Search
Astrophysics
The method you use to measure the expanding Universe determines which of two answers you'll get. Lensed supernovae can't resolve that issue.
Scientific truths remain true regardless of belief. These 10, despite contrary claims, remain vitally important as 2025 draws to a close.
Some vital, key ingredients must be in place for the Universe to make more matter than antimatter. The LHC took us one step closer in 2025.
As the lightest baryon in the Universe, the proton is thought by many to be eternally stable. But if it isn't, can we observe it decaying?
Finding alien Earths requires seeing Earth-sized planets at Earth-like distances from Sun-like stars. A new discovery completes the roadmap.
With a waning Moon and a denser-than-ever debris trail, 2025's Geminids might be the year's best meteor shower, and 2026's could be amazing.
We have a picture of how and when it will all come to an end. These three big ideas could still profoundly change how our cosmos evolves.
Science has assembled an incredible story outlining our Universe's whole history. Despite its unrivaled success, 9 profound gaps remain.
There are so many problems, all across planet Earth, that harm and threaten humanity. Why invest in researching the Universe?
Although American Thanksgiving only comes once a year, the scientific rules that make our Universe possible are always worth appreciating.
The far side of the Moon is incredibly different from the Earth-facing side. 66 years later, we know why the Moon's faces are not alike.
Such massive, early supermassive black holes have puzzled astronomers for decades. At last, we've finally figured out how they form.
Every observation out into deep space is also a look back in time.
One side of the Moon always faces us: the near side. The "dark side" of the Moon began as a mere metaphor, but today, science can weigh in.
From white holes to dark stars and multiverses, James Riordon explores the bizarre exhibits of general relativity's "cryptozoo."
Spirals, ellipticals, and irregulars are all more common than ring galaxies. At last, we know how these ultra-rare objects are made.
Wavelengths stretch, distances grow, and temperatures cool as the Universe expands with time. How are the various cosmic parameters related?
Weird-looking galaxies, with tentacle-like tails or prominent dual streams, appear like jellyfish or bunny ears. But that’s just the start.
For over 10 billion years, the cosmic star-formation rate has been dropping and dropping. Someday, the final star in the Universe will die.
We first measured G, the gravitational constant, back in the 18th century. As the least well-known fundamental constant, can it be improved?
In 2017, a kilonova sent light and gravitational waves across the Universe. Here on Earth, there was a 1.7 second signal arrival delay. Why?
NASA’s Caleb Scharf talks with Big Think about life’s long experiment in expansion.
What if the first search for life beyond Earth actually succeeded?
Planets grow from protostellar material in disks, leading to full-grown planetary systems in time. At last, the final gap has been filled.
Until the late 20th century, there wasn't a truly universal standard. Under our current definition, everyone agrees on what "one meter" is.
Do aliens speak the same physics that we do, with similar laws, observables, and underlying mathematics. Maybe not, argues Daniel Whiteson.
We've now detected hundreds of gravitational waves with LIGO, Virgo, and KAGRA. What if we tried Weber's original method in the modern day?
The first world beyond Earth for human habitability should be the Moon, not Mars. This is why we should terraform our lunar neighbor first.
Times dilate and lengths contract near the speed of light. Bizarre and confusing? Sure. But under relativity, it can't be any other way.
Stellar streams are faint trails of stars that appear to "stream" out of galaxies. A new one, escaping galaxy M61, may point to many others.