Relativistic Beaming, Martian Waters & Cosmic Trash: The Space Nuts Q&A | Space Nuts: Astronomy...
Space News TodayApril 13, 202600:31:2628.78 MB

Relativistic Beaming, Martian Waters & Cosmic Trash: The Space Nuts Q&A | Space Nuts: Astronomy...

Relativistic Doppler Beaming, Martian Water, and Fusion Confusion

In this engaging Q&A edition of Space Nuts , hosts Andrew Dunkley and Professor Fred Watson dive into a variety of thought-provoking listener questions that explore the depths of astronomy and space science. From the complexities of relativistic Doppler beaming in black holes to the intriguing evidence of water on Mars and the mysteries of nuclear fusion in the sun, this episode is brimming with cosmic insights and scientific clarity.

Episode Highlights:

- Relativistic Doppler Beaming: Ron from New York asks about the brightness differences in black hole accretion disks. Andrew and Fred explain how relativistic speeds affect light emission, leading to the phenomenon known as Doppler beaming and why we don't see the expected color shifts.

- Water on Mars: Sunny from California questions the geological evidence for water on Mars. The hosts discuss the findings from the Phoenix lander and the implications of briny water on the Martian surface, confirming that it was indeed water, albeit potentially different from what we know on Earth.

- Earth's Mass and Space Junk: Holt raises a fascinating question about how much material we can send into space before it impacts Earth's orbit. Andrew and Fred provide insights into the negligible mass we've launched compared to the Earth's total mass, reassuring listeners that our planet remains unaffected.

- Fusion Reactions in the Sun: Ken from Maroochydore seeks clarification on the fusion process in the sun, specifically regarding mass loss and binding energy. The hosts unravel the complexities of fusion, explaining how energy is produced and the significance of mass defects in nuclear reactions.


For more Space Nuts, including our continuously updating newsfeed and to listen to all our episodes, visit our website. (https://www.spacenutspodcast.com/) Follow us on social media at SpaceNutsPod on Facebook, Instagram, and more. We love engaging with our community, so be sure to drop us a message or comment on your favorite platform.

If you’d like to help support Space Nuts and join our growing family of insiders for commercial-free episodes and more, visit spacenutspodcast.com/about (https://www.spacenutspodcast.com/about) .

Stay curious, keep looking up, and join us next time for more stellar insights and cosmic wonders. Until then, clear skies and happy stargazing.


Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/space-nuts-astronomy-insights-cosmic-discoveries--2631155/support (https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/space-nuts-astronomy-insights-cosmic-discoveries--2631155/support?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss) .

Episode link: https://play.headliner.app/episode/32708692?utm_source=youtube

Kind: captions Language: en
00:00:00 --> 00:00:01 Hi there. Thanks for joining us. This is

00:00:02 --> 00:00:04 a Q&A edition of Space Nuts, where we

00:00:04 --> 00:00:07 talk astronomy and space science and we

00:00:07 --> 00:00:09 answer audience questions or we just say

00:00:09 --> 00:00:11 a lot of words that sound like answers,

00:00:11 --> 00:00:12 but then they'll check it later on the

00:00:12 --> 00:00:14 internet and realize we were just giving

00:00:14 --> 00:00:17 them an absolute load of CODs. Wallop.

00:00:17 --> 00:00:21 Uh, coming up today, uh, relativist.

00:00:21 --> 00:00:23 >> You're not supposed to be talking yet.

00:00:23 --> 00:00:25 Relativistic

00:00:25 --> 00:00:28 relativistic Doppler beaming. What on

00:00:28 --> 00:00:30 earth is that? We're about to find out.

00:00:30 --> 00:00:33 Uh, Sunny has sent us an audio question

00:00:33 --> 00:00:36 about Mars water. Is it water? Was it

00:00:36 --> 00:00:38 water? Could it have been something

00:00:38 --> 00:00:40 else? Uh, Halt is asking how much stuff

00:00:40 --> 00:00:42 we can send off the planet before the

00:00:42 --> 00:00:44 planet sort of, you know, starts to fall

00:00:44 --> 00:00:48 off itself and fusion reaction in the

00:00:48 --> 00:00:51 sun. We will dispel that confusion very,

00:00:51 --> 00:00:54 very soon on this episode of Space Nuts.

00:00:54 --> 00:00:59 >> 15 seconds. Guidance is internal. 10 9

00:00:59 --> 00:01:00 ignition sequence start.

00:01:00 --> 00:01:01 >> Space nuts.

00:01:01 --> 00:01:04 >> 5 4 3 2

00:01:04 --> 00:01:06 >> 1 2 3 4 5 5 4 3 2 1

00:01:06 --> 00:01:07 >> Space nuts.

00:01:08 --> 00:01:11 >> Astronauts report. It feels good.

00:01:11 --> 00:01:12 >> Professor Fred Watson, astronomer at

00:01:12 --> 00:01:14 large, is here. You've already heard his

00:01:14 --> 00:01:17 voice. Hello, Fred.

00:01:17 --> 00:01:19 >> Nice to see you, Andrew. I'm always

00:01:19 --> 00:01:21 reminded of um and you might know about

00:01:21 --> 00:01:23 this as well, even though our listeners

00:01:23 --> 00:01:25 are all too young to remember, but on

00:01:25 --> 00:01:27 the Goon Show, there was once an episode

00:01:27 --> 00:01:30 where Eckles came on before he was

00:01:30 --> 00:01:33 supposed to. Uh and had to make the

00:01:33 --> 00:01:36 comment, "I'm not here yet."

00:01:36 --> 00:01:38 >> I remember that. Yes.

00:01:38 --> 00:01:41 >> I'm not here yet. Uh, which reminds me

00:01:41 --> 00:01:44 of a famous incident on ABC radio where

00:01:44 --> 00:01:47 I worked for 22 years, uh, where a, um,

00:01:47 --> 00:01:49 news reader was trying to do the

00:01:49 --> 00:01:51 bulletin,

00:01:51 --> 00:01:52 uh, but they were halfway through a live

00:01:52 --> 00:01:55 interview with Spike Milligan.

00:01:55 --> 00:01:58 Spike kept interrupting at the end of

00:01:58 --> 00:02:00 every sentence with and Spike Milligan.

00:02:00 --> 00:02:02 And Spike Milligan. And so when the

00:02:02 --> 00:02:04 story finished, the news reader said da

00:02:04 --> 00:02:07 da da da and Spike Milligan. He got He

00:02:08 --> 00:02:10 got fired for that.

00:02:10 --> 00:02:11 >> Yeah,

00:02:11 --> 00:02:13 >> he got fired for that.

00:02:13 --> 00:02:14 >> It's one of the funniest pieces of radio

00:02:14 --> 00:02:17 you will ever hear. Look it up online,

00:02:17 --> 00:02:19 but he got canned

00:02:19 --> 00:02:21 >> probably. Yeah. Um,

00:02:21 --> 00:02:21 >> yeah,

00:02:21 --> 00:02:24 >> that was in the old BBC days, probably.

