00:00:00 --> 00:00:02 Avery: Hello, and welcome to Astronomy Daily,
00:00:02 --> 00:00:05 the podcast that brings you the universe, one
00:00:05 --> 00:00:08 story at a time. I'm Avery, and as always,
00:00:08 --> 00:00:10 I'm joined by the brilliant Anna.
00:00:11 --> 00:00:13 Anna: Hi, Avery. And hello to all our
00:00:13 --> 00:00:16 listeners. We have a busy show today
00:00:16 --> 00:00:19 covering everything from a groundbreaking new
00:00:19 --> 00:00:21 private space telescope to Russia's only
00:00:21 --> 00:00:24 crewed launch pad. Running into some trouble.
00:00:25 --> 00:00:27 Avery: Plus, we've got the James Webb Space
00:00:27 --> 00:00:30 Telescope doing what it does best, peering
00:00:30 --> 00:00:32 into the heart of our Galax. And we'll
00:00:32 --> 00:00:35 look at some stunning new photos of home.
00:00:35 --> 00:00:38 So let's get started. Anna, uh, tell us about
00:00:38 --> 00:00:39 this new telescope.
00:00:40 --> 00:00:41 Anna: Absolutely.
00:00:41 --> 00:00:44 Our first story is a big one, though. It
00:00:44 --> 00:00:47 comes in a small package. A new space
00:00:47 --> 00:00:49 telescope named Mouth, about the size of
00:00:49 --> 00:00:52 a mini fridge, just launched successfully
00:00:52 --> 00:00:55 aboard a SpaceX transporter mission.
00:00:55 --> 00:00:57 Avery: Okay, a, uh, mini fridge in space.
00:00:58 --> 00:00:59 What makes this one so special?
00:01:00 --> 00:01:03 Anna: Well, unlike Hubble or Webb, Malve is
00:01:03 --> 00:01:06 owned by a private company, Blue Skies Space.
00:01:07 --> 00:01:09 And this is the key difference. Its data will
00:01:09 --> 00:01:12 also be private. Researchers will have to
00:01:12 --> 00:01:15 subscribe to get access to the ultraviolet
00:01:15 --> 00:01:15 spectra.
00:01:15 --> 00:01:18 Avery: It collects a subscription model
00:01:18 --> 00:01:21 for astronomical data. That's a
00:01:21 --> 00:01:22 fascinating shift.
00:01:23 --> 00:01:26 Anna: It really is. The mission was funded by a
00:01:26 --> 00:01:28 mix of EU grants and private funding,
00:01:29 --> 00:01:31 costing significantly less than comparable
00:01:31 --> 00:01:34 NASA missions. It's built on a CubeSat
00:01:34 --> 00:01:37 chassis, which is incredibly compact and
00:01:37 --> 00:01:40 will spend three years in low Earth orbit
00:01:40 --> 00:01:42 observing exoplanets, stellar flares
00:01:42 --> 00:01:44 and monitoring stars.
00:01:45 --> 00:01:47 Avery: So why would, uh, astronomers pay for this?
00:01:48 --> 00:01:50 Is the data that unique?
00:01:50 --> 00:01:53 Anna: It's about Access time on
00:01:53 --> 00:01:55 telescopes like Hubble is at an extreme
00:01:55 --> 00:01:58 premium, and most proposals get rejected.
00:01:59 --> 00:02:01 Mauve offers a dedicated stream of
00:02:01 --> 00:02:04 ultraviolet data, which is only accessible
00:02:04 --> 00:02:07 from space. For many institutions, an
00:02:07 --> 00:02:09 annual subscription could be a more reliable
00:02:09 --> 00:02:12 way to get the specific data they need for
00:02:12 --> 00:02:13 long term studies.
00:02:14 --> 00:02:16 Avery: That makes sense. So this could be the start
00:02:16 --> 00:02:19 of a whole new commercial market for
00:02:19 --> 00:02:20 astronomical observation.
00:02:21 --> 00:02:24 Anna: Exactly. Blue Sky Space already has
00:02:24 --> 00:02:26 another mission, Twinkle, planned for
00:02:26 --> 00:02:29 2027 to study exoplanet planet
00:02:29 --> 00:02:32 atmospheres. With falling launch costs and
00:02:32 --> 00:02:34 miniaturization, this could really change how
00:02:34 --> 00:02:37 a lot of astronomical research is done.
