508: 2018 Holiday Gift Guide Astronomy Cast 508: 2018 Holiday Gift Guide by Fraser Cain & Dr. Pamela Gay

507: From Fiction to Fact: Ion Drive Astronomy Cast 507: > From Fiction to Fact: Ion Drive by Fraser Cain & Dr. Pamela Gay

Ion engines are a mainstay of science fiction, featured in both Star Trek and Wars. But this is a very real technology, successfully used on several missions out there in the Solar System right now. How do they work and what are the limits?

Did you hear that astronomers from Harvard think that the interstellar asteroid Oumuamua was actually an alien solar sail? Is it aliens? Of course it's not aliens. But some day, it'll actually be aliens.

506: It’s not Aliens, Unless it’s Aliens Astronomy Cast 506: It’s not Aliens, Unless it’s Aliens by Fraser Cain & Dr. Pamela Gay

We’re always interested in the surface features of the planets and moons in the Solar System, but that’s only skin deep. It turns out, these worlds have an interesting inner life too. Thanks to the science of seismology, we can peer into our planet and learn how it works… inside. And we’re about to take that technology to Mars.

505: Seismology Astronomy Cast 505: Seismology by Fraser Cain & Dr. Pamela Gay

To really study something, you want to reach out and touch it. But what can you do if you're separated by a huge distance? You reach out with electromagnetic or sound waves and watch how they bounce back. Thanks to radar, sonar and lidar.

504: Radar, Lidar & Sonar Astronomy Cast 504: Radar, Lidar & Sonar by Fraser Cain & Dr. Pamela Gay

503: Gravity Mapping Astronomy Cast 503: Gravity Mapping by Fraser Cain & Dr. Pamela Gay