Astronomy Daily - The Podcast: S04E47
In this episode of Astronomy Daily, host Steve Dunkley welcomes you to another thrilling exploration of the cosmos, featuring the latest updates from the world of astronomy and space science. From the mysterious Space Force spaceplane to the discovery of a fast-moving star, this episode is packed with intriguing stories that will leave you eager for more cosmic knowledge.
Highlights:
- Space Force's X37B Spaceplane: Get a rare glimpse of the US Space Force's shadowy X37B spaceplane, which has been orbiting Earth for over a year. We discuss the recent photo released by the Space Force, showcasing the vehicle's solar panels and open payload bay, along with the mission's objectives and its new aerobraking maneuver.
- Asteroid 2024 YR4 Update: Hear the latest on asteroid 2024 YR4, which has sparked rumors of potential destruction in 2032. Thankfully, updated calculations show an extremely low probability of impact with Earth, while its chances of colliding with the Moon have slightly increased.
- SpaceX's Static Fire Test: Dive into the details of SpaceX's recent long-duration static fire test of Ship 34, which lasted nearly a minute. We explore the implications of this test for future launches and the ongoing modifications to the spacecraft following previous anomalies.
- Fast-Moving Star Discovery: Discover an astonishing new find: a small, fast-moving star racing through the center of our galaxy, possibly with a planet in orbit. This star is estimated to be traveling at an incredible speed of 1.2 million miles per hour, making it a candidate for the fastest known exoplanet system.
- The Science of 21 Centimeter Radiation: Learn about the significance of 21 centimeter radiation in the search for extraterrestrial life. This fundamental frequency, linked to hydrogen atoms, is considered a universal calling card for potential communication with intelligent civilizations across the cosmos.
For more cosmic updates, visit our website at astronomydaily.io (http://www.astronomydaily.io/) . Join our community on social media by searching for #AstroDailyPod on Facebook, X, YouTubeMusic, and TikTok. Don't forget to subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts.
Thank you for tuning in. This is Steve signing off. Until next time, keep looking up and stay curious about the wonders of our universe.
00:00 - Welcome back to Astronomy Daily
01:05 - Space Force's X37B spaceplane update
07:30 - Asteroid 2024 YR4 risk assessment
12:15 - SpaceX's static fire test of Ship 34
18:00 - Discovery of fast-moving star
22:30 - The significance of 21 centimeter radiation
27:00 - Conclusion and upcoming content
✍️ Episode References
X37B Spaceplane Insights
[Space Force]( https://www.spaceforce.mil (https://www.spaceforce.mil/) )
Asteroid 2024 YR4 Information
[NASA NEO]( https://www.nasa.gov/neo (https://www.nasa.gov/neo) )
SpaceX Ship 34 Updates
[SpaceX]( https://www.spacex.com (https://www.spacex.com/) )
Fast-Moving Star Discovery
[NASA Goddard]( https://www.nasa.gov/goddard (https://www.nasa.gov/goddard) )
21 Centimeter Radiation Research
[NASA]( https://www.nasa.gov (https://www.nasa.gov/) )
Astronomy Daily
[Astronomy Daily]( http://www.astronomydaily.io (http://www.astronomydaily.io/) )
Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/astronomy-daily-space-news-discoveries--5648921/support (https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/astronomy-daily-space-news-discoveries--5648921/support) .
Episode link: https://play.headliner.app/episode/25745852?utm_source=youtube
00:00:00 --> 00:00:02 welcome again to astronomy daily I'm
00:00:02 --> 00:00:04 Steve Dunley your human host it's the
00:00:04 --> 00:00:08 24th of February
00:00:08 --> 00:00:12 2025 daily the podcast with your host
00:00:12 --> 00:00:14 Steve
00:00:14 --> 00:00:17 Dunley oh yes and thank you for joining
00:00:17 --> 00:00:18 us here at astronomy daily coming to you
00:00:18 --> 00:00:20 from the studio in Paradise that's right
00:00:20 --> 00:00:24 Newcastle Australia currently 36° I'm so
00:00:24 --> 00:00:26 glad to be indoors that's Celsius for
00:00:26 --> 00:00:28 all of you who are wondering it's a
00:00:28 --> 00:00:31 perfect Summer's Day here on Australia's
00:00:31 --> 00:00:32 beautiful East Coast not a cloud in the
00:00:32 --> 00:00:36 sky the sun is baking us yes and as
00:00:36 --> 00:00:39 Dylan Mand once said we're all audibly
00:00:39 --> 00:00:43 crackling down here we're only 3 km from
00:00:43 --> 00:00:45 the surface of the Sun didn't you know
00:00:45 --> 00:00:48 that it is hot hot hot and joining me
00:00:48 --> 00:00:51 again is my digital reporter pal who's
00:00:51 --> 00:00:53 fun to be with welcome back hie hi
00:00:53 --> 00:00:56 favorite human what's new oh H just
00:00:56 --> 00:00:58 another week in the real world just
00:00:58 --> 00:01:00 enjoying all the news from the astronomy
00:01:00 --> 00:01:02 daily newsletter now have you found your
00:01:02 --> 00:01:04 stories for today yes I have you'll like
00:01:05 --> 00:01:06 one about the mysterious space Force
00:01:06 --> 00:01:09 Space plane oh stop it space force you
00:01:09 --> 00:01:12 know what that means yes your favorite
00:01:12 --> 00:01:13 oh people get ready the space force
00:01:13 --> 00:01:17 theme music space force oh dear I'll
00:01:17 --> 00:01:20 just collect myself um and uh what else
00:01:20 --> 00:01:23 have you got for us H oh
00:01:23 --> 00:01:26 yes SpaceX has completed a substantial
00:01:26 --> 00:01:28 static fire test that I'll also report
00:01:28 --> 00:01:29 on that sounds very good it looks
00:01:29 --> 00:01:33 promising that's great hi it's not space
00:01:33 --> 00:01:35 force but it's really good and I am
00:01:35 --> 00:01:36 going to have a look at a fast moving
00:01:37 --> 00:01:39 star astronomers have discovered toward
00:01:39 --> 00:01:41 the center of the Galaxy and you won't
00:01:41 --> 00:01:43 believe just how fast we're talking with
00:01:43 --> 00:01:45 this one how fast are we talking then
00:01:45 --> 00:01:47 well H remember that time you asked me
00:01:47 --> 00:01:48 to put away the memory cards from the
00:01:48 --> 00:01:51 recording sessions last year yes and I'm
00:01:51 --> 00:01:53 still waiting anything to get out of a
00:01:53 --> 00:01:55 little work yeah okay well this star is
00:01:55 --> 00:01:58 way faster than that okay okay that's
00:01:58 --> 00:02:00 pretty quick let let me tell you
00:02:00 --> 00:02:03 listeners she said not very convincingly
00:02:03 --> 00:02:06 that's a fact yeah okay enough of that
00:02:06 --> 00:02:08 Shenanigans but before we get stuck into
00:02:08 --> 00:02:10 today's stories hi I've got a quick
00:02:10 --> 00:02:12 update regarding that approaching
00:02:12 --> 00:02:14 asteroid that's been in the news lately
00:02:14 --> 00:02:16 the one causing all the rumors about
00:02:16 --> 00:02:18 certain destruction in 2032 yes that's
00:02:18 --> 00:02:21 the one hi straight off the wire
00:02:21 --> 00:02:25 today asteroid 2024 y 4 as listeners
00:02:25 --> 00:02:27 might be already aware is a recently
00:02:27 --> 00:02:30 discovered near Earth object currently
00:02:30 --> 00:02:31 being closely monitored by NASA's
00:02:31 --> 00:02:33 planetary defense teams initial
00:02:33 --> 00:02:35 observations suggested there might be a
00:02:35 --> 00:02:37 potential risk of impact with Earth in
00:02:37 --> 00:02:40 the future but thankfully updated
00:02:40 --> 00:02:42 calculations have significantly reduced
00:02:42 --> 00:02:44 this possibility based on the latest
00:02:44 --> 00:02:47 data the asteroid has an extremely low
00:02:47 --> 00:02:51 probability 28% of impacting Earth on
00:02:51 --> 00:02:53 December 22
00:02:53 --> 00:02:55 2032 however its chances of colliding
00:02:55 --> 00:02:58 with the moon have slightly increased to
00:02:58 --> 00:03:01 1% so I can see that the asteroids orbit
00:03:01 --> 00:03:03 continues to be refined through ongoing
00:03:03 --> 00:03:05 observations with NASA's jet propulsion
00:03:05 --> 00:03:07 laboratory Sentry system providing
00:03:07 --> 00:03:09 real-time updates on its trajectory that
