WEBVTT 0 00:00:00.320 --> 00:00:03.200 Anna: Welcome to Astronomy Daily, the podcast 1 00:00:03.200 --> 00:00:05.680 that brings you the latest discoveries from 2 00:00:05.680 --> 00:00:08.160 across the cosmos. I'm Anna. 3 00:00:08.320 --> 00:00:10.440 Avery: And I'm Avery. We've got an 4 00:00:10.440 --> 00:00:13.280 absolutely incredible episode for you today. 5 00:00:13.680 --> 00:00:15.720 We're talking about black holes that are 6 00:00:15.720 --> 00:00:17.760 proving Einstein and hawking right. 7 00:00:18.240 --> 00:00:21.160 SpaceX's latest mission success. And for 8 00:00:21.160 --> 00:00:23.320 the first time ever, astronomers have 9 00:00:23.320 --> 00:00:26.240 actually caught a baby planet in the act 10 00:00:26.320 --> 00:00:27.360 of being born. 11 00:00:28.000 --> 00:00:30.960 Anna: Plus, we'll explore a mind bending 12 00:00:30.960 --> 00:00:33.780 prediction about exploding primordial 13 00:00:33.780 --> 00:00:36.540 black holes that could revolutionize 14 00:00:36.540 --> 00:00:38.980 physics. So grab your favorite 15 00:00:38.980 --> 00:00:41.860 beverage and let's dive into the wonders of 16 00:00:41.860 --> 00:00:42.540 the universe. 17 00:00:42.940 --> 00:00:45.740 Avery: Alright, Anna, let's start with what might be 18 00:00:45.740 --> 00:00:48.019 the most significant gravitational wave 19 00:00:48.019 --> 00:00:50.820 discovery since LIGO first detected 20 00:00:50.820 --> 00:00:53.620 these cosmic ripples. Scientists have now 21 00:00:53.620 --> 00:00:56.540 confirmed some of Einstein and Hawking's 22 00:00:56.620 --> 00:00:59.020 most important predictions about black holes. 23 00:00:59.340 --> 00:01:00.300 Tell us what happened. 24 00:01:01.050 --> 00:01:03.530 Anna: This is absolutely fascinating, 25 00:01:03.530 --> 00:01:05.530 avery. Back in January 26 00:01:05.770 --> 00:01:08.050 2025, LIGO detected 27 00:01:08.050 --> 00:01:10.810 gravitational waves from two black holes 28 00:01:10.810 --> 00:01:13.610 colliding 1.3 billion light 29 00:01:13.610 --> 00:01:16.490 years away. But what makes this discovery 30 00:01:16.490 --> 00:01:18.890 special isn't just the detection 31 00:01:19.050 --> 00:01:21.850 itself. It's what the scientists were 32 00:01:21.850 --> 00:01:24.010 able to prove using the data. 33 00:01:24.410 --> 00:01:27.370 Avery: Right. They actually confirmed Hawking's area 34 00:01:27.450 --> 00:01:29.850 theorem, which states that a black hole 35 00:01:29.850 --> 00:01:32.170 surface area can never decre. 36 00:01:32.950 --> 00:01:34.790 That's pretty remarkable when you think about 37 00:01:34.790 --> 00:01:37.310 it. We're talking about testing theoretical 38 00:01:37.310 --> 00:01:40.190 physics on some of the most extreme objects 39 00:01:40.190 --> 00:01:41.030 in the universe. 40 00:01:41.590 --> 00:01:43.990 Anna: Exactly. The numbers are 41 00:01:43.990 --> 00:01:46.790 staggering too. Before the collision, 42 00:01:46.870 --> 00:01:49.550 the combined surface area of both black 43 00:01:49.550 --> 00:01:52.390 holes was about 240,000 44 00:01:52.550 --> 00:01:55.430 square kilometers. After they merged, 45 00:01:55.430 --> 00:01:58.110 the final black hole had a surface area 46 00:01:58.110 --> 00:02:00.630 of 400,000 square kilometers. 47 00:02:01.190 --> 00:02:03.950 So even though these massive objects crashed 48 00:02:03.950 --> 00:02:06.770 together and merged, the total surface area 49 00:02:07.090 --> 00:02:10.050 actually increased, just as Hawking 50 00:02:10.050 --> 00:02:10.610 predicted. 