Wormholes


WHAT ARE WORMHOLES?
          Wormholes generally are passages through Space-Time which are known to create shortcuts for long distances in the universe. They can be visualized as a tunnel with two different points in the space and time. They are predicted by the Theory of General Relativity by Einstein and Nathan Rosen and thus are also called as Einstein-Rosen Bridge. Wormholes are known to link two different points in space and act as a bridge or a tunnel which takes less time to reach farther points but they also bring with them dangers like Extreme Gravitational forces, Sudden Collapse, High Radiation and Dangerous contact with Exotic matter. Wormholes can form and collapse anytime as we don't know much about them. From the Theory of General Relativity it is quite certain that wormholes do exist but there is no sign of observing a wormhole yet. It is quite easy to imagine a wormhole, take a sheet of paper and mark two points on it. Now assume that the sheet is the space-time and the points on it are two different points in the space, now hold the sheet in your hand and fold it in such a manner that the two points touch each other, This is a rough representation of how a wormhole connects points in space. It might be more complicated than this but we still can't say how it actually works.



ORIGIN
          It was in the year 1916 when the wormholes were first theorized by Ludwig Flamm while he was reviewing another physicist's solutions to the Equations to Einstein's General theory of relativity when he realized that there can be another solution possible, where he described a "white hole" theoretical time reverse of a Black Hole. Also that they both might be connected through a space-time bridge. In 1935 Einstein and Rosen elaborated the idea of Existence of Bridges. They proposed that these bridges can also be a shortcut to a long journey hence reducing time and distance. The name Wormhole was coined by physicist John A. Wheeler in the year 1957. Einstein's theory mathematically predicts the existence of wormholes but still we find no signs of its existence. The theory also shows how an entrance to a wormhole can be a black hole, but a naturally occurring black hole cannot itself form a wormhole. Then how are they created? it's still a mystery!

OBSERVING A WORMHOLE
          According to physicists a wormhole can be possibly observed. Unlike Black holes, wormholes do not have an event horizon and an accretion disk which makes them different from a black hole. Now if matter can pass through wormhole it is sure that light can also pass through it, the light beams which pass through the wormhole do not appear at the other side of its entrance thus forming a circular disk at the boundary of its entrance. If we look at the center we see no light but some another scenes like stars shining on the other side of the wormhole. This makes a wormhole observable in the universe, but to observe the extreme environments of the space we need some advanced radio interferometers which still can't be possible.


TRAVELLING THROUGH A WORMHOLE
          Travelling through a wormhole can make many things possible. With the present technology we are bounded by certain limits and many things which are possible can't be achieved. Wormholes can allow us to achieve difficult tasks without the need of advanced technologies. If traversable wormholes exist they can be used for

TRAVELLING LONG DISTANCES
          Travelling long distances no matter how many light years it could take could be possible with wormholes in a very short time. It can make possible new discoveries outside the universe. Interstellar, Intergalactic and also Interuniversal travels will become possible. Humanity could reach nearly every corners of the universe and also in different universes. New studies and discoveries can be made, many mysteries of the universe can be solved. But this thing is still far away in future.



FASTER THAN LIGHT TRAVEL
          Wormholes can also enable you to travel faster than light without actually increasing your speed. You'll just take a minute to reach a point in space which can be a billion light years away. The traveler can beat the light if he uses wormhole to travel and if light takes the straight path. Although the traveler cannot beat the light beam traveling through the wormhole, this satisfies the fact of light being the fastest in this universe.



TIME TRAVEL
          Wormholes can also allow time travel as per theories, for this it is required to connect the wormholes to two different points in space-time. One point where the gravity is low and time runs faster and other where the gravity is high and the time runs much slower (Probably a black hole). If the traveler goes to the other end where gravity is high and returns after sometime then he can observe that the point from where he left has traveled a lot in time. In this way he can travel to the future. When it comes to traveling in past you need to step at the opposite end of the wormhole and it might take you at the time of its formation, you cannot go beyond the time when it wasn't created as per theories.



          In Science Fiction, there are lots of theories and events where they showed possibility of traveling through a wormhole. But in reality there are many complications that exist other than spotting a wormhole. The first problem arises from the prediction of the size of a wormhole. They are known to exist at microscopic levels less than a billionth of a meter. Also the fact that universe is expanding it is said that wormholes also expand with the expansion of the universe. Now, The main problem comes from stability, the General theory of relativity which predicted the wormholes also predicts that such things do not last long. They collapse quickly as they are created and if it is true then they become useless. Although some physicists have said that they can be stabilized using an exotic type of matter but it is not clear whether this matter exist in the universe or not. Wormholes containing exotic matter is believed to last longer and unchangeable for longer time. This type of matter has negative energy density and large negative pressure, it is different from the dark matter and anti matter. Also after stabilizing the wormhole using exotic matter it can collapse by the interference of normal matter, it should be stabilized again by adding exotic matter if we have to go through it.

A Still from movie Interstellar showing a Wormhole

          Today's technology is insufficient to enlarge, stabilize or move a wormhole for using it and its not possible even in the next 100 years. Discovery of exotic matter is still required and a lot of research is needed to only study about stabilizing a wormhole. Humans need a super advanced type of technology to utilize a wormhole.
 

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