High up in the mountains of southwest China, a special telescope has started an amazing adventure! 🏔️🔭 At 5,250 meters above sea level, scientists have placed the AliCPT-1 telescope in the Xizang Autonomous Region, sometimes called the “roof of the world.”
So, what’s so cool about this telescope? It’s looking for something called primordial gravitational waves. But what are those? 🤔
Imagine dropping a pebble into a pond and watching the ripples spread out. Gravitational waves are like those ripples, but in space and time! They were created during the Big Bang, which is how scientists believe the universe began. 🌌
These waves are super faint—like tiny whispers from the very beginning of everything. If we can detect them, we’ll learn amazing secrets about how the universe was born!
Researcher Zhang Xinmin from the Chinese Academy of Sciences says, “If we successfully detect primordial gravitational waves, we will glimpse the universe in its very first instant.” How cool is that? 🌠
The AliCPT-1 telescope is one of only a few in the world searching for these ancient waves. Other places where this can be done are Antarctica, Chile’s Atacama Desert, and Greenland. But this telescope is the first of its kind in the Northern Hemisphere! 🌎
By studying these waves, scientists hope to understand big questions like how the universe expanded so quickly and how gravity works on the tiniest levels. 🪐✨
Who knows—maybe one day you’ll be a scientist unlocking the mysteries of the universe too! 🚀
Reference(s):
Telescope on world's roof starts hunt for Big Bang's oldest ripples
cgtn.com
