SpaceTime Series 27 Episode 136
*Discovering the Origins of Magnetars
A groundbreaking study reveals that magnetars, highly magnetic neutron stars, are born from stellar mergers rather than single star supernova events. These findings, published in Nature, delve into the origins of fast radio bursts (FRBs), which are high-energy flashes releasing more energy in nanoseconds than half a billion suns. The research indicates that FRBs are more common in massive star-forming galaxies, suggesting a link to magnetars formed from stellar mergers. This discovery challenges previous assumptions about magnetar formation and sheds light on the dynamic processes in the universe.
* Voyager 1 Approaches One Light Day from Earth
NASA's Voyager 1 spacecraft is set to become the first human-made object to travel more than a light day's distance from Earth, a monumental 26 billion kilometers away. This historic milestone is expected in January 2027. Despite recent communication challenges due to a fault protection system glitch, engineers successfully reestablished contact. Voyager 1 and its twin, Voyager 2, continue their journey through interstellar space, providing invaluable data about the cosmos.
* Australia Axes Vital Military Satellite Defense System
In a surprising move, the Australian government has canceled a crucial $7 billion satellite defense project. The JP9102 military satellite communications system, awarded to Lockheed Martin, was intended to enhance Australia's military communications amid growing regional tensions. The decision, amid geopolitical challenges, raises concerns about Australia's defense capabilities and secure communications network.
The Science Robert
A study highlights the significant carbon footprint of private jet users, who generate 500 times more CO2 than the average person. Meanwhile, research identifies 22 pesticides linked to prostate cancer, and a systematic review confirms no link between cell phone use and brain cancer. Plus, a fascinating look at how animals in the wild might consume alcohol from fermented fruits.
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00:00 This is space Time Series 27, Episode 136 for broadcast on Remembrance Day
00:46 New study suggests highly magnetic neutron stars are born out of stellar mergers
05:06 NASA's Voyager 1 spacecraft lost contact with mission managers on October 18
15:10 Australian government has just axed a crucial $7 billion satellite defense project
17:38 A new study has identified 22 pesticides consistently linked to the incidence of prostate cancer
20:53 A new systematic review confirms there is no scientific evidence that cell phones cause cancer
✍️ Episode References
NASA
[https://www.nasa.gov/](https://www.nasa.gov/)
Caltech
[https://www.caltech.edu/](https://www.caltech.edu/)
Deep Synoptic Array
[https://www.astro.caltech.edu/research/dsa/](https://www.astro.caltech.edu/research/dsa/)
Owens Valley Radio Observatory
[https://www.astro.caltech.edu/ovro/](https://www.astro.caltech.edu/ovro/)
Nature Journal
[https://www.nature.com/](https://www.nature.com/)
Lockheed Martin
[https://www.lockheedmartin.com/](https://www.lockheedmartin.com/)
Australian Defence Force
[https://www.defence.gov.au/](https://www.defence.gov.au/)
UNRWA
[https://www.unrwa.org/](https://www.unrwa.org/)
Jet Propulsion Laboratory
[https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/](https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/)
Episode link: https://play.headliner.app/episode/24020466?utm_source=youtube
00:00:00 --> 00:00:03 this is spacetime series 27 episode 136
00:00:03 --> 00:00:05 for broadcast on Remembrance Day the
00:00:05 --> 00:00:07 11th of November
00:00:07 --> 00:00:09 2024 coming up on
00:00:09 --> 00:00:12 SpaceTime discovering the origins of
00:00:12 --> 00:00:15 magnetar NASA's Voyer one spacecraft
00:00:15 --> 00:00:17 about to reach one light day away from
00:00:17 --> 00:00:20 Earth and Australia acts as a vital
00:00:20 --> 00:00:23 military satellite defense system all
00:00:23 --> 00:00:26 that and more coming up on
00:00:26 --> 00:00:29 SpaceTime welcome to SpaceTime with
00:00:29 --> 00:00:31 Studio
00:00:31 --> 00:00:38 [Music]
00:00:45 --> 00:00:48 Gary a new study suggests that highly
00:00:48 --> 00:00:50 magnetic neutron stars known as
00:00:50 --> 00:00:52 magnetars are actually born out of
00:00:52 --> 00:00:55 Stellar mergers rather than singl Star
00:00:55 --> 00:00:58 supernova events the findings reported
00:00:58 --> 00:01:00 in the journal Nature for follows new
00:01:00 --> 00:01:02 Research into the origins of fast radio
00:01:02 --> 00:01:06 bursts fast radio bursts or FBS are
00:01:06 --> 00:01:08 sudden high energy flashes at very
00:01:08 --> 00:01:10 specific wavelengths lasting just Nan
00:01:10 --> 00:01:12 seconds and usually originating at
00:01:12 --> 00:01:15 Cosmic distances but in that time they
00:01:15 --> 00:01:17 can release more energy than half a
00:01:17 --> 00:01:20 billion Suns the first fast radio burst
00:01:21 --> 00:01:23 was discovered back in 2007 that was in
00:01:23 --> 00:01:25 data from the parks radio telescope in
00:01:25 --> 00:01:29 New South Wales most are singular events
00:01:29 --> 00:01:31 occurring just just once at a specific
00:01:31 --> 00:01:33 location and then never again and that
00:01:33 --> 00:01:35 suggests they caused by some sort of
00:01:35 --> 00:01:37 cataclysmic event such as a supernova
00:01:37 --> 00:01:40 the destructive explosion of a star but
00:01:40 --> 00:01:42 astronomers are now detecting more and
00:01:42 --> 00:01:44 more fast radio bursts that have
00:01:44 --> 00:01:46 repeated from the same location and that
00:01:46 --> 00:01:48 suggests a different cause feeding black
00:01:48 --> 00:01:51 holes glitching neutron stars and highly
00:01:51 --> 00:01:53 magnetized neutron stars called magnetar
00:01:53 --> 00:01:56 are all suspected or on the other hand
00:01:56 --> 00:01:58 it could simply be that all fast radio
00:01:58 --> 00:02:00 burst are repeaters with some just a lot
00:02:00 --> 00:02:02 more active than others currently
00:02:02 --> 00:02:04 confirmed fast radio bursts number in
00:02:04 --> 00:02:06 the hundreds and scientists are
00:02:06 --> 00:02:08 assembling mounting evidence that they
00:02:08 --> 00:02:11 are triggered by magnetar and that's
00:02:11 --> 00:02:13 where this latest research comes in it's
00:02:13 --> 00:02:15 found that fast radio bursts are more
00:02:15 --> 00:02:18 likely to occur in massive star forming
00:02:18 --> 00:02:21 galaxies rather than low mass ones and
00:02:21 --> 00:02:23 this finding has in turn led to new
00:02:23 --> 00:02:25 ideas about how the magneti themselves
00:02:25 --> 00:02:28 are being created specifically the new
00:02:28 --> 00:02:31 work suggested these exotic dead stars
00:02:31 --> 00:02:33 whose magnetic fields are 100 trillion
00:02:33 --> 00:02:34 times stronger than the Earth's often
00:02:34 --> 00:02:37 form when two stars emerge and then
00:02:37 --> 00:02:40 explode as a supernova previously was
00:02:40 --> 00:02:42 unclear whether magnetizes were formed
00:02:42 --> 00:02:44 from the explosion of two mer stars or
00:02:44 --> 00:02:46 whether they might form when a single
00:02:46 --> 00:02:48 star explodes the study's lead author
00:02:48 --> 00:02:50 criti Sharma from Caltech says the
00:02:50 --> 00:02:52 immense power output of magneti makes
00:02:53 --> 00:02:54 them some of the most fascinating
00:02:54 --> 00:02:57 extreme objects in the universe but very
00:02:57 --> 00:02:59 little is known about what causes their
00:02:59 --> 00:03:01 formation upon the death of massive
00:03:01 --> 00:03:03 stars and that's where this new work
00:03:03 --> 00:03:06 comes in to try and help answer that
00:03:06 --> 00:03:09 question Sho and colleagues use Caltech
00:03:09 --> 00:03:11 deep synoptic array 110 in the Owens
00:03:11 --> 00:03:14 Valley radio observatory near Bishop
00:03:14 --> 00:03:16 California that array is already
00:03:16 --> 00:03:18 detected and localized some 70 fast
00:03:18 --> 00:03:20 radio burst pinning him down to a
00:03:20 --> 00:03:23 specific Galaxy of origin although fast
00:03:23 --> 00:03:25 radio burst are now known to occur in
00:03:25 --> 00:03:27 galaxies that are actively forming Stars
00:03:27 --> 00:03:28 Shamar and colleagues found that they
00:03:28 --> 00:03:30 tend to occur more often in massive star
00:03:30 --> 00:03:33 forming galaxies rather than low mass
00:03:33 --> 00:03:35 star forming ones and that's important
00:03:35 --> 00:03:37 because massive galaxies tend to be more
00:03:38 --> 00:03:39 metal Rich that's because the metals in
00:03:40 --> 00:03:41 our universe that is the elements
00:03:41 --> 00:03:44 manufactured by stars take time to build
00:03:44 --> 00:03:47 up over the course of cosmic history now
00:03:47 --> 00:03:48 of course when astronomers speak of
00:03:48 --> 00:03:50 metals they're speaking of all elements
00:03:50 --> 00:03:52 on the periodic table other than
00:03:52 --> 00:03:54 hydrogen and helium the elements created
00:03:54 --> 00:03:57 in the Big Bang itself the fact that
00:03:57 --> 00:03:59 fast radio bursts are more common in
00:03:59 --> 00:04:01 these metal Rich galaxies implies that
00:04:01 --> 00:04:03 their Source magneti are also more
00:04:03 --> 00:04:06 common in these types of galaxies and
00:04:06 --> 00:04:08 the simple fact is stars that are rich
