Universe Today Podcast

Latest Episodes:

[Interview] How Did Early Earth Get The Ingredients for Life Dec 10, 2023

Show notes

We still don't know how did life start on Earth. But in order to do so, Earth had to have all the building blocks for life, such as organic molecules. How could they get to Earth? Looking for a solution to this problem with Dr Richard Anslow.

🎙️ More interviews:
Finding exoplanets via magnetospheres: https://youtu.be/p1PnoSoH0ys
Direct imaging of exoplanets: https://youtube.com/live/aMPz1pSeDyo?feature=share

📜 Can comets deliver prebiotic molecules to rocky exoplanets?
https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rspa.2023.0434

👉 Dr Richard Anslow's website
https://richard17a.github.io/

🦄 Support us on Patreon:
https://patreon.com/universetoday

📚 Suggest books in the book club:
https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/1198440-universe-today-book-club

00:00 Intro
01:19 Why the mystery?
05:32 Traditional ideas
09:52 Comets
16:18 Delivery mechanism
21:17 Why not on Earth
25:12 How often can comets come in
31:13 What evidence can we have
33:23 Current obsessions
39:26 Final thoughts and more interviews

📺 VIDEO VERSION
https://youtu.be/SkWNmkoCelY

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[Space Bites] Starship Refuelling Test Imminent // Perfect Resonance System // Intergalactic Star Dec 08, 2023

Show notes

What Will Starship Test on its Next Flight? A 6-Planet System in Perfect Resonance. And Betelgeuse Might Not be Rotating at all.

⛽️ Orbital refuelling video:
https://youtu.be/5EXvEXfY1ts

🚀 Starship IFT-2 Special:
https://youtu.be/ReXZvXPak4U

🦄 Support us on Patreon:
https://patreon.com/universetoday

📚 Suggest books in the book club:
https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/1198440-universe-today-book-club

00:00 Intro
00:11 Starship refuelling test
- https://arstechnica.com/space/2023/12/nasa-wants-to-see-gas-stations-in-space-but-so-far-its-tanks-are-empty/
02:28 Perfect resonance
- https://www.universetoday.com/164579/a-planetary-system-with-six-sub-neptunes-locked-in-perfect-resonance/
04:02 Hypernebula's FRB
- https://www.universetoday.com/164642/another-fast-radio-burst-is-coming-from-a-hypernebula-also-hypernebulae-are-a-thing/
05:57 Chandrayaan's final surprise
- https://www.universetoday.com/164664/for-its-final-trick-chandrayaan-3-brings-its-propulsion-module-to-earth-orbit/
07:22 Does Betelgeuse even rotate
- https://www.universetoday.com/164602/does-betelgeuse-even-rotate-maybe-not/
08:53 Vote results
09:31 Intergalactic star in Milky Way's heart
- https://www.nao.ac.jp/en/news/science/2023/20231204-subaru.html
10:44 Hubble tension explanation
- https://www.uni-bonn.de/en/news/231-2023
12:07 Newsletter
12:44 Red Sprites from space
- https://www.universetoday.com/164626/red-sprites-are-best-seen-from-space/
14:21 Largest iceberg on the run
- https://www.universetoday.com/164594/after-stalling-out-for-40-years-the-largest-iceberg-in-the-world-is-on-the-move/
15:18 Orbital refuelling
- https://youtu.be/5EXvEXfY1ts

📺 VIDEO VERSION
https://youtu.be/6CtZnxFyHKE

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[Interview] When Did Evolution Start on Earth Dec 07, 2023

Show notes

How did life begin on Earth? It's one of the most important questions ever. Clearly, we don't have an answer yet, but how can we even approach it? What methods and studies can we use to come closer to the answer? Figuring all this out with Dr Sukrit Ranjan, Assistant Professor at University of Arizona.

🦄 Support us on Patreon:
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📚 Suggest books in the book club:
https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/1198440-universe-today-book-club

00:00 Intro
01:33 Where does the Theory of Evolution start
06:21 The earliest organism
08:26 Testing the theories
16:41 Biosignatures
28:41 Where to look
37:50 Technosignatures
39:50 Inhabited Universe
46:14 Current obsessions
50:22 Final thoughts

📺 VIDEO VERSION
https://youtu.be/MeVvreDPI6c

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[Interview] Black Holes Spin. Now, How Can We Measure That? Dec 04, 2023

Show notes

Black holes are defined by only three parameters: mass, charge and spin. We know that black holes spin. But how can we measure that? What tools and methods are at our disposal? Answering these questions with Dr Ruth Daly, Professor of Physics at Penn State University.

