WEBVTT

0
00:00:00.320 --> 00:00:03.080
Anna: Welcome to Astronomy Daily, your source for

1
00:00:03.080 --> 00:00:06.080
the latest space and astronomy news. I'm

2
00:00:06.080 --> 00:00:06.640
Anna.

3
00:00:06.800 --> 00:00:09.360
Avery: And I'm Avery. Today is Wednesday, January

4
00:00:09.520 --> 00:00:12.040
28, 2026, and we've got a

5
00:00:12.040 --> 00:00:14.000
fantastic lineup of storeys for you.

6
00:00:14.160 --> 00:00:16.560
Anna: We certainly do. We'll be covering

7
00:00:16.560 --> 00:00:19.360
NOAA's new solar observatory reaching its

8
00:00:19.360 --> 00:00:21.880
destination, looking back at how weather

9
00:00:21.880 --> 00:00:24.640
played a tragic role in the Talinger disaster

10
00:00:24.720 --> 00:00:27.240
40 years ago, and discovering how

11
00:00:27.240 --> 00:00:30.000
AI is uncovering hidden cosmic

12
00:00:30.000 --> 00:00:32.580
treasures in Hubble's AR Plus,

13
00:00:32.580 --> 00:00:33.380
Venus might be.

14
00:00:33.380 --> 00:00:35.980
Avery: In for a spectacular meteor shower this July.

15
00:00:36.380 --> 00:00:38.580
We'll explore stellar fireworks at the heart

16
00:00:38.580 --> 00:00:41.140
of our galaxy. And NASA is giving us a live

17
00:00:41.140 --> 00:00:43.460
view of the Artemis 2 moon rocket on the

18
00:00:43.460 --> 00:00:44.060
launch pad.

19
00:00:44.300 --> 00:00:45.420
Anna: Let's dive right in.

20
00:00:45.740 --> 00:00:47.980
Avery: Our top storey today takes us about a million

21
00:00:48.060 --> 00:00:50.391
miles from Earth, where NOAA's Space Weather

22
00:00:50.469 --> 00:00:53.380
Follow on Lagrange 1 Observatory has just

23
00:00:53.380 --> 00:00:55.860
arrived at its permanent home. Anna, uh, this

24
00:00:55.860 --> 00:00:58.060
is a pretty significant milestone for space

25
00:00:58.060 --> 00:00:59.500
weather monitoring, isn't it?

26
00:00:59.860 --> 00:01:02.580
Anna: Absolutely, Avery. This observatory reached

27
00:01:02.580 --> 00:01:05.500
Lagrange Point 1, or L1, on

28
00:01:05.500 --> 00:01:08.260
January 21, after launching back in

29
00:01:08.260 --> 00:01:11.180
June 2024. Now, uh, for our listeners

30
00:01:11.180 --> 00:01:13.980
who might not be familiar, L1 is this

31
00:01:13.980 --> 00:01:16.580
special gravitational sweet spot between

32
00:01:16.660 --> 00:01:19.460
Earth and the sun, about 1.5

33
00:01:19.460 --> 00:01:21.380
million kilometres from our planet.

34
00:01:21.620 --> 00:01:24.340
Avery: And what makes this location so ideal for

35
00:01:24.340 --> 00:01:25.140
watching the Sun?

36
00:01:25.550 --> 00:01:28.510
Anna: Well, at L1, the observatory maintains a

37
00:01:28.510 --> 00:01:31.430
constant view of the sun while orbiting in

38
00:01:31.430 --> 00:01:34.350
sync with Earth. It's like having a cosmic

39
00:01:34.350 --> 00:01:36.870
early warning system. The satellite can

40
00:01:36.870 --> 00:01:39.270
detect solar storms and coronal mass

41
00:01:39.270 --> 00:01:41.870
ejections headed our way, giving us that

42
00:01:41.870 --> 00:01:44.430
crucial advance notice, typically about

43
00:01:44.510 --> 00:01:47.510
15 to 60 minutes before these events

44
00:01:47.510 --> 00:01:48.350
impact Earth.

45
00:01:48.590 --> 00:01:50.750
Avery: That advance warning time is critical, isn't

46
00:01:50.750 --> 00:01:52.750
it? I mean, we're talking about protecting

47
00:01:52.750 --> 00:01:55.230
everything from power grids to satellites.

48
00:01:55.630 --> 00:01:57.830
Anna: Exactly right. And here's what's really

49
00:01:57.830 --> 00:02:00.510
exciting. It's not just one observatory,

50
00:02:00.670 --> 00:02:03.390
it's a constellation. NOAA is planning

51
00:02:03.390 --> 00:02:05.990
four more satellites for L1, plus

52
00:02:05.990 --> 00:02:08.270
additional ones at, uh, Lagrange point five.

53
00:02:08.750 --> 00:02:11.150
Together, they'll create this comprehensive

54
00:02:11.309 --> 00:02:13.510
solar monitoring network. The second

55
00:02:13.510 --> 00:02:15.950
satellite is already scheduled to launch in

56
00:02:15.950 --> 00:02:16.910
2027.

57
00:02:17.310 --> 00:02:19.790
Avery: So we're looking at a much more robust space

58
00:02:19.790 --> 00:02:21.790
weather forecasting capability in the near

59
00:02:21.790 --> 00:02:22.110
future.

60
00:02:22.670 --> 00:02:25.010
Anna: Precisely. And given how dependent our, uh,

61
00:02:25.070 --> 00:02:27.510
modern infrastructure is on satellites and

62
00:02:27.510 --> 00:02:30.270
power grids, this kind of monitoring becomes

63
00:02:30.270 --> 00:02:33.150
more important every year. The observatory

64
00:02:33.150 --> 00:02:36.030
is now beginning what NOAA calls an extended

65
00:02:36.030 --> 00:02:38.469
checkout period before it becomes fully

66
00:02:38.469 --> 00:02:39.070
operational.

67
00:02:39.630 --> 00:02:42.030
Avery: Moving to a More sombre note, January

68
00:02:42.110 --> 00:02:44.790
28th marks 40 years since the space Shuttle

69
00:02:44.790 --> 00:02:47.390
Challenger disaster. Anna, uh, there's been

70
00:02:47.390 --> 00:02:49.830
renewed focus on how weather and engineering

71
00:02:49.830 --> 00:02:51.630
decisions played into that tragedy.

72
00:02:51.950 --> 00:02:54.670
Anna: Yes. And it's a powerful reminder of how

73
00:02:54.670 --> 00:02:56.990
critical environmental factors are in

74
00:02:56.990 --> 00:02:59.310
spaceflight. You know, Avery, the night

75
00:02:59.310 --> 00:03:01.910
before that launch, temperatures at Kennedy

76
00:03:01.910 --> 00:03:04.630
Space Centre dropped to just 28 degrees

77
00:03:04.630 --> 00:03:07.390
Fahrenheit. That's minus 2 Celsius

78
00:03:07.630 --> 00:03:10.030
for Florida. That was exceptionally cold.

79
00:03:10.350 --> 00:03:12.070
Avery: And, um, those cold temperatures were at the

80
00:03:12.070 --> 00:03:13.470
heart of the problem, weren't they?

81
00:03:13.550 --> 00:03:16.390
Anna: They were. Engineers from Morton Thykol,

82
00:03:16.390 --> 00:03:18.390
the company that built the solid rocket

83
00:03:18.390 --> 00:03:21.030
boosters, were deeply concerned about the O

84
00:03:21.030 --> 00:03:23.430
rings, these critical rubber seals in the

85
00:03:23.430 --> 00:03:26.090
boost joints. They'd never been tested below

86
00:03:26.170 --> 00:03:28.930
53 degrees Fahrenheit, and the engineers

87
00:03:28.930 --> 00:03:31.090
warned that the cold could make them too

88
00:03:31.090 --> 00:03:32.650
stiff to seal properly.

89
00:03:32.810 --> 00:03:34.490
Avery: But the launch went ahead anyway.

90
00:03:34.570 --> 00:03:37.370
Anna: It did. Despite the engineering concerns,

91
00:03:37.450 --> 00:03:39.850
there was enormous pressure to maintain the

92
00:03:39.850 --> 00:03:42.730
launch schedule. NASA had already postponed

93
00:03:42.730 --> 00:03:45.210
the mission several times, and there was this

94
00:03:45.210 --> 00:03:47.450
institutional momentum to proceed.

