Name: 為什麼我們看到的引力波事件比以往更多？ (Why We’re Seeing More Gravitational Wave Events Than Ever Before)
Uploaded: 2020-11-23T18:15:32.000Z
Duration: 5 min 23 s

基礎被動語態

Remember when the discovery of gravitational waves was first officially announced back in 2016

還記得2016年第一次正式宣佈發現引力波時的情景嗎？

and we were all like, “wow that's wild, I wonder if we'll see more?”

我們都喜歡， "哇，這是野生的，我不知道如果我們會看到更多？"

情態副詞

Well since then, we have spotted a handful more, but recently our cup runneth over.

從那以後，我們又發現了一些，但最近我們的杯子用完了。

The latest news from the gravitational wave detectors LIGO and Virgo confirms that the trio of instruments spotted another

來自引力波探測器LIGO和處女座的最新消息證實，這三臺儀器發現了另一個。

39 gravitational wave signals in just the first half of their third observing run,

39個引力波信號，在他們第三次觀測的前半段就。

and some of those signals are giving us new insights into black holes.

其中一些信號讓我們對黑洞有了新的認識。

Colliding neutron stars and colliding black holes produce some of the strongest gravitational waves.

碰撞的中子星和碰撞的黑洞會產生一些最強的引力波。

As they spin around each other the massive objects generate ripples in spacetime that spread across the universe at the speed of light.

當它們互相旋轉時，巨大的物體在時空中產生了漣漪，以光速在宇宙中傳播。

These ripples carry information about how they were made and offer insights into the nature of gravity itself,

這些波紋攜帶著關於它們是如何形成的資訊，並提供了對重力本身本質的見解。

but they're not easy to detect. Well, not from far away at least.

但他們不容易被發現。至少在遠處不容易被發現 Well, not from far away at least.

Near the merging black holes or neutron stars the waves can be very intense,

在合併的黑洞或中子星附近，波浪會非常強烈。

but by the time they reach Earth they are thousands of billions of times smaller.

但當它們到達地球的時候，它們已經小了幾千億倍。

The amount the waves cause space-time to wobble can be one thousand times smaller than the nucleus of an atom.

波引起時空晃動的量可以比原子核小一千倍。

That's where interferometers like LIGO and Virgo come in.

這就是LIGO和Virgo等干涉儀的作用。

Using orthogonal laser beams that bounce off mirrors at the end of multi-kilometer long tunnels,

使用正交激光束，在多公里長的隧道末端從鏡子上反彈。

the two detectors in the United States that make up LIGO and their collaborator Virgo in Italy,

美國的兩臺探測器組成了LIGO及其在意大利的合作者Virgo。

can pick up that extremely minute wibbly-wobbly of spacetime.

可以接收到時空那極其微小的晃動。

During their first two observing runs, the observatories had tallied a total of 11 gravitational wave events.

在前兩次觀測中，觀測站共統計了11次引力波事件。

But before observing run number 3, the detectors underwent several improvements, like getting more powerful lasers and better mirrors.

但在觀測運行3號之前，探測器進行了幾次改進，比如得到更強大的激光器和更好的鏡子。

They even added “quantum squeezing devices,” which sound like a made up supervillain invention but I promise they're real.

他們甚至還加入了 "量子擠壓裝置"，這聽起來像是一個編造的超級大反派發明，但我保證它們是真的。

They manipulate the quantum fluctuations in the vacuum in which the instruments operate.

他們操縱儀器運行的真空中的量子波動。

If left unsqueezed, these fluctuations can reduce the sensitivity of the detectors by changing the properties of individual photons

如果不加以擠壓，這些波動會改變單個光子的特性，從而降低探測器的靈敏度。

and affecting their measured travel time.

With the upgrades complete, the third observing run began on April 1st, 2019 and the first half concluded October first that same year.

升級完成後，2019年4月1日開始第三次觀測，同年10月1日上半年結束。

Thanks to the buffed detectors and improved algorithms that analyzed the data,

得益於緩衝檢測器和改進的算法，分析數據。

a whopping 39 more gravitational wave events were identified, bringing the total to 50.

又發現了39個引力波事件，使總數達到50個。

Thanks to the large number of detected signals, we're getting some new insights into black holes and neutron stars.