00:04:08 --> 00:04:11 in metals tend to grow larger than other
00:04:11 --> 00:04:14 stars over time as galaxies grow
00:04:14 --> 00:04:16 successive generations of stars enrich
00:04:16 --> 00:04:18 those galaxies with more and more Metals
00:04:18 --> 00:04:21 as those Stars evolve and die also
00:04:21 --> 00:04:23 massive stars that explode in super
00:04:23 --> 00:04:26 nerve can become magnetti are more
00:04:26 --> 00:04:29 commonly found in peirs in fact some 84%
00:04:29 --> 00:04:32 of all no massive stars are in binary
00:04:32 --> 00:04:35 systems so when one star in a binary
00:04:35 --> 00:04:37 systems puffed up due to Extra metal
00:04:37 --> 00:04:39 content the excess material gets drawn
00:04:39 --> 00:04:41 over to the binary partner which
00:04:41 --> 00:04:43 facilitates the ultimate merger of the
00:04:43 --> 00:04:46 two stars these now merged Stars would
00:04:46 --> 00:04:48 therefore have a far greater combined
00:04:48 --> 00:04:50 magnetic field than that of a single
00:04:50 --> 00:04:53 star and a star with more metal content
00:04:53 --> 00:04:55 expands and drives more mass transfer
00:04:55 --> 00:04:57 culminating in a merger and thus forming
00:04:57 --> 00:04:59 an even more massive star with a total
00:04:59 --> 00:05:01 magnetic field greater than what the
00:05:01 --> 00:05:04 individual star would have had it's nice
00:05:04 --> 00:05:07 when the pieces all fit together this is
00:05:07 --> 00:05:10 spacetime still to come Voyager One
00:05:10 --> 00:05:12 about to reach a distance of one light
00:05:12 --> 00:05:14 day from Earth and a vital military
00:05:14 --> 00:05:16 satellite defense system a by the
00:05:16 --> 00:05:18 albanesi government all that and more
00:05:18 --> 00:05:25 still to come on SpaceTime
00:05:25 --> 00:05:34 [Music]
00:05:36 --> 00:05:39 NASA's voy one spacecraft is about to
00:05:39 --> 00:05:41 become the first man-made object to
00:05:41 --> 00:05:43 travel more than a light day's distance
00:05:43 --> 00:05:45 from Earth now to put that in
00:05:45 --> 00:05:48 perspective a light day is a distance of
00:05:48 --> 00:05:51 26 billion kilometers now the historic
00:05:51 --> 00:05:53 achievement won't happen for a while yet
00:05:53 --> 00:05:55 it'll be January 2027 but it's worth
00:05:55 --> 00:05:58 mentioning it Voyer 1 together with its
00:05:58 --> 00:06:00 twin Voyer 2 spacecraft are continuing
00:06:00 --> 00:06:02 their journey through unexplored
00:06:02 --> 00:06:05 Interstellar space and it's been a drama
00:06:05 --> 00:06:07 filled Mission with tensions again set
00:06:07 --> 00:06:10 soaring recently when vuan suddenly lost
00:06:10 --> 00:06:12 contact with Mission managers scientists
00:06:12 --> 00:06:14 were concerned that the unexpected loss
00:06:14 --> 00:06:17 signal might have meant the end of the
00:06:17 --> 00:06:19 historic 47 year long Interstellar
00:06:19 --> 00:06:22 Mission turns out the loss of contact
00:06:22 --> 00:06:24 was triggered by a glitch invol a for
00:06:24 --> 00:06:26 protection system that caused its
00:06:26 --> 00:06:28 primary radio transmitter to suddenly
00:06:28 --> 00:06:30 switch off a eventually Engineers were
00:06:30 --> 00:06:33 able to reestablish contact and identify
00:06:33 --> 00:06:35 the source of the problem now this
00:06:35 --> 00:06:37 system usually autonomously manages on
00:06:37 --> 00:06:39 board functions reducing power use by
00:06:39 --> 00:06:41 deactivating non-essential equipment in
00:06:41 --> 00:06:44 order to safeguard the spacecraft's core
00:06:44 --> 00:06:46 operations the incident unfolded when
00:06:46 --> 00:06:48 the flight team based at NASA's jet
00:06:48 --> 00:06:50 propulsion laboratory in Pasadena
00:06:50 --> 00:06:52 California commanded Voyager One to
00:06:52 --> 00:06:55 power on a heater on October the 16th
00:06:55 --> 00:06:57 now although the spacecraft seem to have
00:06:57 --> 00:06:59 enough power the command unexpectedly
00:06:59 --> 00:07:02 triggered a fault protection system and
00:07:02 --> 00:07:04 on October the 18th NASA's deep space
00:07:04 --> 00:07:06 Communications network was no longer
00:07:06 --> 00:07:09 able to detect its signal initially
00:07:09 --> 00:07:11 Engineers hypothesized the for
00:07:11 --> 00:07:13 protection system had reduced the data
00:07:13 --> 00:07:15 transmission rate on the xand radio
00:07:15 --> 00:07:17 transmitter requiring less power but
00:07:17 --> 00:07:20 complicating signal detection eventually
00:07:20 --> 00:07:22 they were able to detect a weak signal
00:07:22 --> 00:07:24 coming from the spacecraft indicating
00:07:24 --> 00:07:26 that Voyager 1 remained operational and
00:07:26 --> 00:07:29 was in a stable condition however the
