What is Antimatter?

What is antimatter? Neil deGrasse Tyson and Chuck Nice break down what antimatter is and how our matter-based universe came to be. What happens when matter and antimatter annihilate? We break down positrons and the anti-quarks that makeup anti-neutrons. Is there an opposite universe where everything is antimatter? Plus, learn about energy mass conversion and its role in how our universe came to be.

Timestamps:
00:00 - Introduction: Is Antimatter Real?
01:48 - Antimatter Annihilation & Energy Conversion
04:05 - Is there an Antimatter Universe?
08:08 - The Begining of the Universe
11:27 - Is Antimatter Still Among Us?

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About StarTalk:
Science meets pop culture on StarTalk! Astrophysicist & Hayden Planetarium director Neil deGrasse Tyson, his comic co-hosts, guest celebrities & scientists discuss astronomy, physics, and everything else about life in the universe. Keep Looking Up!

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[StarTalk]

How could the study of antimatter help us understand the origins and ultimate fate of our universe?

[wjrasmussen]

I like seeing how much Chuck has learned over the years.

[dukatelo]

"Isn't there conservation of energy" I swear if Chuck keeps showing up on StarTalk he will get that Ph.D from Neil himself lol, every video he keeps learning more and more and it shows

[DirkThys]

11:54 in that antimatter universe, the astrophysicist Chuck Nice is explaining to comedian Neil deGrasse Tyson what antimatter is

[ssskillzzz]

I am an electrical engineer. I wish I had access to these when I was a kid. I am fascinated by physics, and especially particle physics. However I didn't believe in myself until I was 31 years old when I went back to get my physics and math degree. It's so important to inspire kids early! This is amazing!

[RoseOhenewa]

Meanwhile in antimatter universe someone is also trying to explain matter in an interview

[KHAOS_CT]

Chuck is just like darpa, "cool, so how can we turn this into a bomb?" lmfaooo

[AZREDFERN]

So when someone says “it doesn’t matter”, are they implying that it DOES anti-matter? Should I be worried about coming into contact with this thing that doesn’t matter?

[ViperOfMino]

5:50 Neil's the perfect teacher, man. Perfect balance of understandable but not treating us like we're babies that don't know how to add 2+2. Because he's so good at that, you know at 5:50 when he says "I don't wanna move forward until I hear that you understand this" that you gotta buckle up and get ready because you're in for some serious astrophysics.

[creoleboymike]

Me and my 9 year old listen to Star Talk every day, and he is finally starting to understand the concepts. We love this channel thanks guys!

[kingbill]

These two legends chatting science is my new favourite thing.

[BeatsAndGuitars]

Man I love these two together. I hope they continue to keep doing this show.

[keithrange]

On a tee shirt of mine:

You matter!!! Unless you multiply yourself by the speed of light squared... Then.. YOU ENERGY!!

[psypsy]

I hope we never find an antimatter Universe so Chuck never gets annihilated by Lord Mean

[rai]

I have so much respect for Chuck, he represents us all as viewers, cause some of these concepts require re-listening a few times and taking 5 mins to think about it etc, especially if its the first time. But he has to response straight away in real-time. Bravo mate!

[Harshit-zg]

He literally explained in simplest way possible ✨

[CheradenZakalwe]

that epiphany of why E=MC2 equation is so powerful was fantastic, I remember it well when it happened to me at school.

[bikkies]

From my rudimentary smattering of research, I'm moderately sure that I've not only been in contact with antimatter, but it indirectly saved my life. Around 2000 I had a PET scan and this was the first scan technology that was able to clinically confirm the presence of cancer. All other imaging and bloodwork prior to that point had not detected it. This led to a regimen of chemotherapy and I'm still around 24 years later to write about it. I've tried several times to learn how PET scans work, but the furthest I've been able to take my knowledge thus far is that I was injected with a radioisotope attached to a carrier, from which positrons were emitted (as in Positron Emission Tomography), all happening within my body. It was still a fairly new technology in my area of the UK at that time, and it's doubtless become more sophisticated since, but I've long wondered about the mechanics of how and why it works.

[TheGiggleMasterP]

If all the antimatter went in one direction it's possible all the matter went in the other and we just exist peacefully in separate sides of the universe

[Anmol_pp]

11:01 it would be so funny if they both touched each other and vanished turning into light