Why This Universe?
by Dan Hooper, Shalma Wegsman
Is this your podcast?Insights from recent episode analysis
Audience Interest
Podcast Focus
Publishing Consistency
Platform Reach
Insights are generated by CastFox AI using publicly available data, episode content, and proprietary models.
Most discussed topics
Brands & references
Total monthly reach
Estimated from 47 chart positions in 47 markets.
By chart position
- 🇨🇦CA · Physics#41M to 3M
- 🇺🇸US · Physics#51M to 3M
- 🇦🇺AU · Physics#51M to 3M
- 🇩🇪DE · Physics#8300K to 1M
- 🇬🇧GB · Physics#9300K to 1M
- Per-Episode Audience
Est. listeners per new episode within ~30 days
3.3M to 9.9M🎙 Weekly cadence·114 episodes·Last published 1w ago - Monthly Reach
Unique listeners across all episodes (30 days)
6.5M to 20M🇨🇦15%🇺🇸15%🇦🇺15%+44 more - Active Followers
Loyal subscribers who consistently listen
2.0M to 6.0M
Market Insights
Platform Distribution
Reach across major podcast platforms, updated hourly
Total Followers
—
Total Plays
—
Total Reviews
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* Data sourced directly from platform APIs and aggregated hourly across all major podcast directories.
On the show
From 10 epsHosts
Recent guests
Recent episodes
100 - What is Light? A Journey from Ancient Philosophy to Quantum Physics
Aug 24, 2026
36m 41s
99 - The 7 Most Exciting Developments in Physics Today + a WTU Update
Aug 3, 2026
36m 07s
98 - An Improbable Quantum Ghost Story (Ft. David Kaplan)
Jan 19, 2026
41m 21s
97 - The Schrödinger Equation: The Heart of Quantum Mechanics
Dec 22, 2025
29m 52s
96 - The Making of Particle Fever (Ft. David Kaplan)
Nov 24, 2025
53m 24s
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| Date | Episode | Topics | Guests | Brands | Places | Keywords | Sponsor | Length | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8/24/26 | 100 - What is Light? A Journey from Ancient Philosophy to Quantum Physics | Modern physics tells us a lot about light; that it's both a wave and a particle, and that it sets the speed limit of the universe, for example. But how did we come to understand light in this way? In Dan's first solo episode, he takes us through theories of light through the ages, starting from the earliest accounts of ancient ideas and bringing us all the way to modern times. Let us know what you think about this new format! Support the show | 36m 41s | ||||||
| 8/3/26 | 99 - The 7 Most Exciting Developments in Physics Today + a WTU Update | It's been a while! To make up for lost time, today's episode is a rundown of all the physics news you should know. Hear what is keeping physicists at the edge of their seat, and what physics news you should keep your eyes out for in the coming years. Also, this episode comes with an update from us at WTU: This will be Shalma's last episode as co-host and editor (though she'll continue to help out with production behind the scenes). Support the show | 36m 07s | ||||||
| 1/19/26 | quantum mechanicsnon-linear quantum mechanics+3 | David Kaplan | PatreonShalma Wegsman | — | quantum mechanicsnon-linear+4 | — | 41m 21s | ||
| 12/22/25 | quantum mechanicsSchrödinger equation+4 | — | PatreonShalma Wegsman+1 | — | quantum mechanicsSchrödinger equation+4 | — | 29m 52s | ||
| 11/24/25 | particle physicsdocumentary+3 | David Kaplan | Large Hadron ColliderParticle Fever | — | Large Hadron ColliderParticle Fever+5 | — | 53m 24s | ||
| 11/4/25 | aliensphysics+3 | Daniel Whiteson | Do Aliens Speak Physics? | — | aliensphysics+4 | — | 43m 10s | ||
| 10/13/25 | Nobel Prizescience+3 | — | NobelShalma Wegsman | — | Nobel Prizescience+3 | PatreonCODE | 34m 29s | ||
| 9/29/25 | Hubble Tensionuniverse expansion+3 | Adam Riess | — | — | Hubble Tensionuniverse expansion+4 | — | 31m 55s | ||
| 9/15/25 | dark energyuniverse expansion+3 | Adam Riess | PatreonShalma Wegsman | — | dark energyuniverse expansion+3 | — | 40m 23s | ||
| 5/2/25 | dark energytwin paradox+3 | — | Patreon | — | dark energytwin paradox+3 | — | 54m 36s | ||
Want analysis for the episodes below?Free for Pro Submit a request, we'll have your selected episodes analyzed within an hour. Free, at no cost to you, for Pro users. | |||||||||
| 3/9/25 | early universequantum interpretations+4 | — | Patreon | — | early universequantum interpretations+4 | — | 29m 05s | ||
| 1/13/25 | cosmologydiscoveries+3 | Dan Scolnic | — | — | cosmology2025+3 | — | 46m 14s | ||
| 12/23/24 | 91 - What Neutrinos Reveal About the Milky Way | A discovery last year reveals our galaxy in a whole new light - except it's not light, it's neutrinos! Learn what this discovery can teach us about the Milky Way and beyond.For exclusive ask-us-anything episodes, join us for just $3 a month on Patreon: https://patreon.com/whythisuniverse. Our merch is available here: https://www.shalmawegsman.com/why-this-universe Support the show | 30m 57s | ||||||
| 11/4/24 | 90 - Quintessence: Is Dark Energy Changing? (Ft. Sean Carroll) | Is it possible that dark energy is not a constant, but rather is changing over time? Sean Carroll talks to us about how our understanding of dark energy evolved in recent history, and what is still left unknown.For exclusive ask-us-anything episodes, join us for just $3 a month on Patreon: https://patreon.com/whythisuniverse. Our merch is available here: https://www.shalmawegsman.com/why-this-universe Support the show | 41m 43s | ||||||
