Space & PhysicsJanuary 15, 2020
The Curious Case of Proxima C
Astronomers continue to gather evidence for a second world around the sun’s nearest neighboring star
Stories by Lee Billings
Lee Billings is a science journalist specializing in astronomy, physics, planetary science, and spaceflight and is senior desk editor for physical science at Scientific American. He is author of a critically acclaimed book, Five Billion Years of Solitude: The Search for Life Among the Stars, which in 2014 won a Science Communication Award from the American Institute of Physics. In addition to his work for Scientific American, Billings’s writing has appeared in the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, the Boston Globe, Wired, New Scientist, Popular Science and many other publications. Billings joined Scientific American in 2014 and previously worked as a staff editor at SEED magazine. He holds a B.A. in journalism from the University of Minnesota.
Space & PhysicsNovember 20, 2019
Record-Breaking Gamma Rays Reveal Secrets of the Universe’s Most Powerful Explosions
Two teams of astronomers using ground-based telescopes to study gamma-ray bursts have detected the highest-energy light ever seen from celestial sources
Space & PhysicsNovember 12, 2019
Proposed Interstellar Mission Reaches for the Stars, One Generation at a Time
Starting in the early 2030s, the project could become our first purposeful step out of the solar system—if it launches at all
The SciencesNovember 1, 2019
Inside the World’s First Underground Gravitational-Wave Detector
Japan’s KAGRA observatory set to begin operations by the end of 2019
Space & PhysicsSeptember 25, 2019
Space Archaeologist Probes History in Orbit
Alice Gorman argues for preserving more of humanity’s off-world heritage
Space & PhysicsSeptember 11, 2019
Astronomers Find Water on an Exoplanet Twice the Size of Earth
Water vapor in the skies of the world K2-18 b may make it “the best candidate for habitability” presently known beyond our solar system
Space & PhysicsJune 10, 2019
Interview: The Once and Future Moon
Oliver Morton discusses his new book about how art, science and politics have shaped past, present and planned voyages to Earth’s nearest celestial neighbor
Space & PhysicsApril 23, 2019
Did a Meteor from Another Star Strike Earth in 2014?
Questionable data cloud the potential discovery of the first known interstellar fireball
Space & PhysicsApril 12, 2019
A Second Planet May Orbit Earth’s Nearest Neighboring Star
Informally called “Proxima c,” the candidate world appears to be six times the mass of Earth and orbits in the frigid outskirts of the Proxima Centauri system
TechnologyApril 11, 2019
Israeli Spacecraft Fails to Make First Private Lunar Landing
Private organization SpaceIL’s Beresheet lander crashes down on the moon following engine and communications problems
Black HolesApril 10, 2019
At Last, a Black Hole’s Image Revealed
The Event Horizon Telescope captures one of the universe’s most mysterious objects
The SciencesMarch 20, 2019
Atheism Is Inconsistent with the Scientific Method, Prizewinning Physicist Says
In conversation, the 2019 Templeton Prize winner does not pull punches on the limits of science, the value of humility and the irrationality of nonbelief
Space & PhysicsMarch 20, 2019
‘Oumuamua, Our First Interstellar Visitor, May Have Been a Comet After All
New research flags jets of water vapor—rather than alien technology—as the source of the mysterious object’s anomalous motions
Space & PhysicsJanuary 18, 2019
Lunar De-Light! How to View 2019’s Sole Total Eclipse of the Moon
On January 20, stargazers across the Americas will have stunning views of a historic celestial event
Space ExplorationDecember 12, 2018
Finding Alien Life May Require Giant Telescopes Built in Orbit
Scientific American reports on new efforts from NASA and other federal agencies seeking to service and assemble large structures—such as life-finding telescopes—in space
Space & PhysicsNovember 14, 2018
A Frozen Super-Earth May Orbit Barnard’s Star
At just six light years away, the candidate planet would be the second-closest world known beyond our solar system—and a prime target for future studies
Space & PhysicsOctober 31, 2018
The Milky Way’s Monster, Unveiled
Astronomers have revealed never before seen features of our galaxy’s mysterious supermassive black hole
Space & PhysicsOctober 11, 2018
Clara Is a Story of Exoplanets, Existential Longing—and Real Science
A conversation with the director and a science advisor behind a new film on the search for extraterrestrial life
Space & PhysicsOctober 3, 2018
Astronomers Tiptoe Closer to Confirming First Exomoon
Signals seen by the Hubble Space Telescope suggest a Neptune-size moon may orbit a gas-giant planet around a star some 8,000 light-years from Earth
The SciencesOctober 2, 2018
"Optical Tweezers" and Tools Used for Laser Eye Surgery Snag Physics Nobel
The award’s recipients include the first female physics laureate in 55 years
Space & PhysicsSeptember 6, 2018
Pulsar Discoverer Jocelyn Bell Burnell Wins $3-Million Breakthrough Prize
The award recognizes not only the astrophysicist’s transformative discovery, but also her subsequent work to promote equality and diversity in science
Quantum PhysicsJuly 30, 2018
String Theory May Create Far Fewer Universes Than Thought
Some physicists claim that the popular landscape of universes in string theory may not exist
Space & PhysicsJuly 25, 2018
Deep within Mars, Liquid Water Offers Hope for Life
Radar observations have revealed what appears to be a buried lake on Mars, the first ever stable reservoir of liquid water found on the planet
Space & PhysicsJune 14, 2018
Giant Black Hole Swallows a Star and Belches Out a Superfast Particle Jet
A decade-long international effort to track a star’s death by black hole could lift the veil on galaxy formation in the early universe