Universe Today Podcast

BONUS STORY STARTS AT 17:16

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

How can there be auroras on Mars? More bad news for the exploration of Europa. Watching Pluto's atmosphere. And on Space Bites Plus, could planets form right after the Big Bang?

00:00 Intro

00:17 Auroras on Mars https://www.universetoday.com/articles/nasas-maven-illuminates-new-understanding-of-auroras-at-mars

03:07 More Bad News for Europa Exploration https://www.universetoday.com/articles/europas-interior-ocean-may-harbor-life-but-could-be-hard-to-reach-says-new-research

05:46 Watching Pluto’s Atmosphere https...

BONUS QUESTION STARTS AT 11:15

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My Top-100 movie list: https://www.patreon.com/universetoday/posts/my-top-100-space-153930141

Which are we more likely to find, alien megastructures or alien microbes? Why is the US racing racing China to the Moon? Will mining the asteroid belt ever become a reality? And in Q&A+, will we ever make a mega-cut video again?

00:00 Intro

00:28 [@paigepotter4682] Are we closer to discovering alien microbes or alien megastructures?

03:09 [@MelindaGreen] Why i...

BONUS PART STARTS AT 21:56

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🟣 Guest: Dr. Mike Rubenstein

📜 Actively Steerable Femtosat Constellations for In-situ Exploration of Saturn’s Rings, Atmosphere, and Magnetosphere https://www.nasa.gov/directorates/stmd/niac/actively-steerable-femtosat-constellations-for-in-situ-exploration-of-saturns-rings-atmosphere-and-magnetosphere/

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

Saturn's rings are dense. Sending one flagship probe through them makes no sense. It'll most probably be lost. But sending a swarm of small cheap probes does. Even if a lot of them won't survi...

BONUS QUESTION STARTS AT 12:37

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My Top-100 movie list: https://www.patreon.com/universetoday/posts/my-top-100-space-153930141

If white holes exist, could we ever see one? Do SETI researches have access to Vera Rubin? Which is the best way for the Universe to end? And in Q&A+, will the Earth eventually become tidally locked to the Sun?

00:00 Intro

00:25 [@festerallday] if a civilization isn't detected by SETI did it even exist?

02:20 [@tommix6016...

BONUS STORY STARTS AT 19:40

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Interviews mentioned:
👉 Interview with Dr Matt Weller https://youtu.be/R18W6VVZMhc?si=RasWhg-Y9sfKvXys
👉 Interview with Dr Paul Byrne https://youtu.be/VXuhaJu-GNM?si=A-lFy8XUQHJLqvL-

Venus might not be completely dead. Evidence of liquid flowing on the surface of Pluto. Can primordial black holes cause supernova? And on Space Bites Plus, what happened to Neptune's rings and moons...

BONUS QUESTION STARTS AT 13:26

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Channels mentioned:

 @filmjoy 

 @WeirdExplorer 

Are primordial gravitational waves still coming to us? How big would a 30 billion Sun mass black hole be? Do photons start experiencing time when slowed down in a medium? And in Q&A+, can any particle pop up into existence any time anywhere?

00:00 Intro

00:27 [@vistotutti6037] Are primordial gravitational waves still going?

04:25 [@AriasThirdOfHisName] Thoughts on charged black holes?

06:45 [@KnownUnknown-i8r] H...

BONUS PART STARTS AT 30:33

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🟣 Guest: Dr. Austin Phoenix https://nationalsecurity.vt.edu/personnel-directory/phoenix-austin.html

📜 ECLIPSE – Efficient variable Conductivity Lunar Insulator for Passive Surveyor Environmental control https://www.nasa.gov/directorates/stmd/niac/eclipse-efficient-variable-conductivity-lunar-insulator-for-passive-surveyor-environmental-control/

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

The Moon is brutal. It's super hot during the day and super cold during the night. Most landers and rovers can't survive that swing. So, how do you mitigat...

BONUS QUESTION STARTS AT 12:55

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Will private companies take over the ISS? Which sci-fi stories need to be written? What's the state of Canadian rocket market? And in Q&A+, a quick rundown of all my telescopes.

00:00 Intro

00:25 [@D.S.8197] Will private companies replace the ISS?

05:51 [@kairon156] Which SciFi stories I would like to see written?

