NASA’s New Horizons is the most distant technologically advanced observatory ever. And that makes all the difference. When you look at an object that’s very distant from you, how well […]
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Is the “big freeze” our inevitable fate, or can dark energy save us? When we look out at the Universe today, we see sources of light practically everywhere we look. In […]
Neurons that store abstract representations of past experiences are activated when a new, similar event takes place.
New research proposes possible origins of the interstellar object ‘Oumuamua.
It might have been Einstein’s greatest blunder, but it’s our leading theory today. One of the most mysterious components in the entire Universe is dark energy, which — if we’re being honest with […]
Just say no to artist’s illustrations. This is what the Universe actually looks like. The Universe we observe often surpasses our greatest imaginings. This 20-year time-lapse of stars near the center […]
We may be different in many ways, but the cosmic story is the same for each of us. In all the Universe, you won’t find another planet identical to Earth. Planet […]
Mathematics is the most useful tool we have for understanding the Universe. But it doesn’t answer to anything on its own. At the frontiers of theoretical physics, many of the most […]
And which ones are probably examples where we’ve fooled ourselves? Every once in a while — multiple times per year — a new research finding fails to line up with our theoretical expectations. In […]
Out of all the galaxies we know, only a few little ones are missing dark matter. At last, we finally understand why.
An astrophysicist proposes new designs for stellar engines that can move a solar system.
Roger Penrose used mathematics to show black holes actually exist. Andrea Ghez and Reinhard Genzel helped uncover what lies at the center of our galaxy.
Despite its changing shape and its unprecedented dimming, a supernova this year, decade, or even century is highly unlikely. For months, skywatchers have enjoyed a view of the night sky […]
With tens of thousands of satellites requiring AI-control to avoid collisions, a single solar flare could everything. Over the next few years, the night sky and the volume of space […]
Light therapy might help your natural circadian rhythm and even stave off seasonal depression.
Scientists find an exoplanet whose strange behavior may lead to the Solar’s System hidden ninth planet.
Although many dinosaurs never left the ground, they still possessed the basic structural framework for flight.
Have any of the stars we can see burned themselves out completely? When we look out across the Universe, we’re also peering back in time. In the early 21st-century, we’ve […]
Legendary cartoonist John Groth’s pictorial map captures LA’s film factories in their Golden Age.
You might be inclined to modify gravity instead, but those ideas have grossly unequal evidence supporting them. What is it, exactly, that you’re supposed to do when the predictions of […]
A cartogram makes it easy to compare regional and national GDPs at a glance.
The ten greatest ideas in science form the bedrock of modern biology, chemistry, and physics. Everyone should be familiar with them.
Awe makes us feel smaller but also more connected to life and each other.
There’s more light than we can account for, and we’ve just measured it robustly for the first time. When we look out at the darkest night skies available on Earth, even […]
With advanced laser technology and an appropriate sail, we could accelerate objects to ~20% the speed of light. But would they survive?
The dream of an ‘Earth-like’ planet showcases our astrobiological ignorance. Over the past decade, our understanding of what planets exist around stars other than our own has exploded. The number […]
After a wait of 397 years in orbit, we’re finally getting a truly ‘Great’ Conjunction. Recently, December 21, 2020, Jupiter and Saturn finally met. Looking towards the southwest skies from […]
Gravitational wave researchers observe black holes of different sizes colliding for the first time.
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On the morning of March 31, 2020, these three worlds will be at their mutual closest in 20 years. For the past few weeks, Mars, Saturn, and Jupiter have all shone […]
Never made a turkey before? Don’t worry, science can help.