How do you design a space settlement government without it descending into tyranny? Charles Cockell shares his research with hosts Sue Nelson and Richard Hollingham. And as the UK prepares for its first rocket launch in 50 years, the UK Space Agency's Matt Archer talks about launch plans and ambitions, and Richard heads to Goonhilly Earth Station in Cornwall to hear how a dish that brought the world Live Aid is now communicating with Mars. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

In a brave move, the Space Boffins attempt a podcast about pictures without any pictures! Joining them are science writer Andy Saunders, who's spent years remastering images from the Apollo missions to reveal details never seen before, Oxford astrophysicist and podcast host Becky Smethurst about the first images from the James Webb Space Telescope, and space artist Jackie Burns. It's an (audio) visual feast! Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Apollo legend Poppy Northcutt joins Richard and Sue this month The only woman in mission control for the Moon missions, Poppy talks about the challenge of getting astronauts back from the Moon, the drama of Apollo 13 (and why she's not seen the film) and what was on channel 53. With the first launches from the UK fast approaching, Deputy Head of the UK Space Agency, Ian Annett, chats about the prospects for Britain's rocket programme, funding for astronauts and aerobatic flying. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Not one but four astronauts feature in this month's Space Boffins. Sue Nelson and Richard Hollingham chat to astronaut Nicole Stott about her book Back to Earth; we hear about the drama of launch, what to do when things go wrong and the challenges of interviewing other astronauts. Sue also attends a glamorous space event in London to catch up with two Apollo legends, British ESA astronaut Tim Peake, and Space Shuttle pilot Susan Kilrain. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

With the first Artemis mission on the launchpad, Space Boffins Sue Nelson and Richard Hollingham look ahead to the next footsteps on the Moon. They chat to Libby Jackson from the UK Space Agency about Gateway - "a one bed studio flat" in orbit around the Moon - and lunar SatNav. Plus, John Vrublevskis from Thales Alenia Space UK explains the challenge of getting oxygen out of Moon rocks. We also feature an interview - never before broadcast in full - with Apollo 16 astronaut Charlie Duke. He talks about landing on the Moon, looking back at Earth and his faith... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

It's the Space Boffins' most controversial episode yet, as Don Goldsmith talks about his new book written with Astronomer Royal Martin Rees - The End of Astronauts and why robots are the future. Also, we visit one of the cleanrooms at Airbus in Stevenage to see the new Biomass satellite to measure the carbon locked in the world's forests. Plus author Kevin Cook talks about his book, The Burning Blue, on Christa McAuliffe and the Challenger disaster. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

In a bumper new year edition, we hear the latest on the Webb space telescope, discuss volcanoes on distant worlds and look ahead to Europe's mission to Mars. ESA's Mark McCaughrean talks about what's next for the James Webb Space Telescope; UCL's Andrew Coates covers the Rosalind Franklin ExoMars rover launching this year, and the OU's Natalie Starkey talks about her new book Fire and Ice. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Gardeners of the Galaxy podcast host Emma Doughty discusses the challenges and joys of growing flowers, chillies and vines (for wine!) in space. Sue and Richard also chat to self-confessed space nerd John Chinner about the Astro Pi computers on the International Space Station, 3-D printed rovers and the best (space) movie ever made. Plus, Richard ventures out to a real control room tracking the progress of an innovative new space debris removal mission, currently in orbit around the Earth... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

ESA's senior science advisor Mark McCaughrean joins Space Boffins Sue Nelson and Richard Hollingham to enthuse about the most powerful space telescope ever built. And NASA astronaut Jessica Meir discusses coming back from the ISS to a world in the grip of Covid-19, her first all women space walk, and her preparations as part of the Artemis astronaut corps. Plus new CEO of the UK Space Agency, Paul Bate, on the UK's continued success within the space industry. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

After BepiColombo's recent flyby of Mercury, Space Boffins Richard Hollingham and Sue Nelson hear from the University of Leicester's Dr Charly Feldman about its onboard lobster eye optics and their increasing use in new spacecraft. They're also joined by the UK Space Agency's Liz Cox on the importance of space when it comes to climate change, and the legendary NASA engineer Jerry Woodfill - whose career there is 55 years and counting - talks about Apollo 1 and Apollo 10. And, yes, there are plenty of Snoopy references! Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists