Universe Today Podcast

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

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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

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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

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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

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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

BONUS STORY STARTS AT 25:06

Watch here (with no ads) or on YouTube: https://youtu.be/8eMctTM-dug

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

My sister's website: https://haislacollins.com/

Japan’s Phobos mission is almost ready to launch and so is Roman, NASA needs help re-inventing the wheel, why Earth is inevitable, and on Space Bites+, melting diamonds to learn more about ice giant interiors. All this and more in this week’s Space Bites.

• 00:00 Intro

• 00:17 MMX Is Ready

• 03:18 Possible Origin of Deimos https://www.universetoday.com/articles/marss-funky-moon-deimos-was-shaped-by-an-impact

• 05:36 Phobos Transit https://science.nasa.gov/photojournal/perseverance-captures-another-phobos-transit/

• 07:09 Starship aboard https://www.marinetraffic.com/en/ais/details/ships/shipid:255286

• 08:40 SpaceX's $100B expansion plan https://arstechnica.com/space/2026/08/spacex-intends-to-invest-up-to-100-billion-in-massive-louisiana-spaceport/

• 10:30 Reinventing the Wheel for NASA https://www.nasa.gov/centers-and-facilities/johnson/nasa-challenge-tests-wheel-designs-for-moon-base-mobility/

• 13:20 Skyfall Drones https://www.universetoday.com/articles/nasas-skyfall-mars-helicopters-will-feature-a-revolutionary-antenna-design

• 16:45 More Leads for Dark Matter https://www.universetoday.com/articles/a-distant-stream-of-stars-may-offer-new-clues-to-dark-matter

• 18:56 Vote results

• 19:34 Earth is inevitable https://www.universetoday.com/articles/new-solar-system-models-show-earth-is-no-fluke

• 21:33 Roman's ready to launch

• 23:23 New image of Betelgeuse https://www.almaobservatory.org/en/audiences/alma-reveals-long-lived-hotspots-on-betelgeuses-bubbling-surface/

• 25:06 Bonus story https://www.universetoday.com/articles/scientists-melted-a-diamond-and-cracked-a-secret-of-ice-giants

• 27:08 More space news

• 27:56 Final thoughts

BONUS QUESTION STARTS AT 14:37

Watch the video here (with no ads) or on YouTube: https://youtu.be/2gtlfvI9JJ0

How much of the Universe's life has already passed? Is the Universe spinning? How do binary planets work? And in Q&A+, does solar wind influence the orbits of planets?

• 00:00 Intro

• 00:24 [@adamredwine774] What percent of the Universe's total lifetime have already passed?

• 05:41 [@DamingoFlave] Do you think that Deja Vu and Dreams could be glimpses into our multiverse versions of our lives we live?

• 07:45 [@ragetail3] Is the idea of adding a slingshot connected to earth for slinging rockets in to space a realistic idea?

• 12:26 [@HudsonAnsley] How do binary planets work??

• 14:37 [@danielguite3914] Do solar winds influence planet orbits?

• 17:23 Final thoughts

BONUS PART STARTS AT 20:51

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More interviews: https://www.patreon.com/collection/44300/

🟣 Guest: Dr. Sanjoy Som https://www.bluemarblespace.org/

📜 Multistage Rocket Optimization, Geophysics, and the Spacefaring Envelope of Habitable Super-Earths https://arxiv.org/abs/2607.02691

Rockets fight against gravity to help us as a civilization escape into space. But what if a planet is much heavier? How big and dense does it need to get before a civilization gets permanently trapped and can't go to space?

• 00:00 Intro

• 01:16 Escaping the gravity well

• 06:53 Limiting factors

• 09:47 Rockets

• 15:18 Can a civilizations get trapped

• 20:51 Geology-driven civilization

• 32:54 Current obsessions

• 39:11 Final thoughts