WEBVTT 0 00:00:00.320 --> 00:00:03.160 Avery: Welcome to Astronomy Daily. I'm avery. Give 1 00:00:03.160 --> 00:00:04.960 us 10 minutes and we'll give you the 2 00:00:04.960 --> 00:00:05.520 universe. 3 00:00:05.680 --> 00:00:08.320 Anna: And I'm Anna. It's great to be with you. 4 00:00:08.560 --> 00:00:11.360 We've got a fascinating lineup today, from 5 00:00:11.360 --> 00:00:14.080 an, um, update on our interstellar visitor 6 00:00:14.240 --> 00:00:16.960 to a cosmic myth that just won't fade. 7 00:00:17.680 --> 00:00:20.000 Avery: That's right. We'll also be touching on a 8 00:00:20.000 --> 00:00:22.520 very public debate about our history on the 9 00:00:22.520 --> 00:00:25.520 Moon and a discovery that challenges what we 10 00:00:25.520 --> 00:00:27.720 thought we knew about the end of a star's 11 00:00:27.720 --> 00:00:28.000 life. 12 00:00:28.560 --> 00:00:31.560 So let's get started. First up, something for 13 00:00:31.560 --> 00:00:34.260 all you stargazers out there. Our lead 14 00:00:34.260 --> 00:00:36.420 story is an update about a visitor from 15 00:00:36.420 --> 00:00:38.940 beyond our solar system, an interstellar 16 00:00:38.940 --> 00:00:41.700 comet named 3i Atlas. Which is 17 00:00:41.700 --> 00:00:44.060 putting on quite a show, right? 18 00:00:44.140 --> 00:00:46.900 Anna: This isn't just any comet. It's 19 00:00:46.900 --> 00:00:49.620 brightening much, much faster than anyone 20 00:00:49.620 --> 00:00:52.580 predicted. As it gets closer to the sun, it's 21 00:00:52.580 --> 00:00:54.740 becoming a real point of interest for both 22 00:00:54.740 --> 00:00:57.020 professional and amateur astronomers. 23 00:00:57.180 --> 00:01:00.060 Avery: Exactly. And it's not just its brightness. It 24 00:01:00.060 --> 00:01:02.820 has this distinct blue color. What does that 25 00:01:02.820 --> 00:01:03.500 tell us, Ann? 26 00:01:04.290 --> 00:01:06.130 Anna: That color is a big clue about its 27 00:01:06.130 --> 00:01:08.610 composition. The blue hue strongly 28 00:01:08.610 --> 00:01:11.450 suggests significant gas emissions, likely 29 00:01:11.450 --> 00:01:14.250 from volatile compounds like cyanogen and 30 00:01:14.250 --> 00:01:16.850 ammonia ice sublimating, turning 31 00:01:16.850 --> 00:01:19.570 directly from solid to gas as the Sun's 32 00:01:19.570 --> 00:01:21.970 heat hits them. It's like the comet is 33 00:01:21.970 --> 00:01:24.570 venting its ancient frozen materials into 34 00:01:24.570 --> 00:01:24.930 space. 35 00:01:25.330 --> 00:01:28.010 Avery: Fascinating. So we're essentially seeing the 36 00:01:28.010 --> 00:01:30.450 chemical makeup of an object from another 37 00:01:30.690 --> 00:01:33.530 star system. And we have some amazing 38 00:01:33.530 --> 00:01:34.850 tools pointed at it, right? 39 00:01:35.170 --> 00:01:37.490 Anna: Mm mhm. A whole fleet of solar monitoring 40 00:01:37.490 --> 00:01:39.570 satellites are tracking it. We're talking 41 00:01:39.570 --> 00:01:42.570 about stereo, A, SoHo, and even 42 00:01:42.570 --> 00:01:45.570 the new GOES 19 weather satellite. They're 43 00:01:45.570 --> 00:01:47.450 all being used to get different perspectives 44 00:01:47.450 --> 00:01:50.130 and data on how the comet is behaving as it 45 00:01:50.130 --> 00:01:50.690 heats up. 46 00:01:51.090 --> 00:01:53.170 Avery: And the best part for our listeners who might 47 00:01:53.170 --> 00:01:55.570 have a telescope sitting in their garage, is 48 00:01:55.570 --> 00:01:58.010 that 3i Atlas is now bright enough to be 49 00:01:58.010 --> 00:02:00.530 spotted with amateur equipment. So if you 50 00:02:00.530 --> 00:02:02.690 know where to look, you can see an object 51 00:02:02.770 --> 00:02:05.330 from another star with your own eyes. 52 00:02:05.950 --> 00:02:08.150 Anna: And these different perspectives are crucial, 53 00:02:08.150 --> 00:02:10.390 aren't they? Because this comet is on a 54 00:02:10.390 --> 00:02:12.830 hyperbolic trajectory, meaning it's moving 55 00:02:12.830 --> 00:02:15.310 too fast to be captured by our Sun's gravity. 