00:03:09 --> 00:03:10 is exactly how it works and while
00:03:11 --> 00:03:14 asteroid 2024 yr4 doesn't currently pose
00:03:14 --> 00:03:16 a significant threat scientists are
00:03:16 --> 00:03:18 remaining Vigilant tracking its
00:03:18 --> 00:03:19 movements to give more accurate
00:03:19 --> 00:03:21 predictions and to assess any potential
00:03:21 --> 00:03:24 future risks just in case that's very
00:03:24 --> 00:03:27 wise and this is why we shouldn't jump
00:03:27 --> 00:03:28 to conclusions about trajectories and
00:03:28 --> 00:03:31 potential impacts so soon that's right
00:03:31 --> 00:03:33 the asteroid is a neear object of the
00:03:33 --> 00:03:36 Apollo type with a estimated diameter
00:03:36 --> 00:03:38 between 40 and 90 M and it was
00:03:38 --> 00:03:41 discovered on December 27 2024 by Atlas
00:03:41 --> 00:03:43 which is the asteroid terrestrial impact
00:03:43 --> 00:03:46 last alert system at its Chilean station
00:03:46 --> 00:03:50 in Rio hot so nothing to be concerned
00:03:50 --> 00:03:52 about after all nothing at all but who
00:03:52 --> 00:03:55 knows we might get to see a spectacular
00:03:55 --> 00:03:58 impact on the moon maybe perhaps maybe
00:03:58 --> 00:04:00 wouldn't that be something and it's good
00:04:00 --> 00:04:03 to know that Atlas is watching the skies
00:04:03 --> 00:04:06 thanks for that update human now shall
00:04:06 --> 00:04:08 We Just Launch into the episode then
00:04:08 --> 00:04:15 good idea hi um hit the go thing
00:04:15 --> 00:04:18 righto last week ship 34 completed its
00:04:18 --> 00:04:20 engine testing campaign with a long
00:04:20 --> 00:04:23 duration static fire this static fire
00:04:23 --> 00:04:24 was nearly a minute long and according
00:04:24 --> 00:04:27 to SpaceX the extended firing tested new
00:04:27 --> 00:04:29 hardware and cycled the six rptor
00:04:29 --> 00:04:30 engines through through multiple thrust
00:04:30 --> 00:04:32 levels to recreate different conditions
00:04:32 --> 00:04:34 seen within the propulsion system during
00:04:34 --> 00:04:36 flight data from the test will inform
00:04:36 --> 00:04:38 upgrades to the ship's hardware and
00:04:38 --> 00:04:41 flight profile ahead of the next launch
00:04:41 --> 00:04:43 the new hardware that SpaceX tested was
00:04:43 --> 00:04:44 likely related to the anomaly that
00:04:45 --> 00:04:47 occurred during flight 7 and resulted in
00:04:47 --> 00:04:48 the loss of ship
00:04:48 --> 00:04:50 33 this could have been a leak in the
00:04:50 --> 00:04:52 liquid oxygen and liquid methane supply
00:04:52 --> 00:04:54 lines to the engines which could have
00:04:54 --> 00:04:55 been the source of the fire scene during
00:04:55 --> 00:04:57 ship 33's Ascent
00:04:57 --> 00:04:59 burn however there is no official
00:04:59 --> 00:05:01 confirmation from SpaceX regarding the
00:05:02 --> 00:05:04 actual cause of the failure this test
00:05:04 --> 00:05:06 was also done to inform of other
00:05:06 --> 00:05:07 upgrades to the vehicle and possible
00:05:07 --> 00:05:09 changes to the flight profile so it is
00:05:10 --> 00:05:11 likely that SpaceX still has
00:05:11 --> 00:05:13 modifications to be made on ship
00:05:13 --> 00:05:15 34 it is unclear what these
00:05:15 --> 00:05:17 modifications could be or how long it
00:05:17 --> 00:05:19 will take SpaceX to implement them on
00:05:19 --> 00:05:20 ship
00:05:20 --> 00:05:23 34 this long duration static fire is the
00:05:23 --> 00:05:25 longest SpaceX has ever fired a Starship
00:05:25 --> 00:05:27 or booster on the ground and it can do
00:05:27 --> 00:05:28 this because of the flame trench at
00:05:28 --> 00:05:30 massis
00:05:30 --> 00:05:31 it is unclear if this will be a one-time
00:05:32 --> 00:05:34 test or if Crews will do longer duration
00:05:34 --> 00:05:36 static fire in the future there are a
00:05:36 --> 00:05:38 few things that SpaceX will likely add
00:05:38 --> 00:05:40 to the flight considering several things
00:05:40 --> 00:05:43 couldn't be tested on flight 7 firstly
