They form when pre-present waves of permanent form are so localised that as they decay, they approach a constant at infinity (?). Under appropriate conditions of harmony and resonance they can interact with other solitons and emerge from the collisions unchanged apart from a phase shift.
The Korteweg-deVries equation dtø + dx³ø + 6ødxø = 0 (The KdV equation) postulates an undular wavefront followed by a train of solitons resulting in a steady increase in frequency and amplitude with nodal synchronous peaks balanced by dispersive fluctuations.
Examples in the natural world include the famous morning glory cloud in the Australian gulf country where pressure solitons travelling in a temperature inversion layer produce vast linear cloud rolls which have been used by experienced hang gliding enthusiasts to set long-distance gliding records.
However, the less well-known effect of fractoluminescence and screw dislocation in a crystalline lattice inspired the Department of Optics at the University of Bürgerweldt to look for practical applications of the principle within the confines of fibre optic cable which can reduce dispersion and also concentrate and accelerate wave action.
Professor Audi Biemer has now announced that his Department has produced an innovative CCD camera for high-resolution imaging of celestial objects.
Inspired by the 2 degree field spectroscopic instrument used at Siding Spring in conjunction with the 3.9m AAT reflector, Professor Biemer designed a camera around a network of ultra fine fibre optic cables, each linked to an individual pixel within the CCD chip and in that fashion linking an apochromatic objective to the imaging end of the camera.
Using particle accelerator technology to produce soliton surges and so amplify the photonic intensity of the images, the camera is capable of reaching down to magnitude 26 with the use of an 80mm apochromat in only two minutes.
Not being affected by reciprocity fatigue, Professor Biemer hopes to be able to image the original Big Bang, which he believes has been echoing around the universe and curving back on itself several times, provided of course, that you have figured out which direction to look.
Trials are being planned for this northern summer using the 300mm apochromatic astrograph at Baron Beavis von Büttkopf's observatory in the pristine skies of Schlöss Ratzhärz.
Results will be published in the Scientific American, The National Enquirer and also in the Greyhound Recorder.