Big Bang Stories
Cosmic Mapmaker: NASA’s SPHEREx Space Telescope Ready to Launch
6 min read
Editor’s note: This story was updated March 11, 2025, to reflect a new target launch date and time. NASA’s latest space observatory is targeting a March 11 liftoff, and the agency’s PUNCH heliophysics mission is sharing a ride. Here’s what…
Article
How NASA’s Roman Space Telescope Will Illuminate Cosmic Dawn
6 min read
Today, enormous stretches of space are crystal clear, but that wasn’t always the case. During its infancy, the universe was filled with a “fog” that made it opaque, cloaking the first stars and galaxies. NASA’s upcoming Nancy Grace Roman Space…
Article
What is Dark Energy? Inside our accelerating, expanding Universe
11 min read
Some 13.8 billion years ago, the universe began with a rapid expansion we call the big bang. After this initial expansion, which lasted a fraction of a second, gravity started to slow the universe down. But the cosmos wouldn’t stay…
Article