Unexplainable takes listeners right up to the edge of what we know…and then keeps on going. The Unexplainable team — Noam Hassenfeld, Julia Longoria, Byrd Pinkerton, and Meradith Hoddinott — tackles scientific mysteries, unanswered questions, and everything we learn diving into the unknown. New episodes Mondays and Wednesdays.From Vox and the Vox Media Podcast Network.
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Sep 28, 2026 · 26:18
When things fall into bogs, they sometimes wind up being beautifully preserved. This includes bodies, sometimes dating back thousands of years. We’re still trying to understand…
Sep 23, 2026 · 27:15
Once upon a time (around 300 million years ago), Earth was home to massive dragonfly-like insects and two meter long millipede-like creatures. Why did they die off? Guests: Ned…
Sep 21, 2026 · 35:00
Five-sixths of all the matter in the universe is this invisible stuff called dark matter, and scientists barely understand what it is. So what happens if we can't answer arguably…
Sep 16, 2026 · 26:28
It's a question that seems impossible to grapple with, but scientists won't take no for an answer. In this collaboration with Scientific American, we take on the big bang and a…
Sep 14, 2026 · 27:18
An astrophysicist uses the motion of the stars to argue that a single story has been told for 100,000 years. A cognitive anthropologist has questions. Guests: Ray Norris,…
Sep 2, 2026 · 36:12
When scientists write their own rules for life, how do they know what could go wrong before it’s too late? This is the final episode of our new three-part series, Life from…
Aug 31, 2026 · 34:16
Synthetic biologist Kate Adamala has been making major headlines as her lab creates cells that feed, divide, and grow — all from nonliving parts. It may sound like sci-fi, but…
Aug 26, 2026 · 29:37
Scientists stripped a cell down to its most essential genes in order to find out what makes life...alive. What they found was more bizarre than they could have imagined. This is…
Aug 24, 2026 · 44:19
A few hundred milliseconds are often all you need to recognize a song, but a lot of recent hits have moved away from intros. Our friends at Switched on Pop (along with the…
Aug 19, 2026 · 26:36
And if babies forget their earliest experiences, do they still matter? This episode is a collaboration with Vox's Explain It to Me podcast Guests: Kristin Ohlson, writer; Tristan…
Aug 17, 2026 · 30:57
Warming waters are an existential threat to coral reefs, and for people who want to restore them. But in the Republic of Palau, researchers are testing out an approach to help…
Aug 10, 2026 · 27:05
Dismissing pseudoscience is too easy. Understanding why it spreads so quickly is harder. It can teach us why real science works and how to spot the difference between the two. To…
Aug 5, 2026 · 39:40
Down beneath the waves, where the light starts to fade, there's an ecosystem scientists don't fully understand. About a decade ago, some researchers left structures in this…
Aug 3, 2026 · 27:39
Birds navigate using Earth’s magnetic field, but scientists still don’t know how they actually sense it. Called the holy grail of sensory biology, magnetoreception offers a…
Jul 29, 2026 · 44:14
This global weather phenomenon could help make 2027 the hottest year on record. Our friends at The Gray Area explore what the upcoming El Niño season could reveal about the…
Jul 27, 2026 · 30:59
It can be hard to know how to interact with the sun. Some people have swung to opposite ends of the spectrum — either over-tanning or avoiding the sun entirely. But what would a…
Jul 22, 2026 · 25:25
The Late Bronze Age, when the Trojan War supposedly took place, was way more modern than Homer made it seem. But around 1177 BCE, a vast network of interconnected societies…
Jul 20, 2026 · 31:43
How do we know what we know about dinosaurs? Riley Black takes us back to the Mesozoic Era and explains how paleontologists piece together the lives of dinosaurs from often…
Jul 15, 2026 · 32:21
A 2015 review found that most people in the US will experience a diagnostic error in their lifetime. Some of those errors are less devastating than others, but how can we help…
Jul 13, 2026 · 32:57
When people listen to songs, why do some people pay more attention to the music, and some people pay more attention to the lyrics? The answer goes way deeper than you might think…
Jul 9, 2026 · 3:03
Unexplainable is coming to Netflix! Starting Monday, July 13. For show transcripts, go to vox.com/unxtranscriptsFor more, go to…
Jul 6, 2026 · 25:37
It’s possible that the entire observable universe is inside a black hole. All we need to do in order to find out is … build a gigantic particle collider around the moon.…
Jun 29, 2026 · 29:47
As the world gets warmer and storms get worse, insurance companies are jacking up rates or refusing to cover homeowners altogether. Is the future uninsurable? (Originally aired…
Jun 24, 2026 · 19:49
Periods and menstrual fluid have long been overlooked by scientists. Now, researchers are starting to suspect they might be sources of medical treasure. (Originally aired in…
Jun 22, 2026 · 27:26
Two mysteries we can't stop thinking about: Is lightning actually caused by cosmic rays? And why don't birds play chess? Articles featured: “What Causes Lightning?” by Charlie…
Jun 17, 2026 · 32:52
When an invasive bug landed on the East Coast, people embraced the order to squish it to death. But what has all that squishing done to us? Guests: Julie Urban, professor in the…
Jun 15, 2026 · 31:53
Sean Rameswaram, co-host of Today, Explained, recently went on a dairy adventure. Noam talks to Sean about what he learned, and about why raw milk is gaining popularity, even…
Jun 10, 2026 · 26:06
Around 90% of life on Earth is unknown. Can Benji find a new species in his backyard? Guests: Benji Jones, Vox senior correspondent, and the NYC species project. For show…
Jun 8, 2026 · 1:00:04
Climate change is making hurricanes, floods, and wildfires harder to prepare for just as confidence in the government’s disaster response is collapsing. Our friends at On the…
Jun 3, 2026 · 38:14
Vijay Sikand is a family doctor in the Connecticut town that gave Lyme disease its name. When a pharmaceutical company came to town to test a vaccine, he built a career and a…
Jun 1, 2026 · 36:15
Fetuses leave cells behind in their parents' bodies, where they braid themselves into tissues, and remain, for years. What are they doing in there? (Originally aired in 2023)…
May 20, 2026 · 16:54
Paul Ehrlich was famous for predicting a population explosion that would destroy the planet, but he didn't count on human ingenuity. Guest: Bryan Walsh, Vox senior editorial…
May 18, 2026 · 41:43
What would life look like after a global nuclear war? Would underground bunkers work? What would we do for food? What about radioactive snow?! In this episode of Are We…
May 13, 2026 · 32:05
What happens when researchers reexamine some of the basic facts about the Black Death? They start rewriting history and rethinking blame. Guests: Hannah Barker, professor at…
May 11, 2026 · 28:01
One of the world’s most biodiverse aquifers is full of strange, blind creatures that have evolved in isolation for millions of years. But one is missing. (Originally aired in…
Apr 29, 2026 · 33:54
Pioneering musicians Beatie Wolfe and Brian Eno released their latest album Liminal by broadcasting it from a 50-foot microwave antenna. Noam talks to Beatie about why “dark…
Apr 27, 2026 · 27:30
Today on the show: a double feature — two mysteries in one episode. First, it seems like all living things emit a faint glow that disappears when they die. Then, is the…
Apr 22, 2026 · 32:03
To hear some people tell it — especially people on TikTok — inflammation is the root of all disease. It's... not that simple. But inflammation does have a lot to teach us about…
Apr 20, 2026 · 27:44
A few months ago, we put out an episode about what silence sounds like, and it caught the attention of Rob Rosenthal, who hosts a podcast called Sound School about the craft of…
Apr 15, 2026 · 26:18
Can microbes travel through space on meteorites? It’s an idea called “lithopanspermia,” and to work out if it’s even feasible, some researchers decided to shoot microbes — with a…
Apr 13, 2026 · 31:33
For the first time in over 50 years, humans have gone to the moon and back. And this time, NASA says we're going to stay. NASA's planning for more missions, a permanent moon…
Apr 1, 2026 · 27:59
Typically, the burden of birth control falls on whoever has a uterus, but it seems like that might change — and soon! Guest: Annalisa Merelli, contributing writer at STAT. For…
Mar 30, 2026 · 19:05
Host Julia Longoria signs off from Unexplainable with one final question: Why does her grandma love Vicks VapoRub so much? A version of this episode originally aired on WNYC’s…
Mar 25, 2026 · 37:28
Casey Harrell is a goofy, lighthearted chatterbox whose love for language helped him become an accomplished environmental activist. In 2020, he was diagnosed with Amyotrophic…
Mar 23, 2026 · 30:52
Oliver Sacks was once crowned “the poet laureate of medicine” — he's known as one of the greatest science writers of our time. But when New Yorker writer Rachel Aviv dug into his…
Mar 18, 2026 · 29:02
One of the deadliest poisons known to man is now used to treat wrinkles, migraines, and even, maybe, depression. How did that happen? Guests: Jean Carruthers, ophthalmologist and…
Mar 16, 2026 · 31:41
Many alchemical texts are full of bizarre, metaphorical language. But what if there's interesting science hiding behind some of those metaphors? Guest: Lawrence Principe,…
Mar 11, 2026 · 28:31
Grab some hot cocoa and a warm blanket and let’s talk about the tiny crystals that fall from the sky. Guest: Jessica Lundquist, professor of civil & environmental engineering at…
Mar 9, 2026 · 27:20
A man committed a crime. He admitted it. Then something alarming showed up on an image of his brain. The criminal case that followed in 1991 brought neuroscience into the…
Feb 25, 2026 · 39:21
How many fish are in the sea? It's a question that has had enormous consequences for the fishing community in New Bedford, Massachusetts. But one man managed to find a way around…
Feb 23, 2026 · 14:58
It's no secret that stress isn't good for you… But just how bad is it? NPR's Short Wave podcast gets some answers. Host: Regina G. Barber, host of NPR’s Short Wave podcast Guest:…
Feb 11, 2026 · 26:26
In the dark depths of the Gowanus Canal, strange lifeforms lurk... Guests: Brad Vogel, volunteer at the Gowanus Dredgers Canoe Club; Elizabeth Hénaff, computational biologist and…
Feb 9, 2026 · 39:35
I’m about to burst. Guests: Laryngologist Dr. Robert Bastian and Noel King, co-host and editorial director of the Vox daily news podcast Today, Explained For more, go to…
Feb 4, 2026 · 26:16
Astronomers are putting together a new picture of the early universe. It involves a lot of very weird black holes, and it could help us understand how our own galaxy formed.…
Feb 2, 2026 · 29:02
It’s surprisingly hard to predict how clouds form, move, and change, but it’s essential to try. Because how clouds react to a warming world helps determine how hot our future…
Jan 28, 2026 · 26:29
Every hand-crafted instrument from violin maker Michael Doran holds its own unexplainable questions. Guest: Michael Doran of Doran’s Violin’s For show transcripts, go to…
Jan 26, 2026 · 23:26
There's been a real rollback of one of the US government's most fundamental tasks: gathering data. Vox correspondents Dylan Scott and Umair Irfan take a look at what a future…
Jan 14, 2026 · 25:23
Things in the news have been feeling kind of…bleak, so we called in some reinforcements. Vox's senior editorial director and resident good news expert Bryan Walsh joins editor…
Jan 12, 2026 · 25:56
Parents are supposed to provide the best life possible for their kids, right? But what does that mean when genetic testing for the baby enters the picture? And how far should…
Jan 7, 2026 · 26:47