09:16 [@melantorja] Thoughts on Canadian rocket companies

11:32 [@Matthew...1979] How do we see Proxima Centauri?

12:55 [@r...

BONUS QUESTION STARTS AT 13:36

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Does the Fermi paradox make any sense? How can we talk about life out there if all the exoplanets are just single pixels or worse? Is it all just nonsense? And in Q&A, what was my favourite part of the Artemis 2 mission?

00:00 Intro

00:25 [@frankshifreen] What's the point of searching for life with our primitive instruments

13:36 [@ConspiracyTheoryEnthusiast] My favorite part of the Artemis 2 mission?

19:33 Summer media

Patrons, send in your questions: patreon.com/posts/164654175

BONUS PART STARTS AT: 19:02

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Starship 13 flies and lands softly in the ocean. Astronomers see the companion star for Betelgeuse. A comet spun down, reversed direction and might tear itself apart. Did Webb see primordial Little Red Dots? On Space Bites+, measuring the heat working its way out of Io. All this and more in this week's Space Bites.

Interviews mentioned

LRDs with Dr. John Chisholm https://www.youtube...

🟣 Guest: Jeff Nosanov https://orbitalvelocity.space/

🎙️ Space Madness Podcast https://orbitalvelocity.space/#podcast

📚 How to do Business with NASA: A Practical Guide for Entrepreneurs, Innovators, and Contractors https://a.co/d/062c8pxQ

📜 OBLIVION: Observing Black hole LIght Via Intensity cOrrelatioN https://www.nasa.gov/general/oblivion-observing-black-hole-light-via-intensity-correlation/

00:00 Intro

01:45 NIAC Season 2026

02:54 OBLIVION

11:06 How can it possibly work

16:18 Possible targets for observation

20:01 Alternative applications

26:23 Orbital Velocity LLC

36:28 Space Madness Pod

41:01 Current obsessions

48:25 Final thoughts

BONUS QUESTION STARTS AT 13:58

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Why is the Universe not 13.8 Billion light-years wide? Could a black hole possibly consume the entire Universe? Where did all the metals come from? And in Q&A+, what's the best part of my job here?

00:00 Intro

00:26 [@anonylity_4798] How is the Universe bigger than it's older

05:33 [@WendellBroadwell] Will the entire Universe inevitably fall into a giant black hole?

11:18 [@davidpayton7838] Where did all the heavy metals come from?

BONUS STORY STARTS AT 14:16

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Bad news for the planets of Bernard Starr. Measuring the atmosphere on a rocky world within the habitable zone. Identifying the asteroid that killed the dinosaurs. How the Milky Way flipped its disk. And on Space Bites Plus, how global Martian dust storms can be even worse.

00:00 Intro

00:19 Bad news for Barnard's Star exoplanets https://www.universetoday.com/articles/astronomers-determine-that-exoplanets-around-barnards-star-are-extremely-uninhabitable

02:27 Rocky + Habitable Zone + Atmosphere https://www.universetoday.com/articles/the-first-breath-of-another-world

04:11...

BONUS QUESTION STARTS AT 11:05

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If other Universes exist, is it even possible to detect them? What created the fields and quantum fluctuations that supposedly set off the Big bang? Could we use a long tether as a power source around Jupiter’s strong magnetic field? And in Q&A+, what is the best way to watch a SpaceX launch?

00:00 Intro

00:28 [@hempfreedom3044] Could we detect other Universes if they exist?

03:43 [@EdSceptic-y2e] What created the fi...

👉 More interview HERE: https://www.patreon.com/collection/44300

BONUS PART STARTS AT 34:06

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Supernova remnants should be stable. All the action is long gone. But newly found supernovae in M87 unexpectedly show signs of rapid change. Why does this happen? Nobody really nows yet.

🟣 Guest: Dr. Roy Kilgard https://rkilgard.faculty.wesleyan.edu/

📜 NASA's Chandra Finds Unexpected Fireworks in Aftermath of Stellar Explosions https://chandra.si.edu/press/26_releases/press_061526.html

00:00 Intro

01:56 Dynamic supernova...

BONUS QUESTION STARTS AT 14:12

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00:00 Intro

00:26 [@PerryM-vy4fe] Is a magnetic shield the first step for a true Mars colonization?

04:58 [@giubl3] Does stuff near the black hole spin faster than stuff further away?