00:02:37 --> 00:02:40 Avery: Incredible. From a new beginning
00:02:40 --> 00:02:41 to a potential problem.
00:02:42 --> 00:02:45 Our next story takes us to the Baikonur
00:02:45 --> 00:02:47 Cosmodrome and Kazakhstan. Anna, uh,
00:02:48 --> 00:02:50 you have the details on some trouble for
00:02:50 --> 00:02:51 Roscosmos?
00:02:52 --> 00:02:54 Anna: That's right. Following the successful launch
00:02:54 --> 00:02:57 of the Soyuz MS.28 crew to the
00:02:57 --> 00:02:59 International Space Station, it seems the
00:02:59 --> 00:03:01 launch pad itself itself sustained some
00:03:01 --> 00:03:03 significant damage.
00:03:03 --> 00:03:05 Avery: What happened exactly?
00:03:06 --> 00:03:07 Anna: During the post launch inspection,
00:03:08 --> 00:03:11 Roscosmos confirmed that a maintenance cabin
00:03:11 --> 00:03:13 located in the Flame trench at site
00:03:13 --> 00:03:16 31.6 collapsed. This is a
00:03:16 --> 00:03:18 critical piece of hardware needed to prepare
00:03:18 --> 00:03:19 rockets for launch.
00:03:20 --> 00:03:23 Avery: And this is Russia's only active launch pad
00:03:23 --> 00:03:26 for sending cosmonauts to the iss. Right.
00:03:26 --> 00:03:29 Anna: That's the crucial part. They used to use the
00:03:29 --> 00:03:32 historic site one, Gagarin's start, but
00:03:32 --> 00:03:35 it was retired in 2020. So since
00:03:35 --> 00:03:38 then, all Russian crewed and cargo flights
00:03:38 --> 00:03:40 have gone from site 31. Roscosmos
00:03:40 --> 00:03:42 says they have the spare parts and will
00:03:42 --> 00:03:45 repair the damage, but some outside estimates
00:03:45 --> 00:03:47 suggest it could take up to two years.
00:03:48 --> 00:03:51 Avery: Two years. That would have a major
00:03:51 --> 00:03:54 impact on their ISS operations. There's
00:03:54 --> 00:03:56 a progress resupply mission scheduled for
00:03:56 --> 00:03:57 next month.
00:03:58 --> 00:04:01 Anna: Indeed, it's unclear at this point if that
00:04:01 --> 00:04:04 schedule will hold or if another pad could be
00:04:04 --> 00:04:06 adopted. The good news, of course, is that
00:04:06 --> 00:04:09 the Soyuz MS.28 crew, including
00:04:09 --> 00:04:12 NASA astronaut Chris Williams, arrived at the
00:04:12 --> 00:04:14 station safely and are beginning their 8m
00:04:14 --> 00:04:15 month stay.
00:04:15 --> 00:04:17 Avery: A, uh, situation to watch for. Sure.
00:04:18 --> 00:04:20 Alright, let's shift our gaze from Earth
00:04:20 --> 00:04:23 orbit to the very center of our galaxy. And
00:04:24 --> 00:04:26 the James Webb Space Telescope has been
00:04:26 --> 00:04:28 watching the Milky Way's supermassive black
00:04:28 --> 00:04:30 hole, Sagittarius A.
00:04:31 --> 00:04:33 And it saw something spectacular.
00:04:34 --> 00:04:37 Anna: It did. Astronomers used Webb
00:04:37 --> 00:04:39 to observe flares from Sagittarius
00:04:39 --> 00:04:42 A in mid infrared light
00:04:42 --> 00:04:45 for the first time. We've seen these flares
00:04:45 --> 00:04:48 in other wavelengths like near infrared
00:04:48 --> 00:04:51 and radio, but. But mid infrared was
00:04:51 --> 00:04:53 the missing piece of the puzzle.
00:04:53 --> 00:04:55 Avery: Why is seeing it in a different wavelength so
00:04:55 --> 00:04:57 important? Does it just look different?
