The Vatican Observatory Podcast

Latest Episodes:

Deep Roots Oct 05, 2022

Show notes

Have you ever met one of those people who just seems to know everyone? Our guest, Katie Steinke is one of those people. Katie and her family have been involved with Specola astronomers for decades, and from those deep roots grew the Vatican Advanced Technology Telescope. Hear Katie's story...
Guests:
Katie Steinke - former development director of the Vatican Observatory Foundation.
Bob Trembley - podcast host and internet factotum for the Vatican Observatory Foundation.

From Sparkling Water to Dark Matter Aug 24, 2022

Show notes

The most famous product of San Pellegrino, Italy, is its sparkling water. But from this same village in the north of Italy has come a PhD scientist working on detecting the most elusive ingredients of the universe… and hoping for a chance to fly, herself, in space. Hear Dr. Maria Elena Monzani’s story...
Guests:
- Dr. Maria Elena Monzani, a Lead Scientist at the SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, and an adjunct scholar for the Vatican Observatory.
- Br. Guy Consolmagno SJ, Director of Vatican Observatory

Vatican Observatory website: https://www.vaticanobservatory.org/

The Stuff of Stars Jul 01, 2022

Show notes

Brother Bob Macke SJ is the curator of meteorites at the Vatican Observatory, and during his research measuring meteorite physical properties he has probably handled as many rocks from outer space as anyone alive today. Other astronomers may claim to study stars and planets, but mostly all they touch are photons; Bob has handled actual stuff from space, from stellar dust at Washington University in St. Louis to moon rocks at the Johnson Space Center in Houston.

Guests:
- Br. Bob Macke SJ, curator of meteorites at the Vatican Observatory
- Br. Guy Consolmagno SJ, Director of Vatican Observatory

Vatican Observatory website: https://www.vaticanobservatory.org/
Macke Makerspace: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-bQglO9a23_blS0yiVMqDA

Ambassador to the Universe Apr 20, 2022

Show notes

Meet Bill Higgins. By day, he's one of the scientists who keeps the Fermilab National Accelerator running safe, as it pummels the smallest particles in the universe. But in his free time he’s a techie storyteller of big things and big ideas: a NASA Solar System Ambassador, a researcher of esoteric technology from rocket belts to Jacquard looms, and an explorer of how we tell the story of our scientific society.
Guests:
Bill Higgins: Radiation Safety Physicist at Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory (Fermilab)
Br. Guy Consolmagno SJ: Director of Vatican Observatory, President of the Vatican Observatory Foundation.
Read Bill's "From the cabinet of physics" series on the Vatican Observatory website:
https://www.vaticanobservatory.org/series/from-the-cabinet-of-physics/
Sacred Space Astronomy Posts on the Vatican Observatory Website:
https://www.vaticanobservatory.org/category/sacred-space-astronomy/

On a Spiral Path to the Milky Way Mar 08, 2022

Show notes

When she was a young girl growing up in southern Chile, Gabriela Navarro had many dreams… from being a volleyball player to being an astronaut.
In this podcast, we'll follow the spiral path of now-Doctor Navarro that has brought her to studying the structure and formation of the Milky Way and its galactic bulge with the James Webb Space Telescope in Rome… via the 2018 Vatican Observatory Summer School (VOSS), and the 2019 SuperVOSS (which she helped organize!)
Guests:
Dr. Gabriela Navarro
Br. Guy Consolmagno SJ, Director of Vatican Observatory, President of the Vatican Observatory Foundation.

The Chaotic Path of a Climate Modeler Jan 22, 2022

Show notes

How does a young Indonesian boy from a half Muslim, half Christian family wind up as a Jesuit scientist-priest in Arizona, modeling the tropical climates of northern Mexico and Saudi Arabia, while celebrating Mass for Native Americans… and keeping his fellow Jesuits well fed with his cooking skills? Meet Fr. Christoforus Bayu Risanto! Dr. Bayu defended his doctorate in meteorology at the University of Arizona last fall, where he's now continuing his research as a postdoctoral fellow.
Guests:

Fr. Christoforus Bayu Risanto SJ
Br. Guy Consolmagno SJ, Director of Vatican Observatory, President of the Vatican Observatory Foundation.

A Taste for Heavy Water Dec 07, 2021

Show notes

Dr. Michelle Francl puts her own twist on combinations that most people might think are impossible. In this podcast she tells Br Guy Consolmagno about how the Sisters of Loreto in the small town where she grew up encouraged a love of science fiction that eventually led to her to a PhD with Nobel Laureate F. Sherwood Roland; about heavy-duty computational quantum chemistry and the taste of heavy water; about her articles for Nature Chemistry and for the Liturgical Press.
Guests:

Dr. Michelle Francl, professor of Chemistry at Bryn Mawr College and Adjunct Scholar of the Vatican Observatory
Br. Guy Consolmagno, Director of Vatican Observatory

How to Make an Impact: From Crater Science to Public Outreach Jul 30, 2021

Show notes

Prof. Dr. Christian Koeberl has had a fascinating career in planetary sciences. An expert in how planetary impacts make craters, he served for ten years as the director of the Natural History Museum of Vienna, one of the most important natural history museums in Europe.
Today, Dr. Koeberl is the Chair in Impact Research and Planetary Geology at the University of Vienna.
In this episode of the Vatican Observatory podcast, Dr. Koeberl joins Br. Guy Consolmagno, Director of the Vatican Observatory, and host Bob Trembley to discuss the wide dimensions of his work, from impact craters, to meteorite strikes, to the public understanding of natural history.
Guests:

Christian Koeberl, former director of the Natural History Museum of Vienna.
Br. Guy Consolmagno, Director of Vatican Observatory

Space and the Middle-Schooler Jul 28, 2021

Show notes

What do kids today think about astronomy and space travel? And how do they think differently about these topics compared to kids 40 years ago?

In this episode of the Vatican Observatory podcast, longtime middle school astronomy teacher Constance Martin-Trembley joins Br. Guy Consolmagno, Director of the Vatican Observatory, and host Bob Trembley to discuss the changing landscape of astronomy youth education.

Guests:

Constance Martin-Trembley, Middle School Science Teacher
Br. Guy Consolmagno, Director of Vatican Observatory

Black Holes Jul 15, 2021

Show notes

On this episode of the Vatican Observatory Podcast, a pioneer in black hole imaging, Prof. Dr. Heino Falcke joins Br. Guy Consolmagno, Director of the Vatican Observatory, and host Bob Trembley for a conversation to discuss his new book Light in the Darkness: Black Holes, the Universe, and Us, his trailblazing work on black hole imaging, and the intersection of faith and science.

Dr. Falcke is a professor of radio astronomy and astroparticle physics at the Radboud University Nijmegen, as well as the winner of the 2011 Spinoza Prize. Famously, he is known as the originator of the concept of the 'black hole shadow'.

Guests: