Physics & Math / Cosmology

How to Survive the End of the Universe

Humanity’s guide to the next billion trillion years. (Wormhole kit not included.)
 01.25.2012

#88: Visualizing the Violent Cosmos

A new map shows the hotspots of energetic activity in our galaxy and beyond. 12.27.2011

Welcome to the Multiverse

Could our universe be just one of a multitude, each with its own reality? It may sound like fiction, but there is hard science behind this outlandish idea. 10.18.2011

The Strange Physics—and Singular Sights—Inside Black Holes

Nothing that enters a black hole ever comes out. But one astrophysicist has stepped inside and created striking visualizations of passing the event horizon, carried on a waterfall moving faster than the speed of light. 09.12.2011

Cosmic Eye Exam Shows Jaw-Dropping Accuracy of Webb Telescope's Optics

The scope's main mirror must hold its shape even down to temperatures near absolute zero. 09.03.2011

5 Questions for the Galaxy Finder

Jeff Cooke looked heavenward and discovered Golden Boy, which showed astronomers how galaxies collide and merge. 08.31.2011

Our Universe May Be a Giant Hologram

Physicist Brian Greene explains how properties at the black hole’s surface—its event horizon—suggest the unsettling theory that our world is a mere representation of another universe, a shadow of the realm where real events take place. 08.04.2011

The Night the Scientific Revolution Began

After turning his homemade telescope to the heavens, Galileo became the first person to see the moons of Jupiter, suggesting that not everything orbited Earth—and he jotted his world-changing notes on a piece of scrap paper. 07.28.2011

When Astronomy Met Computer Science

Digital sky surveys and real-time telescopic 
observations are unleashing an unprecedented flood 
of information. Astronomers have recently created new tools to sift through all that data, which could contain answers 
to some of the greatest questions in cosmology. 07.19.2011

How to Build a Telescope Even More Powerful Than Hubble

NASA is building the James Webb Space Telescope, which will be humanity's premier eye in the sky when it launches later this decade. Here's a sneak peek at the telescope that will take the universe's baby pictures. 02.15.2011

The 100 Top Science Stories of 2010

Every year DISCOVER sorts through the scientific accomplishments of the past 12 months, and assembles a list of the coolest experiments, most brilliant discoveries, and most world-changing events. As you page through the countdown to the #1 science story, we think you'll come to the same conclusion we did: 2010 was quite a year. 12.16.2010

Will We Discover That the Universe Had No Beginning and Has No End?

Neil Turok on his hopes for science over the next 30 years 09.14.2010

Shedding Dark: Discoveries That Totally Confused Scientists

Some science doesn't "shed light" on the subject--instead it forces researchers to question their assumptions and start all over again. 07.29.2010

Discover Interview: Space Is Getting Bigger, and It's Getting Bigger Faster

Saul Perlmutter changing our understanding of the entire universe by discovering that its expansion is accelerating. 02.22.2010

The Real Rules for Time Travelers

Time travel may in fact be possible, but it wouldn't work like in Back to the Future. (For one thing, you don't have worry about your parents failing to create you—you already exist.) 02.02.2010

#5: Astronomer Alan Dressler

Hot on the trail of the first galaxies in the universe 01.25.2010

Are Black Holes the Architects of the Universe?

Long known for their obliterating power, black holes may also have been a creative force: New evidence suggests that they gave order to the chaotic mess produced by the Big Bang. 01.04.2010

Discover Interview: Miles of Wire, Reams of Print-Outs, and a Giant Discovery

Jocelyn Bell Burnell worked through old-school equipment and old-school sexism to find the first pulsar—the beginning of an extraordinary life in science. 12.29.2009

#86: Particle-Smasher John Ellis

The CERN theoretical physicist looks ahead to what will happen when the LHC gets cranked up to full power. 12.19.2009

A Fish-Eye View of the Cosmos

Two new projects aim to soak in—and analyze—the entire visible sky. 11.30.2009

A Tumultuous Year at the LHC

Physicist Lisa Randall describes the turbulent first year after the collider's premature celebration. 11.12.2009

A Yardstick for the Universe

The Hubble Space Telescope is helping to improve our understanding of the expansion of space, dark energy, and the fate of the cosmos. 11.10.2009

Will Our Universe Collide With a Neighboring One?

