An astrophysicist at Oxford University found a never-seen before water molecule transition in space. This finding will answer many big planetary questions and more understanding of the universe.
The researcher, Miguel Pereira Santaella, is a research associate from Department of Physics at the Oxford University. His discovery of water molecule transition in space has been a good help for astronomers and astrophysicists in learning the galaxy.
Santanella's finding of the water molecule transition in space is the first time in history because most of the water in space takes form in either a vapor form or ice mantles in the interstellar dust grains. The very low density in interstellar space has inhibited the water to take form into its liquid form. Santaella discovered the water molecule transition in space from the Atacama Large Millimeter Array (ALMA) in Chile.
In the study which has been published in the Astronomy and Astrophysics Journal vol. 601, Santaella described the first detection of water molecule transition in space at 448 GHz in space. The water molecules were detected in the spiral galaxy 160 million light years away from Earth, where the atmosphere is most transparent at 676 μm red-shifted.
The important of this finding of water molecule transition in space is that the water molecules emission rate increase significantly when they come in contact with the infrared light photons. Water molecules are attracted to the 79 and 132 μm wavelengths of the photon, which enable astrophysicists and astronomers to see the infrared light in the galaxy at the spatial scales. Thus, it will enhance the observation of infrared light activities such as the growth of a supermassive black hole and burst of a star formation.
Understanding the water molecule transition in space and how they react to infrared light will open a new approach to space observation and a better understanding of the universe. In order to understand more of the water molecule, watch the video of its rotation below:
