AWESOME ASTRONOMY

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The Discussion: A final check-in with the Helium Tears team before they release their camera laden balloon to the edge of space and a free Awesome Astronomy competition to let you get involved in this adventure.

The News: This month we take a look at a star that zipped through our solar system during human history, get excited about the Dawn spacecraft's close up views of dwarf planet Ceres, bid a sad farewell to Leonard Nimoy and look forward to this month's solar eclipse.

The 5 Minute Concept: This month Paul takes a look at the most recognisable and unmissable object in the night sky: the moon. But how much do we actually know about our nearest celestial neighbour? Until the 1950s, actually, barely anything.

The Interview: Dr Joe Liske from the European Southern Observatory returns to the show for this series of interviews telling us about ESO's groundbreaking telescopes. This time it's the turn of the revolutionary Very Large Telescope.

Q&A: Listeners' questions via email, Facebook & Twitter take us on a journey into the astronomy issues that have always plagued our understanding or stretched our credulity. This month Ralph & Paul answer:

• What's the closest solar system to ours and could we ever explore it? Hedley Johnson in Des Moine, Iowa via email.
• What's the oldest surviving space probe still transmitting data to Earth?David Blanchflower in Newcastle Upon Tyne via Twitter (@DavidBFlower).

What to look out, and up, for in March.

This month we look in the direction of Cancer the Crab for the beginners guide – taking a look at open clusters Messier 67, The Beehive Cluster and the planet Jupiter beaming down from up on high.

Next we round up the planets that are visible in March 2015, say goodbye to Comet Lovejoy, take a look at this month's eclipse, explore the phases of the moon and finish off by rounding up the galaxies and globular clusters for telescope observers in Canes Venatici.

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The full length discussion between Ralph & Paul about the merits of rockets against spaceplanes - the risks, costs and current availability of technology.

With Elon Musk's SpaceX committed to landing expendable rocket parts and Reaction Engines' Sabre Rocket being backed by ESA and the UK Space Agency, is the future of spaceflight along NASA's disposable rocketry lines, SpaceX's resusable rockets or Skylon spaceplanes?

The Discussion: Enjoying views of Comet Lovejoy, engaging in astronomy outreach at schools, looking forward to the Spring AstroCamp in the Welsh Brecon Beacons dark sky reserve and catching up with the Project Helium Tears high altitude balloon team.

The Competition

Thanks to the Project Helium Tears team, we're offering you the opportunity to see your name in space! Just tweet or email us and we'll pick a winner (or winners) to have their name on the side of the spacecraft and have it photographed with the curvature of the Earth and the blackness of space in the background! Use the hashtag #TakeMeToSpace

The News: A full-to-bursting round up of the news over the last month, starting with the phoenix-like Kepler Space Telescope and the latest 'Earth-like' exoplanet and the possibility of life on Mars getting more likely following Curiosity's detection of methane on the Red Planet. Next up is NASA's options for an asteroid redirect mission, SpaceX's attempt to land spent rocket stages and we finish with the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter finding a Beagle on Mars.

The 5 Minute Concept: This month Paul puts a few myths to rest as he explores the facts about the asteroid belt between Mars & Jupiter.

The Interview: Ralph catches up with the European Space Agency's Project Scientist for the Rosetta mission, Dr Matt Taylor, to get the latest on Rosetta and Philae results and find out what we can expect next from these intrepid comet explorers

Q&A: Listeners' questions via email, Facebook & Twitter take us on a journey into the astronomy issues that have always plagued our understanding or stretched our credulity. This month Ralph & Paul answer:

• How many active satellites are there in orbit? Elizabeth Chamberlain in Worcester via email.
• What's the difference between a comet, asteroid and a meteor? Christine L in Derbyshire via Twitter (@ChrispyDoDa) .

We start with the big bold northern hemisphere constellation of Orion. The swollen supergiant Betelgeuse, 5 stars in one in Sigma Orionis, and the magnificent Orion Nebula stellar nursery in our beginner's guide.

