speed

Massive eruption on dead star pushes particles to cosmic speed limit

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A burned-out stellar core produced a shockwave that pushed particles to their theoretical speed limit, scientists have reported. Astronomers used a gamma-ray observatory in Namibia called the High Energy Stereoscopic System (HESS) to show how an eruption creates a shock wave that accelerates material around it super-fast speeds. The research focused on RS Ophiuchi, a … Read more

Mars: Perseverance rover measures speed of sound on Mars for the first time

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Using a laser to strike rocks and a built-in microphone, NASA’s Perseverance rover has measured changes in the speed of sound on Mars due to temperature affecting the atmosphere Space 9 March 2022 By Alex Wilkins An illustration of NASA’s Perseverance rover NASA/JPL-Caltech The speed of sound on Mars has been measured for the first … Read more

Ageing: Mental speed stays high until age 60

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Although people take longer to make decisions from age 20 onwards, this may not be due to a decline in the speed of information processing, a large study has found Mind 17 February 2022 By Carissa Wong People playing chess WHL/Getty Images Our ability to process information during decision-making doesn’t drop off until age 60, … Read more

Russia wants to speed up space station cargo deliveries with shorter, one-orbit flights

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Roscosmos wants to speed up its deliveries to the International Space Station. The Russian space agency released a proposal to allow its Progress cargo ships to arrive in a single orbit, which would mean stuff would arrive at the orbiting complex only two hours after launch, the agency said. A statement on Roscosmos’ website says … Read more

How Fast Does Light Travel? | The Speed of Light

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Light traveling through a vacuum moves at exactly 299,792,458 meters (983,571,056 feet) per second. That’s about 186,282 miles per second — a universal constant known in equations and in shorthand as “c,” or the speed of light.  According to physicist Albert Einstein‘s theory of special relativity, on which much of modern physics is based, nothing … Read more