radiation

Here’s What You Need to Know About Power Cuts at Two Ukrainian Nuclear Plants

by

The catastrophic disaster at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant in 1986 was caused by an explosion at the Reactor 4 Unit. This expelled a sizeable quantity of radioactive material into the surroundings, alongside a partial meltdown of the reactor core. The last few decades have seen substantial international efforts to safely contain and decontaminate the … Read more

A Rare, Repeatedly Exploding Star Has Been Caught Producing Powerful Gamma Rays

by

A rare star that repeatedly explodes appears to be also generating the most energetic form of light in the Universe. Analysis of an eruption from the binary system RS Ophiuchi has revealed that the shock wave expanding out into space acts as a particle accelerator that generates gamma radiation. This suggests the conditions that generate … Read more

Wormholes Could Help Solve an Infamous Black Hole Paradox, Says Fun New Paper

by

What happens to information after it has passed beyond the event horizon of a black hole? There have been suggestions that the geometry of wormholes might help us solve this vexing problem – but the math has been tricky, to say the least.   In a new paper, an international team of physicists has found … Read more

Russia-Ukraine war: Chernobyl power cut sparks fears of potential for radiation leaks

by

Vital cooling systems for controlling nuclear waste at the decommissioned Chernobyl nuclear power plant are offline, leading to concerns that radioactive waste might escape Physics 9 March 2022 By Matthew Sparkes A drone image of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant in Pripyat, Ukraine, taken on 7 March 2022 Russia MOD/EYEPRESS/Shutterstock Fears of a potential radiation … Read more

Giant radiation bubbles created by monster black hole feeding frenzy, new study suggests

by

Two giant bubbles of gamma rays and X-rays that erupted from the center of the Milky Way may stem from a supermassive black hole‘s feeding frenzy at the heart of the galaxy, a new study finds. Recently, the X-ray telescope eROSITA onboard the Spektr-RG space observatory discovered a pair of gigantic X-ray-emitting bubbles, each about … Read more

Russia-Ukraine war: Chernobyl staff denied access to radiation monitoring lab

by

Scientific monitoring of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant is being affected by the Russian invasion of Ukraine Humans 8 March 2022 By Matthew Sparkes Damage to infrastructure at the Kharkiv Institute of Physics and Technology neutron source State Nuclear Regulatory Inspectorate of Ukraine Scientists monitoring radiation levels at Chernobyl are unable to access their laboratories … Read more

NASA funds experimental radiation shield and Mars climbing robot

by

Several futuristic projects have just been awarded money through NASA’s Innovative Advanced Concepts programme – here are New Scientist‘s top five choices Space 3 March 2022 By Will Gater NASA has just announced the projects that will be getting money from its NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts (NIAC) programme, which aims to support ideas for game-changing … Read more

James Webb Space Telescope plans probe of massive star radiation

by

The James Webb Space Telescope will zero in on a portion of the famous Orion Nebula, the closest region of mass star-formation to Earth, to learn more about how massive young stars shape their environments. The Orion Nebula, some 1,350 light-years away from Earth, is known as a stellar nursery. Dense clouds of gas and dust … Read more

Chernobyl’s Radiation Spiked 20 Times Above Usual Levels as Russian Forces Arrive

by

The Chernobyl nuclear power plant and its surrounding area are showing increased radiation levels after heavy fighting between Ukrainian and Russian troops in the region, Ukrainian officials said Friday (Feb. 25)   Online data from the Chernobyl exclusion zone’s automated radiation-monitoring system shows that gamma radiation has increased 20 times above usual levels at multiple observation points, which … Read more