Universe Today Podcast

Will there be a northern hemisphere version of Vera Rubin? Or maybe we can put one straight in space? Can Vera Rubin detect alien spacecraft if they ever visit? And if it finds planet 9, how fast will we be sending a mission there? And in Q&A+, how many planets will be out there if we reinstate Pluto as one? Answering all these questions and more in this Q&A show. 🎁 [Q&A+] Same video....

What are the cosmic dark ages and what do we know about them? Why are the so hard to study? How can the Dark Age Explorer help with it and why does it need to go on the far side of the Moon? Finding out in this interview. 😍 [Interview+] Bonus Part. No YT ads. https://www.patreon.com/universetoday 🟣 Guest: Dr Christiaan Brinkerink https://www.ru.nl/en/externals/services/radboud-radio-lab 📜 The D...

Astronomers have discovered a third interstellar object. NASA missions are getting prepared to be shut down. The most massive white dwarf has been found. And in Space Bites Plus, a capsule containing human remains and cannabis seeds crashes into the ocean. 🚀 [Space Bites+] No ADS. BONUS Story. For FREE: https://www.patreon.com/universetoday 👉 Vote for the best story here: https://www.youtube.com...

Which type of planet that's not in the Solar System is the most interesting? Can we detect an interstellar black hole? Should science journalists report about non-conventional science theories? And in our extended Q&A+ version, will the success of Vera Rubin stimulate building a northern hemisphere version of it? 🎁 [Q&A+] Same video. No YT ads. BONUS question. FREE: https://www.patreon.co...

Did the recent streak of Starship failures change my confidence is SpaceX's future success? How can we measure the rotation of gas giant planets? Is there a chance Voyagers can make another Pale Blue Dot image? And in our Q&A+ extended version, do we have a moral obligation to spread life in the Universe? 🎁 [Q&A+] Same video. No YT ads. BONUS question. FREE: https://www.patreon.com/univer...

The first pictures from Rubin are finally here, construction begins on the LISA mission, Webb directly images a Saturn-sized exoplanet, and do pulsar have mountains? And in Space Bites+, a fast radio burst is coming from inside the Solar System. 🚀 [Space Bites+] No ADS. BONUS Story. For FREE: https://www.patreon.com/universetoday 👉 Vote for the best story here: https://www.youtube.com/@frasercai...

Does terraforming a tidally-locked planet make any sense? Are the images we got of our galaxy's supermassive black hole fake? Can we observe gravitational waves that came before the CMB? And in Q&A+ who is currently working on space elevators? Answering all these questions and more in this Q&A show. 🎁 [Q&A+] Same video. No YT ads. BONUS question. FREE: https://www.patreon.com/universe...

Why doesn't NASA remove the artefacts from JWST images? How would TRAPPIST-1 planets look from their surface? Why don't they just form space telescope lenses from liquid glass in space? And in Q&A+ what shape does the solar gravitational lens look like? Answering all these questions and more in this Q&A show. 🎁 [Q&A+] Same video. No YT ads. BONUS question. FREE: https://www.patreon.co...

Solar power has its limits. Some space missions will need an alternative source of power like RTGs. How can we make them better? Which fuel is optimal for them and why? How to convert heat into electricity? Finding out in this interview. 😍 [Interview+] Bonus Part. No YT ads. https://www.patreon.com/universetoday 🟣 Guest: Tyler Bernstein https://www.zenopower.com/ 00:00 Intro 01:48 What is an RTG...

A new mission can make solar eclipses on demand, what do supernovae and stellar flybys do to Earth’s climate, how asteroid 2024 YR4 will make the mother of all meteor showers, and Starship 36 explodes during testing. And on Space Bites+, how we could use a space elevator to extract water from Ceres. 🚀 [Space Bites+] No ADS. BONUS Story. For FREE: https://www.patreon.com/universetoday 💥 NSF's vid...

Can a giant asteroid knock the Moon from its orbit? How good does a telescope need to be to see the Oort cloud? What are the odds of a rogue planet hiding nearby in our Solar system? And in our extended Q&A+ version, can we be sure that we're alone in the Universe? Answering all these questions and more in this Q&A show. 🎁 [Q&A+] Same video. No YT ads. BONUS question, totally free : h...

This is an interview with me for the Worldviews Podcast. 📺 VIDEO VERSION https://youtu.be/yj0Gi7d0zm4?si=NYLERm4yquBpkqbb 🦄 Support us on Patreon: https://patreon.com/universetoday 00:00 Introduction 01:25 Fraser’s upbringing into science 04:59 Proud career moments 06:01 Space misconceptions 09:05 Black Holes 11:05 From planes flying to flying into space 13:05 Topics Fraser has changed his mind...

