WEBVTT 0 00:00:00.400 --> 00:00:03.160 Anna: Welcome to Astronomy Daily, your 1 00:00:03.160 --> 00:00:05.560 source for the latest news from our solar 2 00:00:05.560 --> 00:00:07.920 system and beyond. I'm your host, 3 00:00:08.000 --> 00:00:08.640 Anna. 4 00:00:08.800 --> 00:00:11.480 Avery: And I'm Avery. It's great to have you with 5 00:00:11.480 --> 00:00:13.840 us. We've got plenty of news for you today, 6 00:00:13.840 --> 00:00:16.660 Anna. We're going from science fiction made m 7 00:00:16.680 --> 00:00:19.560 real to some fascinating problem solving on 8 00:00:19.560 --> 00:00:20.400 the red planet. 9 00:00:20.560 --> 00:00:23.320 Anna: That's right on the docket today. The 10 00:00:23.320 --> 00:00:26.160 discovery of a real life Tatooine like 11 00:00:26.160 --> 00:00:29.160 system with not one, but three Earth 12 00:00:29.160 --> 00:00:31.840 sized planets orbiting two suns. 13 00:00:32.050 --> 00:00:34.450 Avery: an incredible find. Then we'll tell you how 14 00:00:34.450 --> 00:00:36.970 you can explore 25 years of international 15 00:00:37.210 --> 00:00:40.210 space station history in real time. We'll 16 00:00:40.210 --> 00:00:42.770 also cover this week's launch roundup and 17 00:00:42.770 --> 00:00:45.130 then head to Mars, where a long standing 18 00:00:45.130 --> 00:00:47.889 mystery about its sand dunes has finally been 19 00:00:47.889 --> 00:00:49.770 solved by a surprising culprit. 20 00:00:49.930 --> 00:00:52.290 Anna: And to top it all off, we'll discuss a 21 00:00:52.290 --> 00:00:54.970 Japanese startup's rather unique 22 00:00:54.970 --> 00:00:57.610 plan to bring a taste of home to future 23 00:00:57.850 --> 00:01:00.590 lunar colonists by brewing sake 24 00:01:00.750 --> 00:01:01.630 on the moon. 25 00:01:01.950 --> 00:01:04.870 Avery: You heard that right, Sake on the moon. Let's 26 00:01:04.870 --> 00:01:05.310 get started. 27 00:01:05.790 --> 00:01:08.550 Anna: Our first story takes us 190 light 28 00:01:08.550 --> 00:01:11.230 years away to a binary star system 29 00:01:11.390 --> 00:01:14.270 named TOI2267. 30 00:01:14.830 --> 00:01:17.390 For anyone who grew up watching Star wars and 31 00:01:17.390 --> 00:01:20.310 dreaming of seeing a double sunset, this 32 00:01:20.310 --> 00:01:23.230 news is for you. Scientists have just 33 00:01:23.230 --> 00:01:25.510 discovered 3 earth sized 34 00:01:25.510 --> 00:01:27.230 exoplanets in this system. 35 00:01:27.740 --> 00:01:30.060 Avery: And this isn't just a fantasy anymore. The 36 00:01:30.060 --> 00:01:32.500 truly remarkable thing here is how these 37 00:01:32.500 --> 00:01:33.580 planets are arranged. 38 00:01:33.900 --> 00:01:36.740 Anna: Exactly. This is the very first time that 39 00:01:36.740 --> 00:01:39.180 transiting planets have been found orbiting 40 00:01:39.500 --> 00:01:42.260 both stars in such a compact binary 41 00:01:42.260 --> 00:01:44.460 system. Usually we find 42 00:01:44.460 --> 00:01:47.420 circumbinary planets which orbit far 43 00:01:47.420 --> 00:01:49.740 away from both stars at once. 44 00:01:50.460 --> 00:01:53.300 Avery: Right? Or we find a planet orbiting just one 45 00:01:53.300 --> 00:01:55.700 of the stars with the second star much 46 00:01:55.700 --> 00:01:58.420 further away. But this is different. This is 47 00:01:58.420 --> 00:01:59.490 close and complex. 