51 00:02:10.690 --> 00:02:13.170 Avery: What I find incredible is that they also 52 00:02:13.170 --> 00:02:16.170 confirmed the merged black hole matches 53 00:02:16.170 --> 00:02:19.050 Einstein's Kerr metric. This provides 54 00:02:19.050 --> 00:02:21.090 the strongest evidence yet that these 55 00:02:21.090 --> 00:02:24.050 astrophysical black holes behave exactly 56 00:02:24.050 --> 00:02:26.890 as general relativity predicts. We're 57 00:02:26.890 --> 00:02:29.570 literally watching Einstein's equations play 58 00:02:29.570 --> 00:02:31.410 out on a cosmic scale. 59 00:02:31.770 --> 00:02:34.050 Anna: It's mind blowing to think that theories 60 00:02:34.050 --> 00:02:36.890 developed nearly a century ago are being 61 00:02:36.890 --> 00:02:39.730 proven correct by observations of events 62 00:02:39.730 --> 00:02:42.170 that happened over a billion years ago. 63 00:02:42.810 --> 00:02:44.730 Science is truly amazing. 64 00:02:45.370 --> 00:02:48.050 Avery: Speaking of impressive achievements, let's 65 00:02:48.050 --> 00:02:50.330 talk about SpaceX's latest success. 66 00:02:50.890 --> 00:02:53.770 On September 11, 2025, they 67 00:02:53.770 --> 00:02:56.690 launched the Nusantara Lima satellite for 68 00:02:56.690 --> 00:02:59.530 Indonesian telecom company psn. 69 00:03:00.170 --> 00:03:02.650 Anna, uh, this wasn't just an ordinary 70 00:03:02.650 --> 00:03:02.970 launch. 71 00:03:04.150 --> 00:03:06.910 Anna: Not at all, Avery. This launch had 72 00:03:06.910 --> 00:03:09.910 some impressive milestones. First, they 73 00:03:09.910 --> 00:03:12.390 had to deal with three days of weather delays 74 00:03:12.390 --> 00:03:14.910 at Cape Canaveral, which shows how 75 00:03:14.910 --> 00:03:17.510 seriously SpaceX takes safety conditions. 76 00:03:17.990 --> 00:03:20.670 But when they finally launched the Falcon 77 00:03:20.670 --> 00:03:23.510 9 first stage made its 23rd 78 00:03:23.670 --> 00:03:26.110 successful landing on the drone ship. A 79 00:03:26.110 --> 00:03:28.630 shortfall of gravitas 23 80 00:03:28.630 --> 00:03:29.310 flights for. 81 00:03:29.310 --> 00:03:32.190 Avery: A single rocket booster. I still get 82 00:03:32.190 --> 00:03:34.590 amazed by the reusability SpaceX has 83 00:03:34.590 --> 00:03:36.650 achieved. And, um, this Boeing built 84 00:03:36.650 --> 00:03:38.770 satellite is going to make a real difference 85 00:03:38.770 --> 00:03:40.530 for people in Indonesia, right? 86 00:03:41.010 --> 00:03:43.650 Anna: Absolutely. Indonesia has over 87 00:03:43.810 --> 00:03:46.650 17,000 islands, so 88 00:03:46.650 --> 00:03:49.410 providing reliable telecommunications across 89 00:03:49.570 --> 00:03:51.970 such a geographically challenging region 90 00:03:52.290 --> 00:03:55.130 is no small feat. The Nusantara 91 00:03:55.130 --> 00:03:57.250 Lima satellite will operate from 92 00:03:57.250 --> 00:04:00.210 geosynchronous orbit with a capacity of over 93 00:04:00.290 --> 00:04:02.770 160 gigabits per second. 94 00:04:03.330 --> 00:04:05.770 That's enough bandwidth to connect millions 95 00:04:05.770 --> 00:04:07.830 of people across these REM island 96 00:04:07.830 --> 00:04:08.350 communities. 97 00:04:08.670 --> 00:04:10.350 Avery: And this was SpaceX's 98 00:04:10.430 --> 00:04:13.270 114th Falcon 9 mission 99 00:04:13.270 --> 00:04:16.030 of 2025. That's more than two 100 00:04:16.030 --> 00:04:18.950 launches per week on average. The pace 101 00:04:18.950 --> 00:04:21.150 of space activity these days is just 102 00:04:21.230 --> 00:04:21.950 incredible. 