Time Dilation, Black Hole Mysteries & Cosmic Curiosities | Space Nuts: Astronomy Insights &...
Movies First: Film Reviews & InsightsDecember 15, 202500:37:3134.36 MB

Time Dilation, Black Hole Mysteries & Cosmic Curiosities | Space Nuts: Astronomy Insights &...

Kind: captions Language: en
00:00:00 --> 00:00:01 Hello again. Thanks for joining us. This

00:00:01 --> 00:00:04 is Space Nuts Q&A edition. My name is

00:00:04 --> 00:00:05 Andrew Dunley. This will be our last

00:00:06 --> 00:00:09 official show for 2025. We'll go into a

00:00:09 --> 00:00:12 short recess and be back with you early

00:00:12 --> 00:00:15 in the new year. Uh but we've got some

00:00:15 --> 00:00:17 questions to nail down before any of

00:00:17 --> 00:00:20 that happens. And we've got a whole

00:00:20 --> 00:00:22 bunch of topics that seem to have

00:00:22 --> 00:00:25 stirred the imaginations of uh our

00:00:25 --> 00:00:27 audience. Uh Andrew wants to know about

00:00:27 --> 00:00:29 time dilation of stars.

00:00:29 --> 00:00:32 Uh Adriano is talking black holes

00:00:32 --> 00:00:36 becoming stars. Uh Ishtto uh is wanting

00:00:36 --> 00:00:39 to ask about free space.

00:00:40 --> 00:00:41 H

00:00:41 --> 00:00:43 I always thought it was expensive

00:00:43 --> 00:00:45 officially all the space around where we

00:00:45 --> 00:00:49 live. Y and Ggo red shift and graars. We

00:00:49 --> 00:00:51 will tackle all of that in this edition

00:00:51 --> 00:00:53 of Space Nuts.

00:00:53 --> 00:00:58 >> 15 seconds. Guidance is internal. 10 9

00:00:58 --> 00:00:59 ignition sequence start.

00:00:59 --> 00:01:00 >> Space nuts.

00:01:00 --> 00:01:03 >> 5 4 3 2

00:01:03 --> 00:01:05 >> 1 2 3 4 5 5 4 3 2 1

00:01:05 --> 00:01:06 >> Space nuts.

00:01:06 --> 00:01:09 >> Astronauts report. It feels good.

00:01:09 --> 00:01:11 >> And here he is again. It's Professor

00:01:11 --> 00:01:13 Fred Watson, an astronomer at large.

00:01:13 --> 00:01:15 Hello, Fred.

00:01:15 --> 00:01:16 >> Hello, Andrew.

00:01:16 --> 00:01:17 >> Good to see you again.

00:01:18 --> 00:01:19 >> Fancy seeing you.

00:01:19 --> 00:01:21 >> Yeah. How odd. How strange.

00:01:21 --> 00:01:24 >> How strange. Hm. Uh getting ready for

00:01:24 --> 00:01:26 your Christmas break. I mean, you've

00:01:26 --> 00:01:27 just come back from a break, so you'd

00:01:27 --> 00:01:31 be, you know, probably

00:01:31 --> 00:01:34 feeling rather relaxed. Well, no. Uh

00:01:34 --> 00:01:36 because only the last six days weren't

00:01:36 --> 00:01:38 work.

00:01:38 --> 00:01:38 >> Ah.

00:01:38 --> 00:01:40 >> Yeah.

00:01:40 --> 00:01:42 So, um No, that's not quite true because

00:01:42 --> 00:01:44 we did have some time off with my family

00:01:44 --> 00:01:46 in Scotland. Um but we did have a proper

00:01:46 --> 00:01:48 holiday at the end of our trip. But yes,

00:01:48 --> 00:01:50 we did two months of pretty hard work.

00:01:50 --> 00:01:52 Ku had a tour in Japan and then uh the

00:01:52 --> 00:01:54 conference in Ireland and a few other

00:01:54 --> 00:01:57 things like that that um kept us busy.

00:01:57 --> 00:01:57 So uh

00:01:58 --> 00:01:59 >> if you if you want to call international

00:01:59 --> 00:02:02 travel a job that's you know that's

00:02:02 --> 00:02:04 fine.

00:02:04 --> 00:02:05 >> Um

00:02:05 --> 00:02:07 >> want to call it work.

00:02:07 --> 00:02:09 >> Um if you Yeah. But when you've got a

00:02:10 --> 00:02:11 tour group when you got 20 people who

00:02:11 --> 00:02:15 you were entertained for a month or it's

00:02:15 --> 00:02:18 actually three and a half weeks. Um it

00:02:18 --> 00:02:21 is work. Yeah. Yeah. Well, we've got a

00:02:21 --> 00:02:23 similar problem in the coming week or

00:02:23 --> 00:02:25 two with four grandchildren that we're

00:02:25 --> 00:02:26 taking to the co.

00:02:26 --> 00:02:28 >> Yeah. To be honest, I'd rather have 20

00:02:28 --> 00:02:30 tourists than four grandchildren.

00:02:30 --> 00:02:31 Although my grandchildren are now

00:02:32 --> 00:02:33 totally self-propelled, apart from the

00:02:33 --> 00:02:35 youngest one, Agie. She's on it. She's

00:02:36 --> 00:02:37 she's nine months like yesterday

00:02:37 --> 00:02:38 actually.

00:02:38 --> 00:02:38 >> Anyway,

00:02:38 --> 00:02:41 >> anyway, yes,

00:02:41 --> 00:02:44 >> it's a matter of But we Yeah. So, we The

00:02:44 --> 00:02:46 bottom line is we will have a relaxing

00:02:46 --> 00:02:48 end of year break, I hope.

00:02:48 --> 00:02:49 >> Very good.

00:02:49 --> 00:02:51 Um, you mentioned Edinburgh. Well, uh,

00:02:51 --> 00:02:54 our first question comes from Andrew in

00:02:54 --> 00:02:56 Edinburgh. Uh, he says, "I have a

00:02:56 --> 00:02:58 two-part question about, uh, the gravity

00:02:58 --> 00:03:00 and subsequent d time dilation that

00:03:00 --> 00:03:03 occurs in and around super giant stars.

00:03:03 --> 00:03:05 If the super giants can collapse into

00:03:05 --> 00:03:08 black holes, then they must have as much

00:03:08 --> 00:03:10 or even more mass than the resulting

00:03:10 --> 00:03:12 black hole just spread over a much

00:03:12 --> 00:03:15 larger area." Uh, I guess my question

00:03:15 --> 00:03:18 is, is there significant time dilation

00:03:18 --> 00:03:21 near these stars or are they simply not

00:03:21 --> 00:03:23 dense enough to have meaningful amounts

00:03:23 --> 00:03:26 of time dilation? If they do, it's weird

00:03:26 --> 00:03:29 that it never comes up. And a slight

00:03:29 --> 00:03:31 followup would be, what about time

00:03:32 --> 00:03:34 dilation within the star itself?

00:03:34 --> 00:03:37 Presumably near the core of these stars,

00:03:37 --> 00:03:40 the density ramps right up. Does a large

00:03:40 --> 00:03:42 difference in time dilation within a

00:03:42 --> 00:03:45 star have any impact on how it behaves?

00:03:45 --> 00:03:47 Hope that all makes sense. Thanks. Love

00:03:47 --> 00:03:50 the show. That's Andrew in Edinburgh.

00:03:50 --> 00:03:55 >> They're great questions. Um um

00:03:55 --> 00:03:59 I'm just not sure about

00:03:59 --> 00:04:02 the first sentence. If the super giants

00:04:02 --> 00:04:05 can collapse into black holes, then they

00:04:05 --> 00:04:08 must have as much or even more mass than

00:04:08 --> 00:04:09 the resulting black hole. Yeah. Okay.

00:04:09 --> 00:04:11 I've read that properly now. Uh just

00:04:11 --> 00:04:11 spread.

00:04:12 --> 00:04:13 >> Maybe I didn't read it properly.

00:04:13 --> 00:04:15 >> No, it's all right. No, it's it's fine.

