A new quantum technique could help create planet-sized telescopes

The future of astronomy goes far beyond the James Webb Space Telescope.

 

For example, it's theoretically possible to use quantum computers as a means for constructing colossal, planet-sized telescopes, according to a study shared to a preprint server and initially reported by New Scientist.

 

And, if we could make it work, a planetary telescope would peer much farther into the big black abyssal depths of space, and image the distant universe at untold levels of resolution.

 

Such an endeavor could "revolutionize astronomical imaging," according to the study.

Pooling astronomical data with quantum techniques

In astronomy, arranging several telescopes to function unanimously is what's called an interferometer — and these essentially enable observations of the universe with a gigantic aperture, overcoming "physical limitations including loss" and the noise of the cosmos by employing quantum communications methods.

  

The study suggests processing each photon individually as it slams into the telescope array from a universe away — which sounds like insanely meticulous work until you consider the powers of a quantum memory storage device. Specifically, the phenomenon of quantum entanglement would allow two or more discrete telescopes to share information with one another in an instant.

 

A first step to next-gen astronomy using quantum techniques

Of course, this would make a mess in the database, leaving an image that few could decipher — but a self-correcting quantum computer could see order in chaos, resolving errors without need of numerical simulations — like our comparably primitive computers.

It's a wild, inspiring idea, but while planet-sized quantum telescopes could work in theory, the problem of putting it into practice remains, like an unspeakably giant wall of unprecedented challenges. "There are many more challenges that need to be addressed for a planet-sized device, but this is a good first step," said lead author of the study Zixin Huang of Macquarie University, in Australia, according to the New Scientist report.

Reference:

New Scientist