56 00:02:15.470 --> 00:02:17.990 It's a one time visitor zipping through our 57 00:02:17.990 --> 00:02:20.230 neighborhood before heading back out into the 58 00:02:20.230 --> 00:02:21.950 vastness of interstellar space. 59 00:02:22.270 --> 00:02:24.510 Avery: That's what makes every piece of data so 60 00:02:24.510 --> 00:02:26.550 precious. Unlike, uh, comets from our own 61 00:02:26.550 --> 00:02:28.790 Oort cloud, which we can study again and 62 00:02:28.790 --> 00:02:31.150 again, this is our only chance to 63 00:02:31.150 --> 00:02:33.750 analyze the building blocks of another star 64 00:02:33.750 --> 00:02:36.430 system up, uh, close. It's like a cosmic 65 00:02:36.430 --> 00:02:39.050 probe sent to us from a distant unknown star. 66 00:02:39.450 --> 00:02:42.050 Anna: It's a really exciting opportunity. These 67 00:02:42.050 --> 00:02:44.570 interstellar visitors are rare, and one that 68 00:02:44.570 --> 00:02:47.090 puts on a show like this is even rarer. A 69 00:02:47.090 --> 00:02:48.970 great reason to dust off that telescope. 70 00:02:49.130 --> 00:02:50.810 Avery: Speaking of things capturing public 71 00:02:50.810 --> 00:02:53.369 attention, our next story shifts from the 72 00:02:53.369 --> 00:02:55.930 outer reaches of the solar system to a debate 73 00:02:55.930 --> 00:02:58.210 happening right here on Earth, centered on 74 00:02:58.210 --> 00:02:59.050 our own moon. 75 00:02:59.370 --> 00:03:02.210 Anna: This is a strange one. NASA recently had to 76 00:03:02.210 --> 00:03:04.290 publicly respond to a claim made by Kim 77 00:03:04.290 --> 00:03:06.970 Kardashian on her show. She stated that she 78 00:03:06.970 --> 00:03:09.710 believes the 1969 moon landing was 79 00:03:09.710 --> 00:03:10.150 fake. 80 00:03:10.550 --> 00:03:12.510 Avery: It's a conspiracy theory that's been around 81 00:03:12.510 --> 00:03:15.230 for decades, but it's always surprising when 82 00:03:15.230 --> 00:03:17.790 it gets a platform of that size. What was her 83 00:03:17.790 --> 00:03:18.310 reasoning? 84 00:03:18.790 --> 00:03:21.670 Anna: She cited some heavily edited videos of 85 00:03:21.670 --> 00:03:24.270 astronaut Buzz Aldrin where his words were 86 00:03:24.270 --> 00:03:26.910 taken out of context to make it sound like he 87 00:03:26.910 --> 00:03:29.310 was admitting it didn't happen. It's a 88 00:03:29.310 --> 00:03:30.830 classic case of misinformation, 89 00:03:30.830 --> 00:03:31.480 unfortunately. Mhm. 90 00:03:32.790 --> 00:03:35.230 Avery: So how did NASA handle it? You don't often 91 00:03:35.230 --> 00:03:37.430 see a government science agency getting into 92 00:03:37.430 --> 00:03:39.750 a back and forth with a reality TV star. 93 00:03:40.190 --> 00:03:42.350 Anna: They handled it with a lot of grace, I think. 94 00:03:42.590 --> 00:03:45.390 The acting administrator, Sean Duffy, issued 95 00:03:45.390 --> 00:03:47.550 a very clear statement. He didn't just 96 00:03:47.550 --> 00:03:50.190 dismiss the claim, but reiterated the fact 97 00:03:50.190 --> 00:03:52.630 that NASA has successfully landed humans on 98 00:03:52.630 --> 00:03:53.790 the moon six times. 99 00:03:54.110 --> 00:03:56.870 Avery: He also pointed to the mountains of physical 100 00:03:56.870 --> 00:03:59.750 evidence. We have hundreds of kilograms 101 00:03:59.750 --> 00:04:01.870 of lunar rocks that have been studied by 102 00:04:01.870 --> 00:04:04.750 scientists worldwide. Their composition 103 00:04:04.750 --> 00:04:07.310 is entirely different from Earth rocks. 