WEBVTT 0 00:00:00.320 --> 00:00:02.800 Avery: Hello, and welcome to Astronomy Daily, the 1 00:00:02.800 --> 00:00:05.160 podcast that brings you the universe one 2 00:00:05.160 --> 00:00:07.720 story at a time. I'm avery. Give us 10 3 00:00:07.720 --> 00:00:09.760 minutes and we'll give you the universe. 4 00:00:10.080 --> 00:00:12.570 Anna: And I'm Anna. it's great to be with you. 5 00:00:12.730 --> 00:00:15.130 We've got another busy show today, Avery, 6 00:00:15.130 --> 00:00:17.690 with stories ranging from the cosmic echoes 7 00:00:17.690 --> 00:00:19.930 of colliding black holes to some 8 00:00:19.930 --> 00:00:22.090 incredible homegrown discoveries. 9 00:00:22.330 --> 00:00:24.650 Avery: Absolutely. We'll be mapping the largest 10 00:00:24.650 --> 00:00:26.890 structures in the universe, spying on a 11 00:00:26.890 --> 00:00:29.090 visitor from another star system, and 12 00:00:29.090 --> 00:00:31.330 checking out Europe's ambitious new plans for 13 00:00:31.330 --> 00:00:33.710 land landing on the Moon. So let's get right 14 00:00:33.710 --> 00:00:34.150 to it. 15 00:00:34.150 --> 00:00:37.030 Our first story is a mindbender. Astronomers 16 00:00:37.030 --> 00:00:39.590 have found evidence of second generation 17 00:00:39.670 --> 00:00:40.550 black holes. 18 00:00:40.950 --> 00:00:43.870 Anna: Right. And this is a huge deal. The idea 19 00:00:43.870 --> 00:00:46.870 of a hierarchical merger m where black holes 20 00:00:46.870 --> 00:00:49.030 that are themselves the result of a previous 21 00:00:49.110 --> 00:00:51.590 merger, then go on to merge again, 22 00:00:51.910 --> 00:00:54.470 has been a theory for a while, but now the 23 00:00:54.470 --> 00:00:56.870 LIGO Virgo Kagra collaboration 24 00:00:57.110 --> 00:00:59.030 seems to have found the first direct 25 00:00:59.110 --> 00:00:59.590 evidence. 26 00:01:00.220 --> 00:01:02.820 Avery: So it's like black hole parents creating a 27 00:01:02.820 --> 00:01:04.620 new, bigger black hole child. 28 00:01:04.860 --> 00:01:07.460 Anna: Exactly. They detected two new 29 00:01:07.460 --> 00:01:10.140 gravitational wave events. GW 30 00:01:10.380 --> 00:01:13.180 241011 and GW 31 00:01:13.340 --> 00:01:16.260 2411 10. Both showed 32 00:01:16.260 --> 00:01:18.660 some very strange features that you wouldn't 33 00:01:18.660 --> 00:01:21.420 expect from first generation black holes 34 00:01:21.500 --> 00:01:24.260 formed from collapsing stars. Strange in what 35 00:01:24.260 --> 00:01:26.940 way? Well, for one event, one of the black 36 00:01:26.940 --> 00:01:29.420 holes was spinning incredibly fast. 37 00:01:29.660 --> 00:01:32.000 Faster than is typically thought possible for 38 00:01:32.000 --> 00:01:34.920 a black hole born from a single star. A 39 00:01:34.920 --> 00:01:37.480 violent merger, however, could spin a black 40 00:01:37.480 --> 00:01:39.080 hole up to that kind of speed. 41 00:01:39.160 --> 00:01:41.570 Avery: Okay, that makes sense. A, cosmic collision 42 00:01:41.570 --> 00:01:43.970 giving it an extra push. What about the other 43 00:01:43.970 --> 00:01:44.250 event? 44 00:01:44.730 --> 00:01:47.729 Anna: This one is even wilder. In the 45 00:01:47.729 --> 00:01:50.170 GW24 1110 event, 46 00:01:50.490 --> 00:01:53.010 the larger black hole was spinning in the 47 00:01:53.010 --> 00:01:55.650 opposite direction to its orbit around the 48 00:01:55.650 --> 00:01:56.730 smaller black hole. 49 00:01:56.810 --> 00:01:59.370 Avery: Wait, spinning backwards? How does that even 50 00:01:59.370 --> 00:01:59.690 happen? 