48 00:02:00.200 --> 00:02:03.160 Anna: It is, and that's why it's challenging our 49 00:02:03.160 --> 00:02:06.160 existing models of planet formation. The 50 00:02:06.160 --> 00:02:08.230 gravitational environment around a, close 51 00:02:08.310 --> 00:02:10.830 binary star system is thought to be 52 00:02:10.830 --> 00:02:13.510 incredibly chaotic. The intense, 53 00:02:13.670 --> 00:02:16.470 shifting gravitational forces should make it 54 00:02:16.470 --> 00:02:19.190 very difficult for stable rocky 55 00:02:19.190 --> 00:02:21.870 planets like these to form and maintain their 56 00:02:21.870 --> 00:02:22.390 orbits. 57 00:02:22.950 --> 00:02:25.710 Avery: So finding three of them, all roughly the 58 00:02:25.710 --> 00:02:28.390 size of Earth, suggests that planet formation 59 00:02:28.390 --> 00:02:30.830 might be more resilient and happen in more 60 00:02:30.830 --> 00:02:33.130 diverse environments than we previously 61 00:02:33.130 --> 00:02:33.570 imagined. 62 00:02:33.890 --> 00:02:36.690 Anna: It really does. It forces theorists 63 00:02:36.770 --> 00:02:38.810 back to the drawing board to figure out the 64 00:02:38.810 --> 00:02:41.450 mechanics. And while we don't know if these 65 00:02:41.450 --> 00:02:44.410 planets are habitable, just imagining 66 00:02:44.410 --> 00:02:46.530 standing on one of their surfaces and 67 00:02:46.530 --> 00:02:49.170 watching two suns move across the sky 68 00:02:49.170 --> 00:02:51.090 is absolutely mind boggling. 69 00:02:51.490 --> 00:02:53.810 Avery: Alright, let's bring it back closer to home 70 00:02:53.970 --> 00:02:56.890 to our own outpost in low Earth orbit. The 71 00:02:56.890 --> 00:02:59.690 International Space station. For over 25 72 00:02:59.690 --> 00:03:02.050 years, humanity has had a continuous 73 00:03:02.050 --> 00:03:04.550 presence. And now there's a new way to 74 00:03:04.550 --> 00:03:05.590 experience that history. 75 00:03:05.990 --> 00:03:08.950 Anna: Yes, this is a truly amazing 76 00:03:08.950 --> 00:03:11.670 project. It's a new website called ISS 77 00:03:11.990 --> 00:03:14.630 in Real Time, and it's essentially a 78 00:03:14.630 --> 00:03:16.950 living archive of life aboard the station. 79 00:03:17.270 --> 00:03:19.750 Avery: It was created by NASA software engineer Ben 80 00:03:19.750 --> 00:03:22.550 Feast and designer Chris Charney. They've 81 00:03:22.550 --> 00:03:24.950 painstakingly compiled publicly available 82 00:03:25.110 --> 00:03:27.670 data from the entire history of the station. 83 00:03:27.990 --> 00:03:30.660 We're talking mission data, audio 84 00:03:30.660 --> 00:03:32.700 communications between the crew and mission 85 00:03:32.700 --> 00:03:35.500 control, every photo ever taken by the 86 00:03:35.500 --> 00:03:37.780 astronauts, and countless hours of video. 87 00:03:38.180 --> 00:03:40.540 Anna: That's an astonishing amount of data to 88 00:03:40.540 --> 00:03:42.740 wrangle. So how does it work? 89 00:03:43.140 --> 00:03:45.500 Avery: It's all organized into an interactive 90 00:03:45.500 --> 00:03:48.340 timeline. You can jump to any specific day 91 00:03:48.340 --> 00:03:51.340 or mission, from the very first module launch 92 00:03:51.340 --> 00:03:53.820 to yesterday's science experiments. You can 93 00:03:53.820 --> 00:03:56.460 listen to the actual audio of a spacewalk as 94 00:03:56.460 --> 00:03:58.840 it happened, see the photos the astronauts 95 00:03:58.840 --> 00:04:01.040 were taking at that moment, and track the 96 00:04:01.040 --> 00:04:02.600 station's position over Earth. 97 00:04:02.680 --> 00:04:05.600 Anna: It provides such a comprehensive, unfiltered 98 00:04:05.600 --> 00:04:08.200 look at what life is actually like in space. 99 00:04:08.680 --> 00:04:11.600 It's not just the big dramatic moments, it's 100 00:04:11.600 --> 00:04:14.400 the day to day work. The conversations, the 101 00:04:14.400 --> 00:04:16.920 quiet moments, looking out the cupola. It's 102 00:04:16.920 --> 00:04:18.920 an invaluable tool for historians, 103 00:04:19.320 --> 00:04:22.080 researchers, and frankly, anyone who's 104 00:04:22.080 --> 00:04:25.000 inspired by space exploration. A true digital 105 00:04:25.080 --> 00:04:27.000 monument. You can find the 106 00:04:27.000 --> 00:04:30.000 site@issinrealtime.org if 107 00:04:30.000 --> 00:04:32.120 you'd like to check it out. I'll leave a link 108 00:04:32.120 --> 00:04:33.240 in the show notes as well. 109 00:04:33.560 --> 00:04:35.680 Avery: Speaking of getting to space, let's move on 110 00:04:35.680 --> 00:04:37.600 to our launch roundup for the week. It's a 111 00:04:37.600 --> 00:04:39.560 very busy period for launch providers around 112 00:04:39.560 --> 00:04:39.960 the world. 113 00:04:40.280 --> 00:04:42.840 Anna: It certainly has. SpaceX, as 114 00:04:42.840 --> 00:04:44.840 usual, has a packed schedule. 115 00:04:45.160 --> 00:04:46.720 Avery: That's right, they're launching three 116 00:04:46.720 --> 00:04:49.200 separate Falcon 9 missions carrying batches 117 00:04:49.200 --> 00:04:51.360 of their Starlink satellites, continuing to 118 00:04:51.360 --> 00:04:52.800 build out their global Internet 119 00:04:52.800 --> 00:04:53.400 constellation. 120 00:04:53.790 --> 00:04:56.190 Anna: Over in China, there will be a major crewed 121 00:04:56.190 --> 00:04:58.910 launch. The Shenzhou 21 mission 122 00:04:58.990 --> 00:05:01.990 is sending three taikonauts to the Tiangong 123 00:05:01.990 --> 00:05:04.590 space station for a six month stay, 124 00:05:04.990 --> 00:05:07.870 continuing the steady crew rotation and 125 00:05:07.870 --> 00:05:10.430 scientific work aboard their orbital lab. 126 00:05:10.590 --> 00:05:12.790 Avery: SpaceX is also in the rideshare business this 127 00:05:12.790 --> 00:05:15.230 week with their Bandwagon 4 mission scheduled 128 00:05:15.230 --> 00:05:18.110 for Sunday. It's like a spacebound carpool 129 00:05:18.110 --> 00:05:20.550 carrying a whole host of smaller satellites 130 00:05:20.550 --> 00:05:23.070 for various customers into orbit on a single 131 00:05:23.070 --> 00:05:25.190 rocket. This mission will mark the 132 00:05:25.190 --> 00:05:28.190 140th Falcon 9 mission of 2025, 133 00:05:28.510 --> 00:05:31.390 the 558th overall Falcon 9 134 00:05:31.390 --> 00:05:33.310 mission, and SpaceX's 135 00:05:33.470 --> 00:05:36.030 585th mission of all time. 136 00:05:37.310 --> 00:05:39.949 Anna: And finally, the Indian Space Research 137 00:05:40.030 --> 00:05:42.810 Organization is scheduled to launch the CMS 138 00:05:42.810 --> 00:05:45.670 M03 mission atop its launch 139 00:05:45.670 --> 00:05:48.190 vehicle Mark 3 or LVM3 140 00:05:48.510 --> 00:05:50.824 rocket on Sunday at 10:30 141 00:05:50.956 --> 00:05:53.860 UTC. The payload will be the GSAT 142 00:05:53.860 --> 00:05:56.700 7R, a crucial naval communication 143 00:05:56.700 --> 00:05:59.500 satellite that will enhance India's maritime 144 00:05:59.500 --> 00:06:01.700 security and communication capabilities. 145 00:06:02.420 --> 00:06:05.260 All seven missions the LVM3 has flown 146 00:06:05.260 --> 00:06:07.700 since 2014 have been successful. 147 00:06:08.099 --> 00:06:10.540 This mission will mark the eighth LVM UM3 148 00:06:10.540 --> 00:06:13.300 mission, the first of 2025 and 149 00:06:13.300 --> 00:06:16.020 ISRO's 100th mission overall. 