Universe Today Podcast

BONUS PART STARTS AT 32:27

Watch here (with no ads) or on YouTube: https://youtu.be/6h5It3GnTGI

Titan Dragonfly is one of the most exciting missions in development. But it'll have its limits. For example, it won't go into caves on Titan. Which are super interesting. But this NIAC project will study a robot that should be able to go there.

🟣 Guest: Dr. Daniel Drew https://danieldrew.me/

📜 Solid-state Propulsion for Autonomous Reconnaissance of Karst (SPARK) https://www.nasa.gov/directorates/stmd/niac/niac-studies/solid-state-propulsion-for-autonomous-reconnaissance-of-karst-spark/

👉 All 2026 NIAC Selections https://www.nasa.gov/directorates/stmd/niac/niac-studies/niac-2026-selections/

• 00:00 Intro

• 01:31 What is karst

• 05:59 The NIAC project

• 23:28 Alternative use cases

• 27:48 Earth-based version

• 32:27 Using robots in Hawaii

• 39:15 Current obsessions

• 46:36 Final thoughts

BONUS QUESTION STARTS AT 15:01

Watch the video here (with no ads) or on YouTube: https://youtu.be/UjOkLC6N9cY

Can someone launch a regular small telescope into space? Are Moon caves stable enough for a permanent base? What happened to the Swift rescue mission? And in Q&A+, was the asteroid belt a planet at some point?

• 00:00 Intro

• 00:41 [@Noonyuh] Could affordable consumer smart telescopes be easily retrofitted to survive in space?

• 05:06 [@user-kx2fc2mw5v] Are Moon caves stable enough to build in them?

• 08:47 [@surrender_monkey] What happened to the Swift rescue mission?

• 15:01 [@EdSceptic-y2e] Is the asteroid belt a destroyed planet or is it forming into a planet or neither?

• 18:15 Final thoughts

BONUS STORY STARTS AT 16:05

Watch here (with no ads) or on YouTube: https://youtu.be/fA75k6U2HYg

Is this a supernova ready to explode, or is it just a trick of the light. A mission to Halley’s Comet in 2060. An amazing new image from Vera Rubin. Webb fails to find an exomoon. And in Space Bites Plus, some black holes formed much faster than their galaxies. All this and more in this week’s Space Bites.

• 00:00 Intro

• 00:36 Supernova Impostor https://www.universetoday.com/articles/astronomers-unmask-a-supernova-impostor

• 03:10 No Exomoon https://www.universetoday.com/articles/jwst-ruled-out-finding-tiny-moons-around-an-exoplanet-thats-great-news

• 05:20 Possible Rendezvous With Halley's Comet In 2061 https://www.universetoday.com/articles/jwst-ruled-out-finding-tiny-moons-around-an-exoplanet-thats-great-news

• 07:31 Remember 3I/ATLAS? https://www.universetoday.com/articles/new-revelations-about-the-origin-of-interstellar-comet-3iatlas

• 09:02 Largest 2-D Map of the Universe https://www.universetoday.com/articles/the-desi-legacy-imaging-survey-releases-the-largest-2-d-map-of-the-universe

• 10:32 The 20th Data Release of the SDSS https://www.universetoday.com/articles/the-20th-data-release-dr-20-of-the-sloan-digital-sky-survey-sdss-is-here

• 12:04 Vote results 12:28 Chang’e-7 Postponed https://www.universetoday.com/articles/china-postpones-the-change-7-mission

• 13:18 Firing Lasers At An Asteroid https://www.universetoday.com/articles/japans-hayabusa2-achieves-first-ever-laser-ranging-experiment-with-an-asteroid

• 14:28 Rubin Peers Deep Into the COSMOS Field https://www.universetoday.com/articles/rubin-observatory-peers-deep-into-the-famous-cosmos-field

• 16:05 Bonus Story https://www.universetoday.com/articles/some-black-holes-grow-much-faster-than-their-galaxies

• 18:58 Final thoughts

BONUS QUESTION STARTS AT 13:32

Watch the video here (with no ads) or on YouTube: https://youtu.be/tdTe2acoWKc

Should SpaceX be concerned about China's reusable rocket designs? Have we ever found meteorites coming from Mercury? Why is it called the speed of light, not the speed of gravity? And in Q&A+, when should we start building a Monolith?

• 00:00 Intro

• 00:26 [@rwarren58] What would it take to image the surface of a planet at Proxima Centauri?

• 03:07 [@churchdiscography] Does SpaceX mind that China basically duplicated the Falcon 9 design for a reusable rocket?

• 07:54 [@paigepotter4682] Have we ever found anything from Mercury on Earth like we have from the Moon and Mars?

• 09:33 [@Mefodon] Why is the speed of light not called the speed of gravity?

• 13:32 [@geohondo] What should we leave behind?

• 17:45 Final thoughts

BONUS PART STARTS AT 33:01

Watch here (with no ads) or on YouTube: https://youtu.be/wk7ccTP9Aag

🟣 Guest: Mat Kaplan https://www.planetary.org/planetary-radio

Mat Kaplan is a huge inspiration for me. We talked about the Planetary Society, his career hosting The Planetary Radio, most exciting upcoming missions, destinations we should visit and much more.

