Unimagined Discoveries, Planet Nine Mysteries, and the Sungrazing Comet
In this captivating Q&A episode of Space Nuts , hosts Andrew Dunkley and Professor Fred Watson tackle a range of thought-provoking listener questions that explore the unknowns of our universe. From the potential for undiscovered celestial phenomena to the enigma of Planet Nine, this episode is filled with cosmic curiosities and insights.
Episode Highlights:
- Unimagined Existence: Bailey from Durban asks whether there are things in the universe that we have yet to imagine. Andrew and Fred discuss the surprises revealed by the James Webb Telescope and the potential for new discoveries that could challenge our current understanding of the cosmos.
- The Planet Nine Puzzle: Sarah from Townsville wonders why we can locate distant exoplanets but struggle to find Planet Nine in our own solar system. The hosts explain the challenges involved in observing faint objects close to home and the technology behind planet detection methods.
- Comet C2026A1: Eli from Anchorage brings attention to a newly discovered sungrazing comet set to be visible in April. Andrew and Fred delve into what makes this comet special and the uncertainty surrounding its visibility, drawing parallels to previous comet behavior.
- Rusty's Solar Pergola: Rusty from Donnybrook revisits his idea of a solar pergola and its environmental implications in light of Elon Musk’s satellite plans. The hosts discuss the feasibility and potential consequences of such a massive solar array in orbit.
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/31944871?utm_source=youtube
00:00:00 --> 00:00:02 Hi there. Thanks for joining us. This is
00:00:02 --> 00:00:05 a Q&A edition of Space Nuts. It's where
00:00:05 --> 00:00:07 we take questions from the audience, we
00:00:07 --> 00:00:09 tear them up, throw them in the bin, and
00:00:09 --> 00:00:11 just make up something else. Today, we
00:00:11 --> 00:00:13 are going to answer questions about
00:00:13 --> 00:00:15 things yet to be discovered. That'll be
00:00:15 --> 00:00:18 a short conversation. Uh, finding
00:00:18 --> 00:00:21 planets closer to Earth versus distant
00:00:21 --> 00:00:23 discoveries. Somebody's a bit confused
00:00:23 --> 00:00:25 about that. Uh, we spoke about comets in
00:00:25 --> 00:00:26 the last episode. But we're going to
00:00:26 --> 00:00:29 look at one specifically because we've
00:00:29 --> 00:00:32 got a question about comet 2026A1,
00:00:32 --> 00:00:35 a very very recent discovery. And uh
00:00:35 --> 00:00:38 remember when Rusty from Donny Brooks so
00:00:38 --> 00:00:40 long ago suggested that we could cool
00:00:40 --> 00:00:42 the planet with a solar poll? Well, he
00:00:42 --> 00:00:45 thinks Elon Musk has the answer and he's
00:00:45 --> 00:00:46 going to ask us a question about it on
00:00:46 --> 00:00:49 this episode of Space Nuts.
00:00:49 --> 00:00:53 >> 15 seconds. Guidance is internal. 10 9
00:00:53 --> 00:00:56 ignition sequence start. Space Nuts.
00:00:56 --> 00:00:59 >> 5 4 3 2
00:00:59 --> 00:01:01 >> 1 2 3 4 5 5 4 3 2 1
00:01:01 --> 00:01:02 >> Space Nuts.
00:01:02 --> 00:01:05 >> Astronauts report. It feels good.
00:01:05 --> 00:01:07 >> Joining us again to try and sort all of
00:01:07 --> 00:01:09 that out is Professor Fred Watson,
00:01:09 --> 00:01:11 astronomer at large. I know he lo loses
00:01:11 --> 00:01:13 sleep over the audience questions
00:01:13 --> 00:01:15 because he just wants to get them all so
00:01:15 --> 00:01:17 right. Hello, Fred.
00:01:17 --> 00:01:19 >> Hi, Andrew. Yeah, I do like to get them
00:01:19 --> 00:01:23 right. You know, it's why people ask
00:01:23 --> 00:01:25 >> sometimes we get challenged or sometimes
00:01:25 --> 00:01:27 we have somebody look something up and
00:01:28 --> 00:01:29 say,
00:01:29 --> 00:01:31 "I think you needed to tell us a bit
00:01:31 --> 00:01:32 more." But, you know, we do our
00:01:32 --> 00:01:35 homework. Sometimes we we get back to
00:01:35 --> 00:01:37 people. Um, sometimes takes us a year or
00:01:37 --> 00:01:40 two, but we do we do do it.
00:01:40 --> 00:01:43 >> We're always always aiming for adequacy.
00:01:43 --> 00:01:46 >> Adequacy is is key when we talk about
00:01:46 --> 00:01:48 space nuts.
00:01:48 --> 00:01:50 Shall we get into some questions, Fred?
00:01:50 --> 00:01:52 >> Let's do that. I'm just going to turn
00:01:52 --> 00:01:53 the light on. Just hang out on a moment
00:01:54 --> 00:01:55 so I can hear what I'm doing here.
00:01:55 --> 00:01:57 >> All right. Well, I'll just sit here and
00:01:58 --> 00:02:01 and peruse the question. There it is.
00:02:01 --> 00:02:02 >> There we are.
00:02:02 --> 00:02:02 >> Okay.
00:02:02 --> 00:02:03 >> I don't know whether that made any
00:02:03 --> 00:02:04 difference, but I can actually see what
00:02:04 --> 00:02:06 I'm doing now.
