attard). This is the first amateur comet discovery of 2021. It is also the first comet ever discovered using the synthetic tracking technique (using TYCHO software).

Stacking of 27 unfiltered exposures, 30 seconds each, obtained remotely on 2021, May 16.3 from X02 (Telescope Live, Chile) through a 0.61-m f/6.5 astrograph + CCD, shows that this object is a comet with a compact coma about 7" arcsecond in diameter (Observers E. Guido, M. Rocchetto, E. Bryssinck, M. Fulle, G. Milani, C. Nassef, G. Savini, A. Valvasori).

Our confirmation images (click on the images for a bigger version; made with TYCHO software by D. Parrott)

comet C/2021 J1 (Maury-Attard)
© Remanzacco Blogspot