00:04:15 --> 00:04:17 Um so, so yeah, Andrew's first question

00:04:18 --> 00:04:19 is there significant time dilation near

00:04:20 --> 00:04:23 these stars? And the answer is yes. Uh

00:04:23 --> 00:04:26 the there would be. Um um it's I mean

00:04:26 --> 00:04:30 the time dilation in a black hole is so

00:04:30 --> 00:04:33 great that uh to an outside observer,

00:04:33 --> 00:04:36 time stops on the event horizon. uh for

00:04:36 --> 00:04:39 a star because it's it's spread over a

00:04:40 --> 00:04:41 larger volume of space, the time

00:04:41 --> 00:04:43 dilation is nowhere near as great.

00:04:43 --> 00:04:46 >> Uh but time dilation will be something

00:04:46 --> 00:04:48 that you would have to take into account

00:04:48 --> 00:04:51 if you had um a spacecraft orbiting near

00:04:51 --> 00:04:54 a giant star. Um the bottom line is with

00:04:54 --> 00:04:58 and time dilation is is it's a little

00:04:58 --> 00:05:02 bit spooky in the sense that to to the

00:05:02 --> 00:05:06 star itself and to something uh you know

00:05:06 --> 00:05:07 say you've got something in orbit around

00:05:07 --> 00:05:09 this star their time ticking away at the

00:05:09 --> 00:05:11 normal rate the time dilation is only

00:05:11 --> 00:05:13 what you see from the outside.

00:05:13 --> 00:05:15 >> So this is this is basically the same as

00:05:15 --> 00:05:17 we were talking about in the last

00:05:17 --> 00:05:19 episode regarding Mars. Same problem.

00:05:19 --> 00:05:21 >> Yes that's right it is the same thing.

00:05:21 --> 00:05:25 Yeah. So, so time ticks away normally

00:05:25 --> 00:05:27 for the star, but to to watch it from

00:05:27 --> 00:05:30 the outside, you basically see time

00:05:30 --> 00:05:32 ticking away a little bit more slowly.

00:05:32 --> 00:05:35 Um, so so they they would have time

00:05:35 --> 00:05:37 dilation. Um, and Andrew is asking

00:05:37 --> 00:05:39 whether they're not simply not dense

00:05:39 --> 00:05:41 enough to have a meaningful amount of

00:05:41 --> 00:05:44 time dilation. And um, I don't think

00:05:44 --> 00:05:45 that's true. I think that this time

00:05:45 --> 00:05:47 dilation is significant, especially if

00:05:47 --> 00:05:49 you're looking at microsconds as we were

00:05:49 --> 00:05:53 in the last episode. Um yeah. Uh so they

00:05:53 --> 00:05:56 they do and look you're not talking

00:05:56 --> 00:05:58 about time dilation of the kind that was

00:05:58 --> 00:06:01 depicted in Interstellar where you know

00:06:01 --> 00:06:04 time kind of grinds to a halt almost. Uh

00:06:04 --> 00:06:06 it's a it's a more modest amount of time

00:06:06 --> 00:06:08 dilation but it would would actually

00:06:08 --> 00:06:11 happen. And uh Andrew's follow-up

00:06:11 --> 00:06:13 question. What about time dilation

00:06:13 --> 00:06:14 within the star itself? Presumably near

00:06:14 --> 00:06:17 the core this of these stars the density

00:06:17 --> 00:06:19 ramps right up. Does a large difference

00:06:19 --> 00:06:20 in time?

00:06:20 --> 00:06:23 >> I'm not going in there to find out.

00:06:23 --> 00:06:24 >> Does a large difference in time dilation

00:06:24 --> 00:06:27 within a star have any impact on how it

00:06:27 --> 00:06:30 behaves? Um, and there's a curious thing

00:06:30 --> 00:06:33 there because as you uh get near the the

00:06:33 --> 00:06:35 core of an object uh with spherical

00:06:36 --> 00:06:37 symmetry,

00:06:37 --> 00:06:39 um your gravitational field gets less

00:06:39 --> 00:06:42 and less. Uh and in fact, at the center,

00:06:42 --> 00:06:43 you wouldn't feel any gravity. And

00:06:43 --> 00:06:45 that's because everything's pulling you

00:06:45 --> 00:06:48 in the same direction all around. And I

00:06:48 --> 00:06:49 so I believe that time dilation will

00:06:50 --> 00:06:51 probably stop in the middle of a star.

00:06:51 --> 00:06:53 That might be right. So something I've

00:06:53 --> 00:06:56 never thought about before. Uh maybe

00:06:56 --> 00:06:58 that's not true because you you're still

00:06:58 --> 00:07:00 in a gravitational field. The fact that

00:07:00 --> 00:07:02 it cancels out everywhere. I'll check

00:07:02 --> 00:07:04 that one out actually and try and

00:07:04 --> 00:07:06 remember for our first show next year

00:07:06 --> 00:07:07 because that's a really interesting

00:07:07 --> 00:07:09 question. Time dilation in the center of

00:07:09 --> 00:07:11 a star. How does it behave?

00:07:12 --> 00:07:12 >> Yeah.

00:07:12 --> 00:07:13 >> Very interesting. But there wouldn't be

00:07:14 --> 00:07:15 a I I think the bottom line is there

00:07:15 --> 00:07:17 wouldn't be a a big difference in time

00:07:17 --> 00:07:19 dilation from one part of a star to

00:07:19 --> 00:07:21 another. That's that's what I'm trying

00:07:21 --> 00:07:21 to say.

00:07:21 --> 00:07:23 >> But he brings up another interesting

00:07:23 --> 00:07:25 point. You've got time dilation around a

00:07:25 --> 00:07:28 massive star. Yeah. Then it goes, you

00:07:28 --> 00:07:31 know, whatever black hole. Uh the time

00:07:32 --> 00:07:33 dilation changes.

00:07:33 --> 00:07:35 >> Yes, it does. Because um as it

00:07:35 --> 00:07:38 collapses, the the gravitational field

00:07:38 --> 00:07:43 increases. uh in increases in in um sort

00:07:43 --> 00:07:44 of angle in the sense that you know it's

00:07:44 --> 00:07:47 a steeper gravitational uh field as you

00:07:48 --> 00:07:50 get as the black hole collapses. And by

00:07:50 --> 00:07:51 that I'm thinking of the gravitational

00:07:51 --> 00:07:54 well you know this dip in in the in the

00:07:54 --> 00:07:55 trampoline sheet that's the

00:07:55 --> 00:07:57 gravitational well of an object which

00:07:57 --> 00:08:00 turns into something like a plug hole.

00:08:00 --> 00:08:02 Yeah. With water going around it as a

00:08:02 --> 00:08:05 vortex for a black hole. Uh so that's

00:08:05 --> 00:08:06 what I mean by the steepness of the

00:08:06 --> 00:08:09 gravitational field. Um and yes, it is

00:08:09 --> 00:08:11 so steep that the event horizon

00:08:11 --> 00:08:13 delineates where the time dilation

00:08:13 --> 00:08:16 becomes uh such that time appears to

00:08:16 --> 00:08:17 stop on the surface of the event

00:08:17 --> 00:08:18 horizon.

00:08:18 --> 00:08:20 >> Yeah, I've I've seen that demonstration

00:08:20 --> 00:08:23 done with like a a big rubber sheet and

00:08:23 --> 00:08:25 they say that right that's that's the

00:08:25 --> 00:08:27 time space-time continuum. Then they put

00:08:27 --> 00:08:28 a bowling ball in it and they said

00:08:28 --> 00:08:30 that's gravity.

00:08:30 --> 00:08:34 >> Yeah, that's right. Yep. Um I know.

00:08:34 --> 00:08:36 Yeah,

00:08:36 --> 00:08:38 >> it's a simple way of explaining it, but

00:08:38 --> 00:08:41 that's that's what it is. Um I suppose.

00:08:41 --> 00:08:43 >> Um great questions, Andrew, and I hope

00:08:43 --> 00:08:46 all is well in Edinburgh. Um Fred's uh

00:08:46 --> 00:08:48 Fred's home stomping ground. Um

00:08:48 --> 00:08:49 >> yep.

