Ethan Siegel
A theoretical astrophysicist and science writer, host of popular podcast "Starts with a Bang!"
Ethan Siegel is a Ph.D. astrophysicist and author of "Starts with a Bang!" He is a science communicator, who professes physics and astronomy at various colleges. He has won numerous awards for science writing since 2008 for his blog, including the award for best science blog by the Institute of Physics. His two books "Treknology: The Science of Star Trek from Tricorders to Warp Drive" and "Beyond the Galaxy: How humanity looked beyond our Milky Way and discovered the entire Universe" are available for purchase at Amazon. Follow him on Twitter @startswithabang.
Why the biggest, most expensive NASA telescope ever is also the most important thing we’ve ever attempted. “Where there is an observatory and a telescope, we expect that any eyes […]
They’re the densest objects in the Universe, but even they won’t live forever. Here’s why not. “It’s like, how much more black could this be? And the answer is none. None […]
It’s the first Virgo Cluster galaxy to rise over the horizon in the Northern Hemisphere, and you can find it tonight! “The image is more than an idea. It is a […]
If you were taught it was Christopher Columbus, you aren’t alone. But just how much we knew thousands of years ago may surprise you! “When Columbus lived, people thought that the […]
Two amazing sights of the night sky captured together! “It is like writing history with lightning and my only regret is that it is all so terribly true.” -Woodrow Wilson […]
The highlights of the greatest Winter Constellation of them all. “I discerned huge Orion, driving wild beasts together over the field of asphodel, the very ones that he once had killed […]
The future of humanity depends on it. “If you want to build a ship, don’t drum up people to collect wood and don’t assign them tasks and work, but rather teach […]
It’s one of the most bragged-about vehicle specs of any racing enthusiast. But what, exactly, does it mean? “Understeer is when you hit the wall with the front of the car.Oversteer […]
How the second most common element in the Universe is being lost from Earth, most of it for good. “I have this one little saying, when things get too heavy just […]
No snark, no sarcasm, no judgement, just the genuine, honest answers to 22 creationist messages. “In science it often happens that scientists say, ‘You know that’s a really good argument; […]
Plus a bonus: perhaps the single most important achievement to all of humanity. “What was most significant about the lunar voyage was not that men set foot on the Moon, […]
The greatest Messier object of them all, a treat all winter long. “What caused me to undertake the catalog was the nebula I discovered above the southern horn of Taurus on […]
If you’re struggling with the final, most important obstacle separating you from your graduate degree, here’s how to make it happen! “I spent every night until four in the morning on […]
The world’s first suspended traffic circle… for bicycles! “I would like to propose slow cycling. Commute by bike. At a stroke, you remove the need for and absurd cost of […]
Of all the wooded places I’ve never been, here are the 10 I’d most like to see! “But I’ll tell you what hermits realize. If you go off into a far, […]
Do black holes exist? The world’s most famous scientist vs. the actual science. “My goal is simple. It is a complete understanding of the Universe, why it is as it is […]
Once you cross the event horizon, you’ll never go back. “They say ‘A flat ocean is an ocean of trouble. And an ocean of waves… can also be trouble.’ So, it’s […]
Is running up an inclined treadmill the same, physically, as running up an actual mountain? Here’s what science has to say. “Nothing worth having was ever achieved without effort.” -Teddy Roosevelt […]
We know that the Universe has been around for 13.8 billion years, but we also know we can see for 46 billion light-years. How is this possible? “Nature decrees that […]
When all the galaxies, stars, gas, dust, dark matter and all the other forms of matter and radiation are summed together, its energy still pales in comparison to dark energy. […]
The brightest galaxy in a spectacular close grouping of three provides a beacon of insight into our far future. “Three can keep a secret, if two of them are dead.” -Benjamin […]
We normally think of the Big Bang as the very beginning of our Universe, but we now know the story goes back even before it. Here’s how. “The aim of science […]
“Camouflage is a game we all like to play, but our secrets are as surely revealed by what we want to seem to be as by what we want to […]
How you can safely trick your mind into triggering a visual hallucination, using only math and neuroscience! “Life should not be a journey to the grave with the intention of […]
When we look across the Universe, we find that things used to be closer together in the past. So how large do things appear when they’re very far away? “Life is […]
The stars, gas and dust of our own galaxy dominates our night sky. But what secrets does the Universe hold beyond that? “Who are we? We find that we live on […]
100 years ago, we thought the Milky Way was the full extent of the Universe, containing everything. Now, we know we’re just one of many. But how many? “The human mind […]
Given all the stars, galaxies and what we know about the laws governing reality, how many planets are there in our observable Universe? “Stuff your eyes with wonder, live as […]
How the closest supernova in a generation — soon to be visible to skywatchers almost everywhere — is about to help us better understand the entire Universe. “I saw a star explode and send […]
To the limits of our observable Universe and well beyond, here’s what we know the minimum size of the Universe must be, along with how we know it. “The greatest enemy […]