The UniverseNovember 22, 2024
Why Is the Sky Dark at Night? You Can Thank the Big Bang
Called Olbers’ paradox, the seemingly simple mystery of the sky’s darkness is something that stumped astronomers for centuries
Space & Physics
Planetary ScienceNovember 21, 2024
First Rocks Returned from Moon’s Far Side Reveal Ancient Volcanic Activity
Samples from the far side of the moon gathered by China’s Chang’e-6 mission record eons of tumultuous lunar history
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AerospaceNovember 20, 2024
SpaceX’s Starship Soars in 6th Test Flight but Skips Booster Catch
The sixth test flight of SpaceX’s giant rocket ended with a fiery splashdown rather than a clean “chopstick” catch
OpinionNovember 19, 2024
Bury Me on the Moon—Preferably on the Far Side
The far side of the moon offers grounds for compromise between advocates and opponents of lunar development
Planetary ScienceNovember 19, 2024
Famous Star Hasn’t Formed Planets, and We Don’t Know Why
The nearby star Vega, featured in the 1997 movie Contact, appears to have a smooth disk devoid of giant planets for reasons we can’t explain
Extraterrestrial LifeNovember 15, 2024
The Arecibo Message, Earth’s First Interstellar Transmission, Turns 50
In 1974 we beamed a radio transmission into space that changed the way we think about our place in the cosmos
OpinionNovember 15, 2024
Ending NASA’s Chandra Will Cut Us Out of the High-Resolution X-Ray Universe
The Chandra X-ray Observatory is facing closure. Shutting it down would be a loss to science as a whole
The UniverseNovember 15, 2024
What’s the Roundest Object in the Universe?
Finding a perfect sphere is actually pretty difficult
Extraterrestrial LifeNovember 15, 2024
Reflecting on the Arecibo Message, Our First Attempt to Speak with the Stars
On the 50th anniversary of the “Arecibo message,” we present a reflection on humankind’s first attempt to send a transmission to intelligent life in the cosmos.
Space & PhysicsNovember 14, 2024
This ‘Human Computer’ Created a System for Measuring Vast Distances in Our Universe
Visual artist Anna Von Mertens looks to astronomer Henrietta Swan Leavitt and her vision of the universe for inspiration
Quantum PhysicsNovember 13, 2024
Alternate Timelines Can’t Help You, Quantum Physicists Say
The multiverse offers no escape from our reality—which might be a very good thing
Space ExplorationNovember 12, 2024
NASA Astronaut Jonny Kim Is a Rarity among Rarities
Jonny Kim—a former Navy SEAL and emergency medicine resident—is now a NASA astronaut who will soon launch to the International Space Station as flight engineer for the crew of Expedition 72/73