00:07:29 --> 00:07:31 following ing day October 19th
00:07:31 --> 00:07:33 Communications appear to cease entirely
00:07:33 --> 00:07:35 leading the team to suspect that Voyer
00:07:35 --> 00:07:37 for protection system activated again
00:07:37 --> 00:07:39 switching from the primary x-band
00:07:39 --> 00:07:41 transmitter to a much weaker sban
00:07:42 --> 00:07:44 transmitter now this sban transmitter
00:07:44 --> 00:07:47 has not been used since 1981 it emits a
00:07:47 --> 00:07:49 weaker signal and therefore presents a
00:07:49 --> 00:07:51 far greater challenge for detection over
00:07:51 --> 00:07:55 Voyer 1's nearly 25 billion 879 million
00:07:55 --> 00:07:58 kilm distance Glenn Nagel from ness's
00:07:58 --> 00:07:59 deep space Communications Network
00:07:59 --> 00:08:01 complex near camra says Engineers
00:08:01 --> 00:08:03 managed to pick up the espand signal and
00:08:04 --> 00:08:05 confirm that Voyer one remains
00:08:05 --> 00:08:08 operational although full functionality
00:08:08 --> 00:08:10 has not yet been restored yes just in
00:08:10 --> 00:08:13 recent times a a standard command set
00:08:13 --> 00:08:15 sent to the spacecraft commanded it to
00:08:15 --> 00:08:17 turn one of its onboard a heers on and
00:08:17 --> 00:08:19 that seems to have tripped a fault
00:08:19 --> 00:08:22 inside the computer on the Voyer
00:08:22 --> 00:08:23 spacecraft and it did something that
00:08:23 --> 00:08:25 wasn't expected normally the spacecraft
00:08:25 --> 00:08:28 transmits to us on its xand transmitter
00:08:28 --> 00:08:30 which is a you know good strong
00:08:30 --> 00:08:32 frequency that we can get back data from
00:08:32 --> 00:08:34 the spacecraft and understand about the
00:08:34 --> 00:08:35 health of spacecraft but this fault
00:08:35 --> 00:08:38 turned off the xand and turned on the
00:08:38 --> 00:08:40 s-band communication now the s-band
00:08:40 --> 00:08:43 transmitter hasn't been operated in over
00:08:43 --> 00:08:46 30 years but this s-band switched on and
00:08:46 --> 00:08:48 worked the problem with sand it's a much
00:08:48 --> 00:08:51 wider band much wider frequency and much
00:08:51 --> 00:08:53 lower signal coming back to the Earth so
00:08:53 --> 00:08:56 unfortunately the spacecraft while we
00:08:56 --> 00:08:58 could hear it barely above the
00:08:58 --> 00:08:59 background noise of the rest of the
00:09:00 --> 00:09:02 universe we could not get science data
00:09:02 --> 00:09:03 from it but what we discovered is the
00:09:03 --> 00:09:05 spacecraft was still commandable and
00:09:05 --> 00:09:07 that was really great news we could
00:09:07 --> 00:09:09 Uplink commands to the spacecraft we had
00:09:09 --> 00:09:12 to wait for nearly 46 hours roundtrip
00:09:12 --> 00:09:13 time at the speed of light to get the
00:09:13 --> 00:09:15 signal to Voyager One and back again and
00:09:15 --> 00:09:17 be able to determine that the spacecraft
00:09:17 --> 00:09:19 was responding to the commands that we
00:09:19 --> 00:09:21 gave it to some little offsets in the
00:09:21 --> 00:09:23 frequency that it was transmitting at so
00:09:23 --> 00:09:25 that was good news so we're in lock with
00:09:25 --> 00:09:27 the spacecraft in fact as we're speaking
00:09:27 --> 00:09:29 right now we're actually talking with
00:09:29 --> 00:09:31 one through our big dish here in CRA and
00:09:31 --> 00:09:33 so the spacecraft seems to be good in
00:09:33 --> 00:09:35 good health and now it's just up to the
00:09:35 --> 00:09:37 science team to try to figure out what
00:09:37 --> 00:09:39 was theault how can they Rectify it how
00:09:39 --> 00:09:41 can we switch back to the xand
00:09:41 --> 00:09:42 transmitter and get back in full science
00:09:42 --> 00:09:44 mode with Voyer well of course the two
00:09:44 --> 00:09:46 Voyer twins are getting on in years
00:09:46 --> 00:09:48 aren't we all and there've been a couple
00:09:48 --> 00:09:49 of incidents of late yeah so they've
00:09:49 --> 00:09:51 been both out there for over 47 years
00:09:51 --> 00:09:54 now and just like a lot of us we might
00:09:54 --> 00:09:55 get a little bit forgetful from time to
00:09:55 --> 00:09:57 time have a few aches and pains as we
00:09:57 --> 00:09:59 wake up in the morning last year voided
00:09:59 --> 00:10:01 two we lost contact with it for a few
00:10:01 --> 00:10:03 weeks when an incorrect command set to
00:10:03 --> 00:10:05 the spacecraft recalibrated its antenna
00:10:05 --> 00:10:07 to actually point away from the earth
00:10:07 --> 00:10:09 and again it was sort of camell to the
00:10:09 --> 00:10:11 rescue transmitting it high power to the
00:10:11 --> 00:10:12 spacecraft to relock in in on its
