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The Supermassive Podcast — Astronomy
The Supermassive Podcast

The UK’s #1 space podcast.

Science journalist Izzie Clarke and astrophysicist Dr Becky Smethurst whizz through the universe to explore the latest research with leading experts, dive to history from the society’s archives and take on your weird and wonderful questions about all things space. Can we gravitationally hitch-hike out of the solar system? Do we live in a multiverse? What is time? Plus Dr Robert Massey is on hand with his top star-gazing tips.

Want to support the show? Join The Supermassive Club for exclusive content, star-gazing forums and ad-free listening… supermassive.supportingcast.fm

And keep adding to The Supermassive Mailbox with your pictures and questions for the team. Send them to podcast@ras.ac.uk or follow them on Instagram, @SupermassivePod.

The Supermassive Podcast is a Boffin Media production for the Royal Astronomical Society. The producers are Izzie Clarke and Richard Hollingham.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Copyright: © The Royal Astronomical Society

Latest Episodes:

24: Eclipses & Expeditions Dec 24, 2021

Show notes

Join Dr Becky Smethurst and Dr Robert Massey as they explore eclipses; what are they and how have they been studied throughout history? Plus Izzie Clarke visits the Royal Astronomical Society Library to discover what the society has in the archives, and astronaut Nicole Stott and her husband, Fellow of the RAS, Chris Stott send us their eclipse audio diary from Antarctica.
The RAS Bicentenary Timeline can be found here: https://ras.ac.uk/timeline
The Supermassive Podcast is a Boffin Media production by Izzie Clarke and Richard Hollingham.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The End of the Universe Nov 26, 2021

Show notes

What will the end of days actually look like? And how will it happen? This month, Izzie and Dr Becky explore the end of the Universe with cosmologist Dr Katie Mack - author of The End of Everything (Astrophysically Speaking). They also chat to astronomy journalist and author of The Unknown Universe, Dr Stuart Clark, who explains the role of dark energy. Plus, Dr Robert Massey takes on your questions and shares when it is best to see Jupiter, Saturn and Venus in December.
Send your astronomy questions for January's Q&A to podcast[@]ras.ac.uk or tweet @RoyalAstroSoc.
Book Club recommendations:

The Red Planet - Simon Morden
Apollo’s Muse - Mia Fineman and Beth Saunders
Fire and Ice - Natalie Starkey
The Invisible Universe - Matt Bothwell
The Mysteries of the Universe - Will Gater

The Supermassive podcast is a Boffin Media production by Izzie Clarke and Richard Hollingham.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

JWST - Seeing the First Stars Oct 29, 2021

Show notes

Finally, Izzie and Dr Becky are talking about the James Webb Space Telescope but why is this telescope so impressive? NASA’s Keith Parrish, the observatory manager for Webb, covers the basics and Professor Gillian Wright, the principal investigator for the mid-infrared instrument (MIRI), explains how it will help us see stars and planets born from clouds of dust. Plus Dr Robert Massey takes on your questions and shares his top stargazing tips for the month.
Thank you to the UK Space Agency for sponsoring this episode.
The Supermassive Podcast is a Boffin Media Production by Izzie Clarke and Richard Hollingham. Editing by Phil Sansom.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Icy Worlds Oct 01, 2021

Show notes

Wrap up warm, because this month Izzie and Dr Becky are exploring the icy worlds in the solar system. To help, they're joined by Caroline Harper, Head of Space Science at the UK Space Agency, to discuss the new mission heading to explore Jupiter’s icy moons. And they hear from Professor Michele Dougherty from Imperial College London, who sent Cassini to investigate Saturn’s moon Enceladus. Plus Dr Robert Massey takes on your questions and shares his latest stargazing tips for autumn.
Join the Royal Astronomical Society's livestream of Uranus, 8th-10th October 2021: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/the-weird-and-wonderful-world-of-uranus-world-space-week-tickets-183281298297
Thank you to the UK Space Agency for sponsoring this episode.
The Supermassive Podcast is a Boffin Media Production by Izzie Clarke and Richard Hollingham.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Firey Worlds Aug 27, 2021

