Science at AMNH

Earth is currently experiencing an unprecedented loss of biodiversity, and it has changed dramatically in recent decades. Museum curator Joel Cracraft presents evidence that the Sixth Extinction is here. Join him as he explains where the planet’s future is heading if we continue on our current path. This SciCafe took place on December 6, 2017.

To learn about upcoming SciCafe events, visit amnh.org/scicafe

The SciCafe series is proudly sponsored by Judy and Josh Weston.

From the farthest edge of the observable universe to the tiniest measurement of the subatomic realm, reality as we experience it is defined by scale. Astrobiologist Caleb Scharf leads a tour through the scale of the universe, and explains how scientists use what we know about scale as an entry point to asking what we don’t know about the nature of reality both here on our earth and out in the cosmos.

For a full transcript of this podcast visit: https://www.amnh.org/explore/news-blogs/podcasts/frontiers-lecture-the-zoomable-universe-with-caleb-scharf

This Frontiers Lecture took place at the Museum on November 13, 2017.

For information on upcoming events at the museum, including future Frontiers Lectures, visit AMNH.org/calendar

Support for Hayden Planetarium Programs is provided by the Schaffner Family and the Horace W. Goldsmith Endowment Fund.

Who can look out into space and not ask the age-old question: Are we alone in the universe? Astronomers have already identified dozens of planets beyond the edges of our solar system which could be like our own Earth.

Join astrophysicist Lisa Kaltenegger as she explains the different methods astronomers use to detect exoplanets orbiting distant stars, what these planets would need to support life, and how Earth and its range of species might serve as a Rosetta Stone—a key to detecting the existence of extraterrestrial life. This SciCafe program took place at the Museum on November 1, 2017.

Watch a video version of this lecture here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xoze-pkjxZw

Read the full transcript of this lecture here: https://www.amnh.org/explore/news-blogs/podcasts/amnh-scicafe-are-we-alone-in-the-universe

To learn about upcoming SciCafe events, visit amnh.org/scicafe

The SciCafe series is proudly sponsored by Judy and Josh Weston.

Scott Kelly is a former Navy fighter pilot and test pilot, an engineer, and a retired NASA astronaut who over four space flights accumulated 520 days living in space, a record at the time in 2015. Talking with Hayden Planetarium Director Neil deGrasse Tyson, Captain Kelly shares a glimpse of life in the uniquely unwelcoming environment of space—and the extreme challenges of long-term spaceflight.

Part of the monthly Frontiers Lecture series, this conversation took place at the Hayden Planetarium on October 16, 2017.

Read a transcript of this podcast here: https://www.amnh.org/explore/news-blogs/podcasts

For information on upcoming events at the museum, including future Frontiers Lectures, visit AMNH.org/calendar.

Support for Hayden Planetarium Programs is provided by the Schaffner Family and the Horace W. Goldsmith Endowment Fund.

Some animals may be too popular for their own good—whether it’s doe-eyed slow lorises, nocturnal primates often sold as pets, or pangolins prized for meat or medicine. Despite increased enforcement, a profitable market continues to threaten these and other endangered species. Museum conservation biologist Mary Blair, who is working with colleagues to understand the dynamics of illegal wildlife trade, suggests that biologists need to team up with economists and anthropologists to better understand and address wildlife trafficking.

For a full transcript of this podcast, please visit https://www.amnh.org/explore/news-blogs/podcasts/joining-forces-to-address-the-threat-of-wildlife-trafficking

Anyone who has ever surprised a black bear in their own backyard is already keenly aware of the overlap between human communities and bear habitats. Rae Wynn-Grant, a conservation biologist at the Museum, offered insights into black bear behavior and what humans can do to improve relations with this wide-ranging and adaptable species at a recent SciCafe program, which took place at the Museum on October 4, 2017.

For a full transcript of this podcast, please visit https://www.amnh.org/explore/news-blogs/podcasts/scicafe-humans-and-conflicts-with-bears-oh-my

Watch a video version of this lecture here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=en8nXfD3bww

To learn about upcoming SciCafe events, visit amnh.org/scicafe

The SciCafe series is proudly sponsored by Judy and Josh Weston.

Today, scientists announced that they have detected a spectacular collision of two neutron stars some 130 million light years away. The method of discovery is also making news: this was the first time ever that a cosmic event was perceived through both gravitational waves — ripples in space and time — and light—confirming Einstein’s general theory of relativity, which predicted that gravitational waves should travel at the speed of light.

More than 1,500 scientists around the world collaborated on this breakthrough, using the U.S.-based Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory or LIGO, the Europe-based Virgo detector, and some 70 ground- and space-based observatories. Museum astrophysicist Michael Shara, who was part of the research team, explains this thrilling discovery in the latest podcast.

For a full transcript of this podcast, please visit: https://www.amnh.org/explore/news-blogs/podcasts/a-smashup-of-neutron-stars-einstein-s-theory-of-relativity-with-astrophysics-curator-michael-shara

Just listen to little kids pester their parents, “But why?” and you know how ingrained human curiosity is. And a good thing too—it drives scientific research, inspires creativity in art and technology, and is a necessary ingredient in every form of storytelling. But have you ever been curious—about curiosity? How did we humans get to be so inquisitive and why? In this podcast, astrophysicist and best-selling author Mario Livio explores the origins and mechanisms of human curiosity.

Part of the monthly Frontiers Lecture series, this talk took place at the Hayden Planetarium on September 18, 2017.

For information on upcoming events at the Museum, including future Frontiers Lectures, visit AMNH.org/calendar.

Support for Hayden Planetarium Programs is provided by the Schaffner Family and the Horace W. Goldsmith Endowment Fund.

On October 4, 1957, radio operators picked up beeping sounds from the first man-made satellite ever to orbit the Earth—Sputnik, launched by the Soviet Union. The never-before heard signals ushered in the space age and changed life in space—and on Earth—forever. In this podcast marking the sixtieth anniversary of the launch of Sputnik, Museum Astrophysicist Michael Shara discusses the outsized impact of that beach-ball-sized satellite and those beeps heard ’round world.

For a full transcript of this podcast, please visit: https://www.amnh.org/explore/news-blogs/podcasts/sputnik-sixty-years-later

Have you ever pondered that picture of earth as a pale blue dot seen from space? Then you already know something of the work of the space craft Voyager I. In 2012, that same space craft became the first man-made object to leave our solar system and enter interstellar space. Voyager I and its twin Voyager II have continued to gather data from deep space forty years after their launch in 1977.

On August 23rd, 2017, PBS aired a documentary–The Farthest–Voyager in Space–that tells the story of these dogged explorers. Two weeks before, on Wednesday, August 9th, the Museum hosted a special preview screening. After which, Hayden Planetarium director Neil deGrasse Tyson sat down with Carolyn Porco, a planetary scientist and Voyager team member. This podcast brings you their conversation.