WEBVTT 0 00:00:00.320 --> 00:00:03.000 Avery: Welcome to Astronomy Daily, the podcast that 1 00:00:03.000 --> 00:00:05.160 brings you the biggest news from across the 2 00:00:05.160 --> 00:00:06.600 cosmos. I'm Avery. 3 00:00:06.600 --> 00:00:08.960 Anna: And I'm Anna. It's great to be with you. 4 00:00:09.200 --> 00:00:11.720 Today we're talking about a dramatic 5 00:00:11.720 --> 00:00:14.640 spacewalk outside the Tiangong Space 6 00:00:14.640 --> 00:00:17.600 Station. Plus the James Webb Telescope spots 7 00:00:17.600 --> 00:00:20.320 the oldest supernova ever seen. And we'll 8 00:00:20.320 --> 00:00:22.840 find out why giant planets known as Super 9 00:00:22.840 --> 00:00:25.320 Jupiters might look nothing like our own 10 00:00:25.320 --> 00:00:25.760 Jupiter. 11 00:00:26.000 --> 00:00:28.000 Avery: And we'll finish with a black hole that's 12 00:00:28.000 --> 00:00:30.360 whipping up winds at a fraction of the speed 13 00:00:30.360 --> 00:00:30.800 of light. 14 00:00:30.880 --> 00:00:32.580 Let's get first up. 15 00:00:32.580 --> 00:00:35.020 Anna: Let's head to low Earth orbit. There's been 16 00:00:35.020 --> 00:00:37.500 some serious activity outside the Tiangong 17 00:00:37.500 --> 00:00:38.100 Space station. 18 00:00:38.340 --> 00:00:40.940 Avery: That's right. Two Chinese astronauts from the 19 00:00:40.940 --> 00:00:43.420 Shenshou 21 mission conducted a 20 00:00:43.420 --> 00:00:46.220 marathon eight hour spacewalk. The primary 21 00:00:46.220 --> 00:00:48.620 goal was to get a close look at the Shenshou 22 00:00:48.620 --> 00:00:49.940 20 return capsule. 23 00:00:50.250 --> 00:00:52.580 Anna: Mhm. And what they were looking for was 24 00:00:52.580 --> 00:00:53.540 damage, Right? 25 00:00:53.780 --> 00:00:56.380 Avery: Exactly. The capsule was likely struck by a 26 00:00:56.380 --> 00:00:58.820 piece of space junk, and the damage was 27 00:00:58.820 --> 00:01:01.140 serious enough that the Shenzhou 20 crew 28 00:01:01.140 --> 00:01:04.120 couldn't use it to return home. They had 29 00:01:04.120 --> 00:01:06.040 to come back to Earth on a different vehicle 30 00:01:06.040 --> 00:01:06.880 as a precaution. 31 00:01:07.280 --> 00:01:09.840 Anna: Wow. That really highlights the dangers of 32 00:01:09.920 --> 00:01:12.880 space debris. So this spacewalk was 33 00:01:12.960 --> 00:01:15.320 essentially a, ah, forensic investigation in 34 00:01:15.320 --> 00:01:15.840 orbit. 35 00:01:16.000 --> 00:01:18.840 Avery: It was. They were meticulously inspecting 36 00:01:18.840 --> 00:01:21.440 and photographing the damage to understand 37 00:01:21.680 --> 00:01:24.200 exactly what happened. But that wasn't all 38 00:01:24.200 --> 00:01:26.400 they did. They also took the opportunity to 39 00:01:26.400 --> 00:01:29.240 install new space debris protection systems 40 00:01:29.240 --> 00:01:30.400 on the station itself. 41 00:01:30.870 --> 00:01:33.290 Anna: Uh, a necessary upgrade, it seems. It's a 42 00:01:33.290 --> 00:01:36.290 growing problem that isn't going away. Every 43 00:01:36.290 --> 00:01:39.050 piece of junk, big or small, is a 44 00:01:39.050 --> 00:01:41.290 potential threat to current and future 45 00:01:41.290 --> 00:01:41.810 missions. 