Connect with us

Published

on

Having made a career out of playing an explorer of the cosmos, William Shatner – Captain James Kirk of Star Trek fame – did it for real on Wednesday, becoming at age 90 the oldest person in space aboard a rocketship flown by billionaire Jeff Bezos’s company Blue Origin, an experience the actor called profound.

Shatner was one of four passengers to journey for 10 minutes and 17 seconds to the edge of space aboard the white fully autonomous 60-foot-tall (18.3 meters-tall) New Shepard spacecraft, which took off from Blue Origin’s launch site about 20 miles (32km) outside the rural west Texas town of Van Horn.

The crew capsule returned to the Texas desert from the suborbital flight under parachutes, raising a cloud of dust. Shatner emerged gingerly from the capsule in the desert silence, appearing reflective as the others celebrated by cheering and popping champagne bottles.

Bezos was on hand and embraced Shatner, who was wearing a cap and a blue flight suit with the company’s name in white letters on one sleeve.

“What you have given me is the most profound experience I can imagine,” Shatner told Bezos as the two chatted for several minutes. “I am so filled with emotion about what just happened.”

The all-civilian crew experienced a few minutes of weightlessness, having traveled about 65.8 miles (106 km) above the Earth’s surface – higher than the internationally recognised boundary of space known as the Karman Line, about 62 miles (100km) above Earth.

It marked the second space tourism flight for Blue Origin, the company Bezos – the Amazon founder and current executive chairman – founded two decades ago. Bezos flew aboard the first one in July.

Shatner – who embodied the promise of space travel in the classic 1960s TV series Star Trek and seven subsequent films – said he had prepared himself for experiencing weightlessness, but was stunned at the dramatic contrast of the beauty of the blue Earth and the blackness of space.

“You’re looking into blackness, into black ugliness,” Shatner said. “And you look down, there’s the blue down there – and the black up there – and it’s just, there is Mother Earth.”

“This is life and that’s death, and in an instant, you know – whoa – that’s death,” Shatner said. “That’s what I saw.”

“Is that the way death is?” Shatner asked.

Before the flight, each astronaut rang a bell and then entered the capsule atop the rocketship, with Bezos closing the hatch. Winds were light and skies were clear for the launch, conducted after two delays totaling roughly 45 minutes.

Joining Shatner were former NASA engineer Chris Boshuizen, clinical research entrepreneur Glen de Vries and Blue Origin vice president and engineer Audrey Powers.

‘Beam me up’

Shatner, who turned 90 in March, has been acting since the 1950s and remains busy with entertainment projects and fan conventions. He is best known for starring as Captain James Tiberius Kirk of the starship Enterprise on Star Trek.

During the opening credits of each episode of the series, he called space “the final frontier” and promised “to explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilisations, to boldly go where no man has gone before.”

“Beam me up,” Shatner’s character would tell the Enterprise’s chief engineer Scotty, played by James Doohan, in a memorable catchphrase when he needed to be transported to the starship.

Shatner’s participation helped generate publicity for Blue Origin as it competes against two billionaire-backed rivals – Elon Musk’s SpaceX and Richard Branson’s Virgin Galactic - to attract customers willing to pay large sums to experience spaceflight.

The flight represented another important day for the nascent space tourism industry that, according to UBS, could reach an annual value of $3 billion (roughly Rs. 22,590 crores) in a decade.

Blue Origin had a successful debut space tourism flight on July 20, with Bezos and three others aboard on a trip lasting 10 minutes and 10 seconds. On that flight, pioneering female aviator Wally Funk at age 82 became the oldest person to reach space. The previous record was set in 1998 when pioneering astronaut John Glenn returned to space as a 77-year-old US senator.

Branson inaugurated his space tourism service on July 11, riding along on a suborbital flight with six others. SpaceX debuted its space tourism business by flying the first all-civilian crew to reach Earth’s orbit in a three-day mission ending September 18.

In his annual address to world leaders last month, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres criticised “billionaires joyriding to space while millions go hungry on earth.”

Asked about Shatner’s flight, UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said on Wednesday that Guterres “very much continues to believe what he said in the General Assembly.”

© Thomson Reuters 2021


Continue Reading

Science

T Corona Borealis May Erupt Soon: Rare Nova Could Be Visible to Naked Eye

Published

on

By

T Corona Borealis May Erupt Soon: Rare Nova Could Be Visible to Naked Eye

T Corona Borealis is a binary star system in the Northern Crown constellation which is being monitored closely by astronomers worldwide for signs of a rare stellar eruption. The system consists of a white dwarf and a red giant orbiting each other with the white dwarf pulling material from its companion. The gradual accumulation of matter on the surface of dwarf white planet can lead to a thermonuclear explosion, known as a Nova. Scientists recorded the last erupted Nova in 1946. Now, there have been some indications that we might experience another nova outburst in the near future.

The researchers have recorded a brightening event in 2015 followed by a dimming in 2023, which has mirrored the pattern seen in the last eruption. This leads the experts to believe that there might be another nova outburt. If an eruption occurs T Corona Borealis could become visible to the naked eye and shine as brightly as the most prominent stars.

Accretion Activity and Expert Predictions

According to a study published in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, the system has exhibited behaviour similar to the years leading up to its previous eruption. T Corona Borealis is one of only eleven recurrent novae observed in recorded history with eruptions noted in 1217, 1787, 1866 and 1946. As per the latest data available with the researchers, the accretion disc surrounding the white dwarf has became highly active and bright between 2015 and 2023. The study reveals that this heightened activity could trigger an eruption within a year or two.