150 00:06:16.580 --> 00:06:18.420 Furthermore, this mission will be the 151 00:06:18.420 --> 00:06:20.980 254th orbital launch attempt 152 00:06:20.980 --> 00:06:23.950 worldwide in 2025. A truly 153 00:06:23.950 --> 00:06:25.070 global week in space. 154 00:06:25.870 --> 00:06:28.110 Avery: Now let's journey to our planetary neighbor, 155 00:06:28.110 --> 00:06:30.550 Mars. For decades, scientists have been 156 00:06:30.550 --> 00:06:33.110 intrigued by mysterious winding gullies that 157 00:06:33.110 --> 00:06:35.990 appear on some of Mars massive sand dunes. A 158 00:06:35.990 --> 00:06:37.830 leading theory was that they were carved by 159 00:06:37.830 --> 00:06:40.270 flowing liquid water. But the evidence was 160 00:06:40.270 --> 00:06:41.150 never conclusive. 161 00:06:41.550 --> 00:06:44.230 Anna: Right, and finding liquid water would be a 162 00:06:44.230 --> 00:06:47.070 monumental discovery in the search for past 163 00:06:47.070 --> 00:06:50.070 our present life. But a new study published 164 00:06:50.070 --> 00:06:52.830 in Nature suggests a much colder and 165 00:06:52.990 --> 00:06:55.220 frankly a much cooler explanat. 166 00:06:56.170 --> 00:06:58.570 It turns out the culprit is likely sliding 167 00:06:58.570 --> 00:07:01.250 blocks of dry ice, which is solid 168 00:07:01.250 --> 00:07:04.010 carbon dioxide. The Martian atmosphere is 169 00:07:04.010 --> 00:07:06.650 rich in CO2 and in the winter it 170 00:07:06.650 --> 00:07:09.290 freezes and falls as snow, forming 171 00:07:09.290 --> 00:07:11.609 slabs of this dry ice on the dunes. 172 00:07:12.090 --> 00:07:14.970 Avery: So how does a block of ice carve a channel? 173 00:07:14.970 --> 00:07:16.330 It sounds counterintuitive. 174 00:07:16.970 --> 00:07:19.530 Anna: Well, researchers conducted some clever 175 00:07:19.530 --> 00:07:21.890 laboratory experiments that simulated the 176 00:07:21.890 --> 00:07:24.810 conditions on Mars. As the seasons change 177 00:07:24.810 --> 00:07:27.630 and the sun warms, the ice blocks, they don't 178 00:07:27.630 --> 00:07:30.270 melt, they sublimate, turning directly from a 179 00:07:30.270 --> 00:07:33.070 solid into a gas. This gas gets 180 00:07:33.070 --> 00:07:35.030 trapped underneath the sliding block. 181 00:07:35.590 --> 00:07:37.920 Avery: Ah, so it creates a cushion of gas like an 182 00:07:37.920 --> 00:07:38.840 air hockey table. 183 00:07:39.080 --> 00:07:41.560 Anna: Precisely. The pressure builds up, 184 00:07:41.640 --> 00:07:44.280 causing the block to levitate slightly and 185 00:07:44.360 --> 00:07:47.280 slide down the dune at high speed. As it 186 00:07:47.280 --> 00:07:50.240 moves, the escaping gas blasts away the 187 00:07:50.240 --> 00:07:52.480 sand beneath it, carving out those 188 00:07:52.480 --> 00:07:54.280 distinctive sinuous gullies. 189 00:07:55.000 --> 00:07:57.680 Avery: So it's not water, it's gas propelled ice 190 00:07:57.680 --> 00:07:59.960 leads re sculpting the Martian landscape. 191 00:08:00.200 --> 00:08:02.400 That's a fantastic piece of planetary science 192 00:08:02.400 --> 00:08:04.520 detective work. It shows us that Mars is 193 00:08:04.520 --> 00:08:07.080 still a dynamic active planet, even if its 194 00:08:07.080 --> 00:08:08.920 processes are very different from Earth's. 195 00:08:09.640 --> 00:08:12.240 And now for our final story, which proves 196 00:08:12.240 --> 00:08:14.480 that the future of space exploration isn't 197 00:08:14.480 --> 00:08:16.640 just about rockets and rovers. It's also 198 00:08:16.640 --> 00:08:19.010 about culture. Anna, have you ever considered 199 00:08:19.010 --> 00:08:21.290 what the first alcoholic beverage brewed off 200 00:08:21.290 --> 00:08:22.210 world might be? 201 00:08:22.960 --> 00:08:25.880 Anna: I can't say I have. I might have guessed 202 00:08:25.880 --> 00:08:28.720 beer perhaps. But I have a feeling that's 203 00:08:28.720 --> 00:08:30.000 not the right answer. 