00:05:43 --> 00:05:45 there are the dummy starlinks which were
00:05:45 --> 00:05:47 loaded into ship 33 a new batch of them
00:05:47 --> 00:05:49 was seen in Star Factory to be
00:05:49 --> 00:05:51 presumably loaded on ship 34 just before
00:05:51 --> 00:05:54 roll out to the launch site SpaceX might
00:05:55 --> 00:05:56 use the new starlink loader box that was
00:05:56 --> 00:05:58 built inside High Bay rather than the
00:05:58 --> 00:06:00 tray loader used on on ship
00:06:00 --> 00:06:03 33 as for the other items expected to be
00:06:03 --> 00:06:05 added to ship 34 there is the actively
00:06:05 --> 00:06:07 cooled tile for testing as well as the
00:06:07 --> 00:06:10 catch pins these catch pins are likely
00:06:10 --> 00:06:12 to be just bolted on as SpaceX does not
00:06:12 --> 00:06:13 intend to catch ship
00:06:14 --> 00:06:16 34 lastly Crews will likely remove all
00:06:16 --> 00:06:18 of the tiles that were removed on ship
00:06:18 --> 00:06:20 33 to help understand the limits of
00:06:20 --> 00:06:22 losing a tile in certain places during
00:06:22 --> 00:06:24 re-entry an interesting note about ship
00:06:25 --> 00:06:27 34's engine testing campaign is it took
00:06:27 --> 00:06:30 SpaceX 72 hours to roll it to AIS static
00:06:30 --> 00:06:32 fire it and then roll it back to Mega
00:06:32 --> 00:06:35 Bay 2 this is a record compared to every
00:06:35 --> 00:06:38 other ship in the past booster 15 was
00:06:38 --> 00:06:40 static fired on February 9th and it was
00:06:40 --> 00:06:42 just the normal 10-second static fire
00:06:42 --> 00:06:45 with all 33 engines with this out of the
00:06:45 --> 00:06:47 way SpaceX rolled the booster back into
00:06:47 --> 00:06:50 Mega Bay one for final checkouts and has
00:06:50 --> 00:06:53 since received its hot stage rain SpaceX
00:06:53 --> 00:06:54 completed the roll out mount on the
00:06:54 --> 00:06:56 orbital launch Mount and roll back of
00:06:56 --> 00:06:58 the booster in just over 61 hours which
00:06:58 --> 00:07:00 is a new for
00:07:00 --> 00:07:02 boosters this booster doesn't have any
00:07:02 --> 00:07:04 major outside changes that are
00:07:04 --> 00:07:06 noticeable but it was the first booster
00:07:06 --> 00:07:08 to have the added tanks on the landing
00:07:08 --> 00:07:10 tank but older boosters were likely
00:07:10 --> 00:07:13 retrofitted with this upgrade the final
00:07:13 --> 00:07:15 two pieces of the puzzle for flight 8
00:07:15 --> 00:07:17 are the launch pad and the regulatory
00:07:17 --> 00:07:20 side first SpaceX has finally found a
00:07:20 --> 00:07:22 rhythm with refurbishing orbital launch
00:07:22 --> 00:07:24 pad a which takes about 2 to 3 weeks to
00:07:24 --> 00:07:27 refurbish for a booster static fire then
00:07:27 --> 00:07:29 we will have another few weeks to get it
00:07:29 --> 00:07:32 ready for launch again the second piece
00:07:32 --> 00:07:34 is waiting for the mishap investigation
00:07:34 --> 00:07:36 to be completed so far there is no
00:07:36 --> 00:07:38 indication of when this might be
00:07:38 --> 00:07:40 completed however given the post SpaceX
00:07:40 --> 00:07:42 made after the long duration ship 34
00:07:42 --> 00:07:44 static fire the final part of that
00:07:44 --> 00:07:47 investigation could be nearing a close
00:07:47 --> 00:07:48 the next thing to watch out for is a
00:07:48 --> 00:07:51 SpaceX post detailing the anomali cause
00:07:51 --> 00:07:52 and the fixes they are
00:07:52 --> 00:07:54 implementing the Federal Aviation
00:07:54 --> 00:07:56 Administration will also likely post
00:07:56 --> 00:07:58 about approving Starship for return to
00:07:58 --> 00:08:00 flight after the compl completed
00:08:00 --> 00:08:03 investigation if SpaceX follows the same
00:08:03 --> 00:08:05 trajectory and splash down locations the
00:08:05 --> 00:08:06 license that is currently issued for
00:08:06 --> 00:08:09 Starship should still be current
00:08:09 --> 00:08:10 currently there is a notice to Airmen
00:08:10 --> 00:08:13 for Mexican airspace for February 26th
00:08:13 --> 00:08:16 with a window of 6:30 p.m. to 8:09 p.m.
00:08:16 --> 00:08:19 Central Standard Time with all this in
00:08:19 --> 00:08:21 mind SpaceX still has a lot of work to
00:08:21 --> 00:08:22 do to launch flight 8 in less than a
00:08:23 --> 00:08:27 week astronomy daily The Bu if you're
00:08:27 --> 00:08:30 going to call aliens you better use this
00:08:30 --> 00:08:32 number let's dive into one of those
00:08:32 --> 00:08:34 Cosmic Curiosities that's bound to blow
00:08:34 --> 00:08:37 your mind how how about we call some uh
00:08:37 --> 00:08:39 aliens in chat no and not talking about
00:08:39 --> 00:08:41 elaborate coded messages or flashy
00:08:41 --> 00:08:43 signals we're talking about something
00:08:43 --> 00:08:46 incredible incredibly fundamental 21 cm
00:08:47 --> 00:08:48 radiation and if you're planning on
00:08:48 --> 00:08:50 having a conversation across the
00:08:50 --> 00:08:53 vastness of space using light waves or
00:08:53 --> 00:08:55 electromagnetic radiation it's pretty
00:08:55 --> 00:08:57 much your go-to option it's fast
00:08:57 --> 00:09:00 reliable and well it's
00:09:00 --> 00:09:02 most practical way to shout out to other
00:09:02 --> 00:09:04 civilizations in the universe but why
00:09:04 --> 00:09:07 specifically 21 cm well that's where
00:09:07 --> 00:09:11 things get juicy this 21 cm radiation
00:09:11 --> 00:09:13 isn't just some random frequency we
00:09:13 --> 00:09:15 picked out of a hat it's tied to
00:09:15 --> 00:09:17 something very essential known as the
00:09:17 --> 00:09:19 hydrogen spin flip hydrogen atoms
00:09:19 --> 00:09:22 consist of one proton and one electron
00:09:22 --> 00:09:24 these tiny particles have a property
00:09:24 --> 00:09:27 called spin think of spin like a little
00:09:27 --> 00:09:30 arrow pointing up or P pointing down
00:09:30 --> 00:09:32 every so often in the vast reaches of
00:09:32 --> 00:09:35 space a hydrogen atom's electron can
00:09:35 --> 00:09:37 flip its spin going from a state where
00:09:37 --> 00:09:40 its spin is aligned with the proton uh
00:09:40 --> 00:09:42 to one pointing in the opposite
00:09:42 --> 00:09:44 direction this flip releases energy in
00:09:44 --> 00:09:47 the form of radiation at you guessed it
00:09:47 --> 00:09:50 a wavelength of 21 cm so why does this
00:09:50 --> 00:09:53 matter well any smart civilization
00:09:53 --> 00:09:55 whether they have you blue skin
00:09:55 --> 00:09:57 tentacles or something more bizarre will
00:09:57 --> 00:10:00 eventually discover hyd and understand
00:10:00 --> 00:10:03 that spin dabble in quantum mechanics
00:10:03 --> 00:10:05 and figure out this whole 21 cm
00:10:06 --> 00:10:08 radiation thing and they might call it
00:10:08 --> 00:10:10 something different they won't have 21
00:10:10 --> 00:10:14 or maybe cenm but the concept remains
00:10:14 --> 00:10:16 Universal it's like it's like the cosmic
00:10:17 --> 00:10:20 Rosetta Stone and what makes 21 cm
00:10:20 --> 00:10:22 radiation perfect for long distance
00:10:22 --> 00:10:25 Interstellar chats is its ability to cut
00:10:25 --> 00:10:27 through Interstellar dust space is
00:10:27 --> 00:10:30 filthy with dust cloud clouds that block
00:10:30 --> 00:10:33 out other forms of light however 21 cm
00:10:33 --> 00:10:35 waves are like the V VIPs of the
00:10:35 --> 00:10:37 universe slipping through velvet ropes
00:10:37 --> 00:10:40 of cosmic debris to carry their message
00:10:40 --> 00:10:43 far and wide here's the fun fact NASA's
00:10:43 --> 00:10:45 Pioneer spacecraft launched in the early
00:10:45 --> 00:10:48 1970s carry plaques and on these plaques
00:10:48 --> 00:10:51 there's a handy diagram of the hydrogen
00:10:51 --> 00:10:53 spin flip transition all other
00:10:53 --> 00:10:55 measurements on the plaque including the
00:10:55 --> 00:10:57 height of humans are made in reference
00:10:57 --> 00:11:00 to this fundamental distance so the hope
00:11:00 --> 00:11:02 is that aliens can recognize the
00:11:02 --> 00:11:04 hydrogen spin flip transition and use
00:11:04 --> 00:11:07 that to unlock the rest of our message
00:11:07 --> 00:11:08 now imagine this scenario one day
00:11:09 --> 00:11:10 astronomers on Earth detect an unusual
00:11:11 --> 00:11:14 surge of 21 cm radiation and it's not
00:11:14 --> 00:11:16 coming from a random hydrogen Cloud it's
00:11:16 --> 00:11:19 directional purposeful and that could
00:11:19 --> 00:11:21 very well be an alien civilization
00:11:21 --> 00:11:25 sending us a WhatsApp across the cosmos
00:11:25 --> 00:11:28 A 21 cm radiation makes for a great
00:11:28 --> 00:11:32 calling card using 21 cm radiation to
