2021 was the year that started with zero expectations. But, even this pandemic didn’t stop our science heroes. From one of the most effective vaccines ever created to the launch of the mighty James Webb Space Telescope, we witnessed monster breakthroughs in all the scientific fields. We have collected some precious gems from the vast ocean of scientific discoveries of 2021.
Watch this video for the complete visual explanation of 7 Most Significant Scientific Discoveries of 2021 –
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Here are our favorite 7 moments worth sharing with you all –
1. Helicopter in Another Planet
NASA’s highly advanced perseverance rover landed on Mars in February. It resulted in the first-ever aircraft to make a controlled flight on another planet. It was NASA’s solar-powered Ingenuity Mars Helicopter that made headlines in April 2021. The spacecraft will spend the next two years on the red planet.
2. The 5ᵗʰ Fundamental Force
The rate at which the orientation of muons’ magnetic poles lurched was different from theoretical predictions. This is following the research with the experiment with Muon g-2 at Fermilab in Batavia. This odd behavior suggests that some hidden particles are influencing the magnetic properties of muons. It also gives a hint towards the fifth fundamental force.
3. The Detailed View of a Sunspot Ever
A team of scientists from Hawaii captured the most detailed image of a sunspot at the world’s largest solar observatory. The technique of adaptive optics they used, corrects the light distortions created by molecules of our atmosphere. The darkest part of the image reflects the coldest region. For the Sun, the coldest part means 200 times hotter than the room temperature.
4. Cosmic Hum Detected By Voyager 1
NASA’s Voyager 1 detected a mysterious humming sound in interstellar space, 14 billion miles from earth. This discovery confirmed that interstellar space is not completely vacuum. The persistent “hum” represented the background noise present in the immense regions between the star medium.
5. The Map of The Dark Matter
A group of 400 scientists obtained the largest ever map of dark matter. The amount of dark matter can be calculated by observing the light that reaches us. Distorted light points towards a huge amount of matter that is bending the light. This is called gravitational lensing. The dark matter magnifies the light from distant galaxies behind it. The map covers the southern hemisphere sky.
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6. James Webb Space Telescope Launched
After 30 years of planning and development, we launched the greatest telescope in the history of astronomy. It is headed to a location known as the Second Lagrange point. It took over 27 days to trek the 15,00,000 km distance from earth. It promises to provide a glimpse of the universe as it existed when the earliest galaxies formed.
Watch – Nasa’s James Webb Space Telescope has reached its final destination 😍
7. Megastructure Of Galaxies Identified
The galaxy size smudge on the night sky was believed to be the remnant of a long-ago supernova. But a recent study of X-ray data revealed a matching smudge on the other side of the Milky Way. It depicts that there is a pair of galaxy size bubbles 45,000 light-years across. Astronomers believe that it might be the evidence of an eruption million years ago.
These are the most exciting scientific discoveries of 2021. Let’s move forward with the hope that 2022 will be as awesome as 2021.