Lifeboat Foundation: Safeguarding Humanity
Toggle light / dark theme

Blog

Category: space

2D discrete time crystals realized on a quantum computer for the first time

Physical systems become inherently more complicated and difficult to produce in a lab as the number of dimensions they exist in increases—even more so in quantum systems. While discrete time crystals (DTCs) had been previously demonstrated in one dimension, two-dimensional DTCs were known to exist only theoretically. But now, a new study, published in Nature Communications, has demonstrated the existence of a DTC in a two-dimensional system using a 144-qubit quantum processor.

Like regular crystalline materials, DTCs exhibit a kind of periodicity. However, the crystalline materials most people are familiar with have a periodically repeating structure in space, while the particles in DTCs exhibit periodic motion over time. They represent a phase of matter that breaks time-translation symmetry under a periodic driving force and cannot experience an equilibrium state.

“Consequently, local observables exhibit oscillations with a period that is a multiple of the driving frequency, persisting indefinitely in perfectly isolated systems. This subharmonic response represents a spontaneous breaking of discrete time-translation symmetry, analogous to the breaking of continuous spatial symmetry in conventional solid-state crystals,” the authors of the new study explain.

Juno spacecraft reveals thickness of Europa’s ice shell

“The 18-mile estimate relates to the cold, rigid, conductive outer layer of a pure water ice shell,” said Dr. Steve Levin. [ https://www.labroots.com/trending/space/30133/juno-spacecraf…ce-shell-2](https://www.labroots.com/trending/space/30133/juno-spacecraf…ce-shell-2)

How thick is the ice shell on Jupiter’s moon, Europa? This is what a recent study published in Nature Astronomy hopes to address as a team of scientists revealed groundbreaking insights into Europa’s ice shell thickness and subsurface structure. This study has the potential to help scientists better understand the interior composition of Europa and whether it could support life as we know it.

For the study, the researchers analyzed data obtained by NASA’s Juno spacecraft in 2022 when the spacecraft came within 220 miles (360 kilometers) of Europa’s surface. The goal of the study was to put constraints on the thickness of Europa’s ice shell, with the researchers noting current estimates range from 1.86 miles (3 kilometers) to more than 18.6 miles (30 kilometers). Since Europa is a prime target for the search for life beyond Earth, scientists hypothesize that cracks exist within the ice shell, enabling the delivery of nutrients from the surface to the subsurface liquid water ocean. In the end, the researchers estimated the average thickness of Europa’s ice shell is approximately 18 miles (29 kilometers).

Interstellar Travel: Approaching Light Speed

Is interstellar travel doomed to remain in the realm of science fiction? Sticking to near future space propulsion only, how close can we get to the speed of light?

This video looks at the current spacecraft speed records with Apollo 10 holding the record for the fastest manned spacecraft, New Horizons probe for the fastest Earth escape velocity and the Helios probes for the fastest heliocentric velocity. But Solar Probe Plus will beat that when it launches in 2018. While Voyager 1 doesn’t set any speed records, it was the first spacecraft to leave the solar system, so therefore the fastest solar system escape velocity by default.

For beating these speeds, this video explores what is possible in the near future only, so no antimatter, Alcubierre drives (warp), ramjets, etc… The EM drive is left out until it’s proven with actual reproducible results in space.

Project Daedalus and the updated Project Icarus represent sound concepts for fusion spacecraft. IKAROS was the first successful demonstration of solar sail technology but hopefully the planetary society is not far behind with their LightSail cubsat (not covered in this video).

But what appears to have the most potential to reach the nearest star to our own, Proxima Centauri and it’s newly discovered planet Proxima b is Breakthrough Starshot. Thousands of super lightweight laser sail nanocraft will be launched into space then the light beamer, a ground based laser array will propel these spacecraft to 20% light speed within minutes.

All sources used in researching this video are listed in the end credits.

