Pythagorean Astronomy

Edward Gomez and Chris North discuss names going to Jupiter on the Europa Clipper mission, which is currently being assembled. Then there is a new cannibal star, suspected of eating its own planets, and the detection of new "Galactic Streams" of stars that all formed together but have since spread out through the Galaxy. Finally, we move onto planet formation and the detection of ices in forming planetary systems. But where does all that planet-forming material come from originally? Haley Gomez and Cosimo Inserra tell us about a new object that's changing our view of where all the dust in the Universe originates.

This month Edward and Chris talk the recent lunar missions - Astrobotic's Peregrine and Japan's SLIM. There's also the Ingenuity helicopter on Mars on what turned out post-recording to be it's final flight! Further afield we talk mega-structures on a galactic scale and asteroids crashing to Earth. January also saw the first light from the XRISM satellite, the latest X-ray satellite. We hear from Prof Chris Done (University of Durham and University of Tokyo) about the mission and the future of x-ray astronomy.

Chris North and Edward Gomez review some stories from 2023, with asteroid missions, lunar rovers and aurora sightings. Plus a look forward to 2024, including launches of missions to asteroids and Jupiter's moons, and more commercial missions to the moon.

Chris and Edward discuss the announcement of the detection of a highly energetic cosmic ray, dubbed "Amerterasu" or the "What the Heck" particle. Elsewhere, there is a new study of star formation in "pristine" dwarf galaxies, and the first every discovery of a disc around a star in another galaxy!

Recorded in late October, Chris and Edward discuss recent proposals for an all-British mission to space, the launch of Psyche to...erm...Psyche, and Edward's involvement with the detection of something called a Synestia - planets bashing together. Cardiff University also hosted Prof Duncan Lorimer, who was jointly awarded the 2023 Shaw Prize for the detection of "Fast Radio Bursts". These mysterious cosmic events seemingly come form nowhere, but provide an intersting way of investigating energetic processes in the Universe. They also make a nice "dipstick of the Universe". Prof Lorimer spoke to Chris about their detection, what we're learning about them, and his career to date Contents: 00:00 British space mission 05:20 Psyche mission 10:15 Synestia and planet bashing 16:50 Prof Duncan Lorimer and Fast Radio Bursts

Chris and Edward discuss some recent stories, such as tantalising possible (emphasis on the possible) detections by JWST of interesting molecules on an exoplanet which coul (emphasis on the could) indicate signs of life. There's also new data on Europa, also from JWST, showing carbon dioxide on its surface - what does this mean? And further afield, astronomers have used ALMA to measure magnetic fields in incredibly distant galaxies, opening a potential new way to study the early Universe.

Dr Ian Harrisonreports from the National Astronomy meeting, which we held in Cardiff back in July. You can hear a couple of interviews we conducted on the previous episode, but in this episode we have a bit of a deep dive into machine learning with Ashley Spindler, what we mean by a modelling in astrophysics with Niall Jeffrey, and what we're learning from the cosmic microwave background with Dr Susanna Azzoni.

July marked the UK's annual National Astronomy Meeting, which this year took place in Cardiff. Chris North, Edward Gomez and Ian Harrison discuss a few recent stories from this month and at the conference, including the Euclid space telescope launch, India's Chandrayaan 3 moon mission, gravitational waves from supermassive black holes, feeding black holes and exoplanets with metal rain. We also have interviews with University of Manchester's Dr Emma Alexander and University of Bristol's Dr Hannah Wakeford.

In 2020 astronomers spotted an object slowly getting brighter, but it wasn't until 2021 tha they quite understood how unusual it was. In 2021, they studied it in more detail, and found that it was something we don't think has ever been seen before. It was also the most energetic single event ever witnessed. Going by the catchy name of AT2021lwx, or simply "lwx" to its friends, this month we learn more about it. Dr Phil Wiseman, from University of Southampton, and Dr Cosimo Inserra, from Cardiff University, explain more. Elsewhere in the news, Chris North and Edward Gomez discuss how the JUICE mission has been jolting one of its antennas, the retirement of NASA's long-serving astronaut Peggy Whitson, and of course more from JWST.

