The Universe is out there, waiting for you to discover it.
Our mission: to answer, scientifically, the biggest questions of all.
- What is our Universe made of?
- How did it become the way it is today?
- Where did everything come from?
- What is the ultimate fate of the cosmos?
For countless generations, these were questions without resolutions. Now, for the first time in history, we have scientific answers. Starts With A Bang, written by Dr. Ethan Siegel, brings these stories — of what we know and how we know it — directly to you.
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Featured
Why power generated through nuclear fusion will be the future, but not the present, solution to humanity’s energy needs.
It’s a strange idea to consider: that a tiny building block of matter, the atomic nucleus, holds the greatest potential for energy release.
And yet, it’s true; while electron transitions in atoms or molecules typically release energy on the order of ~1 electron-Volt, nuclear transitions between different configurations release energies a million times as great, on the order of ~1 Mega-electron-Volt.
Popular
From before the Big Bang to the present day, the Universe goes through many eras. Dark energy heralds the final one.
A wild, compelling idea without a direct, practical test, the Multiverse is highly controversial. But its supporting pillars sure are stable.
The surface and atmosphere is colored by ferric oxides. Beneath a very thin layer, mere millimeters deep in places, it’s not red anymore.
The first supernova ever discovered through its X-rays has an enormously powerful engine at its core. It’s unlike anything ever seen.
Just 13.8 billion years after the hot Big Bang, we can see 46.1 billion light-years away in all directions. Doesn’t that violate…something?
All Stories
The speed of light in a vacuum is the limit for massless particles, but massive ones are limited even further! “All our sweetest hours fly the fastest.” -Virgil If you’ve been […]
What everyone should know about where our matter-and-radiation-filled Universe came from. “I don’t think at this point we have any way of knowing where the laws of physics came from. We […]
A surprising globular cluster found directly opposite to the galactic center! “A friend who is far away is sometimes much nearer than one who is at hand. Is not the mountain […]
How an observational signature from Cosmic Inflation could herald the scientific revolution of the century “Despite its name, the big bang theory is not really a theory of a bang at […]
“You Done Stole My Album! Uh Uh, No You Better Don’t, Hooker!“ “[M]y goal is to always come from a place of love… but sometimes you just have to break it […]
Is the largest object in our galaxy — our central black hole — poised to devour a massive gas cloud? “What makes us love… is when we learn all these fantastic stories. Feeding the imagination […]
This March 14th, stump your friends with these amazing facts about the world’s favorite transcendental number! “So here we have π squared, which an engineer would call ‘10.’” –Frank King […]
Every element found on Earth was made in either the Big Bang or the cores of stars… except these three. “We cannot conceive of matter being formed of nothing, since things […]
And — if you aren’t — why you should be watching. “The brain is like a muscle. When it is in use we feel very good. Understanding is joyous.” –Carl Sagan I’ve already told […]
One of the only members of the Virgo Cluster… that isn’t located in Virgo! “[L]ife is a luminous halo, a semi-transparent envelope surrounding us from the beginning of consciousness to the […]
Seven of the greatest and most entertaining achievements of human ingenuity. “I love that moment just before the curtain goes up…It’s a thrill that’s unequaled anywhere.” -Joel Grey It’s a […]
Cleansing your body never tasted so good… or felt so bad! “My doctor told me to stop having intimate dinners for four. Unless there are three other people.” –Orson Welles I’m […]
Someday, the Sun will expand, engulfing Mercury and Venus, and then some. Will we survive? “They do not see what lies ahead, when Sun has faded and Moon is dead.”-J.R.R. Tolkien […]
You’ll frequently hear people say “the science is settled.” Scientifically speaking, can it ever be? “All the problems of the world could be settled easily if men were only willing to […]
From Earth and beyond, these time lapses show our one-of-a-kind motion through the Universe. “Building one space station for everyone was and is insane: we should have built a dozen.” […]
It was the most promising idea for where new physics might lie. Now that the LHC data is in, is it dead? “The revolution is not an apple that falls when […]
A galaxy very different from our own may hold the key to seeing what our far future looks like. “We find that we live on an insignificant planet of a humdrum […]
Phrases that only came out of one man’s mouth because of his kids. “Experience is not what happens to you; it’s what you do with what happens to you.” –Aldous Huxley […]
“If I see a spider in my house, I put it in a cup, and then I take it outside. I save it. What is wrong with me?” –Jacqueline Emerson […]
Alan Alda recently challenged scientists to explain this simple question to 11-year-olds in less than 300 words. Could you do it? “You can’t get there by bus, only by hard work […]
It’s one of the most beautiful (and terrifying) sights in the world. But what causes it? “If you are caught on a golf course during a storm and are afraid of […]
You know that the square root of -1 is “i”, an imaginary number. But did you know any of these? “There is not enough love and goodness in the world to […]
How a “New Star” appearing in 1572 paved the way for us to truly begin understanding our Universe. “I conclude, therefore, that this star is not some kind of comet […]
A uniquely-darkened spiral galaxy is one of the most unusual sights in the night sky. But what gives it its one-of-a-kind appearance? “Some day I hope to meet you. When […]
As the population of cities continues to grow, real estate runs out fast. But one innovative solution may be the wave of the future: building down! “It is not the beauty […]
Ever wonder why they stand on one leg? Surprisingly, physics holds the answer! “Is there anything more beautiful than a beautiful, beautiful flamingo, flying across in front of a beautiful sunset? […]
Does space stretch or does new space get created, and what does that mean for the conservation of energy? “If you put yourself in a position where you have to stretch […]
If stars, planets, and biological processes are so common in the Universe, then where is everyone? “If the Universe Is Teeming with Aliens… Where Is Everybody?”–Stephen Webb As egocentric as […]
If we knew all we do about math and physics, but had never seen the heavens, what would we conclude? “Both the solutions must be rejected, and as these are […]
How many times would you have to fold a piece of paper in half for it to reach the Moon? “Only on paper has humanity yet achieved glory, beauty, truth, knowledge, […]