95
00:03:47.930 --> 00:03:50.570
73 seconds after liftoff, hot

96
00:03:50.570 --> 00:03:53.170
gases escaped through a failed O ring

97
00:03:53.170 --> 00:03:56.130
seal, leading to the catastrophic breakup of

98
00:03:56.130 --> 00:03:56.850
Challenger.

99
00:03:57.010 --> 00:03:59.810
Avery: It's heartbreaking. Seven crew members lost,

100
00:03:59.890 --> 00:04:01.930
including Christa McAuliffe, who would have

101
00:04:01.930 --> 00:04:03.330
been the first teacher in space.

102
00:04:03.810 --> 00:04:06.529
Anna: The tragedy fundamentally changed how

103
00:04:06.529 --> 00:04:09.490
NASA approached decision making. The Rogers

104
00:04:09.490 --> 00:04:11.610
Commission investigation that followed was

105
00:04:11.610 --> 00:04:14.290
incredibly thorough, and it led to major

106
00:04:14.370 --> 00:04:17.170
reforms in safety, culture and communication.

107
00:04:18.010 --> 00:04:20.330
One of the key findings was that engineering

108
00:04:20.330 --> 00:04:22.970
concerns need to override schedule

109
00:04:22.970 --> 00:04:24.090
pressures. Always.

110
00:04:24.810 --> 00:04:27.130
Avery: And those lessons still resonate today, don't

111
00:04:27.130 --> 00:04:29.810
they? I mean, we see NASA taking extra time

112
00:04:29.810 --> 00:04:32.330
with Artemis missions being very methodical.

113
00:04:32.810 --> 00:04:35.810
Anna: Absolutely. The Challenger disaster taught

114
00:04:35.810 --> 00:04:38.650
us that in spaceflight, there's no such thing

115
00:04:38.650 --> 00:04:41.450
as a routine launch. Every mission

116
00:04:41.450 --> 00:04:44.090
requires the same level of scrutiny and

117
00:04:44.090 --> 00:04:46.760
respect for engineering limits. It's a

118
00:04:46.760 --> 00:04:49.720
lesson paid for with seven lives and one

119
00:04:49.720 --> 00:04:51.040
we must never forget.

120
00:04:51.280 --> 00:04:53.600
Avery: On a brighter note, let's talk about some

121
00:04:53.600 --> 00:04:56.160
exciting discoveries from the Hubble Space

122
00:04:56.160 --> 00:04:58.680
Telescope. Anna? Uh, artificial

123
00:04:58.680 --> 00:05:01.400
intelligence has just helped astronomers

124
00:05:01.400 --> 00:05:03.800
uncover hundreds of previously

125
00:05:03.800 --> 00:05:06.760
undetected cosmic objects in Hubble's

126
00:05:06.760 --> 00:05:07.760
vast archives.

127
00:05:08.080 --> 00:05:11.040
Anna: This is fascinating stuff, Avery. So

128
00:05:11.040 --> 00:05:13.920
researchers have developed this AI algorithm

129
00:05:13.920 --> 00:05:16.240
that can sift through decades of Hubble

130
00:05:16.240 --> 00:05:18.580
observations. And it's finding things that

131
00:05:18.580 --> 00:05:20.140
human astronomers missed.

132
00:05:20.540 --> 00:05:23.340
Avery: Exactly. The algorithm focuses on

133
00:05:23.340 --> 00:05:25.700
something called gravitational lensing. When

134
00:05:25.700 --> 00:05:28.300
a massive object like a galaxy cluster

135
00:05:28.460 --> 00:05:30.820
bends light from more distant objects behind

136
00:05:30.820 --> 00:05:33.820
it. Einstein predicted this effect. And it's

137
00:05:33.820 --> 00:05:36.220
like having a natural cosmic magnifier.

138
00:05:36.620 --> 00:05:39.180
Anna: And these lensed objects can tell us a lot

139
00:05:39.180 --> 00:05:40.860
about the early universe, right?

140
00:05:41.340 --> 00:05:43.900
Avery: They can. The AI has identified

141
00:05:43.980 --> 00:05:46.460
hundreds of gravitational lens candidates,

142
00:05:46.890 --> 00:05:49.330
including some exceptionally distant galaxies

143
00:05:49.330 --> 00:05:52.050
from when the universe was very young. What's

144
00:05:52.050 --> 00:05:53.970
really clever about this approach is that the

145
00:05:53.970 --> 00:05:56.610
algorithm was trained on existing verified

146
00:05:56.610 --> 00:05:59.330
gravitational lenses. So it knows what to

147
00:05:59.330 --> 00:05:59.770
look for.