00:11:32 --> 00:11:34 communicate with extraterrestrial beings
00:11:34 --> 00:11:37 leverages a basic Universal constant and
00:11:37 --> 00:11:40 who knows maybe one day when we finally
00:11:40 --> 00:11:41 hear that signal we'll know that
00:11:41 --> 00:11:44 somewhere out there other intelligent
00:11:44 --> 00:11:46 species figured out the same Galactic
00:11:46 --> 00:11:49 hack we did so keep your eyes or rather
00:11:49 --> 00:11:52 your telescopes peeled the next big
00:11:52 --> 00:12:05 Discovery could just be a spin flip away
00:12:05 --> 00:12:07 thank you for joining us for this Monday
00:12:07 --> 00:12:09 edition of astronomy daily where we
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00:12:48 --> 00:12:55 space space science and astronomy
00:12:55 --> 00:13:02 [Music]
00:13:02 --> 00:13:03 the United States space force just
00:13:03 --> 00:13:05 offered a rare glimpse of its shadowy X
00:13:05 --> 00:13:09 37b space plane in orbit the photo
00:13:09 --> 00:13:11 released on Thursday February 20th was
00:13:12 --> 00:13:14 taken by a camera on board the X 37b
00:13:14 --> 00:13:16 while the secreet of space plane orbited
00:13:16 --> 00:13:19 high above the African continent one of
00:13:19 --> 00:13:20 the plane's solar panels is visible on
00:13:20 --> 00:13:22 the left side of the photo while what
00:13:22 --> 00:13:24 appears to be its open payload Bay is
00:13:24 --> 00:13:27 visible along the top Edge the vehicle
00:13:27 --> 00:13:28 has been in orbit for well over a year
00:13:28 --> 00:13:30 now now having launched on its 7th
00:13:30 --> 00:13:33 mission on December 28th 2023 at top of
00:13:33 --> 00:13:37 SpaceX Falcon heavy rocket and now the X
00:13:37 --> 00:13:39 37b has notched another Milestone with
00:13:39 --> 00:13:41 the space Force's release of this photo
00:13:41 --> 00:13:43 the first ever image of this space plane
00:13:43 --> 00:13:44 in orbit that has been shown to the
00:13:44 --> 00:13:47 public while the photo contains scant
00:13:47 --> 00:13:48 details about the vehicle and what it's
00:13:48 --> 00:13:50 currently testing it offers a look at
00:13:50 --> 00:13:52 Earth in the background revealing just
00:13:52 --> 00:13:53 how high the vehicle is flying on its
00:13:53 --> 00:13:56 seventh Mission we've gotten only one
00:13:56 --> 00:13:59 other Glimpse at The X 37b in orbit
00:13:59 --> 00:14:01 prior to this during the live stream of
00:14:01 --> 00:14:03 its most recent launch a brief shot of
00:14:03 --> 00:14:05 the spacecraft deploying from Falcon
00:14:05 --> 00:14:06 Heavy's upper stage was seen while its
00:14:06 --> 00:14:09 service module was still attached when
00:14:09 --> 00:14:12 the X-37B Was preparing to launch on its
00:14:12 --> 00:14:14 current Mission the US space force
00:14:14 --> 00:14:15 revealed the flight would include
00:14:15 --> 00:14:17 operating the reusable space plane in
00:14:17 --> 00:14:19 new orbital regimes experimenting with
00:14:19 --> 00:14:20 future space domain awareness
00:14:20 --> 00:14:22 Technologies and investigating the
00:14:22 --> 00:14:25 radiation effects on materials provided
00:14:25 --> 00:14:27 by NASA according to a space force
00:14:27 --> 00:14:30 statement previous 37b missions were
00:14:30 --> 00:14:32 flown in low earth orbit but as this
00:14:32 --> 00:14:34 photo reveals the space plane is
00:14:34 --> 00:14:36 currently operating much farther from
00:14:36 --> 00:14:38 Earth spacex's Falcon heavy is capable
00:14:38 --> 00:14:40 of launching payloads into
00:14:40 --> 00:14:42 geosynchronous orbit over 22 M
00:14:42 --> 00:14:47 35 km above our planet the X-37B
00:14:47 --> 00:14:49 recently made headlines when space force
00:14:49 --> 00:14:51 and Boeing who built the vehicle
00:14:51 --> 00:14:52 revealed that it would be testing a new
00:14:52 --> 00:14:54 aerob braing maneuver that uses the drag
00:14:54 --> 00:14:56 or friction generated by Earth's
00:14:56 --> 00:14:58 atmosphere to change orbit more
00:14:58 --> 00:14:59 efficiently
00:14:59 --> 00:15:01 you're listening to astronomy daily the
00:15:01 --> 00:15:06 podcast with Steve
00:15:06 --> 00:15:10 Dunley uh did you notice how hie managed
00:15:10 --> 00:15:12 to get my space force
00:15:12 --> 00:15:15 story it's funny how she sneaks away
00:15:15 --> 00:15:16 with things like
00:15:16 --> 00:15:19 that meanwhile astronomers have found a
00:15:19 --> 00:15:21 small fast moving Star racing through
00:15:22 --> 00:15:24 the center of our galaxy possibly with
00:15:24 --> 00:15:26 an planet in orbit if confirmed this