46 00:01:42.050 --> 00:01:44.050 Avery: And speaking of China's space program, 47 00:01:44.210 --> 00:01:46.370 they've been busy on the launch pad as well. 48 00:01:46.770 --> 00:01:48.610 Incredibly busy, in fact. 49 00:01:48.930 --> 00:01:51.650 Anna: You can say that again. They just set a new 50 00:01:51.650 --> 00:01:54.450 national record by launching three separate 51 00:01:54.450 --> 00:01:57.010 Long March rockets in less than 19 52 00:01:57.170 --> 00:01:57.570 hours. 53 00:01:58.170 --> 00:02:01.050 Avery: 19 hours, that's an astonishing pace. 54 00:02:01.290 --> 00:02:04.250 It brings their total for 20, 25 up to 55 00:02:04.250 --> 00:02:06.570 83 orbital launches already. 56 00:02:07.370 --> 00:02:09.050 Anna: So what were these missions carrying? 57 00:02:09.530 --> 00:02:11.730 Avery: A couple of different payloads. The launches 58 00:02:11.730 --> 00:02:14.170 deployed more broadband satellites for their 59 00:02:14.490 --> 00:02:17.130 Guang Mega Constellation, which is their 60 00:02:17.130 --> 00:02:19.210 competitor to systems like Starlink. 61 00:02:19.370 --> 00:02:19.770 Anna: Right. 62 00:02:20.090 --> 00:02:22.810 Avery: And they also sent up two classified military 63 00:02:22.810 --> 00:02:25.410 satellites. The details on those, as you'd 64 00:02:25.410 --> 00:02:26.490 expect, are pretty sparse. 65 00:02:27.000 --> 00:02:29.920 Anna: It just shows the sheer scale and speed of 66 00:02:29.920 --> 00:02:32.280 their operations. Right now they're not just 67 00:02:32.280 --> 00:02:34.640 launching frequently, they're launching with 68 00:02:34.640 --> 00:02:35.960 incredible efficiency. 69 00:02:36.120 --> 00:02:37.840 Avery: And, uh, they seem to be getting better at it 70 00:02:37.840 --> 00:02:38.600 with every launch. 71 00:02:39.160 --> 00:02:42.120 Anna: Okay, let's shift our focus from Earth orbit 72 00:02:42.120 --> 00:02:45.040 to the Red planet. A major new report from 73 00:02:45.040 --> 00:02:47.560 the U.S. national Academies of Sciences, 74 00:02:47.640 --> 00:02:50.400 Engineering and Medicine has just been 75 00:02:50.400 --> 00:02:52.680 released and it's making some bold 76 00:02:52.680 --> 00:02:54.760 recommendations for the future of Mars 77 00:02:54.760 --> 00:02:55.400 exploration. 78 00:02:56.830 --> 00:02:59.190 Avery: It really is. The headline recommendation is 79 00:02:59.190 --> 00:03:02.070 that the primary scientific objective for the 80 00:03:02.070 --> 00:03:04.870 first crewed missions to Mars should be the 81 00:03:04.870 --> 00:03:07.230 search for life, either past or present. 82 00:03:07.790 --> 00:03:10.150 Anna: That's a significant statement. For a long 83 00:03:10.150 --> 00:03:12.910 time, the focus has been on geology and 84 00:03:12.910 --> 00:03:15.710 paving the way for colonization. This report 85 00:03:15.790 --> 00:03:18.350 puts astrobiology front and center. 86 00:03:18.350 --> 00:03:21.070 Avery: Exactly. It outlines 11 specific 87 00:03:21.070 --> 00:03:23.710 science objectives and proposes two main 88 00:03:23.710 --> 00:03:26.030 science mission campaigns to achieve them. 89 00:03:26.260 --> 00:03:28.130 The the first campaign would target near. 90 00:03:28.130 --> 00:03:31.050 Anna: Surface glacier ice, which could preserve 91 00:03:31.050 --> 00:03:32.090 biosignatures. 