A Single Light

Even though I think that we should search for life on otherplanets, there are many obstacles. From Voyager I reaching only 1 light-day after nearly fifty years of travel to the hazards of sending our own message, we see the difficulties we must either overcome or accept in our interstellar search for life.   Co-founders of MooseEel Media, LLC: Jennifer Vandenberg& Maddy Cable Original art: Mad...

Description Many problems remain in finding and/or communicating withintelligent life beyond Earth. What language should we use? How different would their civilization be? Do we need to find Dyson Spheres around a star to guarantee intelligent life on nearby exoplanets? What if we don’t ever find evidence of intelligent life? Is it worth the hunt, or will the alien blind boxprobably be empty and t...

Description Exoplanets are fascinating, but how do we discover them—and could any harbor life? Only time will tell, but as technology advances, our chances of finding answers improve. Even if we never detect life, exoplanets are still worth exploring. Let’s find out why! Co-founders of MooseEel Media, LLC: Jennifer Vandenberg& Maddy Cable Original art: Maddy Cable Research: Jennifer Vandenberg...

Description Over 400 moons orbit six planets in our solar system. Canlife survive on any of them? We take a tour of the solar system’s moons, from tiny, captured asteroids to a few larger than Mercury. Scientists have sent missions to moons in the past, and many more are planned for the future.  Co-founders of MooseEel Media, LLC: Jennifer Vandenberg& Maddy Cable Original art: Maddy Cable Rese...

Description Mars is named for the God of War, and many battles have been fought over whether the red planet has life. From the 1700s to today, scientists have hunted for life, though in very different ways. Will we ever find life on Mars? Should humans do science there themselves? Let’s find some answers. Co-founders of MooseEel Media, LLC: Jennifer Vandenberg& Maddy Cable Original art: Maddy...

Description To understand the potential for life in the solar system, weneed to learn about the planets. We start at the Sun (not a planet, but some believe it could have life) and hopscotch through each of the eight planets. We don't find life, but we learn what makes each planet unique and what keeps it lifeless. With this knowledge, we can better assess which exoplanets may or may not have...

Description In our search for life on other planets, we need to know whatlife looks like. Luckily, we have lots of examples on Earth. By learning how life started, we can learn how to find it on other planets. Today we take a trip to the beginning of the solar system to learn a couple of theories about the beginning of life. Co-founders of MooseEel Media, LLC: Jennifer Vandenberg& Maddy Cable...

Description There are possibly billions of exoplanets in our galaxy, butmost of them will not have any life on them because they are outside of their star’s habitable zone. What is a habitable zone? Why is it so important? Can a planet or moon outside of the habitable zone harbor life? We explore these questions in today’s session.   Co-founders of MooseEel Media, LLC: Jennifer Vandenberg& Mad...

Description Today, the hunt for extraterrestrials is part of everyday life. This has been true for more than a hundred years. Did the citizens of ancient civilizations hunt for aliens also? We’ll look back in history, meet two Greek philosophers, and see how they influenced modern astrobiology. Co-founders of MooseEel Media, LLC: Jennifer Vandenberg& Maddy Cable Original art: Maddy Cable Resea...

Description Seth Shostak from the SETI Institute joined us for part twoof our interview. In this session, Seth gives advice on how to become an astrobiologist or radio astronomer, then we discussed more aliens (who doesn’t love talking about aliens.) Co-founders of MooseEel Media, LLC: Jennifer Vandenberg& Maddy Cable Original art: Maddy Cable Research: Jennifer Vandenberg Script: Jennifer Van...

Description Seth Shostak from the SETI Institute had the honor ofjoining us on our first interview. We broke our talk into two parts. In this session, Seth talks about his science background, what methods the SETI Institute uses to find intelligent life in the galaxy, and whether aliens have visited Earth. Join us next week for part two of his interview. Credits Co-founders of MooseEel Media, LLC:...

Description Is there life out there? Jennifer and Maddy explore thefundamental question for astrobiologists: Is there life out there, and how can we find it? From SETI to the Rare Earth Hypothesis, all sides get discussed, and opinions are strong. Credits Co-founders of MooseEel Media, LLC: Jennifer Vandenberg& Maddy Cable Original art: Maddy Cable Research: Jennifer Vandenberg Script: Jennife...