00:08:49 --> 00:08:50 >> Yeah, I'll give you his address and he

00:08:50 --> 00:08:53 can go and rock his roof. This is Bas

00:08:53 --> 00:08:55 Arts with Andrew Dunley and Professor

00:08:55 --> 00:08:57 Fred Watson. Uh we have got an audio

00:08:57 --> 00:09:01 question, Fred. This is from Adriano.

00:09:01 --> 00:09:03 Hi guys, Adrianiano from Florence in

00:09:03 --> 00:09:05 Italy. I have my first question about

00:09:05 --> 00:09:07 black holes. So if I understood

00:09:07 --> 00:09:09 correctly, a star continue to burn his

00:09:09 --> 00:09:12 fuel like hydrogen and helium and there

00:09:12 --> 00:09:14 are nuclear fusions and there is enough

00:09:14 --> 00:09:17 energy for the star to fight against its

00:09:17 --> 00:09:20 own gravitational pool. But at some

00:09:20 --> 00:09:22 point there is not enough fuel and the

00:09:22 --> 00:09:25 star collapse into a black hole. After

00:09:25 --> 00:09:28 this the black hole will start to absorb

00:09:28 --> 00:09:30 material like hydrogen and then it

00:09:30 --> 00:09:34 should have enough energy enough fuel to

00:09:34 --> 00:09:37 have nuclear fusions and to fight

00:09:37 --> 00:09:40 against the gravitational pool but uh so

00:09:40 --> 00:09:43 why a black hole cannot turn back into a

00:09:43 --> 00:09:45 star? I'm sure this is not possible but

00:09:45 --> 00:09:48 I cannot understand why. And also guys

00:09:48 --> 00:09:50 we had a lot of beautiful updates from

00:09:50 --> 00:09:52 the princess. Can we also have some

00:09:52 --> 00:09:54 updates from Fred? Thank you guys.

00:09:54 --> 00:09:55 Bye-bye,

00:09:55 --> 00:09:57 >> Adrianiano. Thank you very much. Um Fred

00:09:57 --> 00:10:01 gave us his update when he got back.

00:10:01 --> 00:10:04 >> But uh yeah, your point is well made. Um

00:10:04 --> 00:10:06 Florence, what a beautiful beautiful

00:10:06 --> 00:10:06 city.

00:10:06 --> 00:10:08 >> Yeah. Isn't it just

00:10:08 --> 00:10:09 >> uh we we visited Florence a few years

00:10:09 --> 00:10:13 ago and uh it was it was

00:10:13 --> 00:10:15 amazing, but it was also terrible timing

00:10:15 --> 00:10:17 because it was All Saints weekend, which

00:10:17 --> 00:10:19 is a 4-day long weekend, and there were

00:10:19 --> 00:10:22 like tens of thousands of people there.

00:10:22 --> 00:10:24 You couldn't move. You absolutely

00:10:24 --> 00:10:28 couldn't move. So, um uh we went to what

00:10:28 --> 00:10:31 was it called? The Ponttovecia. Um and

00:10:31 --> 00:10:32 we couldn't get near it. You just

00:10:32 --> 00:10:36 couldn't. It was um it was insane. Yeah.

00:10:36 --> 00:10:37 We didn't know until we got there.

00:10:37 --> 00:10:40 That's what was happening. But yeah, we

00:10:40 --> 00:10:41 still got to see it. It was a beautiful

00:10:41 --> 00:10:44 place. And all those amazing statues and

00:10:44 --> 00:10:47 Galileo got got up close with Galileo.

00:10:47 --> 00:10:49 >> Very good. Yeah.

00:10:49 --> 00:10:51 >> Yeah. Yeah. Did you see his um I think

00:10:51 --> 00:10:53 it's his it's one of his fingers or his

00:10:53 --> 00:10:54 thumb. I can't remember which is on

00:10:54 --> 00:10:56 display in the science museum there.

00:10:56 --> 00:10:59 >> Oh, no. No. Couldn't get near that. Um

00:10:59 --> 00:11:01 honestly, it was just mayhem. But um

00:11:01 --> 00:11:04 yeah, understandable though. Um all

00:11:04 --> 00:11:06 right, so the bottom line with Adriano's

00:11:06 --> 00:11:10 question is um why can't a black hole

00:11:10 --> 00:11:13 turned back into a star? Um yeah, I

00:11:13 --> 00:11:14 would I would think there'd be all sorts

00:11:14 --> 00:11:16 of reasons why not.

00:11:16 --> 00:11:18 >> Well, that's right. I think once you've

00:11:18 --> 00:11:22 turned into a singularity uh as the um

00:11:22 --> 00:11:26 >> you can't double down. Boom. Boom.

00:11:26 --> 00:11:27 >> Sorry.

00:11:27 --> 00:11:30 >> That you took the words out of my mouth.

00:11:30 --> 00:11:33 >> No, you didn't. Um I mean all bets are

00:11:33 --> 00:11:35 off basically once you once you've gone

00:11:35 --> 00:11:39 into a singularity. Uh and so um I think

00:11:39 --> 00:11:41 you know it's it's a great thought that

00:11:42 --> 00:11:44 um Adriano's had. I and that it's never

00:11:44 --> 00:11:47 occurred to me before, but but you know,

00:11:47 --> 00:11:49 you're talking about hydrogen uh which

00:11:49 --> 00:11:51 certainly would get sucked into a black

00:11:51 --> 00:11:54 hole because a lot of the gas clouds

00:11:54 --> 00:11:57 that um that a black hole um accretion

00:11:57 --> 00:12:00 disc would would draw in and and suck

00:12:00 --> 00:12:04 into the center. Uh that um uh that

00:12:04 --> 00:12:07 that's that's hydrogen. Uh and hydrogen

00:12:07 --> 00:12:09 is the raw material of stars. Why can't

00:12:09 --> 00:12:12 nuclear fusion kick in again and drive

00:12:12 --> 00:12:14 the star back into being a star rather

00:12:14 --> 00:12:16 than a black hole? And I think the

00:12:16 --> 00:12:19 answer is in structure. Um so stars have

00:12:20 --> 00:12:23 quite a complex structure uh to make

00:12:23 --> 00:12:26 them work uh with the the core with all

00:12:26 --> 00:12:28 the nuclear burning taking place. Then

00:12:28 --> 00:12:30 there's a convection zone and then

00:12:30 --> 00:12:32 there's an sort of outer layer before

00:12:32 --> 00:12:33 you get to the photosphere. the layer

00:12:33 --> 00:12:36 that you can see um when you've put

00:12:36 --> 00:12:39 something into a singularity all

00:12:39 --> 00:12:44 structure disappears and um it almost

00:12:44 --> 00:12:48 relates to um an issue that occupied the

00:12:48 --> 00:12:50 mind of Steven Hawking for a while which

00:12:50 --> 00:12:53 is that does information get lost when

00:12:53 --> 00:12:55 when it goes into a black hole

00:12:55 --> 00:12:58 >> and I think there was some argument with

00:12:58 --> 00:12:59 another well-known physicist in fact I

00:13:00 --> 00:13:03 think they had a bet uh which Hawin lost

00:13:03 --> 00:13:06 Um because the um the the b the I think

00:13:06 --> 00:13:08 the bottom line was hawking bet that

00:13:08 --> 00:13:10 information couldn't come out of a black

00:13:10 --> 00:13:12 hole but somebody proved a theory that

00:13:12 --> 00:13:14 information could come out of a black

00:13:14 --> 00:13:15 hole. I think I've got the the right way

00:13:15 --> 00:13:16 round.

00:13:16 --> 00:13:16 >> Okay.

00:13:16 --> 00:13:18 >> But basically it's all completely

00:13:18 --> 00:13:21 mangled in in terms of you know we don't

00:13:21 --> 00:13:23 understand the physics of what would

00:13:23 --> 00:13:25 happen inside a singularity. We just

00:13:25 --> 00:13:27 have no idea what the physical processes

00:13:27 --> 00:13:29 would be and they almost certainly would

00:13:29 --> 00:13:34 rule out hydrogen atoms getting together

00:13:34 --> 00:13:36 uh and with enough temperature to to to

00:13:36 --> 00:13:38 produce the nuclear fusion that we see

00:13:38 --> 00:13:41 in a normal star.

