Planetary Radio: Space Exploration, Astronomy and Science

Dr. Bhavya Lal joins the show to discuss the size of the space economy, where it's going, and how the term itself can mean many different things to many different people. In a world filled with breathless claims about trillion-dollar economies, we dive down into the fundamental assumptions about space commerce, its potential for growth, and the pitfalls of motivated thinking in the hyper-optimistic space community. Learn more about this month’s topics through links on the show page. https://www.planetary.org/multimedia/planetary-radio/show/2020/space-policy-edition-51.htmlSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

3 Jul 20201h 4min

Mastcam-Z is the main camera system that will soon leave for Mars as part of the Perseverance rover. Mastcam-Z Principal Investigator Jim Bell is back to tell us about what the most powerful set of eyes to reach the surface of the Red Planet may show us. Planetary Society Solar System Specialist Emily Lakdawalla explores four sample return missions headed out across our solar system. The Antikythera Mechanism, an ancient Greek computing device, anchors this week’s What’s Up segment with Bruce Betts. And someone will win one of Jim Bell’s books in the new space trivia contest. Learn more at https://www.planetary.org/multimedia/planetary-radio/show/2020/0701-2020-jim-bell-mastcam-z.htmlSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

1 Jul 202053min

Low Earth orbit, the Moon, Mars, even Neptune and the edge of the solar system--China’s ambitious plans for space exploration and development are laid out by Planetary Society contributing editor and Chinese space program expert Andrew Jones. Jason Davis provides a brief overview of what’s in the June Solstice edition of The Planetary Report, now available for free. And it’s time to give away ice cream on What’s Up! Learn more at https://www.planetary.org/multimedia/planetary-radio/show/2020/0624-2020-andrew-jones-china-space-program.htmlSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

24 Jun 202051min

The LightSail 2 team and 50,000 supporters around the world will celebrate the little spacecraft’s first anniversary on orbit in a few days. Planetary Society Chief Operating Officer Jennifer Vaughn remembers the long road to this accomplishment. LightSail Program Manager Bruce Betts and LightSail Project Manager Dave Spencer tell us what we’ve learned over the last year and look to the future of solar sailing. Dave also reveals his exciting new job at the Jet Propulsion Lab. Learn more at https://www.planetary.org/multimedia/planetary-radio/show/2020/0617-2020-light-sail-2-betts-spencer-vaughn.htmlSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

17 Jun 202051min

Keeping humans alive and well in space is hard enough. How will this be accomplished on a 3-year journey to Mars and back? Paragon President and CEO Grant Anderson shares the great progress we’ve made and the remaining challenges. Astronauts headed for the Red Planet may not need ice cream to stay alive, but will life be worth living without it? You may win a pint of Ben & Jerry’s moooony new flavor and a Netflix Space Force spoon to eat it with in this week’s space trivia contest. Learn more at https://www.planetary.org/multimedia/planetary-radio/show/2020/0610-2020-grant-anderson-life-support.htmlSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

10 Jun 202057min

SpaceX's Crew Dragon safely carried 2 astronauts to the ISS, nearly a decade after NASA made a huge bet on commercial partnerships to solve a problem of access to the space station. Casey and Mat explore how NASA gained the political will to fundamentally re-imagine its relationship with the private sector. Will it spur a new market for sending humans into space? Chief of D.C. Operations Brendan Curry offers an update on Congress and the outlook for NASA's major programs in a period of unrest and uncertainty. Learn more about this month’s topics through links at https://www.planetary.org/multimedia/planetary-radio/show/2020/space-policy-edition-50.htmlSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

5 Jun 20201h 17min

This episode opens with a special message about The Planetary Society’s response to recent news, followed by a period of silence that marks the unjust loss of George Floyd and other black men and women. In our regular coverage, we celebrate the successful launch and arrival of the Crew Dragon spacecraft at the International Space Station. Then it’s off to Mars with planetary scientist Edgard Rivera-Valentin. Learn more at https://www.planetary.org/multimedia/planetary-radio/show/2020/0603-2020-edgard-rivera-valentin-mars-brines-crew-dragon.htmlSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

3 Jun 202048min

Former astronaut and NASA Associate Administrator John Grunsfeld is often called the Hubble Repairman. He made three space shuttle trips to the space telescope to repair and upgrade it. Now he looks back over three decades of science, beautiful images, and inspiration delivered by the HST. Rubber asteroids are back, and you might win one in the new What’s Up space trivia contest. Great links, including to Mat Kaplan’s live interview with John Grunsfeld, are at https://www.planetary.org/multimedia/planetary-radio/show/2020/0527-2020-john-grunsfeld-hubble-30th.htmlSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

27 Mai 20201h 1min