Universe University

Many hurdles will have to be cleared before the United States can once again land astronauts on the Moon. We may be in a new space race with China but the Artemis II mission could also be the dawn of a new era in space exploration. EDITED BY: Jilyana Solis REFERENCES: "Space Force needs to perpare for an in-person moon conflict with China, new report argues" by Thomas Novelly, Defenseone.com "'We...

Shortly after the first US Moon landing, the Soviet Union placed the first space station in low Earth orbit. While the United States responded with their own "Skylab" station later, the Russian "Salyut" stations would soon surpass them. As the Cold War drew to an end, the massive Soviet "MIR" station would eventually become an international hub for cooperation in outer space. But along the way, ma...

In the latter half of the 20th century, the "steady state theory" was proposed as an alternative to the controversial big bang theory until a pair of young radio astronomers stumbled upon a strange radio signal coming from every corner of the sky. Their Nobel Prize winning discovery would answer many questions about the big bang... but the dawn of the space age raised some confounding new question...

In the 1920s, the work of the brilliant astronomer Edwin Hubble revealed the universe was expanding. But it was a Belgian preist named Georges Lemaitre who concieved of the idea that the universe began in the distant past. Today, we call this idea the big bang theory. SEE CHRIS GRANT SPEAK IN PERSON: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/chris-grant-at-the-chehalis-flying-saucer-party-tickets-1429748649699...

Ameteur documentary filmmaker David Paull joins the program for a chat about his short film 'The Trent Saucer', which covers the famous Oregon UFO sighting and its two iconic UFO photographs. He also offers his thoughts on UFO festivals, Roswell, pop culture, and making films. DAVID'S VOICE ACTING: https://www.bodalgo.com/en/voice-over-talents/dave-paull THE TRENT SAUCER (short film) https://www.y...

Are UFOs a worthy subject for scientific study? Is it really possible - or likely - that the Earth is currently being visited by extraterrestrials from other planets? On this controversial issue, how does one separate truth from fiction, myth from reality, and hoaxes from fact? In a series of congressional hearings, at least one high ranking member of the American intelligence community has claime...

'Planetary protection' is a term that refers to efforts to prevent Earth microbes from spreading to other planets - and to prevent any hypothetical microbes from other planets from spreading to the Earth. What effect does this policy have on current robotic missions? And what implications will it have for a human mission to Mars? Is it possible that microbes from Mars could pose a danger to human...

Dr. Brent D. Ziarnick serves as an assistant professor at the Air Command and Staff College at Maxwell Air Force Base. He is also author of ‘To Rule the Skies: General Thomas S. Power and the Rise of Strategic Air Command in the Cold War’. In this episode, he discusses the birth of the U.S. Space Force along with the military and economic implications of future space exploration and expansion. "Sl...

When the formation of the U.S. "Space Force" was announced, the new military branch was the butt of many jokes but what role will it serve in the 21st century? Tensions are currently high between the United States, Russia, and China. Is a war in outer space inevitable or will this new frontier offer prosperity for all who join in the adventure? A new guest on the program helps us to answer this im...

Outer space is the ultimate strategic high ground for the world's great powers. This is true for both spy satellites and ballistic missiles. During the Cold War, President Ronald Reagan proposed the creation of a technologically advanced, space-based defensive weapon system known as S.D.I.. But critics of the proposal dubbed it 'Star Wars' and said it would trigger a new arms race with the Soviet...

50 years ago today, the three Apollo 17 astronauts departed the Moon to return to Earth. It was the first time in human history that a scientist set foot on another world: geologist Harrison 'Jack' Schmitt. What lessons does this historic mission have to teach us in the coming years as humans finally return to the Moon with the Artemis program? RECORDED BY: Jantzen Carter REFERENCES: 'Apollo 17: D...

The renowned and deeply insightful Andrew Chaikin joins the After Talk to share his views on space exploration along with his experiences interviewing the Apollo astronauts. Chaikin is the author of 'A Man on the Moon', 'Voices from the Moon', and 'A Passion for Mars'. MUSIC: "Slow Burn" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License http://creativecomm...

