PBS Space Time

Science and Nature Series / 11 Seasons

PBS Space Time explores the outer reaches of space, the craziness of astrophysics, the possibilities of sci-fi, and anything else you can think of beyond Planet Earth. Host Matt O'Dowd breaks down both the basic and incredibly complex sides of space and time.

5m 57s

Electrons Do Not Spin

S7 E22 / 14m 5s

Quantum mechanics has a lot of weird stuff - but there are things that everyone agrees that no one understands. I’m talking about quantum spin. Let’s find out how chasing this elusive little behavior of the electron led us to some of the deepest insights into the nature of the quantum world.

Where Are The Worlds In Many Worlds?

S7 E23 / 12m 50s

Many worlds interpretation of quantum mechanics proposes that every time a quantum event gets decided, the universe splits so that every possible outcome really does occur. But where exactly are those worlds, and can we ever see them?

How Magnetism Shapes The Universe

S7 E24 / 13m 26s

Compass needles align with magnetic field lines. And, on the precise spot of magnetic north, those field lines are vertical. So, we can go down to the molten Iron dynamo earth surrounding the earth's core and up...today we explore how far up and out we are able to go.

How An Extreme New Star Could Change All Cosmology

S7 E25 / 14m 30s

A new white dwarf has been discovered (poetically named: ZTF J1901+1458) that’s doing some stuff that no white dwarf should ever be able to do. In fact, it has multiple properties that are so extreme that it almost certainly did NOT form in the way that we thought all white dwarfs formed. This one peculiar point of faint light may change our understanding of all cosmology.

How to Communicate Across the Quantum Multiverse

S7 E26 / 13m 43s

In the Many Worlds interpretation of quantum mechanics, the universal wavefunction is the reality, encompassing all possible histories and futures and all exist. ut we are only sensitive to a slice of the wavefunction corresponding to our “world”, and due to the superposition principle our world can happily do its thing unperturbed by other parts of the wavefunction - other “ripples,” or worlds.

How Vacuum Decay Would Destroy The Universe

S7 E27 / 13m 1s

The universe is going to end. But of all the possible ends of the universe vacuum decay would have to be the most thorough - because it could totally rewrite the laws of physics. Today I hope to help you understand exactly how terrified you should be.

First Detection of Light from Behind a Black Hole

S7 E28 / 12m 21s

How do you see the unseeable - how do you explore the inescapable? Our cleverest astronomers have figured out ways to catch light that skims the very edge of black holes. Let’s find out what they learned.

Neutron Stars: The Most Extreme Objects in the Universe

S7 E29 / 14m 14s

We’ve traveled to lots of weird places on this show - from the interiors of black holes to the time before the big bang. But today, we take a journey to what has got to be the weirdest place in the modern universe - a place where matter exists in states you’ve never heard of. We take a journey to the center of the neutron star.

How Electron Spin Makes Matter Possible

S7 E30 / 15m 10s

We explain why you’re not falling through your chair right now using one simple fact, and one object. The fact is that all electrons are the same as each other, and the object is a structurally critical item of clothing. There’s a chance this episode could get very weird.

Why Magnetic Monopoles Should Exist

S7 E31 / 14m 15s

What happens if you cut a bar magnetic in half? We get two magnets, each with its own North and South poles. But what happens if you keep on cutting, into fourths and eighths and sixteenths and so on? Will we ever get to a single pole? Here's the answer for you: we don’t know! But the idea of magnetic monopoles remains one of physics’ most tantalizing maybes.

New Results in Quantum Tunneling vs. The Speed of Light

S7 E32 / 13m

New efforts in quantum tunneling - both theory and experiment - show that superluminal motion may be possible, while still managing to avoid the paradox of superluminal signaling. Paradoxically, the most promising prospect for moving matter around faster than light may be to put a metaphorical brick wall in its way.

Will Constructor Theory Rewrite Physics?

S7 E33 / 11m 41s

The people behind the greatest leaps in physics - Einstein, Newton, Heisenberg, all had the uncanny ability to see the deepest, underlying facts about the world, and from simple statements about the reality they built up their incredible theories. What if we all had a recipe book for doing exactly this. Well, one might be just around the corners and it’s called Constructor Theory

Is Action The Most Fundamental Property in Physics?

S7 E34 / 14m 28s

It’s about time we discussed an obscure concept in physics that may be more fundamental than energy and entropy and perhaps time itself. That’s right - the time has come for Action.

What If Our Understanding of Gravity Is Wrong?

S7 E35 / 14m 28s

What if there is no such thing as dark matter? What if our understanding of gravity is just wrong? New work is taking another shot at that Einstein guy. Let’s see if we’ve finally scored a hit with Modified Newtonian Dynamics aka MOND.

Are Black Holes Actually Fuzzballs?

S7 E36 / 14m 7s

Black holes are a paradox. They are paradoxical because they simultaneously must exist but can’t, and so they break physics as we know it. Many physicists will tell you that the best way to fix broken physics is with string. String theory, in fact. And in the black holes of string theory - fuzzballs - are perhaps even weirder than the regular type.

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