Are We There Yet?

This summer, NASA will launch a 2,000 pound robot to the surface of Mars. The Perseverance rover will search for ancient signs of life and prep samples of Martian rocks to send back home.

For an overview of the mission, we’ll speak with Jake Robins. He’s the host of the podcast WeMartians and has been following the development of the rover as it readies for its launch from Kennedy Space Center.

Then, an asteroid zipped dramatically close to Earth last week. While it wasn’t a threat to our planet, it has me wondering how do we detect and protect from future threats? We’ll pose that question to our panel of experts on this week’s “I’d Like to Know” segment.

This summer, NASA will launch a 2,000 pound robot to the surface of Mars. The Perseverance rover will search for ancient signs of life and prep samples of Martian rocks to send back home.

The Mercury 7 might have had the right stuff and made the headlines, but behind the scenes 13 women were being tested to become astronauts. This hidden history of the fight for women astronauts is uncovered in Rebecca Siegel’s new book “To Fly Among the Stars.” We’ll speak with Siegel about the program and the lasting impressions these women left on the trajectory of gender equality in space flight.

Then, as astronomers discover more and more planets outside our solar system, how do we know what they’re made of? Our panel of expert scientists answer a listener question about uncovering the stuff that makes a planet and what’s hidden on its surface -- that’s on this week’s “I’d Like to Know” segment.

The Mercury 7 might have had the right stuff and made the headlines, but behind the scenes 13 women were being tested to become astronauts.

For those of us now working from home, we know there are a few challenges. Your mic doesn’t work on a Zoom meeting, your cat walks across your keyboard, your VPN is busted. Well, imagine your job entails driving a car-sized rover some 100 million miles away on the surface of Mars -- all from home.

That’s exactly what the Curiosity Rover team is doing now with great success. NASA's Alicia Allbaugh leads the Mars rover driving team and joins us to talk about the challenges of remote working and the successes her team has accomplished.

Then, each year scientists get together and plan for the next ten years of discovery. The Planetary Science and Astrobiology Decadal Survey is underway -- so what’s on the horizon? On this week's installment of “I’d Like to Know,” our expert scientists weigh in on what’s to come in the efforts of planetary discovery.

With most of NASA teleworking to prevent the spread of coronavirus, missions exploring our solar system continue. NASA’s Curiosity rover is no exception. The team members responsible for driving and operating the rover are now all working from home.

Some seniors at Marjory Stoneman Douglas in Parkland, Florida are learning about the night sky and the universe they live in thanks to their astronomy teacher Kyle Jeter. Astronomy isn’t a common course selection for most -- we’ll explore how it can help students understand all sorts of science and promote science literacy in a social media world.

Then, our expert scientists have some sci-fi picks for keeping us busy during the quarantine. We’ll chat with UCF’s Addie Dove, Josh Colwell and Jim Cooney about science fiction shows and new science documentaries to keep us company as we’re safer at home.

Some seniors at Marjory Stoneman Douglas in Parkland, Florida are learning about the night sky and the universe they live in thanks to their astronomy teacher Kyle Jeter.

While many of us are struggling with the new normal of quarantining and self-isolating, for NASA astronauts — it’s a part of the job. We’ll catch up with retired NASA astronaut Mike Massimino about the importance of quarantining for space travelers, and the lessons he learned while isolated from his family during his two missions to service the Hubble Space Telescope.

We’ll also talk about his book, “Spaceman: An Astronaut's Unlikely Journey to Unlock the Secrets of the Universe” which has now been adapted to a young adult novel, about how he became an astronaut in the first place.

Then, with so many of us staying at home -- what can we do to pass the time? Our panel of expert physicists say now’s a great time to do some stargazing. A crash course in backyard astronomy from our expert scientists.

While many of us are struggling with the new normal of quarantining and self-isolating, for NASA astronauts — it’s a part of the job. We’ll catch up with retired NASA astronaut Mike Massimino about the importance of quarantining for space travelers, and the lessons he learned while isolated from his family during his two missions to service the Hubble Space Telescope.