In astronomy, the month of July has been the month of two things: comets, and Mars. Comet Neowise, or to give it it’s full title C/2020 F3 NEOWISE, has graced the skies of the northern hemispheres, becoming the first naked eye comet for some time. Some have even argued it’s the best comet for decades. In terms of new missions, then this summer marks the best window to launch missions to Mars. These windows come around roughly every two years, or so, since that’s how long it takes for the Earth to line up with Mars’ position around its orbit. This launch window, no fewer than three countries are taking advantage of the opportunity: the United States with the Perseverance Rover, China with the Tianwen-1 orbiter and rover and the United Arab Emirates with the Hope mission. But from missions to Mars to mission to the Sun. Back in February this year the European Space Agency launched the Solar Orbiter mission to study our star and try to answer some of the remaining mysteries. With the first set of initial images and results out, Professor Lucie Green, from the Mullard Space Science Laboratory, provides an update. An extended edition of an original broadcast on 30th July 2020 as part of Pythagoras' Trousers on Radio Cardiff.

Pythagorean Astronomy

Solar Orbiter: Not Suitable for Vegetarians

Science news stories normally revolve around something new that's been learned, or some question that’s been answered. But sometimes, and these are often the most interesting times, there’s an observation or discovery that raises a whole new set of questions – and the mystery deepens. This month we discuss two such discoveries. First of all, an unusual gravitation wave event, detected back in August 2019 and dubbed GW190814. We’ve discussed gravitational waves a number of times on Pythagorean Astronomy before – these ripples in space that are caused by, among other things, massive objects spiralling in and merging. Cardiff University researchers Dr Fabio Antonini and graduate student Charlie Hoy explain why this discovery is unusual, and what we know about the source objects. Second up is the conundrum of Fast Radio Bursts. First discovered in 2007, the latest discovery in the unravelling detective story was made by the CHIME telescope, and involves a fast radio burst that appears to repeat on a roughly 16 day timescale. The study was led by Dongzi Li, a graduate student in Toronto University, who explores what might create such a peculiar signal. An extended edition of an original broadcast on 2nd July 2020 as part of Pythagoras' Trousers on Radio Cardiff.

Mass Gaps and Radio Bursts

Amid the turmoil of not only coronavirus, but also anti-racism protests across the US and now internationally, it's been a notable month for spaceflight. At the end of May, SpaceX launched their first crewed Dragon capsule, which became the first private vehicle to dock with the International Space Station. But the private space sector is much bigger than SpaceX, and is a very international field. There are many companies based here in the UK, including Small Spark Space Systems Ltd, based here in Cardiff. Comprising around a dozen people, and led by CEO Joe Ward, SmallSpark is a relative newcomer. Joe is, in fact, one of our own - a Cardiff physics graduate from a couple of years ago. This month, Joe explains what SmallSpark is, and what the future might have in store for commercial launches from the UK. An extended edition of an original broadcast on 4th June 2020 as part of Pythagoras' Trousers on Radio Cardiff.

SmallSpark

The Hubble Space Telescope is 30 years old - something that even its most enthusiastic supporters couldn't have dreamt of when it launched in 1990. With the help of a host of astronomers and space scientists, Chris North explores the history of the mission and the revolutionary discoveries that have been made. Prof Anu Ojha, Director of the National Space Centre, recaps the launch of the mission and subsequent visits to repair and upgrade it. Cosmologist Prof Steve Eales (Cardiff University) explores how Hubble has reached into the most distant reaches of our Universe. Prof Jane Greaves (Cardiff University), however, delves into the hearts of star-forming regions where solar systems are in the process of forming. Closer to home, planetary scientist Prof Leigh Fletcher (University of Leicester) uses Hubble to study the atmospheres of the giant planets in our Solar System, over both long and short timescales. Lastly, we look to the future, and the James Webb Space Telescope - often billed as the successor to Hubble. Dr Sarah Kendrew, ESA instrument scientist on the MIRI instrument, explains what this future telescope has learned from Hubble, and what we can expect in terms of discoveries. We finish with a look at one of Hubble's most iconic images, and what it means for both astronomers and the general public. An extended edition of an original broadcast on 30th April 2020 as part of Pythagoras' Trousers on Radio Cardiff.

Hubble at 30

In these unprecendented times, it's hard to argue that much of space science and astronomy is key infrastructure, or its staff key workers. And while that's true, like many organisations work cannot simply stop altogether. The European Space Agency runs a multitude of missions, from space observatories to interplanetary explorers, and from solar probes to space stations. Prof Mark McCaughrean, Senior Science Advisor at ESA, tells Chris North how the agency is coping with the lockdowns in force around the world, with staff either self-isolating or working from home. Of course, there are also astronauts on the International Space Station, and they really don't want a serious illness infecting the crew Finally, are there lessons we can learn from those who have entered isolation voluntarily, in places like Concordia Base in Antarctica, or as part of the Mars500 programme. An extended edition of an original broadcast on 2nd April 2020 as part of Pythagoras' Trousers on Radio Cardiff.

Isolation Space

Betelgeuse is still misbehaving, though we're starting to get more information in from observations by some of the largest telescope. Astronomers are narrowing in on the possible explanations. While the dimming of Betelgeuse isn't anything to do with aliens, the SETI programme is still going with a new project designed to focus on planets around stars that might be able to detect Earth's presence. And in the centre of our galaxy there's another hint of a mysterious object - an "intermediate mass black hole" being orbited by a bunch of gas clouds. Chris, Edward and Claudia discuss what the implications might be. In space missions, it's out with the old and in with the new. NASA's Spitzer mission has ended, after over a decade and a half in space. Meanwhile, ESA's Solar Orbiter mission has launched and got underway - after a slightly bumpy start! Finally, Christina Coch has returned to Earth from the International Space Station, after a record-breaking spaceflight. What are we learning from such long duration space flights? An extended edition of an original broadcast on 27th Feb 2020 as part of Pythagoras' Trousers on Radio Cardiff.

Dimming stars, Galactic waves and misbehaving gas clouds

The astronomy world has been a-buzz with news of Betelgeuse, the bright red star in Orion, which appears to be dimming. Chris North, Edward Gomez and Claudia Antolini discuss how unusual this is, and what it means for the star's future. Further afield, there's a newly identified wave in our Galactic neighbourhood, changing our understanding of the nearby region. There are also new hypotheses about the nature of some oddly-behaving gas clouds near the galactic centre - what could explain their unexpected behaviour? Finally emminent astronomer Dr Vera Rubin has been recognised in a couple of ways. A nearby galaxy which was important in developing Rubin's understanding of dark matter has been dubbed Rubin's Galaxy, and an important telescope of the future is to be official known as the Vera C. Rubin Observatory. Finally, Claudia has a recommendation for something space fans might be interested in... An extended edition of an original broadcast on 31st Jan 2020 as part of Pythagoras' Trousers on Radio Cardiff.

The final episode of 2019 includes a look back at a few things that have happened this year, and a look forward to the future. Chris North and Edward Gomez discuss the developments in exoplanet discoveries, and what future missions (such as CHEOPS, Plato and Ariel) may be able to tell us about the wide range of planets out there. We've also had the visitation of interstellar Borisov, which we've discussed a-plenty on Pythagorean Astronomy. Meanwhile, IOP Wales' Engagement Officer Dr Claudia Antolini recaps why spacecraft have been visiting some of the smaller objects in our Solar System, and what we'll learn from upcoming missions such as HERA and DART. Specifically - how might they help protect the Earth one day? Finally there's one of the biggest stories of the last year - the first image of the horizon of a supermassive black hole in galaxy M87 with the Event Horizon Telescope. An extended edition of an original broadcast on 2ndJan 2020 as part of Pythagoras' Trousers on Radio Cardiff.