Our universe may be one of a multitude—and it may bear the scars of past run-ins with its neighbors. 11.04.2009

Visual Science: Polishing a Cosmic Spyglass

A tune-up for one of the most sophisticated imaging devices ever made 11.02.2009

Discover Interview: Roger Penrose Says Physics Is Wrong, From String Theory to Quantum Mechanics

One of the greatest thinkers in physics says the human brain—and the universe itself—must function according to some theory we haven't yet discovered. 10.06.2009

Being Stephen Hawking

Former Nature editor John Maddox on one of the most famous scientists of our age 09.29.2009

Stephen Hawking Is Making His Comeback

Stephen Hawking, the master of time, space, and black holes, steps back into the spotlight to secure his scientific legacy—and to explain the greatest mystery in physics: the origin of the universe. 09.11.2009

The Biocentric Universe Theory: Life Creates Time, Space, and the Cosmos Itself

Stem-cell guru Robert Lanza presents a radical new view of the universe and everything in it. 05.01.2009

20 Things You Didn't Know About... Time

The beginning, the end, and the funny habits of our favorite ticking force. 03.12.2009

The World's Hardest-Working Telescope

By precisely mapping a volume of space 5 billion light-years in diameter, the Sloan telescope is answering some of the universe's biggest questions. 03.06.2009

We All Live in Darwin's World

“Survival of the fittest” is helping us understand not only the origin of species but also love, politics, and even the cosmos. 02.11.2009

The Man Who Made Stars and Planets

Alan Boss has spent a career predicting how stars and planets form—and has often been right. 01.12.2009

A Lenticular Galaxy Reveals Spinning Black Holes

MCG-6-30-15 may not stun at first glance, but it's a goldmine of black hole images. 01.09.2009

The Father of Dark Matter Still Gets No Respect

Little-acknowledged Fritz Zwicky got there first on dark matter, neutron stars, and supernovas. 12.31.2008

#2: The LHC Begins Its Search for the "God Particle"

After many years and billions of dollars, the LHC had its fateful first test run. 12.22.2008

#23: Black Holes Birth Baby Stars

Computer simulations reveal the source of mystery constellations. 12.18.2008

#40: The First Known Binary Black Hole System

One of the most massive things in the universe turns out to have a little buddy. 12.15.2008

#78: The Galaxy that Spins a Giant Magnetic Web

This "fiery spiderweb" uses magnetic fields to survive tough storms. 12.09.2008

Inside the World of Stephen Hawking

The world's most famous theoretical physicist will make you think—and laugh. 11.25.2008

20 Best Brains Under 40

Young innovators are changing everything from theoretical mathematics to cancer therapy. 11.20.2008

The Man Who Led the Second Superstring Revolution

Inside the mind of Ed Witten, the "best physicist of his generation." 11.13.2008

Science's Alternative to an Intelligent Creator: the Multiverse Theory

Our universe is perfectly tailored for life. That may be the work of God or the result of our universe being one of many. 11.10.2008

Ten Ways the World Will End

Will it be a solar flare? Or a gamma-ray burst? DISCOVER's own Phil Plait lays out the odds. 10.28.2008

Gravity Is So Last Year

A new book seeks to reinvent Einstein's greatest gift to the world. 10.24.2008

Nevermind The Black Hole Hoopla: Here's How the LHC Could Blow Up the World (of Physics)

The collider might find extra dimensions, dark matter, some unknown unknown, and—just maybe—nothing at all. 09.10.2008

An Essential, Concise History of the LHC, 2002–2008

DISCOVER's been all over the Large Hadron Collider since it was just a big hole in the ground. 09.10.2008

Burned at the Stake for Believing in Science

The life and work—and unorthodox beliefs—of Italian philosopher Giordano Bruno. 09.08.2008

The Extremely Long Odds Against the Destruction of Earth

Don't be too concerned that the world’s largest particle accelerator is about to go online. 07.24.2008

Max Tegmark

What does a cosmologist read when he's not mapping the universe? 07.16.2008

MTV for Geeks

A new show on Nova offers easily digestible chunks of science. 06.17.2008

Is the Universe Actually Made of Math?

Cosmologist Max Tegmark says mathematical formulas create reality. 06.16.2008

Ever Wonder What a Famous Physicist Reads at Night?

Freeman Dyson gives DISCOVER a peek at his stash of bedroom reading. 06.11.2008

Movie Camera to the Stars

The Earth's fastest telescope aims to make the best sky map ever created. 05.13.2008

3 Theories That Might Blow Up the Big Bang

Time may not have a beginning—and it might not exist at all. 03.25.2008

Einstein Didn't Grok His Own Revolution

He thought black holes and quantum mechanics were too weird to be true. 03.10.2008

Could the Next Einstein Be a Surfer Dude?

