Made of Stars

Wes and Shawn are joined by Chief Technologist at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center and author Les Johnson to talk about the symbiotic relationship of science and science fiction and his upcoming appearance at Dragon Con as both a scientist and an author. 

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SpaceX is set to launch the X-37B tonight if the weather allows. A fireball exploded above Japan this week lighting up the night sky. Arctic aurora season has begun. Comet 3I/ATLAS has a backward tail. 

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NASA astronaut Jim Lovell passed away at the age of 97 and his story is more than just Apollo 13. Artemis 2 is doing more preparation for a February to April launch next year. The meteorite that crashed into a Georgia home is older than Earth. And the Perseid meteor shower isn't quite done yet.  

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It's a crowded house aboard the ISS with 11 crew members on board. Crew-10 is preparing to leave and make things a little less crowded. Bitch Wilmore has decided to retire from NASA after 25 years. A CME is pointed at Earth and could bring aurora to high latitudes. Plus, a dead star is sending out radio signals. 

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NASA's Crew 11 scheduled to launch today. NASA and JPL have announced their plans for a sequel to the Ingenuity helicopter. The recently discovered interstellar comet is massive. An asteroid that has a very small chance of colliding with the Moon could send a lot of lunar debris to Earth. It seems that the long speculated companion star to Betelgeuse has been confirmed. 

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NASA's Crew-10 will hold a press conference to update their mission and talk about their return home. Scientists have discovered a new giant molecular cloud in the center of the Milky Way. A 3rd interstellar comet has been observed entering our solar system. Plus an asteroid will make a pass by the Earth but it's nothing to worry about. And there's no solar eclipse on August 2 of this year that will cause the planet to go completely dark but there will be an eclipse two years later that will cause darkness in the band of totality the same way every...

Wes recaps stargazing in Australia before talking about the Bogong Moths that use the stars to navigate their migration patterns. Plus, Ax-4's crew is now back on Earth after making history for three countries. The DART mission has more fruit to bear. Apollo Soyuz celebrates 50 years and it's been 25 year since the Bastille Day Event. 

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Venus Aerospace successfully flew the world’s first atmospheric test of a rotating
detonation rocket engine that could eventually lead to a 55 minute trip from NY to Paris. Why does the Moon have magnetic rocks? Scientists have a new strongest solar storm ever recorded. Scientists now know how the lights turned on at the bebinning of time.   

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This week we honor an American hero who walked and drove a car on the moon. 

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Wes and Shawn interviewed Col. Al Worden in 2011. He passed away in 2020. This week we look back to that interview. 

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Cancer treatments and cures may come from studies done in space. Scientists are taking the mystery out of the sun's poles. Scientists have a new look at the tiny glass beads found on the Moon during the Apollo era. A new study has given us information about the Milky Way's galactic center. 

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The Strawberry Moon's name doesn't come from it's color but from what time of year strawberries are at peak ripeness. Japan's Resilience spacecraft has slammed into the Moon. Astronomers have dicovered an object "unlike anything we've seen before". Axiom's Ax-4 has been delayed again. Axiom has partnered with NASA to study DNA of fruit flies. 

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Jared Isaacman will not be NASA's next administrator. Active region 4100 has ended. Axiom's Ax-4 launch has been delayed to June 10. New research says the Milky Way and Andromeda won't be colliding after all. 

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China and Russia have made a deal to build a nuclear power facility on the Moon. SpaceX has both wins and losses with its latest Starship launch. A sunspot has been visible on the Sun for 54 days and is still going strong. NASA has revived the thrusters on Voyager 1 after twenty years. 

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A star has been observed exiting a galaxy... with a planet in tow. Scientists say that have discovered a new source for gold in the universe. Researchers have found a fungus that they say can metabolize gold. NASA's EZIE satellites to study auroral electrojets. 

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Scientists say the universe's expiration date us much sooner than they had expected... but we still have a really, really long time left. Soviet zombie satellite spashed down on Earth over the weekend. Solar activity is picking up this week. Auroras were observed on Jupiter by JWST. And a supermassive black hole just exposed itself. 

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The USSR Zombie probe will likely make landfall this weekend. NASA is ready to explore Titan witha very large drone. Japan's Resilence lunar lander has entered the Moon's orbit. SLS has stacked the second stage of Artemis 2 but it looks like funding will run out for SLS after Artemis 3. SpaceX has gotten permission from the FAA for 25 Starship launches per year. 

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Jared Isaacman awaits the final Senate vote to conform him as the new administrator of NASA. A 50 year-old Russian spacecraft is heading for Earth. What are mush balls on Jupiter? Don Pettit's recent trip to space deserves a deep dive. And it seems that the Sun was not responsible for the recent Iberian power outage.

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New data from exoplanet K2-18 b suggests that there COULD be life on the ocean world, but there's a lot more science to be done. NASA's Lucy spacecraft has captured images of a peanut-shaped asteroid. Hubble celebrates 35 years in service and the next director of NASA could send a mission up to service the telescope. Tractors running on GPS had an eventful Easter Sunday. Don Pettit has returned home from the ISS on his 70th birthday. Don't forget to look up and smile. 

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Blue Origin sent six women into space and there's been a lot of talk about whether they are astronauts or not. Aurora lit up the skies in Europe and New Zealand. Plus the Perseverance rover hit the jackpot on Mars. 