148
00:06:00.330 --> 00:06:02.570
Anna: So it's not just finding more of the same,

149
00:06:02.810 --> 00:06:05.490
it's finding rare and unusual examples

150
00:06:05.490 --> 00:06:05.850
too.

151
00:06:06.490 --> 00:06:09.410
Avery: That's what makes this so exciting. The AI is

152
00:06:09.410 --> 00:06:12.130
uncovering exotic lensing configurations that

153
00:06:12.130 --> 00:06:14.610
would be extremely time consuming for humans

154
00:06:14.610 --> 00:06:17.480
to find manually. We're talking about complex

155
00:06:17.640 --> 00:06:20.600
multi image systems arc like structures,

156
00:06:20.840 --> 00:06:23.160
even Einstein rings where the background

157
00:06:23.160 --> 00:06:24.920
object is perfectly aligned.

158
00:06:25.240 --> 00:06:27.880
Anna: And Hubble has been collecting data for over

159
00:06:27.880 --> 00:06:30.720
30 years now. So there's this enormous

160
00:06:30.720 --> 00:06:31.800
archive to mine.

161
00:06:32.280 --> 00:06:34.560
Avery: Right. It's like having a treasure trove that

162
00:06:34.560 --> 00:06:36.560
we're only now learning how to properly

163
00:06:36.560 --> 00:06:39.040
search. These discoveries will help us

164
00:06:39.040 --> 00:06:41.680
understand dark matter distribution in galaxy

165
00:06:41.680 --> 00:06:44.600
clusters, study extremely distant galaxies

166
00:06:44.600 --> 00:06:46.760
that would otherwise be too faint to detect

167
00:06:47.160 --> 00:06:49.880
and refine our models of cosmic evolution.

168
00:06:50.440 --> 00:06:52.840
Anna: It really shows how AI and human

169
00:06:52.840 --> 00:06:55.760
astronomers can work together. The AI does

170
00:06:55.760 --> 00:06:57.680
the heavy lifting of searching through

171
00:06:57.680 --> 00:07:00.360
millions of images and then human experts

172
00:07:00.360 --> 00:07:02.640
verify and study the most interesting

173
00:07:02.640 --> 00:07:03.240
candidates.

174
00:07:03.720 --> 00:07:05.960
Avery: Exactly. It's not replacing

175
00:07:05.960 --> 00:07:08.200
astronomers, it's amplifying what they can

176
00:07:08.200 --> 00:07:10.660
achieve. And as these AI tools get more

177
00:07:10.660 --> 00:07:13.140
sophisticated, who knows what other cosmic

178
00:07:13.140 --> 00:07:15.340
secrets might be hiding in plain sight in our

179
00:07:15.340 --> 00:07:15.860
archives.

180
00:07:16.500 --> 00:07:18.820
Anna: Now for something you don't hear every

181
00:07:19.380 --> 00:07:22.180
Venus might be getting a meteor shower.

182
00:07:22.340 --> 00:07:25.219
Avery, tell us about this cosmic event coming

183
00:07:25.220 --> 00:07:25.860
this July.

184
00:07:26.260 --> 00:07:28.690
Avery: This is a really cool storey, Anna. Uh,

185
00:07:28.690 --> 00:07:31.060
astronomers had determined that Venus could

186
00:07:31.060 --> 00:07:33.860
experience a significant meteor shower in

187
00:07:33.860 --> 00:07:36.740
July 2026. And it uh, all traces

188
00:07:36.740 --> 00:07:39.140
back to an asteroid breakup that happened

189
00:07:39.140 --> 00:07:42.060
long ago. We're talking about debris from

190
00:07:42.060 --> 00:07:44.072
asteroid 2002

191
00:07:44.368 --> 00:07:45.700
VT37.

192
00:07:46.260 --> 00:07:49.260
Anna: Though an asteroid broke apart and now its

193
00:07:49.260 --> 00:07:51.220
debris is going to hit Venus?

