The 100-Year Mystery of the Diffuse Interstellar Bands

The video explores the mystery of diffuse interstellar bands (DIBs), patterns of light in space that don't match any known atom or molecule. Discovered in 1919 by Mary Lea Heger, these bands have puzzled scientists for nearly a century. In 2015, a breakthrough linked one DIB to buckminsterfullerene, a carbon molecule. Despite this, many DIBs remain unexplained, with researchers focusing on carbon-based molecules as potential sources. The process is slow due to the complexity of recreating space conditions in labs, but each new DIB hints at undiscovered molecules in the cosmos.

What are diffuse interstellar bands (DIBs) known for?

• Patterns of gravitational waves

• Patterns of sound waves in space

• Patterns of light that don't match any known atom or molecule

• Patterns of light that match known molecules

Who first uncovered the diffuse interstellar bands?

• Galileo Galilei

• Mary Lea Heger

• Albert Einstein

• Isaac Newton

What significant discovery was made in 2015 regarding DIBs?

• They were linked to oxygen

• They were linked to helium

• They were linked to buckyballs

• They were linked to water molecules

What are buckyballs made of?

• 60 linked carbon atoms

• 60 linked hydrogen atoms

• 60 linked nitrogen atoms

• 60 linked oxygen atoms

What makes the task of matching molecules with DIBs challenging?

• The ease of recreating space conditions in a lab

• The vast number of potential molecules and difficulty in recreating space conditions

• The limited number of potential molecules

• The simplicity of the molecules involved