08:59 [@paigepotter4682] What’s the most “I can’t believe this is my job” moment I had?

14:12 [@Nomad77ca] Do I follow Nord Space and their new launch facilities in NFLD?

16:55 My sad telescope

BONUS PART START STARTS AT 18:21

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Interview with Dr. Noelia Noël about painting satellites black https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1yQegWQWtUo

Dragonfly is taking shape. A new exoplanet at Beta Pictoris. Hera gets a software upgrade mid-flight. And new features hiding in the Orion Nebula. On Space Bites Plus, how we can paint satellites black to reduce light pollution. All this and more in this week's Space Bites.

00:00 Intro

00:20 Dragonfly Takes Its Shape https://science.n...

BONUS QUESTION STARTS AT 14:04

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Why not push the ISS to a high orbit instead of de-orbiting it? Will we ever send a probe to another star? Is quantum computing more promising than AI advances? And in Q&A+, how close are we to a technological singularity?

00:00 Intro

00:27 [@TheLinthus] Why not push the ISS to a high orbit instead of deorbiting it?

06:18 [@zach_diecast_mansur] Will we ever send a probe to another star? <...

BONUS QUESTION STARTS AT 14:47

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Is Sgr A* even massive enough for a supermassive black hole? Are there galaxies around the Little Red Dots? How important is plate tectonics? And in Q&A+, what's the biggest showstopper for a interstellar crew?

00:00 Intro

00:26 [@Nomad77ca] Is our BH big enough to be "super" massive?

01:58 [@billionsandbillionsofstars] Are the Little Red Dots supermassive black holes inside galaxies?

05:54 [@luiscarneiro4123] Will Euclid + JWST data force a revision of...

BONUS STORY STARTS AT 17:37

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China Lands a Reusable Rocket, Spacecraft visit two asteroids up close. How spaceflight makes you older. And using permanent magnets to protect astronauts from radiation. And on Space Bites Plus, extending inflatable tunnels for the surface of Mars.

00:00 Intro

00:18 China Lands a Reusable Rocket https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cm2rmmx86pdo

02:04 Two Close Asteroid Encounters https://www.universetoday.com/articles/another-success-for-hayabusa-2-as-it-completes-a-flyby-of-asteroid-torifune https://www.cnsa.gov.cn/n6758823/n6758838/c10760422/content...

BONUS QUESTION STARTS AT 11:55

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Will the Sun consume the Earth or not? Should we trade feet for arms to live in microgravity? How good is the peer review process in Astronomy? And in Q&A+, what happened to the Parker Solar Probe?

00:00 Intro

00:25 [@TimPointing] Will the Sun consume the Earth or not?

04:40 [@jeffhans1] Should we trade legs for arms to live in microgravity?

07:26 [@vrstovsek] How loud is the Sun?

08:21 [@JJsQuest] How...

BONUS PART starts at 29:32

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We're pretty familiar with orbits around the Earth. But as we start putting more and more things on the Moon, it means we'll need to cover more and more orbits that go to and around the Moon. And it's actually much trickier than you think.

🟣 Guest: Dr. Aaron Rosengren https://jacobsschool.ucsd.edu/node/3654

📜 The Astrodynamics Primer on Cislunar and Translunar Space https://arxiv.org/abs/2606.26367

00:00 Intro

01:51 New op...

BONUS QUESTION STARTS AT 14:11

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Is Helium-3 the real reason for the modern-day space race? Could there be an undetectable death ray coming towards us? Where's the best place to stargaze? And in Q&A+, where will Artemis missions land?

00:00 Intro

00:26 [@Ravi_GoodBetterBestNLIR] Is Helium 3 is the real reason for this new moon base race?

05:09 [@slowboyfuelpump5438] What is the best place in the US for sky gazing?

07:30 [@d.o.6769] What is my...

BONUS QUESTION STARTS AT 12:33

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SAVE STARGATE: https://www.change.org/p/save-stargate-with-martin-gero

Would the Sun be poisoned by iron if the Earth crashed into it? What happens to a binary companion when a supernova goes off? Which rocket is my favourite? And in Q&A+, could JWST pay more attention to the little red dots?

00:00 Intro

00:24 [@psilocybe6115] Would the Earth poison the Sun?

04:31 [@paulmichaelfreedman8334] My favorite rocket or space vehicle?

