The Panel

NASA has set the controls for the heart of the Sun. Its newest spaceship, the size of a car, will set out tomorrow for the Sun itself. The Parker Solar Probe will get within 4 million miles, closer than any other human-made artifact before. It'l help solve the mysteries of space weather and how the Sun affects our weather. What the Panelists Dean Hall and Ella Henry want to talk about. The weather affects our mood, our perceptions, and our attitudes towards risk and aggression ... so it's no surprise that it's had a big influence on politics throughout the years. University of Canterbury associate professor Bronwyn Hayward is here to talk about weather and politics over the centuries. Southlanders will descend upon Parliament tonight for the Southland Party - hosted by two MPs in the deep south. One of them, Hamish Walker, joins the panel to talk about the event, and a recent, unusual flight he took in central Otago. Bob Dylan didn't waste any words at the opening of his Australian tour on Wednesday night, not uttering a single un-sung word - does this lack of warmth alienate fans, or is it understandable that musicians prefer to play music rather than hobnob with the crowd? Employers say some industries, like fruit picking, trucking and aged care, could be on the brink of crisis as New Zealanders are turning their noses up at jobs in those sectors.

A listener recently sent in a letter about the problems he'd had proving his address to his bank ... why is this SUCH an important detail?

Chris Ryan, the president of the Auckland University Debating Society, joins the panel to talk about the mood and level of interest around Don Brash's appearance at a debate at the university later this evening.

What the Panelists John Barnett and Miriama Aoake want to talk about.

From the journal Science Advances... sociologists from the University of Michigan set out to analyse online dating.

France has reopened its investigation into the vanished Malaysia Airlines plane MH370, after a "final report" from Malaysian authorities failed to explain what happened.

Six people - one of them the minister for civil aviation - were fined last year for using a cellphone on a plane, according to Newshub. But what exactly is happening in the radio-sphere that makes this dangerous? Aviation expert Geoffrey Thomas joins us to explain.

Public transport woes continue to plague two of the country's biggest cities - in Auckland the effort to phase out school buses in favour of "normal" public transport seems to have backfired, while Wellington's Regional Council has fallen on its sword following a catastrophic rollout of its new bus system.

The divisive "waka-jumping" bill went before parliament today, with the Greens reluctantly promising their support.

The government has announced an "apprenticeship for the dole" scheme, targeting 18-to-24 year-olds who've spent more than six months on a benefit.