matter
-
The Big Bang in a Nutshell
Okay, okay, I know…with that featured image, I just broke my own cardinal rule of not depicting the Big Bang as an explosion. I did pick that image for a reason, though. We first covered the Big Bang waaaay back…
-
The Problem of Matter
At first glance, this is an ordinary image of a galaxy cluster: specifically, Abell 1689. If we look closer, though, we see that there’s something weird going on with the more distant, background galaxies in the image. Many of those…
-
From the First Nuclei to First Light
When we talk about the first 30 minutes of time, we describe the universe expanding and cooling. As the universe cooled, the nuclear reactions that produced the first atomic nuclei slowed and stopped. But it was only relatively cool. The…
-
The Universe’s First Moments
Imagine a time before galaxies existed, before the first stars had been born, before the most basic building blocks of matter — atoms — had formed. This was mere moments after the Big Bang. No one understands how matter and…
-
Star Mass and Density
What makes a star shine bright? Much earlier on — probably months ago now — I explained how something called the proton-proton chain generates massive amounts of energy within stars, and enables them to fuel whole solar systems. That’s the battery…
-
The Proton-Proton Chain
Take a wild guess: how much energy do you think the sun generates? Think about it. It definitely generates enough energy to power a world. Humans depend on the photosynthesis of plants, which converts sunlight into energy. And that’s not…
-
The Building Blocks of the Universe
“The Building Blocks of the Universe.” When you put it that way, atoms sound less like a topic specifically for a chemistry class and more like something astronomers might discuss. They really are. I’ve got a fantastic reason to include…
-
Newton’s Laws of Motion
It’s said that Sir Isaac Newton was sitting under an apple tree when an apple fell on his head, and that’s when all his discoveries began. Personally, I doubt that story — just as I doubt that Galileo Galilei ever dropped…
-
What Matters?
The simplest approach to chemistry is to start basic. Not basic as in acids and bases, ha-ha…sorry, bad chemistry joke. I mean basic as in, what the heck even is chemistry? I admit that I’m better versed in astronomy than…