Vera Rubin survey is underway. Could a spare Perseverance rover be going to the moon? Two planets that are less dense than cotton candy. A vast connected magma system on Mars.

00:00 Intro

00:16 Vera Rubin's 10-year Survey Finally Begins https://www.universetoday.com/articles/its-finally-begun-the-vera-rubin-observatory-creating-what-will-be-the-greatest-movie-ever-made

03:04 NASA Moon Updates https://www.nasa.gov/news-release/nasa-awards-more-moon-base-science-previews-new-opportunities/

07:49 Planets Lighter Than Candy Floss https://www.universetoday.com/articles/two-planets-lighter-than-candy-floss

09:59 Not Ice Giants (Maybe) https://www.universetoday.com/articles/uranus-neptune-may-be-magma-worlds-not-ice-giants

12:04 Vote results 12:36 Another Galaxy With No Dark Matter https://www.universetoday.com/articles...

BONUS QUESTION STARTS AT 11:05

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Can we put a structure on the Moon to be seen with a naked eye? Which telescope to get under 200 bucks? Which telescope should get a priority? And in Q&A+, exactly where are we in the Milky Way?

00:00 Intro

00:26 [@jeffhans1] Which telescope should get a priority?

04:50 [@clivewarren3227] Can we put a structure on the Moon to be seen with a naked eye?

07:10 [@unlimitedmind69] Which telescope to...

BONUS QUESTION STARTS AT 15:12

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Dr Paul Sutter https://www.pmsutter.com/

How can black holes be hot when all they do is suck in everything around them? Why is the Oort cloud so perfectly spherical? How do astronomical measurements work? And in Q&A+, can small Moon impacts be a threat to Earth?

00:00 Intro

00:23 [@MistSoalar] Why is the Oort cloud spherical?

03:09 [@rJaune] Could we detect the Oort Clouds, or Kuiper Belts of e...

BONUS STORY STARTS AT 18:34

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A mission to rescue a falling space telescope. More uses for the solar gravitational lens. The Euclid Space Telescope images the center of the Milky Way. And in Space Bites+, a star ate a planet.

00:00 Intro

00:15 Rescue mission for a falling telescope https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smithsonianmag/this-week-nasa-will-launch-a-first-of-its-kind-mission-to-save-a-space-telescope-that-has-observed-the-sky-for-nearly-22-years-180988998/

03:40 More Uses for the Solar Gravitational Lens https://www.universetoday.com/articles/the-solar-gravitational-lens-could-map-white-dwarfs-and-black-holes

07:43 Six Galaxies Become One https://www.universetoday...

BONUS QUESTION STARTS AT 13:57

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The Moon is running away from Earth. How can we stop it? Why orbiting objects get tidally locked? What makes more sense, repairing Hubble or replacing it? And in Q&A+, did the Solar System produce its own interstellar objects?

00:00 Intro

00:25 [@JakeGajoff] Why objects get tidally locked?

04:42 [@nephilim20111] How do we stop the moon from getting further away?

05:04 [@Leafbinder] If moon tickets were only 500$ would I go?

06:31...

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Could we even find von Neumann probes in the solar system? Could alien megastructures be raining down on the moon? Do we finally have an explanation for little red dots?

00:00 Intro

00:14 Where Are Alien Probes Hiding? https://www.universetoday.com/articles/are-alien-probes-hiding-in-our-backyard-a-new-study-says-weve-barely-looked

03:15 Best Place to Look for Alien Megastructures https://www.universetoday.com/articles/the-best-place-to-look-for-alien-megastructures-might-be-moon-dust

06:26 Exoplanets Choked by Diesel Smog https://www.universetoday.com/articles/jwst-finds-exoplanets-choked-by-diesel-smog

08:20 Did we finally solve Little Red Dots...

BONUS QUESTION STARTS AT 13:41

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What does a nation gain from a continuous Moon presence? Will it ever make sense to mine asteroids? What question should we ask aliens and what should we tell them first? And in Q&A+, don't believe everything you see.

00:00 Intro

00:23 [@teknophyle1] What can a nation gain from continuous presence of the Moon?

05:20 [@churchdiscography] What do we ask the aliens first?

09:23 [@floater81floats37] When will it make sense...

