Universe Today Podcast

In this week's questions show, I talk about how dark matter seems to clump differently from regular matter. When will Starships stop exploding? And what do I think about the Stellina telescope? Image credit: Everyday Astronaut https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC6uKrU_WqJ1R2HMTY3LIx5Q 00:00 Start 00:36 Does dark matter clump? 05:35 When will Starships stop exploding? 10:33 What do I think about the...

This week I talk to Christopher Morrison from USNC about their recently awarded NIAC Grant. Their grant will investigate the feasibility of a radioisotope-electric propelled spacecraft that could intercept and retrieve a sample from a future interstellar asteroid or comet. You can learn more about it here: https://www.nasa.gov/directorates/spacetech/niac/2021_Phase_I/Extrasolar_Object_Interceptor_...

In this week's live questions show, we spend a lot of time talking about the Perseverance landing on Mars. What's happening with my content right now, and is anyone watching the Moon for meteorite impacts? 00:00 Start 00:15 What was the best part of the Perseverance landing? 03:28 Why is the data transfer to Mars so good? 05:43 How do you test AI to work remotely on Mars? 07:56 How did they decele...

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In this week's questions show, I talk about why some missions go into orbit, and other missions make a direct landing on Mars. Is it a good idea for the SpaceX Falcon Heavy to launch components for the Lunar Gateway? And how can we know if the Universe is finite or infinite? 00:00 Start 00:30 Why go into orbit when NASA goes straight for landing? 04:19 What about SpaceX launching the Lunar Gateway...

00:00 Start 00:22 Easier to find life in the Solar System or Milky Way? 05:13 Could an exosuit simulate gravity? 06:36 Could you use water as a propulsion system? 08:28 Could you have space-based interferometry? 13:02 Are the moons of Jupiter in severe radiation? 14:19 Is anyone working on spinning habitats? 18:05 What about Amazon's satellite constellations? 22:19 Can you have rogue planets witho...

This week I interview Chris Prophet, the author of "SpaceX from the Ground Up". His book, now in its 6th edition covers the story of SpaceX, from its initial concept to the latest Starship tests. https://www.amazon.com/SpaceX-Ground-Up-Chris-Prophet-ebook/dp/B01CUUUZZ2 🚀 OUR WEBSITE: ════════════════════════════════════ https://www.universetoday.com/ 🚀 PODCAST LINKS: ════════════════════════════...

In this week's Q&A show, I answer questions about Starship might be able to provide artificial gravity, whether I'd prefer to have LUVOIR or the Overwhelmingly Large Telescope, and if nuclear-powered rockets will work in space. You can join me live every Monday on my YouTube channel at 5pm Pacific Time to ask your questions live. 00:00 Start 00:18 Could Starships provide artificial gravity? 03...

In this week's interview, I talk to David Brown about his new book: The Mission. It's all about the campaign to design and build the Europa Clipper mission and everything that happened behind-the-scenes. David is a science journalist and writer with with work in the Atlantic, New York Times, Scientific American and more. https://www.dwb.io/ https://www.harpercollins.com/products/the-mission-david-...

In this week's QA, I talk about what's driving the expansion of the Universe, how big the observable Universe is to the actual Universe, and what will happen to dogs in gravity. 00:00 Start 00:26 What's driving the expansion of the Universe? 04:01 How big is the observable Universe compared to the actual Universe? 07:25 Do people watch videos or listen to my podcasts? 10:37 Will dogs enjoy lunar g...

10 billion years ago, galaxies of the Universe were ablaze with the light of newly forming stars. This epic phase of history is known as “Cosmic Noon” - the height of all star creation. Galaxies like our Milky Way aren’t creating stars at nearly the rates they were in the ancient past. However, there is a time when galaxies in the present can explode with star formation – when they collide with ea...

In this week's interview, I talk with Devin Carroll, a robotics Ph. D. student at the modular robotics lab at the University of Pennsylvania. Devin is working on robots that can build their own structure out of ice. https://www.modlabupenn.org/people/devin-carroll/ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kjfDRQWv0x0 🚀 OUR WEBSITE: ════════════════════════════════════ https://www.universetoday.com/ 🚀 POD...

In this week's live Q&A, I talk about the new Space Launch System hot-fire test, how Breakthrough Starshot spacecraft might be able to communicate with home, and what messages would we send to aliens that we might never be able to reach physically. 00:00 Start 02:11 How would Starship chipsats communicate with Earth? 05:00 How far can we ever explore into the Universe? 06:31 Why was the SLS te...

