Universe Today Podcast

Your Ultimate Guide to All Things Space

Space news, interviews, Q&As, and exclusive content from Universe Today.
Audio versions of Fraser Cain YouTube channel.

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    01:28:09
    September 10th, 2020

    Here's an interview I did with the Awesome Astronomy podcast. You can see their full podcast here: https://awesomeastronomy.com/

    Subscribe to their podcast on iTunes: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/awesome-astronomy/id521780589
    Or on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5Yr24VAoheI0tOUSpVOI2Q

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    00:31:27
    September 8th, 2020

    In this week's questions show, you wondered if the simulation hypothesis is a good answer to the Fermi Paradox. How to get a career in space manufacturing? Will a compass work on Mars? And more...

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    00:20:57
    July 30th, 2020

    In this week's questions show, I consider what the benefits might be to humanity if we discover that we aren't alone in the Universe. How long did Mars planetary dynamo take to turn off? Could we find and repair the lunar rovers?

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    00:33:13
    July 24th, 2020

    In this week's questions show, I explain how it's possible for stars to orbit so closely they're actually touching. What are the limits to gravitational slingshots, and how astronomers know where to point their telescopes in the Universe.

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    00:10:16
    July 21st, 2020

    When the Apollo astronauts first landed on the Moon, they couldn’t go far on foot. That’s why the three final missions were equipped with Lunar Roving Vehicles, or Moon buggies, which allowed the astronauts to cover much more ground and do more science.

    Now that NASA is returning to the Moon by 2024 as part of its Artemis Program, it’s considering a fleet of new vehicles that will help astronauts roam far and wide across the surface of the Moon.

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    00:26:17
    July 20th, 2020

    In this week's questions show I explain why it's still important to do science, even if it's difficult, can we use multiple methods to measure distance, and why the Trojan asteroids don't collect into a single object?

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    00:09:04
    July 14th, 2020

    When the largest stars die, it’s usually pretty obvious. Supernovae are visible from billions of light-years away. But recently astronomers watched a massive star just disappear. No explosion, nothing, it just… vanished?

    Of course, it could have been dust. It’s always dust. But one intriguing possibility is that the star just imploded directly into a black hole, without the supernova detonation. And if that’s the case, is this happening more often, we just didn’t notice it?

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    00:22:19
    July 8th, 2020

    This episode is a segment that we did in the Weekly Space Hangout talking about how astronomers are using masers (water lasers) to measure the expansion rate of the Universe.

    You'd think that another, independent way to measure the expansion rate of the Universe would be helpful, but it's only deepened the mystery of the cosmological crisis.

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    01:01:18
    July 3rd, 2020

    This week, it'll be the last Open Space with Fraser before the show goes on its summer hiatus until September. If you've got some burning space questions, no will be your chance to ask them.

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    00:28:33
    July 3rd, 2020

    In this week's questions show, I answer what would happen if a supernova exploded right beside a black hole, how do we know that it's impossible to travel faster than the speed of light, can we hitch a ride on an interstellar object, and more...

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    00:09:29
    July 3rd, 2020

    Earlier this year, NASA announced 4 new Discovery-class missions that they were considering. These are low-cost, rapidly-built missions that will help scientists understand some mystery in astronomy and planetary science.

    One of these missions is called Trident, and it’s going to be targeting the Planet Neptune. And more specifically, it’s going to be providing close up pictures of its largest moon Triton.

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    00:24:09
    June 29th, 2020

    In this week's episode, I answer questions about alien life, why the ISS is at its current altitude, and of course, many questions about black holes.

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    01:01:13
    June 29th, 2020

    This is a recent interview with me on the Space Junk, hosted by Tony Darnell and Dustin Gibson about the future of Solar System settlement. Although I'm a huge fan of space exploration in general, I'm not a huge fan of living on other words.

    Subscribe to Space Junk: https://anchor.fm/spacejunk

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    01:00:51
    June 23rd, 2020

    Another week, another Open Space. In this week's questions show, I talk about planets orbiting red dwarf stars, if planets could steal moons from each other, and whether or not the space shuttle should have ever been built.

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    00:09:17
    June 23rd, 2020

    Astronomers have discovered thousands of exoplanets, and still need to confirm thousands more. And over the coming decades, we’ll probably learn of millions of planets, orbiting stars we’ve never heard of.

    That’s why it’s reassuring to know astronomers are learning a tremendous amount about the closest star system to our own, Proxima Centauri. In fact, we now know of two planets orbiting the red dwarf star, one of which is in the habitable zone.

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    01:25:57
    June 22nd, 2020

    As you know, I sometimes throw interviews with me on the feed. And this is one I did about a week ago on the Interplanetary Podcast. We talk about a range of things in space and astronomy, and my portion shows up around the 30-minute mark.

    https://www.interplanetary.org.uk/home