00:52 – **New research suggests Europa's vast subsurface ocean might not support life
02:38 – **NASA is eyeing February 6, 2026 for launch of historic Artemis 2 mission
03:50 – **James Webb Space Telescope finds dwarf galaxy with super low metallicity
06:36 – **Astronomers predict rare double exoplanet transit in 2026### Sources & Further Reading1. NASA2. James Webb Space Telescope3. European Space Agency4. Jet Propulsion Laboratory### Follow & ContactX/Twitter: @AstroDailyPod
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This episode includes AI-generated content.
00:00:00 --> 00:00:02 Anna: Hello and welcome to Astronomy
00:00:02 --> 00:00:05 Daily, your daily dose of space and
00:00:05 --> 00:00:08 astronomy news. I'm Anna, and
00:00:08 --> 00:00:10 sitting across from me virtually of course,
00:00:10 --> 00:00:13 is my co host, Avery. Hey, Avery.
00:00:13 --> 00:00:16 Happy January 7th. We are already a
00:00:16 --> 00:00:19 week into 2026 and the stories
00:00:19 --> 00:00:20 just keep coming.
00:00:20 --> 00:00:23 Avery: Hey, Anna. And hi everyone out there gazing
00:00:23 --> 00:00:26 at the stars with us. Absolutely. It's been a
00:00:26 --> 00:00:29 whirlwind start to the year. Today we've got
00:00:29 --> 00:00:31 a mix of sobering science about one of
00:00:31 --> 00:00:34 Jupiter' moons. Exciting updates on the next
00:00:34 --> 00:00:36 human trip to the moon, a surprising
00:00:36 --> 00:00:39 JWST discovery, gorgeous
00:00:39 --> 00:00:42 views from Mars, a sky watching heads
00:00:42 --> 00:00:44 up, and some bittersweet news from NASA
00:00:44 --> 00:00:47 History. Six great stories.
00:00:47 --> 00:00:50 Anna: Let's dive into it, starting with a bit of a
00:00:50 --> 00:00:52 downer for astrobiology fans.
00:00:52 --> 00:00:55 New research suggests that Europa's
00:00:55 --> 00:00:58 vast subsurface ocean might be too
00:00:58 --> 00:01:01 quiet to support life as we know it today.
00:01:01 --> 00:01:04 Avery: Yeah, this comes from a study just published
00:01:04 --> 00:01:06 in Nature Communications. Europa, that
00:01:06 --> 00:01:09 cracked ice moon of Jupiter, has this global
00:01:09 --> 00:01:12 ocean deeper than anything on Earth.
00:01:12 --> 00:01:15 Maybe 100 kilometers deep under a
00:01:15 --> 00:01:18 15 to 25 kilometer thick ice shell.
00:01:18 --> 00:01:21 More water than all our oceans combined. But
00:01:21 --> 00:01:24 the key question is energy. Life needs not
00:01:24 --> 00:01:26 just water and organics, but a source of
00:01:26 --> 00:01:27 chemical energy.
00:01:28 --> 00:01:31 Anna: Exactly. On Earth, a lot of that comes
00:01:31 --> 00:01:33 from hydrothermal vents on the seafloor.
00:01:33 --> 00:01:36 Hot mineral rich fluids fueling
00:01:36 --> 00:01:39 ecosystems. But the models here, based
00:01:39 --> 00:01:41 on Europa's size, composition and
00:01:41 --> 00:01:44 tidal heating from Jupiter, show the
00:01:44 --> 00:01:47 seafloor is likely inactive. No
00:01:47 --> 00:01:49 tectonic plates moving, no fresh
00:01:49 --> 00:01:52 fractures, no active volcanoes or hot
00:01:52 --> 00:01:55 plumes. The rocky core cooled billions
00:01:55 --> 00:01:58 of years ago. And tidal forces aren't strong
00:01:58 --> 00:02:00 enough to keep things churn like they do on
00:02:00 --> 00:02:01 IO.
00:02:01 --> 00:02:04 Avery: Lead researcher Paul Byrne put it bluntly,
00:02:04 --> 00:02:07 the energy just doesn't seem to be there to
00:02:07 --> 00:02:10 support life. At least today. If we sent
00:02:10 --> 00:02:12 a submersible down there, we'd probably see a
00:02:12 --> 00:02:15 still, quiet bottom. Nothing geologically
00:02:15 --> 00:02:18 exciting. It's a reminder that habitability
00:02:18 --> 00:02:21 needs that dynamic interplay, not just the
00:02:21 --> 00:02:22 big ocean.
00:02:22 --> 00:02:25 Anna: Still, it's today. Maybe early
00:02:25 --> 00:02:27 Europa was more active. And missions like
00:02:27 --> 00:02:30 Europa, uh, Clipper launching soon will give
00:02:30 --> 00:02:32 us better data on plan plumes and surface
00:02:32 --> 00:02:34 chemistry. Fingers crossed for some
00:02:34 --> 00:02:35 surprises.
00:02:36 --> 00:02:38 Avery: Definitely. Europa keeps us hooked.
00:02:38 --> 00:02:41 Anna: Shifting to human exploration, the
00:02:41 --> 00:02:44 historic Artemis 2 mission, the first
00:02:44 --> 00:02:46 crewed flight around the moon in over 50
00:02:46 --> 00:02:49 years, could be just a month away now.
00:02:50 --> 00:02:52 Avery: As of early January, NASA is eyeing
00:02:52 --> 00:02:55 February 6, 2026 for launch,
00:02:55 --> 00:02:58 though nothing's locked in yet. The SLS
00:02:58 --> 00:03:00 rocket and Orion capsule are stacked in the
00:03:00 --> 00:03:02 vehicle assembly building at Kennedy Space
00:03:02 --> 00:03:05 center with rollout to the pad expected in
00:03:05 --> 00:03:07 the next couple weeks. Then comes final
00:03:07 --> 00:03:10 checks, integration and the wet dress
00:03:10 --> 00:03:11 rehearsal.
00:03:11 --> 00:03:14 Anna: The crew is awesome. NASA astronauts
00:03:14 --> 00:03:17 Reid Wiseman as commander Victor Glover,
00:03:17 --> 00:03:20 pilot Christina Koch, mission specialist
00:03:20 --> 00:03:23 and Jeremy Hansen from Canada. They'll do
00:03:23 --> 00:03:25 a free return trajectory around the moon,
00:03:25 --> 00:03:28 testing life support, navigation, everything
00:03:28 --> 00:03:31 from deep space with humans aboard. Since
00:03:31 --> 00:03:34 Apollo 17, delays came from
00:03:34 --> 00:03:34 heat.
00:03:34 --> 00:03:37 Avery: Shield issues on Artemis 1, but NASA's fixed
00:03:37 --> 00:03:39 staff for crew safety. It's thrilling. We're
00:03:39 --> 00:03:41 so close to seeing humans back in lunar
00:03:41 --> 00:03:44 space. And it sets up the whole Artemis
00:03:44 --> 00:03:46 program for landings and bases.
00:03:46 --> 00:03:49 Anna: I can't wait to watch that launch livestream.
00:03:49 --> 00:03:50 Goosebumps.
00:03:50 --> 00:03:52 Already thinking about it next.
00:03:52 --> 00:03:55 Avery: The James Webb Space Telescope has spotted
00:03:55 --> 00:03:57 something unexpected in a galaxy that's like
00:03:57 --> 00:03:59 a window into the early universe.
00:04:00 --> 00:04:02 Anna: This is Sextance A a dwarf
00:04:02 --> 00:04:05 galaxy with super low metallicity. Just
00:04:05 --> 00:04:08 3 to 7% of the sun's heavy
00:04:08 --> 00:04:10 elements. It's an analog for galaxies
00:04:11 --> 00:04:13 shortly after the Big Bang when everything
00:04:13 --> 00:04:15 was mostly hydrogen and helium.
00:04:16 --> 00:04:19 Avery: Normally we'd expect almost no dust there.
00:04:19 --> 00:04:21 Dust needs those heavier elements like
00:04:21 --> 00:04:24 silicon or magnesium to form silicates.
00:04:24 --> 00:04:27 But JWST found two rare
00:04:27 --> 00:04:30 types metallic iron dust grains and
00:04:30 --> 00:04:33 silicon carbide. Stars, especially
00:04:33 --> 00:04:35 aging asymptotic giant branch ones, are
00:04:35 --> 00:04:37 forging peas via alternative chemistry
00:04:37 --> 00:04:40 pathways, even with scarce ingredients.
00:04:40 --> 00:04:43 Anna: They also detected polycyclic
00:04:43 --> 00:04:46 aromatic hydrocarbons, complex
00:04:46 --> 00:04:48 carbon molecules in tiny dense
00:04:48 --> 00:04:51 pockets. That's the lowest metallicity
00:04:51 --> 00:04:54 place we've seen. Pahs it
00:04:54 --> 00:04:57 means early galaxies were dustier and more
00:04:57 --> 00:05:00 inventive than models predicted. Building
00:05:00 --> 00:05:02 planet forming materials way sooner.
00:05:03 --> 00:05:06 Avery: Huge implications. Dust helps cool gas
00:05:06 --> 00:05:09 for star formation, absorbs light and
00:05:09 --> 00:05:11 seeds rocky planets. This reshapes how we
00:05:11 --> 00:05:14 think high redshift galaxies evolved, maybe
00:05:14 --> 00:05:17 more building blocks for world like ours
00:05:17 --> 00:05:18 earlier than thought.
00:05:18 --> 00:05:21 Anna: JWST just keeps rewriting the
00:05:21 --> 00:05:22 textbooks.
00:05:22 --> 00:05:25 Avery: From deep space to Mars, Curiosity rover
00:05:25 --> 00:05:27 has sent back a stunning new panorama from
00:05:27 --> 00:05:29 high up on Mount Sharp.
00:05:29 --> 00:05:31 Anna: This composite was taken in November
00:05:31 --> 00:05:34 2025 from a ridge in Gale
00:05:34 --> 00:05:37 Crater, combining shots from afternoon and
00:05:37 --> 00:05:39 morning. Mars. Time to capture changing
00:05:39 --> 00:05:42 light. It looks north across this
00:05:42 --> 00:05:45 intricate boxwork formation. Networks of
00:05:45 --> 00:05:47 mineral ridges hardened by ancient
00:05:47 --> 00:05:50 groundwater billions of years ago. Now
00:05:50 --> 00:05:51 exposed by wind.
00:05:52 --> 00:05:54 Avery: You can see the rover's wheel track snaking
00:05:54 --> 00:05:56 behind a drill site called Valley de la
00:05:56 --> 00:05:59 Luna. The slopes dropping to the crater floor
00:05:59 --> 00:06:02 and the rim 25 miles away. On the horizon,
00:06:02 --> 00:06:05 Mount Sharp itself towers three miles high.
00:06:05 --> 00:06:08 Curiosity's been climbing it since 2012,
00:06:08 --> 00:06:10 layer by layer, reading Mars's climate
00:06:10 --> 00:06:11 history.
00:06:11 --> 00:06:14 Anna: These veins and sediments tell of wetter
00:06:14 --> 00:06:17 times, possible habitability, then
00:06:17 --> 00:06:19 drying out. Recent drills, like at
00:06:19 --> 00:06:22 Nevado Sahama are analyzing chemistry
00:06:22 --> 00:06:25 to piece together water flow. Plus, the
00:06:25 --> 00:06:27 rover's using Smarter Autonomy now for
00:06:27 --> 00:06:30 multitasking. Thirteen years in and
00:06:30 --> 00:06:31 still going strong.
00:06:32 --> 00:06:34 Avery: Those views never get old. Makes you feel
00:06:34 --> 00:06:36 like you're there on the red dust.
00:06:36 --> 00:06:38 Anna: For sky watchers, there's some intriguing
00:06:38 --> 00:06:41 buzz about a truly rare astronomical event
00:06:41 --> 00:06:43 coming up in 2026, though
00:06:43 --> 00:06:46 unfortunately, it's highly likely astronomers
00:06:46 --> 00:06:48 won't be able to watch it in real time, even
00:06:48 --> 00:06:49 though they know it's coming.
00:06:50 --> 00:06:52 Avery: Yeah, this one's a bit different from the
00:06:52 --> 00:06:54 usual planetary parades in our solar system.
00:06:55 --> 00:06:57 The story is about a predicted
00:06:57 --> 00:07:00 exosity that's a syzygy,
00:07:00 --> 00:07:02 or alignment of three bodies. But in an
00:07:02 --> 00:07:05 extrasolar system specifically,
00:07:05 --> 00:07:08 two known exoplanets in a distant system
00:07:08 --> 00:07:11 are expected to simultaneously transit across
00:07:11 --> 00:07:13 the face of their host star as seen from
00:07:13 --> 00:07:13 Earth.
00:07:13 --> 00:07:16 Anna: The event is forecasted for around April
00:07:16 --> 00:07:19 1, 2026, based on orbital models
00:07:19 --> 00:07:22 refined from past data. It's only the second
00:07:22 --> 00:07:25 such double exoplanet transit ever predicted.
00:07:25 --> 00:07:27 The first One, back in 2010, was actually
00:07:27 --> 00:07:30 discovered retrospectively in archival data
00:07:30 --> 00:07:33 NASA's Kepler mission. That one was missed in
00:07:33 --> 00:07:36 real time, and sadly, this 2026
00:07:36 --> 00:07:37 event might suffer.
00:07:37 --> 00:07:40 Avery: The same fate Exactly. Lead
00:07:40 --> 00:07:42 researcher Teriyuki Hirano has noted that
00:07:42 --> 00:07:45 while calculations suggest a good chance
00:07:45 --> 00:07:47 it'll happen, it depends on factors like the
00:07:47 --> 00:07:50 planet's exact masses, gravitational
00:07:50 --> 00:07:52 interactions, and whether there's an unseen
00:07:52 --> 00:07:55 outer planet tugging on the system. But the
00:07:55 --> 00:07:58 bigger issue is observation time. Major
00:07:58 --> 00:08:00 telescopes and space missions have tightly
00:08:00 --> 00:08:03 scheduled queues, and without pre allocated
00:08:03 --> 00:08:05 slots, astronomers likely won't get the
00:08:05 --> 00:08:07 continuous coverage needed to watch the
00:08:07 --> 00:08:09 transits unfold live.
00:08:09 --> 00:08:12 Anna: As Hirano put it, I hope to observe, but
00:08:12 --> 00:08:14 I am not sure that I can get an observing
00:08:14 --> 00:08:16 time with an appropriate telescope for the
00:08:16 --> 00:08:19 whole event. Real time data would be gold.
00:08:19 --> 00:08:22 It could reveal transit timing variations
00:08:22 --> 00:08:24 showing how the planets gravitationally
00:08:24 --> 00:08:26 influence each other, or even hint at
00:08:26 --> 00:08:28 additional unseen worlds.
00:08:29 --> 00:08:32 Avery: Scientifically, these rare double transits
00:08:32 --> 00:08:34 are huge for understanding multiplanet
00:08:34 --> 00:08:37 systems, refining orbits, measuring masses
00:08:37 --> 00:08:40 more precisely, and probing dynamics similar
00:08:40 --> 00:08:42 to how Jupiter and Saturn interact here.
00:08:42 --> 00:08:45 But since the host star is faint and far
00:08:45 --> 00:08:47 away, it's strictly professional telescope
00:08:47 --> 00:08:50 territory, no naked eye or amateur viewing
00:08:50 --> 00:08:51 possible.
00:08:51 --> 00:08:54 Anna: So while it's an exciting milestone for
00:08:54 --> 00:08:56 exoplanet science, it's a reminder of how
00:08:56 --> 00:08:59 telescope time is one of the most precious
00:08:59 --> 00:09:01 resources in astronomy. We'll have to wait
00:09:01 --> 00:09:03 for the data analysis afterward to learn what
00:09:03 --> 00:09:06 happened. In the meantime, there are plenty
00:09:06 --> 00:09:08 of visible solar system alignments to enjoy
00:09:08 --> 00:09:11 throughout 2026. Like that tight trio of
00:09:11 --> 00:09:14 Mercury, Mars and Saturn on April 20th in the
00:09:14 --> 00:09:16 morning sky, or the brighter conjunctions
00:09:16 --> 00:09:18 with Venus and Jupiter later in the year.
00:09:19 --> 00:09:21 Avery: Definitely keep an eye on those for some
00:09:21 --> 00:09:24 great naked eye or binocular views. The
00:09:24 --> 00:09:26 universe has events for every level of
00:09:26 --> 00:09:29 observer. Finally, a, uh, touch of nostalgia.
00:09:29 --> 00:09:32 NASA's preparing to demolish three historic
00:09:32 --> 00:09:34 test facilities at Marshall Space Flight
00:09:34 --> 00:09:35 center in Alabama.
00:09:35 --> 00:09:38 Anna: These are real icons. The Neutral
00:09:38 --> 00:09:41 Buoyancy Simulator, a massive pool from the
00:09:41 --> 00:09:44 1960s for weightless training used for
00:09:44 --> 00:09:46 Hubble repairs and shuttle hardware. The
00:09:46 --> 00:09:49 Propulsion and Structural Test Facility, or t
00:09:49 --> 00:09:52 Tower from 1957 tested
00:09:52 --> 00:09:55 Redstone, Saturn and shuttle boosters.
00:09:55 --> 00:09:58 And the Dynamic Test Facility, tallest in
00:09:58 --> 00:10:01 north Alabama when built in 1964
00:10:01 --> 00:10:02 shook.
00:10:02 --> 00:10:04 Avery: Saturn V and shuttle elements,
00:10:04 --> 00:10:07 all national landmarks since 1985.
00:10:07 --> 00:10:10 Key to Apollo, Skylab and Shuttle,
00:10:10 --> 00:10:13 but they're inactive, unsafe and costly to
00:10:13 --> 00:10:16 maintain. Demolition starts with implosions,
00:10:16 --> 00:10:19 possibly as soon as January 10th. Part of
00:10:19 --> 00:10:22 clearing 25 old structures to modernize for
00:10:22 --> 00:10:22 Artemis.
00:10:23 --> 00:10:25 Anna: Bittersweet, but NASA's preserving the
00:10:25 --> 00:10:28 legacy. High res digital models,
00:10:28 --> 00:10:30 artifacts to museums, virtual tours.
00:10:31 --> 00:10:33 End of an era making way for the next.
00:10:34 --> 00:10:36 Avery: Yeah, progress often means saying goodbye to
00:10:36 --> 00:10:37 the past.
00:10:37 --> 00:10:40 Anna: What a thoughtful mix today. Quiet oceans,
00:10:40 --> 00:10:43 upcoming moonshots, dusty early
00:10:43 --> 00:10:46 galaxies, Martian vistas, sky
00:10:46 --> 00:10:46 events.
00:10:46 --> 00:10:49 Avery: And honoring history, the cosmos and
00:10:49 --> 00:10:51 our exploration of it. Always evolving.
00:10:52 --> 00:10:53 Thanks for spending your time with us on
00:10:53 --> 00:10:54 Astronomy Daily.
00:10:54 --> 00:10:56 Anna: We love bringing these stories to you.
00:10:57 --> 00:10:59 Subscribe if you haven't, share with a friend
00:10:59 --> 00:11:00 and we'll be back tomorrow.
00:11:01 --> 00:11:03 Avery: Until then, keep wondering and looking up.
00:11:03 --> 00:11:05 Anna: Clear skies, everyone.