Listeners, if you're interested in the latest news about Mars missions, there's been some exciting activity over the past week. NASA's Perseverance rover continues to explore Jezero Crater, and while it hasn't definitively found evidence of past life, it has collected samples that could hold clues about biological activity. These samples are intended to be returned to Earth as part of the Mars Sample Return mission, which promises to provide more detailed insights into the Martian

Hosted by Steve Nerlich. Dear Cheap Astronomy – What is the right message to send to the aliens? Keen listeners may be familiar with Cheap Astronomy's ongoing despair at Earth's lacklustre attempts at communication with the wider Universe. A few episodes back we ran through a history of deliberate communications to date, about 90 per cent of which have been music – well mostly digitized and some analog radio transmissions of music.   Dear Cheap Astronomy – Can we drill through the ice and find life

Scientists are using many approaches to understanding the nature and history of 3I/Atlas the third known interstellar traveler in the night. At a hyperbolic velocity of 130,000 mph it is the fastest interstellar visitor ever measured.

Milky Way in a New Light: Astronomers have unveiled a stunning new radio image of the Milky Way, captured by the Murchison Wide Field Array in Australia. This unprecedented view reveals over 3,000 supernova remnants and stellar nurseries, enhancing our understanding of the life cycle of stars from birth to death.Farewell to Akatsuki: The Japanese space agency JAXA has officially declared its Akatsuki spacecraft dead after a decade of revolutionizing our understanding of Venus. Despite a rocky start,

A young “cotton-candy” planet is hastening its own demise. As it dips close to its star, it appears to trigger giant explosions that erode the planet’s atmosphere. The planet orbits HIP 67522, a star roughly 400 light-years from Earth. The star is a little bigger and heavier than the Sun, but less than one percent the Sun’s age. Such young stars generate strong magnetic fields. Lines of magnetic force tangle and snap, producing powerful flares. The planet, HIP 67522 b, orbits

In this in-depth interview, host Martin Willis welcomes veteran UFO researcher Donald Schmitt, protégé of Dr. J. Allen Hynek, the famed astronomer behind Project Blue Book. Schmitt shares rare personal insights into Hynek’s life, his shift from skeptic to believer, and the behind-the-scenes struggles with government secrecy. They explore pivotal UFO cases including Socorro, Roswell, Pascagoula, Travis Walton, and reveal how Hynek quietly investigated Roswell before its public rediscovery. Schmitt

Hosted by Tony Darnell. From  Dec 19, 2019. Get Stellina Telescope Here (affiliate link): http://bit.ly/2WJrPzr   Here are my thoughts on a brand new telescope for amateur astronomers that was released by Vaonis, a  French company that has done something remarkable with the Stellina telescope, they've created a fully-automated, self-contained optical system that is unlike anything I've seen before.  This telescope is a real paradigm shift for amateur astronomy, never before has getting into the

This week we look at why space can be scary with a survey of some of the best (and some of the most laughable) movies about critters from outer space! Witness the terror of men in floppy rubber suits! Cringe as the century plant-like triffids take over people's brains! Scream along with us as rock spiders on the moon devour astroanuts' faces! It's a true popuourri of space-borne horrors as we discuss some of the best (okay, and worst) space sci-fi movies of all time! Headlines: • NASA Science

The “Gateway to Hell” has been burning for 50 years, and it’s finally closing. Journey to the most hellish places on Earth. We're exploring our planet's terrifying "hell holes" - from a relentlessly burning crater, to a pit teeming with spiders, and a gigantic chasm that won't stop growing. Discover the dark forces behind these nightmare portals, find out how they mysteriously formed, and what truly lies lurking in the darkness below.▀▀▀▀▀▀Try Consensus, an AI search engine that turns millions of

This is your Astronomy Tonight podcast.On October 28th, 1971, the United Kingdom launched its first satellite, Prospero, aboard a Black Arrow rocket from Woomera, Australia. This launch was a bittersweet moment in British space history, as it marked both a significant achievement and the end of an era.Prospero, also known as X-3, was a 66-kilogram satellite designed to test solar cells and study the space environment. But what makes this launch truly fascinating is the story behind it. The British

Second Generation Black Holes Discovered: Astronomers have made a groundbreaking discovery with the detection of second generation black holes, providing evidence for hierarchical mergers. The LIGO Virgo Kagra collaboration identified two gravitational wave events, revealing unexpected characteristics that suggest a complex history of cosmic collisions.Young Astronomer Makes Asteroid Discoveries: Meet Stuart Patel, a 12-year-old from Andrew, who has potentially discovered two new asteroids through a

Host Dave Schlom visits with brand new MacArthur Fellowship award winner Kareem El-Badry, an astrophysicist at the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena.

A visitor from far beyond the solar system is getting better acquainted with the Sun this week. Tomorrow, it’ll make its closest approach to the Sun – just 126 million miles. After that, it’ll head back toward interstellar space. The visitor is 3I/ATLAS. It was discovered on July 1st by an automated telescope that looks for comets and asteroids. Calculations of its orbit quickly showed that it came from outside the solar system. That makes it the third known visitor from

A new study reveals that the biggest barrier to space-based solar power isn’t in orbit—it’s on Earth. Researchers found that while thousands of satellites could technically beam solar energy from geostationary orbit, real-world factors like limited land for rectennas near the equator sharply reduce that number.Even so, the analysis shows SBSP could still provide up to 3% of global power, underscoring its potential as a future clean energy source.

Astronomy Cast Ep. 769: Little Red Dots By Fraser Cain & Dr. Pamela Gay Streamed live on Oct 20, 2025. New instruments bring new mysteries, and when James Webb came on line it uncovered a collection of strange, compact, bright objects shifted deeply into the red end of the spectrum. These were dubbed "Little red dots" or LRDs. And the astronomical community continues to puzzle over what they are. When JWST first peered into the distant past, it discovered the early universe had a rash of little red

Chris and Shane talk about some things you can do to prepare for your first night of observing with your first telescope.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vSVS2x-8eG4 Hosted by: Fraser Cain and Dr. Pamela L. Gay Streamed live on Oct 20, 2025. New instruments bring new mysteries, and when James Webb came on line it uncovered a collection of strange, compact, bright objects shifted deeply into the red end of the spectrum. These were dubbed "Little red dots" or LRDs. And the astronomical community continues to puzzle over what they are. When JWST first peered into the distant past, it discovered the early universe had a

This is your Astronomy Tonight podcast.On this day, October 27th, in the year 1961, NASA launched one of the most peculiar satellites ever to orbit our planet. The Echo 1A satellite, affectionately nicknamed the "Skyball" or "Star of Hope," was essentially a giant, shiny space balloon. Measuring 100 feet (30.5 meters) in diameter, this metallic sphere was made of a thin plastic film coated with aluminum. It was so reflective that it became the brightest object in the night sky, outshining even the

Discovering Tatooine's Twin: Astronomers have unveiled a remarkable binary star system, TOI2267, located 190 light years away, featuring three Earth-sized exoplanets orbiting two suns. This unprecedented arrangement challenges existing models of planet formation, suggesting that stable rocky planets can thrive in chaotic environments.Exploring ISS History: A new interactive website, ISS in Real Time, allows users to experience 25 years of International Space Station history. Compiled by NASA

Big “wobbles” in Earth’s magnetic field more than 40,000 years ago could have made the cultures of the time feel wobbly as well. Early modern humans might have adapted to the wobbly field better than Neanderthals. Earth’s magnetic field protects the surface from high levels of solar radiation. But during a period known as the Laschamp Excursion, which began 42,000 years ago, the field weakened to just 10 percent of its current intensity. And instead of acting like a bar