00:13:41 --> 00:13:43 A a black hole is a very abnormal

00:13:43 --> 00:13:46 object. Nothing relates to normal in a

00:13:46 --> 00:13:49 black hole. And so I think that is the

00:13:49 --> 00:13:51 answer to Adriana's question. uh physics

00:13:52 --> 00:13:53 physics doesn't work the way it works on

00:13:54 --> 00:13:55 the outside of a black hole and I think

00:13:55 --> 00:13:57 that's why we don't see black holes

00:13:57 --> 00:13:58 turning into stars.

00:13:58 --> 00:14:01 >> Yeah. Well, there's also the fuel issue

00:14:01 --> 00:14:03 like um you know the the star has

00:14:03 --> 00:14:06 collapsed because of fuel depletion has

00:14:06 --> 00:14:07 it not?

00:14:07 --> 00:14:08 >> Yes, that's right. But what we're saying

00:14:08 --> 00:14:10 and what Adriano is saying is that um

00:14:10 --> 00:14:13 among the stuff that is accreted by the

00:14:13 --> 00:14:15 black hole when it's sitting there

00:14:15 --> 00:14:17 gobbling stuff up, a lot of that is

00:14:17 --> 00:14:20 hydrogen which is the fuel. So, they're

00:14:20 --> 00:14:22 getting more fuel, but they don't any

00:14:22 --> 00:14:24 longer have the process to make it turn

00:14:24 --> 00:14:27 into something that will deliver energy.

00:14:27 --> 00:14:28 >> I think that's the bottom line.

00:14:28 --> 00:14:31 >> I get it. I get it. Okay. Um, great

00:14:32 --> 00:14:35 question though because uh

00:14:35 --> 00:14:37 we we've

00:14:37 --> 00:14:39 been talking black holes for I don't

00:14:39 --> 00:14:41 know how long. Probably since the very

00:14:41 --> 00:14:44 beginning of the time that this podcast

00:14:44 --> 00:14:46 began. And I don't think we've ever been

00:14:46 --> 00:14:47 asked that question before.

00:14:47 --> 00:14:50 >> No, I think that's right. Yeah.

00:14:50 --> 00:14:53 >> Says a lot for our for our listeners,

00:14:53 --> 00:14:55 doesn't it? That they can produce

00:14:55 --> 00:14:57 questions that we've never had before

00:14:57 --> 00:14:59 after however many episodes. Is it? It's

00:14:59 --> 00:15:01 getting on for 500 now.

00:15:01 --> 00:15:02 >> This is 582.

00:15:02 --> 00:15:04 >> Oh, 582. Okay.

00:15:04 --> 00:15:05 >> 582. Yeah.

00:15:05 --> 00:15:07 >> Right. There you go. Getting on for 600.

00:15:07 --> 00:15:10 >> I know. It's nuts. I mean, it's

00:15:10 --> 00:15:11 happening faster because of time

00:15:11 --> 00:15:14 dilation and the fact that we

00:15:14 --> 00:15:15 decided to do two episodes a week

00:15:16 --> 00:15:19 instead of one, but

00:15:19 --> 00:15:20 I think it's nuts by definition, isn't

00:15:20 --> 00:15:23 it? Um, I've got a feeling

00:15:23 --> 00:15:24 >> probably.

00:15:24 --> 00:15:25 >> Yeah.

00:15:25 --> 00:15:27 >> Uh, anyway, thank you, Adriano, and hope

00:15:27 --> 00:15:30 all is well in the beautiful Florence.

00:15:30 --> 00:15:32 This is Space Nuts with Andrew Dunley

00:15:32 --> 00:15:36 and Professor Fred Watson.

00:15:36 --> 00:15:37 Let's take a break from the show to tell

00:15:37 --> 00:15:41 you about our sponsor, Anti-Gravity A1.

00:15:41 --> 00:15:43 Have you ever wished you could actually

00:15:43 --> 00:15:45 feel what it's like to fly? Not just

00:15:45 --> 00:15:47 control a drone from the ground, but

00:15:47 --> 00:15:50 truly experience the air around you.

00:15:50 --> 00:15:52 Well, that future has just arrived.

00:15:52 --> 00:15:55 Introducing the Anti-gravity A1, the

00:15:55 --> 00:15:59 world's first all-in-one 8K 360 drone,

00:15:59 --> 00:16:02 and it's officially available now. Uh,

00:16:02 --> 00:16:04 this isn't just another drone. It's an

00:16:04 --> 00:16:07 entirely new category. With anti-gravity

00:16:07 --> 00:16:09 A1, you don't fly by fiddling with

00:16:09 --> 00:16:12 sticks. You fly with your hands and your

00:16:12 --> 00:16:15 head. The Vision goggles use ultrasharp

00:16:15 --> 00:16:18 dual micro OLED displays. And the grip

00:16:18 --> 00:16:20 controller's free motion lets you

00:16:20 --> 00:16:23 literally point where you want to go.

00:16:23 --> 00:16:25 Look left, the drone looks left. Tilt

00:16:25 --> 00:16:28 your hand, it responds instantly. It's

00:16:28 --> 00:16:30 the most intuitive flight system ever

00:16:30 --> 00:16:33 created. Easy for beginners, but still

00:16:33 --> 00:16:36 offering full FPV uh controls for

00:16:36 --> 00:16:39 seasoned pilots. The anti-gravity A1 is

00:16:39 --> 00:16:41 now available in three bundles at the

00:16:41 --> 00:16:43 anti-gravity store, Best Buy, and

00:16:43 --> 00:16:46 authorized retailers worldwide. So, if

00:16:46 --> 00:16:48 you ever wanted to rethink what a drone

00:16:48 --> 00:16:51 can be or what flight can feel like,

00:16:51 --> 00:16:53 check out the Anti-Gravity A1. Just

00:16:54 --> 00:16:56 visit anti-gravity.te.

00:16:56 --> 00:16:59 That's anti-gravity.

00:16:59 --> 00:17:02 for the anti-gravity A1. This is a new

00:17:02 --> 00:17:04 revolution in drone and drone

00:17:04 --> 00:17:08 photography. That's anti-gravity.te

00:17:08 --> 00:17:10 or you can tap on the link in the show

00:17:10 --> 00:17:12 notes.

00:17:12 --> 00:17:15 >> 3 2 1

00:17:15 --> 00:17:17 >> Space nuts.

00:17:17 --> 00:17:18 >> Our next question doesn't come from

00:17:18 --> 00:17:21 Italy. It comes from Slovenia. Um Russia

00:17:21 --> 00:17:22 next door.

00:17:22 --> 00:17:24 >> Yeah. Uh I am listening to your podcast

00:17:24 --> 00:17:27 while driving to and from work. Great

00:17:27 --> 00:17:29 show. I hope you managed to keep control

00:17:29 --> 00:17:31 because you know this gets a bit crazy

00:17:31 --> 00:17:33 sometimes. Uh I'm curious about wait for

00:17:33 --> 00:17:36 it Fred black holes. Uh we know that an

00:17:36 --> 00:17:38 atom is actually a lot of free space

00:17:38 --> 00:17:41 where electrons fly around. Uh

00:17:41 --> 00:17:44 eliminating that we probably probably

00:17:44 --> 00:17:47 get a neutron star uh with high density.

00:17:47 --> 00:17:49 But what about a black hole? How does

00:17:49 --> 00:17:52 this work? Where is the free space uh

00:17:52 --> 00:17:53 that can be squeezed even further to get

00:17:54 --> 00:17:56 a black hole uh get black hole material

00:17:56 --> 00:17:58 and density and to calculate the density

00:17:58 --> 00:18:00 of the black hole? Would it be a correct

00:18:00 --> 00:18:03 assumption to take the event horizon as

00:18:03 --> 00:18:07 the boundary and um based on that

00:18:07 --> 00:18:09 calculate the volume or is it something

00:18:09 --> 00:18:12 else? Um thank you. Best regards Isht.

00:18:12 --> 00:18:14 Um another black hole question. Not

00:18:14 --> 00:18:17 surprising we get a lot of them.

00:18:17 --> 00:18:21 >> We do. Yeah. So um the it's a it's a

00:18:21 --> 00:18:23 great question and I you that's

00:18:23 --> 00:18:25 absolutely right. An atom is a lot of

00:18:25 --> 00:18:27 free space empty space

00:18:27 --> 00:18:29 >> uh with cloud of electrons doing their

00:18:29 --> 00:18:33 quantum thing. Um if you collapse the

00:18:33 --> 00:18:35 space down so that only the electrons

00:18:35 --> 00:18:37 are pushing uh the atoms apart, you've

00:18:37 --> 00:18:39 got a white dwarf star uh which is

00:18:39 --> 00:18:42 called electron degenerate. Uh and if

00:18:42 --> 00:18:43 you get rid of the electrons, then you

00:18:43 --> 00:18:45 get a neutron star. Exactly as Ishtuk

00:18:45 --> 00:18:49 says uh with um very high density uh

00:18:49 --> 00:18:52 where only the neutrons keep the thing

00:18:52 --> 00:18:54 from collapsing into a black hole. But

00:18:54 --> 00:18:58 with a black hole um well the free space

00:18:58 --> 00:19:00 is is is basically disappeared down the

00:19:00 --> 00:19:05 black hole. Um it's uh it's and in terms

00:19:05 --> 00:19:09 of its density, you have a definition of

00:19:09 --> 00:19:12 a black hole. Uh, one of the definitions

00:19:12 --> 00:19:13 is a point in space with infinite

00:19:14 --> 00:19:16 density. So, the volume the volume is

00:19:16 --> 00:19:18 zero. See, Jordi Jordi thinks that as

00:19:18 --> 00:19:21 well. He does. Gosh, I don't know what's

00:19:21 --> 00:19:22 happening out there, but

00:19:22 --> 00:19:23 >> yeah,

00:19:23 --> 00:19:25 >> I love it.

00:19:25 --> 00:19:27 >> Oh, we had to hear we had to hear him

00:19:27 --> 00:19:29 from the last show of the year, didn't

00:19:29 --> 00:19:29 he?

00:19:29 --> 00:19:32 >> Last show of the year. That's right.

00:19:32 --> 00:19:34 >> In full flight.

00:19:34 --> 00:19:36 >> Um, so yes, so it's a point of infinite

00:19:36 --> 00:19:39 density. So um it's a comment about

00:19:39 --> 00:19:41 calculating the density of the black

00:19:41 --> 00:19:42 hole. Would it be a correct assumption

00:19:42 --> 00:19:44 to take the event horizon as the

00:19:44 --> 00:19:47 boundary? Uh no it wouldn't. The event

00:19:47 --> 00:19:49 horizon is just that imaginary point

00:19:49 --> 00:19:52 where of no return. Uh and the volume is

00:19:52 --> 00:19:54 zero. Uh the volume of the black hole is

00:19:54 --> 00:19:57 zero which is how the the density gets

00:19:57 --> 00:20:01 infinite because um mass over density

00:20:01 --> 00:20:03 sorry mass over volume is density. The

00:20:03 --> 00:20:06 mass is a is a parameter. Um, but the

00:20:06 --> 00:20:08 volume is zero. I have no idea what's

00:20:08 --> 00:20:09 happening out there. I drew it with

00:20:10 --> 00:20:11 Jordy, but he obviously likes this

00:20:11 --> 00:20:12 conversation.

00:20:12 --> 00:20:16 >> Yes. Yes, he does. He wants in.

00:20:16 --> 00:20:17 >> Yeah.

00:20:17 --> 00:20:21 >> Oh dear. Um, yeah. Look, I still don't

00:20:21 --> 00:20:23 get

00:20:23 --> 00:20:26 >> receding into the distance.

00:20:26 --> 00:20:29 >> Yeah. Probably chasing a snake. Um,

00:20:29 --> 00:20:30 yeah. Uh,

00:20:30 --> 00:20:34 >> go ahead, Andrew. No, it's it's hard to

00:20:34 --> 00:20:36 get your head around something like a

00:20:36 --> 00:20:38 black hole

00:20:38 --> 00:20:41 having

00:20:41 --> 00:20:45 no density.

00:20:45 --> 00:20:46 >> No volume.



00:20:47 --> 00:20:49 >> It's got no size. It's got zero

00:20:49 --> 00:20:50 dimensions.

00:20:50 --> 00:20:53 >> I mean, we we we give them names based

00:20:53 --> 00:20:56 on size and yet it has no size. Has no

00:20:56 --> 00:20:56 volume.

00:20:56 --> 00:20:58 >> Super massive. Yeah. Well, but it's the

00:20:58 --> 00:21:00 mass. That's the thing. So the mass is

00:21:00 --> 00:21:02 defined for a black hole. It's one of

00:21:02 --> 00:21:03 the properties that they have. The

00:21:03 --> 00:21:06 there's this thing called the the no

00:21:06 --> 00:21:09 hair theorem uh which I like very much.

00:21:09 --> 00:21:10 >> Yeah.

00:21:10 --> 00:21:11 >> And it's about you know

00:21:11 --> 00:21:12 >> would that wouldn't

00:21:12 --> 00:21:15 >> Yeah, that's right. Which there's it's

00:21:15 --> 00:21:18 about the very few parameters that you

00:21:18 --> 00:21:20 can get from a black hole. I think it's

00:21:20 --> 00:21:22 mass, charge and spin. I think that's

00:21:22 --> 00:21:25 all you know about a black hole. Um

00:21:25 --> 00:21:27 because the volume's zero and that's why

00:21:27 --> 00:21:29 the density is zero. Density is mass

00:21:29 --> 00:21:31 over volume. Volume zero. So the density

00:21:31 --> 00:21:33 goes to infinite infinity but you can

00:21:34 --> 00:21:36 vary the mass and that's why we talk

00:21:36 --> 00:21:37 about super massive black holes and

00:21:37 --> 00:21:39 intermediate mass black holes and things

00:21:39 --> 00:21:40 of that sort.

00:21:40 --> 00:21:43 >> Okay. So what was the answer to the

00:21:43 --> 00:21:44 question?

00:21:44 --> 00:21:48 >> Uh no. Right. Right. What was the

00:21:48 --> 00:21:51 question again? Hang on. Uh yeah. Would

00:21:51 --> 00:21:53 it be yes would it be correct assumption

00:21:53 --> 00:21:55 to take the event horizon as a boundary

00:21:55 --> 00:21:56 and and use that to calculate the

00:21:56 --> 00:21:58 volume? No. The event horizon is an

00:21:58 --> 00:22:02 imaginary sphere that um is where the

00:22:02 --> 00:22:03 thing turns black basically because no

00:22:04 --> 00:22:05 light can escape

00:22:05 --> 00:22:07 >> precisely.

00:22:07 --> 00:22:10 Um hope that helped is uh it's a great

00:22:10 --> 00:22:11 question.

00:22:11 --> 00:22:13 >> It is terrific question. Uh just a very

00:22:13 --> 00:22:16 difficult subject cuz we we just don't

00:22:16 --> 00:22:19 know a hell of a lot about black holes.

00:22:19 --> 00:22:23 They're just such a mysterious and

00:22:23 --> 00:22:26 weird object. And um we we're we're

00:22:26 --> 00:22:28 still trying to gather information about

00:22:28 --> 00:22:30 them and they just keep throwing up

00:22:30 --> 00:22:32 these curve balls at us and not letting

00:22:32 --> 00:22:34 us in. Not that you want to go in, but

00:22:34 --> 00:22:36 you know what I mean.

00:22:36 --> 00:22:37 >> Yes, that's right.

00:22:38 --> 00:22:39 >> Yeah, quite s.

00:22:39 --> 00:22:42 >> All right, thanks.

