Paul Sutter
Paul M. Sutter is an astrophysicist at SUNY Stony Brook and the Flatiron Institute in New York City. Paul received his PhD in Physics from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 2011, and spent three years at the Paris Institute of Astrophysics, followed by a research fellowship in Trieste, Italy, His research focuses on many diverse topics, from the emptiest regions of the universe to the earliest moments of the Big Bang to the hunt for the first stars. As an "Agent to the Stars," Paul has passionately engaged the public in science outreach for several years. He is the host of the popular "Ask a Spaceman!" podcast, author of "Your Place in the Universe" and "How to Die in Space" and he frequently appears on TV — including on The Weather Channel, for which he serves as Official Space Specialist.
Latest articles by Paul Sutter
Do we live in a rotating universe? If we did, we could travel back in time
By Paul Sutter published
A rotating universe would be capable of rotating your future into your own past, allowing you to travel back in time.
The universe is slightly hotter than it should be. 'Dark photons' could be to blame.
By Paul Sutter published
Intergalactic gas clouds are slightly hotter than they should be, new research claims, and theoretical particles called 'dark photons' could explain it.
No, the Big Bang theory is not 'broken.' Here's how we know.
By Paul Sutter published
Researchers confirmed that the distant galaxies discovered by the James Webb Space Telescope are, indeed, perfectly compatible with our modern understanding of cosmology.
Almost anyone can become an amateur astronomer. What will you find?
By Paul Sutter published
Want to become a published astronomer? All it takes is a spare telescope, or at least a decent internet connection, and plenty of patience.
Does consciousness explain quantum mechanics?
By Paul Sutter published
A wild theory suggests that consciousness may explain quantum mechanics, by forcing the subatomic particles to choose one concrete outcome.
How gravitational waves can 'see inside' black holes
By Paul Sutter published
What lurks at the center of a black hole? Studying the space-time ripples from black hole collisions could reveal an answer.
Why time-traveling tachyons probably don't exist
By Paul Sutter published
Einstein toyed with the idea of faster-than-light-particles but found that such particles violated a central rule of the universe: causality.
Newfound kind of supernova can tear apart a planet's atmosphere
By Paul Sutter published
A special type of supernova might be able to destroy a planet's ozone layer years after the initial explosion.
How do we know the fundamental constants are constant? We don't.
By Paul Sutter published
Physicists have measured no changes in time or space for any of the fundamental constants of nature.
Why haven't aliens contacted Earth? New Fermi Paradox analysis suggests we're not that interesting yet
By Paul Sutter published
How was the universe created?
By Paul Sutter published
We don't really know how the universe was created, though most astrophysicists believe it started with the Big Bang.
How much of the universe is dark matter?
By Paul Sutter published
There simply isn't enough normal matter to account for the amount of gravitational force needed to hold the universe together, meaning dark matter must be prevalent.
Planet-killing stars can cover up their crimes. Here's how we could catch them.
By Paul Sutter published
Astronomers have found a way to catch planet-murdering stars red-handed and figured out how long we have until the case grows cold.
Betelgeuse's mysterious 'Great Dimming' may have been triggered by a wandering black hole
By Paul Sutter published
New research suggests that a wandering companion may have played a role in Betelgeuse's antics of late 2019.
Wrinkles left over from the Big Bang may have magnetized the universe
By Paul Sutter published
Researchers have proposed what's perhaps the most exotic explanation to date for the source of the universe's seed magnetic field: cosmic strings.
'Fuzzy' dark matter might make stars form in giant 'pancakes'
By Paul Sutter published
A model of exotic dark matter suggests that the first stars may have formed not as individuals, but as tiny pockets embedded in gigantic, pancake-like sheets.
Why Physicists Are Interested in the Mysterious Quirks of the Heftiest Quark
By Paul Sutter last updated
The top quark is about 100 trillion times heavier than the up quark. But why?
Strange quark star may have formed from a lucky cosmic merger
By Paul Sutter last updated
A team of physicists has found that the remnant of a neutron star merger observed in 2019 has just the right mass to be a strange hypothetical quark star.
Where do electrons get energy to spin around an atom's nucleus?
By Paul Sutter last updated
Electrons were once thought to orbit a nucleus much as planets orbit the sun. That picture has since been obliterated by modern quantum mechanics.
How did we figure out atoms exist?
By Paul Sutter last updated
The concept of atoms had been floating around off and on for a few millennia, but it took some clever experimentation to pinpoint their existence.
'Spooky action at a distance' can lead to a multiverse. Here's how.
By Paul Sutter published
Some interpretations of quantum mechanics propose that our entire universe is described by a single universal wave function that constantly splits and multiplies.
If aliens have visited the solar system, here's how to find clues they left
By Paul Sutter published
In a new paper, scientists outline how we can look for clues any alien visitors to our solar system may have left behind.
How to use the James Webb Space Telescope to hunt for life around white dwarfs
By Paul Sutter published
Many white dwarfs host planets that may lie within the habitable zones of those stars and may even support life. Now, scientists have outlined how to hunt for that possible life.
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