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PODCAST

Planetary Radio: Space Exploration, Astronomy and Science

The Planetary Society

Planetary Radio brings you the human adventure across our Solar System and beyond. We visit each week with the scientists, engineers, leaders, advocates, and astronauts who are taking us across the final frontier. Regular features raise your space IQ while they put a smile on your face. Join host Sarah Al-Ahmed and Planetary Society colleagues including Bill Nye the Science Guy and Bruce Betts as they dive deep into space science and exploration. The monthly Space Policy Edition takes you inside the

science

All Episodes

49:53

Our Mysterious Sister: Venus

Planetary Radio: Space Exploration, Astronomy and... ·

2019/11/06

Astrophysicist Javier Peralta takes us deep into the thick, fast-moving clouds of the world that is still called Earth's sister by some. Venus is slow to reveal its secrets. Jason Davis helps us celebrate the 50th anniversary of Apollo 12.The Planetary Society wants to hear your space goals, accomplishments and dreams! And Bruce Betts reveals the identity of the first gourmet in space. Space headlines from The Downlink, too. Learn more about this week’s guest and topics

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90:28

Space Policy Edition: How a Report Can Move Mountains

Planetary Radio: Space Exploration, Astronomy and... ·

2019/11/01

How can a simple report—just words on a page—lead to creation of a spacecraft? We explore how a 2019 report on the need for a dedicated, space-based telescope to find threatening near-Earth asteroids motivated NASA to pursue that very mission. We speak with Dr. Jay Melosh, planetary scientist and chair of the National Academies committee behind that report, on how it came together and how the process works behind the scenes. We also check on NASA's budget process in Congress and news from the

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50:37

Finding Wonder and Meaning in a Book by Carl Sagan’s...

Planetary Radio: Space Exploration, Astronomy and... ·

2019/10/30

Bill Nye says of Sasha Sagan’s new book, “Sagan finds the meaning of life everywhere—with her family, around the world, and especially among the stars of the cosmos. Read her work; you’ll have a deeper appreciation for your every step, every bite, and every breath.” Mat Kaplan talks with Sasha about For Small Creatures Such as We, and later joins Bruce Betts to offer the book in the new What’s Up space trivia contest. Learn more about this week’s guest and topics

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28:51

How Long Was Mars Wet?

Planetary Radio: Space Exploration, Astronomy and... ·

2019/10/23

Planetary scientist Briony Horgan and her team want to know how long liquid water flowed on the surface of the Red Planet before that world froze. Long enough for life to appear and thrive? New work comparing Earth’s extremes may have provided clues. There’s gas in space, and some of it is inside astronauts. Bruce Betts shares the uncomfortable truth in this week’s What’s Up. Also, space headlines from The Downlink. Learn more about this week’s guest and topics

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77:58

NASA’s Home for the Bleeding Edge: The 2019 NIAC...

Planetary Radio: Space Exploration, Astronomy and... ·

2019/10/16

The NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts program gathers its “fellows” each year to share what they’ve learned about some of the most fascinating science and engineering imaginable. Mat Kaplan visits with Program Executive Jason Derleth and seven leaders of funded studies.Astronaut Mae Jemison also attended and returns to Planetary Radio. Cosmonaut Alexei Leonov passed away last week at 85. He is remembered and praised by space historian John Logsdon.All this, headlines from The Downlink, and Bruce

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56:35

Space Policy Edition: Happy Fiscal New Year!

Planetary Radio: Space Exploration, Astronomy and... ·

2019/10/11

October 1st kicked off federal fiscal year 2020—a day that should also have kicked off a new budget for NASA. But Congress has not funded the space agency yet, instead passing a temporary stopgap measure to keep the government open until November 21st.Brendan Curry, The Planetary Society's Chief of D.C. Operations, joins the show to discuss the latest political developments in Washington, good news for planetary defense, and how the funding delay could spell trouble for the space agency's 2024 lunar

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47:08

Nobel Prize Winner Michel Mayor…and More

Planetary Radio: Space Exploration, Astronomy and... ·

2019/10/09

Astronomer and astrophysicist Michel Mayor has just been awarded the 2019 Nobel Prize for physics. Listen to Mat’s 2016 conversation with this revered scientist, the first to discover an exoplanet. The Beresheet mission’s Yoav Landsman recently visited Planetary Society HQ and spent a few minutes catching up with Mat.And Society Editorial Director Jason Davis introduces The Downlink, our weekly digest of planetary news. Bruce Betts takes us to a moon of Uranus to find the melancholy Dane. Learn more

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45:27

How to Defend Your Planet

Planetary Radio: Space Exploration, Astronomy and... ·

2019/10/02

Planetary scientist Vishnu Reddy studies space objects ranging from satellite debris to planet-killing asteroids.He shares the status of our effort to avoid the fate of the dinosaurs in a conversation with host Mat Kaplan. Did you know fruit flies were first in space? That’s just one of the random space facts you’ll absorb in this week’s What’s Up segment with Bruce. Learn more about this week’s guests and topics at:

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51:06

Ad Astra: The Movie!

Planetary Radio: Space Exploration, Astronomy and... ·

2019/09/25

Brad Pitt sets out across the solar system to save Earth in the new space epic. Host Mat Kaplan enjoys a far-reaching conversation with the co-screenwriter of Ad Astra that touches on the film’s meaning, the mythic journey of its protagonist, its spectacular images, and where it strays from known science. Registration for the Planetary Society’s 2020 Day of Action in Washington DC is open! Chief Advocate Casey Dreier has the lowdown. You might win a beautiful, rotating MOVA Earth globe in this

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67:45

How to Build a Starship: The 2019 Starship Congress

Planetary Radio: Space Exploration, Astronomy and... ·

2019/09/18

The biannual Starship Congress attracts starry-eyed believers in humankind’s destiny among the stars. We talk with several of them about their ideas for technologies and science that may help pave the way. Science fiction author David Brin dropped by the Congress and spends a few fun and speculative minutes with us. The September Equinox edition of The Planetary Report is ready for all to read. Editor Emily Lakdawalla gives us a sneak peek. The Milky Way has at least 54 satellite galaxies? Who knew

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49:00

The Unexpected Space Center: Los Alamos National...

Planetary Radio: Space Exploration, Astronomy and... ·

2019/09/11

This US research center has been part of more than 200 space missions, but it’s not a NASA facility! The Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico gave the Voyager spacecraft their power sources, is building nuclear generators for future Martians, and accidentally invented the field of High Energy Astrophysics. That’s just some of what we’ll learn from Lab historian Alan Carr and longtime Lab astrophysicist Ed Fenimore. The Planetary Society’s Jason Davis has the latest news about India’s lunar

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109:14

Space Policy Edition: Why Apollo Ended (with John...

Planetary Radio: Space Exploration, Astronomy and... ·

2019/09/06

As NASA struggles to return humans to the Moon by 2024, it's worth asking: why did it stop in the first place? Space historian John Logsdon joins the show to discuss the politics behind the decision to abandon the Moon in 1972. Casey and Mat also discuss the proposal to offer a $2 billion prize for sending humans back to the Moon and establishing a base there, and why that's not good public policy. More resources about this month’s topics are at

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61:12

A Comet’s Legacy, and a Helicopter is Ready for Mars

Planetary Radio: Space Exploration, Astronomy and... ·

2019/09/04

First we return to JPL for an update on the Mars Helicopter that has just been attached to the belly of the 2020 Mars Rover. Then it’s across the pond for a review of the amazing science coming from the Rosetta mission that spent years exploring comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko.We wrap things up with another What’s Up view across the solar system and beyond. Learn more about this week’s guests and topics at:

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44:20

What Will You Send to the Moon?

