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  • Shows Index
    • Aliens (1)
    • Amateur Astronomy (5)
      • Observing (5)
    • Astronomy (131)
      • Cosmology (22)
      • Galaxies (10)
      • Nebulae (2)
      • Observing (14)
      • Planets (39)
        • Extrasolar Planets (5)
        • Our Solar System (32)
      • Stars (18)
        • Compact Objects (3)
        • Stellar Evolution (8)
    • Chemistry (1)
    • History (1)
    • Listeners (40)
      • Questions Shows (35)
      • Student Questions (4)
    • People (9)
      • Doing Astronomy (2)
      • Interviews (6)
      • Meetings (5)
    • Physics (33)
      • Forces (9)
      • Particles (8)
      • Relativity (6)
    • Planetary Science (1)
    • Space Flight (9)
    • The Show (3)
      • Meetups (1)



  • Collaborators
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    Past Shows
    • Questions Show: Avoiding the Heat Death, Orbiting Galaxies, and the Dangers of Space Radiation
    • Ep. 141: Volcanoes, Hot and Cold
    • Ep. 140: Entanglement
    • Questions Show: Galileoscope, Black Hole Time, and What Exactly is Energy?
    • Questions Show: Telescope Suggestions, Black Hole Energy, and Universal Time
    • Ep. 139: Energy Levels and Spectra
    • Questions: An Unlocked Moon, Energy Into Black Holes, and the Space Station's Orbit
    • Ep. 138: Quantum Mechanics
    • Questions Show: Hidden Fusion, the Speed of Neutrinos, and Hawking Radiation
    • Ep. 137: Large Scale Structure of the Universe
    • Questions Show: The Source of Atmospheres, the Vanishing Moon, and a Glow After Sunset
    • Ep. 136: Gamma Ray Astronomy
    • Questions Show: Dangerous Solar Flares, Higgs Boson Insights, and Light Speed Flashlights
    • Ep. 135: X-Ray Astronomy
    • Questions Show: NorthEast Astronomy Forum (NEAF)
    • Ep. 134: Ultraviolet Astronomy
    • Ep. 133: Optical Astronomy
    • Questions Show: Undoing Inflation, Searching for Water, and Seeing Everything a Black Hole's Ever Eaten
    • Ep. 132: Infrared Astronomy
    • Episode 131: Submillimeter Astronomy
    • Questions Show: Decelerating Black Holes, Earth-Sun Tidal Lock, and the Crushing Gravity of Dark Matter
    • Episode 130: Radio Astronomy
    • Questions Show: Multiple Big Bangs, Satellite Collisions and the Size of the Universe
    • Ep. 129: Interferometry
    • Questions Show: Shooting Lasers at the Moon and Losing Contact with Rovers
    • Ep. 128: Dust
    • Ep. 127: The US Space Shuttle
    • Ep. 126 From Skeptics Guide with Questions
    • Ep. 125: A Zoo of Extrasolar Planets
    • Questions Show: Moons and the Drake Equation, Stars in the Void, and Rings Around Stars
    • Ep. 124: Space Capsules, Part 1 – Vostok, Mercury and Gemini
    • Ep. 123: Homogeneity
    • Ep. 122: How Old is the Universe?
    • Questions Show: Stellar Roche Limits, Seeing Black Holes, and Water on Mars
    • Ep. 121: Spacesuits
    • Ep. 120: The Christmas Star
    • Questions Show: Different Fields of Astronomy, Our Sibling Stars, and Hidden Lagrange Points
    • Ep. 119: Robots in Space
    • Questions Show: Distance in Space, Changing Earth's Orbit, and Different Sized Stars
    • Ep. 118: Sky Surveys
    • Ep. 117: Time
    • Ep. 116: Molecules in Space
    • Ep. 115: The Moon, Part 3: Return to the Moon
    • Questions Show: Spiral Arms, Seismic Waves on the Sun, and our Favorite Gear
    • Ep. 114: The Moon, Part 2 – Exploration of the Moon
    • Questions Show: Ice in Space, Expansion of the Universe, and Death from the Skies
    • Ep. 113: The Moon, Part 1
    • Questions Show: Orbit of the Planets, Green Stars, and Oort Cloud Contamination
    • Ep. 112: Death From the Skies, Interview with Phil Plait
    • Questions Show: Relativity, Relativity and More Relativity
    • Ep. 111: Nebulae
    • Questions Show: Galactic Dust, the Speed of Photons, and the Big Bang Calculations
    • Ep. 110: The Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence
    • Questions Show: Alignment with the Galactic Plane, Destruction from Venus, and the Death of the Solar System
    • Ep. 109: The Life of Other Stars
    • Questions Show – Running Out of Gravitons and Hitting the Brakes at Light Speed
    • Ep. 108: The Life of the Sun
    • Questions Show – light speed, Andromeda galaxy, dark matter and black holes
    • Ep. 107: Nucleosynthesis: Elements from Stars
    • Questions Show – Black Hole Surfaces, Magnetic Field Strengths, and the Speed of Gravitons
    • Ep. 106: The Search for the Theory of Everything
    • Student Questions Show: Leelanau School
    • Ep. 105: The Strong and Weak Nuclear Forces
    • Ep 104: Science Fiction at Dragon*Con with Plait and Grazier
    • Ep. 103: Electromagnetism
    • Ep 102: Gravity
    • Ep. 101: Advanced Propulsion Systems
    • Ep. 100: Rockets
    • Ep. 99: The Milky Way
    • Ep. 98: Quasars
    • Ep. 97: Galaxies
    • Ep. 96: Humans to Mars, Part 3 – Terraforming Mars
    • Student Questions: Collinsville High School
    • Ep. 95: Humans to Mars, Part 2 – Colonists
    • Ep 94: Humans to Mars, Part 1 – Scientists
    • Ep. 93: Missions to Mars, Part 2
    • Ep. 92: Missions to Mars, Part 1
    • Ep. 91: The Search for Water on Mars
    • Ep. 90: The Scientific Method
    • Ep. 89: Adaptive Optics
    • Ep. 88: The Hubble Space Telescope
    • 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
    • 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. 124: Space Capsules, Part 1 – Vostok, Mercury and Gemini

  • January 25th, 2009
  • Show Notes
  • Comments(2)
  • Like it? Digg-it | Reddit | del.icio.us
Vostok 1 launch.

Vostok 1 launch.

The space capsule has been around for almost 50 years, when Yuri Gagarin headed to space in 1961. There have been many programs that used capsules by both the Americans and the Russians, and even the Chinese are using them now for their spaceflight program. Let's take a look at this rugged, dependable space vehicle that going to making a comeback in the next decade, when NASA sends humans back to the Moon.

Ep. 124: Space Capsules, Part 1 – Vostok, Mercury and Gemini
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Ep. 121: Spacesuits

  • December 31st, 2008
  • Show Notes
  • Comments(2)
  • Like it? Digg-it | Reddit | del.icio.us
Russian Orlan spacesuit

Russian Orlan spacesuit

As we've mentioned before, the Universe is trying to kill you. And for astronauts, that's truer than ever. One step out into the vacuum of space would be a world of hurt for an unprotected astronaut: the freezing cold temperature, the lack of atmospheric pressure, and the deadly radiation, just to name a few hazards. That's why the smart astronaut always puts on a spacesuit first. Let's take a look at the smallest spaceship around.

Ep. 121: Spacesuits

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Ep. 119: Robots in Space

  • December 18th, 2008
  • Show Notes
  • Comments(3)
  • Like it? Digg-it | Reddit | del.icio.us
Mars Exploration Rover. Image credit: NASA/JPL

Mars Exploration Rover. Image credit: NASA/JPL

Space is totally inhospitable. If the freezing temperatures don't get you, the intense radiation will kill you. Or the vacuum, or the lack of breathable atmosphere, or meteoroid impacts. Well… you get the idea. That's why most space exploration is done by hardy robots. They don't need to eat, drink or breathe. They get their energy from the Sun, and they've proven they've got the right stuff to explore every planet and major moon in the Solar System. Let's hear it for the space robots.

Ep. 119: Robots in Space
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Ep. 115: The Moon, Part 3: Return to the Moon

  • November 18th, 2008
  • Show Notes
  • Comments(3)
  • Like it? Digg-it | Reddit | del.icio.us
Artist impression of the Altair Lander. Image credit: NASA

Artist impression of the Altair Lander. Image credit: NASA

It's time for a third lunar chapter. We've talked about the physical characteristics of the Moon, and the exploration. Now we're going to talk about the plans to return to the Moon. From the upcoming lunar reconnaissance orbiter to the plans to have humans set foot on the Moon again, for the first time in more than 50 years.

Ep. 115: The Moon, Part 3: Return to the Moon
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Ep. 101: Advanced Propulsion Systems

  • August 12th, 2008
  • Show Notes
  • Comments(3)
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Artist impression of a solar sail. Image credit: NASA
Last week we talked about rockets. How they work and their limitations. This week we're going to look at the future of propulsion systems. From the ion engines that are already working to explore the Solar System to the prototype solar sails to futuristic technologies like magnetic sails, and bussard ramjets. This is how we'll travel to other stars.

Ep. 101: Advanced Propulsion Systems
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Ep. 100: Rockets

  • August 4th, 2008
  • Show Notes
  • Comments(12)
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Saturn V rocket. Image credit: NASA
To move around in space, you need some kind of propulsion system. And for now, that means rockets. Let's learn the underlying science of rockets, and how they work. And learn why a rocket will never let us reach the speed of light.
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Ep. 95: Humans to Mars, Part 2 – Colonists

  • June 30th, 2008
  • Show Notes
  • Comments(0)
  • Like it? Digg-it | Reddit | del.icio.us

Artist impression of a Martian habitat. Image credit: NASA
After astronauts make the first tentative steps onto the surface of Mars, a big goal will be colonization of the Red Planet. The first trailblazers who try to live on Mars will have their work cut out for them, being in an environment totally hostile to life. What challenges will they face, and how might they overcome them?

Ep. 95: Humans to Mars, Part 2 – Colonists
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Ep. 92: Missions to Mars, Part 1

  • June 10th, 2008
  • Show Notes
  • Comments(5)
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Model of the Viking Lander. Image credit: NASA/JPL
With last month's safe arrival of the Phoenix Mars Lander, Mars enthusiasts breathed a collective sigh of relief… phew. Now it's time to search for evidence of organic molecules in the ice at Mars' north pole. But this is just the latest in a long series of missions sent to the Red Planet. Let's have a history lesson, and look back at the missions sent to Mars, successful and unsuccessful.

Episode 92: Missions to Mars, Part 1
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Ep. 84: Getting Around the Solar System

  • April 14th, 2008
  • Show Notes
  • Comments(10)
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Launch of the space shuttle, seen from high altitude. Image credit: NASA
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
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