Awesome Astronomy

The Discussion: Star Wars marathon Observing the ISS & the Nauka Module NAM 2021 Amateur recreation of the Antikythera Mechanism Spectrum analysing the new audio anomaly   The News: Rounding up the astronomy news in August, we have: Detecting light from behind a black hole New Insights shows Mars’ interior is very different to Earth’s Evidence of an ocean beneath the surface of Jupiter’s moon Ganymede The Oort Cloud could be filled with extrasolar debris Earth rock may contain extraterrestrial Plutonium First clear detection of a moon-forming disc around an exoplanet   The Sky Guide: This month we’re taking a look at the constellation of Lyra with a guide to its history, how to find it, a couple of deep sky objects and a round-up of the solar system views on offer in August.   Q&A: Could dark matter exist in a different dimension, and we only feel the gravitons they emit? From our good friend Dan Scholes of no declared location.

The Discussion: Hubble’s still in trouble Jeni’s presenting on the BBC’s Weatherman Walking Ideas for a new segment to replace the moons of the solar system   The News: Ingenuity helicopter is exceeding all expectations Russia looks to expand its real estate on the ISS NASA’s Artemis 1 is being stacked for a November launch China’s sending Taikonauts to the moon & Mars Bezos & Branson   Moons of the Solar System: Our show segment exploring the discovery, exploration and our knowledge of the solar system’s moons. And we move onto the moons of Uranus.   Q&A: Are summers in the southern hemisphere hotter than in the northern hemisphere because they’re close to the sun at perihelion?’ From our good friend Krista Bowen from Arkansas via email.

The Discussion: Can you help out the Scottish Dark Sky Observatory? Combining sports & astronomy The hive mind responds to the new audio anomaly   The News: Rounding up the astronomy news in July, we have: Hubble in trouble Incredible new images of Jupiter’s moon Ganymede A glimpse of the first ever stars Cosmic twisters The biggest comet ever seen comes barreling into the solar system   The Sky Guide: This month we’re taking a look at the constellation of Aquila with a guide to its history, how to find it, a couple of deep sky objects and a round-up of the solar system views on offer in July.   Q&A: How does Europa have a salty ocean & how do we know?? From our good friend @AlistairFrith on Twitter.

To illustrate the epic saga of the Great Dimming of Betelgeuse, in this podcast extra, we revisit all our previous discussions of the red supergiant – collated just for you in one handy dandy place! We cover all the previous major studies of the Great Dimming event from the past year and a half, to let you relive the glorious adventure that is scientific investigation! Tune in to see how this amazing story has evolved and remind yourself of the previous theories; from coincidental pulsation cycles, to surface temperature drops, and, of course, cosmic dust (as predicted by the Dust Queen herself). We finish with a brief summary of the newest research published in Nature, using data from the European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope (ESO’s VLT). **Also download Episode 109 Part1 on 1st July 2021 to hear our full discussion of the seemingly final instalment of this incredible adventure.**

The Discussion: A new audio anomaly to get your investigative teeth into Jeni moving from TV interviewee to presenter on the BBC A look back at this month’s solar eclipse Listeners’ emails about our sound quality and night time radio propagation   The News: Blue Origin’s space tourism auction New experiments launched to the ISS NASA looking for extra cash for another lunar lander 3 new missions to explore Venus US DoD look at reusable rockets for military logistics ESA’s large mission planning for the next decade   Moons of the Solar System: Our show segment exploring the discovery, exploration and our knowledge of the solar system’s moons. And we move onto Saturn’s 80 lesser explored moons   Q&A: ‘Once fully reusable Starships are complete, will all ground based observatories become obsolete?’ From our good friend Evan Slater.

The Discussion: Buying and selling astronomy kit A possible resolution to the Wiltshire Audio Anomaly   The News: Rounding up the astronomy news in February, we have: Heavy metal vapours detected around comets A weird supernova Seafloor volcanoes on Europa   The Sky Guide: This month we’re taking a look at the constellation of Ophiuchus with a guide to its history, how to find it, a couple of deep sky objects and a round-up of the solar system views on offer in June.   Q&A: What’s the difference between a nova and a supernova? From our good friend Steven Age in Derby.

The Discussion: Farewell to Michael Collins Jeni back on the radio, other podcasts and TV - cc/crhxtz Listeners’ emails   The News: Blue Origin prepares to take space tourists The launch of China’s new Space Station & falling space debris Can you help the Royal Astronomical Society find the UK’s moon trees? cc/rrhxtz SpaceX reaches a production/economic milestone with a 10th reuse of a Falcon 9 booster The big news story: NASA awards and then pauses the contract to develop the next lunar lander.   Moons of the Solar System: Our show segment exploring the discovery, exploration and our knowledge of the solar system’s moons. And we move onto Saturn’s enigmatic satellites, Titan and Enceladus.   Q&A: ‘What is the future for Hubble once the JWST launches and could there be new servicing missions with the development of the SpaceX Starship’ From our good friend Mark de Vrij in the UK.

The Discussion: Binocular observing Do you want Ralph’s 115 triplet refractor & goto mount? The Wiltshire Audio Anomaly Listeners emails on historical images and refractor rivalry The News: Rounding up the astronomy news in February, we have: An update on that life on Venus story Life around Proxima Centauri is in for a blast More data to add to the universe’s expansion rate conundrum Was Oumuamua really an interstellar comet? Main News story: The US’ Fermi National Accelerator follows CERN with a muon discovery that also hints at a big anomaly in the Standard Model of Physics. The Sky Guide: This month we’re taking a look at the constellation of Ursa Major with a guide to its history, how to find it, a couple of deep sky objects and a round-up of the solar system views on offer in May. Q&A: I'm getting into my 50s, and hearing Ralph say what good times we're in as regards gaining knowledge of the Universe leads me to wonder.... what will I be around for? From our good friend Peter Jeal from Londo

This week we saw the first ever powered flight on another planet. So this is a podcast extra episode to mark this remarkable achievement, explain what happened and why this is such a paradigm shift for future space exploration.

The Discussion: The ‘Wiltshire Audio Anomaly’ 20% off the book Vera Rubin – A Life for US listeners using url: hup.harvard.edu/exhibits/HX7578 @StargazerRob’s alternative astrophotographer of the year award Listeners’ emails The News: April Fools research papers Commemorating 60 years since Yuri Gagarin’s 1st Spaceflight An update on @NASA’s Mars Ingenuity copter Rounding up @SpaceX’s metal toilet roll tube developments & explosions NASA’s Artemis program update and presidential priorities for NASA Cluttered & congested orbits leading to satellite collisions Moons of the Solar System: Our show segment exploring the discovery, exploration and our knowledge of the solar system’s moons. And we move onto Jupiter’s 75 less fashionable moons. Q&A: ‘How are satellite licences awarded and by who? And can/should they make requirements of companies to make them responsible for their space junk and their impact on ground based astronomy?’ From our good friend Matt Rayment in London, UK.

The Discussion: Jen finally becomes Dr Jen – bow down pitiful Earthlings! Binocular astronomy Get the book Vera Rubin - A Life by Jacqueline and Simon Mitton with 25% off by emailing cs-books@wiley.com, and quoting the discount code H0350 (mentioning Awesome Astronomy probably wouldn’t go amiss too) Emails from listeners correcting a possible error and posing a teasing question about US refractors. The News: Rounding up the astronomy news in February, we have: UCL researchers unravel the mystery of the Antikythera mechanism The Event Horizon Telescope improves the image of a supermassive black hole by revealing its magnetic fields Confirming the existence of the furthest major solar system object An exoplanet that lost its atmosphere and then gained another one! Main News story: CERN’s LHC spots a quirky quark that hints at a big anomaly in the Standard Model of Physics The Sky Guide: This month we’re taking a look at the constellation of Coma Bereneces with a guide to its history, how to find it, a coupl

The Discussion: Vaccination cometh to Awesome Astronomy The UK’s unorthodox meteor sample return mission A listener’s email follow up to last month’s Q&A The News: Rounding up the space exploration news we have: SpaceX launch and land a 13 storey Starship Japan joins NASA’s moon programme NASA releases its science goals for Project Artemis Northrop Grumman begins work on NASA’s Mars sample return The OSIRIS-REx mission prepares for May asteroid departure Moons of the Solar System: Our show segment exploring the discovery, exploration and our knowledge of the solar system’s moons. And we move onto Jupiter and the four Galilean moons, Io, Europa, Ganymede and Calisto. Jupiter’s other moons next month. Q&A: ‘Do you think the first crewed Mars mission will be to land or would it make any sense to do an Apollo 8 (or indeed 10) stylee close approach?’ From our good friend Alex Bell in Bath, UK.

The Discussion: Paul becomes the new Vice President of Wycombe Astronomical Society Jen gets a date for her PhD viva Jen promoting NASA’s Perseverance rover on the BBC Get ready for Teentech Live on 5th March Emails from listeners highlighting the good and bad in Awesome Astronomy   The News: Rounding up the astronomy news in February, we have: The Cygnus X-1 black hole must be much bigger than we thought A single neutrino detection reveals a super-supermassive blackhole Was the impact that killed the dinosaurs an asteroid or comet? Earth’s regular magnetic pole reversals may be catastrophic to life Main News story: A return to the mythical Planet 9 and a new paper casting further doubt on the evidence in favour of an undiscovered massive object in the outer solar system.   The Sky Guide: This month we’re taking a look at the constellation of Gemini with a guide to its history, how to find it, a couple of deep sky objects and a round-up of the solar system views on offer in March.   Q&A: Wouldn’t it