00:02:06 --> 00:02:08 >> It helps.
00:02:08 --> 00:02:11 >> Yes. Um, let's start. Uh, hi Fred and
00:02:11 --> 00:02:14 Andrew. Do you think there are things in
00:02:14 --> 00:02:16 the universe that we haven't imagined
00:02:16 --> 00:02:19 existing? Uh, we didn't see exoplanets
00:02:19 --> 00:02:21 until the 1990s, but we assumed they
00:02:22 --> 00:02:24 were there and we were right. But what
00:02:24 --> 00:02:26 about things we haven't considered like
00:02:26 --> 00:02:28 an undiscovered element or a planet
00:02:28 --> 00:02:31 bigger than its parent star? What else
00:02:31 --> 00:02:33 could be out there? That comes from uh
00:02:33 --> 00:02:35 South Africa. Actually, Bailey in
00:02:35 --> 00:02:39 Durban. I visited Durban last year. It's
00:02:39 --> 00:02:41 um it's a fascinating place. Uh,
00:02:42 --> 00:02:45 beautiful beaches. Lovely.
00:02:45 --> 00:02:48 >> On the on the western Indian Ocean, I
00:02:48 --> 00:02:50 think you'd say. Yeah, the west coast of
00:02:50 --> 00:02:53 the Indian Ocean.
00:02:53 --> 00:02:56 >> Oh, it is. That's right. Um Um
00:02:56 --> 00:02:57 >> or the east coast of Africa, whichever
00:02:58 --> 00:02:58 way.
00:02:58 --> 00:02:59 >> Yeah, that's right. That's what I was
00:03:00 --> 00:03:00 struggling with.
00:03:00 --> 00:03:02 >> Yeah, I was doing the ocean coast rather
00:03:02 --> 00:03:03 than the
00:03:03 --> 00:03:05 >> Yeah. Well, that's because I live over
00:03:06 --> 00:03:07 here and I was thinking in terms of
00:03:07 --> 00:03:10 where it is in proximity. That's on the
00:03:10 --> 00:03:13 western side of the Indian Ocean.
00:03:13 --> 00:03:14 >> That's that's correct. But
00:03:14 --> 00:03:16 >> sorry Bailey
00:03:16 --> 00:03:19 >> getting very confusing.
00:03:19 --> 00:03:22 >> Uh but it's a great question and I mean
00:03:22 --> 00:03:25 the the answer is yes really.
00:03:25 --> 00:03:27 >> Um it has to be
00:03:27 --> 00:03:31 >> um you know even just within the last
00:03:31 --> 00:03:35 few months we've got things that people
00:03:35 --> 00:03:37 have not considered before. Little red
00:03:37 --> 00:03:37 dots.
00:03:38 --> 00:03:40 >> Yes. uh galaxies in the early universe
00:03:40 --> 00:03:42 that look as though they're too massive
00:03:42 --> 00:03:46 for um you know for um uh their age,
00:03:46 --> 00:03:49 their young age because they're can't be
00:03:49 --> 00:03:50 more than a couple of hundred million
00:03:50 --> 00:03:52 years old and yet they're they've got
00:03:52 --> 00:03:55 very high mass and are very concentrated
00:03:55 --> 00:03:58 and that didn't really fit the theory.
00:03:58 --> 00:04:01 So these sorts of objects um especially
00:04:02 --> 00:04:04 as our telescopes get bigger are going
00:04:04 --> 00:04:07 to take us by surprise. Uh and I think
00:04:08 --> 00:04:10 um you know the James Webb telescope has
00:04:10 --> 00:04:12 certainly done that par excalance we've
00:04:12 --> 00:04:15 come across so many um things that were
00:04:16 --> 00:04:17 unexpected
00:04:17 --> 00:04:20 uh and had to re almost rewrite the
00:04:20 --> 00:04:23 textbooks uh in many cases and the next
00:04:23 --> 00:04:24 big thing in that regard as I've said
00:04:24 --> 00:04:26 many many times before on space nuts
00:04:26 --> 00:04:28 will be the ELT the extremely large
00:04:28 --> 00:04:31 telescope um with an aperture much
00:04:31 --> 00:04:34 bigger than the James Web telescope uh
00:04:34 --> 00:04:37 at 39 m compared of the 6 and a half
00:04:37 --> 00:04:39 meters of the web. So, we're going to
00:04:39 --> 00:04:41 learn stuff from that that will I think
00:04:41 --> 00:04:44 blow our minds uh could be exactly the
00:04:44 --> 00:04:47 kinds of things that um um you know that
00:04:47 --> 00:04:51 uh Bailey's mentioning exoplanets bigger
00:04:51 --> 00:04:53 than their parent stars and things like
00:04:53 --> 00:04:55 that. An undiscovered element is less
00:04:55 --> 00:04:58 likely because we know kind of what's
00:04:58 --> 00:05:01 going on in the elemental world from the
00:05:01 --> 00:05:03 periodic table. Uh which doesn't have
00:05:03 --> 00:05:06 >> the periodic table does purposely have
00:05:06 --> 00:05:09 gaps in it for future discovery, doesn't
00:05:09 --> 00:05:10 it?
00:05:10 --> 00:05:13 >> Well, yes, but they're all at the the I
00:05:13 --> 00:05:16 think um you're kind of beyond the
00:05:16 --> 00:05:19 elements that would exist in nature,
00:05:19 --> 00:05:20 >> right? Um,
00:05:20 --> 00:05:22 >> something we we might accidentally
00:05:22 --> 00:05:24 invent in the kitchen to make.
00:05:24 --> 00:05:24 >> Yes.
00:05:24 --> 00:05:27 >> Yeah. I'll try to make kitchen s nuclear
00:05:27 --> 00:05:29 reactor somewhere.
00:05:29 --> 00:05:32 >> If you're s Yeah. If your sodo produces
00:05:32 --> 00:05:34 new elements, so I think you're probably
00:05:34 --> 00:05:36 burning it a bit.
00:05:36 --> 00:05:37 >> Probably.
00:05:37 --> 00:05:38 >> And you you might need to watch for the
00:05:38 --> 00:05:40 radiation that's coming from it as well.
00:05:40 --> 00:05:43 >> Yes. Yes, indeed. I I'll be just sort of
00:05:43 --> 00:05:46 doing some AI searches on things that
00:05:46 --> 00:05:47 >> Okay, good.
00:05:47 --> 00:05:50 >> may one day discover. Um, gravitons.
00:05:50 --> 00:05:52 We've talked about gravitons several
00:05:52 --> 00:05:55 times. Um, we don't know if they exist,
00:05:55 --> 00:05:58 but they might. We've never found one,
00:05:58 --> 00:06:03 but it seems to be a plausible way of,
00:06:03 --> 00:06:05 you know, justifying the existence of
00:06:05 --> 00:06:06 gravity.
00:06:06 --> 00:06:09 >> Um, new states of matter, just a
00:06:09 --> 00:06:12 generalization, new states of matter.
00:06:12 --> 00:06:14 That's a good that's actually a good one
00:06:14 --> 00:06:16 because there are you know the there are
00:06:16 --> 00:06:18 subtleties in the states of matter uh
00:06:18 --> 00:06:20 that are still that are still being
00:06:20 --> 00:06:22 discovered. That might be physics that
00:06:22 --> 00:06:24 does that though rather than astronomy.
00:06:24 --> 00:06:28 >> Yeah, maybe maybe uh black hole stars
00:06:28 --> 00:06:29 there's another one people have often
00:06:30 --> 00:06:33 asked us questions about. Um
00:06:33 --> 00:06:35 they haven't actually found one, but
00:06:35 --> 00:06:37 they're starting to find evidence that
00:06:37 --> 00:06:40 could lead to the possibility of one. Is
00:06:40 --> 00:06:41 that a fair point?
00:06:41 --> 00:06:42 >> That's That's right.
00:06:42 --> 00:06:42 >> Yep.
00:06:42 --> 00:06:44 >> And the other one that comes up a lot,
00:06:44 --> 00:06:48 white holes, wormholes, cosmic strings,
00:06:48 --> 00:06:51 other dimensions, multiple universes.
00:06:52 --> 00:06:54 >> In a sense, they're
00:06:54 --> 00:06:57 things that um if they were discovered,
00:06:57 --> 00:06:58 they wouldn't surprise us because
00:06:58 --> 00:07:00 there's already a theoretical
00:07:00 --> 00:07:03 >> background for them. Um, but the things
00:07:03 --> 00:07:06 that I guess that perhaps Bailey is
00:07:06 --> 00:07:07 thinking of are things like the the
00:07:07 --> 00:07:10 little red dots which we now know are
00:07:10 --> 00:07:12 very unusual aggregations of stars in
00:07:12 --> 00:07:14 the early universe which we didn't think
00:07:14 --> 00:07:15 existed.
00:07:15 --> 00:07:16 >> It might have been what prompted the
00:07:16 --> 00:07:18 question because it's been big in the
00:07:18 --> 00:07:20 news lately and I actually saw another
00:07:20 --> 00:07:23 story about it the other day. It it
00:07:23 --> 00:07:25 it's continuing to
00:07:25 --> 00:07:27 >> hold it. That's right. Yes.
00:07:27 --> 00:07:29 >> Yeah. We we we still don't really know
00:07:29 --> 00:07:31 what they are. Yeah.
00:07:31 --> 00:07:35 >> Um you know the um the the latest theory
00:07:35 --> 00:07:38 is slowly spinning dark matter halos.
00:07:38 --> 00:07:40 They are I think the latest theory for
00:07:40 --> 00:07:44 what comp what actually makes these
00:07:44 --> 00:07:47 compact red galaxies that the web
00:07:47 --> 00:07:49 telescope has been finding in the early
00:07:49 --> 00:07:50 universe. That's I think the current
00:07:50 --> 00:07:53 theory. That was uh October last year
00:07:53 --> 00:07:56 that I saw a paper on that. So yes, it's
00:07:56 --> 00:07:59 still still still a work in progress.
00:07:59 --> 00:08:01 There you go, Bailey. Uh, there's still
00:08:01 --> 00:08:03 a lot yet to be discovered and some of
00:08:03 --> 00:08:05 it will definitely surprise us down the
00:08:05 --> 00:08:09 track. Um, like even in the last
00:08:09 --> 00:08:10 episode, we were talking about a comet
00:08:10 --> 00:08:13 that reversed its spin. We Yep. You
00:08:13 --> 00:08:14 know,
00:08:14 --> 00:08:16 >> no one's ever seen that before.
00:08:16 --> 00:08:17 >> No, that's right.