194
00:07:51.779 --> 00:07:54.420
Avery: Essentially, yes. When asteroids

195
00:07:54.420 --> 00:07:57.340
collide or break apart, they create streams

196
00:07:57.340 --> 00:07:59.460
of debris that continue orbiting the Sun.

197
00:07:59.940 --> 00:08:02.300
Earth regularly passes through these debris

198
00:08:02.300 --> 00:08:04.260
streams. That's what causes our meteor

199
00:08:04.260 --> 00:08:06.660
showers like the Perseids or the Geminites.

200
00:08:07.150 --> 00:08:09.110
Anna: But we don't usually think about other

201
00:08:09.110 --> 00:08:10.830
planets having meteor showers.

202
00:08:11.150 --> 00:08:13.870
Avery: We don't, and that's partly because we can't

203
00:08:13.870 --> 00:08:16.070
observe them as easily. But

204
00:08:16.070 --> 00:08:18.510
mathematical modelling shows that Venus's

205
00:08:18.510 --> 00:08:20.350
orbit will take it through this particular

206
00:08:20.510 --> 00:08:23.390
debris stream in July. The timing and

207
00:08:23.390 --> 00:08:26.230
geometry appear to line up for a genuine

208
00:08:26.230 --> 00:08:27.470
meteor shower event.

209
00:08:27.870 --> 00:08:30.430
Anna: What would that look like? I mean, Venus has

210
00:08:30.430 --> 00:08:32.750
that incredibly thick atmosphere, right?

211
00:08:33.210 --> 00:08:36.170
Avery: It does. Venus's atmosphere is about 90

212
00:08:36.250 --> 00:08:38.930
times denser than Earth's and is mostly

213
00:08:38.930 --> 00:08:41.930
carbon dioxide. Any meteors entering that

214
00:08:41.930 --> 00:08:43.970
atmosphere would experience tremendous

215
00:08:43.970 --> 00:08:46.730
heating and friction. They'd likely burn up

216
00:08:46.730 --> 00:08:49.010
at, uh, much higher altitudes than meteors do

217
00:08:49.010 --> 00:08:51.650
on Earth, creating bright streaks across the

218
00:08:51.650 --> 00:08:52.730
Venusian sky.

219
00:08:52.890 --> 00:08:55.250
Anna: Though I suppose nobody's going to be on the

220
00:08:55.250 --> 00:08:56.810
surface watching this Light show?

221
00:08:57.130 --> 00:08:59.810
Avery: No. Surface conditions on Venus are pretty

222
00:08:59.810 --> 00:09:02.610
inhospitable. We're talking temperatures hot

223
00:09:02.610 --> 00:09:05.010
enough to melt lead and crushing

224
00:09:05.010 --> 00:09:08.010
atmospheric pressure. But spacecraft in orbit

225
00:09:08.010 --> 00:09:10.090
around Venus, or even Earth based

226
00:09:10.090 --> 00:09:12.890
observations with certain wavelength might be

227
00:09:12.890 --> 00:09:15.090
able to detect evidence of the meteor shower.

228
00:09:15.250 --> 00:09:17.370
Anna: Could this tell us anything scientifically

229
00:09:17.370 --> 00:09:17.890
valuable?

230
00:09:18.290 --> 00:09:21.010
Avery: Absolutely. Studying how meteor

231
00:09:21.010 --> 00:09:23.210
showers interact with Venus's unique

232
00:09:23.210 --> 00:09:25.370
atmosphere could give us insights into

233
00:09:25.370 --> 00:09:27.490
atmosphere chemistry and dynamics.

234
00:09:28.140 --> 00:09:30.340
Plus it helps us understand the distribution

235
00:09:30.340 --> 00:09:32.620
of debris throughout the inner solar system.

236
00:09:33.100 --> 00:09:35.740
And it's just a reminder that these dramatic

237
00:09:35.740 --> 00:09:38.380
cosmic events aren't exclusive to Earth.

238
00:09:38.700 --> 00:09:41.300
Anna: Speaking of dramatic cosmic events, let's

239
00:09:41.300 --> 00:09:44.100
head to the centre of our own galaxy. Avery.

240
00:09:44.100 --> 00:09:45.780
Astronomers have been observing what they're

241
00:09:45.780 --> 00:09:48.220
calling stellar fireworks at the heart of the

242
00:09:48.220 --> 00:09:48.860
Milky Way.