00:22:42 --> 00:22:44 >> Time to take a break from the show to

00:22:44 --> 00:22:46 tell you about our sponsor, NordVPN. If

00:22:46 --> 00:22:49 you're online, your data is always at

00:22:49 --> 00:22:52 risk unless you take some sort of action

00:22:52 --> 00:22:56 to secure your exposure and a virtual

00:22:56 --> 00:22:58 private network is the way to go. Uh

00:22:58 --> 00:23:00 there are lots of hackers and trackers

00:23:00 --> 00:23:03 and unsecured networks out there that uh

00:23:03 --> 00:23:05 just make you an easy target and it

00:23:05 --> 00:23:07 happens without your knowledge. It

00:23:07 --> 00:23:09 always happens very quietly and in the

00:23:09 --> 00:23:11 background and that that's what makes it

00:23:11 --> 00:23:14 so nasty. And that is also why using a

00:23:14 --> 00:23:17 trusted VPN like NordVPN is a pretty

00:23:17 --> 00:23:21 smart move. NordVPN keeps your internet

00:23:21 --> 00:23:24 connection secure and private by

00:23:24 --> 00:23:26 encrypting your data and hiding your IP

00:23:26 --> 00:23:28 address. And that means you can browse,

00:23:28 --> 00:23:29 you can stream, you can shop, you can

00:23:30 --> 00:23:32 work online without worrying about who

00:23:32 --> 00:23:34 might be watching. And right now as a

00:23:34 --> 00:23:36 Space Nuts listener, you can get an

00:23:36 --> 00:23:39 exclusive offer, big savings on NordVPN

00:23:40 --> 00:23:42 plans. get an extra four months for

00:23:42 --> 00:23:46 free. That's 28 months. And uh all you

00:23:46 --> 00:23:49 have to do is sign up. Uh don't forget

00:23:49 --> 00:23:50 they've got a 30-day money back

00:23:50 --> 00:23:53 guarantee, so you can test this out for

00:23:53 --> 00:23:56 yourself before you fully commit. But

00:23:56 --> 00:23:58 I've been using it for years now, and

00:23:58 --> 00:24:00 I've got no complaints. So, go to

00:24:00 --> 00:24:03 nordvpn.com/spacenuts.



00:24:08 --> 00:24:09 And don't forget the code word Space

00:24:09 --> 00:24:11 Nuts at the checkout.

00:24:11 --> 00:24:12 >> Space Nuts.

00:24:12 --> 00:24:15 >> We have one more question to finish

00:24:15 --> 00:24:19 things off for 2025 and it it's a real

00:24:19 --> 00:24:21 European flavor for this episode. This

00:24:21 --> 00:24:22 is Ggo.

00:24:22 --> 00:24:25 >> Greetings gentlemen. GGO from Slovakia

00:24:25 --> 00:24:27 here. I have a question about red

00:24:27 --> 00:24:30 shifting. Does it have a limit? Is there

00:24:30 --> 00:24:32 a point beyond which light cannot be

00:24:32 --> 00:24:34 stretched any further? If so, what

00:24:34 --> 00:24:36 happens if the light continues to travel

00:24:36 --> 00:24:39 through expanding space? And the second

00:24:39 --> 00:24:41 question, could you talk a bit about

00:24:41 --> 00:24:44 gra? Do you think they might be real?

00:24:44 --> 00:24:46 Uh, thank you for your time and for the

00:24:46 --> 00:24:48 great show. Bye.

00:24:48 --> 00:24:52 >> Thanks, Ggo. Uh, yeah, it's we an

00:24:52 --> 00:24:55 eclectic mix of nationalities this week.

00:24:55 --> 00:24:56 Yeah, it's terrific.

00:24:56 --> 00:24:57 >> Yeah, it's great.

00:24:57 --> 00:25:00 >> Uh, so two questions he's um he's thrown

00:25:00 --> 00:25:03 into the mix. Um, yeah. Is there a limit

00:25:03 --> 00:25:06 on red shift? Um,

00:25:06 --> 00:25:09 yeah, good one. So,

00:25:09 --> 00:25:12 uh, yeah, it is a good question. I mean,

00:25:12 --> 00:25:19 so, so red shift as a term we define as

00:25:19 --> 00:25:20 being due to the expansion of the

00:25:20 --> 00:25:23 universe. Um, and it's slightly

00:25:23 --> 00:25:26 different from the Doppler shift. Uh,

00:25:26 --> 00:25:28 Doppler shift is something we understand

00:25:28 --> 00:25:30 well. It's the way the light changes

00:25:30 --> 00:25:32 wavelength from a moving object. But

00:25:32 --> 00:25:34 with red shift, we're talking about

00:25:34 --> 00:25:36 space itself rather than rather than

00:25:36 --> 00:25:38 objects moving through space. We're

00:25:38 --> 00:25:40 talking about the way space behaves. Uh

00:25:40 --> 00:25:43 and so it's a a much more fundamental

00:25:43 --> 00:25:46 thing than the Doppler shift. So in a

00:25:46 --> 00:25:49 sense, um there's already a limit to red

00:25:49 --> 00:25:55 shift. Uh but it's one that is exactly

00:25:55 --> 00:25:58 related to the age of the universe. Um,

00:25:58 --> 00:26:02 so and for so what I'm thinking of here

00:26:02 --> 00:26:05 is the the uh cosmic microwave

00:26:06 --> 00:26:08 background radiation. That's the wall of

00:26:08 --> 00:26:11 radiation which corresponds to the

00:26:11 --> 00:26:15 brightness of the big bang fireball

00:26:15 --> 00:26:17 which we're still seeing because as we

00:26:17 --> 00:26:19 look further into space, we look back in

00:26:19 --> 00:26:22 time. So everywhere in space we see this

00:26:22 --> 00:26:24 wall of radiation which is now in the

00:26:24 --> 00:26:26 microwave region of the spectrum which

00:26:26 --> 00:26:28 is why we call it the cosmic microwave

00:26:28 --> 00:26:29 background radiation.

00:26:29 --> 00:26:29 >> Yeah.

00:26:29 --> 00:26:34 >> And so um it's if I remember rightly

00:26:34 --> 00:26:38 that is basically the visible flash of

00:26:38 --> 00:26:42 the big bang because it was it was

00:26:42 --> 00:26:46 basically a a visible light flash. It's

00:26:46 --> 00:26:50 the visible flash redshifted by I think

00:26:50 --> 00:26:54 about 1300 times. So everything in the

00:26:54 --> 00:26:57 universe must have a that we can observe

00:26:57 --> 00:27:00 must have a red shift less than that. Uh

00:27:00 --> 00:27:03 I think 1300 is the the number that

00:27:03 --> 00:27:05 comes into my mind. I've looked at this

00:27:05 --> 00:27:07 for a long time. Um but it's visible

00:27:07 --> 00:27:11 light um whose uh which whose waves have

00:27:11 --> 00:27:14 been stretched by that amount to give us

00:27:14 --> 00:27:17 microwaves. So stretched about 1300

00:27:17 --> 00:27:19 times thereabouts.

00:27:19 --> 00:27:21 Now um

00:27:21 --> 00:27:24 as the universe expands and time goes on

00:27:24 --> 00:27:27 that number will increase not by much

00:27:27 --> 00:27:31 might become 131 or 135 but as time goes

00:27:31 --> 00:27:34 on that number is increasing. So

00:27:34 --> 00:27:37 >> in a sense that's a limit to red shift.

00:27:37 --> 00:27:39 Uh physically though I don't think there

00:27:39 --> 00:27:41 is a limit. You could, you know, if if

00:27:41 --> 00:27:43 you expand the universe, if you're

00:27:43 --> 00:27:44 talking about 40 billion years into the

00:27:44 --> 00:27:46 future and the universe is expanding

00:27:46 --> 00:27:48 more, yes, the cosmic microwave

00:27:48 --> 00:27:50 background is going to be the cosmic

00:27:50 --> 00:27:53 long wavelength radio background. Uh,

00:27:53 --> 00:27:57 and so it's uh it's the the wavelength

00:27:57 --> 00:27:59 will have stretched more. Uh, so there

00:27:59 --> 00:28:03 isn't a physical limit, but there is a a

00:28:03 --> 00:28:06 limit in the real universe. uh simply

00:28:06 --> 00:28:07 because of the age of the universe. The

00:28:07 --> 00:28:10 universe hasn't hasn't expanded for long

00:28:10 --> 00:28:12 enough for the red shift to be more than

00:28:12 --> 00:28:14 about 1300.

