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
![An artist's depiction of the first identified interstellar object to visit our solar system, 'Oumuamua.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/PcoKY9XV26GvikfG25BRUJ-320-80.jpg)
Will we ever know the true nature of 'Oumuamua, the first interstellar visitor?
By Paul Sutter published
Astronomers have proposed lots of ideas to explain 'Oumuamua's odd characteristics, and we're unlikely ever to find out which one is correct.
![In this illustration, a neutrino interacts with Antarctic ice, shedding a muon in the process. As that muon moves at ultrafast speed, it leaves a telltale trail of blue light, known as Cherenkov radiation.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/TiGR9cagP5nwBtZ6obwFk6-320-80.jpeg)
The mystery deepens: Ghostly neutrinos and fast radio bursts don't come from the same place
By Paul Sutter published
Knowing if high-energy neutrinos and FRBs came from the same place on the sky would help explain the origins of both. But alas, they do not.
![An artist's depiction of a galaxy with a quasar at its center.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/SLZ36EC45pcijijCEcx6G6-320-80.png)
Massive simulation of the universe probes mystery of ghostly neutrinos
By Paul Sutter last updated
How do you test theories of the universe? By building gigantic supercomputers and simulating the evolution of the cosmos.
![Image of the Hubble eXtreme Deep Field, which captures galaxies beyond counting.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/bwduHTeku8iGpR9qsPQrDU-320-80.jpeg)
Do we live in a simulation? The problem with this mind-bending hypothesis.
By Paul Sutter published
Does the simulation hypothesis offer a compelling argument, or is it just interesting food for thought? Let's find out.
![Artist's illustration of potentially habitable exoplanet Proxima b, which orbits the red dwarf star Proxima Centauri.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/6MasrWXC5rbbQhAVkwvK4f-320-80.jpg)
What really makes a planet habitable? Our assumptions may be wrong
By Paul Sutter published
How common are ice-covered planets like Hoth from "Star Wars," and might they be capable of hosting life? As usual, the answer is, it depends.
![In this illustration, a neutrino interacts with Antarctic ice, shedding a muon in the process. As that muon moves at ultrafast speed, it leaves a telltale trail of blue light, known as Cherenkov radiation.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/TiGR9cagP5nwBtZ6obwFk6-320-80.jpeg)
Astronomers propose building a neutrino telescope — out of the Pacific Ocean
By Paul Sutter published
The Pacific Ocean Neutrino Experiment would turn a massive swath of the Pacific Ocean into nature's own neutrino detector.
![An artist's impression of the inside of a wormhole.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/MPcqNhzPMvPJB77mvEhkp9-320-80.jpeg)
Wormholes may be viable shortcuts through space-time after all, new study suggests
By Paul Sutter last updated
Wormholes may be stable after all, a new theory suggests, contradicting previous predictions that these hypothetical shortcuts through space-time would instantly collapse.
![This illustration shows the diamond rain on Neptune.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/sZKknVMtVQqwBm5s8TicXa-320-80.jpg)
Yes, there is really 'diamond rain' on Uranus and Neptune
By Paul Sutter published
Hiding beneath the outer layers of some planets, there may be something spectacular: a constant rain of diamonds.
![An artist's impression of dark matter in the beginning of the universe.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/4KPVPPisQmyBH2hJqwHnB9-320-80.jpeg)
We may finally be able to test one of Stephen Hawking's most far-out ideas
By Paul Sutter published
The recently launched James Webb Telescope should help determine if dark matter is made up of primordial black holes.
![The European Ariane 5 rocket with the James Webb Space Telescope aboard lifts off from the European Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/FFqoqzhqNtbk6E7AjWt4pE-320-80.jpg)
5 space missions to look forward to now that the James Webb Space Telescope has launched
By Paul Sutter published
Now that the telescope is in space, what's next for astrophysics done from beyond Earth's surface? Here are five future missions to get excited about.
![An artist's illustration of the multiverse.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/g95PR4iRqMJwcwrzrZzm8T-320-80.jpg)
How real is the multiverse?
By Paul Sutter published
A multiverse may be a natural prediction of the physical theories that define the beginning of the universe.