What the future holds

This month saw the announcement of two follow-up discoveries of two explosive events. Firstly observations of one of the highest energy ever gamma ray burst ever seen, detected back in January, have identified where it originated. Meanwhile, colleagues in Cardiff University have been searching for signs of a remnant neutron star at the heart of Supernova 1987A (which was observed to explode back in 1987) - and they may have found crucial evidence! Closer to home, there are more signs of water vapour plumes erupting from Europa, and evidence that Hygeia, one of the largest objects in the asteroid belt, could be eligble to be characterised as a dwarf planet. Over recent months, there has been excitement about Comet Borisov, a comet which originated in another Solar System. Prof Alan Fitzsimmons, from Queens University Belfast, is one of a number of astronomers from all around the world studying this interstellar visitor. We also discuss the impact on asteroid and comet searches of the recent launches of large groups, or "constellations" of satellites by groups such as SpaceX. An extended edition of an original broadcast on 28th November 2019 as part of Pythagoras' Trousers on Radio Cardiff.

Stellar Explosions and Interstellar Visitors

October 2019 saw the first all-female spacewalk, and the discover of 20 new moons of Saturn. There were also more observations of interstellar comet Borisov, and evidence for the Milky Way's black hole having sent out a violent flare several million years ago. Chris and Edward discuss these latest stories. October also saw a planned hiatus in operations of the LIGO and Virgo detectors, which are mid-way through the third observing run, looking for gravitational waves. We got an update from UBC's Jess McIver and Cardiff's Duncan Macleod, who are involved with the operation of the LIGO detectors.They gave an update on how the discovery of gravitational waves unfolds, and what's planned for the rest of this observing run - including the addition of the Japanese KAGRA detector later this year. An extended edition of an original broadcast on 31st October 2019 as part of Pythagoras' Trousers on Radio Cardiff.

Interstellar Comets, black holes and gravitational waves

The space news cycle was dominated for a while this month with the discovery of water vapour in the atmosphere of planet K2-18b. The planet is in the habitable zone of its star, but is somewhat larger than the Earth - what does that mean for its habitability? Meanwhile, radio astronomers have discovered the most massive neutron star found to date - close to the maximum theoretical limit. Closer to home, India's first attempt at landing on the Moon has ended in disaster, with the Vikram lander crashing onto the surface in the final moments of its journey. And we've had a new interstellar visitor - a comet which appears to have come from another solar system. What could we learn from the interloper as it whizzes through our neighbourhood? An extended edition of an original broadcast on 26th September 2019 as part of Pythagoras' Trousers on Radio Cardiff.

Habitable zones, Lunar landers and Interstellar interlopers

The summer might be "silly season" in the press, but not so in astronomy. With peroxide on moons and belching black holes there's lots of sensible research going on for us to discuss. A number of recent rocket engine tests lead us to consider what the near future of space travel might look like, with a proposed "lunar gateway" providing a staging point for explorers. Where might they go? Perhaps as far as Jupiter's moon, Europa, where recent observations have provided more evidence of a carbon-rich environment beneath the sub-surface ocean. A tantalising place to look for life. Further afield, NASA's TESS satellite has produced its first tranche of results after a year of observations. They show intriguing worlds that fall in what's been appearing to be a "mass gap" in terms of planets, with a narrow range of masses being under-represented. On somewhat larger scales we have the black hole at the centre of our Milky Way galaxy, which appeared to briefly brighten earlier this year - evidence that it may have belched after a small snack. There's even something odd with the galaxy as a whole, with a survey of Cepheid variable stars showing a distinct lop-sided warp to the Milky Way's disk of stars. An extended edition of an original broadcast on 30th August 2019 as part of Pythagoras' Trousers on Radio Cardiff.

Lunar Gateways, Belching Black Holes and Warped Galaxies

July 1969 was the month that the first people walked on the Moon. 12 people walked on the surface of our celestial neighbour between 1969 and 1972. Since then, humanity has been confined to low-Earth orbit. There is talk of sending people back to the Moon, on timescales that vary depending on who you talk to. There’s also talk of missions to Mars, possibly in the next few decades. But for the vast majority of the last 50 years, our exploration has been through our robotic envoys, sent to all manner of planets, moons, comets and asteroids. Some have whizzed by, while others have gone in to orbit. Some have landed on the surface, and a small number have roved or hopped around. The missions have come from a large number of nations, initially the US and Russia, and how Japan, China, Israel and Europe – including, of course, the UK. So what does the future hold for robotic exploration? Where are we sending spacecraft next and why? Dr Colin Wilson, from the University of Oxford, explains what we've learned from just a few of our robotic explorers, and where they might take us in the future. We discuss past, present and future missions to both Venus and Mars, and an exciting prospect of a quadcopter on Titan. An extended edition of an original broadcast on 1st August 2019 as part of Pythagoras' Trousers on Radio Cardiff.

Robotic Explorers

Mars is covered in craters, but most of them are very old. But new ones do appear from time-to-time, created when objects hit the surface of the red planet. That's just what happened at some point a couple of years ago, producing one of Mars' youngest craters. Higher up in Mars' atmosphere, scientists are also learning about the role the micrometeorites play in forming clouds. And how can the Moon reveal secrets about history of the Sun? Closer to home, there has been controversy about once of the latest SpaceX launches, which released 60 satellites into orbit. While impressive, and part of plans for over 10,000 such satellites in orbit, there has been some opposition from astronomers, for whom satellites are a constant irritation. But to the ends (worldwide satellite internet) justify the means? Meanwhile, over a million vounteers have been clicking away on the Galaxy Zoo website, part of the Zooniverse. Chief zookeeper Prof Chris Lintott explains what astronomers have discovered as a result of all this effort. It's overturned commonly held views about the shapes of spiral galaxies, both in their beautiful spiral arms and their central bulges. The result is that we might be able to get a better understanding of the how spiral arms behave when two galaxies get close together. An extended edition of an original broadcast on 4th July 2019 as part of Pythagoras' Trousers on Radio Cardiff.

The slowly spinning Sun, Starlink and Spiral Surprises

A roundup of the month's news from around the Solar System - and beyond. You don't think of mars rovers having drawers, but that's exactly what has just been installed on the Rosalind Franklin Rover, part of ESA's ExoMars mission. This is no ordinary drawer, of course, but the "Analytical Laboratory Drawer", designed to test martian soil for the presence of biomarkers or microfossils, either of which would indicate the presence of present or past life. Closer to home, a mile-wide asteroid called 1999 KW4 has just whizzed past the Earth. It's at a relatively safe distance - 13 Earth-Moon distances, or 5 million km, but it gives us a chance to study it in more detail - including its small moon! You can also take part in the observations, at LCO's Asteroid Tracker (asteroidtracker.lco.global). The presence of a moon isn't that unusual, with many small objects having companions - and not just in the inner Solar System. Further afield, we've just had the first official publication of the results from New Horizons spacecraft's flyby of 2014 MU69, which seems to be the result of two smaller objects colliding very slowly. Meanwhile, the search for gravitational waves goes on, with LIGO and Virgo now well into their third observing run. It's early days, but they're on track for having several dozen detections by the end of this run. May 2019 marks the 10 year anniversary of the launch of the Herschel Space Observatory, ESA's infrared space observatory that studied the formation of stars in our galaxy and beyond. We have the thoughts of four people who worked on the project: Prof Matt Griffin, Prof Haley Gomez, Dr Mattia Negrello and Dr Sarah Ragan. There's also a special bonus episode dedicated to the Herschel's legacy ten years after its launch. An extended edition of an original broadcast on 30th May 2019 as part of Pythagoras' Trousers on Radio Cardiff.

Biomarkers, near-misses and anniversaries

Astronomy news and interviews with scientists involved in the discoveries.

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Pythagorean Astronomy

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