103 00:04:22.350 --> 00:04:25.270 Anna: Now, Avery, let's move to what might be 104 00:04:25.270 --> 00:04:28.150 my favorite story of the day. For the 105 00:04:28.150 --> 00:04:30.910 first time ever, astronomers have actually 106 00:04:31.070 --> 00:04:34.030 observed a baby planet carving out 107 00:04:34.030 --> 00:04:36.590 gaps in the dusty disk around its 108 00:04:36.590 --> 00:04:39.280 newborn star. This is like catching 109 00:04:39.280 --> 00:04:40.880 planet formation in the act. 110 00:04:41.440 --> 00:04:44.420 Avery: This is absolutely groundbreaking, Anna. 111 00:04:44.420 --> 00:04:47.280 Uh, the planet's called Wispit2b, 112 00:04:47.440 --> 00:04:49.920 and it's orbiting a star with the Wonderfully 113 00:04:49.920 --> 00:04:52.160 complex name Wispit 2 114 00:04:53.040 --> 00:04:55.920 TYC 5709 115 00:04:56.240 --> 00:04:58.720 354, located 116 00:04:58.720 --> 00:05:01.600 434 light years away. What 117 00:05:01.680 --> 00:05:03.520 makes this discovery so special? 118 00:05:04.330 --> 00:05:06.930 Anna: Well, for decades, astronomers have theorized 119 00:05:06.930 --> 00:05:09.250 about how planets form by accreting, uh, 120 00:05:09.730 --> 00:05:12.210 material from these dusty disks around young 121 00:05:12.210 --> 00:05:15.090 stars and how they carve out gaps 122 00:05:15.090 --> 00:05:18.090 as they grow. But we've never actually seen 123 00:05:18.090 --> 00:05:20.730 it happening in real time. This baby 124 00:05:20.730 --> 00:05:23.570 planet is a gas giant about five times the 125 00:05:23.570 --> 00:05:26.170 mass of Jupiter, orbiting 54 126 00:05:26.250 --> 00:05:28.410 astronomical units from its star. 127 00:05:28.890 --> 00:05:31.490 Avery: The technology they use to spot this is 128 00:05:31.490 --> 00:05:34.090 incredible, too. They used the Mag 129 00:05:34.250 --> 00:05:36.830 AOX adaptive optics system on the 130 00:05:36.830 --> 00:05:39.030 Magellan telescope, and they actually 131 00:05:39.030 --> 00:05:41.470 detected H Alpha light from hot 132 00:05:41.470 --> 00:05:44.310 hydrogen gas falling onto the forming 133 00:05:44.310 --> 00:05:47.030 planet. That's like watching a cosmic 134 00:05:47.030 --> 00:05:48.630 construction site in action. 135 00:05:49.430 --> 00:05:51.830 Anna: What I love about this discovery is that it 136 00:05:51.830 --> 00:05:54.710 confirms decades of theoretical work. 137 00:05:55.030 --> 00:05:56.950 Scientists have been modeling planetary 138 00:05:56.950 --> 00:05:59.790 formation for so long, and now 139 00:05:59.790 --> 00:06:02.590 we're finally seeing direct evidence that our 140 00:06:02.590 --> 00:06:04.880 understanding is correct. And it's like 141 00:06:04.880 --> 00:06:07.520 watching a baby take its first steps. Except 142 00:06:07.520 --> 00:06:10.320 the baby is a gas giant five times bigger 143 00:06:10.320 --> 00:06:11.000 than Jupiter. 144 00:06:11.720 --> 00:06:14.520 Avery: And this opens up so many possibilities for 145 00:06:14.520 --> 00:06:16.920 studying planetary formation in other 146 00:06:16.920 --> 00:06:19.800 systems. We might be able to watch entire 147 00:06:19.880 --> 00:06:22.840 solar systems being born and understand 148 00:06:23.000 --> 00:06:25.080 how common different types of planetary 149 00:06:25.080 --> 00:06:26.440 architectures really are. 150 00:06:27.000 --> 00:06:30.000 Anna: And speaking of new discoveries, Avery, I 151 00:06:30.000 --> 00:06:31.720 think our listeners would love to hear about 152 00:06:31.720 --> 00:06:33.600 some of the other incredible breakthroughs 153 00:06:33.600 --> 00:06:35.880 happening in space exploration right now. 154 00:06:36.420 --> 00:06:38.180 We've Been focusing a lot on the distant 155 00:06:38.180 --> 00:06:40.740 universe, but there's actually been some 156 00:06:40.740 --> 00:06:43.380 fascinating developments