Scientists Might Have Finally Found Something Faster Than Light

Photo Credit: NASA/Hubble

Astronomers observed a breathtaking collision of two neutron stars in 2017. This collision generated jet radiation that was so powerful that NASA has compared it “to that of a supernova." Cut to 2022, scientists have finally studied all the data that was gathered during the event. The findings have shown stuff that moves faster than light.

Well, nothing can indeed move faster than the speed of light. But, the researchers might have a reasonable explanation for their strange finding.

Using Hubble Data To Study The Event

The event, dubbed GW170817, is what’s called a binary neutron star merger. Neutron stars are the collapsed cores of massive stars and are among the densest objects in the universe. To put things in perspective, NASA explains, just a teaspoon of one neutron star would be equivalent to the weight of four billion tons on Earth.

Objects with such enormous density are accompanied by immense gravity which would be enough to pull two of these neutron stars together in an explosive collision. This collision sent out gravitational waves and gamma radiation into the cosmos. It was the first time when astronomers detected them from a neutron star merger, the space agency noted.

The legendary Hubble Space Telescope was able to capture the two neutron stars collapsing into a black hole after colliding with each other. In the aftermath of the collision, a spinning disk was formed around the black hole that spewed matter at incredible speeds.

The researchers combined their findings with that of the National Science Foundation and managed to precisely study the event, including the speed of matter.

Can Matter Move Faster Than Light?

From the Hubble data, it appeared the jets of matter were moving seven times faster than light. The researchers explain the reason behind the discrepancy is due to something called superliminal motion. Since the jet of matter reaches Earth at the speed of light, the space agency explains, the light it emits at later points has a relatively shorter distance, making it appear faster than it actually is.

After more calculations, astronomers found the real speed to be at least 99.7 percent of the speed of light. The team hopes to get its paper published in the journal Nature. This will enable astronomers to make precise observations of neutron star mergers, allowing them to calculate the rate of the universe’s expansion.