MinutePhysics
Why the Solar System Can Exist
If gravity is so attractive, why doesn't the earth just crash into the sun? Or the moon into the earth? The answer: Stable Orbits
MinutePhysics
What are Years... and the Galactic Supermassive Black Hole!
It's leap year time... so what are years, anyway? And what do they have to do with the supermassive black hole in the core of the milky way?
SciShow
The Rarest Objects in The Solar System Are from...Elsewhere...
In 2017, astronomers discovered 'Oumuamua — the first definitive interstellar visitor to our solar system. But definitive evidence of space rocks that don't just visit but join our solar system is a little more elusive.
SciShow
The Universe Runs on Vibes
As much as we like to talk about vibes, actual vibrations underlie pretty much everything about the universe. From the patterns of galaxies created by the Big Bang to the existence of subatomic particles, here's how the universe runs on...
SciShow
The Zombie Planet at the Center of the Earth
For years, geologists have been searching for an explanation for two strange blobs of Earth's mantle that are denser than the rest. It turns out, they may not be original parts of Earth at all.
SciShow
The Asteroid That Nearly Swallowed OSIRIS-Rex
It's always an asteroid heading straight toward us that we worry about, never what happens to us when we head straight toward the asteroid. OSIRIS-REx's experience with Bennu tells us it's worth a thought.
Curated Video
New and Ancient Lessons from Lunar Eclipses
Ancient perceptions of lunar eclipses weren’t as primitive as one might think. Some rigorous math was applied to these cosmic events that shaped our understanding of the solar system.
SciShow
Atlas: The Little Rocket That Still Can
In 1962, John Glenn went into orbit on an Atlas rocket, and thus began a family of rockets that lasted for 60 years!
SciShow
The Ominous Reason Phobos Has Lines on It
Mars’s moon, Phobos, is striped with grooves all across its surface. But if one theory about where they came from is true, does that mean this moon might be on its way out?
SciShow
The Spacecraft That Wasn't Designed To Land, But Did
Many space missions take billions of dollars and decades of work to get develop, but 25 years ago this spacecraft delivered stunning results on a shoestring budget and a minimal development timeline.
SciShow
Earth’s other moons
You're familiar with the Moon, but it's not only our moon, depending on your point of view.
SciShow
How Do You Find the Moon’s Best Picnic Spot?
Living on the moon won't be easy, but it might be worth taking a note from our ancestors, and setting up in caves
SciShow
Space Superlatives of 2022
As we wrap up 2022, we'd like to celebrate a few of the cosmic “winners” discovered this year, at least while they still hold their titles.
SciShow
Is Our Solar System Missing Moons?
You might be pretty confident that when a moon is there it’s there to stay, but that’s not always the case. Moons may have a history of disappearing.
SciShow
The Only Moons That Trade Places
Saturn's moons Janus and Epimetheus were once thought to be the same moon. It turns out they're dance partners.
SciShow
This Planet is Only Half Covered in Lava
There are a lot of weird exoplanets out there, like 55 Cancri e (aka Janssen), which is probably half covered in lava. But the half that's covered in lava might not be quite the half you're thinking of.
SciShow
We Finally Landed on the Bottom of the Moon!
Humans have been hurling spacecraft at the Moon for over 60 years. But even with all that practice, it's still quite the challenge to successfully land something on the surface. Case in point: in August 2023, two missions attempted to...
SciShow
How Many Suns Can One Planet Have?
Earth and the other seven planets in our solar system have only one star: the Sun. Years ago, astronomers found the first exoplanet that had two stars. They also found one with three stars. And four. Just how many stars can one planet have?
PBS
Planet X Discovered?? + Challenge Winners!
Some funky orbits near the Kuiper Belt are hinting towards a brand new planet, the elusive ‘Planet X.’ Our friends Mike Brown and Konstantin Batygin of Caltech are working hard to finally spot the potential gas giant through powerful...
PBS
Is the Proxima System Our Best Hope For Another Earth?
At just four light years away, Proxima Centauri is our closest solar neighbor. The recent discovery of the new exoplanet Proxima D, has reopened the discussion of whether the proxima system is our best chance at reaching another Earth....
PBS
How to Find ALIEN Dyson Spheres
On our search for alien lifeforms we scan for primitive biosignatures, and wait and hope for their errant signals to happen by the Earth. But that may not be the best way. Any energy-hungry civilization more advanced than our own may...
PBS
The History of Climate Cycles (and the Woolly Rhino) Explained
Throughout the Pleistocene Epoch, the range of the woolly rhino grew and shrank in sync with global climate. So what caused the climate -- and the range of the woolly rhino -- to cycle back and forth between such extremes?
PBS
Juno to Reveal Jupiter's Violent Past
On July 4th 2016, the Juno spacecraft entered orbit around the planet Jupiter after leaving earth five years ago. The Juno probe will tell us what lies inside the mysterious gas giant and with this information we’ll better understand the...