Latest articles by Paul Sutter
Our universe may have a twin that runs backward in time
A mirror universe that runs backward in time sprouted up before the Big Bang.
Life as we know it would not exist without this highly unusual number
The fine-structure constant is a seemingly random number with no units or dimensions, which has cropped up in so many places in physics, and seems to control one of the most fundamental interactions in the universe.
Will our solar system survive the death of our sun?
Our sun's death is a long way off — about 4.5 billion years, give or take — but someday it's going to happen, and what then for our solar system?
How much of the solar system is made of interstellar stuff?
The detection of interstellar objects in the solar system has raised an interesting question: How much of the solar system is made of foreign material?
Strange dwarf planet Ceres may have formed at the icy edges of the solar system
Ceres is the most dominant member of the asteroid belt but it doesn't look like the other asteroids.
Spiderweb of wormholes could solve a black hole paradox 1st proposed by Stephen Hawking
A seemingly intractable black hole paradox first proposed by physicist Stephen Hawking could finally be resolved — by wormholes through space-time.
Chaos theory explained: A deep dive into an unpredictable universe
Reference Chaos theory explains the behavior of dynamic systems like weather, which are extremely sensitive to initial conditions. They cannot be truly predicted.
How Lagrange points solved one of physics' biggest problems
The origins of the Lagrange points are sunk deep within one of the most difficult problems faced by mathematicians and physicists over the past 400 years: the three-body problem.
What black holes can teach us about traffic jams
If you've ever been stuck in a nightmare traffic jam, you know that "black hole from which you can never escape" captures the feeling well.
Mysterious globular clusters could unlock the secrets of galaxy formation
Globular clusters are like astronomical coelacanths — mysterious living fossils. These densely packed collections of ancient stars may hold the ultimate secrets to the formation of galaxies.
Too much of a good thing: Early impacts delivered iron to Earth but almost wiped out life
A recent study has found that the hazards posed by large impactors far outweighed their benefits for life on Earth.
Physicists get closer than ever to measuring the elusive neutrino
Scientists used a 200-ton "neutrino scale" to measure the elusive particles.
Is there anything beyond the universe?
What's beyond the known limits? What lies outside the boundary of the universe? The answer is — well, it's complicated.
Loop quantum gravity: Does space-time come in tiny chunks?
Quantum mechanics tells us that the forces of nature come in discrete, tiny chunks. Gravity, the bending of space-time, is a force. So is space-time quantized as well?
Is there really a 'crisis' in cosmology?
You may have heard about the "cosmology crisis:" Different methods of measuring the age of the universe are giving different results, and cosmologists have no idea why.
What happened before the Big Bang?
The Big Bounce theory was once thought impossible. But recent research is keeping it alive.
What happens at the center of a black hole?
At the center of a black hole, matter is compressed down to an infinitely tiny point, and all conceptions of time and space completely break down.
The first life on Earth depended on a deadly poisonous gas, study suggests
Toxic hydrogen cyanide gas, used in chemical weapons today, may have been involved in the early stages of life's evolution, a new study suggests.
What is a star?
It's easy enough to say what a star is: one of those bright pointy things that twinkle in the night sky. But the actual definition of a star is as rich and colorful as the stars themselves.
How neutron star collisions flooded Earth with gold and other precious metals
The universe is pretty good at smashing things together. And when neutron stars do it, the collisions release a flood of elements necessary for life.
Will we ever know the true nature of 'Oumuamua, the first interstellar visitor?
Astronomers have proposed lots of ideas to explain 'Oumuamua's odd characteristics, and we're unlikely ever to find out which one is correct.
The mystery deepens: Ghostly neutrinos and fast radio bursts don't come from the same place
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.
Massive simulation of the universe probes mystery of ghostly neutrinos
How do you test theories of the universe? By building gigantic supercomputers and simulating the evolution of the cosmos.