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Jared Isaacman is a step closer to being conformed as the new head of NASA. The FRAM2 private astronaut mission is complete. SPHEREx and JWST both have wins! Comet SWAN is brightening. 

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Massive star explosions may have triggered two mass extinctions in Earth's past. Actively feeding supermassive black holes could be good for life. The Large Magellanic Cloud may have a supermassive black hole. Astronomers may now have a better understanding of a repeating radio signal coming from deep space, 

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NASA's Artemis II mission is a step closer to ready for launch in 2026 as its twin boosters have been attached inside the VAB at Kennedy Space Center. SpaceX has broken some of its own records including using the same booster on launches only 9 days apart. NASA's Curiosity rover has detected the largest organic compounds ever found on Mars. JWST has given us a great new look at the Cosmic Tornado. Star Catcher has successfully demonstrated wireless energy beaming. 

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After a nine month mission that started as an eight day mission, NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams have returned home. Starliner's next test flight will likely be an unmanned one. Spring begins today with the vernal equinox. JWST has given us a look at gas giants in another solar system. Mars Madness gives you a chance to win a trip to Mars if you pick a perfect bracket. 

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SpaceX delayed the Crew-10 mission's launch after an issue with the transporter-erector which means Butch and Suni will wait a little longer to return home. A total lunar eclipse happens tonight for parts of the world. A new study suggests that biosignatures could be detected on Europa with a laser. The world's oldest impact crater has been located in Western Australia. 

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Crew-9 is preparing to return home. Intuitive Machines has landed the IM-2 on the Moon but at the moment, it's status is unknown. Firefly's Blue Ghost performed a soft landing on the Moon and is delivering data. NASA is powering down instruments on both Voyagers to save power. Massive early stars may have flooded the early universe with water. FRBs have been traced back to an unexpected origin. 

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Two lunar landers are getting ready for a similar touch down next week. Don't forget about Saturn's disappearing rings. Mars is still red but the reason has changed. Rocket Lab launched its 60th Electron rocket. That "doomsday" asteroid isn't much of a threat any more. Plus, we will be getting a new batch of asteroids soon from Alpha Centauri. 

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Yes and asteroid is heading our way in 2032, and yes t he chances of it hitting Earth have gone up, but odds are still in our favor. Plus, NASA is reportedly not facing federal cuts. The Moon will have two landers arriving soon and Venus has been dazzling the night time sky. 

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Boeing faces cuts for half of its SLS staff. Crew-9 set to return home a little earlier than previously scheduled. May's solar storm created two new radiation belts. Earth's magnetic field is playing music... sort of. And Quipu is now the largest known object in the universe.

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With the upcoming release of The Fantastic Four: First Steps, it seems appropriate that the Einstein Probe observes a 'weird explosion". JWST has observed a crumbling exoplanet. Rocket Lab is ready for responsive launches. Boeing's Starliner CCP has new (old) management. Scientists have discovered a 3rd form of magnetism. 

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The President and Elon Musk have taken to social media to talk about plans to return "stranded" astronauts home from the ISS. OSIRIS-REx mission has given scientists a look at key molecules for life found on Bennu. Juno mission has observed massive volcanic activity on Io. Starman has baffled astronomers for the last time... at least for a while. 

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Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos both attended President Trump's inauguration this week. Blue Origin and SpaceX launched their big rockets with different results. The "headless" comet is dazzling skies in the southern hemisphere. Scientists say the universe is expanding too fast. The GIRAFF mission will study auroras.And the parade of planets is happening but no, it's not an alignment. 

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Two big rockets are set to launch today. The ISS has deployed the first ever satellite made from wood. JWST has discovered one of  the first gargantuan supernovas ever seen. Comet ATLAS survived its brush with the Sun. And NASA says retrieving those collected soil samples on Mars is currently not going to happen. 

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Blue Origin is planning to launch its New Glenn rocket tonight. No, seven planst aren't lining up in the night time sky. Yes, the Moon and Mars are. Starlink could potentially adjust their orbits and improve things for astronomers. And a sun-grazer comet could be brighter than Venus in the sky next week. 

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Solar activity gave many around the world a dazzling show of auroral activity to begin 2025. The Parker Solar Probe survived its record breaking pass of the Sun. SpaceX smashed 2023's record number of launches by launching every 2.7 days in 2024. And JWST reveals black holes can suppress star formation. 

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This week Wes and Shawn take a look back at the 5 biggest space news stories of 2024

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This week, Wes and Shawn begin their look back at the 10 biggest space news stories of 2024

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Jupiter dazzles in the nightime sky. A massive thunderstorm was spotted on Jupiter. Nominee to run NASA Jared Isaacman has given his first public statements about his nomination. A cracked rock on Mars has revealed a surprise. Plus the liquid on Mars may not have been what was previously thought.  

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Jared Isaacman has been named as the former and future President's pick to lead NASA in the new administration. Isaacman has been to space as a commercial astronaut and recently did the first ever commercial spacewalk. If confirmed, would Isaacman potentially go to space as the NASA administrator? 

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Astronauts aboard the ISS shared a video of themselves opening up their Thanksgiving MREs in space and revaled what their feast would include. There's a strange smell aboard the ISS and its coming from a Russian Progress cargo spacecraft. Scientists have a new theory about FRBs and where they originate. Plus, JWST has given us a new and incredible look at the Sombrero Galaxy.  

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