God Particle Found!!!

Question: "What is the God particle?"

Answer: The "God particle" is the nickname of a subatomic particle called the Higgs boson. In layman’s terms, different subatomic particles are responsible for giving matter different properties. One of the most mysterious and important properties is mass. Some particles, like protons and neutrons, have mass. Others, like photons, do not. The Higgs boson, or “God particle,” is believed to be the particle which gives mass to matter. The “God particle” nickname grew out of the long, drawn-out struggles of physicists to find this elusive piece of the cosmic puzzle. What follows is a very brief, very simplified explanation of how the Higgs boson fits into modern physics, and how science is attempting to study it.

The “standard model” of particle physics is a system that attempts to describe the forces, components, and reactions of the basic particles that make up matter. It not only deals with atoms and their components, but the pieces that compose some subatomic particles. This model does have some major gaps, including gravity, and some experimental contradictions. The standard model is still a very good method of understanding particle physics, and it continues to improve. The model predicts that there are certain elementary particles even smaller than protons and neutrons. As of the date of this writing, the only particle predicted by the model which has not been experimentally verified is the “Higgs boson,” jokingly referred to as the “God particle.”

Each of the subatomic particles contributes to the forces that cause all matter interactions. One of the most important, but least understood, aspects of matter is mass. Science is not entirely sure why some particles seem mass-less, like photons, and others are “massive.” The standard model predicts that there is an elementary particle, the Higgs boson, which would produce the effect of mass. Confirmation of the Higgs boson would be a major milestone in our understanding of physics.

The “God particle” nickname actually arose when the book The God Particle: If the Universe Is the Answer, What Is the Question? by Leon Lederman was published. Since then, it’s taken on a life of its own, in part because of the monumental questions about matter that the God particle might be able to answer. The man who first proposed the Higgs boson’s existence, Peter Higgs, isn’t all that amused by the nickname “God particle,” as he’s an avowed atheist. All the same, there isn’t really any religious intention behind the nickname.

Currently, efforts are under way to confirm the Higgs boson using the Large Hadron Collider, a particle accelerator in Switzerland, which should be able to confirm or refute the existence of the God particle. As with any scientific discovery, God’s amazing creation becomes more and more impressive as we learn more about it. Either result—that the Higgs boson exists, or does not exist—represents a step forward in human knowledge and another step forward in our appreciation of God’s awe-inspiring universe. Whether or not there is a “God particle,” we know this about Christ: “For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible . . . all things were created by him and for him” (Colossians 1:16 ).

Massive solar storm headed toward Earth

NASA captured this image of a massive solar flare erupting Tuesday.

(Credit: NASA)

A massive solar storm is hurtling toward Earth, threatening to disrupt communications, GPS, power grids, and airline flights.

A solar flare last night (see video below) created a coronal mass ejection, or the release of a burst of charged particles, from the sun's atmosphere. The storm--the largest in five years--is expected to rain a torrent of charged particles on the Earth early tomorrow morning, mostly in northern areas, according to forecasters at the federal government's Space Weather Prediction Center.

The storm, which has produced a radiation event that rated an S3, or strong, designation on the NOAA's five-level space weather scales, is growing as it moves away from the sun. When it strikes the Earth, the particles are expected to be moving at 4 million mph.

"It's hitting us right in the nose," Joe Kunches, a scientist for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, told the BBC. "Space weather has gotten very interesting over the past 24 hours."

Solar flares often create radio emissions at decimetric wavelengths that interfere with devices operating at those frequencies. This solar storm's magnetic, radio, and radiation emissions are the strongest since 2006, Kunches said.

NASA's models predict that the CMEs will pass by several of the agency's spacecraft, including Messenger, Spitzer, and STEREO-B. However, it appears that astronauts aboard the International Space Station will not be affected, a NASA spokesman told the AFP news agency.

Tuesday's flare was the second largest since the sun segued in 2007 into a period of relatively low activity called a solar minimum.

"The current increase in the number of X-class flares is part of the sun's normal 11-year solar cycle, during which activity on the sun ramps up to solar maximum, which is expected to peak in late 2013," the space agency said in a statement.

In addition to possible communications and power disruptions, NASA said one very visible impact from plasma ejected during the geomagnetic storm is the occurrence of aurora at low latitudes.

Read more: http://news.cnet.com/8301-11386_3-57392927-76/massive-solar-storm-headed-toward-earth/#ixzz1oShDp439

No danger of earth exploding

No danger of earth exploding 

Washington: Scientists have nailed an alarming prediction about the cataclysmic destruction of earth in 2012.

An erroneous doomsday theory doing the rounds is that a supernova explosion, which releases energy equivalent to that produced during the sun's entire lifetime, could happen in 2012 and harm earthly life.

However, given the vastness of space and the long light years between supernovae, astronomers say with certainty that there is no threatening star close enough to hurt earth.

According to a statement by NASA-Goddard Space Flight Centre, astronomers say that the closest gamma-ray burst on record, known as GRB 031203, is 1.3 billion light years away from the earth.