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  • Shows Index
    • Amateur Astronomy (5)
      • Observing (5)
    • Astronomy (90)
      • Cosmology (16)
      • Galaxies (6)
      • Nebulae (1)
      • Observing (7)
      • Planets (24)
        • Extrasolar Planets (5)
        • Our Solar System (18)
      • Stars (11)
        • Compact Objects (3)
        • Stellar Evolution (7)
    • Listeners (11)
      • Questions Shows (9)
      • Student Questions (2)
    • People (6)
      • Doing Astronomy (2)
      • Interviews (3)
      • Meetings (4)
    • Physics (22)
      • Forces (6)
      • Particles (7)
      • Relativity (3)
    • Space Flight (1)
    • The Show (3)
      • Meetups (1)



  • Collaborators
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    Past Shows
    • Ep. 87: The End of the Universe Part 2: The End of Everything
    • Ep. 86: The End of the Universe Part 1: The End of the Solar System
    • Ep. 85: Detectors
    • Ep. 84: Getting Around the Solar System
    • Ep. 83: Wave Particle Duality
    • Ep. 82: Space Junk
    • Ep. 81: Questions on the Shape, Size and Centre of the Universe
    • Ep. 80: Craters
    • Ep. 79: How Big is the Universe?
    • Ep. 78: What is the Shape of the Universe?
    • Ep. 77: Where is the Centre of the Universe?
    • Ep. 76: Lagrange Points
    • Student Questions: Curtis High School
    • Ep. 75: Stellar Populations
    • Ep. 74: Antimatter
    • Ep. 73: Questions Show #8
    • Ep. 72: Cosmic Rays
    • Ep. 71: Gravitational Waves
    • Ep. 70: How To Win a Nobel Prize
    • Astronomy Cast Meetup at AAS Austin
    • Student Questions: Farmersburg
    • Ep. 69: The Large Hadron Collider and the Search for the Higgs-Boson
    • Ep. 68: Globular Clusters
    • Ep. 67: Building a Career in Astronomy
    • Ep. 66: How Amateurs Can Contribute to Astronomy
    • Ep. 65: The End of Our Tour Through the Solar System
    • Ep. 64: Pluto and the Icy Outer Solar System
    • Ep. 63: Neptune
    • Ep. 62: Uranus
    • Ep. 61: Saturn's Moons
    • Ep. 60: Questions Show #7
    • Ep. 59: Saturn
    • Ep. 58: Inflation
    • Ep. 57: Jupiter's Moons
    • Ep. 56: Jupiter
    • Ep. 55: The Asteroid Belt
    • Ep. 54: Questions Show #6
    • Ep. 53: Astronomy in Science Fiction
    • Special Episode: Panspermia
    • Ep. 52: Mars
    • Ep. 51: Earth
    • Ep. 50: Venus
    • Ep. 49: Mercury
    • Ep. 48: Tidal Forces Across the Universe
    • Ep. 47: Tidal Forces
    • Ep. 46: Stellar Nurseries
    • Ep. 45: The Important Numbers in the Universe
    • Listener Survey
    • Ep. 44: Einstein's Theory of General Relativity
    • Ep. 43: Questions Show #5
    • Ep. 42: Magnetism Everywhere
    • Ep. 41: The Rise of the Supertelescopes
    • Ep. 40: American Astronomical Society Meeting, May 2007
    • Ep. 39: Astrology and UFOs
    • Ep. 38: Neutron Stars and their Exotic Cousins
    • Ep. 37: Gravitational Lensing
    • Ep. 36: Gamma-Ray Bursts
    • Ep. 35: Questions Show #4
    • Ep. 34: Discovering Another Earth
    • Ep. 33: Choosing and Using a Telescope
    • Ep. 32: The Search for Neutrinos
    • Ep. 31: String Theory, Time Travel, White Holes, Warp Speed, Multiple Dimensions, and Before the Big Bang
    • Ep. 30: The Sun, Spots and All
    • Ep. 29: Asteroids Make Bad Neighbors
    • Ep. 28: What is the universe expanding into?
    • Ep. 27: Questions Show #3
    • Ep. 26: The Largest Structures in the Universe
    • Ep. 25: The Story of Galaxy Evolution
    • Ep. 24: The Fermi Paradox: Where Are All the Aliens?
    • Ep. 23: Counting Aliens With the Drake Equation
    • Ep. 22: Variable Stars
    • Ep. 21: Questions Show #2
    • Ep. 20: What We Learned from the American Astronomical Society
    • Ep. 19: Comets, Our Icy Friends from the Outer Solar System
    • Special Alert: Go See Comet McNaught
    • Ep. 18: Black Holes Big and Small
    • Ep. 17: Where does the Moon Come From?
    • Ep. 16: Across the Electromagnetic Spectrum
    • Ep. 15: Questions Show #1
    • Ep. 14: We're all Made of Supernovae
    • Ep. 13: Where Do Stars Go When They Die?
    • Ep. 12: Where Do Baby Stars Come From?
    • Ep. 11: A Universe of Dark Energy
    • iPod Issues Fix
    • Ep. 10: Measuring Distance in the Universe
    • Ep. 9: Einstein's Theory of Special Relativity
    • Ep. 8: Meteor Showers. Yes, the sky is falling.
    • Ep. 7: Getting Started in Amateur Astronomy
    • Ep. 6: More Evidence for the Big Bang
    • Ep. 5: The Big Bang and Cosmic Microwave Background
    • Ep. 4: The Search for Dark Matter
    • Ep. 3: Hot Jupiters and Pulsar Planets
    • Ep. 2: In Search of Other Worlds
    • Ep. 1: Pluto's Planetary Identity Crisis
    • Welcome to Astronomy Cast!