much closer to home 157 00:06:43.380 --> 00:06:44.100 on Mars. 158 00:06:44.420 --> 00:06:47.100 Avery: Oh, absolutely, Anna. Uh, the Perseverance 159 00:06:47.100 --> 00:06:49.500 rover has been making some incredible 160 00:06:49.500 --> 00:06:52.260 discoveries lately. As we reported yesterday, 161 00:06:52.339 --> 00:06:54.820 just this past month, it found organic 162 00:06:54.820 --> 00:06:56.980 molecules in what appears to be an ancient 163 00:06:56.980 --> 00:06:59.900 river delta and Jeissero Crater. But what's 164 00:06:59.900 --> 00:07:02.060 really exciting is that these aren't just 165 00:07:02.060 --> 00:07:04.740 simple organic compounds. They're complex 166 00:07:04.740 --> 00:07:06.820 molecules that could potentially be 167 00:07:06.820 --> 00:07:07.830 biosignatures. 168 00:07:08.380 --> 00:07:10.620 Anna: That's exactly right, Avery. And what makes 169 00:07:10.620 --> 00:07:13.340 this discovery even more compelling is the 170 00:07:13.340 --> 00:07:16.100 geological context. Perseverance has been 171 00:07:16.100 --> 00:07:18.340 analyzing rock samples from what scientists 172 00:07:18.340 --> 00:07:21.100 believe was once a vast lake system 173 00:07:21.500 --> 00:07:23.660 complete with flowing rivers and deltas, 174 00:07:23.980 --> 00:07:26.020 exactly the kind of environment where early 175 00:07:26.020 --> 00:07:28.460 life might have thrived billions of years 176 00:07:28.460 --> 00:07:28.780 ago. 177 00:07:29.260 --> 00:07:31.660 Avery: The technology behind these discoveries is 178 00:07:31.740 --> 00:07:33.420 just as fascinating as the findings 179 00:07:33.420 --> 00:07:36.020 themselves. Perseverance is using its 180 00:07:36.020 --> 00:07:38.580 supercam instrument to analyze rocks with 181 00:07:38.580 --> 00:07:41.560 laser spectroscopy, literally vaporizing 182 00:07:41.560 --> 00:07:44.120 tiny portions of Martian rocks and 183 00:07:44.200 --> 00:07:47.200 analyzing the resulting plasma. It's like 184 00:07:47.200 --> 00:07:49.480 having a complete chemistry lab rolling 185 00:07:49.480 --> 00:07:51.080 around on another planet. 186 00:07:51.480 --> 00:07:53.880 Anna: And here's where it gets really exciting for 187 00:07:53.880 --> 00:07:56.200 the future. Avery Perseverance has been 188 00:07:56.200 --> 00:07:58.400 carefully collecting and caching the most 189 00:07:58.400 --> 00:08:01.160 promising samples in sealed tubes that are 190 00:08:01.160 --> 00:08:03.640 designed to be retrieved by future missions. 191 00:08:04.040 --> 00:08:06.400 The Mars Sample Return campaign, a 192 00:08:06.400 --> 00:08:09.280 collaboration between NASA and esa, aims to 193 00:08:09.280 --> 00:08:11.360 bring these samples back to Earth, where they 194 00:08:11.360 --> 00:08:13.940 can be analyzed with instruments far more 195 00:08:13.940 --> 00:08:16.420 sophisticated than anything we can send to 196 00:08:16.420 --> 00:08:16.820 Mars. 197 00:08:17.460 --> 00:08:20.020 Avery: The timeline for Mars Sample return is 198 00:08:20.020 --> 00:08:22.900 ambitious, but achievable. We are looking at 199 00:08:22.900 --> 00:08:24.780 potential sample retrieval in the 200 00:08:24.780 --> 00:08:27.460 early2030s, which means that within 201 00:08:27.539 --> 00:08:30.260 this decade, we could have actual pieces of 202 00:08:30.260 --> 00:08:33.060 Mars sitting in laboratories here on Earth. 203 00:08:33.380 --> 00:08:35.660 Imagine being able to study Martian rocks 204 00:08:35.660 --> 00:08:37.820 with electron microscopes, mass 205 00:08:37.820 --> 00:08:40.630 spectrometers, and other advanced instruments 206 00:08:40.790 --> 00:08:43.150 that would be impossible to miniaturize for a 207 00:08:43.150 --> 00:08:43.990 rover mission. 