00:08:17 --> 00:08:19 >> So, that's uh that's sort of thing we're
00:08:19 --> 00:08:21 talking about. Great to hear from you.
00:08:21 --> 00:08:25 Hope all is well in uh Durban. They've
00:08:25 --> 00:08:26 got a great water park there, too, by
00:08:26 --> 00:08:30 the way. uh to our next question. Uh if
00:08:30 --> 00:08:32 we can find planets orbiting stars in
00:08:32 --> 00:08:34 other solar systems hundreds or
00:08:34 --> 00:08:36 thousands of light years away, why can't
00:08:36 --> 00:08:38 we find planet 9 in our own solar
00:08:38 --> 00:08:41 system? I believe that we're not even
00:08:41 --> 00:08:43 sure about how many planets are in the
00:08:43 --> 00:08:45 Alpha Centuri system, which is our
00:08:45 --> 00:08:47 closest neighbor. I don't understand how
00:08:47 --> 00:08:51 we can't find things uh close by when we
00:08:51 --> 00:08:53 can find things eons away. Please
00:08:53 --> 00:08:56 enlighten me. That's uh from Sarah in
00:08:56 --> 00:08:59 Townsville in North Queensland.
00:08:59 --> 00:09:00 >> A great question too, Sarah. Thank you
00:09:00 --> 00:09:03 for asking that and sending it in. Um
00:09:03 --> 00:09:07 and it dep look it depends on the
00:09:07 --> 00:09:09 technology and the techniques that we're
00:09:09 --> 00:09:13 using to make these measurements. Um
00:09:13 --> 00:09:16 planet planet 9 is a peculiarly
00:09:16 --> 00:09:19 difficult thing to try and observe uh
00:09:19 --> 00:09:22 because it's going to be faint. It's
00:09:22 --> 00:09:24 going to be for all intents and purposes
00:09:24 --> 00:09:27 just an ordinary star uh until you
00:09:27 --> 00:09:29 observe it over a fairly lengthy period
00:09:29 --> 00:09:32 of time when you might detect its
00:09:32 --> 00:09:35 movement. Um it's so far away if it if
00:09:35 --> 00:09:40 it exists. Um whereas and and turning to
00:09:40 --> 00:09:42 Alpha Centuri, that's another good
00:09:42 --> 00:09:44 point. We do know that there are planets
00:09:44 --> 00:09:46 in the Alpha Centuri system, but there
00:09:46 --> 00:09:48 might be more than we think there are.
00:09:48 --> 00:09:49 And um
00:09:49 --> 00:09:49 >> so
00:09:49 --> 00:09:52 >> I think that I think they've found
00:09:52 --> 00:09:55 um gas giants at this point, but they
00:09:56 --> 00:09:56 >> Yes,
00:09:56 --> 00:09:58 >> they believe there are probably rocky
00:09:58 --> 00:10:00 planets, but we haven't found them.
00:10:00 --> 00:10:03 >> Yeah, that that's right. And that's
00:10:03 --> 00:10:05 there's a couple of things going on
00:10:05 --> 00:10:09 here. Uh one is that the smaller the
00:10:09 --> 00:10:12 planet going around a star, the harder
00:10:12 --> 00:10:16 it is to find it. Um, and also it might
00:10:16 --> 00:10:18 take a lot longer to find it because if
00:10:18 --> 00:10:19 you've got a planet like the Earth going
00:10:19 --> 00:10:21 around a star, uh, and you're looking
00:10:21 --> 00:10:24 for its signature on the either the
00:10:24 --> 00:10:26 light or the velocity of the star, it's
00:10:26 --> 00:10:29 got this, you know, 365 year period. So,
00:10:30 --> 00:10:31 it's something you need to observe over
00:10:31 --> 00:10:34 a long period of time. Uh but the other
00:10:34 --> 00:10:36 thing I was going to say is that the two
00:10:36 --> 00:10:39 main methods for finding planets around
00:10:39 --> 00:10:43 other stars uh first of all that what we
00:10:43 --> 00:10:45 call the Doppler wobble technique. fact
00:10:45 --> 00:10:48 that as a planet goes around a star, it
00:10:48 --> 00:10:51 the the planet pulls the star slightly
00:10:51 --> 00:10:54 out of out of place and um you can
00:10:54 --> 00:10:56 actually measure that displacement of
00:10:56 --> 00:10:59 the stars light. Uh because it turns out
00:10:59 --> 00:11:02 that you're looking for velocities in
00:11:02 --> 00:11:05 the region of a meter/s.
00:11:05 --> 00:11:08 uh that's very a very low velocity for
00:11:08 --> 00:11:10 you know trying to measure the these
00:11:10 --> 00:11:12 things by the radial velocity method
00:11:12 --> 00:11:15 spectroscopy the Doppler Doppler effect.
00:11:15 --> 00:11:17 So the Doppler wobble technique is
00:11:17 --> 00:11:21 really sensitive to massive uh planets
00:11:21 --> 00:11:25 that pull the star slightly off center
00:11:25 --> 00:11:28 more than a smaller planet would. uh and
00:11:28 --> 00:11:30 it's also sensitive to massive planets
00:11:30 --> 00:11:32 which are close to the star because that
00:11:32 --> 00:11:34 they have the biggest impact on the
00:11:34 --> 00:11:37 star. So you've got this combination
00:11:37 --> 00:11:41 that means that you you really need um a
00:11:41 --> 00:11:43 lot of light to make these measurements.