Continue reading “Interstellar Travel: Approaching Light Speed” | >

Stephen Wolfram: computation is the universe’s OS

Mathematica creator Stephen Wolfram has spent nearly 50 years arguing that simple computational rules underlie everything from animal patterns to the laws of physics. In his 2023 TED talk, he makes the case that computation isn’t just a useful way to model the world — it’s the fundamental operating system of reality itself.

Wolfram introduces “the ruliad,” an abstract concept encompassing all possible computational processes. Space and matter, he argues, consist of discrete elements governed by simple rules. Gravity and quantum mechanics emerge from the same computational framework. The laws of physics themselves are observer-dependent, arising from our limited perspective within an infinite computational structure.

On AI, Wolfram sees large language models as demonstrating deep connections between semantic grammar and computational thinking. The Wolfram Language, he claims, bridges human conceptualization and computational power, letting people operationalize ideas directly — what he calls a “superpower” for thinking and creation.

Measuring the quantum extent of a single molecule confined to a nanodroplet

There is no measurement that can directly observe the wave function of a quantum mechanical system, but the wave function is still enormously useful as its (complex) square represents the probability density of the system or elements of the system. But for a confined system, the wave function can be inferred.

Scientists from China have now shown that the wave function’s dependence in space can be determined for a single molecule embedded in a superfluid helium nanodroplet. Their research has been published in the journal Physical Review Letters.

Rare Cosmic Lineup Gives Hubble Close Look at 3I/ATLAS

NASA exoplanet probe tracks interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS to gauge its spin https://www.space.com/astronomy/comets/nasa-exoplanet-probe-…e-its-spin.

NASA’s TESS Reobserves Comet 3I/ATLAS https://science.nasa.gov/blogs/3iatlas/2026/01/27/nasas-tess…-3i-atlas/

On January 22, 2026, the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope observed the interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS nearly perfectly aligned with the Sun-Earth axis, revealing unprecedented jet structures and an extended anti-tail.

Ultrathin kagome metal hosts robust 3D flat electronic band state

A team of researchers at Monash University has uncovered a powerful new way to engineer exotic quantum states, revealing a robust and tunable three-dimensional flat electronic band in an ultrathin kagome metal, an achievement long thought to be nearly impossible. The study, “3D Flat Band in Ultra-Thin Kagome Metal Mn₃Sn Film,” by M. Zhao, J. Blyth, T. Yu and collaborators appears in Advanced Materials.

The discovery centers on Mn₃Sn films just three nanometers thick. Despite their extreme thinness, these films host a 3D flat band that spans the entire momentum space, offering an unprecedented platform for exploring strongly correlated quantum phases and designing future low-energy electronic technologies.

“Until now, 3D flat bands had only been observed in a few bulk materials with special lattice geometries,” said Ph.D. candidate and co-lead author James Blyth, from the Monash University School of Physics and Astronomy.

Researchers discover hundreds of cosmic anomalies with help from AI

A team of astronomers have used a new AI-assisted method to search for rare astronomical objects in the Hubble Legacy Archive. The team sifted through nearly 100 million image cutouts in just two and a half days, uncovering nearly 1400 anomalous objects, more than 800 of which had never been documented before.

New insight into the Origin of Water on the Earth

Scientists have found the interstellar organic matter could produce an abundant supply of water by heating, suggesting that organic matter could be the source of terrestrial water.

There remains a number of mysteries on our planet including the elusive origin of water on the earth. Active studies suggested that terrestrial water had been delivered by icy comets or meteorites containing hydrous silicates that came from outside the “snow line” – the boundary beyond which ice can condense due the low temperatures. More recent studies, however, have provided observations opposing to cometary origin theory, yet still failing to suggest plausible substitutions for the source of terrestrial water. “Until now, much less attention has been paid to organic matter, comparing to ices and silicates, even though there is an abundance inside the snow line” says planetary scientist Akira Kouchi at Hokkaido University.

In the recent study published in Scientific Reports, a group of scientists led by Akira Kouchi demonstrates that heating of the interstellar organic matter at high temperature could yield abundant water and oil. This suggests that water could be produced inside the snow line, without any contribution of comets or meteorites delivered from outside the snow line.

/* */