208 00:08:44.550 --> 00:08:46.950 Anna: What I find most compelling about all these 209 00:08:46.950 --> 00:08:49.630 discoveries from the baby planet we discussed 210 00:08:49.630 --> 00:08:52.470 earlier to these potential biosignatures on 211 00:08:52.470 --> 00:08:54.870 Mars, is how they're reshaping our 212 00:08:54.870 --> 00:08:57.750 understanding of how common life might be 213 00:08:57.750 --> 00:08:59.950 in the universe. We're learning that the 214 00:08:59.950 --> 00:09:02.310 basic building blocks and conditions for life 215 00:09:02.710 --> 00:09:05.560 appear to be surprisingly widespread, both 216 00:09:05.560 --> 00:09:07.480 in our solar system and beyond. 217 00:09:07.720 --> 00:09:09.520 Avery: And it's not just Mars that's showing 218 00:09:09.520 --> 00:09:11.560 promise, Anna. Uh, we've got the Europa 219 00:09:11.560 --> 00:09:13.440 Clipper mission launching soon to study 220 00:09:13.440 --> 00:09:16.160 Jupiter's moon Europa, which likely has a 221 00:09:16.160 --> 00:09:19.080 subsurface ocean with more water than all 222 00:09:19.080 --> 00:09:21.760 of Earth's oceans combined. Then there's the 223 00:09:21.760 --> 00:09:24.480 Dragonfly mission to Titan, Saturn's largest 224 00:09:24.480 --> 00:09:26.720 moon, where we'll have a nuclear powered 225 00:09:26.720 --> 00:09:29.360 helicopter searching for signs of prebiotic 226 00:09:29.360 --> 00:09:32.080 chemistry. The next two decades are going to 227 00:09:32.080 --> 00:09:35.000 be absolutely incredible for astrobiology. 228 00:09:35.000 --> 00:09:36.840 Anna: Amazing. How's astronomy and space 229 00:09:37.140 --> 00:09:39.380 exploration keep expanding our perspective 230 00:09:39.700 --> 00:09:41.860 from searching for life in our cosmic 231 00:09:41.860 --> 00:09:44.380 backyard to probing the fundamental physics 232 00:09:44.380 --> 00:09:45.700 of the universe itself. 233 00:09:46.580 --> 00:09:49.580 Speaking of fundamental physics, Avery, let's 234 00:09:49.580 --> 00:09:51.580 shift gears to something that sounds like 235 00:09:51.580 --> 00:09:53.980 pure science fiction, but could become 236 00:09:53.980 --> 00:09:56.820 reality very soon. Our final major 237 00:09:56.820 --> 00:09:59.620 story today takes us into some truly 238 00:09:59.700 --> 00:10:01.780 mind bending theoretical physics. 239 00:10:02.260 --> 00:10:04.820 Researchers at UMass Amherst M are 240 00:10:04.820 --> 00:10:07.540 predicting a 90% chance that we'll 241 00:10:07.540 --> 00:10:10.120 observe an exploding primordial black 242 00:10:10.120 --> 00:10:13.040 hole within the next decade. This 243 00:10:13.040 --> 00:10:15.440 sounds like science fiction, but it's very 244 00:10:15.440 --> 00:10:16.240 real science. 245 00:10:16.400 --> 00:10:18.880 Avery: It really does sound like sci fi, Anna. 246 00:10:19.120 --> 00:10:21.600 These primordial black holes would have 247 00:10:21.600 --> 00:10:24.440 formed shortly after the Big Bang. And 248 00:10:24.440 --> 00:10:26.480 according to Hawkins theory, they could 249 00:10:26.480 --> 00:10:28.800 eventually explode through Hawking radiation. 250 00:10:29.280 --> 00:10:31.680 But the timeline was always thought to be 251 00:10:31.760 --> 00:10:34.520 incredibly long. Like once every 252 00:10:34.520 --> 00:10:35.520 hundred thousand years. 