Spacepod

Dr. Olivier Witasse tells us about the Jupiter Icy Moon Explorer, or JUICE mission, which is currently traveling through space. JUICE will conduct 34 flybys of Jupiter's moons before orbiting Ganymed…

Dr. Andrés Plazas Malagón tells us about a field of astronomy called cosmology. He explains that either our universe is mostly made of mysterious stuff called dark energy, or the laws of physics are …

Dr. Richard Cartwright tells us about the moons of Uranus and explains why we should visit Uranus with an orbiting spacecraft. This mission would take decades to design, build, and travel to the plan…

Dr. Peter Veres talks about asteroids, comets, and meteors. He describes how the Minor Planet Center keeps track of observations and orbits. This data is publicly available, and non-scientists make v…

Dr. Parvathy Prem tells us about lunar ice. She says, "the moon records the history of our solar system neighborhood in a way that the Earth doesn't." Her simulations show that rocket landings can ch…

Dr. Nancy Chabot returns to the show to talk about the DART mission, which changed the orbit of an asteroid moon. This was the first demonstration of asteroid deflection technology. She explains how …

Professor Myriam Telus shares how she studies atmospheres using meteorites. These experiments can teach us about exoplanet atmospheres and planet formation. She says science feels like a playground, …

International space law expert Cordula Panosch explains what is and is not legal when it comes to deflecting an Earth-bound asteroid. Although much depends on the individual circumstances, she explai…

Dr. Kirby Runyon shares his definition of "planet"-- a round celestial body that was never a star. Using this definition, there are over 150 planets orbiting our sun. He explains why the word planet …

Professor Lawler discusses why planet nine might not exist.  She explains why reporting not finding something is as important as reporting a discovery. She tells us how satellite internet is getting …

Dr. Zibi Turtle is the Principal Investigator of NASA's Dragonfly mission. She tells us what it is like to design and build an octocopter that will roam the surface of Saturn's moon Titan. She also t…

Professor Derek Richardson gives us an update on the DART mission, which is headed towards tiny asteroid moon Dimorphos. If all goes well this fall, DART will crash into Dimorphos at four miles per s…

Prof Jenny Whitten tells us about VERITAS, a NASA mission that will orbit Venus. She explains how scientists will use radar to learn about the surface, and how they picked exactly which radar band to…

Larissa Markwardt talks about Trojan asteroids-- asteroids that orbit the sun a little before or after planets. She describes the special technique she uses to find these asteroids, and why not findi…

Professor Catherine Neish explains why there's so few craters on Saturn's moon Titan. She explains why Titan's craters may contain the organic molecules needed for life, and how the Dragonfly mission…

Dr. Stephanie Getty tells us about DAVINCI, which will go to Venus. DAVINCI will scan the planet during three flybys, and will deploy a probe. She explains how engineers will protect the probe's inst…

Dr. Federica Spoto tells us how she found millions of high-precision observations of comets and asteroids. She explains how these observations let her turn back time and study the history of the main…