Star Diary

Latest Episodes:

Interview: Libby Jackson on the history of human spaceflight Sep 03, 2020

Show notes

We talk to Libby Jackson – one of the UK's leading experts in human spaceflight and author of Space Explorers: 25 stories of space exploration and adventure – about the history and future of human spaceflight.

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The life and death of stars Aug 13, 2020

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We reveal how stars are born, evolve and die, and discover that a star's mass determines its ultimate fate. Plus, we speak to astronomer Emily Cannon about her research into the dimming of Betelgeuse, a red giant star that forms part of the Orion constellation. Could it be about to go supernova?

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Trident: a new mission to explore Neptune's moon Triton Aug 10, 2020

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Neptune's icy moon Triton may host an ocean of liquid water beneath its icy surface. We spoke to planetary scientist Louise Prockter to find out about Trident, a proposed mission she's leading to send a spacecraft to explore the frozen satellite.

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The End of Everything: interview with US cosmologist Katie Mack Jul 25, 2020

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Have you ever wondered how the Universe will end? We spoke to Dr Katie Mack to find out what it means to contemplate the final days of the cosmos.

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The edge of the Solar System Jul 16, 2020

Show notes

How far away is the edge of the Solar System? What even is 'the edge'? How do we know it's there? In this month's episode we take a look at the outer limits of our planetary neighbourhood. Plus: we talk to Keith Hayward of the Royal Aeronautical Society about the Chinese space programme and reveal how to make the most of August's Perseid meteor shower.

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Cluster Special: marking 20 years of the European solar mission Jul 14, 2020

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16th July 2020 marks 20 years since the launch of the European Space Agency's Cluster mission. For two decades, Cluster has been examining how the solar wind interacts with Earth's magnetosphere and its effect on life on our planet. This episode we spoke to space weather expert and Cluster mission scientist Dr Mike Hapgood.

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Deflecting asteroids with DART and Hera Jun 19, 2020

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Ahead of Asteroid Day on 30 June, we take a look at NASA's DART and ESA's Hera mission. Starting in 2022, these two missions will work together to test how we might one day deflect a potential deadly asteroid.

Later on, we interview Andrea Riley, the DART's programme executive and give you our stargazing tip of the month.

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CHEOPS: Interview with exoplanet scientist Kate Isaak Jun 10, 2020

Show notes

The European Space Agency's CHEOPS mission is currently studying planets orbiting distant stars, known as exoplanets. We spoke to CHEOPS Project Scientist Kate Isaak to find out how the spacecraft operates and what it might discover.

The links Kate refers to in the interview can be found here:

https://esa.int/cheops

https://sci.esa.int/cheops

https://cosmos.esa.int/cheops

https://cheops.unibe.ch/

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Venus special: farewell to the evening star May 21, 2020

Show notes

We bid Venus farewell as the planet begins to disappear from our evening sky, and take a look at the planetary geometry that has made it such a glorious sight over the past few months. Plus, we explore the science of Venus and take a look at the history and future of the planet's exploration.

Also this month, The Sky at Night's Chris Lintott talks satellite megaconstellations, and how they may prove a threat to our view of the night sky.

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WFIRST: a new era for exoplanet hunting May 16, 2020

Show notes

We speak to Dr Savannah Jacklin about the Wide Field Infrared Survey Telescope, a new mission to discover planets orbiting distant stars using a technique predicted by Einstein over 100 years ago.

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