243
00:09:49.180 --> 00:09:52.100
Avery: The galactic centre is such a wild place,

244
00:09:52.100 --> 00:09:55.020
isn't it? I mean, we've got that supermassive

245
00:09:55.020 --> 00:09:57.780
black hole, Sagittarius A, and

246
00:09:57.780 --> 00:10:00.280
all sorts of extreme phys going on there.

247
00:10:00.360 --> 00:10:03.320
Anna: It really is cosmic chaos in the best way

248
00:10:03.320 --> 00:10:06.120
possible. The region around Sagittarius A

249
00:10:06.280 --> 00:10:09.200
is incredibly dense with stars, gas and

250
00:10:09.200 --> 00:10:11.760
dust. And what astronomers are seeing is a

251
00:10:11.760 --> 00:10:14.200
spectacular display of stellar activity.

252
00:10:14.600 --> 00:10:17.440
Massive stars being born, living out their

253
00:10:17.440 --> 00:10:20.040
brief but brilliant lives and dying in

254
00:10:20.040 --> 00:10:21.400
supernova explosions.

255
00:10:21.640 --> 00:10:23.630
Avery: And all of this is happening in a, uh,

256
00:10:23.680 --> 00:10:25.880
relatively small region of space, right?

257
00:10:26.350 --> 00:10:29.230
Anna: Exactly. The galactic centre is an incredibly

258
00:10:29.230 --> 00:10:31.670
compact environment. You've got stellar

259
00:10:31.670 --> 00:10:33.630
densities that are millions of times higher

260
00:10:33.630 --> 00:10:35.630
than what we see in our solar neighbourhood.

261
00:10:35.950 --> 00:10:38.070
Stars are packed so tightly that

262
00:10:38.070 --> 00:10:40.550
gravitational interactions are common and the

263
00:10:40.550 --> 00:10:42.509
radiation environment is intense.

264
00:10:42.910 --> 00:10:45.350
Avery: What kind of observations are revealing these

265
00:10:45.350 --> 00:10:46.110
fireworks?

266
00:10:46.350 --> 00:10:48.710
Anna: Astronomers are using multiple wavelengths,

267
00:10:48.710 --> 00:10:51.310
infrared x ray and radio observations

268
00:10:51.550 --> 00:10:53.450
to peer through the thick dust that obscures,

269
00:10:53.450 --> 00:10:55.710
um, the galactic centre in visible light.

270
00:10:56.180 --> 00:10:58.500
What they're seeing are energetic outbursts,

271
00:10:58.740 --> 00:11:01.260
shock waves from supernova remnants, and

272
00:11:01.260 --> 00:11:04.140
evidence of stars being torn apart by intense

273
00:11:04.140 --> 00:11:06.340
tidal forces near the black hole.

274
00:11:06.580 --> 00:11:09.540
Avery: That sounds pretty dramatic, stars

275
00:11:09.540 --> 00:11:10.580
being torn apart.

276
00:11:10.820 --> 00:11:13.340
Anna: Yes. There's this phenomenon called tidal

277
00:11:13.340 --> 00:11:15.780
disruption, where a star that ventures too

278
00:11:15.780 --> 00:11:18.740
close to Sagittarius A gets stretched by

279
00:11:18.740 --> 00:11:21.420
gravitational forces, sort of like cosmic

280
00:11:21.420 --> 00:11:24.350
spaghettification. The star literally gets

281
00:11:24.350 --> 00:11:26.910
pulled apart and some of that material falls

282
00:11:26.910 --> 00:11:29.350
into the black hole while the rest is ejected

283
00:11:29.350 --> 00:11:30.750
at tremendous speeds.

284
00:11:30.990 --> 00:11:33.550
Avery: And, um, we're also seeing new stars forming

285
00:11:33.550 --> 00:11:35.070
in this extreme environment.

286
00:11:35.630 --> 00:11:38.070
Anna: You're. Despite the harsh conditions, or

287
00:11:38.070 --> 00:11:40.470
perhaps because of them, there are regions of

288
00:11:40.470 --> 00:11:42.990
intense star formation. The gravitational

289
00:11:42.990 --> 00:11:45.590
compression from all that mass can trigger

290
00:11:45.590 --> 00:11:48.030
the collapse of gas clouds, leading to new

291
00:11:48.030 --> 00:11:50.360
stellar births. These tend to be very

292
00:11:50.440 --> 00:11:53.240
massive, hot stars that burn bright and

293
00:11:53.240 --> 00:11:53.880
die young.

294
00:11:54.200 --> 00:11:57.000
Avery: It's almost like the galactic centre is this

295
00:11:57.000 --> 00:11:59.560
constant cycle of creation and destruction.

296
00:11:59.800 --> 00:12:02.160
Anna: That's a perfect way to describe it. And

297
00:12:02.160 --> 00:12:04.360
study in this region helps us understand how

298
00:12:04.360 --> 00:12:07.360
galaxies evolve, how supermassive black holes

299
00:12:07.360 --> 00:12:09.240
influence their surroundings, and what

300
00:12:09.240 --> 00:12:11.240
conditions were like in the early universe

301
00:12:11.240 --> 00:12:13.560
when star formation was much more vigorous

302
00:12:13.560 --> 00:12:14.120
everywhere.

303
00:12:14.440 --> 00:12:17.000
Avery: For our final storey, let's come back closer

304
00:12:17.000 --> 00:12:19.950
to home. NASA has launched a 24

305
00:12:19.950 --> 00:12:22.510
hour livestream showing the Artemis II moon

306
00:12:22.510 --> 00:12:24.790
rocket on the launch pad at Kennedy Space

307
00:12:24.790 --> 00:12:25.230
Centre.

308
00:12:25.630 --> 00:12:27.350
Anna: This is pretty exciting for space

309
00:12:27.350 --> 00:12:30.070
enthusiasts. Avery. The Space Launch System

310
00:12:30.070 --> 00:12:32.550
rocket with the Orion spacecraft is now

311
00:12:32.550 --> 00:12:35.470
stacked and standing on launch pad, um, 39B.

312
00:12:35.710 --> 00:12:38.110
And anyone can watch it live whenever they

313
00:12:38.110 --> 00:12:38.430
want.

314
00:12:38.990 --> 00:12:41.230
Avery: This is the mission that will send astronauts

315
00:12:41.230 --> 00:12:43.430
around the moon, right? The first crewed

316
00:12:43.430 --> 00:12:45.150
lunar mission since Apollo 17.

317
00:12:45.950 --> 00:12:48.470
Anna: That's right. Artemis II will carry four

318
00:12:48.470 --> 00:12:51.470
astronauts, NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman,

319
00:12:51.470 --> 00:12:54.430
Victor Glover, Christina Koch and CSA

320
00:12:54.430 --> 00:12:57.150
astronaut Jeremy Hansen, on a journey around

321
00:12:57.230 --> 00:12:59.510
the moon. They won't land, but they'll

322
00:12:59.510 --> 00:13:01.749
perform a lunar flyby before returning to

323
00:13:01.749 --> 00:13:02.110
Earth.

324
00:13:02.510 --> 00:13:05.230
Avery: And having the rocket on the pad now. That

325
00:13:05.230 --> 00:13:06.750
means we're getting close to launch.

326
00:13:07.470 --> 00:13:10.030
Anna: Well, the current target is no earlier than

327
00:13:10.030 --> 00:13:12.770
April 2026. Though space missions

328
00:13:12.770 --> 00:13:15.410
often face schedule adjustments, right now

329
00:13:15.410 --> 00:13:17.490
the rocket is on the pad for integrated

330
00:13:17.490 --> 00:13:20.130
testing, making sure all the systems work

331
00:13:20.130 --> 00:13:22.250
together properly before committing to a

332
00:13:22.250 --> 00:13:22.890
launch attempt.

333
00:13:23.450 --> 00:13:25.130
Avery: What kind of testing are they doing?

334
00:13:25.530 --> 00:13:27.370
Anna: They're running through what's called a wet

335
00:13:27.370 --> 00:13:29.730
dress rehearsal, which involves loading the

336
00:13:29.730 --> 00:13:31.890
rocket with propellants and going through the

337
00:13:31.890 --> 00:13:34.450
countdown sequence, stopping just short of

338
00:13:34.450 --> 00:13:37.130
ignition. It's essentially a, ah, full launch

339
00:13:37.130 --> 00:13:39.770
simulation to verify that all systems,

340
00:13:39.850 --> 00:13:42.010
ground, equipment and procedures work as

341
00:13:42.010 --> 00:13:42.490
planned.

342
00:13:43.000 --> 00:13:45.400
Avery: And the livestream lets us watch all this

343
00:13:45.400 --> 00:13:46.760
happening in real time?

344
00:13:47.320 --> 00:13:50.320
Anna: Exactly. It's a continuous feed, so you can

345
00:13:50.320 --> 00:13:53.240
cheque in at any time, day or night, and

346
00:13:53.240 --> 00:13:55.480
see the rockets standing there on the pad.

347
00:13:55.800 --> 00:13:57.880
Sometimes you'll catch technicians working,

348
00:13:58.360 --> 00:14:00.200
other times you might see weather rolling

349
00:14:00.200 --> 00:14:02.880
through. It's a unique behind the scenes look

350
00:14:02.880 --> 00:14:05.400
at the preparation for this historic mission.

351
00:14:05.880 --> 00:14:08.760
Avery: I have to say there's something awe inspiring

352
00:14:08.760 --> 00:14:10.760
about seeing that massive rocket just

353
00:14:10.760 --> 00:14:13.470
standing there, ready to take humans beyond

354
00:14:13.470 --> 00:14:16.030
Earth orbit for the first time in over 50

355
00:14:16.110 --> 00:14:16.510
years.

356
00:14:17.150 --> 00:14:19.990
Anna: There really is, and it represents years

357
00:14:19.990 --> 00:14:22.670
of work by thousands of people. After

358
00:14:22.670 --> 00:14:25.670
Artemis 2's lunar flyby, Artemis 3 will

359
00:14:25.670 --> 00:14:28.190
attempt the first crewed lunar landing since

360
00:14:28.190 --> 00:14:30.990
1972, including landing the

361
00:14:30.990 --> 00:14:33.350
first woman and first person of colour on the

362
00:14:33.350 --> 00:14:33.710
moon.

363
00:14:34.030 --> 00:14:36.750
Avery: It's a new chapter in lunar exploration and

364
00:14:36.750 --> 00:14:39.070
we're watching it unfold in real time,

365
00:14:39.150 --> 00:14:41.640
literally. We'll put a link in the show notes

366
00:14:41.640 --> 00:14:42.720
if you'd like to cheque it out.

367
00:14:43.120 --> 00:14:45.080
Anna: And that wraps up today's episode of

368
00:14:45.080 --> 00:14:46.080
Astronomy Daily.

369
00:14:46.400 --> 00:14:48.560
From solar observatories reaching their

370
00:14:48.560 --> 00:14:51.400
cosmic outposts to remembering hard learned

371
00:14:51.400 --> 00:14:54.280
lessons from AI discoveries in telescope

372
00:14:54.280 --> 00:14:56.760
archives to potential meteor showers on

373
00:14:56.760 --> 00:14:59.520
Venus, stellar fireworks at our galactic

374
00:14:59.520 --> 00:15:02.160
centre, and moon rockets on the launch pad,

375
00:15:02.240 --> 00:15:04.320
it's been quite a journey through the cosmos

376
00:15:04.320 --> 00:15:04.640
today.

377
00:15:05.040 --> 00:15:07.690
Avery: It certainly has. If you want to stay up to

378
00:15:07.690 --> 00:15:09.810
date with all the latest space and astronomy

379
00:15:09.810 --> 00:15:11.650
news, make sure you're subscribed to

380
00:15:11.650 --> 00:15:14.010
Astronomy Daily. You can find us on your

381
00:15:14.010 --> 00:15:15.410
favourite podcast platform.

382
00:15:15.890 --> 00:15:17.810
Anna: And don't forget to visit our website at

383
00:15:17.810 --> 00:15:20.610
astronomydaily IO for additional

384
00:15:20.610 --> 00:15:22.890
content, show notes and links to all the

385
00:15:22.890 --> 00:15:24.050
storeys we covered today.

386
00:15:24.370 --> 00:15:26.370
Avery: You can also connect with us on social media

387
00:15:26.610 --> 00:15:29.090
astrodaily Pod across all major

388
00:15:29.090 --> 00:15:29.810
platforms.

389
00:15:30.130 --> 00:15:32.760
Anna: Until next time, keep looking up Clear

390
00:15:32.760 --> 00:15:33.640
skies, everyone.