#94 - April 2020 Part 1

We're hosting a live Q&A on Thurs 16th April. Go to awesomeastronomy.com to see how to watch & get involved!

The Discussion:

• Jeni's sent the final proofs off for her research paper which is now on archive at https://arxiv.org/abs/2003.01727 and will soon be in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society.
• Sadly, we have to say goodbye to Apollo 15 command module pilot Al Worden.
• The Cradle of Aviation Museum cancel their Apollo 13 anniversary event, but you can relive Apollo 13 (recreating the launch from 11th April) as if you were in mission control with https://apolloinrealtime.org/13/.
• A shout out to Galaxy Zoo at a time when there are fewer thing more productive you could be doing with your time than adding to science and human knowledge: https://www.zooniverse.org/projects.
• A round up of listeners' reviews and comments.
• A couple of Awesome Astronomy live-stream shows at 8pm on Thursday 16th and Monday 27th Because, let's face it, you're not going to be busy!

The News: Rounding up the astronomy news this month we have:

• The European Southern Observatory's new behemoth telescope takes a step closer
• An exoplanet found to be raining iron
• 139 new minor planets found in our own outer solar system
• Observing material at the event horizon around our supermassive black hole
• Could life actually be viable on planets around red dwarf stars after all?
• An update on the recent dimming of Betelgeuse

Main News story: A full discussion on the impact of social distancing and economic depression on professional astronomy.

The Sky Guide: This month we're taking a look at the constellation of Leo 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 April.

A guide to the electromagnetic spectrum: In this series we take a look at the electromagnetic spectrum, what, it is, what is shows us and why it's so important to astronomers. This month we explain the microwave part of the spectrum and its relevance to astronomy.

Q&A: Do you think C/2019 Y4 (ATLAS) is going to be bright enough to be spotted with the naked eye? From our good friend Raffael de Palma in Italy