00:11:43 --> 00:11:45 So for the Doppler wobble technique you
00:11:45 --> 00:11:47 you you've got to have stars that are
00:11:47 --> 00:11:49 relatively nearby i.e. they're
00:11:49 --> 00:11:53 relatively bright in our skies. Um, and
00:11:53 --> 00:11:55 but then you might find that we know
00:11:55 --> 00:11:57 much more about some systems that are
00:11:57 --> 00:11:59 further away because you're measuring
00:12:00 --> 00:12:01 those by what we call the transit
00:12:01 --> 00:12:03 technique where the light of the star
00:12:03 --> 00:12:05 dims slightly when the planet passes in
00:12:05 --> 00:12:07 front of it. Uh, and that actually is
00:12:07 --> 00:12:09 more sensitive first of all, it's more
00:12:09 --> 00:12:12 sensitive to things further out in a in
00:12:12 --> 00:12:14 a solar system, further away from their
00:12:14 --> 00:12:17 parent star. Um, it's sensitive to
00:12:17 --> 00:12:19 smaller objects as well because we can
00:12:19 --> 00:12:21 measure brightness much more accurately
00:12:21 --> 00:12:23 than we can these tiny radial
00:12:23 --> 00:12:25 velocities, these tiny speeds along the
00:12:26 --> 00:12:27 line of size.
00:12:27 --> 00:12:29 >> There is there is a downside to that
00:12:29 --> 00:12:31 process though, isn't it? The transit
00:12:31 --> 00:12:33 method because I think to confirm an
00:12:33 --> 00:12:35 exoplanet, you got to see it twice, is
00:12:35 --> 00:12:36 it? Or
00:12:36 --> 00:12:39 >> yes, has to be seen twice.
00:12:39 --> 00:12:41 >> If it's orbiting a star at like once in
00:12:41 --> 00:12:43 a thousand years,
00:12:43 --> 00:12:45 >> don't come back next week.
00:12:46 --> 00:12:47 That's right. In fact, you really want
00:12:47 --> 00:12:50 to see it three times because um that
00:12:50 --> 00:12:53 way you know that it's the same period
00:12:53 --> 00:12:56 um of the of the the planet going around
00:12:56 --> 00:12:59 the star. Um you'd really like to see it
00:12:59 --> 00:13:00 three times so that you can measure the
00:13:00 --> 00:13:03 distance between the first two transits
00:13:03 --> 00:13:05 and the second two transits and they
00:13:05 --> 00:13:07 should be the same uh because you're
00:13:07 --> 00:13:08 looking at something in orbit around the
00:13:08 --> 00:13:12 star. But but two is uh is acceptable as
00:13:12 --> 00:13:14 well. Um, and so what what I was going
00:13:14 --> 00:13:15 to say was you can you can look at that
00:13:16 --> 00:13:17 you can make that measurement for
00:13:17 --> 00:13:20 objects much much further away. Uh, now
00:13:20 --> 00:13:22 the Alpha Centuri system doesn't lend
00:13:22 --> 00:13:24 itself to the transit technique. Uh, and
00:13:24 --> 00:13:27 so that's why we're not sure about how
00:13:27 --> 00:13:28 many planets there are. It doesn't lend
00:13:28 --> 00:13:30 itself to to very lightweight rocky
00:13:30 --> 00:13:33 planets either. So, um, it's a great
00:13:33 --> 00:13:35 question and it's got some fairly
00:13:35 --> 00:13:37 sensible answers and really they depend
00:13:37 --> 00:13:40 on our abilities to discover different
00:13:40 --> 00:13:43 things under different classifications
00:13:43 --> 00:13:45 of of observing, for example.
00:13:45 --> 00:13:48 >> Yeah. And and it's an interesting quirk,
00:13:48 --> 00:13:50 isn't it, that the closer something is,
00:13:50 --> 00:13:53 the less likely we are to find it in
00:13:53 --> 00:13:55 certain circumstances. So,
00:13:55 --> 00:13:56 >> under some circumstances, that's right.
00:13:56 --> 00:14:00 Yeah. That's most mostly being nearer
00:14:00 --> 00:14:01 makes generally speaking something
00:14:01 --> 00:14:04 that's nearer is easier to to make
00:14:04 --> 00:14:05 discoveries from just because you've got
00:14:05 --> 00:14:06 more light to play with.
00:14:06 --> 00:14:09 >> Yeah. Yeah. Fair enough. Thank you,
00:14:09 --> 00:14:11 Sarah. Lovely to hear from you. I' I've
00:14:11 --> 00:14:13 actually never been to Townsville, but
00:14:13 --> 00:14:18 I'm going to get there one day. I um I I
00:14:18 --> 00:14:19 think furthest north I've ever made it
00:14:19 --> 00:14:21 is uh or if you don't count being on a
00:14:21 --> 00:14:24 cruise ship is um with Sundays. about as
00:14:24 --> 00:14:27 far north as I've ever been able to get.
00:14:27 --> 00:14:29 This is Space Nuts with Andrew Dunley
00:14:29 --> 00:14:33 and Professor Fred Watson.
00:14:33 --> 00:14:35 >> I believe that this nation should commit
00:14:35 --> 00:14:38 itself to achieving the goal before this
00:14:38 --> 00:14:41 decade is out of landing a man on the
00:14:41 --> 00:14:43 moon and returning him safely to the
00:14:43 --> 00:14:44 Earth.
00:14:44 --> 00:14:45 >> These nuts.
00:14:46 --> 00:14:47 Last episode, Fred, we were talking
00:14:47 --> 00:14:50 about comet P41, which was doing that
00:14:50 --> 00:14:54 weird re-spinning thingy thingy. It did.
00:14:54 --> 00:14:57 Uh, it's it stopped spinning one way and
00:14:57 --> 00:14:59 started spinning the other way and very
00:14:59 --> 00:15:01 confusing. Uh, what we're talking about
00:15:01 --> 00:15:03 now is a question from Anchorage,
00:15:04 --> 00:15:07 Alaska. Woohoo. Uh, Eli has um messaged
00:15:08 --> 00:15:11 us. I've heard that there has been yet
00:15:11 --> 00:15:13 another once-in-a-lifetime comet being
00:15:13 --> 00:15:17 discovered and will be visible in April.
00:15:17 --> 00:15:19 Um, they're even saying we might be able
00:15:19 --> 00:15:22 to see this one in daylight. Um, it's
00:15:22 --> 00:15:26 called uh C 2026A1
00:15:26 --> 00:15:29 and is referred to as a sunrazer. What
00:15:29 --> 00:15:32 makes this one so special? Where will it
00:15:32 --> 00:15:34 be visible? Thanks, Eli. Great question.
00:15:34 --> 00:15:36 I did read about this one. I meant to
00:15:36 --> 00:15:38 bring it up with you, but Eli's done it
00:15:38 --> 00:15:39 for me.
00:15:39 --> 00:15:40 >> Yeah, that's nice when when that
00:15:40 --> 00:15:41 happens.
00:15:41 --> 00:15:45 >> Um, well, it's it it is a sungrazer, uh,
00:15:45 --> 00:15:48 which means it, as its name implies,
00:15:48 --> 00:15:51 passes very close to the sun. Uh, often
00:15:51 --> 00:15:53 sungrazers fall to pieces because the
00:15:54 --> 00:15:56 gravitational forces that they feel as
00:15:56 --> 00:15:57 they pass the sun, the what we call the
00:15:57 --> 00:15:59 tidal effects tend to want to pull them
00:16:00 --> 00:16:02 apart. Uh and so sometimes they just
00:16:02 --> 00:16:03 disintegrate and you get lots of little
00:16:03 --> 00:16:05 comets that aren't really that
00:16:05 --> 00:16:09 interesting. Um so but uh yes, comet C2
00:16:10 --> 00:16:12 26A1
00:16:12 --> 00:16:17 uh it will it will pass something like
00:16:17 --> 00:16:20 160 kilometers from the sun's
00:16:20 --> 00:16:26 surface. Um, and it may be that uh the
00:16:26 --> 00:16:30 way the the the light is being um
00:16:30 --> 00:16:32 released from the comet, the what we
00:16:32 --> 00:16:34 call forward scattering, it could make
00:16:34 --> 00:16:37 the comet look quite a lot brighter,
00:16:37 --> 00:16:38 which is one reason why people are
00:16:38 --> 00:16:41 talking about it being a daylight comet.
00:16:41 --> 00:16:44 I am very always very skeptical when
00:16:44 --> 00:16:46 people talk about that because there's
00:16:46 --> 00:16:49 that old story, uh, comets are like
00:16:49 --> 00:16:51 cats. They have tails and do anything
00:16:51 --> 00:16:53 they like.
00:16:53 --> 00:16:55 >> And uh yes, great. And it's perfectly
00:16:55 --> 00:16:58 true as well uh that you never quite
00:16:58 --> 00:17:00 know what a comet is going to do, but
00:17:00 --> 00:17:02 some of these sun grazers have turned
00:17:02 --> 00:17:06 out to be uh to be quite bright. So, it
00:17:06 --> 00:17:10 gets nearest the sun in April. Um, and
00:17:10 --> 00:17:12 it's probably
00:17:12 --> 00:17:18 uh going to be one that uh is is not
00:17:18 --> 00:17:22 that um that that won't give us that
00:17:22 --> 00:17:24 much time to observe it. And I'm saying
00:17:24 --> 00:17:27 that because it's got a um it's got a
00:17:27 --> 00:17:30 long long period uh of probably
00:17:30 --> 00:17:33 something like 6
00:17:33 --> 00:17:37 years. Sorry, Big B. No, not not 6.
00:17:37 --> 00:17:40 about 800 years, something of that sort.
00:17:40 --> 00:17:43 Um, and in fact, I've got a figure here
00:17:44 --> 00:17:45 that is double that. I'm probably
00:17:45 --> 00:17:47 looking at the the wrong numbers there.
00:17:48 --> 00:17:50 Uh, orbital period something like um
00:17:50 --> 00:17:53 depends on on what part of the orbit you
00:17:54 --> 00:17:58 look at 1687 years inbound. So, yes,
00:17:58 --> 00:18:02 it's um it is um an object that's pretty
00:18:02 --> 00:18:05 interesting. Uh, I think if it gets
00:18:05 --> 00:18:08 bright and actually starts showing signs
00:18:08 --> 00:18:11 of being a very very um brightly visible
00:18:11 --> 00:18:14 planet, we'll talk about it again. But
00:18:14 --> 00:18:16 for the moment, I'm always, as I said,
00:18:16 --> 00:18:17 I'm always skeptical. Uh, because you
00:18:18 --> 00:18:19 never know what a comet is going to do.