51 00:02:00.300 --> 00:02:02.540 Anna: It's the first time we've ever observed 52 00:02:02.540 --> 00:02:04.780 something like that. The thinking is that 53 00:02:04.780 --> 00:02:07.380 this kind of bizarre anti aligned 54 00:02:07.380 --> 00:02:10.220 spin is a potential signature of a second 55 00:02:10.220 --> 00:02:13.220 generation merger. The chaotic dynamics of a 56 00:02:13.220 --> 00:02:15.420 previous collision could have flipped it 57 00:02:15.420 --> 00:02:18.380 around. It's like finding a planet that spins 58 00:02:18.380 --> 00:02:20.820 in the opposite direction of its orbit around 59 00:02:20.820 --> 00:02:23.660 its star. It tells you something dramatic 60 00:02:23.660 --> 00:02:24.700 happened in its past. 61 00:02:25.020 --> 00:02:27.900 Avery: Wow. So these gravitational wave detectors 62 00:02:28.220 --> 00:02:30.780 aren't just hearing collisions. They're 63 00:02:30.780 --> 00:02:33.080 starting to uncover the life stories of black 64 00:02:33.080 --> 00:02:34.440 holes. That's incredible. 65 00:02:34.520 --> 00:02:37.440 Anna: It really is. And the implications are 66 00:02:37.440 --> 00:02:39.600 profound for understanding the cosmic 67 00:02:39.600 --> 00:02:42.240 landscape. If hierarchical mergers are 68 00:02:42.240 --> 00:02:45.240 common, it could be the primary mechanism for 69 00:02:45.240 --> 00:02:48.120 creating the supermassive black holes we see 70 00:02:48.120 --> 00:02:51.120 at the centers of galaxies. It's a key puzzle 71 00:02:51.120 --> 00:02:53.720 piece we might have just found connecting the 72 00:02:53.720 --> 00:02:56.080 smallest stellar mass black holes to the 73 00:02:56.080 --> 00:02:57.880 largest behemoths in the universe. 74 00:02:58.470 --> 00:03:00.350 Avery: So this isn't just about individual black 75 00:03:00.350 --> 00:03:02.990 holes, but about the grand architecture of 76 00:03:02.990 --> 00:03:05.790 galaxy formation itself. It changes our 77 00:03:05.790 --> 00:03:08.310 models for how galaxies evolve over billions 78 00:03:08.310 --> 00:03:10.790 of years. It's amazing how these tiny 79 00:03:10.790 --> 00:03:13.630 fleeting ripples in spacetime can tell us so 80 00:03:13.630 --> 00:03:14.870 much about cosmic history. 81 00:03:15.270 --> 00:03:17.790 Anna: It really is. And from the 82 00:03:17.790 --> 00:03:20.310 unbelievably massive, we're going to 83 00:03:20.310 --> 00:03:22.910 something a bit closer to home. And a 84 00:03:22.910 --> 00:03:25.190 discovery that is just as inspiring. 85 00:03:25.770 --> 00:03:28.170 It involves a very young astronomer from 86 00:03:28.170 --> 00:03:29.130 Ontario, Canada. 87 00:03:29.450 --> 00:03:30.900 Avery: I, love these stories. Tell me more. 88 00:03:31.300 --> 00:03:34.100 Anna: Siddharth Patel, who was just 12 years 89 00:03:34.100 --> 00:03:36.860 old, has discovered two possible new 90 00:03:36.860 --> 00:03:38.980 asteroids. They've been designated 91 00:03:38.980 --> 00:03:41.820 2024 RX69 and 92 00:03:41.820 --> 00:03:43.568 2024 RH39. 93 00:03:43.752 --> 00:03:46.420 Avery: 12 years old. That's amazing. 94 00:03:46.500 --> 00:03:48.500 How did he do it? You need some serious 95 00:03:48.500 --> 00:03:49.700 equipment for that, right? 96 00:03:49.940 --> 00:03:52.420 Anna: He did it through a citizen science program 97 00:03:52.500 --> 00:03:54.900 called the International Astronomical Search 98 00:03:54.900 --> 00:03:57.370 Collaboration. They provide real astronom 99 00:03:57.440 --> 00:03:59.520 astronomical data to people around the world 100 00:03:59.520 --> 00:04:02.160 to analyze. Sidehearth was poring over 101 00:04:02.160 --> 00:04:04.720 images from their telescopes when he spotted 102 00:04:04.720 --> 00:04:06.920 these two objects moving against the 103 00:04:06.920 --> 00:04:07.840 background stars. 104 00:04:08.000 --> 00:04:10.520 Avery: That's the best part of citizen science. It 105 00:04:10.520 --> 00:04:13.319 opens up real research to anyone with passion 106 00:04:13.319 --> 00:04:16.240 and a keen eye. And clearly Siddharth has 107 00:04:16.240 --> 00:04:16.560 both. 108 00:04:16.800 --> 00:04:19.560 Anna: He definitely does. Apparently he's already 109 00:04:19.560 --> 00:04:22.320 an award winning astrophotographer and dreams 110 00:04:22.320 --> 00:04:25.160 of becoming an astronaut. Now the discoveries 111 00:04:25.160 --> 00:04:27.880 are still preliminary. It could take years of 112 00:04:27.880 --> 00:04:30.540 follow up observations to confirm them and 113 00:04:30.540 --> 00:04:32.580 officially add them to our solar systems 114 00:04:32.580 --> 00:04:33.100 catalog. 115 00:04:33.420 --> 00:04:35.380 Avery: Still, to make a potential discovery like 116 00:04:35.380 --> 00:04:38.340 that, at 12, he's already contributing to the 117 00:04:38.340 --> 00:04:40.620 field. What a future he has ahead of him. 118 00:04:40.860 --> 00:04:42.980 It's a great reminder that you don't need a 119 00:04:42.980 --> 00:04:45.659 PhD to make a difference in astronomy. 120 00:04:46.330 --> 00:04:47.130 Anna: Absolutely. 121 00:04:47.450 --> 00:04:50.170 Avery: Alright, let's zoom back out. Way out. 122 00:04:50.490 --> 00:04:53.210 From spotting tiny asteroids to mapping the 123 00:04:53.210 --> 00:04:55.930 largest objects in the entire universe, 124 00:04:56.250 --> 00:04:58.430 A team led by University of Chicago 125 00:04:58.430 --> 00:05:01.250 scientists has been cataloging galaxy galaxy 126 00:05:01.250 --> 00:05:01.730 clusters. 127 00:05:01.970 --> 00:05:04.810 Anna: And these aren't just any objects. Galaxy 128 00:05:04.810 --> 00:05:07.410 clusters are the most massive gravitationally 129 00:05:07.410 --> 00:05:10.290 bound structures we know of. They can contain 130 00:05:10.290 --> 00:05:13.010 hundreds or even thousands of galaxies, 131 00:05:13.250 --> 00:05:15.850 all held together by an immense amount of 132 00:05:15.850 --> 00:05:16.370 dark matter. 133 00:05:16.450 --> 00:05:18.730 Avery: Right. So by mapping where they are and how 134 00:05:18.730 --> 00:05:20.730 they're distributed, you're essentially 135 00:05:20.730 --> 00:05:22.890 mapping the invisible skeleton of the 136 00:05:22.890 --> 00:05:25.370 universe. The team used data from the Dark 137 00:05:25.370 --> 00:05:27.810 Energy survey to do this. And the big 138 00:05:27.810 --> 00:05:30.460 question is, what does this map tell us about 139 00:05:30.460 --> 00:05:32.140 dark matter and dark energy? 140 00:05:32.460 --> 00:05:34.900 Anna: Well, this is the exciting part. Their 141 00:05:34.900 --> 00:05:37.340 findings aligned almost perfectly with our 142 00:05:37.340 --> 00:05:39.540 current standard model of the universe, the 143 00:05:39.540 --> 00:05:42.340 Lambda CDM model. This model predicts 144 00:05:42.340 --> 00:05:44.700 how structures should form and grow over 145 00:05:44.780 --> 00:05:47.380 cosmic time, Driven by the pull of dark 146 00:05:47.380 --> 00:05:49.500 matter and the push of dark energy. 147 00:05:49.900 --> 00:05:52.820 Avery: So no new physics needed just yet. Sometimes 148 00:05:52.820 --> 00:05:54.780 confirming the current theory is just as 149 00:05:54.780 --> 00:05:55.980 important as breaking it. 150 00:05:56.370 --> 00:05:58.770 Anna: Exactly. There have been some tensions in 151 00:05:58.770 --> 00:06:00.890 recent years between different types of 152 00:06:00.890 --> 00:06:03.450 cosmic measurements. Some studies hinted that 153 00:06:03.450 --> 00:06:06.170 the universe might be a little less clumpy 154 00:06:06.170 --> 00:06:09.010 Than lambda CDM predicts. But this new 155 00:06:09.090 --> 00:06:12.009 independent analysis of galaxy clusters shows 156 00:06:12.009 --> 00:06:14.130 that, no, the clumpiness is just right. 157 00:06:14.370 --> 00:06:16.850 Avery: That's a huge relief for cosmologists. I bet 158 00:06:17.010 --> 00:06:19.410 it means the model holds up. And I see they 159 00:06:19.410 --> 00:06:21.210 mentioned that future telescopes like the 160 00:06:21.210 --> 00:06:23.690 Rubin Observatory and the Nancy Grace Roman 161 00:06:23.690 --> 00:06:26.400 Space Telescope Will be able to take the this 162 00:06:26.400 --> 00:06:28.240 kind of mapping to the next level. 163 00:06:28.320 --> 00:06:31.080 Anna: They will. They'll survey the sky wider and 164 00:06:31.080 --> 00:06:33.920 deeper, Giving us an even more precise map 165 00:06:33.920 --> 00:06:36.840 and a stricter test of our cosmic model. It's 166 00:06:36.840 --> 00:06:38.400 a foundational piece of work for 167 00:06:38.400 --> 00:06:40.320 understanding our universe's evolution. 168 00:06:40.560 --> 00:06:41.320 Avery: Fantastic. 169 00:06:41.320 --> 00:06:44.160 Okay, from the cosmic web, let's turn 170 00:06:44.160 --> 00:06:46.960 our gaze To a solo traveler passing through 171 00:06:46.960 --> 00:06:49.680 our neighborhood. Let's get an update on a 172 00:06:49.680 --> 00:06:52.240 visitor from very, very far away. 173 00:06:52.660 --> 00:06:54.900 Anna: You must be talking about the interstellar 174 00:06:54.900 --> 00:06:57.820 comet 3I ATLAS. It's only 175 00:06:57.820 --> 00:07:00.340 the third interstellar object ever detected, 176 00:07:00.660 --> 00:07:02.900 and it's currently reaching its perihelion, 177 00:07:02.900 --> 00:07:05.060 which is its closest point to our sun. 178 00:07:05.300 --> 00:07:07.690 Avery: Interstellar objects, are always exciting. A 179 00:07:07.690 --> 00:07:09.810 real piece of another solar system right here 180 00:07:09.810 --> 00:07:12.370 for us to study. I know there was some online 181 00:07:12.370 --> 00:07:15.090 hype about it. Is it living up to that? 182 00:07:15.250 --> 00:07:18.050 Anna: Well, it's not an alien spaceship, if that's 183 00:07:18.050 --> 00:07:20.410 what you mean. The observations show it 184 00:07:20.410 --> 00:07:23.050 displaying very typical comet features, A 185 00:07:23.050 --> 00:07:25.550 fuzzy coma of G gas and a dust tail, 186 00:07:25.710 --> 00:07:28.470 both created as the sun's heat vaporizes its 187 00:07:28.470 --> 00:07:31.470 ice. Scientifically, though, it's incredibly 188 00:07:31.470 --> 00:07:32.030 interesting. 