BBC Inside Science

Juno, Space debris, Fake tumours, Risky plants


Listen Later

Earlier this week, the US space agency successfully put a new probe in orbit around Jupiter. The Juno satellite, which left Earth five years ago, had to fire a rocket engine in a tricky and precise manoeuvre in order to brake and become ensnared by Jupiter's gravity.

Fran Baganal is a mission scientist for Juno and tells Adam Rutherford what measurements Juno is now in position to make.

Space is full of junk left over from past space missions: from flecks of paint to used rockets, dead satellites, also debris from past collisions of space junk. This junk is speeding around the Earth at several thousand miles per hour. At those speeds even small pieces of rubbish just fractions of a millimetre across can damage communication satellites which are vital for the web, mobile phones, and satellite navigation on earth.

The Surrey Space centre team are preparing to launch the world's first space litter-picking mission. The RemoveDebris team share their clean up designs with Adam.

Researchers have had success growing body parts like windpipes and ears in the laboratory for use in transplants. A group of scientists at Barts Cancer Institute in London are making own tumours; tissues we don't want. However, it is important to study how they grow, and co-opt other cells in the body. Reporter Anand Jagatia heads to their tissue lab to see what they've grown.

All animals take risky decisions all the time. The ability to assess the potential gain from the potential harm, and make the right choice, gives the animal an evolutionary advantage. A new study suggests that plants are capable of making similar calculations, despite not having brains. Alex Kacelnik at Oxford University is one of the scientists behind the experiment that suggests that pea plants are willing to gamble.

Presenter: Adam Rutherford

Producer: Adrian Washbourne.

...more
View all episodesView all episodes
Download on the App Store

BBC Inside ScienceBy BBC Radio 4

  • 4.4
  • 4.4
  • 4.4
  • 4.4
  • 4.4

4.4

279 ratings


More shows like BBC Inside Science

View all
In Our Time by BBC Radio 4

In Our Time

5,445 Listeners

The Naked Scientists Podcast by The Naked Scientists

The Naked Scientists Podcast

599 Listeners

Global News Podcast by BBC World Service

Global News Podcast

7,653 Listeners

Science Weekly by The Guardian

Science Weekly

421 Listeners

Business Daily by BBC World Service

Business Daily

530 Listeners

Science In Action by BBC World Service

Science In Action

345 Listeners

Inside Health by BBC Radio 4

Inside Health

108 Listeners

More or Less: Behind the Stats by BBC Radio 4

More or Less: Behind the Stats

894 Listeners

Discovery by BBC World Service

Discovery

958 Listeners

Ask the Naked Scientists by Dr Chris Smith

Ask the Naked Scientists

73 Listeners

World Business Report by BBC World Service

World Business Report

288 Listeners

The Infinite Monkey Cage by BBC Radio 4

The Infinite Monkey Cage

2,078 Listeners

Newshour by BBC World Service

Newshour

1,054 Listeners

In Our Time: Science by BBC Radio 4

In Our Time: Science

724 Listeners

The Life Scientific by BBC Radio 4

The Life Scientific

228 Listeners

Unexpected Elements by BBC World Service

Unexpected Elements

355 Listeners

Curious Cases by BBC Radio 4

Curious Cases

757 Listeners

CrowdScience by BBC World Service

CrowdScience

480 Listeners

Newscast by BBC News

Newscast

627 Listeners

Evil Genius with Russell Kane by BBC Sounds

Evil Genius with Russell Kane

357 Listeners

Elis James and John Robins by BBC Radio 5 Live

Elis James and John Robins

326 Listeners

You're Dead to Me by BBC Radio 4

You're Dead to Me

3,057 Listeners

The world, the universe and us by New Scientist

The world, the universe and us

111 Listeners

Sport's Strangest Crimes by BBC Radio 5 Live

Sport's Strangest Crimes

93 Listeners

Uncanny by BBC Radio 4

Uncanny

596 Listeners

Dua Lipa: At Your Service by BBC Sounds

Dua Lipa: At Your Service

1,000 Listeners

Lady Killers with Lucy Worsley by BBC Radio 4

Lady Killers with Lucy Worsley

509 Listeners

Believe in Magic by BBC Sounds

Believe in Magic

608 Listeners

Uncharted with Hannah Fry by BBC Radio 4

Uncharted with Hannah Fry

116 Listeners

The Global Story by BBC World Service

The Global Story

121 Listeners

Miss Me? by BBC Sounds

Miss Me?

271 Listeners

The History Podcast by BBC Radio 4

The History Podcast

29 Listeners

Rory Stewart: The Long History of... by BBC Radio 4

Rory Stewart: The Long History of...

104 Listeners

Havana Helmet Club by BBC Sounds

Havana Helmet Club

4 Listeners