104 00:04:07.680 --> 00:04:10.160 Plus there are retroreflectors left on the 105 00:04:10.160 --> 00:04:12.560 moon's surface by the Apollo missions that 106 00:04:12.720 --> 00:04:15.680 observatories still use today to measure the 107 00:04:15.680 --> 00:04:17.200 exact distance to the moon. 108 00:04:17.440 --> 00:04:19.760 Anna: And he extended an invitation, 109 00:04:20.080 --> 00:04:20.480 right? 110 00:04:20.720 --> 00:04:23.520 Avery: He did. He invited Kardashian to the Kennedy 111 00:04:23.520 --> 00:04:25.880 Space center to witness the launch of the 112 00:04:25.880 --> 00:04:27.920 upcoming Artemis mission, which will be 113 00:04:27.920 --> 00:04:30.560 sending astronauts back to the Moon. A sort 114 00:04:30.560 --> 00:04:33.400 of come see for yourself gesture. It 115 00:04:33.400 --> 00:04:36.200 was a firm but very classy way to counter the 116 00:04:36.200 --> 00:04:38.200 misinformation. And turned it into a 117 00:04:38.200 --> 00:04:39.040 teachable moment. 118 00:04:39.410 --> 00:04:42.170 Anna: Exactly. And let's not forget the 119 00:04:42.170 --> 00:04:45.090 independent verification. The Soviet Union, 120 00:04:45.250 --> 00:04:47.890 America's chief rival in the space race, 121 00:04:47.970 --> 00:04:50.730 was monitoring the Apollo missions. If the 122 00:04:50.730 --> 00:04:52.690 landings were faked, they would have had 123 00:04:52.690 --> 00:04:55.530 every incentive to expose it, and they 124 00:04:55.530 --> 00:04:58.290 never did. The evidence is simply 125 00:04:58.290 --> 00:04:59.170 overwhelming. 126 00:04:59.730 --> 00:05:02.530 Avery: Absolutely. A good reminder of how important 127 00:05:02.530 --> 00:05:04.970 it is to rely on primary sources and 128 00:05:04.970 --> 00:05:07.220 scientific consensus. From celebrities 129 00:05:07.220 --> 00:05:09.540 looking at the moon to scientists looking at 130 00:05:09.540 --> 00:05:11.340 distant dying stars. 131 00:05:11.580 --> 00:05:14.060 Our next story is a real head scratcher. 132 00:05:14.300 --> 00:05:16.460 Anna: This one comes from the field of stellar 133 00:05:16.460 --> 00:05:18.900 evolution. Astronomers have found something 134 00:05:18.900 --> 00:05:21.380 that really shouldn't exist according to our 135 00:05:21.380 --> 00:05:24.140 current models. It's an ancient White dwarf 136 00:05:24.140 --> 00:05:26.980 star about 3 billion years old that's 137 00:05:26.980 --> 00:05:29.420 still actively consuming the remains of its 138 00:05:29.420 --> 00:05:30.140 own planet. 139 00:05:30.620 --> 00:05:33.500 Avery: That's incredible. A white dwarf is a 140 00:05:33.500 --> 00:05:36.180 dense core left over after a star like our 141 00:05:36.180 --> 00:05:39.040 sun dies. The con thinking is that 142 00:05:39.040 --> 00:05:41.800 any planetary cleanup process should be over 143 00:05:41.880 --> 00:05:44.040 much, much sooner than 3 billion years. 144 00:05:44.440 --> 00:05:46.560 Anna: Precisely. The star is called 145 00:05:46.560 --> 00:05:47.710 LSPM J 146 00:05:47.710 --> 00:05:51.640 M02073331, 147 00:05:51.800 --> 00:05:54.320 and it's surrounded by a debris disk made of 148 00:05:54.320 --> 00:05:57.160 shredded planetary material. This disk 149 00:05:57.160 --> 00:05:59.960 is the oldest and most metal rich ever 150 00:05:59.960 --> 00:06:02.520 observed around a star of this type. It's 151 00:06:02.520 --> 00:06:04.880 like finding a dinosaur that's still alive 152 00:06:04.880 --> 00:06:05.480 and eating. 153 00:06:06.160 --> 00:06:08.080 Avery: So what's the theory? How is this still 154 00:06:08.080 --> 00:06:09.360 happening after so long? 155 00:06:09.760 --> 00:06:12.080 Anna: The leading hypothesis is that the planetary 156 00:06:12.080 --> 00:06:14.320 system must have been disturbed relatively 157 00:06:14.320 --> 00:06:16.640 recently. Something must have happened. 