253 00:10:36.240 --> 00:10:38.160 Anna: Right. But this team has developed something 254 00:10:38.160 --> 00:10:40.960 called a dark QED toy model 255 00:10:41.120 --> 00:10:44.080 that suggests charged primordial black holes 256 00:10:44.080 --> 00:10:46.160 could explode much more frequently, 257 00:10:46.480 --> 00:10:49.280 potentially once every 10 years instead of 258 00:10:49.280 --> 00:10:52.160 once every hundred thousand years. That's a 259 00:10:52.160 --> 00:10:53.120 massive difference. 260 00:10:53.680 --> 00:10:56.000 Avery: The implications are staggering. 261 00:10:56.480 --> 00:10:58.520 If we actually observed one of these 262 00:10:58.520 --> 00:11:01.120 explosions, it would revolutionize our 263 00:11:01.120 --> 00:11:03.880 understanding of physics. We'd essentially 264 00:11:03.880 --> 00:11:06.840 get a complete inventory of all subatomic 265 00:11:06.840 --> 00:11:09.650 particles, including potentially discovering 266 00:11:09.650 --> 00:11:11.610 new ones we didn't even know existed. 267 00:11:11.770 --> 00:11:13.770 Anna: It's like having a cosmic particle 268 00:11:13.770 --> 00:11:16.130 accelerator that operates at energies far 269 00:11:16.130 --> 00:11:19.090 beyond anything we can create on Earth. If 270 00:11:19.090 --> 00:11:21.050 their predictions are correct, the next 271 00:11:21.050 --> 00:11:23.130 decade could see some of the most important 272 00:11:23.130 --> 00:11:25.690 discoveries in the history of physics. 273 00:11:26.410 --> 00:11:28.810 Avery: Before we wrap up, Anna, uh, we've got time 274 00:11:28.810 --> 00:11:31.170 for a few quick bonus stories that caught our 275 00:11:31.170 --> 00:11:33.850 attention. First up, uh, something a bit 276 00:11:33.850 --> 00:11:36.780 different. Darth Vader's lightsaber from 277 00:11:36.780 --> 00:11:39.100 the Empire Strikes Back and Return of the 278 00:11:39.100 --> 00:11:41.580 Jedi just sold at auction for 279 00:11:41.580 --> 00:11:44.340 $3.6 million. 280 00:11:44.900 --> 00:11:47.380 Anna: That's an astronomical price for a movie 281 00:11:47.380 --> 00:11:50.260 prop. But I have to admit, Star wars 282 00:11:50.260 --> 00:11:52.300 has inspired countless people to pursue 283 00:11:52.300 --> 00:11:55.260 careers in science and space exploration. And 284 00:11:55.260 --> 00:11:57.740 speaking of space exploration, scientists are 285 00:11:57.740 --> 00:12:00.460 proposing that rectangular telescopes could 286 00:12:00.460 --> 00:12:02.900 help us find Earth Earth 2.0 by providing 287 00:12:02.900 --> 00:12:05.180 better resolution for exoplanet detection. 288 00:12:05.660 --> 00:12:07.940 Avery: Rectangular telescopes. Who would have 289 00:12:07.940 --> 00:12:10.380 thought? And here's one more quick story 290 00:12:10.380 --> 00:12:13.100 that's pretty incredible. New research shows 291 00:12:13.100 --> 00:12:15.780 that solar flares can reach temperatures of 292 00:12:15.780 --> 00:12:18.780 108 million degrees, which 293 00:12:18.780 --> 00:12:20.940 is six times hotter than scientists 294 00:12:20.940 --> 00:12:23.860 previously thought. That's absolutely mind 295 00:12:23.860 --> 00:12:25.620 boggling when you think about the energies 296 00:12:25.620 --> 00:12:26.060 involved. 297 00:12:26.300 --> 00:12:29.060 Anna: Before we sign off, Avery, I want to take a 298 00:12:29.060 --> 00:12:31.260 moment to reflect on something that really 299 00:12:31.260 --> 00:12:34.150 strikes me about today's stor. We've 300 00:12:34.150 --> 00:12:36.430 covered discoveries Spanning from the very 301 00:12:36.430 --> 00:12:39.070 formation of the universe with primordial 302 00:12:39.070 --> 00:12:42.030 black holes to the birth of new worlds 303 00:12:42.190 --> 00:12:45.150 to the search for life itself. What 304 00:12:45.150 --> 00:12:47.790 amazes me is that all of these breakthroughs 305 00:12:47.790 --> 00:12:50.550 are happening simultaneously right 306 00:12:50.550 --> 00:12:53.550 now in what future historians might call the 307 00:12:53.550 --> 00:12:55.230 golden age of astronomy. 