This Week in Space (Audio)

Think you're having a hot summer? Try living on 55 Cancri-e, a super-Earth with daytime temperatures above 4000 degrees Fahrenheit. Most of these super-Earths orbit frighteningly close to their host stars and have long since had their atmospheres scraped away, leaving them baked, parched rocks. But some, like 55 Cancri, still have dense envelopes of air. How is that possible, when the planet is 20 times closer to its star than our own planet Mercury? Dr. Laura Schaefer explains how molten lava worlds defy the odds. Plus: Starship update, the first orbital data centers, and a new year on Mars. Headlines: SpaceX's Starship Achieves First Full Orbital Flight With Satellite Deployments Google and Planet Labs Launch AI Data Center Satellite Multiple SpaceX Launches Within Hours Mark a New Operational Standard Cowboy Space Debuts Power-Beaming AI Data Center in Orbit Mars Celebrates a New Year on Its Extended Journey Around the Sun NASA Anniversary and Notable Space Birthdays Noted Main Topic: Living on Lava Worlds—Atmospheres, Extreme Planets, and the Search for Life Early Exoplanet Detection Methods and Evolution of Exoplanet Surveys Cosmic Shoreline Concept: How Gravity and Stellar Radiation Shape Planetary Atmospheres Airless Valleys, Sandbars, and Other New Categories for Rocky Exoplanets Permanent Magma Oceans: Why Some Lava-covered Worlds Retain Atmospheres Volatiles, Atmosphere Loss, and The Soda-Bottle Effect on Hot Exoplanets Sandbar Regime: Superheated Planets Keep Atmospheres Longer Than Expected Case Study: 55 Cancri e and the Myth of the Diamond Planet K2-18b: Possibilities of a Water World or Another Magma-Lava Hybrid Redefining Goldilocks Zones With Atmospheric Survival Factors Tidal Heating, Volcanism, and Dynamics Shaping Exoplanet Atmospheres Future Directions: Webb Telescope, Habitable Worlds Observatory, and Prospects for Imaging True "Earths" Hosts: Rod Pyle and Tariq Malik Guest: Dr. Laura Schaefer Download or subscribe to This Week in Space at https://twit.tv/shows/this-week-in-space. Join Club TWiT for Ad-Free Podcasts! Support what you love and get ad-free audio and video feeds, a members-only Discord, and exclusive content. Join today: https://twit.tv/clubtwit Sponsors: helixsleep.com/space coveron.com/thisweekinspace and use code thisweekinspace

This week it's Rod and Tariq working through the most important space headlines. The big story: Starship could launch test flight 14 as early as Monday the 28th. We've seen lots of tests, but this is the first attempt at an orbital flight, the success of which is necessary for the lunar landing system and eventual retirement of the Falcon 9 and Crew Dragon. Also: Vast starts up a lunar division, Isaacman's relief over delays to China's lunar program, concerns over announced discontinuation of SpaceX's Falcon 9 and Crew Dragon, and yet more money for Boeing's troubled Starliner. This and more on this episode of TWiS! Headlines: SpaceX Prepares for Big Starship Flight 14 Launch Falcon 9 and Crew Dragon Proposed Wind-down Sparks Industry Jitters Starship's Role as Future Space Habitat Gains Traction Industry Faces Uncertainty as Falcon 9 Phaseout Looms Boeing Starliner and Alternative Crew Vehicles in Focus SpaceX's Massive Louisiana Expansion Announced Jared Isaacman Comments on China's Lunar Delays U.S. and China Jostle for Lunar Leadership Vast Unveils Lunar Habitat and Surface System Ambitions ESA's JUICE and Ramses Missions Headline Upcoming Science NASA Selects PRIMA Probe for Far-Infrared Astrophysics New Study Details Disastrous Global Ice Loss Hosts: Rod Pyle and Tariq Malik Download or subscribe to This Week in Space at https://twit.tv/shows/this-week-in-space. Join Club TWiT for Ad-Free Podcasts! Support what you love and get ad-free audio and video feeds, a members-only Discord, and exclusive content. Join today: https://twit.tv/clubtwit Sponsors: trustedtech.team/twit coveron.com/thisweekinspace and use code thisweekinspace threatlocker.com/twit

