The object thought to carry the “seeds of life” older than Earth continues to surprise scientists.
Tracking data from the strange object named Bennu may provide us with new clues about a potential fifth fundamental force in the universe, according to a study recently published in the scientific journal Communications Physics.
There are four fundamental forces in nature: gravitational force, electromagnetic force, strong nuclear force, and weak nuclear force.
However, there has long been a hypothesis about a fifth type of force, which is a combination of the four aforementioned forces, extending beyond the standard model of physics. It could be transmitted by hypothetical ultra-light particles, a form of dark matter.
The NASA spacecraft approaches the mysterious object Bennu – (Graphic: NASA).
Bennu has recently provided scientists with an important clue to trace this mysterious force amidst the chaos of the universe.
The name Bennu is not unfamiliar. It is a near-Earth asteroid that has attracted scientific interest. It has a small probability of colliding with Earth in the future and is composed of primordial materials from the Solar System, including “seeds of life.”
Last year, NASA’s OSIRIS-REx spacecraft even returned to Earth with some samples from this asteroid for scientific research.
Previously, it collected extensive observational data while approaching Bennu between 2018 and 2021.
This data, combined with measurements taken from Earth, has set limits on the necessary mass of ultra-light particles that could create the fifth force of the universe—if they actually exist.
Astronomical physicist Yu-Dai Tsai from the Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico, a co-author of the study, explained that this extremely detailed dataset has the potential to reveal very subtle effects of hypothetical forces.
Such a force arising from string theory (a theory of quantum gravity) has been proposed as a means to modify gravity on a large scale, potentially producing particles that could be viable candidates for dark matter.
These particles would operate under what is known as Yukawa interaction, suggesting that a new type of field could affect the orbits of large objects over long distances through subtle changes to Newton’s law of gravity.
In this case, researchers found that standard physics could very well explain the trajectory of Bennu.
This does not entirely exclude the fifth force, but it indicates that if this force exists, its strength or range of influence would be below a certain level.
Although this study does not directly detect the fifth force, it provides additional evidence of how precise observations of asteroids can reveal the hidden aspects of the universe, as well as refine the standards we can use to confirm the fifth force.