Is geoengineering the answer to the climate crisis? Or is it too dangerous to even discuss? It’s been theoretical so far, but now, one startup says their technology could soon…
Jan 5, 2026 · 23:02
Yellowstone can be a deadly place... but not for the reasons you might think. Guest: Mike Poland, scientist in charge at the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory For show transcripts,…
Dec 17, 2025 · 32:26
A two-time Nobel Prize-winning scientist changed chemistry, biology, and the politics of science. But when he pushed vitamin C as a cure-all, did he go too far? Guest: Daniel M.…
Dec 15, 2025 · 31:42
This episode is a follow-up to The Sound Barrier series, which explores our brain's relationship to sound. In our third episode of the series, we asked listeners to try to…
Dec 10, 2025 · 27:13
As our brains develop throughout our childhood and teens, they form connections and then prune back the ones that aren't used. What can we learn from them? Guests: Alison Barth,…
Dec 8, 2025 · 28:38
What's going on in teens' heads? Scientists working on a country-wide study following thousands of young people have spent the last decade trying to answer that question. Guests:…
Dec 3, 2025 · 26:48
Way back when forests first evolved on Earth... they might have triggered one of the biggest mass extinctions in the history of the planet. (Originally aired in 2024) Guests:…
Dec 1, 2025 · 21:22
It's a quasi-moon. Or, a quasi-satellite. Whatever you want to call it, it's hanging out near Earth. And it could be the source of some fascinating new science. Guests: Nick…
Nov 19, 2025 · 35:17
So many of us have been told that meditation can make us less stressed, more productive, and happier. But for a small group of people, it has a dark side. What’s going on?…
Nov 17, 2025 · 26:11
A dog on its owner’s grave. A killer whale carrying around its dead calf. A goose that isolates when its mate dies. These behaviors in animals may look like human mourning, but…
Nov 12, 2025 · 37:25
When Wanda Diáz-Merced lost her sight as a college student, she thought her dreams of becoming an astronomer were over — until she learned to listen to space instead. Wanda is…
Nov 10, 2025 · 31:44
A scientist asked people to sit in a silent room for 15 minutes. Almost half of them decided to give themselves a painful electric shock instead. What is it about our brains that…
Nov 5, 2025 · 33:39
Almost 15% of adults suffer from a persistent, often intolerable sound... that is literally just in their heads. Why does the brain do this to us? We help one of our listeners…
Nov 3, 2025 · 40:18
Just like optical illusions trick our eyes, audio illusions can trick our ears. It makes scientists wonder: What exactly are we hearing, when we're hearing? This is the first…
Oct 29, 2025 · 37:18
This week on Unexplainable or Not, Sally Helm, the newest member of our team, tries to figure out what's killing mussels, why rivers suddenly change course, and what the longest…
Oct 27, 2025 · 19:52
Now why would you click on something like this? What's wrong with you?! Why are you — and so many other people — into scary stuff? Two scientists are trying to find out.…
Oct 22, 2025 · 24:20
Killing two people is worse than killing one. What about 440 billion crustaceans? Adapted from Dylan Matthews's essay on Vox.com. This story is part of a series supported by…
Oct 20, 2025 · 28:47
Think about the thing you’ve practiced more than anything else in the world. Maybe it’s painting. Or writing. Or playing baseball. Now, imagine you wake up one day, and you just…
Oct 8, 2025 · 27:56
Terry Riley's "In C" is one of the most influential pieces of music of the last century...but you'll never hear it the same way twice. Guest: Evan Ziporyn, composer, clarinetist,…
Oct 6, 2025 · 26:56
Donald Trump and RFK Jr. seem convinced that it does. But our friends at Science Vs say the data is far more complicated. Guest: Meryl Horn, senior producer at Science Vs For…
Oct 1, 2025 · 26:56
Zombies might seem like the stuff of horror movies, but there are lots of examples of parasites taking over bugs’ bodies and bending them to their will. Guest: Mindy Weisberger,…