Description Jennifer and Maddy get personal and introduce the nextseries on A Single Light, Astrobiology. Credits Co-founders of MooseEel Media, LLC: Jennifer Vandenberg& Maddy Cable Original art: Maddy Cable Research: Jennifer Vandenberg Script: Jennifer Vandenberg & Maddy Cable Editing: Jennifer Vandenberg Editing software: Canva Music: Remember This Moment by Patrick Rundblad Comment be...

Description Jennifer, Maddy, and her mom Lizzy visited the Field Museumin Chicago, Illinois. It would take multiple episodes to thoroughly describe this remarkable museum, but in this spark, we wanted to give you a taste of what you can see if you visit this year. Jennifer loved the evolution and dinosaur hall, while Maddy was excited to visit the Pokémon Fossil Museum, a temporary exhibit at the...

Description Tardigrades are microscopic animals that survive inenvironments that would kill many other animals. Jennifer absolutely loves them and made Maddy a deal. If the YouTube video that mentioned tardigrades received 10 comments, she would have to draw a tardigrade. We got ten comments, and she held up her side of the bargain. Check out the website to see her drawing and listen to this spark...

Description More than 2 million Americans go ice fishing every winter. How can they drive on the ice? Don’t they get cold? How long have people been ice fishing? Maddy and Jennifer didn’t have these answers, but they were eager to learn. The biggest question is whether they want to go ice fishing after learning all these fun facts. Credits Co-founders of MooseEel Media, LLC: Jennifer Vandenberg&am...

Description Grasshopper mice live throughout western North America, but the grasshopper mice that live in the American Southwest have a special ability. They can eat bark scorpions because the scorpion's venom acts as a painkiller for the mice. They are aggressive, territorial, and extremely cute. Listen to our spark to learn more. Credits Co-founders of MooseEel Media, LLC: Jennifer Vandenber...

Description Temperature affects everything from animals to vegetables tominerals. In today’s grab bag session, we are going to discover how temperature influences snowflake shape, igneous rock formation, the sex of baby turtles, and my favorites, tardigrades. Maddy agreed that if we get ten comments on this session,she will draw a tardigrade. Please comment so the world can get its promised drawin...

Description The weather depends on many variables, including temperature, air pressure, wind, and humidity. In this session, we are going to learn how temperature can influence the weather. From heat domes to blizzards, temperature is not merely a result of the weather but also a cause. Credits Co-founders of MooseEel Media, LLC: Jennifer Vandenberg& Maddy Cable Original art: Maddy Cable Resea...

Description Humans can live in extreme temperatures, but we need external assistance. Animals don’t have jackets or air conditioning, but many of them thrive in extreme areas. In this session, we learn about several animals that live in extreme temperature zones and explore how they survive. Credits Co-founders of MooseEel Media, LLC: Jennifer Vandenberg& Maddy Cable Original art: Maddy Cable...

Description Most of us have had a fever before, and many of us have suffered from extreme cold. Why does the body react in such extreme ways to temperature changes? How have we tried to cure fevers and shivers throughout history? Can sufferingfrom these temperatures heal as well as harm? In today's session, we will explore the causes, problems, and cures of overheating or hypothermia. Credits...

Description Lots of places on Earth are hot or cold, but a few get extremely hot or extremely cold. In this session, we will visit some of these places and learn why they are more extreme than any other place on Earth. Credits Co-founders of MooseEel Media, LLC: Jennifer Vandenberg& Maddy Cable Original art: Maddy Cable Research: Jennifer Vandenberg Script: Jennifer Vandenberg & Maddy Cabl...

Description Thermometers are so common in our lives that we rarely thinkof what they are made of or how they work. In this session, we look at the different types of materials used on the inside and outside of thermometers, then peer into the future to see what is next (can anyone say quantum?). Credits Co-founders of MooseEel Media, LLC: Jennifer Vandenberg& Maddy Cable Original art: Maddy Ca...

Description Oh Lordy, Lordy, Lordy, look at what you’ve done. In this session, we will explore everything Lord Kevin, aka Sir William Thomson, contributed to the science of thermometers. Along the way, Jennifer will dive into Quantum Physics, but she stays in the shallow end. Credits Co-founders of MooseEel Media, LLC: Jennifer Vandenberg& Maddy Cable Original art: Maddy Cable Research: Jennif...

A worldwide phenomenon, Celsius is the late runner that took over the world. In session 3 of our series on temperature, we learn which few countries still use the Fahrenheit scale, who Anders Celsius was, and how his temperature scale became an international standard. In the end, we decide if it is time for the United States to join the world in embracing Celsius.   Credits Co-founders of MooseEel...