| 10/14/24 | 89 - A Dark Matter Vibe Check | Dan and Shalma have a candid conversation about the state of dark matter research, and the ways the field has changed over the last few years.For exclusive ask-us-anything episodes, join us for just $3 a month on Patreon: https://patreon.com/whythisuniverse. Our merch is available here: https://www.shalmawegsman.com/why-this-universeSupport the show | 37m 14s | ||||||
| 9/23/24 | 88 - Why Does Our Universe Exist At All? (Ft. Sean Carroll) | Why does something exist, rather than nothing? Special guest Sean Carroll helps us explore this deep philosophical question.For ad free episodes and other exclusives, join us for just $3 a month on Patreon: https://patreon.com/whythisuniverse.Our merch is available here: https://www.shalmawegsman.com/why-this-universeSupport the show | 28m 01s | ||||||
| 9/2/24 | 87 - The Good and the Bad of Peer Review | There has been some criticism of the process scientists use to check each other's work. Today we take a deep dive into peer review to determine how broken it really is.For ad free episodes and other exclusives, join us for just $3 a month on Patreon: https://patreon.com/whythisuniverse.Our merch is available here: https://www.shalmawegsman.com/why-this-universeSupport the show | 39m 39s | ||||||
| 8/5/24 | 28 - How Noether's Theorem Changed Physics (Rerun) | Learn how Noether's profound mathematical theorem relating symmetries to conservation laws is deeply woven into the physics of the universe. Enjoy this rerun of an earlier episode as we take our summer break.For ad free episodes and other exclusives, join us for just $3 a month on Patreon: https://patreon.com/whythisuniverseOur merch is available here: https://www.shalmawegsman.com/why-this-universeSupport the show | 24m 21s | ||||||
| 7/2/24 | 86 - The Life and Death of Stars | We explore the diverse world of stars in the universe, from those similar to our Sun to those totally unrecognizable.For ad free episodes and other exclusives, join us for just $3 a month on Patreon: https://patreon.com/whythisuniverseOur merch is available here: https://www.shalmawegsman.com/why-this-universeSupport the show | 40m 52s | ||||||
| 6/17/24 | 85 - Our Sun: Present, Past and Future | Today's episode is all about the star in our front yard - the sun. Learn how it came to be, how it has changed, and how will it change in the future.For ad free episodes and other exclusives, join us for just $3 a month on Patreon: https://patreon.com/whythisuniverseOur merch is available here: https://www.shalmawegsman.com/why-this-universeSupport the show | 37m 23s | ||||||
| 6/3/24 | 84 - The Search For New Worlds (ft. Josh Winn) | Hear how the search for exoplanets has developed, and what surprises it has brought so far.For ad free episodes and other exclusives, join us for just $3 a month on Patreon: https://patreon.com/whythisuniverseOur merch is available here: https://www.shalmawegsman.com/why-this-universeSupport the show | 45m 14s | ||||||
| 5/13/24 | 83 - Witnessing a Revolution in Particle Physics (Ft. Chris Quigg) | Today we hear from someone who bore witness to the so-called “November Revolution” of particle physics in 1974.For ad free episodes and other exclusives, join us for just $3 a month on Patreon: https://patreon.com/whythisuniverseOur merch is available here: https://www.shalmawegsman.com/why-this-universe Support the show | 31m 44s | ||||||
| 4/29/24 | 82 - Science Vs. Pseudoscience | Pseudoscience can sometimes be hard to distinguish from the real thing. Today we discuss how philosophers of science have thought about this problem.For ad free episodes and other exclusives, join us for just $3 a month on Patreon: https://patreon.com/whythisuniverseOur merch is available here: https://www.shalmawegsman.com/why-this-universeSupport the show | 35m 40s | ||||||
| 4/15/24 | 81 - Ancient Greek Astronomy | The first episode in a new mini-series on philosophical problems in cosmology - Today we start with the origins of Western science and learn what the ancient Greeks thought about the cosmos.For ad free episodes and other exclusives, join us for just $3 a month on Patreon: https://patreon.com/whythisuniverseOur merch is available here: https://www.shalmawegsman.com/why-this-universeSupport the show | 43m 25s | ||||||
| 4/1/24 | 80 - (April Fools 2024) A Surprising Discovery Shaking Up Modern Cosmology | Hear how a recent discovery of the motions of galaxies is changing how cosmologists are thinking about our universe.For ad free episodes and other exclusives, join us for just $3 a month on Patreon: https://patreon.com/whythisuniverseOur merch is available here: https://www.shalmawegsman.com/why-this-universeSupport the show | 16m 48s | ||||||
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Chart history for Why This Universe?
Peaked at #2 in PT, top 10 in 33 of 50 tracked markets, currently #2 in PT.
| Market | Genre | Peak | Current | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PT | — | #2 | #2 | — |
| PL | — | #3 | #3 | — |
| PH | — | #3 | #3 | — |
| South Africa | — | #3 | #3 | — |
| Canada | — | #4 | #4 | — |
| Ireland | — | #4 | #4 | — |
| Norway | — | #4 | #4 | — |
| AE | — | #4 | #4 | — |
| KE | — | #4 | #4 | — |
| United States | — | #5 | #5 | — |
| Australia | — | #5 | #5 | — |
| Sweden | — | #5 | #5 | — |
| HU | — | #5 | #5 | — |
| MY | — | #5 | #5 | — |
| ID | — | #5 | #5 | — |
| Denmark | — | #6 | #6 | — |
| IS | — | #6 | #6 | — |
| IL | — | #6 | #6 | — |
| TH | — | #6 | #6 | — |
| Spain | — | #7 | #7 | — |
Chart Positions
50 placements across 47 markets.
Chart Positions
50 placements across 47 markets.