00:18:19 --> 00:18:21 And usually they don't do what you want
00:18:21 --> 00:18:22 them to do. So,
00:18:22 --> 00:18:24 >> just like cats. Just like cats.
00:18:24 --> 00:18:27 >> Just like cats. Yes. Um, remind us again
00:18:27 --> 00:18:29 how they name them because I'm gathering
00:18:29 --> 00:18:32 from C 20226A1.
00:18:32 --> 00:18:33 This is the first one they've spotted
00:18:33 --> 00:18:35 this year.
00:18:35 --> 00:18:38 >> Uh it's um it's also got a temporary
00:18:38 --> 00:18:41 designation 6ac4721.
00:18:41 --> 00:18:42 Oh.
00:18:42 --> 00:18:45 >> Uh which I think is probably the
00:18:45 --> 00:18:47 designation for the object category when
00:18:48 --> 00:18:50 it was actually uh discovered. But but
00:18:50 --> 00:18:53 you're you're right. Um
00:18:53 --> 00:18:58 now um the the P uh prefix on a comet is
00:18:58 --> 00:18:59 when it's periodic and that usually
00:18:59 --> 00:19:01 means it's got a period of less than 200
00:19:01 --> 00:19:05 years. This is not a P. This is a C. Uh
00:19:05 --> 00:19:07 and it tells you that it's sort of
00:19:07 --> 00:19:08 classification
00:19:08 --> 00:19:11 is uh I can't remember what C stands for
00:19:11 --> 00:19:11 actually.
00:19:11 --> 00:19:13 >> Oh, I know. I know. It means we're all
00:19:13 --> 00:19:17 cactus next time it turns up.
00:19:17 --> 00:19:19 >> That'll be it. Yeah, that'll be it. I
00:19:19 --> 00:19:21 think you're right there. Yeah. just
00:19:21 --> 00:19:23 takes a long long time to come back and
00:19:23 --> 00:19:25 say hello.
00:19:25 --> 00:19:27 >> Yeah, it may be. Um I mean it's a it's
00:19:27 --> 00:19:29 sometimes called a CR group comet, but
00:19:29 --> 00:19:30 that would make it a K rather than a C,
00:19:30 --> 00:19:32 so that can't be what it is.
00:19:32 --> 00:19:35 >> No, no, I could try and look it up, but
00:19:36 --> 00:19:36 um
00:19:36 --> 00:19:37 >> why don't you do that?
00:19:37 --> 00:19:40 >> Yeah. All right. Why don't I uh What
00:19:40 --> 00:19:42 does the C
00:19:42 --> 00:19:45 stand for? I got to type fast in the
00:19:45 --> 00:19:47 naming of a comet.
00:19:47 --> 00:19:49 >> Yep, that's the right question.
00:19:49 --> 00:19:52 >> That's an AI. We'll see.
00:19:52 --> 00:19:53 >> Cactus.
00:19:53 --> 00:19:55 >> Cactus. No, it says, you're not going to
00:19:55 --> 00:19:59 believe this. C stands for non-periodic.
00:19:59 --> 00:20:02 >> Yeah, that was what I thought. But I
00:20:02 --> 00:20:05 couldn't work out where the P maybe
00:20:06 --> 00:20:08 maybe you take the last letter of the
00:20:08 --> 00:20:10 word non-periodic.
00:20:10 --> 00:20:12 >> On the other hand, if you did that, a
00:20:12 --> 00:20:14 periodic comment would also be a C. So,
00:20:14 --> 00:20:16 we're not getting any.
00:20:16 --> 00:20:17 >> Well, see, they've got they've painted
00:20:18 --> 00:20:19 themselves into a corner, haven't they?
00:20:19 --> 00:20:22 AB: Absolutely. Yeah.
00:20:22 --> 00:20:23 >> So much for the International
00:20:23 --> 00:20:24 Astronomical Union.
00:20:24 --> 00:20:26 >> Yep. Yep. Yeah. That's what happens when
00:20:26 --> 00:20:28 you put bureaucrats in charge. Um, no,
00:20:28 --> 00:20:30 they're good people. Um,
00:20:30 --> 00:20:32 >> so it may
00:20:32 --> 00:20:33 >> Look out for it.
00:20:33 --> 00:20:35 >> Yeah, look out for it. It may be good to
00:20:35 --> 00:20:38 observe. Whether or not it's a visible
00:20:38 --> 00:20:41 comet in daylight, debatable.
00:20:41 --> 00:20:43 >> Um, but it's definitely on its way. And,
00:20:43 --> 00:20:46 uh, yeah, April is the month to keep an
00:20:46 --> 00:20:48 eye out for it. Where would be the best
00:20:48 --> 00:20:51 place to sit to to have a look at it?
00:20:51 --> 00:20:53 >> Uh somewhere dark.
00:20:53 --> 00:20:55 >> Anywhere on the planet?
00:20:55 --> 00:20:57 >> I don't know.
00:20:57 --> 00:21:00 >> Um um I don't know what it's you what
00:21:00 --> 00:21:03 the exact details of its orbit are. So
00:21:03 --> 00:21:07 it it may well be one that is best seen
00:21:07 --> 00:21:11 before dawn uh or after after sunset,
00:21:11 --> 00:21:13 but it would depend a little bit on what
00:21:13 --> 00:21:15 your latitude and longitude are as to
00:21:15 --> 00:21:17 >> Okay. Best places, best regions,
00:21:17 --> 00:21:19 midsouthern latitudes, Chile, South
00:21:19 --> 00:21:21 Africa, Australia, and New Zealand.
