Sara Seager is a renowned Canadian-born astrophysicist and planetary scientist based at The Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Her research focuses on the discovery of planets outside our own solar system. Since first being detected in 1992, more than 4,300 of these exoplanets have been discovered. Seager's in no doubt there must be other life somewhere in the universe and in her book The Smallest Lights in the Universe, she interweaves her quest to find an earth like exoplanet with the story of her search for meaning and solace after becoming a young widow and solo mother to two small boys.

Consultant clinical virologist Dr Chris Smith of Cambridge University and The Naked Scientists returns to digest emerging Covid-related science and research. This week, a new study suggests that children are an important vector for the virus, what sounds like some encouraging news about post-infection immunity, and could herd immunity really work when just 20 percent of a population test positive?

Listener Feedback 15 August 2020.

Poet and writer Kate Camp returns, not to discuss a historic work of classic literature, but to share her new poetry collection How to Be Happy Though Human: New and Selected Poems.

Benjamin Strick is an open source investigative journalist working for the BBC in London. All he needs is a laptop and an internet connection to give him access to the public information that lets him find out the truth, solve mysteries, and crack crimes. In 2018 he was part of a Peabody Award-winning BBC team that investigated the filmed murder of two mothers and their children in Cameroon. Using Google Maps, satellite images, on-screen shadows, and details of the perpetrators' clothing and weapons they were able to pinpoint the exact time and place of the murders, and bring the people responsible to justice.

In 2016 Sydney based New Zealander Simon Lister started working for UNICEF, travelling the world as its photographer and videographer, and building up an image library for use in its global network of offices. Alongside actor Orlando Bloom, he's one of the stars of the Netflix series Tales By Light in episodes that highlight the issue of child labour (and poverty) in Bangladesh.

Since his schooldays, cartoonist and writer Tom Scott has greatly admired one of our national heroes: Captain Charles Hazlitt Upham, the only combat soldier to win the Victoria Cross twice. In his new book Searching for Charlie he pursues the man behind the legend. Before the war a modest, slightly built, and rather shy farm valuer, Upham's prodigious bravery in battle sometimes seemed to verge on foolhardiness.

We often see people at their worst when they're put to the test and looking for an easy way out, says Wellington writer Brannavan Gnanalingam. His new novel Sprigs explores the story of a brown-skinned teenage girl named Priya who is sexually assaulted at a high school party in the Hutt Valley.

Twyla Tharp, one of the world's greatest living choreographers, is due to bring her dance work "Waterbaby Bagatelles" to New Zealand stages for the first time. Waterbaby Bagatelles is a suite of dances set to seven short twentieth century compositions and features feature 27 dancers leaping and spinning their way across the stage. The strenuous and physically demanding work will be part of "Venus Rising", a national Royal New Zealand Ballet tour.

Sports reporter Barry Guy was due to attend the sold out Super Rugby match between the Crusaders and Blues scheduled for Eden Park tomorrow night. How are he and ohter fans feeling about the cancellation?