00:02:24 --> 00:02:26 >> Oh, well, yeah, probably. Well, yeah,

00:02:26 --> 00:02:28 the times have changed.

00:02:28 --> 00:02:30 >> Yes, rather.

00:02:30 --> 00:02:32 >> Uh, let's uh get into some questions,

00:02:32 --> 00:02:34 Fred. And I've got our first one here

00:02:34 --> 00:02:37 from Ron who is in upstate New York. Uh

00:02:37 --> 00:02:38 he says, "Spring's just around the

00:02:38 --> 00:02:41 corner." He says, "Hope all is well down

00:02:41 --> 00:02:43 under." Well, if you like wind. Yeah, it

00:02:43 --> 00:02:45 is. It's going great. It's been pretty

00:02:45 --> 00:02:47 windy here lately. Uh I have a question

00:02:47 --> 00:02:50 about relativistic Doppler beaming that

00:02:50 --> 00:02:53 we see on a black hole's accretion disc,

00:02:53 --> 00:02:56 which causes the side moving towards us

00:02:56 --> 00:02:58 to be brighter than the side moving away

00:02:58 --> 00:03:01 from us. Why are we not seeing blue and

00:03:01 --> 00:03:04 red Doppler shifts in the color of the

00:03:04 --> 00:03:07 light in those respective regions? Uh

00:03:07 --> 00:03:08 there's so much uh and thanks so much

00:03:08 --> 00:03:11 for the great podcast. It is our

00:03:11 --> 00:03:13 pleasure. It is our pleasure. Thanks for

00:03:13 --> 00:03:14 the question, Ron.

00:03:14 --> 00:03:18 >> It's a good question. Um and um there's

00:03:18 --> 00:03:25 the answer. Uh Jordy. Jordy. Yeah. Uh so

00:03:25 --> 00:03:28 we do we do see the Doppler shift. Um

00:03:28 --> 00:03:32 but the the the reason why we don't talk

00:03:32 --> 00:03:35 about that is because this radiation

00:03:35 --> 00:03:39 that's being beamed out is a continuum

00:03:39 --> 00:03:41 radiation. By that I mean it's at all

00:03:41 --> 00:03:43 wavelengths.

00:03:43 --> 00:03:48 Uh so to to make Doppler work just the

00:03:48 --> 00:03:50 backstory here if you've got something

00:03:50 --> 00:03:54 coming towards you it's light is shifted

00:03:54 --> 00:03:55 to the blue. If it's moving away from

00:03:55 --> 00:03:58 you, its light is shifted to the red.

00:03:58 --> 00:04:02 Um, but you need a feature in order to

00:04:02 --> 00:04:05 detect that. Uh, and some sources of

00:04:05 --> 00:04:09 light, for example, um, it actually even

00:04:09 --> 00:04:10 works with LEDs does this. But if you

00:04:10 --> 00:04:13 think of the old, um, orange sodium

00:04:13 --> 00:04:15 lights, which we used to see, the low

00:04:15 --> 00:04:17 pressure sodium lights, they emit all

00:04:17 --> 00:04:20 their light at one wavelength, uh, which

00:04:20 --> 00:04:22 is called the sodium D line for

00:04:22 --> 00:04:25 historical reasons. And so if you if you

00:04:25 --> 00:04:27 had a sodium lamp coming towards you,

00:04:27 --> 00:04:30 then that peak of wavelength would be

00:04:30 --> 00:04:32 moved to the blue end of the spectrum.

00:04:32 --> 00:04:33 If it was going away from you, it'd be

00:04:33 --> 00:04:35 moved to the red end of the spectrum,

00:04:35 --> 00:04:40 the sodium line. But in order to so so

00:04:40 --> 00:04:43 that happens for all moving objects, but

00:04:43 --> 00:04:44 in order for you to be able to detect

00:04:44 --> 00:04:48 that it's moving, you need a discrete uh

00:04:48 --> 00:04:51 peak of light or radiation. Uh, and in

00:04:51 --> 00:04:54 in the case of a moving sodium lamp,

00:04:54 --> 00:04:56 that's it. The peak of the sodium sodium

00:04:56 --> 00:04:58 emission line. If you've got a

00:04:58 --> 00:05:00 continuum, a spectrum that goes all the

00:05:00 --> 00:05:03 way from blue to red or violet to red.

00:05:03 --> 00:05:05 Yes, it can be moved uh by the Doppler

00:05:05 --> 00:05:07 shift, but you you don't see it. You

00:05:07 --> 00:05:10 don't detect it. Uh and so in the case

00:05:10 --> 00:05:13 of the material uh swirling around a

00:05:13 --> 00:05:17 black hole uh in the accretion disc

00:05:17 --> 00:05:21 exactly as Ron says it u it actually

00:05:21 --> 00:05:23 under go something called relativistic

00:05:23 --> 00:05:26 Doppler beaming and that's that because

00:05:26 --> 00:05:29 this stuff is moving so fast it's really

00:05:29 --> 00:05:31 not far short of the speed of light the

00:05:31 --> 00:05:34 path of the photons is altered and they

00:05:34 --> 00:05:37 tend to cluster around the direction in

00:05:37 --> 00:05:39 which the movement is taken. place and

00:05:39 --> 00:05:42 that's why uh an accretion disc is

00:05:42 --> 00:05:44 brighter on one side than it is on the

00:05:44 --> 00:05:45 other. It's brighter in the side that's

00:05:45 --> 00:05:48 coming toward you because of this

00:05:48 --> 00:05:50 relativistic Doppler beaming. It's quite

00:05:50 --> 00:05:52 an esoteric topic. I'm quite amazed that

00:05:52 --> 00:05:54 we're covering this on Space Nuts, but

00:05:54 --> 00:05:58 it's uh it's really good stuff.

00:05:58 --> 00:05:59 >> Thank you, Ron, because you're clearly

00:05:59 --> 00:06:01 ve very well verssed in this stuff as

00:06:01 --> 00:06:03 well. I mean, when you look at the

00:06:03 --> 00:06:06 images of black holes that we now have,

00:06:06 --> 00:06:09 you you're looking at a an orange

00:06:09 --> 00:06:11 frosted donut basically, uh, that that's

00:06:11 --> 00:06:13 that's the primary color, the the

00:06:13 --> 00:06:16 orange, but it is brighter on one side.

00:06:16 --> 00:06:17 >> Yeah.

00:06:17 --> 00:06:18 >> Yes. There there are bite spots in it.

00:06:18 --> 00:06:20 That's correct. Yeah. And some of that

00:06:20 --> 00:06:22 will be due to relativistic beaming.

00:06:22 --> 00:06:23 Yeah.

00:06:23 --> 00:06:26 >> Okay. And, uh, how many have they taken

00:06:26 --> 00:06:28 now? I think there's there's been maybe

00:06:28 --> 00:06:29 three. Three or four.

