Something isn’t right about the Universe without something extra. So why can’t scientists agree on what that “extra” thing is? “All we know so far is what doesn’t work.” –Richard Feynman […]
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It’s the most mysterious “stuff” our Universe has. So why are we so sure it’s real? “The Universe is made mostly of dark matter and dark energy, and we don’t know […]
In 1994, Miguel Alcubierre showed how warp drive could be made real within General Relativity. What does that imply? “Its continuing mission: to explore strange new worlds, to seek out new […]
Rather than life arising on Earth, did it already exist in space prior to our planet’s formation? “When you arise in the morning, think of what a precious privilege it […]
If we started all over again, could our Solar System’s second planet have been the inhabited one? “It was the Venus I had prayed to, it was my prayer, though […]
Are comets and asteroids periodic, and are we due? “Biological diversity is messy. It walks, it crawls, it swims, it swoops, it buzzes. But extinction is silent, and it has no […]
Earth may have suffered a violent impact from a “planetary embryo” called Theia 4.5 billion years ago. This impact allowed the moon to form. But new research suggests Theia also became a part of Earth.
If black holes suck everything in and nothing can get out, what does that mean for dark matter? “A single day is enough to make us a little larger or, another […]
If life is indeed a virus, then tardigrades are very likely the vector.
With $100 million invested towards it and an incredible concept behind it, could this be the start of interstellar travel? “Fundamental physics is like an art more or less. It’s […]
It took hundreds of years for Einstein to dethrone him, and even then, he was off by less than 1% of a spectacular prediction.
Those white spots are still salt, but there’s so much more there! “Although impact processes dominate the surface geology on Ceres, we have identified specific color variations on the surface […]
Om nom nom nom nom… “That what wrong with the media today. All they have is questions, questions, questions. They never have cookies.” –Cookie Monster When most people think of black […]
How does life bounce-back after an extinction-level event? Researchers are studying how the therapsid Lystrosaurus survived through one of the “Big Five” extinction events. It may help scientists predict how Earth will bounce-back from the mass extinction we’re witnessing today.
It’s a wonderful potential technology for going interstellar. But in your lifetime? Don’t hold your breath. “Greatness is not in where we stand, but in what direction we are moving. We […]
New evidence could help spark a renewed debate about restoring Pluto’s planethood. Images from NASA’s New Horizons mission reveals the “dwarf planet” may have clouds, which would indicate a weather system.
The largest asteroid in the Solar System is hiding volatile materials that have never seen the Sun. “Lots of science fiction deals with distant times and places. Intrepid prospectors in the […]
Exploring and mapping the Universe? A great plan. But the math of spending billions on asteroid deflection doesn’t add up. “The oldest and strongest emotion of mankind is fear, and the […]
It doesn’t interact with normal matter hardly at all, and yet it may be necessary for life itself. “The privilege of a lifetime is being who you are.” –Joseph Campbell Dark […]
The Planetary Society has unveiled the successor of its first solar sail project, the LightSail 2. It will take flight sometime this year when SpaceX’s Falcon Heavy rocket is ready.
Could finding a planet capable of supporting humans already be within our reach? “The diversity of the phenomena of nature is so vast and the treasures hidden in the heavens so […]
There is a crisis in male health. Learn what it is and how scientists plan to overcome it.
The New York Times claimed that aliens must have existed at some point. But science is less certain. “There are two possible outcomes: if the result confirms the hypothesis, then you’ve […]
Prepare for the Great Space Gold Rush of 2025.
Learn why you shouldn’t take a selfie in zero gravity, and other aspects of living in space.
If we’re going to send a probe to another star at 20% the speed of light, what hope do we have of slowing it down? “Yes, now there is this technological […]
Before NASA’s Dawn spacecraft found white weirdness on Ceres, it had a close encounter with the second largest asteroid: Vesta. “I have announced this star as a comet, but since […]
Douglas Rushkoff’s new book Throwing Rocks at the Google Bus is a refreshingly practical progressive how-to amid the rhetorical excesses of this election year.
Science is the best tool we have for predicting the future. Here’s what the next year ought to bring. “For last year’s words belong to last year’s language And next year’s […]
While a “counter-Earth” may be impossible, there are three other ways it could actually work out. “We are not like the social insects. They have only the one way of doing […]