#AstroMiniBR: Find out what the most common chemical element in the universe is

every week, Technology World and #AstroMiniBR brings together five relevant and entertaining astronomical curiosities produced by collaborators. twitter profile To spread the knowledge of this science, which is the oldest!

#1: What is the most abundant chemical element in the universe?

The universe consists overwhelmingly of hydrogen (~75%) and helium (~23%).
Since other elements in the periodic table make up only ~2% of the matter in the Universe, in Astronomy we call them all metals, to the dismay of chemists :’)#AstroMiniBR pic.twitter.com/G5S6F9dHkL

— Eduardo Machado Pereira (@mp_eduard) 27 November 2022

Ordinary matter consists of atoms that make up the stars, planets, humans, and all other visible objects in the universe. As impressive as this may seem to an intuitive idea, ordinary matter represents the smallest fraction of all the components of the Universe, about 5%. In the standard model of modern cosmology, it is estimated that 70% of everything that exists is dark energy and the remaining 25% is dark matter.

Among the atoms of ordinary matter, hydrogen is the chemical element that reigns in the Universe: about 75% of everything that exists is hydrogen atoms. In second place is helium, the second simplest atom in the periodic table, accounting for about 23%. An interesting fact is that in astronomy, all chemical elements heavier than these two atoms are called “metals”, although they also include elements such as carbon and oxygen, which are not considered metals in the standard sense.

The production of metals is a result of stellar evolution. Although metals lighter than iron are produced in stars through nuclear fusion reactions, only a tiny fraction escapes (via stellar winds or thermal vibrations) to be incorporated into new stars. Therefore, most of the metals found in the Universe are produced and ejected in supernova explosions that mark the end of the life of many stars.

#2: A cosmic dinner

Discovered the star swallowed by the farthest black hole in the universe! The cosmic meal was so far away that it took more than 8 billion years for its light to reach us! #AstroMiniBR pic.twitter.com/LGT4J6lHj9

— Thiago S Gonçalves (@thiagosgbr) 30 November 2022

Earlier this year, the European Southern Observatory’s (ESO) Very Large Telescope (VLT) was warned that an unusual source of visible light has been detected. The VLT then quickly repositioned, along with other telescopes, towards the source: a supermassive black hole that swallowed a star in a distant galaxy, spewing out its remains with an extremely powerful jet of energy.

Astronomers found it to be the most distant example of such an event ever observed. Because the jet was pointed almost directly at us, it was discovered in visible light for the first time, providing a new way to detect these extreme events. Stars orbiting very close to a black hole are shattered by the black hole’s incredible tidal forces in what’s known as a tidal disruption. Astronomers are constantly investigating these extreme events to understand how jets are actually created and why such a small fraction of swallowed stars produce them.

#3: Manned space travel record

IMAGE OF THE WEEK.
The Orion capsule captured this vision when it broke the distance record for a spacecraft built to transport astronauts. Orion witnesses a different eclipse from the farthest part of its orbit: Earth’s eclipse by the Moon. #AstroMiniBR pic.twitter.com/WmVvx9HJtS

— The Deep Sky Project (@CeuProfundo) 29 November 2022

NASA’s Orion spacecraft is designed to take humans back to the Moon. Carrying out the first phase of the Artemis mission in space, the spacecraft performs a series of maneuvers and tests between Earth and Moon orbits. On that journey, he captured the rare record shown in the video above: flying nearly 450,000 kilometers from Earth (a new record for a spacecraft designed to transport people), Orion’s optical system cameras captured an Earth-eclipsing view of the Moon. Blue Planet.

#4: Beauty of the Solar System Lord of the Rings

Which is the most beautiful planet in the Solar System?

Ok, that’s just my opinion.
But you have to admit that this is the most photogenic. #Saturn It is a gaseous planet and is the second largest planet in the Solar System. It takes ~29 years to go around the sun once. #AstroMiniBR pic.twitter.com/hMdVdJLZnE

— Patricia Cruz, PhD (@patyccruz2) 28 November 2022

One of the brightest planets in the night sky, Saturn’s good telescopic views and beautiful rings almost always make it a star at amateur astronomers’ meetings.

But the above image has a peculiar feature: this stunning view of the gas giant and its rings is absolutely impossible from Earth. Because the planet orbits further outside Earth’s orbit, any observation from Earth can only reveal Saturn’s day.

In fact, this image was taken by NASA’s Cassini spacecraft, which hosted orbits of Saturn for 13 years before being diverted to plunge into its atmosphere in 2017. This magnificent mosaic consists of frames recorded just two days ago by Cassini’s wide-angle camera. his last big dive. A night like this on Saturn won’t be seen again until another human-launched spacecraft arrives there.

#5: HL Tauri protoplanetary disk

what galaxy is this

it’s not a galaxy, it’s a PROTOPLASINAR DISC! What we see is the gas and dust surrounding the newly formed star from which planets are born.

The “galactic” aspect of IM Lup is likely due to interaction with an “invisible” companion. #AstroMiniBR pic.twitter.com/NvjHeqZmPQ

— Sofia Fonseca (@sofia_fonsecao) 29 November 2022

Why are there spaces in the above disk image? Answer: planets! This is the HL Tauri star system, recorded by the Atacama Large Millimeter Array (ALMA) of telescopes in Chile. Only 1 million years old, HL Tauri is a protoplanetary disk about 1,500 light-minutes across and contains some of the most remarkable details of a forming star system ever observed. The HL Tauri system is about 450 light-years from Earth, and its work provides insight into how our own Solar System formed and evolved.