Sep 29, 2025 · 39:50
Who are you, really? Our friends at The Gray Area ask whether it's really possible to change. Guest: Olga Khazan, author of Me, But Better: The Science and Promise of…
Sep 24, 2025 · 26:47
The centuries-old international battle over the real sound of a musical note. Guest: Fanny Gribenski, historical musicologist and author of Tuning the World: The Rise of 440…
Sep 22, 2025 · 33:40
NASA found a Martian rock that might have traces of ancient life. It's perhaps the most tantalizing revelation in the century-long search for Martian life. (Updated from 2022)…
Sep 17, 2025 · 30:06
Recent research — and one surprising season of The Biggest Loser — has scientists wondering whether some of the most basic things they know about metabolism are wrong. Guest:…
Sep 15, 2025 · 39:36
Join our friends at The Longest Shortest Time for a deep dive into the misunderstood world of vaginas. We’ll learn about orgasm-chasing royalty, clitoral wingspans, vagina…
Sep 10, 2025 · 22:26
How the bedtime stories we grew up with inspire the stories we tell now. For show transcripts, go to vox.com/unxtranscripts For more, go to…
Sep 8, 2025 · 28:49
We spoke to two researchers who disagree about the answer to this question. But they do agree about why it's so hard to answer to begin with. Guests: Dylan Scott, senior…
Aug 27, 2025 · 31:40
The US military carved a tiny city into the Greenland ice sheet. What they found, and lost, and found again, and what it tells us about climate change. Guests: Paul Bierman,…
Aug 25, 2025 · 27:19
What do scientists think animals might be like millions of years from now? (First published in 2021) Guests: Benji Jones, senior correspondent at Vox; David Willard,…
Aug 18, 2025 · 26:09
Dark energy is the strange stuff that makes up the vast majority of the universe and will ultimately lead to the end of everything. Unless it doesn't exist at all. Guests: Adam…
Aug 13, 2025 · 29:35
Much of our modern world is made of plastic, but as more signs point to its dangers to human health, what can we even do about it? Guest: Annie Lowrey, Atlantic writer and author…
Aug 6, 2025 · 28:26
Towering walls of water sometimes appear in the ocean without warning or apparent cause. What drives their terrifying power? (First published in 2023) Guest: Ton van der Bremer,…
Aug 4, 2025 · 28:10
Good news can be hard to find, especially when our brains — and the media — are biased against it. Guest: Bryan Walsh, senior editorial director of Vox, and author of the Good…
Jul 30, 2025 · 35:40
If you went back 500 million years and re-ran evolution, would life be totally different today? Guests: Richard Lenski and Zachary Blount, evolutionary biologists at Michigan…
Jul 28, 2025 · 45:54
It's easy to assume there is objective truth in basketball stats. A clear story of what happened in the past. But our friends at Pablo Torre Finds Out uncovered something that…
Jul 23, 2025 · 23:56
Is a solution to climate change…pouring water on hot rocks? Guest: Dylan Matthews, Senior Correspondent at Vox's Future Perfect This episode was made in partnership with Vox's…
Jul 21, 2025 · 29:17
How does any animal know what to do? A neuroscientist argues it's not “instinct.” Something bigger is going on. (First published in 2022) Guest: Mark Blumberg, behavioral…
Jul 16, 2025 · 32:01
We have a cure for tuberculosis. Why does it still kill over a million people every year? GUEST: John Green, podcaster, YouTube creator and award-winning author of Everything is…
Jul 14, 2025 · 58:12
Figuring out the perfect healthy diet remains stubbornly out of reach. Our friends at Gastropod ask: Why? Guests: Cynthia Graber and Nicola Twilley, co-hosts of Gastropod For…
Jul 2, 2025 · 36:42
In coastal California, researchers grapple with potentially losing a landscape they love. Guests: Rebecca Johnson, Director of the Center for Biodiversity and Community Science…
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