00:06:30 --> 00:06:32 >> Yes. Uh so we've got uh M52 was the

00:06:32 --> 00:06:35 first is that right Messier 52 uh the

00:06:36 --> 00:06:39 center of our galaxy uh Sagittarius A

00:06:39 --> 00:06:43 star but also M52 done again with

00:06:43 --> 00:06:45 polarization so we could see the the

00:06:45 --> 00:06:47 magnetism in it. I think that's the way

00:06:47 --> 00:06:49 it worked.

00:06:49 --> 00:06:50 >> Okay. Um

00:06:50 --> 00:06:52 >> these were with the event horizon

00:06:52 --> 00:06:53 telescope

00:06:53 --> 00:06:55 >> because I've got another one here that's

00:06:55 --> 00:06:57 uh of M87.

00:06:57 --> 00:06:59 >> Okay. So there is another object here

00:06:59 --> 00:07:00 >> that's yeah that's the third one I was

00:07:00 --> 00:07:02 thinking of I didn't know they done M52

00:07:02 --> 00:07:06 again but yeah the technologies reached

00:07:06 --> 00:07:08 a point now where we can actually image

00:07:08 --> 00:07:09 these things they're not photos though

00:07:09 --> 00:07:12 are they these are um gathered through

00:07:12 --> 00:07:13 radio spectrometry of

00:07:13 --> 00:07:16 >> yeah they are there it's a basically a

00:07:16 --> 00:07:19 planetized array of radio telescopes

00:07:19 --> 00:07:22 that um conspire together uh in very

00:07:22 --> 00:07:26 cunning ways um to make these images to

00:07:26 --> 00:07:28 synthesize the

00:07:28 --> 00:07:31 Fantastic stuff. Yeah, Ron, thanks so

00:07:31 --> 00:07:33 much for the question. Really enjoyed

00:07:33 --> 00:07:35 that one and uh hopefully hopefully

00:07:35 --> 00:07:37 we'll hear from you again. Our next

00:07:37 --> 00:07:40 question comes from Sunny. What a great

00:07:40 --> 00:07:42 name for somebody who listens to an

00:07:42 --> 00:07:44 astronomy podcast.

00:07:44 --> 00:07:46 >> Hello, Space Nuts. This is Sunny Skies

00:07:46 --> 00:07:49 from Southern California,

00:07:49 --> 00:07:51 Long Beach. In fact, my question for you

00:07:51 --> 00:07:56 today is regarding geological formations

00:07:56 --> 00:07:59 on Mars which indicate there was large

00:07:59 --> 00:08:02 quantities of water for a long period of

00:08:02 --> 00:08:04 time

00:08:04 --> 00:08:06 similar to something we'd see on Earth.

00:08:06 --> 00:08:09 Is there any other corroborative

00:08:09 --> 00:08:11 information or data to support that it

00:08:11 --> 00:08:13 actually was water and not some other

00:08:13 --> 00:08:16 crazy liquid that we don't have here

00:08:16 --> 00:08:20 possibly on Earth? Love the podcast.

00:08:20 --> 00:08:22 Stay sunny.

00:08:22 --> 00:08:24 >> We're trying to. It's coming into winter

00:08:24 --> 00:08:26 here, so um yeah, it won't be sunny for

00:08:26 --> 00:08:28 long. Uh Sunny, lovely to hear from you.

00:08:28 --> 00:08:29 That's a good question. Uh because we

00:08:29 --> 00:08:31 we've got a lot of evidence that shows

00:08:31 --> 00:08:33 there was water, rivers, oceans,

00:08:33 --> 00:08:37 streams, um you know, um ces pits,

00:08:37 --> 00:08:41 whatever you want to call them on Mars,

00:08:41 --> 00:08:44 but that's all gone. Um but we are, you

00:08:44 --> 00:08:47 know, the telltale signs are there. Um,

00:08:47 --> 00:08:50 Sunny's question is, was it really water

00:08:50 --> 00:08:52 or could it have been something else? We

00:08:52 --> 00:08:56 do know there are other liquid oceans in

00:08:56 --> 00:08:58 in our solar system that are not water.

00:08:58 --> 00:09:00 >> Yes, we do. That's right.

00:09:00 --> 00:09:02 >> Um, and there's more than one kind of

00:09:02 --> 00:09:04 water, which is also a a factor to

00:09:04 --> 00:09:07 consider. So, um, yeah. Could he be on

00:09:07 --> 00:09:09 to something or are we absolutely dead

00:09:09 --> 00:09:12 set certain that Mars had water?

00:09:12 --> 00:09:15 >> I think water perhaps. Yes, that's that

00:09:15 --> 00:09:17 and that's why uh for that reason we

00:09:17 --> 00:09:20 still we can still see it. So um and

00:09:20 --> 00:09:23 I'll explain that in a second. Yes. Uh I

00:09:23 --> 00:09:27 I guess excuse me Sunonny's point is

00:09:27 --> 00:09:30 >> um we see evidence of liquid. Uh could

00:09:30 --> 00:09:32 it have been something peculiar that we

00:09:32 --> 00:09:36 don't know about? And in a way it is um

00:09:36 --> 00:09:42 because uh we have seen evidence on Mars

00:09:42 --> 00:09:44 from principally from the Phoenix uh

00:09:44 --> 00:09:48 lander which was on the which is near

00:09:48 --> 00:09:50 the northern polar regions the northern

00:09:50 --> 00:09:53 Arctic of Mars um which actually

00:09:53 --> 00:09:55 analyzed chemically some of these

00:09:55 --> 00:09:57 materials. So you might remember Andrew

00:09:57 --> 00:09:59 Phoenix had a little backhoe. It was

00:09:59 --> 00:10:00 didn't have any wheels. It was

00:10:00 --> 00:10:02 stationary, but it had a backhoe with

00:10:02 --> 00:10:05 which it could scrape away the top

00:10:05 --> 00:10:07 surface of the soil of Mars. And it

00:10:07 --> 00:10:09 didn't have to scrape much before it got

00:10:09 --> 00:10:13 to solid ice. Um, and the first hint

00:10:13 --> 00:10:16 that this was ice uh was in the color.

00:10:16 --> 00:10:19 It was white. The second hint was that

00:10:19 --> 00:10:21 some scraps of this material that had

00:10:21 --> 00:10:25 been dug up by the backhoe um basically

00:10:25 --> 00:10:28 disappeared after a few days. they had

00:10:28 --> 00:10:31 turned directly into vapor. Uh they'

00:10:31 --> 00:10:33 sublimed and that's exactly what you'd

00:10:33 --> 00:10:36 expect for water ice to do. But more

00:10:36 --> 00:10:39 especially that backhoe wasn't just

00:10:39 --> 00:10:41 there to scrape things. It was to pour

00:10:41 --> 00:10:45 the things it had dug up into a chemical

00:10:45 --> 00:10:49 analysis. And that's the smoking gun. uh

00:10:49 --> 00:10:50 because the chemical analysis

00:10:50 --> 00:10:53 demonstrated that yes this was water uh

00:10:53 --> 00:10:56 water ice solid ice and that's there in

00:10:56 --> 00:10:58 large quantities under the surface of

00:10:58 --> 00:11:01 the Arctic regions of Mars uh and we

00:11:01 --> 00:11:03 know it's there in the on the surface

00:11:03 --> 00:11:04 actually in the polar caps of Mars and

00:11:04 --> 00:11:06 we know it's water ice from there

00:11:06 --> 00:11:08 because it's got the spectral signature

00:11:08 --> 00:11:11 of water ice um but the reason why I say

00:11:11 --> 00:11:14 it could be a bit different is that we

00:11:14 --> 00:11:17 believe that um this water is very

00:11:17 --> 00:11:18 briney

00:11:18 --> 00:11:20 that it's rich in what are called

00:11:20 --> 00:11:23 pchlorates which actually lower the the

00:11:23 --> 00:11:25 freezing point. Um and there there's

00:11:25 --> 00:11:27 evidence that for a short time there

00:11:27 --> 00:11:30 were droplets of water actually on the

00:11:30 --> 00:11:33 legs of the Phoenix lander probably made

00:11:33 --> 00:11:36 of ice that had been melted during uh

00:11:36 --> 00:11:39 the descent uh vaporized condensed out

00:11:39 --> 00:11:41 onto the onto the legs of the lander and

00:11:41 --> 00:11:44 stayed liquid for a little time uh while

00:11:44 --> 00:11:46 the heat was while the temperature was

00:11:46 --> 00:11:49 high enough. So um all the all the

00:11:49 --> 00:11:51 evidence points to those oceans having

00:11:51 --> 00:11:53 been made of water. Although it might be

00:11:53 --> 00:11:56 very briny, it might be chemically

00:11:56 --> 00:11:58 different uh from from what we

00:11:58 --> 00:12:00 experience on Earth. But you you've only

00:12:00 --> 00:12:02 to look at the different forms that

00:12:02 --> 00:12:03 water comes in on Earth when you've got

00:12:03 --> 00:12:05 some of them where you've got cyanide

00:12:05 --> 00:12:08 dissolved in it in some of these pools,

00:12:08 --> 00:12:11 you know, in in Yeuseite and places like

00:12:11 --> 00:12:14 that. So, I think uh I think it's a good

00:12:14 --> 00:12:17 question, but I think basically H2O is

00:12:17 --> 00:12:19 what makes up the contents of those

00:12:19 --> 00:12:20 former oceans.

00:12:20 --> 00:12:22 >> I think what's interesting about Mars

00:12:22 --> 00:12:27 water is that um it's it's heavier than

00:12:27 --> 00:12:30 Earth water. It's got a a much higher

00:12:30 --> 00:12:34 ratio of isotopes um heavy isotopes of

00:12:34 --> 00:12:37 hydrogen I think is which is which is um

00:12:37 --> 00:12:39 you know heavy water not the stuff out

00:12:39 --> 00:12:42 of the nuclear reactors but um

00:12:42 --> 00:12:44 >> you natural water.

00:12:44 --> 00:12:46 >> Yes, that's right. It's it's it's

00:12:46 --> 00:12:47 similar to to what was used in the

00:12:47 --> 00:12:50 nuclear reactors. So it's it's um

00:12:50 --> 00:12:54 hydrogen with an extra neutron I guess.

00:12:54 --> 00:12:57 Is that right? To make dutyium. Uh and

00:12:57 --> 00:13:00 um and yes, you're right that the ratio

00:13:00 --> 00:13:02 of uh and once again this comes from

00:13:02 --> 00:13:05 analysis by machines like Phoenix on the

00:13:05 --> 00:13:07 surface of Mars. Um there's a higher

00:13:07 --> 00:13:10 ratio of I think that's the way around

00:13:10 --> 00:13:12 it is a higher ratio of heavy water to

00:13:12 --> 00:13:15 normal water on Mars than there is on

00:13:15 --> 00:13:17 Earth. I think that's the case.

00:13:17 --> 00:13:20 >> Yeah. And the other thing um Sunny is

00:13:20 --> 00:13:22 you couldn't drink it in its current

00:13:22 --> 00:13:25 state. It's It would need to be cleaned

00:13:25 --> 00:13:26 up a bit.

00:13:26 --> 00:13:29 >> Yeah. Do you remember we once uh we once

00:13:29 --> 00:13:31 talked about how much heavy water you

00:13:31 --> 00:13:33 could drink and still survive? And it's

00:13:33 --> 00:13:35 I can't it's a fair bit actually. It was

00:13:35 --> 00:13:36 a few percent.

00:13:36 --> 00:13:37 >> Yes. But

00:13:37 --> 00:13:40 >> but if you drank it for long enough, it

00:13:40 --> 00:13:43 would start you'd start to basically

00:13:43 --> 00:13:47 >> fall apart. literally fall apart

00:13:47 --> 00:13:49 >> because the the the dutyium wouldn't you

00:13:50 --> 00:13:52 know your body's we're not built for it

00:13:52 --> 00:13:53 basically.

00:13:53 --> 00:13:54 >> Yes. Exactly.

00:13:54 --> 00:13:55 >> If if you if we were to find a water

00:13:55 --> 00:14:00 world that was 100% D2O rather than H2O

00:14:00 --> 00:14:02 or we couldn't live there.

00:14:02 --> 00:14:04 >> It would kill us.

00:14:04 --> 00:14:05 >> Yeah.

00:14:05 --> 00:14:08 >> Even though it's water just not

00:14:08 --> 00:14:09 water heavy heavy water. Yes.

00:14:10 --> 00:14:12 >> Yes. So your point is very very good

00:14:12 --> 00:14:14 Sunny. there there there's a bit more to

00:14:14 --> 00:14:17 it than meets the eye. And uh yes, it is

00:14:17 --> 00:14:19 water on Mars, but it's not the same as

00:14:19 --> 00:14:22 our water. It's close, but it's not

00:14:22 --> 00:14:25 quite the same. Thanks for the question.

00:14:26 --> 00:14:28 And uh hopefully hopefully we'll hear

00:14:28 --> 00:14:29 from you again, Sunny. Great question,

00:14:29 --> 00:14:32 that one. This is Space Nuts with Andrew

00:14:32 --> 00:14:36 Dunley and Professor Fred Watson.

00:14:36 --> 00:14:38 Let's take a break from the show to tell

00:14:38 --> 00:14:41 you about our sponsor, NordVPN.

00:14:41 --> 00:14:43 Now, if you've ever felt like your

00:14:43 --> 00:14:45 online privacy is slipping through the

00:14:45 --> 00:14:47 cracks, then you're not alone. Hackers,

00:14:48 --> 00:14:49 scammers, harvesters, they're all out

00:14:49 --> 00:14:51 there trying to get your private info.

00:14:51 --> 00:14:53 Whether that's your passwords or your

00:14:53 --> 00:14:56 personal details to sell on the dark web

00:14:56 --> 00:14:59 or to use themselves to access your bank

00:14:59 --> 00:15:01 accounts, credit card details, and who

00:15:01 --> 00:15:03 knows what else. But you can protect

00:15:03 --> 00:15:06 yourself with NordVPN.

00:15:06 --> 00:15:09 You can take control at home or or more

00:15:09 --> 00:15:11 importantly when you're out in public

00:15:11 --> 00:15:15 using free Wi-Fi. Right now uh using the

00:15:15 --> 00:15:18 exclusive Space Nuts offer, you can

00:15:18 --> 00:15:22 receive four extra months for free on a

00:15:22 --> 00:15:24 nordvpn.com

00:15:24 --> 00:15:28 plan. NordVPN encrypts your internet

00:15:28 --> 00:15:30 connection, hides your IP address, and

00:15:30 --> 00:15:33 offers access to over 7 servers

00:15:33 --> 00:15:36 around the world. Plus, with features

00:15:36 --> 00:15:40 like threat protection pro, meshet,

00:15:40 --> 00:15:43 ultra fast speeds via Nord links, your

00:15:43 --> 00:15:45 digital life stays private and

00:15:46 --> 00:15:49 efficient. So, don't miss out. Visit

00:15:49 --> 00:15:52 nordvpn.com/spacenuts

00:15:52 --> 00:15:55 and enter the code spacenuts to claim

00:15:55 --> 00:15:57 this deal. Remember, there's a 30-day

00:15:57 --> 00:16:00 money back guarantee, so it's riskfree

00:16:00 --> 00:16:03 to try. Stay safe, stay private, and

00:16:03 --> 00:16:05 browse with confidence. That's

00:16:05 --> 00:16:10 nordvpn.com/spacenuts.

00:16:10 --> 00:16:12 Roger, you're here. Also,

00:16:12 --> 00:16:13 >> Space Nuts.

00:16:13 --> 00:16:15 >> I like this next question from Halt

00:16:15 --> 00:16:19 because it's it's it's so simple and yet

00:16:19 --> 00:16:21 it's it's something that that people

00:16:21 --> 00:16:25 wonder about. uh because we have reached

00:16:25 --> 00:16:26 a point where we've been going, you

00:16:26 --> 00:16:29 know, sending stuff into space for for

00:16:29 --> 00:16:32 decades now. And he goes on to say,

00:16:32 --> 00:16:34 "We've sent several objects beyond

00:16:34 --> 00:16:36 Earth's gravitational field. How much

00:16:36 --> 00:16:39 can we send before it affects Earth's

00:16:39 --> 00:16:41 orbit?" That comes from Halt. I don't

00:16:41 --> 00:16:43 know where you're from, but uh great

00:16:43 --> 00:16:45 question, Halt. Love this one. Uh yeah,

00:16:45 --> 00:16:46 we we're bas basically filling the

00:16:46 --> 00:16:50 universe with our own junk. Um, but all

00:16:50 --> 00:16:52 of that stuff that we're sending out

00:16:52 --> 00:16:55 there comes off planet in one way or

00:16:55 --> 00:16:57 another. Um, so yeah, what could be the

00:16:58 --> 00:17:00 long-term effect?

00:17:00 --> 00:17:03 Yeah, great question. So, um, the

00:17:03 --> 00:17:05 figures are, and I'm pulling this from

00:17:05 --> 00:17:08 my memory, but I think this is right. In

00:17:08 --> 00:17:10 orbit, we have something like I think

00:17:10 --> 00:17:14 it's about 11 tons of stuff.

00:17:14 --> 00:17:14 >> Is that all?

00:17:14 --> 00:17:18 >> Um, yeah, something like that. Uh that's

00:17:18 --> 00:17:21 with uh all of the spacecraft that have

00:17:21 --> 00:17:23 been launched. Remember these spacecraft

00:17:23 --> 00:17:25 are made of very light materials because

00:17:25 --> 00:17:27 you can't you don't want heavy stuff

00:17:27 --> 00:17:29 being sent into orbit because you're

00:17:29 --> 00:17:31 wasting fuel. The lighter you can make

00:17:31 --> 00:17:34 your spacecraft, the less fuel you need.

00:17:34 --> 00:17:36 Uh so it's all about economics. But I

00:17:36 --> 00:17:39 think it's about 11 tons in orbit.

00:17:39 --> 00:17:41 Um and when you look at spacecraft that

00:17:41 --> 00:17:44 have gone beyond that, it's vanishingly

00:17:44 --> 00:17:46 small. um you know it's probably less

00:17:46 --> 00:17:48 than 100 tons. It might be about 100

00:17:48 --> 00:17:51 tons for stuff that's gone out beyond

00:17:51 --> 00:17:56 Earth orbit. So uh that when you compare

00:17:56 --> 00:17:59 it with the mass of the Earth, which I

00:17:59 --> 00:18:01 can't remember off hand, but it's a lot.

00:18:01 --> 00:18:04 It's one Earth mass actually in units.

00:18:04 --> 00:18:06 Uh and um you know, but it's it's

00:18:06 --> 00:18:08 gazillions of tons compared with what

00:18:08 --> 00:18:12 we've put into space. So um it's not

00:18:12 --> 00:18:14 going to affect the Earth's orbit. And

00:18:14 --> 00:18:17 actually the orbit itself, even if we

00:18:17 --> 00:18:19 put, you know, a significant fraction of

00:18:20 --> 00:18:22 the Earth's mass into orbit around the

00:18:22 --> 00:18:24 Earth, it wouldn't necessarily affect

00:18:24 --> 00:18:26 the Earth's orbit because it tends to

00:18:26 --> 00:18:29 need an interaction between two objects

00:18:29 --> 00:18:31 to change the orbit of something, a

00:18:32 --> 00:18:34 cloud from another planet or something

00:18:34 --> 00:18:36 like that, that would change the orbit.

00:18:36 --> 00:18:38 All right?

00:18:38 --> 00:18:40 Whereas whereas just doing something

00:18:40 --> 00:18:42 that has the same center of mass as the

00:18:42 --> 00:18:44 Earth does, if I can put it that way,

00:18:44 --> 00:18:46 doesn't necessarily change the orbit at

00:18:46 --> 00:18:48 all. But even notwithstanding that,

00:18:48 --> 00:18:50 we're no we're nowhere near anything

00:18:50 --> 00:18:52 that would actually affect the Earth's

00:18:52 --> 00:18:53 well-being.

00:18:54 --> 00:18:58 >> The mass of the Earth is 519*

00:18:58 --> 00:19:02 10 24th power kilogram.

00:19:02 --> 00:19:04 >> Yep.

00:19:04 --> 00:19:07 10^ the 24th power kilogram. That sounds

00:19:07 --> 00:19:08 right.

00:19:08 --> 00:19:10 >> It's a lot.

00:19:10 --> 00:19:13 >> I seem to remember that the sun is

00:19:13 --> 00:19:16 something it's about 10^ the 27 kg I

00:19:16 --> 00:19:18 think or it could be tons. I can't

00:19:18 --> 00:19:20 remember but it's

00:19:20 --> 00:19:21 >> I can look that up too.

00:19:21 --> 00:19:24 >> Yeah. See mass of the sun. I think it's

00:19:24 --> 00:19:26 >> 1

00:19:26 --> 00:19:29 10 times 10^ the 30th power kilograms.

00:19:29 --> 00:19:31 >> Okay. That's that's kilograms. Okay. So

00:19:31 --> 00:19:33 it's 10 27 tons.

00:19:33 --> 00:19:36 Yeah, because this Yeah, that's what it

00:19:36 --> 00:19:40 means. One more one more thing that Halt

00:19:40 --> 00:19:43 might be interested to know is that um

00:19:43 --> 00:19:44 you know you've you've given us the

00:19:44 --> 00:19:47 numbers of how much material

00:19:47 --> 00:19:49 >> in terms of weight has has left the

00:19:49 --> 00:19:53 planet which is a negligible amount but

00:19:53 --> 00:19:55 scientists estimate that roughly 100

00:19:55 --> 00:19:58 metric tons of cosmic dust like

00:19:58 --> 00:20:00 micrometeorites enters the earth's

00:20:00 --> 00:20:01 atmosphere

00:20:01 --> 00:20:01 >> y

00:20:01 --> 00:20:02 >> every day.

00:20:02 --> 00:20:03 >> Every day. That's right.

00:20:04 --> 00:20:05 >> Every day.

00:20:05 --> 00:20:07 >> Yeah. So, we're actually getting

00:20:07 --> 00:20:09 heavier.

00:20:09 --> 00:20:10 >> Yeah, we are. Yes.

00:20:10 --> 00:20:12 >> Or more massive, depending on which way

00:20:12 --> 00:20:14 you want to look at it.

00:20:14 --> 00:20:16 >> It's it more massive is the correct

00:20:16 --> 00:20:19 term. You're quite right. To be heavier,

00:20:19 --> 00:20:20 you need to be in the gravitational

00:20:20 --> 00:20:22 field of something.

00:20:22 --> 00:20:24 We are in the sun's gravitational field,

00:20:24 --> 00:20:26 but we wouldn't think of it that way.

00:20:26 --> 00:20:29 >> No. No. So

00:20:29 --> 00:20:30 when you when you think about it, what

00:20:30 --> 00:20:33 we're what we're kicking out of our

00:20:33 --> 00:20:35 planet, our gravitational field

00:20:35 --> 00:20:38 >> is being replaced like

00:20:38 --> 00:20:38 >> Yes.



00:20:39 --> 00:20:40 >> by much more.

00:20:40 --> 00:20:43 >> Yeah. Exactly. So thank you for pointing

00:20:43 --> 00:20:45 that out.

00:20:45 --> 00:20:47 >> It's been very useful today.

00:20:47 --> 00:20:51 >> It's about 100 um 100 tons uh or

00:20:51 --> 00:20:53 thereabouts. It's a and it's just

00:20:53 --> 00:20:54 meteoritic material.

00:20:54 --> 00:20:56 >> Yes. that really usually contributes to

00:20:56 --> 00:20:57 the Earth's atmosphere because it gets

00:20:57 --> 00:20:59 vaporized most of it.

00:20:59 --> 00:21:02 >> To to um quote a famous Scottish

00:21:02 --> 00:21:04 astronomer, it's space clap

00:21:04 --> 00:21:07 >> is what it is.

00:21:07 --> 00:21:08 >> I don't know who that is. I think he

00:21:08 --> 00:21:10 used to be on my staff at the

00:21:10 --> 00:21:12 observatory.

00:21:12 --> 00:21:14 >> Oh dear. All right, Halt, great

00:21:14 --> 00:21:16 question. Um made made for some

00:21:16 --> 00:21:18 interesting discussion and and made me

00:21:18 --> 00:21:20 sound useful for a brief second. Thanks

00:21:20 --> 00:21:23 for sending it in. Our final question

00:21:23 --> 00:21:26 comes from Ken. Hi Andrew and Fred. Ken

00:21:26 --> 00:21:28 from Maruchidor. Longtime listener and

00:21:28 --> 00:21:30 fan and love the way you make complex

00:21:30 --> 00:21:33 issues sound so simple.

00:21:33 --> 00:21:35 I'm trying to understand the basic

00:21:35 --> 00:21:37 fusion reaction that both me and my

00:21:38 --> 00:21:40 accountant are struggling with.

00:21:40 --> 00:21:43 The basic fusion reaction in our sun and

00:21:43 --> 00:21:45 all main sequence stars converts

00:21:45 --> 00:21:49 hydrogen to helium to create energy.

00:21:49 --> 00:21:52 To summarize the reaction for hydrogen

00:21:52 --> 00:21:55 nuclei that is four protons go through

00:21:55 --> 00:21:58 two steps to create one helium nucleus

00:21:58 --> 00:22:01 containing two neutrons and two protons.

00:22:01 --> 00:22:04 Additionally gamma rays neutrinos and

00:22:04 --> 00:22:07 posetrons are released.

00:22:07 --> 00:22:09 My astronomy textbooks say that about

00:22:09 --> 00:22:12 600 million tons of hydrogen are

00:22:12 --> 00:22:15 converted to 596 million tons of helium

00:22:15 --> 00:22:18 every second in our sun.

00:22:18 --> 00:22:20 The 4 million tons is converted to

00:22:20 --> 00:22:25 energy as per E= MC².

00:22:25 --> 00:22:27 If neutrons had a lower mass than

00:22:27 --> 00:22:30 protons, it would make all perfect

00:22:30 --> 00:22:33 sense. But they don't. They have a

00:22:33 --> 00:22:36 higher mass. So the mass of the helium

00:22:36 --> 00:22:38 nucleus is higher than the mass of the

00:22:38 --> 00:22:41 four protons.

00:22:41 --> 00:22:43 All the explanations I've read sound

00:22:43 --> 00:22:46 pretty dodgy. And my accountant says he

00:22:46 --> 00:22:47 could never get away with such

00:22:47 --> 00:22:50 explanations with the tax department.

00:22:50 --> 00:22:52 Could you please explain the devil in

00:22:52 --> 00:22:55 the detail that I'm missing?

00:22:55 --> 00:22:57 >> Thank you, Kenji. He did his homework on

00:22:57 --> 00:22:58 that one, didn't he?

00:22:58 --> 00:22:58 >> Wow.

00:22:58 --> 00:23:02 >> He did. He's absolutely right, too.

00:23:02 --> 00:23:04 >> And and was in such a terrible part of

00:23:04 --> 00:23:07 the world there up in Maruchi door. What

00:23:07 --> 00:23:10 a what a hole.

00:23:10 --> 00:23:15 Um, I don't think I I think uh I think

00:23:15 --> 00:23:18 Ken's going to find this answer that I'm

00:23:18 --> 00:23:21 going to give him pretty dodgy as well.

00:23:21 --> 00:23:25 Uh because but it is the correct answer.

00:23:25 --> 00:23:29 Um because it turns out that unlike uh

00:23:29 --> 00:23:32 Ken's accountant who can do sort of

00:23:32 --> 00:23:36 arithmetic because dollars don't change

00:23:36 --> 00:23:38 their mass you know randomly.

