Space Station converted to the coldest place in the cosmos

At the end of May, the NASA Cold Atom Laboratory (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) was installed in the American scientific laboratory and now produces such ultra-cold atomic clouds, known as Bose-Einstein condensates (BEC).

These BECs reach temperatures just above -273.15 degrees Celsius, the point at which atoms should theoretically stop moving completely. This is the first time that BECs occur in orbit.

At the NASA facility, the first of its kind in space, the atoms are cooled to about 10 billionths of a degree above absolute zero, about 10 billion times colder than the average temperature of the deep space.

At these temperatures, atoms behave in a strange way, allowing scientists to study the fundamental nature of matter.

Earth there are many BEC experiments, but on the International Space Station, free of gravity attraction, BEC can be observed as long as possible on our planet and reach even higher temperatures cold than those normally obtained on the surface, says Robert Thompson, author of the study

The research will enable scientists to solve some of the greatest mysteries of the universe, such as the understanding of nature. In addition to solving the disagreement between quantum mechanics and the theory of gravity,

may also have practical applications, such as improving the atomic clock technologies used in navigation. spaceships.

oda / lrc