Wondering about wild grapes

Sunday, September 14, 2014

Wondering About Space/Time Distortions.

Have you ever wondered what objects affect space-time?  I for one, never seem to have enough space nor enough time.  Yes, objects around me affect my useful space and take up my time by hindering my path or objective.  But do these objects cause distortions in me?  Yes, if I trip into them when I am in a hurry.  They got in my space and then they took time away from what I was doing and then my face got distorted, either by the pain caused by tripping over them or the rage felt for them getting in my way.  They should know better than that, right?

But what about massive objects like our Sun.  Yes, the sun does distort space-time but not by very much.  Astronomers have proved that by measuring the time light reaches us from distant stars.  They compare the light from a star when its path is away from the Sun and then when it passes very close to it.  There is a difference.

So what object distorts space-time the most.  Yes the most massive, but let's start with our Sun.  It does not distort the fabric of space-time very much compared to the more dense and massive objects.
Our Sun:


The next massive and dense object on my list is the White Dwarf.  Those are stars that were in the size neighborhood of our sun, but whose internal furnace went out and there was not enough force exerted from its center to the surface to keep it from collapsing.  So, it went from the size of our Sun to the size of our Earth, but a lot more dense than our earth.
A White Dwarf:

 
 This third object on my list is a Neutron Star.  A Neutron Star has collapsed much further than the other ones listed above that its made up of a soup of neutrons.  Comparing it to our Sun would be like comparing a cannon ball to a balloon.  These stars a very energetic and do at times shoot out streams of energy.
A Neutron Star: 

 
Now we come to the final (as far as I know) compaction of matter, a Black Hole.  Just like stars, black holes come in many different sizes, from stellar size to massive monsters living in the center of galaxies that gobble up everything within their grasp and shoot out extremely powerful jets from their axis.
A Back Hole: 


 I scanned a chart that was in October 2014's Astronomy, the magazine that I always read from cover to cover.  I have been getting this magazine for more years than I can remember.  It was so long ago, I think the feature article was about how flat the Earth was and could we fall off the edge if we reached it. . . (grin).  This chart will put my whole blog in perspective.
The Chart:
 
 
Now try not to get too spaced out today, but rather have a great day, you hear?

10 comments:

  1. Yeah, I want to hear but it too. Ya got it home, loaded up, full fuel tank, wife is all excitis......where ya go'n???

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    1. Got to get it inspected. The inspection ran out on it while it was in the body shop. BTW, my wife does not like my RV and is no hurry to go anywhere.

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  2. I, too, would like to know your travel plans. Gotta have some kind of trip on the calendar...

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    1. Well, the Davis Mountains is always on my list. For closer places, there is always Bastrop State Park and Huntsville State Park. But first, I may just go to the local RV park and spend a couple of days to make sure everything works as it should.

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  3. I've got to go on a diet as I'm bending time and space . . .

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    1. Thanks for the big laugh. Now, I thought that was funny!!

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  4. You need to sell that motorhome and buy a rocket ship so you can visit some of those places.

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    1. Dang, I'm spaced out enough, David. I think I will try to keep all my wheels on the ground.

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  5. I think that missing Malayasian (sp?) plane went into that black hole you described.

    Tell your wife she can stay home and you are going to see Girls Go Wild in Terlingua...bet she changes her mind and agrees to go on a trip in a heartbeat...of course anywhere BUT Terlingua :)

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    1. My wife just thinks it is a money pit and she doesn't trust my driving since this isn't the first time I have damaged it. Even the gal at the RV repair place says that motorhomes are a maintenance problem and very expensive to keep running.

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