• 00:00 Intro

• 01:31 Meet Mat Kaplan

• 11:47 The Planetary Society

• 22:03 Interesting mission ideas

• 27:54 Which places should we explore

• 33:01 Science communication

• 48:03 Current obsessions

• 52:38 Final thoughts

BONUS QUESTION STARTS AT 16:31

Watch the video here (with no ads) or on YouTube: https://youtu.be/lG_soURwfxk

Will new telescopes continue bringing up new discoveries? Why doesn't the CMB get blocked by galaxies? Where did the first stars form? And in Q&A+, the truth about Roman's mirror.

• 00:00 Intro

• 00:25 [@XxMyNameIsTAOxX] Will new telescopes bring new discoveries?

• 07:18 [@Zeldaborg_Galactic_Defender] Why don't galaxies block the CMB?

• 10:33 [@MistSoalar] Were first gen stars were born in opaque dust clouds behind CMB?

• 16:31 [@MistSoalar] The truth behind Roman's mirror

• 21:26 Final thoughts

BONUS STORY STARTS AT 18:53

Watch here (with no ads) or on YouTube https://youtu.be/AvoSIyuVXWM

Nancy Grace Roman has launched. Webb sees little red dots merging. Black holes make a mess when eating, there's a 10 sided feature at Saturn South Pole. And on Space Bites Plus, figuring out how a supermassive black hole got kicked out of its galaxy.

Vote for the best story here: https://www.youtube.com/@frasercain/posts

• 00:00 Intro

• 00:18 Nancy Grace Roman launched https://www.universetoday.com/articles/roman-rises-five-things-to-know-about-nasas-new-space-telescope

• 05:28 Merging LRDs https://www.universetoday.com/articles/astronomers-find-little-red-dots-about-to-merge

• 08:12 Mars’ Temperature Differences https://www.universetoday.com/articles/marss-interior-is-400c-hotter-under-southern-hemisphere

• 10:35 Black Hole Burping https://www.universetoday.com/articles/astronomers-catch-black-hole-spewing-matter-after-feeding

• 12:58 Saturn’s Decagon https://science.nasa.gov/missions/hubble/nasas-hubble-tracks-new-decagon-encircling-saturns-south-pole/

• 14:22 Vote results 14:55 Surprising Result in the Search for Dark Matter https://www.universetoday.com/articles/scientists-intrigued-by-a-surprising-result-in-the-search-for-dark-matter

• 17:45 BepiColombo Arrives at Mercury https://www.esa.int/Science_Exploration/Space_Science/BepiColombo/Latest_updates_BepiColombo_s_arrival_at_Mercury

• 18:53 Bonus Story. Runaway SMBHs https://www.universetoday.com/articles/physicists-determine-cause-of-runaway-supermassive-black-hole

• 21:28 Final thoughts

BONUS QUESTION STARTS AT 14:06

Watch the video here (with no ads) or on YouTube: https://youtu.be/TvXlCBcnOgc

How much stuff falls on the Moon every day? What if Von Neumann probes had AI? How did studying the Universe change my world views? And in Q&A+, should I grind my own telescope mirror?

• 00:00 Intro

• 00:23 [@BMichaelNeal] If Von Neumann probes had independent AI, would they be Von Neumann probes?

• 04:24 [@christiandesalliers] The meteorite problem for a future moon base

• 09:06 [@paigepotter4682] Has studying the universe changed any of my personal philosophies or values? How?

• 14:06 [@sciencecompliance235] Do I have plans to grind my own telescope mirror?

• 17:53 Final thoughts

BONUS PART STARTS AT 24:48

Watch here (with no ads) or on YouTube: https://youtu.be/0RvsOFWZFtw

There soon will be tens of thousands of satellites in orbit. Possibly, even millions. Does it mean that ground-based Astronomy is a lost cause? How can we make it work? Also, how is New Horizons doing?

🟣 Guest: Dr. Alan Stern https://alanstern.space/

New Horizons: https://science.nasa.gov/mission/new-horizons/

LUCY: https://lucy.swri.edu/

• 00:00 Intro

• 00:57 How's New Horizons doing

• 02:17 Next target

• 08:43 More science for New Horizons

• 11:07 Possible follow-up missions

• 13:18 Funding issues

• 19:05 New Horizons continues to do science

• 23:48 LUCY mission

• 30:00 Mega-constellations vs ground-based astronomy

• 46:06 Current obsessions

• 50:38 Final thoughts

BONUS QUESTION STARTS AT 11:23

Watch the video here (with no ads) or on YouTube: https://youtu.be/1E7v7lv0U-o

Can you DYI a binocular telescope at home? Which binoculars should you get for stargazing? How many supernovae it took to create the Solar System? And in Q&A+ what happens is the Voyagers come back?

• 00:00 Intro

• 00:25 [@evandotpro] Does it make sense to DIY a binocular telescope?

• 03:30 [@JackRay-1] What magnification level and lens size would be good for binoculars used to stargaze?

• 08:24 [@szolosiseb773] How many stars went supernova before the formation of our current Solar System?

• 11:23 [@OneOfAMineRocks] What Happens When We See Voyager Coming Back From The Other Direction?

• 17:30 Final thoughts