There are multiple predictions from the scientists based on orbital analysis suggesting possible eruption dates. As per multiple reports, the Nova outburst might take place between March 27 or November 10 this year or June 25, 2026. The researchers has also suggested a theory regarding a potential third object influencing the binary system. Astronomers like Dr Léa Planquart of Université de Strasbourg and Dr Jeremy Shears of the British Astronomical Association have dismissed this theory citing the absence of supporting evidence. Both experts believe the activity of the accretion disc remains the most likely cause of an impending eruption.

For the latest tech news and reviews, follow Gadgets 360 on X, Facebook, WhatsApp, Threads and Google News. For the latest videos on gadgets and tech, subscribe to our YouTube channel. If you want to know everything about top influencers, follow our in-house Who’sThat360 on Instagram and YouTube.


Vivo X200 Ultra Confirmed to Feature Dedicated Camera Control Button; Design Teased



Facebook Introduces Friends Tab Without Recommended Content as Part of ‘OG’ Revamp

Related Stories

Continue Reading

Science

Scientists Spot a Key Difference in Matter and Antimatter Decay

Published

on

By

Scientists Spot a Key Difference in Matter and Antimatter Decay

A key difference has been observed in the behaviour of matter and antimatter particles by researchers working at a particle physics laboratory. A new measurement has been carried out that recorded the decay of a specific type of matter particle and its antimatter equivalent. This development is being seen as significant because it may explain why the universe is filled with matter while antimatter is nearly absent. The discovery has been described as a step towards solving one of physics’ biggest mysteries.

New Study Reveals Baryon Decay Difference

According to the research shared by the LHCb experiment at CERN and posted on the arXiv preprint server, a difference has been recorded in how a particle called the beauty-lambda baryon and its antimatter counterpart decay. These particles belong to the proton family and are classified as baryons. The report further added that the decay was observed into a proton and three mesons based on data collected between 2009 and 2018.

The evidence suggests that the decay of the beauty-lambda baryon differs from its antimatter twin. According to sources involved in the study the likelihood of this difference being a random occurrence is less than one in three million. Tim Gershon who is a particle physicist at the University of Warwick and part of the research team told Nature that this is the first time such a difference has been spotted in baryons.

Experts Say Findings Could Aid Understanding of Matter’s Prevalence

Tara Shears who is a particle physicist at the University of Liverpool stated to Nature that the observation could offer new insight into why matter is found in abundance while antimatter is not. She said that this imbalance is one of the major unresolved questions in physics.

Yuval Grossman a theoretical physicist from Cornell University mentioned to Nature that while the current measurement does not fully explain the imbalance it helps add a crucial piece to the puzzle.

For the latest tech news and reviews, follow Gadgets 360 on X, Facebook, WhatsApp, Threads and Google News. For the latest videos on gadgets and tech, subscribe to our YouTube channel. If you want to know everything about top influencers, follow our in-house Who’sThat360 on Instagram and YouTube.


Portronics Beem 520 Smart LED Projector With 2,200 Lumens Brightness, In-Built OTT Apps Launched in India



Honor Play 60 Price, Design, Colours, Key Features Surface Online; May Use a MediaTek Dimensity 6300 SoC

Continue Reading

Science

China Loses 26 Percent of Its Glaciers Due to Global Warming, Claims New Study

Published

on

By

China Loses 26 Percent of Its Glaciers Due to Global Warming, Claims New Study

China has reportedly witnessed a significant decline in glacier area over the last six decades. As per a new study published online,  the country has lost nearly 26 percent of its total glacier coverage since the 1960s. The study claims that the lost of such glacier area might be due to the rapid increase in global temperatures around the globe. Official data confirmed that close to 7000 small glaciers have entirely vanished from the landscape. The shrinking of glacier masses has been observed to accelerate over the past few years as warming trends continue to intensify.

Glacier Loss Confirmed by Chinese Academy of Sciences

According to a study released by the Northwest Institute of Eco-Environment and Resources under the Chinese Academy of Sciences it was recorded that China’s glacier area had reduced to nearly 46000 square kilometres by 2020. The total number of glaciers was stated to be around 69000 at that time. This marked a steep fall from an earlier figure of approximately 59000 square kilometres reported between 1960 and 1980 when glacier count stood at roughly 46000.

Impact of Glacier Retreat on Water Security and Environment

The melting of glaciers has raised concerns over freshwater availability across several regions. Environmental agencies have cautioned that the loss of glacier mass may result in higher competition for water resources in the years to come. The Tibetan Plateau which hosts a large portion of these glaciers has been referred to as the Third Pole owing to the vast ice reserves it holds.

Efforts to Slow Glacier Melting

Attempts have been made by Chinese authorities to slow the melting process through technological interventions. Artificial snow systems and snow blankets have been deployed as part of these initiatives.

For the latest tech news and reviews, follow Gadgets 360 on X, Facebook, WhatsApp, Threads and Google News. For the latest videos on gadgets and tech, subscribe to our YouTube channel. If you want to know everything about top influencers, follow our in-house Who’sThat360 on Instagram and YouTube.


Audio-Technica ATH-CKS50TW2 Star Wars-Themed Limited Edition TWS Earphones Launched: Price, Features



Portronics Beem 520 Smart LED Projector With 2,200 Lumens Brightness, In-Built OTT Apps Launched in India

Related Stories

Continue Reading

Trending