To celebrate the 100th anniversary of NASA's first astronomer, Dr. Nancy Grace Roman, and the name of the institution's almost complete Nancy Grace Roman Space telescope - we're baking birthday cakes! This is not your average birthday treat – this universe cake represents the content of our universe and everything the Roman telescope will discover.
The exterior of the cosmic cake depicts the sky we see from Earth - black, with glittering stars scattered on it. The interior represents the universe that the Romans would see. This three-layer cake paints the mysterious content of our universe—mostly dark energy, then dark matter, and eventually only 5% of normal matter. As you cut into our cosmic cake, the candy bursts overflowing, symbolizing the wealth of cosmic objects that Rome would see.
raw material:
To make our cosmic cake, we first need to consider the basis of the universe - normal matter, dark matter and dark energy. Normal matter accounts for about 5% of the universe and is what we see in the sky every day, from apples to stars. Dark matter is an invisible mass that accounts for 25% of the universe. Finally, Dark Energy - Mysterious something Accelerate the expansion of the universe - accounting for about 68% of the universe.
No one knows what dark matter and dark energy are, but we know that they exist due to their impact on the universe. The Romans would provide clues to these puzzles by 3D mapping matter in the expansion of the universe and along with time and along with the expansion of the universe.
To depict the building blocks of the universe in our cosmic cake, mix the cake batter based on the recipe you choose. Pour a quarter of the batter into a bowl for a dark matter layer, less than three-quarters of the bowl in another bowl, and place the rest into a separate bowl for normal matter. This will give you the amount of batter for dark energy and dark matter, respectively. Use the rest of the substances represent normal. Use food coloring to color each bowl of batter, then pour it into three separate cake pans and bake. Different sizes of layers will have different baking times, so watch carefully to ensure proper cooking.
When our cakes are baked, we will create a cosmic candy mixture, which is the core of our cakes, representing the objects that Rome will discover the universe.
First, the yellow was scattered in a bowl to symbolize the billions of stars that the Romans would see, including once hidden stars, thanks to their ability to see the stars through gas and dust.
Rome's data will also allow scientists to map gasoline and dust to understand the most complete picture of the Milky Way's structure and how it gave birth to new stars. Add some granulated sugar to the candy mixture as gas and dust.
Next, add non-cake sprinkles and chocolate non-cake candy to symbolize galaxies and galaxy clusters. Rome will capture hundreds of millions of galaxies and measure their position, shape, size and distance accurately. By studying the properties of many galaxies, scientists will be able to map the effects of dark matter and dark energy more accurately than ever before.
Now, add popular candy as explosive star death. The Romans will witness thousands of special types called the IA Supernovae type. By studying the speed at which type IA supernova exits from us at different distances, scientists will track the expansion of the universe to better understand whether dark energy changes throughout the process.
Supernovae is not the only stellar remnants the Romans would see. To represent neutron stars and black holes, add jaw-dropping destroyers and dark chocolate chips. Neutron stars are remnants of large stars that collapse to the size of cities, making them the most dense things we can directly observe.
Our most dense stuff cannot A black hole is directly observed. Most black holes are formed when giant stars collapse further to theoretical singularities of infinite density. Sometimes, when neutron stars merge, black holes form, an epic event witnessed by Rome.
The Romans also had supermassive black holes in the size of the Milky Way star and other galaxies. Some supermassive black holes are located in the center of active galaxies—the heart emits too much energy compared to others. For these active cores, it was also found by Rome, adding sour candies to the mixture.
Finally, add the whole and crushed miniature cream sandwich cookies to represent distant planets and planets. Rome stares at the center of our galaxy and will scan the twisted space and time to indicate the existence of other worlds. The same observations may also show more than 100,000 planets passing by in front of other stars. Additionally, the Coronagraph instrument will directly image the two worlds around the star and the dusty disk, which can eventually form a planet.
After baking, remove the cake layer from the oven to cool. Cut a hole in the center of thicker dark matter and dark energy layers. Then, stack the two layers with frosting to secure them. Pour the cosmic candy mix into the core of the cake. Then, place the thin layer of ordinary substance on top and secure it with frosting. Grind the whole cake black and crumble with edible glitter.
Congratulations - Your Roman Universe Cake is finished! When you look at the appearance of the cake, consider the night sky. As you slice the cake, imagine Roman conducting a more in-depth examination of billions of cosmic objects and clues from the mysterious building blocks of our universe.
Ryan Haven
NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center