92 00:03:32.090 --> 00:03:34.810 Avery: Precisely. The second, even more ambitious 93 00:03:34.810 --> 00:03:37.410 campaign would involve exploring the deep 94 00:03:37.410 --> 00:03:39.570 subsurface of Mars. They're talking about 95 00:03:39.570 --> 00:03:41.610 drilling deep down to where liquid water 96 00:03:41.610 --> 00:03:44.090 might still exist, Protected from the harsh 97 00:03:44.090 --> 00:03:44.970 surface radiation. 98 00:03:46.170 --> 00:03:48.650 Anna: That would be an incredible undertaking. 99 00:03:48.890 --> 00:03:51.850 The technical challenges alone are immense. 100 00:03:52.090 --> 00:03:54.900 But the potential payoff for finding evidence 101 00:03:54.900 --> 00:03:57.780 of life on another planet is arguably 102 00:03:57.780 --> 00:03:59.500 the greatest prize in science. 103 00:03:59.820 --> 00:04:02.820 Avery: It completely reframes the why of sending 104 00:04:02.820 --> 00:04:05.180 humans to Mars. It's not just about planting 105 00:04:05.180 --> 00:04:07.100 a flag. It's about answering one of 106 00:04:07.100 --> 00:04:08.940 humanity's biggest questions. 107 00:04:09.340 --> 00:04:11.620 Anna: It would be nice if we could get a definitive 108 00:04:11.620 --> 00:04:12.620 answer one day. 109 00:04:12.860 --> 00:04:15.340 Avery: Well, from the search for life to the death 110 00:04:15.340 --> 00:04:18.220 of stars, the James Webb Space Telescope has 111 00:04:18.220 --> 00:04:21.020 done it again. It's given us a glimpse into 112 00:04:21.020 --> 00:04:23.580 the cosmic dawn by finding the oldest 113 00:04:23.580 --> 00:04:24.860 supernova ever seen. 114 00:04:25.490 --> 00:04:27.730 Anna: This story is just mind boggling. 115 00:04:28.050 --> 00:04:30.810 JWST detected light from a star 116 00:04:30.810 --> 00:04:33.650 that exploded 13 billion years ago. 117 00:04:34.290 --> 00:04:36.770 Avery: Let that sink in. The universe itself is 118 00:04:36.770 --> 00:04:39.410 about 13.7 billion years old. 119 00:04:39.730 --> 00:04:42.530 So this event happened just 730 120 00:04:42.530 --> 00:04:44.610 million years after the Big Bang. 121 00:04:45.090 --> 00:04:47.650 Anna: Incredible. So what do we know about this 122 00:04:47.650 --> 00:04:47.970 event? 123 00:04:48.210 --> 00:04:50.690 Avery: It's been designated GRB 124 00:04:51.310 --> 00:04:54.030 250314A. 125 00:04:54.590 --> 00:04:57.190 The GRB stands for Gamma ray 126 00:04:57.190 --> 00:04:59.630 burst, which was detected first. 127 00:05:00.350 --> 00:05:03.030 That burst is the telltale sign of a 128 00:05:03.030 --> 00:05:05.910 massive star collapsing into a black hole 129 00:05:05.910 --> 00:05:08.190 or neutron star. The 130 00:05:08.190 --> 00:05:10.910 supernova is the explosion that follows. 