Six iconoclasts who could revolutionize physics—again. 02.26.2008

20 Things You Didn't Know About... Relativity

Galileo invented it, Einstein understood it, and Eddington saw it. 02.25.2008

7. Dark Matters

Astronomers unveil a new map of the mysterious invisible stuff that makes up 90 percent of the universe. 12.12.2007

The Ice-Cream Scoop Taken Out of the Universe

A patch of the heavens that contains far more nothingness than the rest of space 11.21.2007

The Man Who Imagined Wormholes and Schooled Hawking

Kip Thorne revolutionized physics, fixed up Contact, and straddled the Cold War divide. 11.09.2007

Are We Trapped in God's Video Game?

Probably not. And no, he's not looking at your underwear. 10.15.2007

Interview: Janna Levin

The physicist talks about her work on the creation of the universe, her award-winning fiction, and being on The Colbert Report. 07.17.2007

What Happened Before the Big Bang?

Two astronomers say the universe happens again and again. 07.09.2007

Newsflash: Time May Not Exist

Not to mention the question of which way it goes... 06.12.2007

The Birth of Dark Energy

A dark force that is pulling the cosmos apart 04.16.2007

The Big Bang Machine

A Long Island particle smasher re-creates the moment of creation. 02.27.2007

Lisa Randall Chat Transcript

Harvard physicist Lisa Randall explains multiple dimensions, thinks about creativity, and ponies up for bets on upcoming experiments. 11.10.2006

Nice Going, Einstein

He tried to explain gravity but left a giant mess for today's physicists to clean up. 08.01.2006

The Einstein Dilemma

Mordehai Milgrom's new physics could overthrow Newton and Einstein--and tear up our whole picture of how the universe is put together. 08.01.2006

Those Dark Questions

A maverick who unmasked Sherlock Holmes and calculated the time of Jesus' crucifixion is stirring things up again. 05.28.2006

Knit Theory

How much stranger can a model of universe geometry become? 02.07.2006

The Year in Science: Astronomy

Planet Xena, cosmic evolution, gamma ray bursts, and more. 01.08.2006

Two Against the Big Bang

Why are two celebrated astronomers laughing at one of the most fundamental theories? 11.22.2005

Sky Lights

Missing: Half a universe. Last seen: 13.7 billion years ago 10.24.2005

Cosmology

New controversy over whether a single theory can explain everything 10.24.2005

Think Tank

Top scientists predict wonders yet to come. 09.12.2005

22 Years Ago in Discover: Listening for ET

22 Years Ago in Discover: Listening for ET 09.09.2005

First Burst = Birth

08.06.2005

Discover Dialogue: Planetary Geologist H. Jay Melosh

Just about every atom on Earth has been through a hypervelocity impact. 07.24.2005

How Nature Builds a Planet

A new space telescope tells us we really had no idea what was going on out there. 07.24.2005

Expert Forum With Michio Kaku

A physicist and the end of the universe. 02.02.2005

Ask Discover

12.03.2004

How to Survive the End of the Universe (In 7 Steps)

The cold, dark end is coming. We need an escape plan 12.03.2004

Sky Lights

Outer space is not just out there—it is also on your windowsill and inside your body 11.25.2004

Plucking the Strings of Relativity

Beyond Einstein, physics faces six great questions 09.30.2004

Testing the Limit of Einstein's Theories

Scientists finally have the technology to construct mind-boggling experiments that can tell us just how far relativity can be stretched 09.30.2004

Sky Lights

The sky's ups and downs—not to mention rights and lefts—are full of meaning 08.02.2004

Before the Big Bang

Maverick cosmologists contend that what we think of as the moment of creation was simply part of an infinite cycle of titanic collisions between our universe and a parallel world 02.05.2004

Physics

01.02.2004

A Field Guide to the Invisible Universe

At least 96 percent of the cosmos cannot be seen through any telescope, but what we cannot detect may hold the secret of our fate 12.23.2003

Nailing Down Gravity

We know everything there is to know about gravity, right? Wrong. 10.01.2003

Nailing Down Gravity

New ideas about the most mysterious power in the universe 10.01.2003

They Came From Outer Space

Does the very existence of cosmic rays defy the laws of physics? 09.01.2003

Was Einstein Wrong?

