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Astrophysics
The emergence of life in the universe is as certain as the emergence of matter, gravity, and the stars. Life is the universe developing a memory, and our chemical detection system could find it.
John Templeton Foundation
Ever since the start of the hot Big Bang, time ticks forward as the Universe expands. But could time ever run backward, instead?
"The surface is no longer a record of every impact the moon has ever had, because at some point, impacts were erasing previous impacts."
Quantum communication offers a surer path to sending an interstellar message, as well as receiving one. But can we do it?
Even though the leftover glow from the Big Bang creates a bath of radiation at only 2.725 K, some places in the Universe get even colder.
We live in a four-dimensional Universe, where matter and energy curve the fabric of spacetime. But time sure is different from space!
The costs of such an endeavor would be extremely high, while the potential payoffs would be uncertain.
Take a peek at the pre-release images used to calibrate and commission JWST's coldest instrument, now ready for full science operations.
The psychology of alien contact largely revolves around the concept of "otherness." We need to learn to be comfortable around strange things.
It started with a bang, but won't end with one. Instead, it will "rage against the dying of the light" like nothing you've ever imagined.
Like humans, stars die. The James Webb Space Telescope's early images already give us a lot of information about how this happens.
Even with only 12.5 hours of exposure time, James Webb's first deep-field image taught us lessons we've never realized before.
Astronomy's roots rest in the very origins of humanity. We have always looked to the skies for answers. We are starting to get them.
Now that it's fully commissioned, the James Webb Space Telescope begins its exploration of the Universe. Here are its first science images!
With its very first deep-field view of the Universe now released, the James Webb Space Telescope has shown us our cosmos as never before.
Some ozone experts seriously doubt the findings.
The James Webb Space Telescope has chosen 5 targets for its first science release. Here's what we know on the eve of JWST's big reveal!
It might seem like science and faith are at war, but the two have a historical synergy that extends back in time for centuries.
John Templeton Foundation
LIGO can detect the inspirals and mergers of the lowest-mass black holes, but not the biggest ones. Here's how pulsars can help.
On Earth, carbon can form millions of compounds, while silicon is largely stuck inside rocks. But elsewhere, silicon could form the basis of life.
At all distances, the Universe expands along our line-of-sight. But we can't measure side-to-side motions; could it be rotating as well?
1859's Carrington event gave us a preview of how catastrophic the Sun could be for humanity. But it could get even worse than we imagined.
Your eyes are playing tricks on you.
The idea of gravitational redshift crossed Einstein's mind years before General Relativity was complete. Here's why it had to be there.
No matter how beautiful, elegant, or compelling your idea is, if it disagrees with observation and experiment, it's wrong.
Experts believe they could cut the time it takes a rocket to reach Mars by up to 25%, shaving about two months off the trip.
The Universe is expanding, and the Hubble constant tells us how fast. But how can it be a constant if the expansion is accelerating?
Quite a lot, actually, even though it has no identifiable value as a scientific concept.
The discovery calls into question the few things scientists know about these powerful astronomical phenomena.