Show notes

Izzie and Dr Becky are turning up the heat and exploring the fiery worlds in our solar system. From planets close to the Sun to a distant world of volcanoes and lava.
Joining them are planetary scientist Professor David Rothery from the Open University and Professor Alfred McEwen from the University of Arizona, who wants to send a mission to Jupiter’s moon Io. Plus Dr Robert Massey takes on your questions and has his monthly guide to stargazing.
This is a Boffin Media production by Izzie Clarke and Richard Hollingham.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Radiation Belts and Billionaires Jul 30, 2021

Show notes

This month it’s all about the trapped charged particles around our planet - the Van Allen radiation belts. Izzie and Dr Becky find out all about them with the help of Dr Maria Theresia Walach from Lancaster University, and Dr David Devorkin from the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum explains how Explorer 1 discovered the belts in 1958. Plus, Dr Robert Massey joins to take on your questions and shares his top stargazing tips for July.

The podcast is looking for sponsorship to keep the series running. It'll help fund the recording, editing and time needed to bring you the latest from space. If you have a business that would be interested in supporting the series - or just a single episode - then email podcast@ras.ac.uk with the subject “sponsorship” for more information.
This is a Boffin Media production by Izzie Clarke and Richard Hollingham

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A Hunk of Space Junk Jun 25, 2021

Show notes

Grab your dustpan and brush… This month, Izzie and Dr Becky get to grips with the leftovers from space activity, it's all about space junk. Joining them are engineer Dr Hugh Lewis from the University of Southampton, who models how the debris builds up over time, and space archaeologist Dr Alice Gorman explains its historical significance. Plus, Robert Massey joins in to take on your questions and shares his top stargazing tips.
The podcast is looking for sponsorship to keep the series running. It'll help fund the recording, editing and time needed to bring you the latest from space. If you have a business that would be interested in supporting the series - or just a single episode - then email podcast@ras.ac.uk with the subject “sponsorship” for more information.
This is a Boffin Media production by Izzie Clarke and Richard Hollingham

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hunting for Planet 9 May 28, 2021

Show notes

Is it a planet? Is it a black hole? Is it even real? This month, Izzie and Dr Becky try and get to the bottom of the mysterious planet nine - an enigmatic - and so far invisible - ninth planet in our solar system. Helping them are the scientists that have made headlines trying to solve this puzzle, Mike Brown from the California Institute of Technology, and Jakub Scholtz from the University of Turin. Plus, Robert Massey joins in to take on your questions and explains how to see the upcoming eclipse.
The Supermassive podcast reached 100k listens this month - thank you to everyone who has listened so far. If you’re interested in sponsoring the series (or an episode or two) then please email podcast@ras.ac.uk with the subject “sponsorship”.
This is a Boffin Media production by Izzie Clarke and Richard Hollingham

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mysteries of the Kuiper Belt Apr 23, 2021

Show notes

“It’s like the evidence left over after a crime.”

This month Izzie and Dr Becky venture into the outer Solar System to explore a sea of weird rocks, a squashed snowman and ice volcanoes on a demoted planet. They are joined by Dr Meg Schwamb from Queen’s University Belfast and Alice Bowman, Mission Operations Manager for the New Horizons mission at the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory in Laurel, Maryland. Becky also explains the science behind a possible ‘fifth force of nature’ and Dr Robert Massey takes on your questions and tells us what to look out for in the spring night sky. You can send your questions or space book club recommendations to podcast@ras.ac.uk or tweet @RoyalAstroSoc using #RASSupermassive.
The Supermassive Podcast is a Boffin Media Production by Izzie Clarke and Richard Hollingham.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Neutron Stars - with Jocelyn Bell Burnell Mar 26, 2021

Show notes

"I was tracking down every signal that it picked up, and there was one signal that I couldn't make sense of."
Professor Dame Jocelyn Bell Burnell gives Izzie and Dr Becky a neutron star 101 and tells them how she discovered pulsars in the 1960s. Plus, Dr Robert Massey takes on your questions and tells us what to look out for in the spring night sky.
Book Club Recommendations

Forgotten Women: The Scientists - Zing Tsjeng
Six Impossible Things - John Gribbin
The End of Everything (Astrophysically Speaking) - Katie Mack
Vera Rubin: A Life - Jacqueline and Simon Mitton
Cosmos - Carl Sagan
The Book Nobody Read - Owen Gingerich

Don't forget to send your questions or space book club recommendations to podcast@ras.ac.uk or tweet @RoyalAstroSoc using #RASSupermassive.
The Supermassive Podcast is a Boffin Media Production by Izzie Clarke and Richard Hollingham.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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