Ep. 232: Galileo Spacecraft

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (0.0KB) In last season’s thrilling cliff hanger, we talked about astronomer superhero Galileo Galilei. Will a mission be named after him? The answer is yes! NASA’s Galileo spacecraft visited Jupiter in 1995, and spent almost 8 years orbiting, changing...

Ep. 229: Cassini Mission

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (0.0KB) Last week we talked about the Italian astronomer Giovanni Cassini. This week we’ll talk about the mission that shares his name: NASA’s Cassini Spacecraft. This amazing mission is orbiting Saturn right now, sending back thousands of high...

Ep. 222: The Decadal Survey

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (0.0KB) In episode 198 we explained how space missions are chosen, and introduced the Decadal Survey. Since the time we recorded that episode, the full Decadal Survey for planetary science has been released, explaining the science goals for planetary geologists...

Ep. 219: Planck Mission

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (0.0KB) Another mission named after a famous physicist. This time we’re looking at the Planck mission, designed to study the Cosmic Microwave Backgorund Radiation over the entire sky. Like the previous WMAP mission, this will help astronomers understand the...

Ep. 210: Mars Exploration Rovers

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (0.0KB) The twin Mars Exploration Rovers, Spirit and Opportunity, have been crawling around the surface of Mars since early 2004 – years longer than they were expected to live. And what they have discovered there on Mars has given scientists their best...

Ep. 208: Spitzer Space Telescope

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (0.0KB) Last week we talked about Lyman Spitzer, and this week we’ll take a look at the orbiting observatory that bears his name: the Spitzer Space Telescope. Designed to see into the infrared spectrum, Spitzer has returned images of objects that were...