Universe Today Podcast

The asteroid threat is down to zero, whatever happened to that star that was supposed to go nova, more landers are launched to the Moon. Plus in our extended version on Patreon, how Venus’s atmosphere could protect life in its clouds.

Would we have colonized Mars by now if it had air? What is the ultimate fate of stars? What's the point of talking about the density of black holes? And which movies would go into the Fraserverse? Answering all these questions and more in this Q&A show.

Will SpaceX eventually consume NASA? Are there asteroids at Lagrange points in front and behind the Earth? Can we track the Space Force's secret X37 shuttle? Answering all these questions and more in this Q&A show.

A massive new release of Type 1a supernova data, did astronomers see a strange star form? huge spiral arms of comets in the Oort Cloud, and the highest energy neutrino ever detected. Plus in our extended version on Patreon, how scientists could get real data on UAPs.

What will we really lose in case SLS actually gets cancelled? Would nuclear rockets bring a significant enough improvement to space travel? Do we even know how to die in space? Answering all these questions and more in this Q&A show.

Does dark matter annihilate with normal matter? Should we be searching for signs of life in other galaxies? Do we know how to terraform exoplanets? Answering all these questions and more in this Q&A.

Moving across the surface of Enceladus can be more tricky than you think. Rough icy terrain can be hard for wheels. No atmosphere makes helicopters impossible. Thus, hopping and jumping might be the answer! 🟣 Guest: Dr. Justin Yim https://publish.illinois.edu/novelmobilerobotslab/

James Webb finds the smallest asteroids in the main belt, astronomers double the chances of that asteroid strike in 2032, using hydrogel to protect astronauts from radiation, and material from Alpha centauri is already streaming into the Solar System.

Which NIAC project would be the best to bring to life? Are there really more stars than grains of sand on Earth? Is the solar eclipse going away from us? What's on my shelf behind me? Answering all these questions and more in this Q&A. 🦄 Support us on Patreon: https://patreon.com/universetoday 00:00 Start 00:26 Is the total solar eclipse going away? 02:24 Will Starship and New Glenn bring mor...

NASA just funded a NIAC project to study the possibility of building large structures on the Moon, on Mars and in space out of glass. Blowing glass bubbles similarly to how it's done on Earth. 🟣 Guest: Dr. Martin Bermudez https://www.skyeports.com/

Will space debris prevent us from accessing orbit and when could it happen? Is the Universe with all its rules just a lucky accident? What does "The Publisher of Universe Today" even do? Answering all these questions and more in this Q&A show.

Venus has a thick layer of clouds that obscures our view of the surface. To tackle that, this NIAC project suggests launching a balloon with a tether that will go below the cloud layer and help us image Venus surface. 🟣 Guest: Dr Benjamin Hockman https://www-robotics.jpl.nasa.gov/who-we-are/people/benjamin_hockman/

A new asteroid with a 1% chance of hitting Earth in 2032, the European Space Agency is building a Lunar Lander platform, the largest structure in the Universe has been discovered, and how far away could we detect ourselves?

Who will get sample from Mars first? Who controls the James Webb Space Telescope? Does space radiation rule out panspermia? Answering all these questions and more in this Q&A show.

We all want to see potentially habitable exoplanets around Sun-like stars. But to do that you need a starshade. Something to cover the star and reveal the faint planets around it. What can we build these structures from to make them rigid and strong enough? Finding out in this interview. 🟣 Guest: Christine Gregg Dynamically Stable Large Space Structures via Architected Metamaterials https://www.n...

Why are most craters circular, no matter which angle the meteor falls? Is there a size limit for a telescope before diminishing returns take place? Can black holes have atmospheres? Answering all these questions and more in this Q&A show.

Space Docks are everywhere in science fiction. It's the most logical way to build big constructions in space. So, NASA funded a futuristic project that studies the possibility of assembling structures in space. 🟣 Guest: Dr Vojtech Holub https://thinkorbital.com/

The MOXIE experiment on the Perseverance rover showed that creating oxygen on other planets is possible. Now, we can apply the same logic to Venus. This could allow the creation of constantly floating balloons, leading to cloud cities in the future.

Venus is closer than Mars. It's more Earth-like. We can bring back samples from it. But it's chronically underexlored. This is why we need a Venus Exploration Program! 🟣 Guest: Dr Paul Byrne https://arxiv.org/pdf/2412.06830

The building blocks of life have been found in asteroid samples, the most volcanic activity ever seen on Io, astronauts are searching for bacteria on the outside of the space station, and Ingenuity found surprisingly fast wind speeds on Mars.

How big can a space crowbar be? Why does the Sun look bigger near the horizon? How do we measure temperature on the Moon? Answering all these questions and more in this Q&A show.

NASA is launching a new telescope this year called Pandora. It'll be specifically inspecting atmospheres of exoplanets. It even uses spare parts from JWST. Learning more about the Pandora telescope in this interview. 🟣 Guest: Dr Ben Hord https://pandorasat.com/

Did we find ore veins on Moon or Mars? Can we see astronomical objects in 3D? Can we catch a ride on a comet? How will the internet work on Mars? Answering all these questions and more in this Q&A.

What's going on with the TRAPPIST-1 system? Did James Webb find atmospheres or not? Do any of the planets have a chance to be habitable? When should we expect more information? Answering all these questions in this interview. 🟣 Guest: Megan Gialluca https://depts.washington.edu/astrobio/wordpress/profile/megan-gialluca/

What happened to Starship during test flight 7? Astronomers see a black hole’s jets forming in real-time. Curiosity finds ripples of an ancient shore, and an insanely high-resolution image of Andromeda captured by Hubble.