Space
The Cosmic Laser Pointer That Could Burn Away Our Ozone
An astrophysicist compares a gamma-ray burst to a laser pointer aimed at Earth: ozone stripped, mutations, and a chance of about once in 100 million years.
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Articles
Space
Why Alien Life Probably Isn't Made of Rock
Silicon is more common than carbon in Earth's crust, yet life never used it. An astronomer explains why silicon locks into stone and carbon stays flexible.
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Space
Webb Has Never Caught a Cosmic Blast. A Garden Telescope Did
Webb and Hubble have fields of view 10,000 times smaller than a wide-field robotic telescope. Vladimir Lipunov on why explosions get caught by networks.
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Space
Your gold ring was forged when two dead stars collided
Astrophysicist Vladimir Lipunov on the kilonova of 2017: two neutron stars merged, and the debris carried the gold and platinum we wear.
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Space
A Saturn Moon at −180 °C Is Spitting Out Grains of Hot-Water Sand
Saturn's moon Enceladus sits at −180 °C, yet it throws out grains formed in 90 °C water. An astrophysicist explains why it ranks second only to Earth for life.
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Space
The Ten-Second Window Onto a Black Hole's Birth
A supernova hides the core of a dying star for up to 100 days. A rare gamma-ray burst pierces the shell and shows the black hole forming in seconds.
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Space
Space is probably full of molecules astronomers can't see
Carbon monoxide gives one bright line. A 15-atom molecule gives a comb of faint ones that overlap with dozens of others. Why space's biggest molecules hide.
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Space
Add One Hydrogen to Carbon Monoxide and It Becomes "Organic
Organic matter on Mars sounds like a life story. An astronomer explains why "organic" only means carbon, and why the split from "inorganic" is a historical leftover.
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