📃 New Black Hole Spin Values for Sagittarius A* Obtained with the Outflow Method
https://arxiv.org/abs/2310.12108

🦄 Support us on Patreon:
https://patreon.com/universetoday

📚 Suggest books in the book club:
https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/1198440-universe-today-book-club

00:00 Intro
01:11 Black Holes' mass
06:22 Jets from Quasars
09:00 Being near a black hole
10:35 Measuring the Sgr A
18:56 Spinning black holes
26:41 Orientation of Sag A
29:02 Energy of black holes
32:33 Final thoughts

📺 VIDEO VERSION
https://youtu.be/9ArfZdNDtzY

📰 EMAIL NEWSLETTER
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[Q&A] NASA's Take on Starship Progress, Farthest Naked Eye Object, Galactic Lagrange Points Dec 04, 2023

Show notes

What is the farthest object you can see with the unaided eye? Do galaxies have Lagrange points like stars or planets? What does NASA think about Starship's last flight attempt? Which future space telescopes are the most exciting? How will Starship fly without a crew escape system? Answering all these questions and more in this week's Q&A show.

🦄 Support us on Patreon:
https://patreon.com/universetoday

📚 Suggest books in the book club:
https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/1198440-universe-today-book-club

00:00 Start
01:01 [Andoria] How will Starship fly humans without a crew escape system?
07:03 [Vulcan] Do galaxies have Lagrange points?
10:43 [Risa] What do I hope JWST discovers next?
12:41 [Aeturen] What's the farthest unaided-eye object?
13:53 [Vendikar] Is life common in the Universe?
15:17 [Remus] How accurate was The Martian?
20:13 [Janus] Are Von Neumann probes doable with current level of technology?
23:11 [Cait] What's the shape of the known Universe?
25:07 [Betazed] Can aliens see dinosaurs?
25:17 [Cheleb] Will the next Starship reach orbit?
26:52 [Nimbus] What will be the next big space telescopes?
30:25 [Belos] What does NASA think about Starship's IFT-2?

📺 VIDEO VERSION
#TODO_LINK

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[Space Bites] Hubble Entered Safe Mode // Protoplanetary Disk in Another Galaxy // Dragonfly Delay Dec 01, 2023

Show notes

Hubble is down right now. JWST sees the first protoplanetary disk in another galaxy. Titan Dragonfly’s delay. The first full image of the Chinese Space Station from orbit.

🚀 Starship IFT-2 Special:
https://youtu.be/ReXZvXPak4U

🦄 Support us on Patreon:
https://patreon.com/universetoday

📚 Suggest books in the book club:
https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/1198440-universe-today-book-club

00:00 Intro
00:17 Artificial contact binary
- https://www.universetoday.com/164541/contact-binary-asteroids-are-common-but-weve-never-seen-one-form-so-lets-make-one/
02:12 Hubble is down
- https://www.universetoday.com/164574/hubble-is-offline-because-of-a-problem-with-one-of-its-gyros/
04:25 Double protostar
- https://www.universetoday.com/164514/jwst-reveals-a-newly-forming-double-protostar/
06:05 Protoplanetary Disks in a Nearby Star Cluster
- https://www.universetoday.com/164470/jwst-reveals-protoplanetary-disks-in-a-nearby-star-cluster/
07:17 Protoplanetary disk in another galaxy
- https://www.universetoday.com/164546/a-protoplanetary-disc-has-been-found-in-another-galaxy/
08:39 Vote results
- https://youtu.be/tEdSYwSN7NE
09:32 Second most powerful cosmic ray
- https://www.universetoday.com/164485/the-second-most-energetic-cosmic-ray-ever-found/
12:13 Double planets
- https://www.universetoday.com/164456/where-are-all-the-double-planets/
13:43 Interviews
- https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLbJ42wpShvmnK1xmCRad_8bn0uOcmLiIE
14:35 Dragonfly's Delayed
- https://www.universetoday.com/164532/titan-dragonfly-is-go-for-phase-c/
15:52 Horizon of Mars
- https://www.universetoday.com/164517/odyssey-gives-us-a-cool-new-view-of-mars/
17:08 Tiangong from orbit
- https://www.universetoday.com/164513/chinas-space-station-seen-from-orbit/
17:33 Starship reactions

📺 VIDEO VERSION
https://youtu.be/KRuBzkHCkJs

📰 EMAIL NEWSLETTER
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⚖️ LICENSE
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[Interview] Astronaut’s Perspective On How Space Shuttle Shaped Spaceflight Nov 29, 2023

Show notes

What was it like to fly on the Space Shuttle? What made this vehicle so important for the history of spaceflight? What stories can it tell? Answering all these questions with NASA Space Shuttle Astronaut, Tom Jones.