![This artist's impression shows a view of the planet Proxima b orbiting the red dwarf star Proxima Centauri, the closest star to the solar system.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/L86BkGCYdbcLBjwWRNimtc-320-80.jpg)
Why are we still searching for intelligent alien life?
By Paul Sutter last updated
Humans have scanned and searched the heavens for signs of other advanced civilizations in the universe. And we've found nothing. Absolutely nothing. Maybe we shouldn't focus on intelligent life.
![The Hubble Space Telescope's Ultra Deep Field view of a tiny patch of the universe.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/iKc8WXzTk3m4ifEAB9ZWYH-320-80.jpg)
Here's how the universe could end in a 'false vacuum decay'
By Paul Sutter published
The world could end not with a bang, but with a quantum vacuum decay of the ground state of the universe to its true minimum.
![Diagram showing our solar system (sizes and distances not to scale).](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/cn4u2UmMq7AYBMqNA3a5WF-320-80.jpg)
How did the solar system form?
By Paul Sutter last updated
The formation of the solar system is a challenging puzzle for modern astronomy and a terrific tale of extreme forces operating over immense timescales. Let's dig in.
![Artist's illustration of a supermassive black hole emitting a jet of energetic particles.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/QVxn4uaidqj4ZxuT7d7kqf-320-80.jpg)
How many black holes are there in the universe?
By Paul Sutter published
In a recent study, researchers determined that about 1% of all the "normal" (that is, not dark) matter in the universe is bound up inside black holes.
![The galaxy cluster Abell 1689 is famous for the way it bends light in a phenomenon called gravitational lensing. Study of the cluster has revealed secrets about how dark energy shapes the universe.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/GWxQPvx9g9TWMZHPXZfn4R-320-80.jpg)
Why is there a 'crisis' in cosmology?
By Paul Sutter published
Since 2014, there have been over 300 proposals for solutions to the "crisis in cosmology." None of these proposals is universally agreed upon by cosmologists, and the crisis just keeps getting worse.
![Artist's illustration of a supermassive black hole emitting a jet of energetic particles.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/QVxn4uaidqj4ZxuT7d7kqf-320-80.jpg)
Some supermassive black holes may contain fingerprints from the Big Bang
By Paul Sutter published
The elements around some giant black holes may be subtly different from the cosmic average, retaining a relic memory of the young universe.
![The primary mirror of NASA's James Webb Space Telescope as seen in 2017.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/TSUmjD5R8XwCrgDfWvcoPN-320-80.jpeg)
Astronomy needs a new long-term approach, new paper argues
By Paul Sutter published
If scientists want astronomy to thrive throughout the 21st century, we need a new approach: to view new observatories through a lens of public benefit.
![A train of SpaceX Starlink satellites are visible in the night sky in this still from a video captured by satellite tracker Marco Langbroek in Leiden, the Netherlands on May 24, 2019, just one day after SpaceX launched 60 of the Starlink internet communications satellites into orbit.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/uwxXhvy8WC2ukLTMERQeee-320-80.jpg)
Megaconstellations could destroy astronomy and there's no easy fix
By Paul Sutter published
Global satellite-based high-speed internet access will come at a cost, polluting the skies and contaminating astronomical observations.
![A portrait of the scientist James Clerk Maxwell made around 1875.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/84UJeGFva5shoXufWVwjhn-320-80.jpg)
Who was James Clerk Maxwell? The greatest physicist you've probably never heard of.
By Paul Sutter published
James Clerk Maxwell is the scientist responsible for explaining the forces behind the radio in your car, the magnets on your fridge, the heat of a warm summer day and the charge on a battery.
![An illustration of a black hole](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/5btFRUrKV2xKGDtM7VtWi9-320-80.jpeg)
Black holes warp the universe into a grotesque hall of mirrors
By Paul Sutter last updated
If you were to place a galaxy behind the black hole and then look off to the side, you'd see a distorted image of the galaxy. Here's why.
![An abstract image of a high-energy collision creating a new particle such as the Higgs boson.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/jbbXW5eeRe4Jn5RjPPCLPP-320-80.jpeg)
1st sign of elusive 'triangle singularity' shows particles swapping identities in mid-flight
By Paul Sutter published
Physicists sifting through old particle accelerator data have found evidence of a highly-elusive, never-before-seen process: a so-called triangle singularity.