00:04:57 --> 00:05:00 Anna: It's about understanding the physics of
00:05:00 --> 00:05:03 what's happening. The processes that create
00:05:03 --> 00:05:05 these flares don't show up in all
00:05:05 --> 00:05:08 wavelengths equally. By observing
00:05:08 --> 00:05:11 in mid infrared, Webb is bridging the
00:05:11 --> 00:05:14 gap between what we see in near infrared
00:05:14 --> 00:05:16 and radio waves, giving us a more
00:05:16 --> 00:05:19 complete picture of how the flare evolved.
00:05:19 --> 00:05:22 Avery: So what did this new view reveal? Mhm.
00:05:22 --> 00:05:25 Anna: Two really cool things. First, they
00:05:25 --> 00:05:28 confirmed that a process called synchrotron
00:05:28 --> 00:05:30 cooling is happening. This is when high
00:05:30 --> 00:05:33 speed electrons lose energy by
00:05:33 --> 00:05:36 emitting radiation. And that's what powers
00:05:36 --> 00:05:38 the mid infrared light we're seeing.
00:05:38 --> 00:05:41 Avery: Okay. Synchroton cooling. And the second
00:05:41 --> 00:05:43 thing, this is the.
00:05:43 --> 00:05:46 Anna: Big one, because the speed of that cooling
00:05:46 --> 00:05:48 process depends on the strength of the
00:05:48 --> 00:05:51 magnetic field. These new observations
00:05:51 --> 00:05:54 allow scientists to measure the magnetic
00:05:54 --> 00:05:57 field around the black hole more
00:05:57 --> 00:05:59 directly and cleanly than ever before.
00:06:00 --> 00:06:03 It's a critical parameter for understanding
00:06:03 --> 00:06:05 how these cosmic giants are sculpted
00:06:05 --> 00:06:08 and how they eject so much energy.
00:06:08 --> 00:06:11 Avery: Wow. So we're getting a direct measurement of
00:06:11 --> 00:06:13 the magnetic environment right next to a
00:06:13 --> 00:06:16 supermassive black hole. That's A huge step.
00:06:16 --> 00:06:19 Anna: It is. And the lead researchers
00:06:19 --> 00:06:22 emphasized this was only possible because
00:06:22 --> 00:06:25 of Webb's MIRI instrument, which can
00:06:25 --> 00:06:27 observe in that specific wavelength with
00:06:27 --> 00:06:30 incredible sensitivity, something
00:06:30 --> 00:06:31 impossible from the ground.
00:06:32 --> 00:06:35 Avery: Absolutely incredible. So now that we have
00:06:35 --> 00:06:37 this new tool to measure the magnetic field
00:06:37 --> 00:06:40 so close to the event horizon, we. What's the
00:06:40 --> 00:06:42 next big question these researchers are
00:06:42 --> 00:06:44 trying to answer? Are they looking for
00:06:44 --> 00:06:46 something specific in future observations?
00:06:47 --> 00:06:50 Anna: The ultimate goal is to understand how
00:06:50 --> 00:06:53 Sagittarius A feeds and grows.
00:06:53 --> 00:06:56 These flares are thought to be the crumbs
00:06:56 --> 00:06:59 from its meals, gas and stars that
00:06:59 --> 00:07:01 get too close. By studying the
00:07:01 --> 00:07:04 magnetic field, scientists can build better
00:07:04 --> 00:07:07 models of the accretion disk, which is the
00:07:07 --> 00:07:10 swirling vortex of matter that feeds the
00:07:10 --> 00:07:13 black hole. They want to understand how this
00:07:13 --> 00:07:16 magnetic field extracts energy and
00:07:16 --> 00:07:19 launches powerful jets of particles, a, uh,
00:07:19 --> 00:07:21 phenomenon we see in more active
00:07:21 --> 00:07:24 supermassive black holes across the universe.
00:07:24 --> 00:07:27 Webb's observations are providing the crucial
00:07:27 --> 00:07:29 ground truth for those theories.
00:07:29 --> 00:07:31 Avery: Another win for Webb.
00:07:31 --> 00:07:34 Okay, from one innovative space mission to
00:07:34 --> 00:07:37 another. The European Space Agency just
00:07:37 --> 00:07:39 launched its first, first scout mission.
00:07:39 --> 00:07:42 Anna, uh, what is Hydro GNNS
00:07:42 --> 00:07:43 scouting for?
