Marcus Chown

Marcus Chown is an award-winning writer and broadcaster and a former radio astronomer at the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. He is the author of Breakthrough: Spectacular stories of scientific discovery from the Higgs particle to black holes (Faber & Faber, 2021).

Recent articles by Marcus Chown

Eileen Collins - the first woman to pilot the Space Shuttle, pictured onboard Discovery during the STS-63 mission, 3 February 1995. Credit: NASA

How do astronauts write in space?

The Big Bang. Credit: MEHAU KULYK/SPL/Getty Images

5 questions about the Big Bang – answered!

Why the speed of light is key to our understanding of the Universe. Credit: Eduard Muzhevskyi / Science Photo Library

Why the speed of light is so important

Do wormholes actually exist? Credit: Mark Garlick / Science Photo Library via Getty Images

Do wormholes actually exist?

What is a white hole?

Do white holes really exist?

Illustration showing the expansion of the Universe from the Big Bang to the present day. Credit: Andreus / iStock / Getty Images Plus

7 questions about the expansion of the Universe

Space Station 1, from 2001: A Space Odyssey. Credit: Rhys Taylor/Stocktrek Images

Could a spinning spacecraft generate artificial gravity?

A NASA image showing how wavelengths of light are stretched - or redshifted - as the Universe expands. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech//R. Hurt (Caltech-IPAC)

What is redshift in astronomy?

The NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope has produced an incredibly detailed image of a pair of overlapping galaxies called NGC 3314. While the two galaxies look as if they are in the midst of a collision, this is in fact a trick of perspective: the two are in chance alignment from our vantage point.

Which came first: stars or galaxies?

Illustration of the expansion of the Universe. Understanding more about this phenomenon could reveal clues as to how the Universe will end. Credit: Mark Garlick / Science Photo Library

How did the early Universe expand faster than light?

The falling apple is now a symbol of Newton's ideas about gravity. Credit: Andreas Coerper Mainz / Getty Images

What’s the difference between Newton and Einstein gravity?

Could teleportation - as seen in Star Trek - ever be possible? Credit: CBS Photo Archive / Getty Images

Is teleportation possible?

Illustration of a woman falling to a black hole, holding onto an outstretched hand

What would happen if you fell into a black hole?

Hubble Ultra Deep Field

Why does it take light from galaxies so long to reach us if they used to be closer?

A closeup of the Tarantula Nebula, as seen by the Hubble Space Telescope. Credit: NASA, ESA

9 of the most mind-blowing facts about the Universe