John Wenz

John was a science editor for Inverse, focusing on space, physical sciences, and climate.

Prior to his time at Inverse, he was digital producer at Knowable Magazine, associate editor at Astronomy Magazine, a news writer at Popular Mechanics, and a long-time freelancer. His bylines have appeared for publications including Discover Magazine, Scientific American, Popular Science, New Scientist, Vice, and more. (RIP, The Awl.) His favorite science topics include astrophysics, paleogenetics, paleontology, lichen biology, mycology, and botany. In addition to science writing, he has written about music, film, TV, immigration law, and food.

In his spare time, he takes photos of lichen, hikes, plays Nintendo Switch games (poorly), paints with watercolor, does some sky observing, and attends Aqua Zumba like a person twice his age. He enjoys cooking, puzzles, collecting weird statues, brushing up on his X-Men knowledge, and watching comedy and science fiction TV shows and strange movies.

He has written one book, The Lost Planets, published by MIT Press in October 2019, and served as a consulting editor on What’s Hidden Inside Planets?, coming soon from Johns Hopkins University Press. He lives in the Milwaukee area with his wife and three cats that wake him up at 5 a.m. every day screaming for breakfast. He is a graduate of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln with a degree in English.

Reel Science

The Greatest Indiana Jones Mystery Skirts Scientific Fact

“We have top men working on it right now... top men.”

By John Wenz
Reel Science

David Cronenberg’s Freakiest Sci-Fi Movie Is Hiding Some Bizarre, Real Science

Overshadowed at the time by The Matrix, eXistenZ floundered at the box office but went on to become a cult classic.

By John Wenz
Reel Science

The Hover Cars in Your Favorite Sci-Fi Movie Might Actually Be Possible

It all comes down to magnets.

By John Wenz
Retrospective

One of the Most Influential Movies of the ‘70s is Secretly an Apocalyptic Story

What do you do when the world is collapsing around you?

By John Wenz
Retrospective

Before Robert Eggers, Werner Herzog Put His Own Surreal Stamp on 'Nosferatu'

There’s an important lesson to be found in Nosferatu the Vampyre.

By John Wenz
Retrospective

One Akira Kurosawa Movie Proved to be the Greatest Inspiration for Star Wars

It’s not just samurai codes and Japanese-inspired robes.

By John Wenz
Science

A Major Agricultural Pest Hides the Key to Its Survival in Its Poop

The squash bug has to seek out a symbiont. It can only be found in poop.

By John Wenz
Space

Today Only, You Can Get a Bird’s Eye View of Mars in Near-Real-Time

A new tool allows you to see what Mars is like right now, minus a little relativistic time delay.

By John Wenz
Space

Look! Uranus Sparkles in Stunning New Webb Telescope Image

The seventh planet gets a closeup to end all closeups.

By John Wenz
HORIZONS

Lab-grown chicken could hit store shelves soon — here's how it tastes

It’s a whole new kind of poultry.

By John Wenz
HORIZONS

Is Planet Nine out there? This new telescope could finally settle the long-standing mystery

Its shiny new camera will capture the night sky like never before.

By John Wenz
Science

Artemis I returns safely to Earth, kicking off a new era of Moon exploration

The Moon mission paves the way to bring humans back to our nearest neighbor.

By John Wenz
Moonshot

NASA confirms Artemis is on track for its November 14 launch attempt

This time it really means it. Really.

By John Wenz and Kiona Smith
Moonshot

Artemis I: NASA sets new launch date for Moon-bound rocket

After numerous delays, will it finally fly?

By John Wenz
HORIZONS

X-rays could reveal the secrets hidden in Gutenberg's first Bibles

Right now, it isn’t certain where the famed German inventor got his idea from. But a powerful machine may clear things up.

By John Wenz
Science

No, this newly discovered fossil doesn’t make the Loch Ness Monster 'plausible'

Choose your words carefully.

By John Wenz
labor of love

The Artemis I Moon mission finally has a launch window — NASA

Celebrate the end of summer with a lunar event like no other... maybe.

By John Wenz
Science

12 scientists react to the Webb Telescope's first images: “A stunning achievement”

It was all a lot to take in — so we asked a few people in the astronomy community their thoughts.

By Doris Elín Urrutia, Kiona Smith and John Wenz
Space

NASA's Moon-bound mini-probe just lost communication with Earth

The CAPSTONE mission was supposed to crawl its way to the Moon but instead fell out of communication.

By John Wenz
UAPs

NASA announces a new investigation of unidentified aerial phenomena

The agency will release a report on UAPs sometime next year after a nine-month investigation.

By John Wenz