308 00:12:55.390 --> 00:12:58.350 Avery: You're absolutely right, Anna. Uh, and what's 309 00:12:58.350 --> 00:13:00.430 particularly exciting is how these 310 00:13:00.430 --> 00:13:03.430 discoveries are interconnected. The same 311 00:13:03.430 --> 00:13:05.770 gravitational wave detectors that confirmed 312 00:13:05.770 --> 00:13:08.530 Einstein's predictions about black holes are 313 00:13:08.530 --> 00:13:10.610 the ones that might detect exploding 314 00:13:10.610 --> 00:13:12.770 primordial black holes. The same 315 00:13:12.770 --> 00:13:15.010 spectroscopic techniques we use to study 316 00:13:15.010 --> 00:13:17.730 exoplanets are helping us analyze potential 317 00:13:17.730 --> 00:13:20.490 biosignatures on Mars. The telescopes 318 00:13:20.490 --> 00:13:23.250 observing baby planets forming are also 319 00:13:23.250 --> 00:13:25.570 searching for signs of life in other solar 320 00:13:25.570 --> 00:13:26.010 systems. 321 00:13:26.250 --> 00:13:29.130 Anna: It really demonstrates how astronomy is 322 00:13:29.130 --> 00:13:31.770 becoming increasingly interdisciplinary. 323 00:13:32.250 --> 00:13:34.650 We're not just astronomers anymore. We're 324 00:13:34.650 --> 00:13:37.370 astrobiologists, particle physicists, 325 00:13:37.770 --> 00:13:40.650 geologists, and atmospheric scientists, 326 00:13:41.130 --> 00:13:43.890 all working together to understand our place 327 00:13:43.890 --> 00:13:46.570 in the cosmos. And perhaps most 328 00:13:46.570 --> 00:13:49.330 importantly, we're sharing these discoveries 329 00:13:49.330 --> 00:13:52.170 with everyone, inspiring the next generation 330 00:13:52.170 --> 00:13:54.850 of scientists who will make even more 331 00:13:54.850 --> 00:13:57.090 incredible discoveries in the decades to 332 00:13:57.090 --> 00:13:59.820 come. What an incredible journey through the 333 00:13:59.820 --> 00:14:02.340 cosmos we've had today, Avery. From 334 00:14:02.340 --> 00:14:04.900 confirming Einstein and Hawking's predictions 335 00:14:04.900 --> 00:14:07.460 with gravitational waves, to watching 336 00:14:07.540 --> 00:14:10.300 planets being born, to the possibility of 337 00:14:10.300 --> 00:14:13.060 observing exploding black holes in the next 338 00:14:13.060 --> 00:14:14.780 decade, it really. 339 00:14:14.780 --> 00:14:17.620 Avery: Shows how dynamic and exciting astronomy 340 00:14:17.620 --> 00:14:20.420 is right now. Anna. We're living in a golden 341 00:14:20.420 --> 00:14:22.940 age of discovery, with new technologies 342 00:14:22.940 --> 00:14:25.500 allowing us to observe phenomena that were 343 00:14:25.500 --> 00:14:27.860 purely theoretical just a few years ago. 344 00:14:28.680 --> 00:14:31.240 Anna: Thank you for joining us on Astronomy Daily. 345 00:14:31.480 --> 00:14:33.960 Keep looking up, keep asking questions, 346 00:14:34.200 --> 00:14:36.920 and remember, the universe is full of 347 00:14:36.920 --> 00:14:39.480 wonders waiting to be discovered. And 348 00:14:39.480 --> 00:14:40.600 remember to visit our 349 00:14:40.600 --> 00:14:43.640 website@astronomydaily.IO 350 00:14:43.880 --> 00:14:46.520 to check out these stories in more detail and 351 00:14:46.520 --> 00:14:48.680 catch up on the latest news with our 352 00:14:48.680 --> 00:14:51.320 continually updating Space News feed. 353 00:14:51.560 --> 00:14:54.240 Avery: Until next time, this is Avery and Anna 354 00:14:54.240 --> 00:14:56.160 signing off. Clear skies, everyone.