204 00:08:30.400 --> 00:08:33.280 Avery: Not according to one Japanese startup. They 205 00:08:33.280 --> 00:08:36.160 are making serious plans to brew sake 206 00:08:36.320 --> 00:08:37.200 on the moon. 207 00:08:38.159 --> 00:08:40.880 Anna: Sake on the moon. That's 208 00:08:40.880 --> 00:08:43.640 certainly ambitious. Is this a 209 00:08:43.640 --> 00:08:46.240 gimmick or is there a scientific purpose? 210 00:08:47.120 --> 00:08:50.000 Avery: It's both. The primary scientific goal is 211 00:08:50.000 --> 00:08:52.000 to study how the lunar environment 212 00:08:52.640 --> 00:08:55.500 affects the delicate process of fermentation. 213 00:08:55.900 --> 00:08:58.860 The lower gravity, about 16 of Earth's, 214 00:08:58.940 --> 00:09:01.500 and the higher radiation levels could have 215 00:09:01.500 --> 00:09:04.380 unpredictable effects on the yeast and the 216 00:09:04.380 --> 00:09:05.020 final product. 217 00:09:06.060 --> 00:09:08.900 Anna: That's a fascinating astrobiology 218 00:09:08.900 --> 00:09:11.380 experiment, really. They'll need a 219 00:09:11.380 --> 00:09:13.900 specialized miniature fermentation chamber 220 00:09:13.900 --> 00:09:16.780 and a very robust strain of yeast 221 00:09:16.780 --> 00:09:17.580 to pull it off. 222 00:09:18.460 --> 00:09:21.180 Avery: They're working on all of that. But beyond 223 00:09:21.180 --> 00:09:23.420 the science, the company has a broader 224 00:09:23.420 --> 00:09:26.380 vision. They talk about humanizing life in 225 00:09:26.380 --> 00:09:29.140 space. The idea is that for humans to 226 00:09:29.140 --> 00:09:31.700 truly live and thrive on other worlds, we 227 00:09:31.700 --> 00:09:34.420 need to bring more than just technology. We 228 00:09:34.420 --> 00:09:36.540 need to bring our culture, our traditions, 229 00:09:36.860 --> 00:09:38.220 and our comforts. 230 00:09:39.180 --> 00:09:41.900 Anna: That makes a lot of sense. It connects 231 00:09:41.900 --> 00:09:44.500 future lunar inhabitants back to their home 232 00:09:44.500 --> 00:09:47.140 planet. They're aiming to produce the first 233 00:09:47.140 --> 00:09:49.940 batch by 2030, which aligns with 234 00:09:49.940 --> 00:09:52.660 NASA's Artemis missions, returning humans to 235 00:09:52.660 --> 00:09:55.220 the moon. It's a wonderful intersection of 236 00:09:55.220 --> 00:09:57.960 cutting edge science and ancient tradition. 237 00:09:58.840 --> 00:10:01.240 Avery: And that's all the cosmic news we have time 238 00:10:01.240 --> 00:10:04.120 for today. From planets with two suns to 239 00:10:04.120 --> 00:10:06.920 a brewery on the moon, the universe never 240 00:10:06.920 --> 00:10:09.400 fails to surprise and inspire. 241 00:10:09.560 --> 00:10:11.520 Anna: If you want to read more about any of the 242 00:10:11.520 --> 00:10:14.040 stories we covered today, you can find links 243 00:10:14.040 --> 00:10:16.240 and further information on our website at. 244 00:10:16.240 --> 00:10:19.240 Ah.astronomydaily.IO we'd like to 245 00:10:19.240 --> 00:10:20.320 thank you for joining us. 246 00:10:20.320 --> 00:10:21.240 Avery: I'm Avery. 247 00:10:21.650 --> 00:10:24.490 Anna: And I'm Anna. Until next time, keep looking 248 00:10:24.490 --> 00:10:24.850 up.