189 00:07:32.430 --> 00:07:34.550 Avery: Of course, every photon we collect from it 190 00:07:34.550 --> 00:07:36.950 tells us something about the chemistry of the 191 00:07:36.950 --> 00:07:39.350 protoplanetary disk it came from. Wherever 192 00:07:39.350 --> 00:07:41.870 that was. Are professional observatories 193 00:07:41.870 --> 00:07:42.670 getting a look at? 194 00:07:42.910 --> 00:07:45.590 Anna: Yes, many are. Even the European Space 195 00:07:45.590 --> 00:07:47.910 Agency's juice mission, which is on its way 196 00:07:47.910 --> 00:07:50.150 to Jupiter, is planning to observe it from 197 00:07:50.150 --> 00:07:52.940 its unique vantage point in space. The but 198 00:07:52.940 --> 00:07:54.860 what's really cool is that amateur 199 00:07:54.860 --> 00:07:57.540 astronomers are getting great views, too. It 200 00:07:57.540 --> 00:07:59.620 will be visible to backyard telescopes for 201 00:07:59.620 --> 00:08:02.100 the next few months as it heads back out of 202 00:08:02.100 --> 00:08:03.980 our solar system, never to return. 203 00:08:04.300 --> 00:08:06.500 Avery: A fleeting glimpse of a traveler from the 204 00:08:06.500 --> 00:08:08.980 stars. It's a great opportunity for anyone 205 00:08:08.980 --> 00:08:11.020 with a telescope to see something truly 206 00:08:11.020 --> 00:08:11.500 unique. 207 00:08:11.700 --> 00:08:12.450 Anna: It really is. 208 00:08:13.010 --> 00:08:15.490 Avery: All right, for our final story, we're looking 209 00:08:15.490 --> 00:08:18.050 to the future of lunar exploration. 210 00:08:18.530 --> 00:08:20.890 The European Space Agency, or 211 00:08:20.890 --> 00:08:23.730 esa, has just unveiled its brand new 212 00:08:24.030 --> 00:08:26.830 lunar lander and it's called Argonaut. 213 00:08:26.910 --> 00:08:29.670 Anna: This looks impressive. It's designed as a 214 00:08:29.670 --> 00:08:32.550 versatile cargo vehicle capable of delivering 215 00:08:32.550 --> 00:08:35.150 up to 1.6 tons to the Moon's 216 00:08:35.150 --> 00:08:37.550 surface. That's a significant payload. 217 00:08:37.550 --> 00:08:40.550 Avery: It is. It's all part of ESA's push for a 218 00:08:40.550 --> 00:08:43.310 sustainable and importantly, an 219 00:08:43.310 --> 00:08:46.190 independent European presence on the moon. 220 00:08:46.350 --> 00:08:48.630 But there's one feature they're highlighting 221 00:08:48.630 --> 00:08:49.950 that really stands out. 222 00:08:50.560 --> 00:08:53.240 Anna: Let me guess. Its ability to survive the 223 00:08:53.240 --> 00:08:53.840 lunar night. 224 00:08:54.000 --> 00:08:56.920 Avery: You got it. That's the killer. The lunar 225 00:08:56.920 --> 00:08:59.240 night lasts for two Earth weeks and 226 00:08:59.240 --> 00:09:02.200 temperatures can plummet to extremes. Keeping 227 00:09:02.200 --> 00:09:04.800 electronics and systems from freezing solid 228 00:09:04.800 --> 00:09:07.360 is one of the biggest challenges of long term 229 00:09:07.360 --> 00:09:10.160 lunar missions. Argonaut is being designed 230 00:09:10.160 --> 00:09:12.800 specifically to withstand that deep cold. 231 00:09:13.120 --> 00:09:15.640 Anna: And how are they testing that? It's not like 232 00:09:15.640 --> 00:09:17.600 you can just stick it in a freezer, right? 