The renowned and deeply insightful Andrew Chaikin joins the After Talk to share his views on space exploration along with his experiences interviewing the Apollo astronauts. Chaikin is the author of 'A Man on the Moon', 'Voices from the Moon', and 'A Passion for Mars'. MUSIC: "Slow Burn" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License http://creativecomm...

Nearly half a century before the space age began in earnest, a few brilliant visionaries had the courage to look beyond their own time and see humanity’s future. From Russia to the United States, a few brilliant minds transformed science fiction into science fact, giving birth to the space age. REFERENCES: ‘The Russian Cosmists: The Esoteric Futurism of Nikolai Fedorov and His Followers’ by George...

Host and producer discuss the future of space travel and manned missions to Mars. If you would like to make a contribution to the program, click this link: https://www.patreon.com/universeuniversity?fbclid=IwAR0GJjAwa3C1f8KKxDi7aeGVEO-Ou3dL10vmf1kQHjssQu5eEgmCkyNFMgw MUSIC: "Slow Burn" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License http://creativecommon...

Host and producer discuss the future of space travel and manned missions to Mars. If you would like to make a contribution to the program, click this link: https://www.patreon.com/universeuniversity?fbclid=IwAR0GJjAwa3C1f8KKxDi7aeGVEO-Ou3dL10vmf1kQHjssQu5eEgmCkyNFMgw MUSIC: "Slow Burn" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License http://creativecommon...

Dr. Robert Zubrin joins the after talk for an in depth discussion on space exploration. He starts by telling us the story of his Mars Direct plan, the founding of the Mars Society, and his relationship with the young Elon Musk. We go on to discuss the technical and political challenges of sending human beings to Mars as well as his personal philosophyof human space exploration. To watch the video...

Mars has captivated the human imagination for generations. Yet the question remains: is there organic life on the Red Planet? If so, how can we search for it and what would such life be like? And what will day-to-day life be like for the first astronauts to set foot on Mars? The brilliant Dr. Robert Zubrin joins us to help answer some of these questions. If you would like to make a contribution to...

Nick Conant, a science communicator and Theater Manager of the Fiske Planetarium, sits down for an After Talk about: Native American astronomy, craters, comets as a (proposed) water source on Earth, and the ethics of asteroid mining. If you would like to make a contribution to the program, click this link: https://www.patreon.com/universeuniversity?fbclid=IwAR0GJjAwa3C1f8KKxDi7aeGVEO-Ou3dL10vmf1kQ...

Centuries ago, the work of Edmond Halley demonstrated to the world that comets were not evil omens as many superstitious Europeans believed but celestial bodies in outer space. Even so, comets and asteroids could pose a direct threat to all life on Earth. The real question is whether humanity has the tools to meet that threat? If you would like to make a contribution to the program, click this lin...

Host and producer recap a year of podcasting in a holiday after talk.

Professor Alex Roland discusses how he became a historian for NASA, the financial costs of the U.S. shuttle program, the concept of "buying in", and the enormous challenges of manned space travel. If you would like to make a contribution to the program, click this link: https://www.patreon.com/universeuniversity?fbclid=IwAR0GJjAwa3C1f8KKxDi7aeGVEO-Ou3dL10vmf1kQHjssQu5eEgmCkyNFMgw MUSIC: "Slow Burn...

The space shuttle was a marvel of American ingenuity that ushered in a new era for the American space program. But the world would soon learn that reusable spacecraft were far from being perfect machines. Is the story of the U.S. shuttle program a tale of triumph for human space exploration? Or is the tale of a modern day Icarus? If you would like to make a contribution to the program, click this...

An after talk discussion with Konner Blunt from the Blunt Report on Halloween celebrations around the world, weather control, S.E.T.I. research, anthropomorphizing extraterrestrials, sleep paralysis, and UFOs. If you would like to make a contribution to the program, click this link: https://www.patreon.com/universeuniversity?fbclid=IwAR0GJjAwa3C1f8KKxDi7aeGVEO-Ou3dL10vmf1kQHjssQu5eEgmCkyNFMgw MUSI...

In the late 1940s, the United States military began to take an interest in reports of unidentified flying objects or U.F.O.s which included multiple projects designed to investigate and evaluate the sightings. Despite the fact that many UFO sightings were cases of mistaken identity that could easily be explained away, a minority of them proved extremely perplexing to the U.S. government, leading s...