A new observatory is assembling the most complete time-lapse record of the night sky ever

The Vera C. Rubin Observatory will capture enough detail to see a golf ball from 25km away.

Noelia Noël, Senior Lecturer, School of Mathematics and Physics, University of Surrey • conversation
June 5, 2025 • ~6 min

New form of dark matter could solve decades-old Milky Way mystery

Sometimes, looking inward, to the dynamic, glowing centre of our own galaxy, reveals the most unexpected hints of what lies beyond.

Shyam Balaji, Postdoctoral Research Fellow of Physics, King's College London • conversation
April 16, 2025 • ~7 min

Nasa’s Curiosity rover has found the longest chain carbon molecules yet on Mars. It’s a significant finding in the search for alien life

A rock from a presumed ancient lakebed contains complex organic molecules.

Megan Argo, Senior Lecturer in Astronomy, University of Central Lancashire • conversation
March 28, 2025 • ~7 min

Is ranch dressing a liquid or a solid? A physicist explains

A physicist explains that the short answer is both … and neither.

Rae Robertson-Anderson, Professor of Physics & Biophysics, University of San Diego • conversation
March 10, 2025 • ~9 min

Air pollution inside Philly’s subway is much worse than on the streets

Researchers found 10 times more black carbon on the 15th Street/City Hall subway platform than on the sidewalk above.

Aimee Eggler, Associate Professor of Biochemistry, Villanova University • conversation
Oct. 7, 2024 • ~5 min

The earliest galaxies formed amazingly fast after the Big Bang. Do they break the universe or change its age?

Some of the earliest galaxies found with JWST are also the brightest. That’s a problem for our ideas about the universe.

Sandro Tacchella, Assistant Professor in Astrophysics, Kavli Institute for Cosmology, Cambridge, Department of Physics, University of Cambridge • conversation
Oct. 3, 2024 • ~16 min

The universe is smoother than the standard model of cosmology suggests – so is the theory broken?

We may be on the cusp of finally breaking the standard model of cosmology.

Ian G. McCarthy, Reader of Astrophysics, Liverpool John Moores University • conversation
Sept. 26, 2024 • ~13 min

How researchers measure wildfire smoke exposure doesn’t capture long-term health effects − and hides racial disparities

Which is riskier for your health: a few days of very bad PM₂.₅ exposure or many more days of slightly bad exposure? Researchers developed new metrics to provide better answers.

Rachel Morello-Frosch, Professor of Environmental Science, Policy and Management and of Public Health, University of California, Berkeley • conversation
Sept. 16, 2024 • ~9 min

Cosmology is at a tipping point – we may be on the verge of discovering new physics

Right now, it looks like the cosmology is at a tipping point.

Andreea Font, Reader in Theoretical Astrophysics, Liverpool John Moores University • conversation
Sept. 12, 2024 • ~13 min

Wildfire smoke linked to thousands of premature deaths every year in California alone

Breathing wildfire smoke can cut years off people’s lives. As fires become more frequent in a warming world, smoke is leading to a public health crisis.

Michael Jerrett, Professor of Environmental Health Sciences, University of California, Los Angeles • conversation
July 8, 2024 • ~8 min

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