

#2363 - David Kipping
494 snips Aug 9, 2025
David Kipping, an astronomer and associate professor at Columbia University, leads the Cool Worlds Lab, focusing on exoplanets and exomoons. He discusses groundbreaking discoveries from the James Webb Space Telescope and the complexities of the Hubble Tension in cosmology. Kipping shares challenges scientists face in confronting biases, the excitement of discovering new celestial bodies, and the mysteries of planetary formation. He also delves into extraterrestrial life, UAP investigations, and how advancements in technology are reshaping our understanding of the universe.
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JWST Exposes Early-Universe Surprises
- James Webb found massive galaxies and quasars far earlier than models predicted.
- Kipping says tweaking astrophysics for denser, hotter early gas can explain galaxies, while early supermassive black holes remain puzzling.
Hubble Tension Is Statistically Real
- Two precise methods to measure cosmic expansion give conflicting H0 values.
- This Hubble tension is now a robust five-sigma discrepancy demanding new measurements or theory fixes.
Near-Miss Exomoon That Turned Out False
- Kipping recalls nearly discovering an exomoon and feeling overwhelming excitement as he stepped outside to breathe.
- He later learned the signal was an instrument artifact, so he trained himself to be his own greatest skeptic.