http://www.physorg.com/ en-us Physorg.com internet news portal provides the latest news on science including: Physics, Nanotechnology, Life Sciences, Space Science, Earth Science, Environment, Health and Medicine. (PhysOrg.com) -- One of the givens in physics is the weak equivalence principle. This principle has been considered solid since Einstein proposed that it is not possible to detect the difference between uniform acceleration and a uniform static gravitational field. The uniqueness of freefall allows uniform acceleration, even between masses that are different, according to Einstein's postulate in the theory of General Relativity. The weak equivalence principle is well established amongst the science community, but it has yet to be demonstrated completely. This is where Phillippe Bouyer at Laboratoire Charles Fabry de l`Institut d`Optique, Campus Polytechnique in Palaiseau, France, and his colleagues are attempting to go. http://www.physorg.com/news179481148.html Physics Tue, 08 Dec 2009 10:00:01 EST news179481148 (PhysOrg.com) -- `Most current hard x-ray interferometers are based on crystals, which require their high quality and high mechanical stability,` Anatoly Snigirev tells PhysOrg.com. `This can make x-ray interferometry quite limited. What we have done is develop a different set up that is simpler.` Snigirev is a scientist at ESRF in Grenoble France. Along with scientists at the Russian Kurchatov Research Center in Moscow, and at IMT RAS in Chernogolovka, Russia, Snigirev proposes that refractive bilenses made from silicon can be used in place of crystals. http://www.physorg.com/news169383826.html Physics Thu, 13 Aug 2009 12:06:21 EST news169383826 (PhysOrg.com) -- The new image, showing a very rich field of stars towards the Carina arm of the Milky Way, is centred on the star HD 87643, a member of the exotic class of B[e] stars [1]. It is part of a set of observations that provide astronomers with the best ever picture of a B[e] star. http://www.physorg.com/news168689716.html Space & Earth Wed, 05 Aug 2009 11:15:44 EST news168689716 A supermassive black hole may be responsible for the glowing appearance of galaxy 3C 305, located about 600 million light years away in the constellation Draco. Composite data from NASA`s Chandra X-ray Observatory and other telescopes suggests that the black hole may be interacting with interstellar gas and emitting X-rays. Or, bright radiation from regions near the black hole may infuse energy into the gas that makes it glow. http://www.physorg.com/news161533193.html Space & Earth Thu, 14 May 2009 15:20:45 EST news161533193 On 30 April, the team observed the first "interferometric fringes" of an astronomical source by linking two 12-metre diameter ALMA antennas, together with the other critical parts of the system. Mars was chosen as a suitable target for the observations, which demonstrate ALMA's full hardware functionality and connectivity. This important milestone was achieved at the ALMA Operations Support Facility, high in Chile's Atacama region, at an altitude of 2900 metres. http://www.physorg.com/news160830221.html Space & Earth Wed, 06 May 2009 12:04:42 EST news160830221 (PhysOrg.com) -- A team of astronomers, led by Stefan Kraus and Gerd Weigelt from the Max-Planck-Institute for Radio Astronomy (MPIfR) in Bonn, used ESO's Very Large telescope Interferometer (VLTI) to obtain the sharpest ever image of the young double star Theta 1 Ori C in the Orion Trapezium Cluster, the most massive star in the nearest high-mass star-forming region. The new image clearly separates the two young, massive stars of this system. http://www.physorg.com/news157908478.html Space & Earth Thu, 02 Apr 2009 16:28:35 EST news157908478 A team of French and Italian astronomers have devised a new method for measuring the size and shape of asteroids that are too small or too far away for traditional techniques, increasing the number of asteroids that can be measured by a factor of several hundred. This method takes advantage of the unique capabilities of ESO's Very Large Telescope Interferometer (VLTI). http://www.physorg.com/news152962650.html Space & Earth Wed, 04 Feb 2009 09:42:03 EST news152962650 (PhysOrg.com) -- Astronomers may have solved a cosmic chicken-and-egg problem -- the question of which formed first in the early Universe -- galaxies or the supermassive black holes seen at their cores. http://www.physorg.com/news150486022.html Space & Earth Tue, 06 Jan 2009 17:40:22 EST news150486022