158 00:06:16.720 --> 00:06:18.840 Perhaps a gravitational nudge from a 159 00:06:18.840 --> 00:06:21.840 surviving outer planet that sent a rocky body 160 00:06:21.840 --> 00:06:24.240 spiraling inwards towards the white dwarf, 161 00:06:24.400 --> 00:06:26.880 where it got torn apart by the star's immense 162 00:06:26.880 --> 00:06:27.360 gravity. 163 00:06:27.680 --> 00:06:30.240 Avery: So it suggests that planetary systems can 164 00:06:30.240 --> 00:06:33.040 remain dynamically active for billions of 165 00:06:33.040 --> 00:06:35.640 years after their star has died. That's a 166 00:06:35.640 --> 00:06:36.320 profound thought. 167 00:06:36.640 --> 00:06:39.200 Anna: It's a chaotic process, but one that provides 168 00:06:39.200 --> 00:06:42.000 a unique window. When this material falls 169 00:06:42.000 --> 00:06:44.600 onto the white dwarf, Astronomers can analyze 170 00:06:44.600 --> 00:06:47.040 its chemical signature using spectroscopy. 171 00:06:47.280 --> 00:06:49.800 This tells them exactly what the shredded 172 00:06:49.800 --> 00:06:52.160 planets were made of, whether they were rocky 173 00:06:52.160 --> 00:06:54.720 like Earth, or rich in other elements. 174 00:06:55.120 --> 00:06:57.560 It's like performing an autopsy on an 175 00:06:57.560 --> 00:06:58.400 exoplanet. 176 00:06:58.720 --> 00:07:01.040 Avery: So this discovery isn't just about one 177 00:07:01.040 --> 00:07:03.640 strange old star. It gives us a 178 00:07:03.640 --> 00:07:06.640 glimpse into the very, very distant future 179 00:07:06.940 --> 00:07:09.460 of our own solar system. Billions of years 180 00:07:09.460 --> 00:07:11.580 from now, after our sun becomes a white 181 00:07:11.580 --> 00:07:13.900 dwarf, the remaining planets might get 182 00:07:13.900 --> 00:07:16.700 jostled around, and Earth itself could 183 00:07:16.700 --> 00:07:19.300 eventually be torn apart and consumed in a 184 00:07:19.300 --> 00:07:20.060 similar fashion. 185 00:07:20.460 --> 00:07:23.100 Anna: It really is. It forces us to 186 00:07:23.100 --> 00:07:25.420 rethink the timelines for the late stages of 187 00:07:25.420 --> 00:07:27.820 stellar evolution. It's a beautiful, 188 00:07:27.900 --> 00:07:30.360 chaotic glimpse into the far future of, uh, 189 00:07:30.380 --> 00:07:31.500 systems like our own. 190 00:07:31.820 --> 00:07:34.100 Avery: That brings us back closer to home. We were 191 00:07:34.100 --> 00:07:36.220 just talking about the Moon in a cultural 192 00:07:36.220 --> 00:07:38.920 context. But our final story looks at a long 193 00:07:38.920 --> 00:07:41.400 standing belief about its direct effect on 194 00:07:41.400 --> 00:07:44.080 us, specifically on our sleep and our 195 00:07:44.080 --> 00:07:44.600 behavior. 196 00:07:45.080 --> 00:07:47.640 Anna: Right. The idea of the full Moon effect. 197 00:07:48.040 --> 00:07:50.760 Many people swear they sleep worse or that 198 00:07:50.760 --> 00:07:53.680 people act strangely during a full moon. We 199 00:07:53.680 --> 00:07:55.280 spoke with a neurologist to get the 200 00:07:55.280 --> 00:07:56.600 scientific take on this. 201 00:07:56.920 --> 00:07:58.800 Avery: And what's the verdict? Is there any truth to 202 00:07:58.800 --> 00:07:59.080 it? 203 00:07:59.480 --> 00:08:01.960 Anna: There's a tiny kernel of truth when it comes 204 00:08:01.960 --> 00:08:04.520 to sleep. Studies show that on average, 205 00:08:04.600 --> 00:08:07.240 people get about 20 minutes less sleep on the 206 00:08:07.240 --> 00:08:09.740 nights surrounding a full moon. But the 207 00:08:09.740 --> 00:08:12.380 influence on mental health or behavior has 208 00:08:12.700 --> 00:08:15.180 no scientific proof whatsoever. 209 00:08:15.500 --> 00:08:18.340 Avery: Okay, so why the 20 minutes of lost 210 00:08:18.340 --> 00:08:20.980 sleep? Is it gravity or something more 211 00:08:20.980 --> 00:08:21.660 mysterious? 