Professor Determann has been writing about fascinating topics, from biological evolution and space sciences in the Arab States to Islamic science fiction and diversity in astronomy. Here is a Kainaati Chai conversation about "first contact" and a discussion about early Pakistani science fiction.

Dr. Matthias Determann is associate professor in history in the Liberal Arts & Sciences program at Virginia Commonwealth University School of the Arts in Qatar. His research interests lie in the history of science and scholarship and in the history of the Muslim world.

Here are the books that we discuss here:
Islam, Science Fiction and Extraterrestrial Life: The Culture of Astrobiology in the Muslim World
https://www.amazon.com/Islam-Science-...

Islamic Theology and Extraterrestrial Life
https://www.bloomsbury.com/us/islamic...

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Astronomy: A Modern History
https://mitpressbookstore.mit.edu/boo...

For more information about Kainaat Studios:
https://www.kainaatstudios.com

Host: Salman Hameed has a PhD in astronomy and is Charles Taylor Chair of Integrated Science & Humanities at Hampshire College and a member of the Five College Astronomy Department (FCAD) in Massachusetts, USA. He is also the CEO of the non-profit Kainaat Studios 

Credits: 
Editor: Shehryar Shaikh
Music: Zohaib Kazi

[Urdu Subtitles are available] There is often an idealism associated with space. However, space agencies and space companies, from the beginning have been engaged in dual-use technology - the same technology that can be used for going into space, is also used for war here on Earth. This has been true for the ongoing war in Gaza as well. Our guest today, Sahba El-Shawa, argues that we need to separate these two out and preserve the idealism of space exploration for the benefit of humanity. 

Sahba El-Shawa is a Jordanian-Canadian interdisciplinary researcher and social entrepreneur originally from Palestine. She is the Founder of the Jordan Space Research Initiative, which aims to bridge sustainable development with space exploration and establish an analog research facility in Jordan.

Sahba holds a BASc in Mechanical Engineering from the University of British Columbia, an MSc in Space Studies from the International Space University, and is now pursuing her PhD in Sustainable Development and Climate Change at IUSS Pavia in Italy. Her PhD research centers around the neuropsychological basis of the Overview Effect, and how making it more accessible using Virtual Reality can help drive sustainable behaviour on Earth.

You can find her article, A Palestinian Perspective on Space, Ethics, and Human Rights, here: 
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/ethics-human-rights-space-palestinian-perspective-sahba-el-shawa-ekamf/

For more information about Kainaat Studios:
https://www.kainaatstudios.com

Host: Salman Hameed has a PhD in astronomy and is Charles Taylor Chair of Integrated Science & Humanities at Hampshire College and a member of the Five College Astronomy Department (FCAD) in Massachusetts, USA. He is also the CEO of the non-profit Kainaat Studios 

Thirty years ago, astronomers made history by discovering the first exoplanet orbiting a Sun-like star. Now, we've confirmed over 5,000 exoplanets—some Earth-like, others completely alien! 🌌 But how do scientists detect these distant worlds? And what can they tell us about the possibility of life beyond Earth? 👽🌍

In this episode of Kainaati Gup Shup, astrophysicist Salman Hameed breaks down the fascinating techniques used to discover exoplanets, from transit observations to Doppler shifts. 🚀✨

#jameswebbspacetelescope #nasa #scienceexplained #exoplanets #scienceexplained #astronomy #kainaatigupshup #astronomyadventures #universe #esa #hubblespacetelescope #kepler #edutainment #solarsystem

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The universe is unimaginably vast, and a new discovery highlights its immense scale: black hole jets stretching an incredible 23 million light-years across—making them the largest astronomical structure ever observed. For perspective, that’s over 100 Milky Way galaxies laid end-to-end! But how can we, as tiny beings on a small planet orbiting a modest star, comprehend such colossal scales?

In this episode of Kainaat Gup Shup, astrophysicist Salman Hameed explores this awe-inspiring discovery and reflects on how humanity makes sense of the universe’s grandeur through the stories we tell.

#jameswebbspacetelescope #nasa #scienceexplained #blackholetheory #scienceexplained #astronomy #kainaatigupshup #astronomyadventures #universe 

Subscribe to our NEW Kids English Channel here:    / @kainaatkidsenglish   

🌌 For the first time ever, the James Webb Space Telescope has detected brown dwarfs outside our galaxy! These unique objects, smaller than stars but much larger than planets like Jupiter, offer incredible insights into the process of star formation. The discovery comes with one of the most breathtaking images captured by JWST, showcasing the star-forming region NGC 602 in the Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC) galaxy. In this episode of Kainaati Gup Shup, astrophysicist Salman Hameed dives into the science behind brown dwarfs, what they reveal about cosmic formation, and the incredible technology of the James Webb Telescope.

You can find the original paper about the discovery here: 
Peter Zeidler et al, Discovering Subsolar Metallicity Brown Dwarf Candidates in the Small Magellanic Cloud, The Astrophysical Journal (2024)

🌍 Jupiter's moon, Europa, is one of the most promising locations in our solar system for finding alien life! Beneath its thick ice sheet lies a vast salt-water ocean, making it a key target for NASA's Europa Clipper Mission. Launched in 2024, this groundbreaking mission will arrive at Europa in 2030, conducting close flybys and even passing through potential plumes of water erupting from its hidden ocean. Could these plumes hold clues to extraterrestrial life? 🔭 In this episode of Kainaat Gup Shup, astrophysicist Salman Hameed dives deep into the mission, exploring the fascinating science behind Europa and its potential to support life.

We know that black holes exist. One of the types of black holes is roughly on the scale of the mass of our Sun. They form when the large-scale ones die. Then there are supermassive black holes that exist at the centers of galaxies. These can have masses on the scale of millions or billions of times the mass of our Sun. Our Milky Way galaxy has a supermassive black hole that is 4 million times the mass of our Sun. But astronomers have been looking for medium size blackholes. And now, finally, there is evidence of one in a globular cluster in our galaxy. In this episode of Kainaati Gup Shup, astrophysicist Salman Hameed discusses how astronomers discovered this mid-size black hole.  

Mars continues to captivate scientists and space enthusiasts alike! While we've discovered over 5,000 exoplanets orbiting distant stars, the Red Planet remains one of the most intriguing within our solar system. Billions of years ago, Mars had vast oceans and a suitable climate for life. Today, it's a cold, barren desert, but NASA’s rovers, Curiosity and Perseverance, are unearthing fascinating clues about its ancient history. Could Mars have once harboured life? In this episode of Kainaati Gup Shup, astrophysicist Salman Hameed delves into three groundbreaking discoveries that offer new evidence about the possibility of life on Mars.

Pakistan's first satellite to the Moon, ICUBE Q, is part of China's Chang'e 6 mission to the far side of the Moon. How should we think about Pakistan's mission? Why is China going to the far side of the Moon, and what will we learn from it? Please join the astrophysicist in this episode of Kainaati Gup Shup. 

Solar eclipses are special! They break the routine of the day to remind us of the skies. In fact, there is a solar eclipse on April 8th, that will be visible in North America. But solar eclipses have played a crucial role in history of science. In particular, in the discovery of helium and in providence supporting evidence for Einstein's General Theory of Relativity. Please join astrophysicist Salman Hameed in this episode of Kainaati Gup Shup.