Jon Kelvey

Jon Kelvey is a science writer covering space, aerospace, and biosciences. His work has appeared in publications such as Air & Space Magazine, Earth and Space News, Slate, and Smithsonian in addition to Inverse.

Kelvey studied cognitive neuroscience at UC Berkeley and prior to a career in journalism worked in the California wine industry, in construction as an electrician, and as a motel housekeeper.

The Inverse Awards

The 8 Most Epic Space Fails of 2023

Space is hard.

ByJon Kelvey
The Inverse Awards

The 12 Best Space Images of 2023

This year yielded a bevy of stunning and sublime images of the Solar System and beyond.

ByJon Kelvey
space

How Oppenheimer Proved Einstein Wrong About Black Holes

In addition to the Manhattan Project, J. Robert Oppenheimer also worked on many other areas of physics.

ByJon Kelvey
Space

Astronomers Find a Strange Two-Faced Zombie Star

The white dwarf, nicknamed Janus, has one side helium, one side hydrogen.

ByJon Kelvey
Space

Wild Astronomical Discovery Confirms Einstein Was Right About Time Itself

Quasars show evidence that time was slower in the early universe.

ByJon Kelvey
Space

Astronomers Caught a Rare Glimpse of an Exoplanet Being Born

The discovery provides further evidence for theories of how planets form.

ByJon Kelvey
Space

New High-Tech Alloy Could Enable Nuclear Space Travel

The new alloy is durable to even extreme heat stress.

ByJon Kelvey
Space Science

Astronomers Use a Novel Technique to Spot a Huge Exoplanet

By teaming direct imaging with an indirect technique, astronomers struck gold.

ByJon Kelvey
Space Science

Astronomers Find Two Powerful Supermassive Black Holes Feasting in a Merging Galaxy

The quasars are shining bright during their dinner.

ByJon Kelvey
Space Anniversaries

50 Years Ago, NASA Sent an Ambitious Mission to Saturn — and To Interstellar Horizons

The Pioneer 11 probe would serve as a metaphorical blueprint for the Voyager missions.

ByJon Kelvey
Space Science

New Study Suggests One Aspect of Space Travel Can Accelerate Aging

The microgravity environment could hasted age-related issues.

ByJon Kelvey
Space History

15 Years Ago, Exoplanet Astronomers Made a Breakthrough in the Hunt for Life

Detecting methane on a distant exoplanet paved the way for the hunt for organic chemistry in the cosmos.

ByJon Kelvey
Space Science

A NASA Craft May Have Captured a Volcanic Event on the Solar System's Most Hellish World

The results are ... explosive.

ByJon Kelvey
Environment

New Study Shows the Global Reach of One Dangerous Pollutant

It highlights that nothing happens in a vacuum.

ByJon Kelvey
Science

What the Dogs of Chernobyl Could Tell Us About Living on Mars

A new study shows the long-term effects of living in an irradiated environment.

ByJon Kelvey
Space Science

Starlink is Already Causing Hubble Headaches — and the Problem Could Get Worse

A new study found that 3-in-50 Hubble shots have a satellite photobombing them — and that number will only go up as more satellites are launched.

ByJon Kelvey
Space

Astronomers May Have Just Solved a Salty Mystery at Jupiter's Most Famous Moon

Europa had features that astronomers couldn't previously quite figure out.

ByJon Kelvey
Climate Crisis

Ecologists Find Unexpected Feedback Loops Could Complicate Fighting Climate Change

They could make it impossible to reverse.

ByJon Kelvey
Earth Science

These Ancient Pseudo-Diamonds Contain Secrets About the Origin of Life

A better understanding of how life was set up to evolve on Earth could provide a more accurate template for searching for signs of existent or past life out in the universe.

ByJon Kelvey
Science

5 Years Ago, SpaceX Launched Its Silliest Payload Yet — And It's Still in Orbit

The space-faring Tesla roadster set a speed record unlikely to ever fall to another car, even another Tesla.

ByJon Kelvey