We could soon be getting energy from solar power harvested in space

Solar panels in space could harness more of the Sun’s energy.

Matteo Ceriotti, Senior Lecturer in Space Systems Engineering, University of Glasgow • conversation
Aug. 14, 2023 • ~8 min

Researchers dig deep underground in hopes of finally observing dark matter

To detect dark matter, you need to build an ultra-sensitive detector and put it somewhere ultra-quiet. For one physics collaboration, that place is almost a mile under Lead, S.D.

Hugh Lippincott, Associate Professor of Physics, University of California, Santa Barbara • conversation
Aug. 9, 2023 • ~7 min

Looking back toward cosmic dawn − astronomers confirm the faintest galaxy ever seen

The universe used to be filled with a hydrogen fog, before early stars and galaxies burned through the haze. Astronomers are studying galaxies that tell them about this period in the early universe.

Guido Roberts-Borsani, Postdoctoral Researcher in Astrophysics, University of California, Los Angeles • conversation
Aug. 8, 2023 • ~9 min

Most Americans support NASA – but don't think it should prioritize sending people to space

A new survey catalogs Americans’ expectations about the future of space, from NASA to SpaceX. Two space policy experts describe how these results stack up against the current state of space affairs.

Teasel Muir-Harmony, Curator of the Apollo Collection, Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum and Affiliate Adjunct, Georgetown University • conversation
Aug. 3, 2023 • ~10 min

Curious Kids: what comes after space?

To find out what is beyond space, a good place to start would be to figure out where space – our universe – ends.

Maggie Lieu, Research Fellow, School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Nottingham • conversation
Aug. 1, 2023 • ~5 min

What happens if someone dies in space?

If an astronaut were to die on Mars, neither cremation nor burial would be good options.

Emmanuel Urquieta, Professor of Space Medicine and Emergency Medicine, Baylor College of Medicine • conversation
July 31, 2023 • ~6 min

Measuring helium in distant galaxies may give physicists insight into why the universe exists

The way particles interacted while the universe was forming seconds after the Big Bang could explain why the universe exists the way it does – a physicist explains matter-antimatter asymmetry.

Anne-Katherine Burns, Ph.D. Candidate in Theoretical Particle Physics, University of California, Irvine • conversation
July 26, 2023 • ~8 min

65 years of NASA – an astrophysicist reflects on the agency's legacy

Both Stephen Alexander’s elementary teachers and televised NASA missions throughout the ‘60s influenced his journey into science. He recounts NASA’s legacy, 65 years after the agency’s inception.

Stephen G. Alexander, Associate Professor of Physics, Miami University • conversation
July 24, 2023 • ~9 min

First contact with aliens could end in colonization and genocide if we don't learn from history

Three Indigenous studies scholars draw from colonial histories and explain why listening for alien life can have ethical ramifications.

William Lempert, Assistant Professor of Anthropology, Bowdoin College • conversation
July 19, 2023 • ~11 min

Sex in space: why it's worrying that the space tourism sector hasn't considered the consequences

Ready or not, sex in space will be happening within the decade.

David Cullen, Professor of Bioanalytical Technology, Cranfield University • conversation
July 18, 2023 • ~6 min

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