00:10:12 --> 00:10:14 computers even though the antenna was
00:10:14 --> 00:10:16 pointed away from us and to be able to
00:10:16 --> 00:10:18 get it back and back to science again
00:10:18 --> 00:10:20 and it's been quite in good health over
00:10:20 --> 00:10:22 the last year and a half or so but Voyer
00:10:22 --> 00:10:26 one earlier this year also had a problem
00:10:26 --> 00:10:28 on board it's onboard computer which
00:10:28 --> 00:10:29 we're talking about comp computers that
00:10:29 --> 00:10:32 were built in the 1970s some very very
00:10:32 --> 00:10:34 basic chips on that spacecraft and when
00:10:34 --> 00:10:36 I talk about a chip not like the little
00:10:36 --> 00:10:37 tiny ones you might have a new car fob
00:10:37 --> 00:10:40 these are ones that are 10 times
00:10:40 --> 00:10:43 less powerful than what's in the car fob
00:10:43 --> 00:10:46 to open the car door and these one of
00:10:46 --> 00:10:48 the little chips out of a set of eight
00:10:48 --> 00:10:50 must have been hit by a cosmic ray
00:10:50 --> 00:10:52 strike and that flipped a bit on that
00:10:52 --> 00:10:55 and made that particular chip unusable
00:10:55 --> 00:10:57 and so it took a while to determine what
00:10:57 --> 00:10:59 was the problem it the spacecraft was
00:10:59 --> 00:11:01 sending back gibberish to us basically
00:11:01 --> 00:11:03 spacecraft is talking in binary code
00:11:03 --> 00:11:05 ones and zeros and we're either just
00:11:05 --> 00:11:07 getting ones or just getting zeros and
00:11:07 --> 00:11:09 that doesn't tell us anything about the
00:11:09 --> 00:11:11 spacecraft it is just nonsense but some
00:11:11 --> 00:11:13 greater Engineers within the science
00:11:13 --> 00:11:14 team and within the deep space Network
00:11:15 --> 00:11:16 that were a part of actually noticed
00:11:16 --> 00:11:18 that there was some information there
00:11:18 --> 00:11:21 buried quite deep into the data and that
00:11:21 --> 00:11:23 helped us understand what the problem
00:11:23 --> 00:11:25 with the spacecraft was to identify the
00:11:25 --> 00:11:27 problem with the chip on board and then
00:11:27 --> 00:11:29 to write a program which we were then
00:11:29 --> 00:11:31 able to Uplink through our antennas and
00:11:31 --> 00:11:34 transmit to the spacecraft to ensure
00:11:34 --> 00:11:36 that it could then go don't look at that
00:11:36 --> 00:11:38 chip anymore let's distribute the
00:11:38 --> 00:11:40 program across the other chips which we
00:11:40 --> 00:11:42 still know are working and as soon as
00:11:42 --> 00:11:44 that was done we waited an anxious 46
00:11:44 --> 00:11:46 hours for the transmission time there
00:11:46 --> 00:11:49 and back and we received the data and
00:11:49 --> 00:11:52 voan was back in full communication so
00:11:52 --> 00:11:53 this is just another one this current
00:11:54 --> 00:11:56 pause is just another one of a series of
00:11:56 --> 00:11:58 issues with an aging spacecraft but you
00:11:58 --> 00:12:00 got to remember nobody ever expected
00:12:00 --> 00:12:02 Voyager to last this long they were a
00:12:02 --> 00:12:04 12year mission go and explore the giant
00:12:04 --> 00:12:05 planets of our solar system they
00:12:05 --> 00:12:08 finished that journey in 1989 but
00:12:08 --> 00:12:10 they've kept going they've now left
00:12:10 --> 00:12:11 behind the solar system they're both in
00:12:11 --> 00:12:13 interstellar space they're still telling
00:12:13 --> 00:12:15 us new and unique things about a region
00:12:15 --> 00:12:18 of space that nobody ever thought we'd
00:12:18 --> 00:12:20 be having a spacecraft operate and to
00:12:20 --> 00:12:22 explore that region so soon so they've
00:12:22 --> 00:12:24 got a a remarkable Legacy behind them
00:12:24 --> 00:12:26 they have a remarkable journey ahead of
00:12:26 --> 00:12:28 them scientists are still using the data
00:12:28 --> 00:12:31 they gathered back in the 1980s to carry
00:12:31 --> 00:12:33 out new studies of bodies within the
00:12:33 --> 00:12:35 solar system some Voyer 2 Data just the
00:12:35 --> 00:12:38 other day was used to confirm that the
00:12:38 --> 00:12:40 Uranian Moon if that's the correct term
00:12:40 --> 00:12:43 Miranda possibly has a liquid water
00:12:43 --> 00:12:45 ocean under its surface yeah it is
00:12:45 --> 00:12:47 remarkable we're still mining that data
00:12:47 --> 00:12:49 both the scientists all over the world
00:12:49 --> 00:12:51 and even some amateurs using some of the
00:12:51 --> 00:12:54 available Voyager data to actually make
00:12:54 --> 00:12:56 new discoveries even find a once thought
00:12:56 --> 00:12:59 of moon that was sort of lost out at
00:12:59 --> 00:13:01 Neptune and ReDiscover that in some of