由於檢測到了大量的信號，我們對黑洞和中子星有了一些新的認識。

We've learned that large black holes can spin rapidly,

我們已經知道，大黑洞可以快速旋轉。

which eliminates some theories on how they could form.

這就排除了一些關於它們如何形成的理論。

The 39 signals include the second-ever observation of two merging neutron stars,

這39個信號包括有史以來第二次觀測到兩顆合併的中子星。

which not only send out gravitational waves when they collide but also light that can be detected by telescopes.

它們不僅在碰撞時發出引力波，而且還能用望遠鏡探測到光。

Another signal is the first ever candidate for a merger of a neutron star and a black hole.

另一個信號是有史以來第一個中子星和黑洞合併的候選者。

One particular black hole collision offers an exciting glimpse at a kind of black hole that seemed to be missing from the universe.

一次特殊的黑洞碰撞讓人們看到了一種似乎在宇宙中缺失的黑洞，令人激動。

On May 21, 2019, LIGO and Virgo detected gravitational waves generated by two huge black holes,

2019年5月21日，LIGO和處女座探測到兩個巨大黑洞產生的引力波。

one at around 66 solar masses and the other at a gigantic 85 solar masses.

其中一個約為66個太陽品質，另一個則為85個太陽品質的巨大物體。

They combined to form a black hole with a mass around 142 times that of our Sun,

它們結合在一起形成了一個品質約為太陽142倍的黑洞。

making it the first ever directly observed intermediate black hole.

使其成為有史以來第一個直接觀測到的中間黑洞。

It exists in the size range between stellar mass black holes that form when stars collapse

它存在於恆星坍縮時形成的恆星品質黑洞之間的大小範圍內。

and the supermassive black holes found at the center of galaxies.

以及在星系中心發現的超大品質黑洞。

Even the existence of the 85 solar mass black hole is interesting,

即使是85太陽品質黑洞的存在也很有趣。

because scientists think there should be a gap in the spectrum of black holes between 65 and 120 solar masses.

因為科學家們認為，黑洞的光譜應該在65到120太陽品質之間有一個缺口。

A phenomenon called pair-instability should prevent stars from collapsing and forming black holes in this range,

一種叫做對不穩定的現象應該可以防止恆星在這個範圍內坍塌形成黑洞。

so that 85 solar mass black hole could call our understanding of stellar evolution into question.

是以，85個太陽品質的黑洞會使我們對恆星演化的理解受到質疑。

These 39 new gravitational wave events certainly give us a lot to ponder,

這39個新的引力波事件無疑給了我們很多思考。

but remember that's just from the first half of observing run 3.

但請記住，這只是觀察運行3的前半段。

Unfortunately, the second half had to be cut a month short because of COVID-19,

可惜的是，因為COVID-19的原因，下半場不得不縮短一個月的時間。

but with observing runs 4 and 5 still planned for some time in the near future,

但仍計劃在不久的將來進行第4和第5次觀測。

and the inclusion of data from detectors in Japan and India,

並納入了日本和印度探測器的數據。

expect to see a lot more interesting discoveries from the laser interferometers of the world.

期待看到世界上的脈衝光干涉儀有更多有趣的發現。

If you're a math geek you may have noticed the masses of those two huge merging black holes added up to more than the final result.

如果你是個數學怪胎，你可能已經注意到這兩個巨大的合併黑洞的品質加起來比最後的結果還要多。

Scientists estimate about 8 solar masses were radiated away as energy in the form of gravitational waves during the merger.

科學家估計，在合併過程中，約有8個太陽品質的太陽以引力波形式的能量被輻射出去。

Wouldn't you know it, right before the first intermediate sized black hole was officially announced,

你不知道，就在第一個中等大小的黑洞正式公佈之前。

I made a video about how we haven't been able to find them.

我做了一個視頻，講述了我們如何一直找不到他們。

If you'd like to see my still mostly good video about the size ranges of black holes, check it out here.

如果你想看我關於黑洞大小範圍的視頻，還是大多不錯的，請看這裡。

Thanks for watching, be sure to subscribe and I'll see you next time on Seeker.

謝謝你的觀看，一定要訂閱，我們下期《求是》見。