Orbiters! Today we’re exploring atoms - the tiny building blocks of the universe! We’ll discover what atoms are, what they’re made of, where they’re found, how scientists discovered them, and more (including how many atoms are in a blue whale!).

We’re joined by PhD scientist and chemical engineer Dr. Fernanda Sulantay-Vargas from Yale University! Dr. Fernanda is also a science communicator, active with the Society for Hispanic Professional Engineers (SHPE), and the founder of InspiraSTEM, an organization that inspires and supports students from El Salvador in STEM. 

➡️ The Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers (SHPE): Website

➡️ InspiraSTEM: Website

➡️ Follow Dr. Fernanda: Instagram, Tiktok

💬 Submit your kids' questions for episodes! ⁠⁠⁠⁠www.cumbrekids.org/questions⁠⁠⁠⁠

💛 Support this podcast by joining The Curious Club: ⁠⁠⁠⁠LINK⁠⁠⁠⁠

🎧 More podcasts by Cumbre Kids: ⁠⁠⁠⁠Learn more⁠⁠⁠⁠

🎙️ This episode is available in Spanish on our sister podcast, ⁠Cráneo: Ciencia para niños curiosos⁠.

👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 A message for parents about our values: ⁠⁠⁠⁠LINK⁠

Did you know that studying rocks today can teach us about the Earth millions of years ago!? We're joined by an incredible geoscientist - Dr. Lina Perez-Angel, from Brown University - to explore the incredible world of Sedimentary Rocks, including what they're made of, how they form, and how scientists study them!

💬 Submit your kids' questions! ⁠⁠⁠www.cumbrekids.org/questions⁠⁠⁠

💛 Support this podcast by joining The Curious Club: ⁠⁠⁠LINK⁠⁠⁠

🎧 More podcasts by Cumbre Kids: ⁠⁠⁠Learn more⁠⁠⁠

🎙️ This episode is available in Spanish on our sister podcast, Cráneo: Ciencia para niños curiosos.

👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 A message for parents about our values: ⁠⁠⁠LINK⁠

This episode was supported in part by the National Science Foundation Grant 2402100 from the Division of Earth Science. 

Ever wonder what happens in your brain while we sleep? Or why we need to sleep at all? In this episode, Dr. Daniel Davila-Williams - a pediatric neurologist from Texas Children's Hospital - joins Orbit to discuss the science of sleep, including: 

• What happens in our brain and body when we sleep
• Dreams
• Why sleep is critical for healthy growing children! 
• How scientists study sleep and technology they use
• How to improve our sleep

🌐 Website for Dr. Davila-Williams: LINK

💬 Complete this short form to submit questions for episodes! ⁠⁠www.cumbrekids.org/questions⁠⁠

💛 Support this podcast by joining The Curious Club: ⁠⁠LINK⁠⁠

🎧 More podcasts by Cumbre Kids: ⁠⁠LINK⁠⁠

🎙️ This episode is also available in Spanish on our sister podcast, Cráneo: Ciencia para niños curiosos.

A message for parents about our values here: ⁠⁠LINK

🦷 Why do lions have sharp teeth? Why do whales have different teeth than humans? And how can scientists learn about animals that lived millions of years ago just by studying their teeth?

In this episode, paleontologist Dr. Silvia Pineda-Munoz helps Orbiters explore the fascinating world of mammal teeth. Discover what makes an animal a mammal, why different animals have different kinds of teeth, and how fossil teeth help scientists unlock secrets from the past.

➡️ Featuring Dr. Silvia Pineda-Munoz, founder of Climate Ages, a project that connects stories from Earth's past with the environmental challenges we face today.

💬 Submit your kids' questions! ⁠⁠www.cumbrekids.org/questions⁠⁠

➡️ Coloring pages for each episode! www.cumbrekids.org/color-along

💛 Support this podcast by joining The Curious Club: www.cumbrekids.org/curious-club

Orbit Family Conversation Starters!

• If you could borrow the teeth of any animal for a day, which animal would you choose and what would you do with them?

• Why do you think lions, elephants, whales, and humans all need different kinds of teeth?

Continue learning as a family!

• Grab a mirror and identify your incisors, canines, and molars. What job do you think each type of tooth does?

• Look up photos of a lion skull, a cow skull, and a whale skull. What clues can their teeth give you about what they eat?

• Visit Climate Ages to learn more about Dr. Silvia's work exploring ancient animals and environments.

• Explore fossil collections from your local natural history museum or online museum resources.

• Keep a "tooth detective" journal and record interesting animal teeth you discover in books, zoos, museums, or nature documentaries.

🎧 More podcasts by Cumbre Kids in English and Spanish: www.cumbrekids.org

👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 A message for parents about our values: www.cumbrekids.org/our-values

🌱 Plants are all around us! They are green science in action! We're joined in this episode by Charlie from the Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden in Miami, Florida, USA! 🌴🌿 

Listen with your little ones and learn all about the parts of plants, photosynthesis, life, and much more!

--

🎙️ This episode is also available in Spanish on our sister podcast, Cráneo: Ciencia para niños curiosos.

💬 Submit questions for episodes! Just fill out this short form: LINK

💛 Support this podcast by joining The Curious Club: LINK

🎧 More podcasts by Cumbre Kids: LINK

A message for parents from our executive producer about our values here: LINK

The Giant Pacific Octopus is a true legend of the oceans: Able to open jars, solve puzzles, spray ink, change colors and so much more! 🐙🤯

In this episode, we're joined by marine biologist René Carbajal from the Monterey Bay Aquarium 🐟🌊, who shares incredible facts and stories about these mysterious (and super cool!) creatures.

🐟 Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch - to choose environmentally sustainable seafood for your family! Info

• ❓ Submit questions for upcoming episodes: ⁠Info⁠
• 💖 Support this podcast by joining the Curious Club: ⁠Link⁠

🎙️ Orbit's sibling podcasts in Spanish: 

• 🧬 Cráneo: Ciencia para niños curiosos - ⁠Links⁠
• 🦎 Camaleón: Animales par aniños curiosos - ⁠Links⁠

Orbit is produced by Cumbre Kids: ⁠Website

Contact our team: [email protected]

A message for parents about our values, from our executive producer : ⁠LINK⁠

A 🐍 prehistoric snake that lived 60 million years ago ,was as long as a school bus and weighed as much as 100 bicycles 🚴‍♀️🚴? 

Sounds interesting 🤯 – let's learn more! 

We're joined in this episode by Dr. Carlos Jaramillo, from the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute (info)🌴.

• ❓ Submit questions for upcoming episodes: Info
• 💖 Support this podcast by joining our Curios Club: Link

🎙️ Orbit's sibling podcasts in Spanish: 

• 🧬 Cráneo: Ciencia para niños curiosos - Links
• 🦎 Camaleón: Animales par aniños curiosos - Links

Orbit is produced by Cumbre Kids: Website

Want to collaborate? Contact our team: [email protected] 

A message for parents about our values, from our executive producer : ⁠⁠LINK⁠⁠

Submit your child's questions: Fill out this short form

Join Rob and Milam as they explore science with experts! Featuring questions submitted by real children and families!

Why parents love podcasts by Cumbre Kids: 

• 🎧 Designed for parents and kids to enjoy together
• 🚀 Inspires children’s interest in science and STEM careers
• 🗣️ Boosts vocabulary and language development
• 🌍 Serves as a bilingual resource for language learning (see below)
• 🤸 Includes interactive moments to get the whole family moving
• 🌟 Encourages children to be curious about the world… and so much more!

"Orbit" is produced by Cumbre Kids (⁠website⁠).

Each episode is available in Spanish! Check out the podcasts: 

• Cráneo: Ciencia para niños curiosos (links)
• Camaleón: Animales par aniños curiosos (links)