00:13:01 --> 00:13:03 the images just through amateurs working
00:13:03 --> 00:13:05 on the data so it's amazing that after
00:13:05 --> 00:13:07 47 years these two spacecraft are still
00:13:07 --> 00:13:09 telling us new things about our own
00:13:09 --> 00:13:10 solar system and are now telling us
00:13:10 --> 00:13:12 about the rest of the universe that's
00:13:12 --> 00:13:14 Glen Nagel from n's deep space
00:13:14 --> 00:13:17 Communications Network near camra the
00:13:17 --> 00:13:19 incident is the latest example of the
00:13:19 --> 00:13:21 mission's complex engineering demands
00:13:21 --> 00:13:23 especially as the twin Voyer spacecraft
00:13:23 --> 00:13:25 which were launched back in 1977 are
00:13:25 --> 00:13:28 reging ever closer to the half century
00:13:28 --> 00:13:31 mark voer one entered Interstellar space
00:13:31 --> 00:13:32 that's the region of the Galaxy beyond
00:13:32 --> 00:13:34 the heliosphere the bubble created by
00:13:34 --> 00:13:36 the solar wind and magnetic field
00:13:36 --> 00:13:39 emanating from the Sun back in 2012 when
00:13:39 --> 00:13:42 it was some 123 astronomical units from
00:13:42 --> 00:13:44 the Sun an astronomical unit is the
00:13:44 --> 00:13:46 average distance between the Earth and
00:13:46 --> 00:13:50 the Sun about 150 million kilm or 8.3
00:13:50 --> 00:13:53 light minutes voi 2 followed its twin
00:13:53 --> 00:13:55 into Interstellar space in 2018 although
00:13:56 --> 00:13:58 traveling in a different direction in
00:13:58 --> 00:14:00 the decades f following their launch on
00:14:00 --> 00:14:02 August the 20th and September the 5th
00:14:02 --> 00:14:05 1977 respectively the Voyer twins have
00:14:05 --> 00:14:07 undertaken a grand tour of the outer
00:14:07 --> 00:14:10 solar system studying Jupiter Saturn
00:14:10 --> 00:14:12 Uranus and Neptune now if nothing else
00:14:12 --> 00:14:14 goes wrong the Voyer probes could
00:14:14 --> 00:14:16 continue to operate using their existing
00:14:16 --> 00:14:18 power reserves until the late
00:14:18 --> 00:14:21 2020s but as time goes by continued
00:14:21 --> 00:14:23 operations are becoming more and more
00:14:23 --> 00:14:24 challenging with Mission power
00:14:25 --> 00:14:27 diminishing by four Watts every year and
00:14:27 --> 00:14:29 the two spacecraft will continue to cool
00:14:29 --> 00:14:32 down as this power
00:14:32 --> 00:14:36 decreases this is spacetime still to
00:14:36 --> 00:14:38 come the Australian government acts as a
00:14:38 --> 00:14:41 crucial $7 billion satellite defense
00:14:41 --> 00:14:43 project and later in the science report
00:14:43 --> 00:14:46 it turns out people using private jets
00:14:46 --> 00:14:49 generate 500 times more carbon dioxide
00:14:49 --> 00:14:51 in a year than the average person all
00:14:51 --> 00:14:59 that and more still to come on SpaceTime
00:14:59 --> 00:15:07 [Music]
00:15:10 --> 00:15:12 the Australian government has just asked
00:15:12 --> 00:15:15 a crucial $7 billion satellite defense
00:15:15 --> 00:15:17 project the move is a significant blow
00:15:17 --> 00:15:20 to Australia's defense capabilities and
00:15:20 --> 00:15:22 it comes at a time of growing Regional
00:15:22 --> 00:15:24 tensions between China and Taiwan China
00:15:24 --> 00:15:26 and India and beijing's everever
00:15:26 --> 00:15:28 expanding interest in controlling the
00:15:28 --> 00:15:32 South China tene the ambitious JP 9102
00:15:32 --> 00:15:34 military satellite communication system
00:15:34 --> 00:15:36 was awarded just 18 months ago to us
00:15:36 --> 00:15:39 defense contractor loed Martin its
00:15:39 --> 00:15:41 sudden cancellation marks a dramatic
00:15:41 --> 00:15:43 reversal for it was a key project
00:15:43 --> 00:15:45 designed to make Australia's military
00:15:45 --> 00:15:47 communication safer at a time when the
00:15:47 --> 00:15:49 Cyber attack and electronic warfare
00:15:49 --> 00:15:52 landscape has been dramatically evolving
00:15:52 --> 00:15:54 as well as launching numerous large
00:15:54 --> 00:15:56 military grade satellites the program
00:15:56 --> 00:15:57 would have also included a satellite
00:15:57 --> 00:15:59 communication ground stations and a
00:15:59 --> 00:16:02 central mission control system the
00:16:02 --> 00:16:03 planned satellite Network would have
00:16:03 --> 00:16:05 provided Advanced encryption and
00:16:05 --> 00:16:07 anti-jamming capabilities creating what
00:16:07 --> 00:16:10 experts call an uncrackable Data Network
00:16:10 --> 00:16:12 across the Australian Defense Force it
00:16:12 --> 00:16:14 would have provided secure
00:16:14 --> 00:16:16 Communications for military aircraft
00:16:16 --> 00:16:18 Naval vessels and ground forces over the
00:16:18 --> 00:16:20 vast indopacific
