How do we explain the giant black holes appearing in the young universe? Is it possible to directly collapse a black hole, skipping the formation of stars? What does ultraviolet radiation have to do with this? I discuss these questions and more in today’s Ask a Spaceman! Support the show: http://www.patreon.com/pmsutter All episodes: http://www.Ask…

How do you measure the impact of a scientist? Does Stephen Hawking compare to Newton or Einstein? What were his contributions to black holes, the big bang, and quantum gravity? I discuss these questions and more in today’s Ask a Spaceman! Support the show: http://www.patreon.com/pmsutter All episodes: http://www.AskASpaceman.com Watch on YouTube: h…

Why is the moon so special? Why do we think a giant impact created it? Why didn’t the same thing happen to other planets? I discuss these questions and more in today’s Ask a Spaceman! Support the show: http://www.patreon.com/pmsutter All episodes: http://www.AskASpaceman.com Follow on X: https://x.com/PaulMattSutter Read a book: http://www.pmsutter…

What is 21-cm radiation? What (and who) produces it? What causes it, and what does it tell us about the universe? I discuss these questions and more in today’s Ask a Spaceman! Support the show: http://www.patreon.com/pmsutter All episodes: http://www.AskASpaceman.com Follow on X: https://x.com/PaulMattSutter Read a book: http://www.pmsutter/book Ke…

What is an Alcubierre warp drive? What would it take to make it work? Could it propel spacecraft even below the speed of light? I discuss these questions and more in today’s Ask a Spaceman! Support the show: http://www.patreon.com/pmsutter All episodes: http://www.AskASpaceman.com Follow on X: https://x.com/PaulMattSutter Read a book: http://www.pm…

What is an axion? How could axions make a star, and what does that have to do with dark matter? What would these stars look like? I discuss these questions and more in today’s Ask a Spaceman! Support the show: http://www.patreon.com/pmsutter All episodes: http://www.AskASpaceman.com Follow on X: https://x.com/PaulMattSutter Read a book: http://www.…

Where do parallel universes exist? Could we use wormholes to travel to them? What does time travel have to do with all this? I discuss these questions and more in today’s Ask a Spaceman! Support the show: http://www.patreon.com/pmsutter All episodes: http://www.AskASpaceman.com Watch on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/PaulMSutter Read a book: http:…

What is the Fermi Paradox? How rare is non-intelligent vs intelligent life? What are the challenges a species must overcome to colonize the galaxy? Where is everybody? I discuss these questions and more in today’s Ask a Spaceman! Support the show: http://www.patreon.com/pmsutter All episodes: http://www.AskASpaceman.com Watch on YouTube: http://www…

Are dark photons as sinister as they sound? What did the curvaton do in the early universe? And is everything really made of preons? I discuss these questions and more in today’s Ask a Spaceman! Support the show: http://www.patreon.com/pmsutter All episodes: http://www.AskASpaceman.com Watch on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/PaulMSutter Read a boo…

How can the solar corona be hotter than the surface? What has the Parker Solar probe learned so far? What do magnetic fields have to do with all this? I discuss these questions and more in today’s Ask a Spaceman! Support the show: http://www.patreon.com/pmsutter All episodes: http://www.AskASpaceman.com Follow on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/Pau…

Are we “in range” of any potential supernovae? Has the Earth ever been hit in the past? And what about gamma-ray bursts from across the galaxy, are we safe from those? I discuss these questions and more in today’s Ask a Spaceman! This episode is sponsored by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at betterhelp.com/spaceman and get on your way to bei…

How do black holes get close enough to merge? What causes them to emit gravitational waves, and where do the waves come from? What does the merger process look like? I discuss these questions and more in today’s Ask a Spaceman! This episode is sponsored by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at betterhelp.com/spaceman and get on your way to being…

How did Pluto get demoted? What makes a planet a planet anyway? Why do we now have so many different kinds of planets, and should we make things simpler? I discuss these questions and more in today’s Ask a Spaceman! This episode is sponsored by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at betterhelp.com/spaceman and get on your way to being your best s…

How do gravitational lenses work? Where would a spacecraft need to be to use the Sun’s gravity as a telescope? What could we learn about exoplanets with this on weird trick? I discuss these questions and more in today’s Ask a Spaceman! This episode is sponsored by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at betterhelp.com/spaceman and get on your way …

What’s behind the Martian Methane Mystery? Is it a sign of life, or just some strange chemical process? Or are we just fooling ourselves? I discuss these questions and more in today’s Ask a Spaceman! This episode is sponsored by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at betterhelp.com/spaceman and get on your way to being your best self. Visit Bette…

Why are private space companies pushing tourism? Is there a future for tourism in space? Is this an overall good thing for space exploration, or just a distraction? I discuss these questions and more in today’s Ask a Spaceman! This episode is sponsored by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at betterhelp.com/spaceman and get on your way to being …

Where do we live within the galaxy? What shapes the local bubble? How long will we be inside it? I discuss these questions and more in today’s Ask a Spaceman! This episode is sponsored by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at betterhelp.com/spaceman and get on your way to being your best self. Visit BetterHelp to get 10% off your first month! Su…

How do galaxies form and evolve? Is the universe still making new ones? What will happen to the current galaxies in the universe? I discuss these questions and more in today’s Ask a Spaceman! This episode is sponsored by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at betterhelp.com/spaceman and get on your way to being your best self. Visit BetterHelp to…