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We've seen a lot of depiction of the future of food in space in sci-fi. People eat food in space every day. But with future Moon base missions and trips to Mars, food will have to evolve as well. Which way will it go? Finding out in this interview.

🟣 Guest: Tor Blomqvist https://www.deepspacefood.org/

📜 From production to food systems: A systems-level review of drivers, requirements, and integration for Lunar and Martian food systems https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/articl...

BONUS QUESTION STARTS AT 12:34

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How will future historians see space exploration? Did NASA handle well the 3I/ATLAS story? How fast do you really need to go to break free from the solar system? And in Q&A+, some sci-fi books recommendation.

00:00 Intro

00:26 [@madmillion91920110] How did NASA handle 3I/ATLAS?

04:24 [@NooLoon-c1t] How fast would you need to go to leave the solar system?

08:43 [@paigepotter4682] What do you think future historians will...

BONUS STORY STARTS AT 17:51

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David Kipping’s  @CoolWorldsLab  video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sT7V4gE4ZIc

Matt’s podcast https://storiesbywilliams.com/podcast-series/ https://www.patreon.com/cw/houseofwilliams

Meet the crew for Artemis III, Weighing a dormant black hole, evidence for a long-gone early planet, how robot probes could take over the galaxy, and in Space Bites+, scanning 3I/ATLAS for alien signals.

00:00 Intro

00:18 Artemis III Updates https://arstechnica.com/space/2026/06/nasa-a...

BONUS QUESTION STARTS AT 16:01

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Should we just wait and let Alpha Centauri get closer? Which will happen first, antimatter propulsion or fusion power? What are the consequences of crashing rockets into the ocean? And in Q&A+, can we detect magnetic fields of planets being torn by black holes?

00:00 Intro

00:26 [@geohondo] Are there consequences for crashing a rocket in the ocean?

05:24 [@GadZookz] Do we have to wait 5000 years to send humans to Alpha...

BONUS QUESTION STARTS AT 13:08

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With the New Glenn explosion and Starship having problems of its own, what is a realistic setback for NASA's Moon base plans? Do they need to look into alternative propulsion methods? And in Q&A+, will Europe ever catch up in space domain?

00:00 Intro

00:25 [@nikolapbyt] Is 2028 still a realistic target after the last Starship flight and the New Glenn explosion?

09:52 [@ragetail3] Is NASA progressively looking into solar sail technology?

BONUS STORY STARTS AT 16:42

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What's next for Blue Origin after the explosion? Finding overly massive black holes at the early universe. Could dark matter be made of comets? A galaxy that just isn't rotating. And in Space Bites Plus, how massive can neutron stars be? All this and more on this week's Space Bites.

00:00 Intro

00:14 Might Be Not Than Bad (Still Pretty Bad) https://www.universetoday.com/articles/blue-origin-issues-official-statement-on-new-glenn-explosion

02:35 Testing milestone for Blue Moon https...

BONUS QUESTION STARTS AT 09:15

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00:00 Intro

00:52 [@paigepotter4682] What’s the last thing about space you changed your mind about?

09:15 [@seanrobertson8796] I’m being sincere, maybe a bit cynical, but how do I know my telescope is actually taking the picture and not just downloading it?

10:47 My media

BONUS QUESTION STARTS AT 13:51

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Ranking Solutions to the Fermi Oaradox: https://youtu.be/DFPfG413F58

What could Starship launch with its 9 meter faring? How can we possibly be ready for Mars? What happens with information in a black hole? And in Q&A+, when can we be confident that Planet 9 doesn't exist?

00:00 Intro

00:24 [@EdSceptic-y2e] Biosphere 2 didn't work on our hospitable planet so how are they really gonna do it on the utterly inhospitable...

BONUS STORY STARTS AT 20:08

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​ @NASASpaceflight  https://youtu.be/9b-ZhGB8XDc?si=g8pQDX8OHTDd4R3D  @scottmanley  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aaR6yEE-Myo

New Glenn Explodes, NASA leans in on a moon base. Starship makes its 12th flight. Have astronomers found a primordial black hole? And in Space Bites Plus, flying a plane through a rocket plume to measure its pollution.

00:00 Intro

00:13 New Glenn explodes https://arstechnica.com/space/2026/05/blue-origins-new-glenn-rocket-just-exploded-during-a-static-fire-test/

02:22 NASA Moon b...