A news roundup of the last couple of months with Chris North and Edward Gomez. With a few failures - the SpaceX Starship launch, iSpace's moon landing and Virgin Galactic's bankruptcy, it might seem things are going wrong. But it's not all bad news - ESA's JUICE spacecraft has successfully launched on its way to Jupiter! Elsewhere in the Solar System, archives of data from the Magellan mission to Venus have revealed further evidence of a volcanic activity on the hard-to-reach surface of Earth's evil twin planet. And there's Phaethon, the unusual asteroid that is the source of the Geminid meteor shower, and about which the mystery has deepened. Much further afield, there's new research on what leads to quasars, the energetic "burps" of galaxies as their central black holes gorge themselves on infalling gas. And finally, there's the mystery of the "impossible galaxies" seen in one of JWST's first ever images, which turn out to be, well, less impossible!

In terms of what might be called “pure science”, there’s one topic that tends to get people excited, and that's black holes. A few weeks ago, in February 2023, a pair of papers came out that linked theories about black holes to dark energy – something we really don’t understand. If correct, this could mean that black holes, by their very nature, could explain the accelerating expansion of the Universe. Black holes, of course, are often mis-understood. To find out a little more about them, Chris spoke to Dr Becky Smethurst, from University of Oxford. We also get into a few of the details about what the research suggests might be is going on, with lead author Dr Duncan Farrah from the University of Hawaii. Finally, it's back to Becky, who is sceptical about these new results.

In the last month there was a show of the Northern Lights - or aurora - visible from the UK. If you didn't get to see it (spoiler: neither did we!), then you might get a chance in the future if there's another outburst. Edward Gomez and Chris North discuss how to increase your chances of seeing them next time there's an alert. In science news, some new thoughts on how the Moon could have formed, and an intriguing (and controversial) story about how balck holes might - possibly - be the answer to the mystery of dark energy. Chris also continues the conversation started in the last episode with Dr Ian Harrison and Dr Bob Watson about observing the cosmic microwave background. This time we discuss the advantages and challenges of launching in to space, and the problems caused by increasing numbers of satellites. There's also a new observatory being built in Chile - the Simons Observatory - which will present a huge leap forward in ground-based observations of the early Universe.

Chris North and Edward Gomez discuss the first attempt to launch a rocket from UK soil, albeit via a piggyback on (or under) a plane. There's also an interesting supernova, the first exoplanet confirmation from JWST. Meanwhile, on Mars, does no news mean bad news for China's Zhurong rover? We also speak to Dr Ian Harrison, from Cardiff University, and Dr Bob Watson, from the University of Manchester, about the telescopes that are trying to unpick what happened at the dawn of time, by looking at the Universe's oldest light, and how a telescope in Tenerife is helping.

The 25th December marks an anniversary in the world of astronomy (as well as Sir Isaac Newton's birthday, of course) - the launch of JWST, the infrared space telescope launched to explore the Universe in unprecedented detail. One year on from launch, Chris North and Edward Gomez look at a few of the results that have come in, on top of those we've covered previously. From our own solar system, to the birth of stars, and out towards the first galaxies, the results have covered a huge range of scales in both space and time. That's thanks to the remarkable scientific instruments onboard JWST, including cameras and spectrometers. But it's not just the formation of objects that it's looked at - JWST can give unique insights into the deaths of stars as well. Dr Mikako Matsuura and Dr Roger Wesson, both at Cardiff University, explain what they've been discovering about "planetary nebulae".

With the Artemis I mission mid-mission (at the time of recording), Chris North and Edward Gomez look at what this means for the future of human space exploration, and more ambitious missions to the Moon (and beyond). Meanwhile, back here on Earth, the European Space Agency have announced their next crop of astronauts. The list includes three British astronauts, and in particular John McFall, the first para-astronaut. What does that mean for the diversity of people who can travel into space. In terms of science, we highlight the analysis of the atmosphere of an exoplanet, and studies of the structure of dust storms on Mars.

At the end of September, NASA's DART mission was deliberately crashed into the asteroid Dimorphos. Not carelessness, but a deliberate act with a view to testing planetary defense. After all, if we discover something large heading towards Earth, we might want to be able to nudge it off course. Here in Wales, the Comet Chasers team took a diversion from observing comets to looking at Dimorphos with the Las Combres Observatory global network of telescopes. But they weren't the ones doing the observing - that work is done by school children and members of the public at festivals and the like. Team members Cai Stoddard-Jones, Helen Usher and Prof Paul Roche explain the purpose of the mission, what it's taught us, and what contribution the school students have been making to "help NASA".

This is the second part of a gravitational field trip to the LIGO Hanford Observatory in Washington State, in the US. Last month we talked about how the detectors work, and the scientists and engineers who operate them. This time, we take a longer-term look, not just into the future but also into the past, and ask what it took to get here, and what the future holds. Dr Mike Landry, Head of LIGO Hanford Observatory, and Dr Fred Raab, Associate Director of Operations at LIGO explains what it takes to run an observatory. We hear about some of the technical details from Dr Georgia Mansell. And Corey Gray explains his route to becoming a Senior Operatory at LIGO Hanford, and the impact of his Native American heritage.

This month, we go on a field trip to the LIGO Hanford Observatory, one of a number of detectors that are searching for gravitational waves. In part one of this trip, we hear from a number of people working at the detector. Dr Mike Landry, Head of the LIGO Hanford Observatory, explains how, and crucially why, the experiment exists. Dr Fred Raab, Associate Director for Operations for LIGO, looks back to why the desolate landscape of Hanford was selected in the first place. Looking at the technical details, Drs Georgia Mansell and Craig Cahillane give some insights into commissioning and upgrading the detectors, while Corey Gray tells us about operating such a complex machine, and learning to fabricate one of the critical components - glass fibres that suspend the mirrors.

Amateur astronomers regularly make important contributions to astronomy research. That can be through observations of meteor showers, or images of solar system objects. But it's not always about pretty pictures, and some amateurs also make measurements that feed into our understanding of a broad range of astronomical phenomena, providing a network of telescopes that far outnumbers the professional astronomers. Ian Sharp is a member of a group of astronomers who have been making observations of something called "Post Common Binary Evolution" stars, two stars which have gone through an interesting phase of their evolution. The team carefully measure` the times at which one star appears to partially eclipse the other. By establishing when those eclipse vary differ from predictions the team can provide evidence to prove, or disprove, the existence of planets orbiting the stars. This requires careful observation and analysis, which the team of astronomers have been undertaking for a number of years. Their research is published in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, a scientific journal used and respected by professional astronomers. Ian also discusses what got him into amateur astronomy, and how that has changed over the decades.

In the 65 years since Sputnik 1 was launched in 1957, the number of artificial satellites in orbit has been increasing. In the last two years, the number of satellites has doubled, largely thanks to the huge "constellations" launched by companies such as SpaceX. The number of satellites has a detrimental impact on astronomical observations, both with professional telescopes and by amateur astronomers. Dr Meredith Rawls, from University of Washington, is planning observations with the Vera Rubin Observatory, while Professor Andy Lawrence is a Regius Professor at the Royal Observatory Edinburgh. With forecasts indicating up to 100,000 satellites in a matter of years, a 20-fold increase on today's numbers, there could be serious implications for astronomers around the world. But what has led to this increase in satellites? Dr Moribah Jah, co-founder and Chief Scientist at Privateer Space, explains why there are so many satellites being launched, and what the risks are both for satellites and down here on Earth. There are proposed solutions, but they require geopolitical collaboration. Further afield, this month saw the first images of Sagittarius A*, the supermassive black hole at the centre of our galaxy. Edward Gomez discusses the implications of the detection, and what it might tell us about the evolution of galaxies.