As the European Space Agency gears up to opening its next recruitment campaign from 31 March to 28 May 2021, we take you through: The entry requirements The selection process The missions successful candidates are expected to fly The first astronaut recruitment trawl for candidates with physical disabilities If you want to take a look and see if being an astronaut suits you, go to www.esa.int/YourWayToSpace.  If you want to apply, applications should be submitted to the ESA Careers website, from 31 March, at https://www.esa.int/About_Us/Careers_at_ESA

The Discussion: Correcting the orbits of Jupiter’s moons Welcoming Galaxy Rise’s Dustin Ruoff onto the Podcast Crew Causing terrorism scares with telescopes The News: Rounding up the space exploration news we have: NASA provides more details for its lunar space station plans China’s space station plans Turkey look to become a spacefaring nation The European Space Agency looks for more astronauts The UAE’s Hope Mission & China’s Tianwen-1 make it into Mars orbit Moons of the Solar System: Our new show segment exploring the discovery, exploration and our knowledge of the solar system’s moons. And we begin with Mars’ moons, Phobos and Deimos. Q&A: ‘Will commercial ventures, render SLS useless at some stage?’ From our good friend Steven Sean Spyvee in Leeds, UK.

The Discussion: Jeni on the Highbrow Drivel podcast More astronomy goodness at Sky Guide The amateur astronomy/dogging connection A review of George Clooney’s The Midnight Sky Listener emails about the birth of amateur astroimaging & ‘Arecedos’ The News: Rounding up the astronomy news in February, we have: A hot Jupiter world with a totally transparent atmosphere New research suggest the most abundant stars can fuel photosynthesis Elliptical galaxies forming new stars hundreds of times faster than our Milky Way Citizen scientists creates a 3D map of largely invisible brown dwarf stars Main News story: @ESA’s #CHEOPS satellite looks at a star with exoplanets and finds even more planets in a system that should be able to exist. The Sky Guide: This month we’re taking a look at the constellation of Perseus with a guide to its history, how to find it, a couple of deep sky objects and a round-up of the solar system views on offer in February. Q&A: Are there any other planets in the solar system that cou

The Discussion: If you like your introductions rambling, you’re in for a real treat! We discuss the Jeni’s PhD thesis submission, The Real Right Stuff documentary on Disney+, Jeni’s foray into book writing and read some listeners questions, which devolves into discussions of whether Queen Elizabeth is Elizabeth I in Canada, the colonisation of the New World, the entertainer Nosmo King and insurance fraud. The News: Rounding up the space exploration news we have: Puerto Rico stumps up funds to decommission and scope out a replacement for Arecibo China opens up FAST Telescope access to other nations Hyabusa 2 asteroid and Chang’e 5’s lunar samples Progress update on the 3 Mars-bound missions & where to follow them SpaceX accelerate Starship rocket production in Texas Q&A: ‘How and where did the Awesome Astronomy team first meet?’ From our good friend Paul Weiler in Pennsylvania USA.

The Discussion: As we welcome in the New Year, we discuss the holiday season and your suggestions to replace the Guide to the Electromagnetic Spectrum section of the show. The News: Rounding up the astronomy news at the beginning of 2021, we have: Finding exoplanets that have a good chance of being able to see us The 'Missing Lithium Problem’ Chasing down the Hubble Constant A new method for detecting exoplanets Was there another dwarf planet in the inner solar system? Main News story: That intriguing radio signal found coming from the vicinity of Proxima Centauri. The Sky Guide: This month we’re taking a look at the great winter constellation of Auriga with a guide to its history, how to find it, a couple of deep sky objects and a round-up of the solar system views on offer in January. Q&A: We know there is a lower temperature limit (absolute zero), but is there an upper temperature limit? From Matt in California.

A jolly romp around viruses and tasers! We look back at the astronomy and space exploration highlights of 2020: Phosphine in Venus atmosphere The saga of SpaceX Chang’e 5 at the Moon Comets Atlas & Neowise 3 missions to Mars The lows of 2020 in astronomy and space exploration: Cancellation of SPICA The loss of the Arecibo radio telescope We look forward to the anticipated events of 2021: Luna 25, Chandrayaan-3 & Artemis 1 to the Moon 3 Mars arrivals Vera C Rubin telescope & Maybe JWST And we run through our own predictions for next year before signing off with our customary end-of-year outtakes.

The Discussion: We discuss National Geographic’s The Right Stuff series on Disney+, get a little bit ranty about the use of jokey titles in research papers and read out a few of your emails. The News: Rounding up the astronomy news this month we have: An update to the Geysers on Jupiter’s moon Europa Another asteroid flies scarily close to Earth The latest developments in Muskworld China’s ambitious chang’e-5 mission en-route to the moon Main News story: The Hayabusa 2 mission and the imminent return of samples from asteroid Ryugu The Sky Guide: This month we’re taking a look at the great winter constellation of Orion with a guide to its history, how to find it, a couple of deep sky objects and a round-up of the solar system views on offer in December. Guide to the Electromagnetic Spectrum: In November we concluded our look at the electromagnetic spectrum. But as we now have a new method of detecting events beyond the electromagnetic spectrum, this month we explain gravitational wave astronomy.