What if Einstein was wrong? 04.01.2003

Sky Lights

The laws of physics seem stacked in our favor. How did we beat the odds? 02.01.2003

The Real Big Bang

The one that counts brought not only light to the universe, it created the seeds of life 12.01.2002

The Race to Find Out How the Universe Will End

A look inside a rough-and-tumble scientific struggle 09.01.2002

Does the Universe Exist if We're Not Looking?

Eminent physicist John Wheeler says he has only enough time left to work on one idea: that human consciousness shapes not only the present but the past as well 06.01.2002

Let There Be Light

04.01.2002

Guth's Grand Guess

Most people really want to know where we came from. We have evidence. We no longer have to rely on stories we were told when we were young' 04.01.2002

Einstein and Gödel

Oh, to be a fly on a textbook when the century's greatest physicist walked home from work with its most influential mathematician 03.01.2002

Astronomy

Year In Science 01.13.2002

Sky Lights

The universe isn't flat: It's more like a hike in the Rockies 08.01.2001

Very Dark Energy

Why is the universe expanding faster and faster? The answer may be a form of energy we almost can't imagine 03.01.2001

From Here to Eternity

Imagine a universe with no past or future, where time is an illusion and everyone is immortal. Welcome to that world, says physicist Julian Barbour 12.01.2000

Works in Progress

Astronomers close in on a dark secret of the cosmos 08.01.2000

Sky Lights

Sorry, the real universe isn't that dramatic 09.01.1999

Baby Big Bangs

Massive supernovas called hypernovas could explain mysterious bursts of energy. 08.01.1999

The Last Big Bang Man

Once upon a time, a physicist figured out how the universe began.Then everybody forgot about him. 07.01.1999

The Year in Science: Astronomy 1997

The Big Whimper 01.01.1998

Echo of the Big Band

With instruments sensitive enough to measure the faint glow of radiation left over from the first moment of creation, physicists hope to learn the universe's deepest, and darkest, secrets. 11.01.1997

The Antiblob

A fountain of anti-matter poses big questions. 08.01.1997

Beyond the Soapsuds Universe

The universe is full of patterns, but how did it get that way? 08.01.1997

What Paradox?

06.01.1997

Kinship With The Stars

No one knew better than Carl Sagan how vital it is for scientists to communicate with the public. And no one knew better what grief they get when they do. 05.01.1997

Missing Starlight

03.01.1997

Giving Birth to Galaxies

Peering out to the edge of the universe, astronomers catch glimpses of galaxies in the making. 02.01.1997

Secrets of the Deep

01.01.1997

Mystery of the Missing Star

The spectacular supernova of 1987 left a hole astronomers have tried to plug for nine years. 12.01.1996

The First Holes

11.01.1996

Liquid Universe

11.01.1996

Wall? What Wall?

The great wall of galaxies my be just an optical illusion. 10.01.1996

Cosmic Ripples

07.01.1996

The Mediocre Universe

Alexander Vilenkin says our whole universe is only one of many, and mediocrity is the universal rule. 02.01.1996

Crisis in the Cosmos

There's not one crisis but two: the universe seems to be younger than the stars in it, and a huge chunk of it is headed in the wrong. 03.01.1995

The Space Between the Stars

The emptiness is rich in both mystery and misconception. 12.01.1994

The Ultimate Vanishing

If black holes evaporate like snowballs in the sun, then the past is forever severed from the present. 10.01.1993

Gravity Wave Sky

As cosmologists tune in the vibrations of space time, what will they hear? 07.01.1993

How Big Is the Universe?

The short answer: astronomers don't know which is why some of them are abandoning their old step-by-step approach and are trying to take the measure of the cosmos in one fell swoop. 11.01.1992

Does Chaos Rule the Cosmos?

Chaos surrounds us, and yet so do orderly patterns. Scientists are now trying to discover how they can coexist. 11.01.1992

The Fingerprint of Creation

Cosmology rarely makes the front pages. But this past spring, thanks to satellite named COBE, an astrophysicist named George Smoot announced a discovery of truly cosmic proportions. 10.01.1992

A Fleeting Attraction?

Does the Great Attractor exist? 09.01.1992

Cosmic Cartographer

Bob Kirshner wants to give the map of the universe some scale. His yardstick: the bright beacon of a supernova. 07.01.1992

Vacuum Matters

Forget traditional distinctions between matter and empty space—it's all a seamless whole. 03.01.1992

The Universal Wizard

Andrei Linde brings a streak of mysticism to modern cosmology--and a truly magnificent vision of creation. 03.01.1992