Nights

A week ago, India set down a robotic probe on the Moon, becoming the first country to land near the lunar south pole. Chandrayaan-3's Vikram lander - carrying a rover in its belly - touched down on the lunar soil after a 20-minute, nail-biting finale watched by millions of people across the world. Future missions to this region are planned by the US, China and Russia. So what makes it so fascinating? Astrophysicist and cosmologist Dr Brad Tucker talks to Mark Leishman about all things lunar.

A group of New Zealand scientists hope the work they have done mapping a Wellington aquifer will help others around the world find new sources of drinking water. Instead of resorting to expensive drilling, the group from NIWA used video footage and acoustic soundings of freshwater flowing out from the Waiwhetu Aquifer under Wellington harbour. The project designer Joshu Mountjoy joins Nights to talk about the research and its potential.

This week Colin Peacock talked to Mark Leishman about broadcasters revealing their election coverage plans - and the problem posed by politically motivated hecklers at campaign events. The reaction to the All Blacks record-breaking beating - and claims that Wellington's golden mile is on the decline.

A historic riverboat is set to sail down the Whanganui river once more, after 25 years away. The M.V. Waireka was built especially for New Zealand waters in early 1900s Scotland. Part of a fleet of 12, only four vessels remain. Volunteer project lead Steve McClune is fixing her up, and knows the secrets of this rare riverboat.

It's one of the worst degenerative diseases in existence, and scientist say early detection is paramount to effective treatment. Eye scans powered by artificial intelligence (AI) could detect Parkinson's disease before people have symptoms, a study has suggested. Pearse Keane, is a professor of artificial medical intelligence at University College London and Moorfields eye hospital.

Hunger: It's part and parcel of the human experience. Research reveals that being hungry can also negatively affect our emotions to our cognition and judgement. Dr John Parkinson, Senior Lecturer at Bangor University's School of Psychology, has studied hunger extensively, and talks to Mark about his research.

Young people are uncertain and worried about their next steps after school, according to research from Monash's University in Melbourne. Forty per cent of the students surveyed said they had "no career direction". Professor Lucas Walsh, Director of the Centre for Youth Policy and Education Practice at Monash University, discusses his research with Mark Leishman.

A South Auckland community organisation is helping save derelict homes from the top and at the same time giving young people skills for life. The Ara Education Charitable Trust has been running since 2016. At the moment the moment they're working on nine houses. Ara Trust's carpentry tutor William Malakai joins Nights.

Today, for the first time, parliament debated whether 16-year-old should be allowed to vote in local government elections and be elected as councillors. The government introduced the bill to lower the age for local elections following a decision by the Supreme Court that the voting age of 18 was inconsistent with the Bill of Rights Act. Sage Garrett, Co-director of Make It 16, talks with Mark Leishman.

Researchers at the University of Oxford in the UK and the University of Copenhagen in Denmark have extracted ancient DNA from a 2,900-year-old clay brick. What did they discover? Dr Sophie Lund Rasmussen and husband Dr Troels Pank Arbøll were involved with the DNA extraction and study of the brick.