Podcasts Archives

September 10, 2007December 26, 2015 by Fraser Cain

Podcast: Astronomy in Science Fiction

This is a very different episode of Astronomy Cast. As we mentioned last week, Pamela recently attended the Dragon*Con science fiction convention in Atlanta, Georgia. While she was there, she participated in a special live edition of Astronomy Cast with special guest Dr. Kevin Frazier. Kevin is a NASA scientist, and the science consultant for the TV shows Battlestar Galactica and Eureka. He and Pamela work through physics and astronomy in popular science fiction. What they get right, and what they get wrongâ€¦ oh so very wrong.

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Astronomy in Science Fiction – Show notes and transcript

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September 4, 2007December 26, 2015 by Fraser Cain

Podcast: Panspermia

As a reward to the all the dedicated fans who completed our demographic survey, we released this special episode of Astronomy Cast. As promised, we’re now releasing this episode to all of our subscribers. Panspermia is a controversial theory that life on Earth originatedâ€¦ out there. Maybe it started out in a cosmic dust cloud or originated from another planet, but somehow the very first lifeforms made the trip through the vacuum of space and colonized our home planet.

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Panspermia – Show notes and transcript

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September 4, 2007December 26, 2015 by Fraser Cain

Podcast: Mars

Today we consider Mars, the next planet in our journey through the Solar System. Apart from the Earth, it’s the most explored planet in our Solar System. Even now there are rovers crawling the surface, orbiters overhead, and a lander on its way. It’s a cold, dry desert, so why does this planet hold such fascination?

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Mars – Show notes and transcript

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August 29, 2007December 26, 2015 by Fraser Cain

Podcast: Earth

Another week, another planet. This time we talk about our own home world: Earth. You might think you know the planet beneath your feet, but it’s actually one of the most interesting and dynamic places in the Solar System. Learn about our planet’s formation, weather, its changing climate, and life.

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Earth – Show notes and transcript

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August 20, 2007December 26, 2015 by Fraser Cain

Podcast: Venus

venus_magellan.thumbnail.jpg — The planet Venus, as imagined by the Magellan 10 mission. Credit: NASA/JPL

Last week we talked about Mercury, so this week our planetary parade proceeds to Venus. It’s the brightest object in the sky, the hottest object in the solar system, and it’s probably one of the most deadly places to go and visit. You might be amazed to know that spacecraft have actually reached the surface of Venus and taken pictures. Find out more about our Earth’s evil twin planet.

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Venus – Show notes and transcript

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August 13, 2007December 26, 2015 by Fraser Cain

Podcast: Mercury

We’re still digging through the thousands of comments and suggestions from the listener survey but we hear your requests and suggestions, and now you get to start reaping the benefits. Today we start our survey of the solar system with Mercury. What mysteries is it hiding from us? How similar is Mercury to the other rocky planets? How much do we really know about this first rock from the Sun?

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Mercury – Show notes and transcript

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August 6, 2007December 26, 2015 by Fraser Cain

Podcast: Tidal Forces Across the Universe

Last week we talked about tidal forces within our solar system. This week we’re going to expand our view and encompass the entire universe. Some of the most dramatic events originate from tidal forces caused by gravity: other worlds, galaxies, black holes and even entire clusters of galaxies are under this influence.

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Tidal Forces Across the Universe – Show notes and transcript

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July 30, 2007December 26, 2015 by Fraser Cain

Podcast: Tidal Forces

Consider the following: we’ve got tides here on Earth, the Moon only shows one face to the Earth, we’ve got volcanoes on Io, and ice geysers on Enceladus. All these phenomena originate from a common cause: the force of gravity stretching across space to tug at another world.

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Tidal Forces – Show notes and transcript

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July 23, 2007December 26, 2015 by Fraser Cain

Podcast: Stellar Nurseries

We’ve discussed star formation in the past, but now we wanted to talk about the different kinds of stellar nurseries we see across the Universe. We know where our Sun came from because we can look out and see different stellar neighborhoods at every stage of development. It takes a village of gas and dust to raise a star.

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Stellar Nurseries – Show notes and transcript

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July 17, 2007December 26, 2015 by Fraser Cain

Podcast: The Important Numbers in the Universe

This week we wanted to give you a basic physics lesson. This isn’t easy physics, this is a lesson on the basic numbers of the Universe. Each of these numbers define a key aspect of our Universe. If they had different values, the Universe would be a changed place, and life here on Earth would never have arisen.

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The Important Numbers in the Universe – Show notes and transcript

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