📖 Space Shuttle Stories:
https://astronauttomjones.com/product/space-shuttle-stories/

🦄 Support us on Patreon:
https://patreon.com/universetoday

📚 Suggest books in the book club:
https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/1198440-universe-today-book-club

00:00 Intro
00:43 Why Space Shuttle was so great
04:47 Precursors of full reusability
10:05 RS-25 Engines
14:21 The book
20:28 Overview effect
33:38 Constructing the ISS
35:35 Servicing the Hubble
38:25 New era of spaceflight
50:31 Final thoughts

📺 VIDEO VERSION
https://youtu.be/mH2AF2ZpQsQ

📰 EMAIL NEWSLETTER
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[Q&A] Real Danger from Solar Flares, Lagrange Interferometers, Interstellar Communications Nov 29, 2023

Show notes

How bad can a solar flare really be for the Earth? What would evolution in an isolated star system look like? What damage can a rogue planet flying through the Solar System cause? When will we have Lagrange point interferometers? What's the speed limit for gravitational assists? Answering all these questions and more in this week's Q&A.

🦄 Support us on Patreon:
https://patreon.com/universetoday

📚 Suggest books in the book club:
https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/1198440-universe-today-book-club

00:00 Start
00:53 [Andoria] What damage would a rogue planet cause for the Solar System?
05:37 [Vulcan] How bad would evolving in an isolated star system be?
09:12 [Risa] How bad can solar flares really be?
13:56 [Aeturen] Lagrange point interferometers. Wen?
17:00 [Vendikar] Do stars go up and down the galactic plane?
19:47 [Remus] How can amateur astronomers contribute to science?
23:58 [Janus] Speed limit from gravity assists?
27:18 [Cait] Can we solve interstellar communication?
31:36 [Betazed] Top 5 science YouTube channels?
34:00 [Cheleb] What's my favourite aspect of cosmology?
35:46 [Nimbus] How bad is air pollution from launches?

📺 VIDEO VERSION
https://youtu.be/Z8Cn0piSKEU

📰 EMAIL NEWSLETTER
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⚖️ LICENSE
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[Special] What Does Starship Launch Success Mean for SpaceX Now Nov 27, 2023

Show notes

It happened! Starship and SuperHeavy Did Launch for the second time. All 33 raptors were working. Hot staging went as planned. But then both the Booster 9 and Ship 25 were lost. What exactly went wrong and what does it mean for the future of Starship? Finding out with Scott Manley and Marcus House.

📺 Scott Manley:
https://www.youtube.com/@scottmanley

📺 Marcus House:
https://www.youtube.com/@MarcusHouse

🦄 Support us on Patreon:
https://patreon.com/universetoday

📚 Suggest books in the book club:
https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/1198440-universe-today-book-club

00:00:00 Intro
00:01:02 Before IFT-2
00:08:35 The Launch
00:14:19 Hot Staging
00:16:20 What went wrong with SuperHeavy
00:25:00 What went wrong with Starship
00:32:00 What's next?
00:45:58 What it means for Artemis
01:03:00 Final thoughts

📺 VIDEO VERSION
https://youtu.be/ReXZvXPak4U

📰 EMAIL NEWSLETTER
Read by 60,000 people every Friday. Written by Fraser. No ads.
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⚖️ LICENSE
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[Space Bites] China's Moon Secret Revealed // Starship Success // The Real Asteroid Danger Nov 24, 2023

Show notes

SpaceX Starship launches again. Webb finds methane in the atmosphere of an exoplanet and reveals a star forming region near the center of the Milky Way. The overwhelming logistics of dealing with an asteroid threat.

🦄 Support us on Patreon:
https://patreon.com/universetoday

📚 Suggest books in the book club:
https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/1198440-universe-today-book-club

00:00 Intro
00:16 Starship Second Flight
https://www.universetoday.com/164331/spacex-tested-its-starship-again-successful-launch-but-both-vehicles-were-destroyed/
04:36 JWST finds methane on an exoplanet
https://www.universetoday.com/164405/wow-jwst-just-found-methane-in-an-exoplanet-atmosphere/
06:27 JWST looks into Milky Way's center
https://www.universetoday.com/164355/webbs-infrared-eye-reveals-the-heart-of-the-milky-way/
08:11 Secret Chinese payload
https://www.universetoday.com/164379/a-chinese-booster-and-additional-secret-payload-caused-a-double-crater-on-the-moon/
10:02 Vote results
https://youtu.be/tqsRBKgpJsI
11:00 More plutonium for NASA
https://www.universetoday.com/164407/nasa-is-getting-the-plutonium-it-needs-for-future-missions/
13:29 Missing Spiral Galaxies
https://durham.ac.uk/news-events/latest-news/2023/11/supergalactic-planes-missing-spiral-galaxies/
15:01 Q&A Show
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLbJ42wpShvmm6b_fexWT6vSK9J_c4zgep
16:50 Zone of Avoidance
https://www.universetoday.com/164328/the-universe-cant-hide-behind-the-zone-of-avoidance-any-longer/
18:21 Real Danger of an Asteroid Threat
https://www.universetoday.com/164378/if-youre-trying-to-prevent-an-asteroid-impact-the-technical-and-political-challenges-are-staggering/