00:23:38 --> 00:23:39 >> Yeah.

00:23:39 --> 00:23:42 >> You can't do the same with subatomic

00:23:42 --> 00:23:43 particles.

00:23:44 --> 00:23:47 um because you have to look at other

00:23:47 --> 00:23:49 factors and the factor that comes into

00:23:49 --> 00:23:51 being in this case and I'm sure this is

00:23:51 --> 00:23:53 what uh what Ken was referring to when

00:23:54 --> 00:23:56 he talked about dodgy answers is

00:23:56 --> 00:24:00 something called the binding energy. Um,

00:24:00 --> 00:24:04 so he's right that the helium 4 that's

00:24:04 --> 00:24:08 formed by the four hydrogen atoms should

00:24:08 --> 00:24:12 have slightly more in mass. Uh, should

00:24:12 --> 00:24:16 have slightly more mass than uh than uh

00:24:16 --> 00:24:19 the four hydrogen atoms. Um,

00:24:19 --> 00:24:23 that's because you're uh you're doing

00:24:23 --> 00:24:24 doing the calculation. I beg you,

00:24:24 --> 00:24:26 pardon. Um, it's the other way around.

00:24:26 --> 00:24:28 it should should have slightly less mass

00:24:28 --> 00:24:30 in order to give you the energy that

00:24:30 --> 00:24:32 makes the sun shine. But it actually

00:24:32 --> 00:24:35 turns out to be the other way round. And

00:24:35 --> 00:24:37 the difference is what I've just called

00:24:37 --> 00:24:39 it's something called binding energy. Uh

00:24:39 --> 00:24:41 the difference is the binding energy in

00:24:41 --> 00:24:43 the helium nucleus which is called a

00:24:44 --> 00:24:47 mass defect which lowers the actual mass

00:24:47 --> 00:24:51 of the helium nucleus slightly. So what

00:24:51 --> 00:24:53 what what Ken's saying is that when you

00:24:53 --> 00:24:55 add up the masses of all these

00:24:55 --> 00:24:58 particles, you get something that's more

00:24:58 --> 00:25:00 massive than what you started. And it

00:25:00 --> 00:25:02 and you should expect it to be less

00:25:02 --> 00:25:04 massive than what you started because of

00:25:04 --> 00:25:07 that the fact that you've got this um uh

00:25:07 --> 00:25:09 large amount of mass being turned into

00:25:09 --> 00:25:13 radiation. That's how the sun shines. Uh

00:25:13 --> 00:25:15 but in fact, it is less than what you

00:25:15 --> 00:25:17 started with because of this mass

00:25:17 --> 00:25:19 defect, the binding energy. there's an

00:25:19 --> 00:25:22 energy that holds uh nuclei together

00:25:22 --> 00:25:25 which actually effectively contributes

00:25:25 --> 00:25:27 to their mass because of exactly what

00:25:27 --> 00:25:30 Ken said, E= MC². And I hope you don't

00:25:30 --> 00:25:32 think that sounds too dodgy, Ken, but

00:25:32 --> 00:25:34 that's the answer.

00:25:34 --> 00:25:36 >> Yeah, Ken and you and your accountant

00:25:36 --> 00:25:38 can relax now. The numbers do add up.

00:25:38 --> 00:25:40 They're just a bit weird,

00:25:40 --> 00:25:43 >> as my grand would say.

00:25:43 --> 00:25:45 >> I'm sure she would. Uh and she probably

00:25:45 --> 00:25:47 does the same calculation that I had,

00:25:47 --> 00:25:50 too. It's um it's just that atoms don't

00:25:50 --> 00:25:52 behave like dollars do. They they change

00:25:52 --> 00:25:54 depending on what they're doing.

00:25:54 --> 00:25:58 >> Yeah. Yeah. My um

00:25:58 --> 00:26:02 my money acts like atoms that sort of

00:26:02 --> 00:26:05 implode on each other. They just Yeah.

00:26:05 --> 00:26:08 That's pretty well what happens. Um

00:26:08 --> 00:26:09 >> that's called that's called nuclear

00:26:09 --> 00:26:12 nuclear fishing where it leaks away.

00:26:12 --> 00:26:14 >> Yes, that's what it is. Yep. Yep.

00:26:14 --> 00:26:17 Indeed. Um, so yeah, well done, Fred. I

00:26:17 --> 00:26:19 I

00:26:19 --> 00:26:21 you might have noticed my eyes glazed

00:26:21 --> 00:26:24 over when you tried to explain that, but

00:26:24 --> 00:26:27 um I'm sure Ken understands because the

00:26:27 --> 00:26:28 the homework you put into that question

00:26:28 --> 00:26:31 was uh spectacular. Thanks, Ken. Lovely

00:26:31 --> 00:26:33 to hear from you. Hope all is well in

00:26:33 --> 00:26:35 that um hideous place called Maruchi

00:26:35 --> 00:26:37 Door on one of the most beautiful parts

00:26:37 --> 00:26:39 of the east coast of Australia. It's a

00:26:39 --> 00:26:41 lovely area. Absolutely beautiful. I'm

00:26:41 --> 00:26:43 so jealous. Uh I'm going to we got a bit

00:26:43 --> 00:26:45 of time up our sleeve. Quick one, Fred.

00:26:45 --> 00:26:47 Um, just a question without notice,

00:26:47 --> 00:26:49 actually. This comes from Sandy in

00:26:49 --> 00:26:50 Melbourne.

00:26:50 --> 00:26:51 >> Good day, Fred and Andrew. I was

00:26:51 --> 00:26:53 recently watching the live views of the

00:26:53 --> 00:26:56 Arteimus 2 spacecraft, and there was

00:26:56 --> 00:26:59 what appears to be dust going past the

00:26:59 --> 00:27:03 spacecraft. What on earth is it? Uh, is

00:27:03 --> 00:27:05 it rocks, dust, debris, or exhaust

00:27:05 --> 00:27:07 material from the ship's maneuvering

00:27:07 --> 00:27:10 engines? Uh, and he did send a link to

00:27:10 --> 00:27:12 um a YouTube video of it and and it's

00:27:12 --> 00:27:15 just really bright pieces of material

00:27:15 --> 00:27:19 just zipping past the um spacecraft. Uh,

00:27:19 --> 00:27:22 I would think exhaust maybe. Have you

00:27:22 --> 00:27:23 >> um come across?

00:27:23 --> 00:27:25 >> No, I need to look at that. Uh, which

00:27:25 --> 00:27:27 I'm just going to try and do because um

00:27:27 --> 00:27:29 I I didn't have a chat. I've been flat

00:27:29 --> 00:27:32 out all day talking about alum all over

00:27:32 --> 00:27:34 the place. Wait a minute. Where are we?

00:27:34 --> 00:27:38 Uh, it's an email that I received. Uh,

00:27:38 --> 00:27:40 >> just sent it to you again. This is like

00:27:40 --> 00:27:42 live radio, Fred. We're just like

00:27:42 --> 00:27:45 >> just doing it on the hop.