In the 1980s, as the US space shuttle was just starting operations, the UK embarked on an ambitious project called HOTOL—short for Horizontal Take Off and Landing, a radical, air-breathing spaceplane design. Political and funding shifts in the UK ultimately derailed the project, despite the promising technologies it pioneered. The idea was later restarted as Skylon, with key individuals and refined technologies at its core. This project, too, struggled, ultimately shuttering in 2024. Despite this, the promise of rapid, reusable spaceplanes that can launch and land at airports is still coveted by many countries, and efforts continue. Join Rob Coppinger, author of the definitive book on the topic and editor of the UK's "Spaceflight" magazine, as he tells this fascinating story. Headlines: New Crater Discovered on the Moon Boeing Starliner Gains New Life with NASA Support Starship Flight 14 Gears Up for Launch Main Topic: British Spaceplanes – HOTOL and Skylon Rob Coppinger Shares Inspiration and Career Path Origins and Vision Behind HOTOL HOTOL vs. the Space Shuttle: Concepts and Challenges Funding Issues and UK Government Decisions Evolution from HOTOL to Skylon and Reaction Engines Technological Innovations: SABRE Engine and Reusability International Context: Other Spaceplane Projects Current Status and Future Prospects for UK Spaceplanes Lessons in Vision, Imagination, and Persisting with Big Ideas Hosts: Rod Pyle and Tariq Malik Guest: Rob Coppinger Download or subscribe to This Week in Space at https://twit.tv/shows/this-week-in-space. Join Club TWiT for Ad-Free Podcasts! Support what you love and get ad-free audio and video feeds, a members-only Discord, and exclusive content. Join today: https://twit.tv/clubtwit Sponsor: trustedtech.team/twit

Hold onto your phasers, but it's been 60 years since Star Trek's debut, and the franchise is still going strong. For 40 of those years, Mike Okuda, working with a gifted team that included his wife Denise, has been central to the look, feel, and substance of the Star Trek universe. From the LCARS computer graphical system to alien languages to the designs and color schemes, and even the digital effects remastering of the original series, Mike has been the Cardinal of Canon when it comes to all things Trek. He has also been involved with many more space-related shows, books, and NASA projects. Join us for this very special episode. Headlines: China Announces 2028 Mars Sample Return Mission U.S. Space Command Conducts First Orbital Dogfighting Test Reflections on the 25th Anniversary of 9/11 from Space Main Topic: Star Trek at 60—Legacy, Design, and Influence with Mike Okuda Mike Okuda's Entry into Star Trek and Early Influences Defining Star Trek's Visual Identity Across Series Designing Control Panels and the Origin of LCARS Maintaining Continuity and Hidden Easter Eggs in Star Trek Sets Expanding the Design Language for Alien Cultures Collaboration on For All Mankind and Space/NASA Projects Challenges and Philosophy Behind Remastering The Original Series Favorite Episodes, Iconic Sets, and Preserving Star Trek Props The Enduring Core Message and Legacy of the Star Trek Franchise Hosts: Rod Pyle and Tariq Malik Guest: Michael Okuda Download or subscribe to This Week in Space at https://twit.tv/shows/this-week-in-space. Join Club TWiT for Ad-Free Podcasts! Support what you love and get ad-free audio and video feeds, a members-only Discord, and exclusive content. Join today: https://twit.tv/clubtwit

Capitalism—and a strong profit motivation—has driven enterprise for centuries. Two notable examples are the East India Company and the US transcontinental railroad, and the various tycoons who built it. In neither case, by today's standards, were the operations fair or ethical on a number of fronts. Can we do better in space? Dr. Rainer Zitelmann joins us to discuss capitalism and the importance of extraterrestrial land ownership as an enabler of human expansion off-Earth. He's got a lot to say, and not all of it is what you might expect. Join us for this fascinating and informative look at one business case for newspace. Headlines: • NASA's Roman Space Telescope Launches to Explore Cosmic Mysteries • SpaceX Falcon Heavy Returns to Action for Major NASA Mission • Blue Origin Selected to Build Mars Communications Relay for NASA • Japan and Europe's BepiColombo Mission Arrives at Mercury Main Topic: Who Owns the Moon? — Capitalism in Space With Dr. Rainer Zitelmann • Dr. Zitelmann Explains Market Forces Transforming the Space Industry • Historical Parallels Between Economic Reforms and the Privatization of Space • The Outer Space Treaty and Legal Uncertainty Around Private Ownership Off-Earth • Potential for Stock Markets and REITs for Off-World Real Estate and Resources • China's Rapid Advancement in Private Space and Market-Driven Innovation • Safety Zones, Artemis Accords, and the Limits of Current Legal Frameworks • First-Mover Advantage: How Initial Claims Might Play Out on the Moon and Mars • Equity, Envy, and Ethical Debates Over Colonization and Space Ownership • The Role of Commercial Incentive Versus Public Benefit in Expanding Humanity's Reach Get "New Space Capitalism" (Amazon Affiliate Link): https://amzn.to/4xEeGID Hosts: Rod Pyle and Tariq Malik Guest: Dr. Rainer Zitelmann Download or subscribe to This Week in Space at https://twit.tv/shows/this-week-in-space. Join Club TWiT for Ad-Free Podcasts! Support what you love and get ad-free audio and video feeds, a members-only Discord, and exclusive content. Join today: https://twit.tv/clubtwit Sponsors: outsystems.com/twit helixsleep.com/space