131 00:05:11.470 --> 00:05:14.230 Anna: So this breaks the previous record for the 132 00:05:14.230 --> 00:05:16.870 most distant supernova by a long 133 00:05:16.870 --> 00:05:17.310 shot. 134 00:05:17.550 --> 00:05:19.710 Avery: Observing an event like this from the very 135 00:05:19.710 --> 00:05:22.430 early universe gives astronomers a direct 136 00:05:22.510 --> 00:05:24.690 look at at the life cycle of the first 137 00:05:24.690 --> 00:05:27.330 generations of stars, which were much more 138 00:05:27.330 --> 00:05:29.730 massive and short lived than stars like our 139 00:05:29.730 --> 00:05:32.490 Sun. It's a crucial piece of the puzzle for 140 00:05:32.490 --> 00:05:35.410 understanding how the universe evolved from. 141 00:05:35.410 --> 00:05:38.250 Anna: The most distant to some of the most massive. 142 00:05:38.650 --> 00:05:41.650 Let's talk about exoplanets. A new study 143 00:05:41.650 --> 00:05:44.090 is challenging. What we thought we knew about 144 00:05:44.250 --> 00:05:46.250 super Jupiters, right? 145 00:05:46.250 --> 00:05:48.810 Avery: These are gas giants that are significantly 146 00:05:48.810 --> 00:05:51.730 more massive than our own Jupiter. This 147 00:05:51.730 --> 00:05:54.490 new research focused on an exoplanet called 148 00:05:54.490 --> 00:05:57.090 VHS 1256 b, 149 00:05:57.490 --> 00:06:00.108 it has a mass of about 20 jupiters, 150 00:06:00.258 --> 00:06:01.570 20 times. 151 00:06:01.570 --> 00:06:04.250 Anna: The mass of Jupiter. That's almost in the 152 00:06:04.250 --> 00:06:07.129 territory of a brown dwarf, a failed 153 00:06:07.129 --> 00:06:07.490 star. 154 00:06:07.890 --> 00:06:10.250 Avery: It's right on that line. And the study 155 00:06:10.250 --> 00:06:12.770 suggests that planets this massive might not 156 00:06:12.770 --> 00:06:15.570 look like Jupiter at all. We picture Jupiter 157 00:06:15.570 --> 00:06:18.410 with its beautiful stable, banded cloud 158 00:06:18.410 --> 00:06:18.930 patterns. 159 00:06:19.280 --> 00:06:22.120 Anna: Mhm. Mm. The Great Red Spot. The distinct 160 00:06:22.120 --> 00:06:23.360 zones and belts. 161 00:06:23.760 --> 00:06:26.640 Avery: Exactly. But on a world like VHS 162 00:06:26.720 --> 00:06:29.640 1256 B, the internal heat and 163 00:06:29.640 --> 00:06:32.000 higher temperatures could drive a much more 164 00:06:32.000 --> 00:06:34.760 turbulent and chaotic atmosphere. The 165 00:06:34.760 --> 00:06:37.280 model suggests that instead of stable bands, 166 00:06:37.520 --> 00:06:40.200 you'd see large, dusty silicate 167 00:06:40.200 --> 00:06:41.920 storms swirling chaotically. 168 00:06:42.640 --> 00:06:45.480 Anna: So less organized beauty, more 169 00:06:45.480 --> 00:06:46.480 violent chaos. 170 00:06:47.160 --> 00:06:49.200 Avery: That's a good way to put it. It reminds us 171 00:06:49.200 --> 00:06:51.240 that our own solar system is just one 172 00:06:51.240 --> 00:06:53.840 example. And the diversity of planets out 173 00:06:53.840 --> 00:06:55.960 there is far greater than we can imagine. 174 00:06:56.600 --> 00:06:57.320 Anna: Well said. 175 00:06:57.560 --> 00:07:00.120 And from voyages within our solar system, 176 00:07:00.440 --> 00:07:03.080 let's take a leap to the truly cosmic scale. 