Paul M. Sutter, Author at Universe Today

January 15, 2025January 11, 2025 by Paul M. Sutter

An Even Ghostlier Neutrino May Rule the Universe

One of the Daya Bay detectors. Roy Kaltschmidt, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory

Strange “right-handed” neutrinos may be responsible for all the matter in the universe, according to new research.

January 14, 2025January 11, 2025 by Paul M. Sutter

Galaxy Cores May be Giant Fuzzy Dark Stars

This striking image was taken by the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope’s Wide Field Camera 3, a powerful instrument installed on the telescope in 2009. WFC3 is responsible for many of Hubble’s most breathtaking and iconic photographs, including Pictures of the Week. Shown here, NGC 7773 is a beautiful example of a barred spiral galaxy. A luminous bar-shaped structure cuts prominently through the galaxy's bright core, extending to the inner boundary of NGC 7773's sweeping, pinwheel-like spiral arms. Astronomers think that these bar structures emerge later in the lifetime of a galaxy, as star-forming material makes its way towards the galactic centre — younger spirals do not feature barred structures as often as older spirals do, suggesting that bars are a sign of galactic maturity. They are also thought to act as stellar nurseries, as they gleam brightly with copious numbers of youthful stars. Our galaxy, the Milky Way, is thought to be a barred spiral like NGC 7773. By studying galactic specimens such as NGC 7773 throughout the Universe, researchers hope to learn more about the processes that have shaped — and continue to shape — our cosmic home.

A fuzzy form of dark matter may clump up to become the cores of galaxies, according to new research.

January 13, 2025January 11, 2025 by Paul M. Sutter

How to Debate a Flat-Earther

The problem with debating a flat-Earther is that they didn’t arrive at their conclusions from the weight evidence, so using the evidence isn’t going to work to change their minds.

January 12, 2025January 11, 2025 by Paul M. Sutter

The Wavey Reality Behind the Uncertainty Principle

An artist view of primordial gravitational waves. Credit: Carl Knox, OzGrav/Swinburne University of Technology

It’s turns out that you don’t need a high-powered quantum experiment to observe Heisenberg’s uncertainty Principle. You just need to go the beach.

January 11, 2025January 11, 2025 by Paul M. Sutter

Is There a Fifth Force of Nature?

During particle collisions, hadrons split into quarks and bosons (University of Oregon)

Could a new, fifth force of nature provide some answers to our biggest questions about dark matter and dark energy? We’re working on it.

December 24, 2024December 17, 2024 by Paul M. Sutter

James Webb’s Big Year for Cosmology

The James Webb Space Telescope was designed and built to study the early universe, and hopefully revolutionary our understanding of cosmology. Two years after its launch, it’s doing just that.

December 23, 2024December 17, 2024 by Paul M. Sutter

For decades cosmologists have wondered if the large-scale structure of the universe is a fractal: if it looks the same no matter the scale. And the answer is: no, not really. But in some ways, yes. Look, it’s complicated.

December 22, 2024December 17, 2024 by Paul M. Sutter

Quantum Correlations Could Solve the Black Hole Information Paradox

Artist view of a black hole ringing down into a stable state. Credit: Yasmine Steele at University of Illinois – Urbana Champaign

The black hole information paradox has puzzled physicists for decades. New research shows how quantum connections in spacetime itself may resolve the paradox, and in the process leave behind a subtle signature in gravitational waves.

December 21, 2024December 17, 2024 by Paul M. Sutter

Where’s the Most Promising Place to Find Martian Life?

In this April 30, 2021, file Image taken by the Mars Perseverance rover and made available by NASA, the Mars Ingenuity helicopter, right, flies over the surface of the planet. A new study suggests water on Mars may be more widespread and recent than previously thought. Scientists reported the finding from China's Mars rover in Science Advances on Friday, April 28, 2023. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/ASU/MSSS

New research suggests that our best hopes for finding existing life on Mars isn’t on the surface, but buried deep within the crust.

December 20, 2024December 17, 2024 by Paul M. Sutter

Can Entangled Particles Communicate Faster than Light?

Illustration depicting quantum entanglement between particles. Credit: ATLAS Experiment

Entanglement is perhaps one of the most confusing aspects of quantum mechanics. On its surface, entanglement allows particles to communicate over vast distances instantly, apparently violating the speed of light. But while entangled particles are connected, they don’t necessarily share information between them.

Author: Paul M. Sutter