Supernova in a bottle

Bosenova: Supernova in a Bottle Modern physicists, like the early Greek philosophers, speculate about the nature of matter in the universe. Physicists, however, have the advantage of being able to hunt for unexplored forms of reality with machines capable of producing high vacuum, low temperature, intense monochrome light, and powerful magnetic fields. All of these stark physical attributes are required for the production of a Bose-Einstein condensate (BEC), the state of matter in which thousands …

…physics behind this "Bosenova" phenomenon is as yet unknown. Attempts to model the tiny explosion, such as by supposing that many of the atoms are paired into molecules, have all failed (see the web site). Previously Randy Hulet of Rice University had monitored the growth and collapse of a lithium BEC by adding atoms until the condensate becomes unstable, but apparently did not measure an explosive outward flow of atoms (Gerton et al., Nature, 7 December 2000).