00:07:43 --> 00:07:46 Anna: As the name suggests, it's scouting for
00:07:46 --> 00:07:48 water. Hydro GNNSS
00:07:48 --> 00:07:51 consists of two small twin satellites
00:07:51 --> 00:07:54 also launched on that same transporter 15
00:07:54 --> 00:07:57 rideshare flight we mentioned earlier. Their
00:07:57 --> 00:07:59 goal is to improve our understanding of
00:07:59 --> 00:08:01 Earth's water cycle.
00:08:01 --> 00:08:02 Avery: And how are they doing that? What's the
00:08:02 --> 00:08:03 technology?
00:08:04 --> 00:08:07 Anna: It's a really clever technique called GNSS
00:08:07 --> 00:08:10 reflectometry. Essentially, the
00:08:10 --> 00:08:12 satellites listen for signals from navigation
00:08:12 --> 00:08:15 systems like GPS and Galileo.
00:08:16 --> 00:08:18 They compare the signals they receive
00:08:18 --> 00:08:20 directly from the navigation satellites with
00:08:20 --> 00:08:22 the signals that have reflected off the
00:08:22 --> 00:08:23 Earth's surface.
00:08:24 --> 00:08:26 Avery: Right. And the way those signals change after
00:08:26 --> 00:08:29 bouncing off the ground tells them something.
00:08:30 --> 00:08:32 Anna: Exactly. It reveals valuable information
00:08:33 --> 00:08:36 about key parts of the water cycle, such as
00:08:36 --> 00:08:39 soil moisture, the freeze, thaw, state of
00:08:39 --> 00:08:41 the ground, areas of flooding or
00:08:41 --> 00:08:44 wetlands, and even the amount of
00:08:44 --> 00:08:46 biomass in forests. These are all
00:08:46 --> 00:08:49 critical for things like predicting floods,
00:08:49 --> 00:08:52 planning agriculture, and understanding
00:08:52 --> 00:08:53 carbon cycles.
00:08:53 --> 00:08:56 Avery: You mentioned this is a scout mission. What
00:08:56 --> 00:08:57 does that mean for esa?
00:08:57 --> 00:09:00 Anna: It's a new approach for them, inspired by the
00:09:00 --> 00:09:03 new space philosophy. Scout missions
00:09:03 --> 00:09:06 are designed to be fast, agile and low
00:09:06 --> 00:09:09 cost. They go from concept to launch in
00:09:09 --> 00:09:11 just three years with a lean budget,
00:09:11 --> 00:09:14 complementing their larger, more traditional
00:09:14 --> 00:09:16 Earth explorer missions. Hydro
00:09:16 --> 00:09:19 GNSS is the first of this new
00:09:19 --> 00:09:19 family.
00:09:20 --> 00:09:22 Avery: That's fantastic. It's great to see agencies
00:09:22 --> 00:09:25 embracing faster, more innovative development
00:09:25 --> 00:09:25 cycles.
00:09:26 --> 00:09:29 Finally, let's bring it back home. NASA's
00:09:29 --> 00:09:32 Osiris APEX spacecraft recently swung by
00:09:32 --> 00:09:34 Earth and sent Back some souvenirs.
00:09:34 --> 00:09:37 Anna: It did. Listeners will remember this
00:09:37 --> 00:09:39 spacecraft as Osiris Rex, the
00:09:39 --> 00:09:42 mission that successfully returned a sample
00:09:42 --> 00:09:45 from the asteroid Bennu. After dropping off
00:09:45 --> 00:09:47 its precious cargo, it was given a new name,
00:09:47 --> 00:09:50 Osiris Apexed, and a new target,
00:09:50 --> 00:09:52 the asteroid Apophis.
00:09:53 --> 00:09:55 Avery: And to get there, it needed a little help
00:09:55 --> 00:09:55 from home.
00:09:56 --> 00:09:58 Anna: That's right. It performed a gravity assist
00:09:59 --> 00:10:01 flyby of Earth, using our planet's
00:10:01 --> 00:10:04 gravity to slingshot itself on a new course
00:10:04 --> 00:10:06 towards Apophis. During this maneuver,
00:10:06 --> 00:10:09 it flew just over 2 miles above the
00:10:09 --> 00:10:12 surface and took some absolutely stunning
00:10:12 --> 00:10:15 photos of Earth showing swirling cloud
00:10:15 --> 00:10:16 patterns over blue oceans.
00:10:17 --> 00:10:19 Avery: I saw those pictures. They're breathtaking.
00:10:19 --> 00:10:21 It also got a shot of the moon, didn't it?
00:10:22 --> 00:10:24 Anna: It did. As it was departing, it captured a
00:10:24 --> 00:10:27 dramatic image of the Earth and Moon in the
00:10:27 --> 00:10:29 same frame from about
00:10:29 --> 00:10:31 370 miles away.
00:10:31 --> 00:10:34 Besides being beautiful, these images
00:10:34 --> 00:10:36 confirmed that its cameras are working
00:10:36 --> 00:10:36 perfectly.
00:10:36 --> 00:10:39 Ahead of its new mission and its.
00:10:39 --> 00:10:41 Avery: Target, Apophis is a particularly
00:10:41 --> 00:10:43 interesting asteroid, isn't it?
00:10:43 --> 00:10:45 Anna: Very. Apophis will have its own
00:10:46 --> 00:10:48 extremely close encounter with Earth on April
00:10:48 --> 00:10:51 13, 20, 2029, passing closer
00:10:51 --> 00:10:54 than many of our satellites. Osiris
00:10:54 --> 00:10:56 Apex is scheduled to arrive shortly after
00:10:56 --> 00:10:59 that pass, making it the first mission to
00:10:59 --> 00:11:02 study how an asteroid is physically altered
00:11:02 --> 00:11:04 by a planetary encounter. It will orbit
00:11:04 --> 00:11:07 Apophis for 18 months, mapping it and
00:11:07 --> 00:11:10 even firing its thrusters to stir up surface
00:11:10 --> 00:11:11 dust for analysis.
00:11:12 --> 00:11:14 Avery: It's amazing that they can get so much more
00:11:14 --> 00:11:16 out of one spacecraft. Why is
00:11:16 --> 00:11:19 Apophis in particular such a high priority
00:11:19 --> 00:11:21 target? Is it just about the close flyby,
00:11:21 --> 00:11:24 or is there something special about the
00:11:24 --> 00:11:25 asteroid itself?
00:11:25 --> 00:11:27 Anna: It's m a combination of both. The
00:11:27 --> 00:11:30 2029 flyby is a once in a millennium
00:11:30 --> 00:11:33 scientific opportunity to see how Earth's
00:11:33 --> 00:11:35 gravity can physically alter an asteroid,
00:11:35 --> 00:11:38 potentially triggering asteroid quakes or
00:11:38 --> 00:11:41 changing its spin. But Apophis is
00:11:41 --> 00:11:44 also an S type or stony asteroid,
00:11:44 --> 00:11:46 which are very common in the inner solar
00:11:46 --> 00:11:49 system and are the type most likely to pose
00:11:49 --> 00:11:51 an impact hazardous. By studying its
00:11:51 --> 00:11:53 composition and structure up close,
00:11:54 --> 00:11:56 especially after it's been gravitationally
00:11:56 --> 00:11:59 stressed, we gain invaluable data for
00:11:59 --> 00:12:02 planetary defense models. It's a perfect
00:12:02 --> 00:12:04 natural laboratory, an incredible.
00:12:04 --> 00:12:07 Avery: Second act for a history making spacecraft.
00:12:07 --> 00:12:09 Well, that's all the time we have for today.
00:12:09 --> 00:12:11 From private telescopes and damaged launch
00:12:11 --> 00:12:14 pads, to black hole flares and Earth scouting
00:12:14 --> 00:12:16 satellites, it's been another busy day in
00:12:16 --> 00:12:16 space.
00:12:17 --> 00:12:20 Anna: It certainly has. Thanks for tuning in to
00:12:20 --> 00:12:22 Astronomy Daily. Be sure to subscribe
00:12:22 --> 00:12:24 wherever you get your podcasts so you don't
00:12:24 --> 00:12:25 miss an episode.
00:12:26 --> 00:12:28 Avery: Until next time. I'm Avery.
00:12:28 --> 00:12:30 Anna: And I'm Anna. Keep looking up.
00:12:43 --> 00:12:43 Avery: Stories.
00:12:51 --> 00:12:52 We told.