00:27:45 --> 00:27:46 >> Uh,

00:27:46 --> 00:27:46 yes.

00:27:46 --> 00:27:49 >> But it's it's a fascinating video. I'm

00:27:49 --> 00:27:51 just looking at it now and um it's only

00:27:52 --> 00:27:53 about 15 seconds, but yes, you can see

00:27:53 --> 00:27:56 all these bright flashes just zipping

00:27:56 --> 00:27:59 past the spacecraft.

00:27:59 --> 00:27:59 >> Um

00:27:59 --> 00:28:00 >> um

00:28:00 --> 00:28:03 >> it could be exhaust material.

00:28:03 --> 00:28:06 I'm not able to see your incoming email.

00:28:06 --> 00:28:09 What's Who is the

00:28:09 --> 00:28:12 >> It's from um Sandy. Sandy

00:28:12 --> 00:28:13 >> that um

00:28:13 --> 00:28:15 >> No, it must have come via Hang on. Here

00:28:15 --> 00:28:17 we are. Space Nuts.

00:28:17 --> 00:28:17 >> Yeah.

00:28:17 --> 00:28:19 >> Is this Yeah. Okay. All right. I've got

00:28:19 --> 00:28:19 the link.

00:28:19 --> 00:28:20 >> Okay.

00:28:20 --> 00:28:24 >> Let me open that up and look at it.

00:28:24 --> 00:28:29 >> Okay. Uh it could be could be ice.

00:28:29 --> 00:28:32 >> Oh, I didn't think of that.

00:28:32 --> 00:28:36 A little bit of stuff going past. Um, it

00:28:36 --> 00:28:38 could be ice because they have had

00:28:38 --> 00:28:41 problems with the toilets. Oh.

00:28:41 --> 00:28:44 >> Uh, which, uh, have frozen up. The

00:28:44 --> 00:28:47 toilets frozen up. Uh, the exhaust vent

00:28:47 --> 00:28:51 for the liquid waste has frozen. Uh, and

00:28:51 --> 00:28:53 they've tried to unblock it. That might

00:28:53 --> 00:28:55 be what that is.

00:28:55 --> 00:28:56 >> Okay.

00:28:56 --> 00:28:58 >> Uh, that's the best guess I can give,

00:28:58 --> 00:29:00 but I guess well be it. Yeah,

00:29:00 --> 00:29:03 >> I think it's a good guess and Sandy is

00:29:03 --> 00:29:04 so glad he asked. We only just talked

00:29:04 --> 00:29:06 about the toilets the other day. All

00:29:06 --> 00:29:09 this innovation and and new tech and

00:29:10 --> 00:29:12 >> yes, the hygiene facility or whatever it

00:29:12 --> 00:29:12 was.

00:29:12 --> 00:29:15 >> That's right. It's given all kinds of

00:29:15 --> 00:29:17 problems, but it's because of the the

00:29:17 --> 00:29:19 the venting pipe has been freezing up.

00:29:19 --> 00:29:21 So, they've turned a couple of times

00:29:21 --> 00:29:22 they've turned the spacecraft towards

00:29:22 --> 00:29:24 the sun. It's also got heaters in it,

00:29:24 --> 00:29:26 which might be faulty or something like

00:29:26 --> 00:29:30 that. But um I believe uh Victor Glover

00:29:30 --> 00:29:33 who uh is one of the crew members I

00:29:33 --> 00:29:36 think he's the plumbing expert.

00:29:36 --> 00:29:39 >> What a great job.

00:29:39 --> 00:29:40 >> What's your job? I'm a plumber on

00:29:40 --> 00:29:40 Optimist.

00:29:40 --> 00:29:43 >> He charges 75 bucks an hour too by the

00:29:43 --> 00:29:43 way. So

00:29:44 --> 00:29:46 >> with $150 call out fee as well.

00:29:46 --> 00:29:48 >> That's right.

00:29:48 --> 00:29:50 That that happened to me once. I called

00:29:50 --> 00:29:51 a plumber and he said, "Oh yeah, that's

00:29:51 --> 00:29:53 a council problem." And then build me 40

00:29:53 --> 00:29:55 bucks.

00:29:56 --> 00:29:57 It's true story.

00:29:57 --> 00:29:59 >> Uh there you go, Sandy. It was It was

00:29:59 --> 00:30:02 the toilet. It was the toilet. Uh maybe.

00:30:02 --> 00:30:04 Thanks for the question. I love doing

00:30:04 --> 00:30:05 questions without notice. You just never

00:30:06 --> 00:30:07 know what's going to get thrown up.

00:30:07 --> 00:30:10 Boom. Boom. Um thank you, Fred. We're

00:30:10 --> 00:30:11 all done.

00:30:11 --> 00:30:14 >> Um thank goodness for that.

00:30:14 --> 00:30:16 >> Maybe so. Maybe so.

00:30:16 --> 00:30:18 >> Yeah, we'll talk again soon, Andrew.

00:30:18 --> 00:30:19 Thank you.

00:30:19 --> 00:30:21 >> Professor Fred Watson, astronomer at

00:30:21 --> 00:30:23 large. And uh don't forget to visit us

00:30:23 --> 00:30:26 online, especially our website um where

00:30:26 --> 00:30:28 you can send us your questions, text and

00:30:28 --> 00:30:31 audio. Spacenuts.io

00:30:31 --> 00:30:33 is one of the URLs you can use or just

00:30:33 --> 00:30:36 do Spacenuts podcast as a search in your

00:30:36 --> 00:30:38 favorite search engine and click on the

00:30:38 --> 00:30:40 AMA link at the top uh where you can

00:30:40 --> 00:30:42 send us text and audio questions. So

00:30:42 --> 00:30:45 don't forget to tell us who you are and

00:30:45 --> 00:30:47 where you're from. And thanks to Hugh in

00:30:47 --> 00:30:49 the studio who actually was with us

00:30:49 --> 00:30:51 today, but he's had to leave because he

00:30:51 --> 00:30:53 had to go and see his accountant uh

00:30:53 --> 00:30:55 because uh apparently the tax department

00:30:55 --> 00:30:57 says there are confusion reactions that

00:30:57 --> 00:31:00 they want to discuss with him.

00:31:00 --> 00:31:01 And from me, Andrew Dunley, thanks for

00:31:02 --> 00:31:03 your company. We'll see you on the next

00:31:03 --> 00:31:05 episode of Space Nuts. Bye-bye.

00:31:05 --> 00:31:08 >> Space Nuts. You've been listening to the

00:31:08 --> 00:31:11 Space Nuts podcast

00:31:11 --> 00:31:14 >> available at Apple Podcasts, Spotify,

00:31:14 --> 00:31:16 iHeart Radio, or your favorite podcast

00:31:16 --> 00:31:19 player. You can also stream on demand at

00:31:19 --> 00:31:22 byes.com. This has been another quality

00:31:22 --> 00:31:26 podcast production from byes.com.