00:16:20 --> 00:16:22 region without it Australia's military
00:16:22 --> 00:16:24 lacks the comprehensive coverage and
00:16:24 --> 00:16:26 secure Communications Network that JP
00:16:26 --> 00:16:30 9102 would have delivered the decision
00:16:30 --> 00:16:32 comes at a time when Australia's foreign
00:16:32 --> 00:16:34 minister Penny Wong has given more than
00:16:34 --> 00:16:37 $ 32.2 million of tax pay and money to
00:16:37 --> 00:16:39 groups like anra the controversial
00:16:39 --> 00:16:41 United Nations organization with close
00:16:41 --> 00:16:43 ties to Hamas and other Palestinian
00:16:43 --> 00:16:44 terrorist
00:16:44 --> 00:16:46 organizations the news of the satellite
00:16:46 --> 00:16:48 contract cancellation also comes in the
00:16:49 --> 00:16:51 wake of a promised cut of $16 billion by
00:16:51 --> 00:16:54 the albanesi government in future hex
00:16:54 --> 00:16:56 debt repayments by University students
00:16:56 --> 00:16:58 if it wins the next federal election
00:16:58 --> 00:17:01 slay for sometime around May next year
00:17:01 --> 00:17:04 China Iran North Korea and Russia are
00:17:04 --> 00:17:06 all widely recognized as having Advanced
00:17:06 --> 00:17:09 capabilities to jam satellite signals
00:17:09 --> 00:17:11 intercept Communications undertake cyber
00:17:11 --> 00:17:14 warfare and take control of satellite
00:17:14 --> 00:17:19 systems this is spacetime
00:17:19 --> 00:17:32 [Music]
00:17:32 --> 00:17:34 and time now to take a brief look at
00:17:34 --> 00:17:35 some of the other stories making news in
00:17:35 --> 00:17:38 science this week with a science report
00:17:38 --> 00:17:40 the next time politicians and
00:17:40 --> 00:17:42 celebrities bleed out about their green
00:17:42 --> 00:17:44 credentials it might be worth reminding
00:17:44 --> 00:17:46 them of a new study which has found that
00:17:46 --> 00:17:48 people using private jets to get
00:17:48 --> 00:17:50 themselves around the globe generate
00:17:50 --> 00:17:53 some 500 times more carbon dioxide every
00:17:53 --> 00:17:55 year than the average person the
00:17:55 --> 00:17:56 findings reported in the journal
00:17:56 --> 00:17:58 Communications Earth and environment
00:17:58 --> 00:18:00 also O showed that the annual carbon
00:18:00 --> 00:18:02 dioxide emissions from private planes
00:18:02 --> 00:18:06 has increased by 46% between 2019 and
00:18:06 --> 00:18:09 2023 the study also found significant
00:18:09 --> 00:18:11 emission Peaks around certain
00:18:11 --> 00:18:13 international events including the 2022
00:18:13 --> 00:18:16 FIFA World Cup KH film festival and
00:18:16 --> 00:18:19 ironically the cop 28 United Nations
00:18:19 --> 00:18:21 climate challenge conference the data
00:18:21 --> 00:18:24 shows Australia currently has 317
00:18:24 --> 00:18:27 private jets which accounts for 1.2% of
00:18:27 --> 00:18:29 the global total but ranked six highest
00:18:29 --> 00:18:32 globally with a number of planes per
00:18:32 --> 00:18:33 100
00:18:33 --> 00:18:36 residents a new study has identified 22
00:18:36 --> 00:18:39 pesticides consistently linked to the
00:18:39 --> 00:18:41 incidence of prostate cancer the
00:18:41 --> 00:18:43 findings reported in the journal cancer
00:18:43 --> 00:18:46 assess links between 295 different
00:18:46 --> 00:18:48 pesticides and prostate cancer using a
00:18:48 --> 00:18:50 lag period between exposure and cancer
00:18:50 --> 00:18:54 incidents of 10 to 18 years the time lag
00:18:54 --> 00:18:56 was needed because most prostate cancers
00:18:56 --> 00:19:00 grow slowly the year 199 7 to 2001 were
00:19:00 --> 00:19:03 assessed for pesticide use and the years
00:19:03 --> 00:19:06 2011 to 2015 for prostate cancer
00:19:06 --> 00:19:10 outcomes similarly 2002 to 2006 were
00:19:10 --> 00:19:12 assessed for pesticide use and 2016 to
00:19:12 --> 00:19:15 2020 for outcomes among the 22
00:19:15 --> 00:19:17 pesticides showing consistent direct
00:19:17 --> 00:19:19 links with prostate cancer incidents
00:19:19 --> 00:19:21 across both analyses were three that had
00:19:21 --> 00:19:23 previously been linked to prostate
00:19:23 --> 00:19:26 cancer including 24d which had been used
00:19:26 --> 00:19:27 for weed control in Australia since the
00:19:27 --> 00:19:29 1960s
00:19:29 --> 00:19:31 the other 19 pesticides had not been
00:19:31 --> 00:19:34 linked to prostate cancer before and
00:19:34 --> 00:19:35 included 10 herbicides several
00:19:36 --> 00:19:38 fungicides and insecticides and one so
00:19:39 --> 00:19:41 fumigant four pesticides linked to
00:19:41 --> 00:19:42 prostate cancer incidents were also
00:19:43 --> 00:19:44 linked with an increased risk of death