Ep. 86: The End of the Universe Part 1: The End of the Solar System

  • April 28th, 2008
  • Show Notes
  • Comments(15)
  • Like it? Digg-it | Reddit | del.icio.us
A planetary nebula. The future of our Sun. Image credit: Hubble
A planetary nebula. The future of our Sun. Image credit: Hubble credit:

This is a show we wanted to do since we started Astronomy Cast but we always thought it was too early. We wanted you to know that we're positive, happy people with enthusiasm for astronomy and the future. It's time for some sadness. It's time for a grim look to see what the future holds for the Universe. This week we stay close to home and consider the end of humanity, the Earth, the Sun, and the entire Solar System. Next week we'll extend out to the very end of the Universe.

Episode 86: The End of the Universe Part 1: The End of the Solar System


Ep. 84: Getting Around the Solar System

  • April 14th, 2008
  • Show Notes
  • Comments(7)
  • Like it? Digg-it | Reddit | del.icio.us
Launch of the space shuttle, seen from high altitude. Image credit: NASA
Launch of the space shuttle, seen from high altitude. Image credit: NASA credit:

Have you ever wondered what it takes to get a spacecraft off the Earth and into space. And how managers at NASA can actually navigate a spacecraft to another planet? And how does a gravity assist work? And how do they get them into orbit? And how do they land? So many questions…

Episode 84: Getting Around the Solar System


Ep. 82: Space Junk

  • March 31st, 2008
  • Show Notes
  • Comments(8)
  • Like it? Digg-it | Reddit | del.icio.us
Debris plot from NASA.
Debris plot from NASA. credit:

We're polluting every corner of our own planet, so it only makes sense that we'll take our trashy habits out into space with us. This week we look at the myriad of ways we're messing up space, from the trash orbiting the planet to the radiation we're leaking out into space.

Episode 82: Space Junk (14.7MB)


Ep. 80: Craters

  • March 17th, 2008
  • Show Notes
  • Comments(12)
  • Like it? Digg-it | Reddit | del.icio.us
Southward looking oblique view of Mare Imbrium and Copernicus crater on the Moon.
Southward looking oblique view of Mare Imbrium and Copernicus crater on the Moon. credit: NASA/Apollo 17

Pamela's attending the 39th Lunar and Planetary Sciences Conference, and you know what that means: the Moon… and planets! When you think of the Moon, you think of craters. In fact, that's a big theme this week at the conference, so Pamela took it as inspiration. Here you go, the week we drove the show into a crater. Wait… there's got to be a better way to describe this.