00:15:26 --> 00:15:29 would be the fastest known
00:15:29 --> 00:15:33 sorry exoplanet system traveling nearly
00:15:33 --> 00:15:35 twice as fast as our solar systems
00:15:35 --> 00:15:36 through the Milky Way you may be
00:15:36 --> 00:15:39 wondering how fast that actually is hey
00:15:39 --> 00:15:41 I once got an Amazon delivery in less
00:15:41 --> 00:15:44 than 24 hours but that's just peanuts to
00:15:44 --> 00:15:46 how fast this star seems to be tearing
00:15:46 --> 00:15:49 across space the system is estimated to
00:15:49 --> 00:15:51 be moving at an incredible speed now
00:15:51 --> 00:15:57 wait for this of least 1.2 million mph
00:15:57 --> 00:16:00 that's 540 k per
00:16:00 --> 00:16:04 second wow we think this is a so-called
00:16:04 --> 00:16:07 super Neptune World orbiting a low mass
00:16:07 --> 00:16:10 star at a distance that would be Li lie
00:16:10 --> 00:16:12 between the orbits of Venus and Earth if
00:16:12 --> 00:16:14 it were in our solar system said sha
00:16:14 --> 00:16:17 Terry a post-doctoral researcher at the
00:16:17 --> 00:16:20 University of Maryland and NASA's Godard
00:16:20 --> 00:16:22 space flight center in Green Belt
00:16:22 --> 00:16:24 Maryland since the star is so feeble
00:16:24 --> 00:16:27 that's well outside its habitable zone
00:16:27 --> 00:16:29 if so it will be the first plan planet
00:16:29 --> 00:16:32 ever found orbiting a hypervelocity star
00:16:32 --> 00:16:34 the findings led by Terry were published
00:16:34 --> 00:16:37 in the astronomical journal on February
00:16:37 --> 00:16:39 10 the pair of objects was first spotted
00:16:39 --> 00:16:41 indirectly in 2011 thanks to a chance
00:16:41 --> 00:16:44 alignment a team of scientists comes
00:16:44 --> 00:16:46 through the archive data of MOA that's
00:16:46 --> 00:16:48 the micr lensing observations in
00:16:48 --> 00:16:51 astrophysics a collaborative project
00:16:51 --> 00:16:53 focused on micr lensing survey conducted
00:16:53 --> 00:16:55 in the University of Canterbury Mount
00:16:55 --> 00:16:58 John observ observatory in New Zealand
00:16:58 --> 00:17:01 in search of light signals that betray
00:17:01 --> 00:17:04 the presence of exoplanets or uh planets
00:17:04 --> 00:17:06 outside our solar system micr lensing
00:17:06 --> 00:17:09 occurs when the presence of mass warps
00:17:09 --> 00:17:11 the fabric of SpaceTime anytime an
00:17:11 --> 00:17:13 intervening object appears to drift near
00:17:14 --> 00:17:16 a background star light from the Star
00:17:16 --> 00:17:19 curves as it travels through the Warped
00:17:19 --> 00:17:22 SpaceTime around the nearer object if
00:17:22 --> 00:17:23 the alignment is especially closed the
00:17:23 --> 00:17:26 warping around the object can act like a
00:17:26 --> 00:17:28 natural lens amplifying the background
00:17:28 --> 00:17:31 star light in this case micr lensing
00:17:31 --> 00:17:33 signals reveal a pair of celestial
00:17:33 --> 00:17:36 bodies scientists determine their
00:17:36 --> 00:17:39 relative masses one is about two 2
00:17:39 --> 00:17:40 times heavier than the other but their
00:17:41 --> 00:17:43 exact masses depend on how far away they
00:17:43 --> 00:17:45 are from the earth it's sort of like how
00:17:45 --> 00:17:47 the magnification changes if you hold a
00:17:47 --> 00:17:50 magnifying glass over a page and move it
00:17:50 --> 00:17:53 up and down determining the mass ratio
00:17:53 --> 00:17:55 is easy said David Bennett a senior
00:17:55 --> 00:17:58 research scientist at the University of
00:17:58 --> 00:18:00 Maryland car College Park and NASA
00:18:00 --> 00:18:03 Godard who co-authored the paper and led
00:18:03 --> 00:18:06 the original study in 2011 it's much
00:18:06 --> 00:18:08 more difficult he said to calculate
00:18:08 --> 00:18:12 their actual masses the 2011 Discovery
00:18:12 --> 00:18:14 team suspected the micr lensed object
00:18:14 --> 00:18:17 were either a star about 20% as massive
00:18:17 --> 00:18:21 as our sun and a planet roughly 29 times
00:18:21 --> 00:18:24 heavier than the earth or near a rogue
00:18:24 --> 00:18:26 Planet about four times Jupiter's mass
00:18:26 --> 00:18:29 with a moon smaller than Earth to figure
00:18:30 --> 00:18:31 out which explanation is more likely
00:18:32 --> 00:18:33 astronomers searched through data from
00:18:33 --> 00:18:36 kek observatory in Hawaii and the
00:18:36 --> 00:18:38 European space agency's guia satellite
00:18:38 --> 00:18:40 if the pair were a rogue planet and moon
00:18:40 --> 00:18:43 they'd be effectively invisible dark