Next up, we have a four body conjunction of Venus, Mars, Uranus & the moon, while Jupiter continues to dominate overhead, reaching opposition on 6th February. There are a good few stars occulted by the moon this month, while Comet Lovejoy continues to delight binocular and telescope observers. Then we round up the best of the deep sky offerings for the month in the constellation Ursa Major.

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In this podcast extra we go off piste and digress from a discussion about the successes of the Rosetta mission.

We ask whether the fantastic comet mission of 2014/2015 marks a turning point in ESA's exploration and marks Europe's coming of age as a space agency?

Two instances of bad language.

The Discussion: Christmas in Cydonia and teaching science to children through astronomy education.

The News: Kicking off 2015 we round off the events that concluded 2014: the successful test flight of NASA's Orion capsule; NASA's Mars Science Laboratory pieces together the clues that tell us how Mount Sharp (the mountain Mars Curiosity is exploring) was formed; and science findings from ESA's Rosetta and Philae spacecraft that suggest water was not delivered to Earth by comets like 67P Churyumov Gerasimenko.

The 5 Minute Concept: This month Paul delves into the fundamental nature of our universe. We take a look at the Cosmological Principle, which tells us that the universe and the forces within it are the same wherever we look, and explore huge structures that put strain on this accepted model of cosmology.

The Interview: Ralph & Paul speak with the creators of the 'Essex Space Agency', Matt Kingsnorth and Phil St Pier who are building a high altitude balloon with cameras to photograph the Earth's curved horizon from the edge of space in their Helium Tears project.

Q&A: Listeners' questions via email, Facebook & Twitter take us on a journey into the astronomy issues that have always plagued our understanding or stretched our credulity. This month Ralph & Paul answer:

• Are there Van Allen Belts & Aurora on other planets? Any photos from satellites orbiting other planets in our solar system? Mariecor Agravante in San Diego via twitter.
• Why was the moon so large the other night?Ian Cheale in Cambridgeshire via the Facebook Group.

What to look out, and up, for in January.

We start with three Messier open clusters in Auriga and a tougher nebula in our beginner's guide.

Next up Mercury rises high in our Northern Hemisphere skies, Jupiter dominates the night sky and Saturn, Venus, Uranus & Neptune can be found with the right timing. We bring you the phases and libration events of the moon, the Quadrantid meteor shower and a new comet to take a look for. Then we round up the best of the deep sky offerings for the month in the winter constellations of Cancer & Lynx.

This pantomime episode contains some mild bad language and puerile humour

Join us for a round up of our favourite stories & events from 2014 and discuss the most exciting space missions and astronomy events in 2015.

For this festive season we welcome you back to our secretive Cydonia bunker - the scene of each Earth invasion attempt - as we pull a few crackers over Christmas dinner and inflict some pain on the Earthling slaves.

Naturally, no end of year Awesome Astronomy show would be complete without the habitual gaffes and outtakes from 2014.

So, happy holiday season, thank you for downloading as listening to us in 2014 and we look forward to spending 2015 with you too.

Ralph. Paul, Damien & John

The Discussion: The historical landing of the Philae probe on Comet 67P, lunar imaging and astronomy outreach in the UK.

The News: In the news we relive the events around the comet landing and the latest science findings from Churyumov Gerasimenko, the upcoming first test flight of America's new manned space capsule Orion and the tragic accident aboard Virgin Galactic's Spaceship Two, resulting in the death of one of the crewmembers

The 5 Minute Concept: Fresh on the heels of the European Space Agency's latest successful mission, Paul turns his attentions this months to the beacon of knowledge, space exploration and engineering that rose from the ashes of Europe's darkest days: ESA.

The Interview: Ralph speaks with NASA's Orion Project Manager, Paul Marshall, about the upcoming test flight and the future of manned American space exploration.

Q&A: Listeners' questions via email, Facebook & Twitter take us on a journey into the astronomy issues that have always plagued our understanding or stretched our credulity. This month Ralph & Paul answer:

• How far away is Voyager from the Oort Cloud and how many years will it be before it gets there? Lee Garner via Twitter.
• I'm bored of reading sniffy comments about the cost of Rosetta. Can u do a piece next podcast about the benefits vs low budget?Alex Speed via Twitter.