00:28:14 --> 00:28:17 >> Right. Okay. Yeah. Got it.

00:28:17 --> 00:28:19 >> Good. What was the other thing? Oh,

00:28:19 --> 00:28:19 gravity stars.

00:28:20 --> 00:28:21 >> Oh, grav stars. Yeah, we've had we've

00:28:21 --> 00:28:24 had questions about gravis stars before

00:28:24 --> 00:28:26 more than once. Um it it seems to be

00:28:26 --> 00:28:28 something that sort of captured the

00:28:28 --> 00:28:31 imagination of uh of people that are so

00:28:31 --> 00:28:33 interested in astronomy and space

00:28:33 --> 00:28:36 science. So, I suppose we should start

00:28:36 --> 00:28:39 by reminding people what a graar is

00:28:39 --> 00:28:40 supposed to be because I don't think

00:28:40 --> 00:28:42 we've ever found one.

00:28:42 --> 00:28:45 >> No, that's correct. Um, I'm I'm going to

00:28:45 --> 00:28:47 read from uh that font of all knowledge,

00:28:47 --> 00:28:51 Wikipedia, who I do subscribe to uh

00:28:51 --> 00:28:52 despite the fact that they keep asking

00:28:52 --> 00:28:54 me for another subscription. Anyway,

00:28:54 --> 00:28:55 that's probably because I've got more

00:28:55 --> 00:28:58 than one username. Never mind. Let me

00:28:58 --> 00:29:01 read from Wikipedia. In astrophysics,

00:29:01 --> 00:29:04 the graar which is a blend word of

00:29:04 --> 00:29:07 gravitational vacuum star is an object

00:29:07 --> 00:29:11 hypothesized in a 2001 paper by Pavl O

00:29:11 --> 00:29:16 Mazour and Emil Moah as an alternative

00:29:16 --> 00:29:19 to the black hole theory. It has the

00:29:19 --> 00:29:21 usual black hole metric outside of the

00:29:21 --> 00:29:23 horizon and a metric is just a way of

00:29:23 --> 00:29:27 describing space but ditter metric

00:29:27 --> 00:29:30 inside and that's a different one. Don't

00:29:30 --> 00:29:32 worry about that. A typical grav star is

00:29:32 --> 00:29:36 as big as London but weighs 10 solar

00:29:36 --> 00:29:37 masses.

00:29:37 --> 00:29:38 >> Why?

00:29:38 --> 00:29:40 >> Yeah. So a neutron star would be about

00:29:40 --> 00:29:42 the size of London but weigh one solar

00:29:42 --> 00:29:44 mass basically.

00:29:44 --> 00:29:46 >> Didn't they find one in a sewer? Um,

00:29:46 --> 00:29:47 they called it a fatburgg or something.

00:29:48 --> 00:29:50 >> Fatburgg. That's right. Yeah. Which was

00:29:50 --> 00:29:52 just about to turn into a graver star.

00:29:52 --> 00:29:56 Yes. Um, on the horizon there is an

00:29:56 --> 00:29:59 ultra thin, incredibly tight shell of

00:29:59 --> 00:30:03 entirely new unique exotic matter named

00:30:03 --> 00:30:05 Galactic Flubber.

00:30:05 --> 00:30:07 >> I was close.

00:30:07 --> 00:30:09 >> You weren't far off. That's right. Which

00:30:09 --> 00:30:11 is the next thing to a fatburg. Yeah.

00:30:11 --> 00:30:13 Anyway, continuing to read. This

00:30:13 --> 00:30:15 solution to the Einstein equations is

00:30:15 --> 00:30:18 stable and there's no singularities

00:30:18 --> 00:30:20 which we've just been talking about

00:30:20 --> 00:30:23 singularities points of zero volume.

00:30:23 --> 00:30:25 Instead, a grav star is filled with

00:30:25 --> 00:30:28 either dark energy or with vacuum energy

00:30:28 --> 00:30:30 but also vacuum

00:30:30 --> 00:30:33 only the inside one 10 to the 44 times

00:30:33 --> 00:30:36 denser than the outside. I'm not sure

00:30:36 --> 00:30:37 how you can have a vacuum that's 10 to

00:30:38 --> 00:30:40 the 44 times denser than another one,

00:30:40 --> 00:30:43 but I'll just let that pass. Yes.

00:30:43 --> 00:30:46 >> Uh, as a bonus, further theoretical

00:30:46 --> 00:30:48 considerations of grav stars include the

00:30:48 --> 00:30:51 notion of a nest star, a second graar

00:30:51 --> 00:30:54 nested within the first one. So, that's

00:30:54 --> 00:30:56 the technical definition. I bet you're

00:30:56 --> 00:30:59 no wiser than I am. Um, but the bottom

00:30:59 --> 00:31:03 line is that um um and I'll read again.

00:31:03 --> 00:31:06 Mazour and Matahus suggest that the

00:31:06 --> 00:31:09 violent creation of a grab star might be

00:31:09 --> 00:31:11 an explanation for the origin of our

00:31:11 --> 00:31:14 universe and many other universes

00:31:14 --> 00:31:15 because all the matter from a collapsing

00:31:16 --> 00:31:18 star would implode through the central

00:31:18 --> 00:31:20 hole and explode into a new dimension

00:31:20 --> 00:31:22 and expand forever which would be

00:31:22 --> 00:31:25 consistent with the con current theories

00:31:25 --> 00:31:27 regarding the big bang.

00:31:27 --> 00:31:31 >> Okay. So now that we know what it is.

00:31:31 --> 00:31:33 >> Yeah. Do you think they exist? And will

00:31:34 --> 00:31:35 we ever find one?

00:31:35 --> 00:31:39 >> Uh, no and no, basically. Uh, it's um

00:31:39 --> 00:31:42 it's a it's a an alternative theory for

00:31:42 --> 00:31:43 the Big Bang.

00:31:43 --> 00:31:46 >> Uh, and it's certainly interesting and

00:31:46 --> 00:31:50 uh I you know I I think um uh GGO's

00:31:50 --> 00:31:52 asked us to talk about it and now we

00:31:52 --> 00:31:56 have so so um that's perhaps doing the

00:31:56 --> 00:31:59 best we can. Um interesting. There's

00:31:59 --> 00:32:01 there's just one other sentence I might

00:32:01 --> 00:32:04 like to read. Uh

00:32:04 --> 00:32:09 uh if I can find it. I've lost it now.

00:32:09 --> 00:32:12 Oh yeah. The the new dimension that will

00:32:12 --> 00:32:15 be created in this implosion. The new

00:32:15 --> 00:32:18 dimension exerts an outward pressure on

00:32:18 --> 00:32:21 the Bose Einstein condensate layer and

00:32:21 --> 00:32:23 present prevents it from collapsing

00:32:23 --> 00:32:26 further. So the Bose Einstein

00:32:26 --> 00:32:28 condensate, it sounds as though that's

00:32:28 --> 00:32:30 this thinned crust that it's got rather

00:32:30 --> 00:32:33 than an event horizon. And a Bose

00:32:33 --> 00:32:35 Einstein condensate is really

00:32:35 --> 00:32:37 interesting. I think we've just

00:32:37 --> 00:32:39 celebrated,

00:32:39 --> 00:32:43 is it the 30th anniversary of the first

00:32:43 --> 00:32:46 example of a Bose Einstein condenser

00:32:46 --> 00:32:48 being produced? I think that's right. I

00:32:48 --> 00:32:51 think it's 30 years. I think it's 1995.