00:18:43 --> 00:18:45 objects get lost in the inky void of
00:18:45 --> 00:18:47 space but scientists might be able to
00:18:47 --> 00:18:49 identify the star if the alternative
00:18:49 --> 00:18:51 explanation were correct though the
00:18:51 --> 00:18:53 orbiting Planet would be much too faint
00:18:54 --> 00:18:56 to actually see they found a strong
00:18:56 --> 00:18:59 suspect located about 24 4 light
00:18:59 --> 00:19:01 years away putting it within the Milky
00:19:01 --> 00:19:04 Way's Galactic bulge the central Hub
00:19:04 --> 00:19:07 where the stars are more densely packed
00:19:07 --> 00:19:09 by comparing the Stars location in 2011
00:19:09 --> 00:19:12 and 2021 the team calculated its high
00:19:12 --> 00:19:16 speed but that's just its 2D motion if
00:19:16 --> 00:19:18 it's also moving toward or away from us
00:19:18 --> 00:19:21 it must be moving even faster its true
00:19:21 --> 00:19:23 speed may be high enough to exceed the
00:19:23 --> 00:19:26 Galaxy's escape velocity of just over
00:19:26 --> 00:19:31 1.3 mph or about 600
00:19:31 --> 00:19:34 km/s if so the planetary system is
00:19:34 --> 00:19:36 destined to Traverse The Intergalactic
00:19:36 --> 00:19:38 space many millions of years into the
00:19:38 --> 00:19:41 future to be certain the new identified
00:19:41 --> 00:19:43 star is part of the system that caused
00:19:43 --> 00:19:46 the 2011 signal we'd like to look again
00:19:46 --> 00:19:49 in another year and see if it moves the
00:19:49 --> 00:19:51 right amount in the right direction to
00:19:51 --> 00:19:54 confirm it came from the point where we
00:19:54 --> 00:19:57 detected the signal Bennett said if a
00:19:57 --> 00:19:59 higher resolution observation can show
00:19:59 --> 00:20:01 that the star just stays in the same
00:20:01 --> 00:20:02 position then we can tell for sure that
00:20:02 --> 00:20:04 it's not part of the system that caused
00:20:04 --> 00:20:07 that signal said a Bacha a research
00:20:07 --> 00:20:09 scientist at University of Maryland
00:20:09 --> 00:20:11 College Park and NASA Godard who
00:20:11 --> 00:20:13 co-authored the new paper that would
00:20:13 --> 00:20:16 mean the Rogue planet and exomoon model
00:20:16 --> 00:20:19 is favored NASA's upcoming Nancy Grace
00:20:19 --> 00:20:22 Roman Space Telescope will help us find
00:20:22 --> 00:20:24 out how common planets are around such
00:20:24 --> 00:20:27 Speedy stars and may offer Clues as to
00:20:27 --> 00:20:29 how these systems are accelerated the
00:20:29 --> 00:20:32 mission will conduct survey of the
00:20:32 --> 00:20:34 galactic bulge pairing a large view of
00:20:34 --> 00:20:37 space with crisp resolution in this case
00:20:37 --> 00:20:41 we used MOA for its broad Field view of
00:20:41 --> 00:20:43 and Then followed up with kek and guia
00:20:43 --> 00:20:45 for their sharper resolution but thanks
00:20:45 --> 00:20:48 to Roman's powerful View and planned
00:20:48 --> 00:20:50 survey strategy we won't need to rely on
00:20:51 --> 00:20:53 additional telescopes Terry said Roman
00:20:53 --> 00:20:55 will do it all isn't it exciting to see
00:20:56 --> 00:20:57 that our view of the Skies is becoming
00:20:57 --> 00:20:59 clearer and clearer with each new
00:20:59 --> 00:21:01 development in Space Telescope
00:21:01 --> 00:21:11 [Music]
00:21:11 --> 00:21:13 technology and there it is for another
00:21:13 --> 00:21:16 episode of astronomy daily the
00:21:16 --> 00:21:19 podcast I sure hope you enjoyed today's
00:21:19 --> 00:21:21 presentation yeah I really enjoyed that
00:21:21 --> 00:21:23 today h even though you took one of my
00:21:23 --> 00:21:26 stories but hey thanks everybody for
00:21:26 --> 00:21:28 stopping by I hope you uh really enjoyed
00:21:28 --> 00:21:29 the show
00:21:29 --> 00:21:31 and don't forget H's Cousin Anna takes
00:21:31 --> 00:21:32 the show during the week so you don't
00:21:33 --> 00:21:35 miss all the news about astronomy space
00:21:35 --> 00:21:37 and space science as it happens and if
00:21:37 --> 00:21:39 you didn't get it before the details of
00:21:39 --> 00:21:40 receiving the astronomy daily newsletter
00:21:40 --> 00:21:42 in your email every day I mentioned
00:21:42 --> 00:21:44 earlier in this podcast and every
00:21:44 --> 00:21:46 podcast you did a great job on that
00:21:46 --> 00:21:49 announcement well you're very kind hie
00:21:49 --> 00:21:51 and we will catch you all next week on
00:21:51 --> 00:21:54 your favorite podcast Channel see you
00:21:54 --> 00:21:59 everyone bye
00:21:59 --> 00:22:04 podcast with your host Steve dun