Ask a Spaceman!

AaS! 279: What Can We Actually Find on an Exoplanet?

Just how hard are exoplanets observations? What kind of telescope will it take to find life? And how much information can we get out of a single pixel of light? I discuss

AaS! 278: What's A Good Story About Chandrasekhar?

What was the big deal about Chandrasekhar's discovery? Why did he meet so much resistance? How is his work tied to everything from supernovae to black holes? I discuss th

AaS! 277: What's It Like to Travel Near the Speed of Light?

What does high-speed motion through the universe do to your perspective? What is the Rindler horizon, and how does it appear? Would you get vaporized by a high-energy bat

AaS! 276: What Would Happen if the Sun…Stopped?

What really keeps the Sun shining? How long would it stay warm if fusion stopped? How long would it take before we noticed? I discuss these questions and more in today's

AaS! 275: Why Can't the Universe Be Cyclic?

What are the weaknesses of inflation theory? How did the ekpyrotic theory attempt to improve it? How did it open up its own can of worms? I discuss these questions and mo

AaS! 274: Is Dust the Best Thing in the Universe?

Why is dust so annoying? But where does it come from, and what can it do? And is dust responsible for the creation of life? I discuss these questions and more in today's

AaS! 273: What if the Universe Had No Beginning?

What does is mean for the universe to have a wave function? How does Hawking's "no boundary" proposal mean that the universe comes from itself? And is it really the final

AaS! 272: Are Neutrinos Their Own Evil Twins?

What does "antimatter" actually mean? Can a particle be its own opposite? What would happen to it, and what does this have to do with a missing scientist? I discuss these

AaS! 271: What Happens When Light Goes Boom?

How can matter ever go faster than light? What happens when it does? Who discovered this, and what is it good for? I discuss these questions and more in today's Ask a Spa

AaS! 270: Is the Universe…Defective?

What did the universe do to make so many defects? What happens when they get trapped? And could they be hiding right in front of our noses? I discuss these questions and

AaS! 269: Why Are Interstellar Objects So Weird?

What makes the interstellar comet 3I/Atlas so weird? Why are we finding so many interstellar visitors recently? How are they made, and where do they come from? I discuss

AaS! 268: What are Little Red Dots?

What do we find when we push the James Webb Space Telescope to its limits? Are Little Red Dots newborn galaxies or old black holes? What are they teaching us about the ea

AaS! 267: Is the Universe Older than We Think?

How can anyone agree on the age of the universe? And how can we be so confident if it's all just a bunch of models? What if the universe is extra lumpy, does that change

AaS! 266: Is the Universe Made of Math?

Why is math so effective at describing the universe? What is reality is made of math? What does it mean for us to be conscious beings in a mathematical structure? I discu

AaS! 265: Does Antimatter Fall Up?

What is the weak equivalency principle? How was antimatter discovered and why is it the perfect thing to put gravity to the test? What did the CERN experiment discover? I

AaS! 264: Just How Weird is the Quantum Eraser?

How does the double-slit experiment work? What does it teach us about reality and measurement if we try to mess with the experiment after it's already started? How does q

AaS! 263: Does Free Will Exist?

What is causal determinism? What are some of the ways that physics can permit free will? What does emergence have to do with all of this? I discuss these questions and mo

AaS! 262: Does the Universe Have Extra Dimensions?

What do extra dimensions have to do with the strength of gravity? What is a tower of gravitons? How can we detect extra dimensions even if we can't perceive them? I discu

AaS! 261: What are Black Dwarfs?

What happens to a white dwarf when it cools off? How long does it take? Do they just stay black forever, or will something more interesting happen to them someday? I disc

AaS! 260: What's the Big Deal with the Weak Force?

How did we discover the weak nuclear force? Why is it so strange compared to the other forces? What do mirrors have to do with all of this? I discuss these questions and