177 00:07:03.320 --> 00:07:05.480 For our final story, we're heading to the 178 00:07:05.480 --> 00:07:08.368 center of galaxy NGC 378 179 00:07:08.512 --> 00:07:11.440 3, where a supermassive black hole 180 00:07:11.440 --> 00:07:13.660 is putting on a spectacle spectacular and 181 00:07:13.740 --> 00:07:15.020 very windy show. 182 00:07:15.500 --> 00:07:17.980 Avery: And this was a coordinated effort between two 183 00:07:17.980 --> 00:07:20.870 powerful space telescopes, the XMM M Newton M 184 00:07:21.340 --> 00:07:23.900 and the new Xrism M Observatory. 185 00:07:24.540 --> 00:07:27.260 Anna: That's right. They observed the black hole's 186 00:07:27.260 --> 00:07:30.060 active galactic nucleus, or agn, 187 00:07:30.140 --> 00:07:32.540 as it let out a massive X ray flare. 188 00:07:33.020 --> 00:07:35.660 Avery: So similar to a solar flare from our sun, 189 00:07:35.740 --> 00:07:37.900 but on an unimaginable scale. 190 00:07:38.470 --> 00:07:41.150 Anna: Precisely. And this flare had a dramatic 191 00:07:41.150 --> 00:07:43.790 effect. It triggered powerful winds of 192 00:07:43.790 --> 00:07:46.430 superheated gas being blasted away from the 193 00:07:46.430 --> 00:07:49.270 black hole at an incredible 1/5 194 00:07:49.270 --> 00:07:49.950 the speed of. 195 00:07:49.950 --> 00:07:52.910 Avery: Light, 20% of the speed of 196 00:07:52.910 --> 00:07:54.950 light. That's just phenomenal speed. 197 00:07:55.430 --> 00:07:58.150 Anna: It really is. And observing this process 198 00:07:58.310 --> 00:08:00.830 helps astronomers understand how these 199 00:08:00.830 --> 00:08:03.510 central black holes influence their entire 200 00:08:03.510 --> 00:08:06.390 host galaxies. These winds are so 201 00:08:06.390 --> 00:08:09.150 powerful that they can clear out gas from the 202 00:08:09.150 --> 00:08:11.810 galaxy's center, which can shut down star 203 00:08:11.810 --> 00:08:14.410 formation and fundamentally shape how a, uh, 204 00:08:14.490 --> 00:08:16.930 galaxy evolves over billions of years. 205 00:08:17.410 --> 00:08:20.050 Avery: It's a direct link between the very 206 00:08:20.130 --> 00:08:22.770 small, the accretion disk of a black 207 00:08:22.770 --> 00:08:25.770 hole, and the very large, the 208 00:08:25.770 --> 00:08:28.090 entire galaxy. A 209 00:08:28.090 --> 00:08:30.130 fantastic discovery to end on. 210 00:08:30.850 --> 00:08:33.170 Anna: And that's all the time we have for today on 211 00:08:33.170 --> 00:08:36.130 Astronomy Daily. We covered everything from 212 00:08:36.130 --> 00:08:38.970 spacewalks and launch records to the hunt for 213 00:08:38.970 --> 00:08:39.810 life on Mars. 214 00:08:40.830 --> 00:08:43.630 Avery: And we peered back to the dawn of time 215 00:08:43.630 --> 00:08:46.550 with the oldest supernova and questioned 216 00:08:46.550 --> 00:08:48.990 what a super Jupiter really looks like. 217 00:08:49.230 --> 00:08:50.750 Thanks so much for joining us. 218 00:08:51.230 --> 00:08:53.070 Anna: You can find us wherever you get your 219 00:08:53.070 --> 00:08:55.910 podcasts or our website, which can be found 220 00:08:55.910 --> 00:08:58.780 at astronomydaily.io we'll be back tomorrow 221 00:08:58.780 --> 00:09:01.500 with another roundup of the latest news from 222 00:09:01.500 --> 00:09:02.620 the final frontier. 223 00:09:03.260 --> 00:09:06.240 Avery: Until then, keep looking up. This is 224 00:09:06.240 --> 00:09:08.000 Avery and Anna signing off.