Episode 80: Craters (16.3MB)


Ep. 76: Lagrange Points

  • February 18th, 2008
  • Show Notes
  • Comments(3)
  • Like it? Digg-it | Reddit | del.icio.us
Joseph-Louis Lagrange
Joseph-Louis Lagrange credit: ESA

Gravity is always pulling you down, but there are places in the solar system where gravity balances out. These are called Lagrange points and space agencies use them as stable places to put spacecraft. Nature is on to them and has already been using them for billions of years.

Episode 76: Lagrange Points (13.2MB)


Ep. 65: The End of Our Tour Through the Solar System

  • December 3rd, 2007
  • Show Notes
  • Comments(0)
  • Like it? Digg-it | Reddit | del.icio.us
Our tour ends as, along side the Voyager 1 & 2 spacecraft, we explore the outer boundary of the solar system.
Our tour ends as, along side the Voyager 1 & 2 spacecraft, we explore the outer boundary of the solar system. credit: NASA

All good things come to an end - we now find ourselves in the outer reaches of the solar system where our Sun is hard to distinguish from the other bright stars in the sky. But we're not done with the solar system, there's some stuff that's leftover. This week, we look at the outer reaches of the solar system and how it interacts with the rest of the universe.

Episode 65: The End of Our Tour Through the Solar System (12.9MB)


Ep. 64: Pluto and the Icy Outer Solar System

  • November 26th, 2007
  • Show Notes
  • Comments(0)
  • Like it? Digg-it | Reddit | del.icio.us
Pluto and its moons Charon, Hydra and Nix are so small even Hubble has a hard time seeing them.
Pluto and its moons Charon, Hydra and Nix are so small even Hubble has a hard time seeing them. credit: NASA, ESA, H. Weaver (JHU/APL), A. Stern (SwRI), and the HST Pluto Companion Search Team

It's been a long journey, 64 episodes, but now we're back where we began: Pluto. Last time we talked about how Pluto lost its planethood status, so we won't go over all that again. This time we're going to talk about Pluto, its moons, the Kuiper belt, and the other icy objects that inhabit the outer Solar System.

Episode 64: Pluto and the Icy Outer Solar System (12.6MB)
 

 


Ep. 63: Neptune

  • November 19th, 2007
  • Show Notes
  • Comments(2)
  • Like it? Digg-it | Reddit | del.icio.us
Neptune, the furthest planet from the Sun
Neptune, the furthest planet from the Sun credit: Nasa/Voyager 2

We’ve reached Neptune, the final planet in our tour through the solar system – but don’t worry! The tour’s not over, but after this week we’ll be all out of planets. Neptune has a controversial story about its discovery, some of the strongest winds in the solar system and some weird moons.

 
Episode 63: Neptune (14.7 MB)
 

 


Ep. 62: Uranus

  • November 11th, 2007
  • Show Notes
  • Comments(0)
  • Like it? Digg-it | Reddit | del.icio.us
Uranus, the blue gas planet that rotates on its side.
Uranus, the blue gas planet that rotates on its side. credit: NASA/Hubble Team

This week, we're on to the next planet in the solar system. We don't know a whole lot about this blue gas planet, but today we'll cover some of the neat stuff we do know, including it's faint rings, sideways axis of rotation and its rocky core - a first in the gas planets we've encountered so far in our tour.

Episode 62: Uranus (13MB)
 


Ep. 61: Saturn's Moons

  • November 5th, 2007
  • Show Notes
  • Comments(0)
  • Like it? Digg-it | Reddit | del.icio.us
Saturn and its Moons
Saturn and its Moons credit: Calvin J. Hamilton. National Optical Astronomy Observatory/Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy/National Science Foundation

We know that delaying this show one more week would be too dangerous, so here you go: Saturn's moons. These are some of the most interesting objects in the Solar System, from the spongy Hyperion, to the geysers on Enceladus, to the rainy, misty, oceany Titan. They've kept Cassini busy for years, and scientists will likely be pondering them for decades.

Episode 61: Saturn's Moons (17.4MB)
 


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Take a weekly facts-based journey through the cosmos with Astronomy Cast.