Why Can’t You Switch Seats in an Empty Airplane?
Yes, the weight distribution on an aircraft really does affect how well it flies. Our physics guy explains.
The Physics of the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade Balloons
How do these giant balloons work? What makes them both easier and more complicated than a normal-size balloon?
Why Is It So Tricky to Show the Sun, Earth, and Moon in a Diagram?
In a nutshell, you can get the distances or the sizes right, but not both. Space is hard!
How to Design a Real-Life Hot Wheels Loop
You should absolutely not build this thing. But it’s still fun to think through the physics.
The Physics Trick That Makes These New Super Cars So Insanely Fast
Zero to 60 in 1.4 seconds? By lowering air pressure under the car, automakers can dial the acceleration way up.
Why Hurricane Milton Turned the Sky Purple
The strange, apocalyptic skies during the storm reveal how light behaves in the atmosphere when it’s filled with an unusual amount of water vapor, dust, and debris.
Solar Sails and Comet Tails: How Sunlight Pushes Stuff Around
It seems crazy, but light actually exerts a physical force on objects. It could power a new generation of spacecraft for deep-space missions.
Unlock the Secret of a Gravity-Defying Parkour Stunt—With Physics!
Yes, you really can climb a building by jumping back and forth between two opposing walls. Thank you, Isaac Newton.
The Problem With Spinning Spacecraft
To send astronauts on long-term space missions, it’ll take rotating habitats to produce artificial gravity. But that’s trickier than you might think.
How to Make a Microphone … From a Face Mask
The results won’t be high fidelity, but you can definitely turn sound into electric signals using an N95 and some physics knowledge.