Unraveling Mysteries of the Universe w/ Harry Cliff of CERN
Channel: The Cosmic Companion - Science Comedy, Astronomy
Date: 30/03/2024

Today, we are Unraveling Mysteries of the Universe with our special guest, Harry Cliff, physicist from CERN and author of Space Oddities. Let's dive in!

Once upon a time, astronomers gazed upon Mercury and scratched their heads in wonder.

This tiny planet had an undeniably wonky orbit, zipping around the Sun in a way that didn't quite add up. Some scientists were convinced that a hidden planet, aptly named Vulcan, was hiding on the opposite side of the Sun from Mercury.

But, alas, Vulcan remained elusive. Instead, a hero emerged in the form of Albert Einstein and his groundbreaking theory of relativity. Einstein's genius laid the mystery of Mercury's weird orbit to rest, revealing that the planet's strange behavior was a result of spacetime curvature around the massive Sun.

Although the search for Vulcan ultimately led to a dead end, it paved the way for exciting discoveries in our cosmic neighborhood. During the quest for the phantom planet, astronomers stumbled upon numerous unknown asteroids - the rocky remnants from the formation of our solar system...