00:32:51 --> 00:32:54 Uh what is it? It's a a it's a

00:32:54 --> 00:32:56 condensation of atoms at very low

00:32:56 --> 00:32:59 temperature that behave like one quantum

00:32:59 --> 00:33:02 object. Uh that's the crucial thing. So

00:33:02 --> 00:33:04 they it's almost like entanglement,

00:33:04 --> 00:33:05 Andrew, where you've got quantum

00:33:05 --> 00:33:07 particles being entangled. This is a

00:33:07 --> 00:33:09 whole bunch of stuff that is so

00:33:09 --> 00:33:11 entangled it just looks like one quantum

00:33:11 --> 00:33:14 object and we've we can now create them.

00:33:14 --> 00:33:16 >> Um so that's what they're saying that

00:33:16 --> 00:33:18 maybe this thing is made of a Bose

00:33:18 --> 00:33:20 Einstein condenser. I think this is a

00:33:20 --> 00:33:23 really good way to end uh the year's uh

00:33:23 --> 00:33:25 space nuts episode because it is

00:33:25 --> 00:33:28 completely off the wall and talking

00:33:28 --> 00:33:30 about stuff that is right at the cutting

00:33:30 --> 00:33:32 edge of physics which I love

00:33:32 --> 00:33:34 >> indeed. Uh thank you for your questions

00:33:34 --> 00:33:37 Ggo and uh hope you're well. Uh good to

00:33:37 --> 00:33:39 hear from you. You sent in questions

00:33:39 --> 00:33:41 before so it's nice to catch up. Uh in

00:33:41 --> 00:33:45 fact I think um I think Isht uh has sent

00:33:45 --> 00:33:47 questions in before as well. But uh

00:33:47 --> 00:33:48 yeah, thank you for your questions

00:33:48 --> 00:33:50 everybody for uh contributing to this

00:33:50 --> 00:33:52 the final episode of 2025. Keep the

00:33:52 --> 00:33:54 questions coming in because we're coming

00:33:54 --> 00:33:55 back

00:33:55 --> 00:33:57 >> next year and we'll we'll need some

00:33:57 --> 00:33:59 fresh stuff cuz we're we're down to the

00:33:59 --> 00:34:02 last one or two um which I didn't use

00:34:02 --> 00:34:03 because they all came from the same

00:34:03 --> 00:34:05 source and I like to spread the love a

00:34:05 --> 00:34:07 bit. So um we'll get into those next

00:34:07 --> 00:34:09 year. Uh if you go to our website if

00:34:09 --> 00:34:11 you'd like to send a question in, click

00:34:11 --> 00:34:14 on the AMA link at the top and you can

00:34:14 --> 00:34:16 send text and audio questions there. As

00:34:16 --> 00:34:18 always, please remember to tell us who

00:34:18 --> 00:34:20 you are and where you're from. While

00:34:20 --> 00:34:22 you're at on the website, um check out

00:34:22 --> 00:34:24 how you might be able to support us uh

00:34:24 --> 00:34:27 through various channels. Um whatever

00:34:27 --> 00:34:29 you choose or don't choose to, we're not

00:34:29 --> 00:34:31 going to make you do it. Uh you can

00:34:31 --> 00:34:32 check out the shop as well. That's

00:34:32 --> 00:34:35 another way of supporting us. And so on

00:34:35 --> 00:34:37 and so forth. Um, while I

00:34:37 --> 00:34:39 >> I think Andrew, while you were talking

00:34:39 --> 00:34:40 about the questions, I think we've got a

00:34:40 --> 00:34:43 pending one still from Rusty, which we

00:34:43 --> 00:34:44 should

00:34:44 --> 00:34:46 >> I'm sure we'll take it next year.

00:34:46 --> 00:34:50 >> Yes. Yes, I I recall that. But, um, we I

00:34:50 --> 00:34:51 thought we'd sit on it till the new year

00:34:51 --> 00:34:53 because reading the question will

00:34:53 --> 00:34:59 actually take the pulp of the episode.

00:34:59 --> 00:35:00 >> Thank you, Andrew. Sorry to interrupt

00:35:00 --> 00:35:02 you there. That's okay. No, it's okay.

00:35:02 --> 00:35:04 Um, I just want to say thank you to you,

00:35:04 --> 00:35:06 Fred. Um,

00:35:06 --> 00:35:09 And and I should also um thank Jonty

00:35:10 --> 00:35:12 because he he did a fair chunk of the

00:35:12 --> 00:35:16 show and we also had our guest presenter

00:35:16 --> 00:35:18 Heidi while I was away. So thank you to

00:35:18 --> 00:35:21 Heidi for uh her amazing contribution

00:35:21 --> 00:35:24 because uh it really saved my uh my back

00:35:24 --> 00:35:27 because um there was probably no way in

00:35:27 --> 00:35:28 the world I could have recorded from a

00:35:28 --> 00:35:30 cruise ship and got away with it. But um

00:35:30 --> 00:35:32 yeah, fantastic. Uh we've got a great

00:35:32 --> 00:35:37 team. Um and and you know bring on the

00:35:37 --> 00:35:39 next uh the next year of Space Nuts. And

00:35:39 --> 00:35:41 I look I give him a hard time every

00:35:41 --> 00:35:42 week. I do. But I've got to say thanks

00:35:42 --> 00:35:46 to Hugh in the studio for his um amazing

00:35:46 --> 00:35:48 work. It's not just our podcast that he

00:35:48 --> 00:35:50 looks after. He's got a whole stable of

00:35:50 --> 00:35:53 them. And uh it's it's basically a

00:35:53 --> 00:35:55 full-time job trying to run all this. uh

00:35:55 --> 00:35:57 and you know there's not much money in

00:35:57 --> 00:36:00 it but uh uh there's certainly joy in

00:36:00 --> 00:36:03 putting our skills into something uh in

00:36:03 --> 00:36:06 our semi-retirement um from from radio.

00:36:06 --> 00:36:09 So um yeah but uh also without the

00:36:09 --> 00:36:12 audience we would be nothing. So we send

00:36:12 --> 00:36:16 out our um uh our thanks. We are so

00:36:16 --> 00:36:19 grateful to have you behind us. And I do

00:36:19 --> 00:36:21 keep an eye on the audience through the

00:36:21 --> 00:36:24 Space Nuts podcast group on Facebook

00:36:24 --> 00:36:26 because they uh they spend a lot of time

00:36:26 --> 00:36:27 there talking to each other, sharing

00:36:27 --> 00:36:31 pictures uh and uh posing unusual

00:36:31 --> 00:36:32 questions which occasionally we will

00:36:32 --> 00:36:35 bring up on the show. And special thanks

00:36:35 --> 00:36:37 to our sponsors. We've had a few

00:36:37 --> 00:36:38 sponsors who've been with us for quite

00:36:38 --> 00:36:41 some time now and and you know obviously

00:36:41 --> 00:36:42 we're doing something right if they're

00:36:42 --> 00:36:45 willing to stick with us. So very much

00:36:45 --> 00:36:49 appreciated. Uh thank you Fred. Um thank

00:36:49 --> 00:36:53 you uh Jordy and um we'll talk to you in

00:36:53 --> 00:36:55 the new year.

00:36:55 --> 00:36:56 >> Sounds great. Look forward to it Andrew

00:36:56 --> 00:36:58 and all the very best for the festive

00:36:58 --> 00:36:58 season to you

00:36:58 --> 00:37:01 >> and to you and um thank you very much.

00:37:02 --> 00:37:03 Professor Fred Watson, astronomer at

00:37:03 --> 00:37:05 large. And from me, Andrew Dunley, have

00:37:05 --> 00:37:07 a great Christmas, a happy new year.

00:37:07 --> 00:37:10 We'll see you in 2026. Until then,

00:37:10 --> 00:37:11 bye-bye.

00:37:11 --> 00:37:14 >> Space. your Venus to the Space Nuts

00:37:14 --> 00:37:16 podcast

00:37:16 --> 00:37:19 >> available at Apple Podcasts, Spotify,

00:37:19 --> 00:37:22 iHeart Radio, or your favorite podcast

00:37:22 --> 00:37:24 player. You can also stream on demand at

00:37:24 --> 00:37:26 byes.com.

00:37:26 --> 00:37:28 This has been another quality podcast

00:37:28 --> 00:37:32 production from byes.com.