212 00:08:22.380 --> 00:08:25.299 Anna: Nothing so mysterious. The most likely 213 00:08:25.299 --> 00:08:28.220 culprit is simply light. A full Moon 214 00:08:28.220 --> 00:08:30.580 is significantly brighter than any other 215 00:08:30.580 --> 00:08:33.420 phase. And that extra light, especially 216 00:08:33.580 --> 00:08:36.410 in pre industrial times, could be enough to 217 00:08:36.410 --> 00:08:39.250 delay our body's internal clock and suppress 218 00:08:39.250 --> 00:08:41.170 the production of the sleep hormone 219 00:08:41.170 --> 00:08:41.970 melatonin. 220 00:08:42.210 --> 00:08:44.770 Avery: That makes sense. And the behavioral stuff? 221 00:08:44.850 --> 00:08:47.490 The idea that emergency rooms are busier 222 00:08:47.490 --> 00:08:49.650 or people are more erratic. 223 00:08:49.970 --> 00:08:52.730 Anna: It's an ancient belief, isn't it? The 224 00:08:52.730 --> 00:08:55.610 word lunacy itself comes from luna, the 225 00:08:55.610 --> 00:08:58.610 Latin word for Moon. For centuries, people 226 00:08:58.610 --> 00:09:00.890 have tried to link human behavior to the 227 00:09:00.890 --> 00:09:03.330 lunar cycle without any real evidence. 228 00:09:03.970 --> 00:09:06.250 Avery: That's likely a psychological phenomenon 229 00:09:06.250 --> 00:09:09.170 called illusory correlation. Our brains 230 00:09:09.170 --> 00:09:11.370 are wired to find patterns, and we tend to 231 00:09:11.370 --> 00:09:13.890 remember events that confirm our beliefs. 232 00:09:14.370 --> 00:09:16.610 So if something odd happens during a full 233 00:09:16.610 --> 00:09:19.410 Moon, we link the two while ignoring 234 00:09:19.489 --> 00:09:21.930 all the odd things that happen when the Moon 235 00:09:21.930 --> 00:09:22.690 isn't full. 236 00:09:23.170 --> 00:09:26.010 Anna: That's right. And another common argument you 237 00:09:26.010 --> 00:09:28.530 hear is about the Moon's gravitational pull 238 00:09:28.530 --> 00:09:31.250 affecting the water in our bodies, just like 239 00:09:31.250 --> 00:09:34.160 it causes ocean tides. But the neurologist 240 00:09:34.160 --> 00:09:36.640 we spoke to completely debunked that. 241 00:09:36.960 --> 00:09:39.400 The gravitational force of the Moon on a 242 00:09:39.400 --> 00:09:42.280 person is miniscule, far less than 243 00:09:42.280 --> 00:09:44.600 the force exerted by a large building you're 244 00:09:44.600 --> 00:09:47.120 standing next to. It's simply not strong 245 00:09:47.120 --> 00:09:49.440 enough to have any biological effect. 246 00:09:49.840 --> 00:09:52.440 Avery: Right. And the neurologist also pointed out 247 00:09:52.440 --> 00:09:55.080 that the impact of the Moon's light pales in 248 00:09:55.080 --> 00:09:57.480 comparison to the artificial light we're 249 00:09:57.480 --> 00:09:59.280 bathed in every night from our phones, 250 00:09:59.440 --> 00:10:00.960 screens and streetlights. 251 00:10:01.740 --> 00:10:04.140 Anna: Exactly. If you're worried about light 252 00:10:04.140 --> 00:10:06.500 disrupting your sleep, the full Moon should 253 00:10:06.500 --> 00:10:09.060 be the least of your concerns. It's a 254 00:10:09.060 --> 00:10:11.580 fascinating myth, but one that science has 255 00:10:11.580 --> 00:10:12.700 largely put to bed. 256 00:10:12.860 --> 00:10:15.660 Avery: A perfect summary. And that's all the time we 257 00:10:15.660 --> 00:10:17.820 have for today's deep dive into the cosmos, 258 00:10:17.820 --> 00:10:20.620 from interstellar comets to ancient stars 259 00:10:20.620 --> 00:10:21.900 and lunar myths. 260 00:10:22.140 --> 00:10:24.020 Anna: Thanks for joining us, uh, on Astronomy 261 00:10:24.020 --> 00:10:25.420 Daily. I'm Anna. 262 00:10:25.420 --> 00:10:27.860 Avery: And I'm Avery. Join us next time as we 263 00:10:27.860 --> 00:10:30.540 continue to explore the universe. Until then, 264 00:10:30.980 --> 00:10:31.780 keep looking up.