Welcome to the new style Q&As, which we're now recording every Monday live on my YouTube channel at 5pm Pacific Time. This week we got a lot of great questions about the Proxima Centauri signal, the Fermi Paradox, and Breakthrough Starshot. 00:00:00 Start 00:00:14 Is Starlink portable? 00:01:07 Any thoughts on the Wow signal? 00:03:58 What are magnetars? 00:06:20 Any followup planned on Proxim...

In this week's interview, I talk with Chris Carr, one of the co-hosts in the Weekly Space Hangout. Chris is a grad student at Columbia University, specializing in the cosmos inside and outside the Milky Way. http://www.astro.columbia.edu/profile?uid=chris 🚀 OUR WEBSITE: ════════════════════════════════════ https://www.universetoday.com/ 🚀 PODCAST LINKS: ════════════════════════════════════ RSS:...

In this week's last QA of 2020, I go long answering questions about space and astronomy. I talk about the news of a radio signal received from Proxima Centauri, an update on my attempts to learn Mandarin Chinese, and a long diatribe about megaconstellations and their impact on astronomy. 00:00:00 Start 00:02:51 How do we know the rotation rate of gas planets? 00:05:21 Green blobs 00:05:42 Radio si...

00:00:00 Start 00:04:45 Can we know how much of the Moon is Earth and what is Theia? 00:06:41 Where did the Earth's water come from? 00:09:24 Would alien AI be friendly? 00:12:01 How far could we detect alien civilizations? 00:15:58 Why isn't metallic hydrogen made with nuclear weapons? 00:19:37 Is there water on Titan? 00:22:35 Is the outer Solar System rich in water? 00:24:03 Do stars leak hydro...

My guest this week is the science journalist Elizabeth Howell. Dr. Howell is one of the most prolific space journalists working in the field, contributing thousands of articles across almost every space news site (including Universe Today). She has also written and collaborated on several books. Her latest book is called "Canadarm and Collaboration", and it's all about Canada's role in spaceflight...

In this week's live questions show, I explain why planets can remain habitable long after their stars have died, what we're going to do now that Arecibo has collapsed, how we'll explore the oceans underneath Europa. I also answer the question of whether or not I'm ready to learn about the secret Galactic Federation. Our live shows are provided ad-free thanks to the support of our amazing patrons....

My guest this week is Alex Ignatiev, from Lunar Resources. Alex and his team are working on a rover that could build solar panels, wiring and even radio antennae out of lunar regolith. This could support future bases or even radio telescopes. You can learn more about Lunar Resources here: http://lunarresources.space/ Our Book is out! https://www.amazon.com/Universe-Today-Ultimate-Viewing-Cosmos/dp...

In this week's live questions show, I explain how amateurs can contribute to space and astronomy research, will I sign up for Starlink, and what would happen if the supermassive black hole at the heart of the Milky Way turned into a quasar? 00:00:00 Start 00:03:13 How can amateurs can contribute to science? 00:05:50 What if Sgr* turned into a quasar? 00:07:00 Will the Universe end in a Big Rip? 00...

Wallace Arthur is an evolutionary biologist and emeritus professor of Zoology at the National University of Ireland, Galway. His newest book is called the Biological Universe, and features the search for life in the Milky Way and Beyond. https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/biological-universe/4599E17C7FAAECE4A87038C62039C755 Our Book is out! https://www.amazon.com/Universe-Today-Ultimate-Viewing-...

In this week's Open Space, we had a series of questions about the International Space Station. How long will it remain in orbit, and what role will it continue to play with other space stations under construction? We also talked about how much longer the Earth will remain habitable, and if it could be possible to replace Arecibo. 00:00:00 Start 00:03:35 How much longer with the Earth be habitable?...

00:00:00 Start 00:01:31 How much oxygen is too difficult? 00:03:46 Do the Falcon 9 boosters really land, or does the camera always cut out? 00:04:55 Could SpaceX have succeeded without NASA? 00:07:53 Will Gateway get delayed too? 00:11:20 Too drunk to control a telescope? 00:12:38 Is the Universe heating up? 00:16:00 Why rush to Mars? 00:19:50 Why research things that'll happen in the far future?...

Dr. Peter Woit is a theoretical physicist and senior lecturer in the math department at Columbia University. He's a critic of string theory, wrote a book called "Not Even Wrong" and maintains a blog of the same name. http://www.math.columbia.edu/~woit/wordpress/ Our Book is out! https://www.amazon.com/Universe-Today-Ultimate-Viewing-Cosmos/dp/1624145442/ Audio Podcast version: ITunes: https://itun...