"We've taken the precision of the atomic clock and used it in astronomy for the first time," Murphy said. "Hopefully it will open up new areas in astronomy, enabling experiments that people have only dreamed of before." The technology could reveal variations in the "fundamental constants of nature" by allowing astronomers to detect changes in the spectral signatures of clouds of gas in distant universes. With improvements, Murphy believes the technology will also be able to calibrate spectrographs to record changes in velocity to an accuracy of one centimeter per second in the opitcal range. Murphy is part of a project slated for the European Southern Observatory's planned 42-meter diameter European Extremely Large Telescope that hopes to measure the expansion of the universe by tracking redshift drift over a 20-year period. Light from an object moving away from an observer will be stretched towards the red end of the spectrum, in an effect known as "redshift." University of Queensland astrophysicist Tamara Davis says the research has generated excitement about future research possibilities. Davis says the improved precision of calibration for the telescopes will allow astronomers to be certain that measurements made at different times are comparable. "The kinds of measurement we want to make are looking at the expansion of the universe and how that changes with time," Davis said. "But things on the scale of the universe don't change much over a human lifespan." She says at present the expansion of the universe can only be tracked in "snapshots" with measurements taken at different times. This technology will provide a "movie" of a galaxy's evolution through time. Related Links: Irene Klotz's blog: Free Space |
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