We never came back to Uranus after the Voyager 2 flyby in 1986. It's time to come back. But what will it take to organise a mission to Uranus? What priorities will it have and when can it launch? Finding out in this interview. 😍 [Interview+] Same video. No YT ads. https://www.patreon.com/universetoday 🟣 Guest: Dr. Amy Simon https://science.gsfc.nasa.gov/sci/bio/amy.a.simon 00:00 Intro 02:11 What...

This is an interview with me done by Salman Hameed @ Kainaat Astronomy in English. Salman Hameed has a PhD in astronomy and is Charles Taylor Chair and Professor of Integrated Science & Humanities at Hampshire College, and a member of the Five College Astronomy Department (FCAD) in Massachusetts, USA. He is also the CEO of the non-profit Kainaat Studios. You can find more information about Kai...

Have we finally found the source of ultra-high energy cosmic rays? Our first look at the Sun’s south pole, New Glenn slips again, what kind of damage would rockets do to the ozone layer? And in Space Bites+, a pair of quasars that dominated Cosmic Noon. 🚀 [Space Bites+] No ADS. BONUS Story. For FREE: https://www.patreon.com/universetoday 🌌 Zone of Avoidance interview: https://youtu.be/BpaEskYuBk...

At what point we should just admit defeat and give up on our search for dark matter? Should we be sending a lot of cheap space probes instead of a single expensive one? If the Universe is rotating, where is the axis? And in our Q&A+ version, how to make a friend fall in love with Astronomy? Answering all these questions and more in this Q&A. 🎁 [Q&A+] Same video. No YT ads. BONUS quest...

For a long time the central part of our galaxy was mostly hidden from us because of all the dust. It was even called the Zone of Avoidance. But with better telescopes and modern techniques we can peer inside and reveal what's hiding. Even build 3D-maps of the region. 😍 [Interview+] Bonus Part. No YT ads. https://www.patreon.com/universetoday 🟣 Guest: Dr Cara Battersby https://battersby.physics.u...

The White House pulls Jared Isaacman’s nomination, the 2026 NASA budget is released, the Hubble Tension might not be a problem after all, the Milky Way and Andromeda might not merge after all. And on SpaceBites+, which ozone isn’t a good biosignature. 🚀 [Space Bites+] No ADS. BONUS Story. For FREE: https://www.patreon.com/universetoday 👉 Vote for the best story here: https://www.youtube.com/@fra...

How big does a planet has to be to make it impossible to fly a rocket from it? Why are aliens always portrayed expansionistic? Can a supernova make us all go extinct? And in our extended Q&A+ edition, is terraforming Mars necessary for finding life there? Answering all these questions and more in this Q&A show. 🎁 [Q&A+] Same video. No YT ads. BONUS question, totally free : https://www...

What's the difference between a nova and a supernova? What's the mechanism behind their explosions? What instruments are used to observe them at the moment? Finding out in this interview. 😍 [Interview+] Same video. No YT ads. https://www.patreon.com/universetoday 🟣 Guest: Cameron Pfeffer https://www.cameronpfeffer.space/ 🟣 Dr. Chris Ashall’s supernova research group https://chrisashall.com/my-g...

How much of our atmosphere is lost to space and should we be actively replenishing it? Is there an exact copy of Earth out there hiding in the Universe? Can we use the Sun to send messages? And in our extended Q&A+ version, how the advancements in AI will change astronomy? Answering all these questions and more in this Q&A. 🎁 [Q&A+] Same video. No YT ads. BONUS question, totally free...

Launching Breakthrough Starshot light sail probes to Alpha Centauri requires a lot of new tech, including the actual light sails. How do you make the optimal material to maximize the size with minimising mass? Finding out in this interview. 😍 [Interview+] Same video. No YT ads. https://www.patreon.com/universetoday 🟣 Guest: Lucas Norder https://www.tudelft.nl/en/staff/l.norder/ 📜 Pentagonal pho...

China’s asteroid sample return mission launches, searching for a companion star for Betelgeuse, the 9th flight test wraps up for Starship and Superheavy, and Webb takes its longest exposure yet. And in SpaceBites+, is Venus hiding deadly asteroids. 🚀 [Space Bites+] No ADS. BONUS Story. For FREE: https://www.patreon.com/universetoday 👉 Vote for the best story here: https://www.youtube.com/@fraser...

Can we make the Van Allen belts safe to fly through? Why not get a super gravity assist from the Sun? Can we predict the next supernova in the Milky Way? And in our extended Q&A+ version, what's going on with the ocean rocks producing electricity at the bottom? Answering all these questions and more in this Q&A show. 🦄 Support us on Patreon: https://patreon.com/universetoday 00:00 Start 0...

Heat shields are one of the trickiest problems left to solve before we can have truly reusable spacecraft. So far we've seen different solutions, like ablative materials or ceramic tiles. But can a sweating heat shield be a solution? Finding out in this interview. 😍 [Interview+] Same video. No YT ads. https://www.patreon.com/universetoday 🟣 Guest: Dr. Hassan Saad Ifti https://nal.tamu.edu/ 📜 Co...