233 00:09:17.760 --> 00:09:20.160 Avery: ESA is using a cutting edge simulation 234 00:09:20.240 --> 00:09:23.240 facility in Germany called Luna. They 235 00:09:23.240 --> 00:09:25.320 can recreate the vacuum, extreme 236 00:09:25.320 --> 00:09:27.760 temperatures, and even the abrasive lunar 237 00:09:27.760 --> 00:09:30.160 dust to put the technology through its paces 238 00:09:30.240 --> 00:09:32.760 right here on Earth before sending it a 239 00:09:32.760 --> 00:09:33.840 quarter of a mile away. 240 00:09:34.160 --> 00:09:37.040 Anna: And the goal isn't just to land and survive. 241 00:09:37.200 --> 00:09:39.680 Argonaut is designed as a versatile 242 00:09:39.680 --> 00:09:42.240 workhorse for the Artemis program and beyond. 243 00:09:42.480 --> 00:09:44.560 It could deploy complex scientific 244 00:09:44.560 --> 00:09:47.240 instruments, release rovers to explore 245 00:09:47.240 --> 00:09:50.140 permanently shadowed craters, or even deliver 246 00:09:50.220 --> 00:09:52.740 the foundational elements for a future lunar 247 00:09:52.740 --> 00:09:55.420 base. It's a key logistical step in moving 248 00:09:55.420 --> 00:09:58.300 from temporary visits to a sustained long 249 00:09:58.300 --> 00:09:59.660 term scientific presence. 250 00:09:59.820 --> 00:10:01.900 Avery: A versatile lunar delivery truck, 251 00:10:01.900 --> 00:10:03.700 essentially. That really does change the 252 00:10:03.700 --> 00:10:06.460 game. It makes the idea of a permanent human 253 00:10:06.460 --> 00:10:08.860 presence on the moon feel much more 254 00:10:08.860 --> 00:10:11.500 tangible, much less like science fiction. 255 00:10:11.740 --> 00:10:14.020 This is the kind of hardware that builds a 256 00:10:14.020 --> 00:10:14.300 future. 257 00:10:14.620 --> 00:10:17.220 Anna: That's smart engineering. It seems like the 258 00:10:17.220 --> 00:10:19.300 new moon rush is really heating up. And it's 259 00:10:19.300 --> 00:10:21.880 fantastic to see Europe making such a serious 260 00:10:21.880 --> 00:10:24.480 and capable contribution with landers like 261 00:10:24.480 --> 00:10:26.760 Argonaut. It's not just about flags and 262 00:10:26.760 --> 00:10:28.680 footprints anymore. It's about building 263 00:10:28.760 --> 00:10:30.360 sustainable infrastructure. 264 00:10:30.520 --> 00:10:32.560 Avery: Couldn't agree more. It's an exciting time 265 00:10:32.560 --> 00:10:35.160 for lunar science. And that brings us to the 266 00:10:35.160 --> 00:10:37.400 end of our news roundup for today. From 267 00:10:37.400 --> 00:10:40.200 second generation black holes to a 12 year 268 00:10:40.200 --> 00:10:42.520 old asteroid hunter, it's been another 269 00:10:42.600 --> 00:10:44.440 incredible day in astronomy. 270 00:10:44.520 --> 00:10:47.520 Anna: It certainly has. The universe never fails to 271 00:10:47.520 --> 00:10:49.920 surprise and inspire. Thanks for joining us 272 00:10:49.920 --> 00:10:52.280 on Astronomy Daily. Be sure to subscribe 273 00:10:52.280 --> 00:10:54.580 wherever you get your podcasts so you don't 274 00:10:54.580 --> 00:10:55.380 miss an episode. 275 00:10:55.700 --> 00:10:58.620 Avery: Until next time, keep looking up. I'm Avery. 276 00:10:58.620 --> 00:11:00.340 Anna: And I'm Anna. Clear skies.