Planetary Radio: Space Exploration, Astronomy and... ·

2019/08/28

Astrobotic is one of several companies that are building small, robotic landers to take commercial payloads to the surface of the Moon. With a new contract from NASA to support his company’s work, CEO John Thornton looks forward to touching down in 2021. Senior editor Emily Lakdawalla can’t wait for the Europa Clipper to reach Europa, one of Jupiter’s ocean moons. Who doesn’t want more cow bell? Chief scientist Bruce Betts gets his share as he helps us explore the current night sky in What’s Up

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64:20

NASA’s Red Planet Rick and Putting Humans on Mars

Planetary Radio: Space Exploration, Astronomy and... ·

2019/08/21

Rick Davis is the perfect person to co-lead NASA’s Mars Human Landing Sites Study. No one is more devoted to putting human bootprints on the Red Planet.He returns to Planetary Radio for this inspiring and informative conversation about our progress. Bruce Betts leads off What’s Up with another brief LightSail 2 update.The Planetary Society’s solar sailing cubesat continues to raise its orbit. Learn more about this week’s guests and topics at:

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67:40

Reflections of Humanity in a Spacesuit for Moonwalkers

Planetary Radio: Space Exploration, Astronomy and... ·

2019/08/14

Host Mat Kaplan in a long and fascinating conversation with Nicholas de Monchaux, author of Spacesuit: Fashioning Apollo. This great book is about much more than creation of the suits that allowed humans to walk and work on the Moon. Jason Davis shares pointers on looking for LightSail 2 overhead, while Bruce Betts provides a solar sail update in this week’s What’s Up. And you might win a Planetary Radio t-shirt!Learn more about this week’s guests and topics at:

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74:47

Planetary Radio Live with Bill Nye at Science Museum...

Planetary Radio: Space Exploration, Astronomy and... ·

2019/08/07

Join Planetary Society CEO Bill Nye and host Mat Kaplan as they visit Oklahoma City’s outstanding public science museum. You’ll meet University of Oklahoma researchers who are exploring Mars and learning how solar systems form across the universe. And we’ll hear about the Sooner state’s huge role in our exploration of the final frontier. Learn more about this week’s guests and topics at:

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74:47

Planetary Radio Live at Science Museum Oklahoma

Planetary Radio: Space Exploration, Astronomy and... ·

2019/08/07

Join Planetary Society CEO Bill Nye and host Mat Kaplan as they visit Oklahoma City’s outstanding public science museum.You’ll meet University of Oklahoma researchers who are exploring Mars and learning how solar systems form across the universe. And we’ll hear about the Sooner state’s huge role in our exploration of the final frontier. Learn more about this week’s guests and topics

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83:26

Space Policy Edition: The Home Front During Apollo...

Planetary Radio: Space Exploration, Astronomy and... ·

2019/08/02

Did the public support Project Apollo? Dr. Emily Margolis joins the show to explore the domestic politics and cultural impact of the space age throughout the 1960s. Despite the success of the lunar landings, there was more opposition to Apollo than we generally remember. Chief Advocate Casey Dreier also provides an update on some important developments in the U.S. Congress on the eve of their August recess—including some potentially good budget news for NASA. More resources about this month’s topics

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37:40

A Helicopter for Mars and a Major LightSail Announcement

Planetary Radio: Space Exploration, Astronomy and... ·

2019/07/31

It will be the first flying machine on another world. Mars Helicopter Project Manager MiMi Aung shares her plans. There’s big news about The Planetary Society’s LightSail 2! You’ll hear it from embedded reporter Jason Davis and from LightSail Program Manager Bruce Betts, along with Bruce’s regular What’s Up look at the night sky. Learn more about this week’s guests and topics at: http://www.planetary.org/multimedia/planetary-radio/show/2019/0731-2019-mars-helicopter-lightsail-2-success.htmlLearn

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