The Trinity Test Atomic Bomb Detonation (1945)

 

The Trinity test was the first time a nuclear weapon was detonated. This was truly the beginning of the Atomic Age. Humankind had unleashed nuclear power and would grapple with the consequences of nuclear arms races. Manipulation nuclear fission and chain reactions created one of the most lethal weapons in the world. After the detonation, public health was negatively effected. When an atomic bomb is used nuclear fallout remains. The residents of New Mexico close to the radius of detonation found radioactive debris in crops, land, and water. There remains footage of the detonation, which provides a glimpse into the power of the explosion. When citizens realized the disturbance, the US government lied and said it was accident. No attempts were made for evacuation or warnings. The increase in radiation resulted in higher rates of cancer and infant deaths. Further damage to the environment came from uranium mining. As more nuclear tests were being done during the Cold War, fallout spread throughout Nevada. Even if a person was not vaporized by an atomic bomb survivors would fall victim to disease.  

Remembering Peter Higgs (1929-2024)

 

Peter Higgs was a British physicists that contributed to the understanding of matter. Higgs proposed an existence of a particle that explains why matter has mass. Back when Peter Higgs proposed the existence of the particle in 1964, the evidence was limited. Detecting particles has been a challenge. However, this is circumvented by technology. Theoretical physics required the use of mathematics as a means of  direct detection. The use of the Large Hadron Collider enable physicists  to detect the Higgs boson. The breakthrough came in 2012 confirming that Higgs' 1964 paper was correct. The discovery contributed to the understanding of the Standard Model. Peter Higgs won the Nobel Prize along with Francois Englert in 2013. The detection of the Higgs Boson also adds to figuring out the origins of the universe. The Big Bang remains a mystery and the birth of the universe is a puzzle.  Most of Peter Higgs' professional career was based at Edinburgh University. The hunt for the Higgs boson involved a large amount of scientists at CERN and data. Peter Higgs impact will be felt for years in the field of physics. The Higgs Boson has the nickname " the God particle." The particle is not a deity or an exact explanation of the creation of the universe. It is one segment to a larger picture. More particles could be discovered in the coming decades. This is dependent on the technology of  particle accelerators. The Higgs boson can best described as a force carrying fundamental  particle. The particle is part of the Higgs field, which explains how protons, electrons, and neutrons are granted their mass. The Higgs Boson has a mass of 125 billion electron volts. The unique attribute of the Higgs boson is that it lacks spin. That characteristic is not present in other elementary  particles. Peter Higgs work expanded humanity's understanding of the subatomic world. More will be discovered about the Higgs Boson as technology advances.