00:19:44 --> 00:19:47 from prostate cancer three herbicides
00:19:47 --> 00:19:49 truran which is approved for use in
00:19:49 --> 00:19:52 Australia chanul methanol which is not
00:19:52 --> 00:19:55 approved in Australia and dlu fenor PRI
00:19:55 --> 00:19:56 for which there's no Australian
00:19:56 --> 00:19:59 information and also one inecto side
00:19:59 --> 00:20:02 thth oxum which is also approved in
00:20:02 --> 00:20:05 Australia a new study has found that
00:20:05 --> 00:20:07 humans aren't the only species that
00:20:07 --> 00:20:09 deliberately consume alcohol the
00:20:09 --> 00:20:11 findings reported in the journal Trends
00:20:11 --> 00:20:13 into collagen Evolution looked at
00:20:13 --> 00:20:15 growing evidence of how commonly ethanol
00:20:15 --> 00:20:17 naturally occurs in fruits and nectar
00:20:17 --> 00:20:20 that are commonly food for wild animals
00:20:20 --> 00:20:22 the research to say most animals that
00:20:22 --> 00:20:23 eat sugary fruits are likely to be
00:20:24 --> 00:20:26 exposed to at least some ethanol and
00:20:26 --> 00:20:27 while most naturally fermented fruits
00:20:28 --> 00:20:30 only reach about 1 to 2% concentrations
00:20:30 --> 00:20:33 as high as 10.2% have been found the
00:20:33 --> 00:20:35 authors admit there's not much we know
00:20:35 --> 00:20:37 about why animals might choose to
00:20:37 --> 00:20:39 consume ethanol that's because being
00:20:39 --> 00:20:40 drunk is generally a bad idea when
00:20:40 --> 00:20:43 you're living in the wild however it's
00:20:43 --> 00:20:45 possible that while humans like the
00:20:45 --> 00:20:47 effects of alcohol but not the calories
00:20:47 --> 00:20:49 other animals may be risking the effects
00:20:49 --> 00:20:52 specifically to consume the
00:20:52 --> 00:20:54 calories a new systematic review
00:20:54 --> 00:20:56 covering thousands of studies has
00:20:57 --> 00:20:59 confirmed yet again that that there's no
00:20:59 --> 00:21:01 scientific evidence that cell phones can
00:21:01 --> 00:21:04 cause brain cancer this latest review
00:21:04 --> 00:21:05 was commissioned by the World Health
00:21:05 --> 00:21:07 Organization and published in the
00:21:07 --> 00:21:10 journal environment International it's
00:21:10 --> 00:21:12 the most comprehensive review so far and
00:21:12 --> 00:21:14 included more than 5 studies of
00:21:14 --> 00:21:18 which 63 published between 1994 and 2022
00:21:18 --> 00:21:21 were included in the final analysis Tim
00:21:21 --> 00:21:23 mendum from Australian skeptic says
00:21:23 --> 00:21:25 while there are a few isolated studies
00:21:25 --> 00:21:27 that have raised concerns a more
00:21:27 --> 00:21:29 complete examination of the data has
00:21:29 --> 00:21:31 negated those results you sort of wonder
00:21:31 --> 00:21:33 how much proof do you need but obviously
00:21:33 --> 00:21:34 in certain circumstances people just
00:21:34 --> 00:21:36 don't believe the proof so you got to
00:21:36 --> 00:21:37 say it again and again and again people
00:21:37 --> 00:21:39 looked at individual studies and done
00:21:39 --> 00:21:42 their meta studies of thousands in come
00:21:42 --> 00:21:44 some cases of other studies and looking
00:21:44 --> 00:21:45 at those that are good and those that
00:21:45 --> 00:21:47 are bad studies Etc and they come of
00:21:47 --> 00:21:49 conclusion no there ain't no problem
00:21:49 --> 00:21:50 it's not going to cause brain cancer you
00:21:50 --> 00:21:52 might spend too much time on the phone
00:21:52 --> 00:21:53 but that's a different issue but yeah
00:21:53 --> 00:21:55 this theory that was causing brain
00:21:55 --> 00:21:57 cancer that radiation from mobile phones
00:21:57 --> 00:21:59 you hold to your ear when listening to
00:21:59 --> 00:22:00 them is going to sort of give you cancer
00:22:00 --> 00:22:03 is not true over hundreds and thousands
00:22:03 --> 00:22:05 of studies over millions of people over
00:22:05 --> 00:22:07 a long time that mobile phones have been
00:22:07 --> 00:22:09 available there is no evidence that that
00:22:09 --> 00:22:11 is causing brain cancer there just be no
00:22:11 --> 00:22:13 correlation between the increase in cell
00:22:13 --> 00:22:15 phone usage brain cancer rates have not
00:22:15 --> 00:22:16 increased brain cancer rates have not
00:22:16 --> 00:22:17 increased but the usage of the
00:22:17 --> 00:22:19 technology has dramatically increased
00:22:19 --> 00:22:24 that's Tim mum from Australian Skeptics
00:22:24 --> 00:22:32 [Music]
00:22:37 --> 00:22:40 and that's the show for now SpaceTime is
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00:24:04 --> 00:24:06 Gary you've been listening to space time
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