00:21:21 --> 00:21:23 >> Well, I think best opportunities. There
00:21:23 --> 00:21:23 you are.
00:21:23 --> 00:21:26 >> Thanks. So, yeah, I I I think we should
00:21:26 --> 00:21:29 just stop Space Nuts and go to AI.
00:21:29 --> 00:21:34 >> No, no, they've got funny voices.
00:21:34 --> 00:21:35 >> Yeah, I don't think so.
00:21:35 --> 00:21:37 >> We've got funny voices as well.
00:21:37 --> 00:21:39 >> And the jokes are terrible. Oh, hang on.
00:21:39 --> 00:21:43 That's the same.
00:21:44 --> 00:21:46 Oh, dear. All right. Uh, Eli, thanks for
00:21:46 --> 00:21:48 the question and hope all is well in
00:21:48 --> 00:21:52 Anchorage. Uh, a very interesting,
00:21:52 --> 00:21:57 remote, cold place, but um, much
00:21:57 --> 00:22:00 visited. Lots of tourists go there uh,
00:22:00 --> 00:22:02 for obvious reasons. It's just such a
00:22:02 --> 00:22:07 unique destination. Thanks, Eli.
00:22:07 --> 00:22:11 I'm going to step off the limb now.
00:22:11 --> 00:22:16 That's one small step for man.
00:22:16 --> 00:22:18 one
00:22:18 --> 00:22:19 for mankind.
00:22:19 --> 00:22:21 >> Space nuts.
00:22:21 --> 00:22:24 >> Our final question comes from a regular.
00:22:24 --> 00:22:26 Um, I don't like to give him too many
00:22:26 --> 00:22:27 bites of the cherry, but he's just come
00:22:27 --> 00:22:29 up with something that I could not avoid
00:22:29 --> 00:22:32 based on previous uh theories that he's
00:22:32 --> 00:22:34 come up with. Rusty from Donny Brook, he
00:22:34 --> 00:22:37 says Elon's 1 million satellite power
00:22:37 --> 00:22:39 station. Hi Fred and Andrew. Just
00:22:39 --> 00:22:41 looking at the environmental impacts of
00:22:41 --> 00:22:44 these power stations, about a quarter of
00:22:44 --> 00:22:46 these will shade the earth at any one
00:22:46 --> 00:22:49 time. Each will have about uh an acre,
00:22:49 --> 00:22:52 4 square meters of solar collectors.
00:22:52 --> 00:22:54 I don't know what the next bit means. Uh
00:22:54 --> 00:22:57 or the ISS is 2 a half th000 square
00:22:57 --> 00:22:57 meters. That's right.
00:22:58 --> 00:23:01 >> Uh he will use about 20% efficient cells
00:23:01 --> 00:23:03 and there will be about 10% loss in
00:23:03 --> 00:23:06 conversion of light energy. If the
00:23:06 --> 00:23:08 unders sides are black for astronomical
00:23:08 --> 00:23:12 purposes, then we have an 800 square
00:23:12 --> 00:23:14 kilometer array of solar uh for our
00:23:14 --> 00:23:17 solar pagola. Elon will kill two birds
00:23:17 --> 00:23:21 with one or 1 million stones. Uh data
00:23:21 --> 00:23:24 center power and global warming. I
00:23:24 --> 00:23:26 caution that if he doubles the size, it
00:23:26 --> 00:23:28 will create a cooler environment than we
00:23:28 --> 00:23:30 want. Cheers, Rusty from Donny Brook. Uh
00:23:30 --> 00:23:33 he he won't give up on his solar pa. He
00:23:33 --> 00:23:34 came up with the idea, I don't know, a
00:23:34 --> 00:23:36 couple of years ago and pitched it and
00:23:36 --> 00:23:41 we we we basically koshed it. But now,
00:23:41 --> 00:23:43 could Elon have accidentally created
00:23:43 --> 00:23:45 one?
00:23:45 --> 00:23:47 I don't know. I um I checked what um
00:23:47 --> 00:23:50 what's available about the spacecraft
00:23:50 --> 00:23:53 design for these proposed 1 million
00:23:53 --> 00:23:56 satellites that uh that SpaceX is
00:23:56 --> 00:24:01 proposing to um act as an orbiting data
00:24:01 --> 00:24:04 center. and I couldn't find any
00:24:04 --> 00:24:07 dimensions for the solar panels. Um, an
00:24:07 --> 00:24:10 acre or 4 square meters sounds very
00:24:10 --> 00:24:15 big to me. Uh, and uh, a large a large
00:24:15 --> 00:24:21 amount of real estate that I am not sure
00:24:21 --> 00:24:24 is I I mean I I suspect Donnie sorry
00:24:24 --> 00:24:26 Rusty's
00:24:26 --> 00:24:28 not not Donnie of Rusty Brookke but
00:24:28 --> 00:24:29 Rusty of Donny Brook.
00:24:29 --> 00:24:29 >> I like that.
00:24:30 --> 00:24:32 >> Um, yeah.
00:24:32 --> 00:24:34 uh that um I mean Rusty might have done
00:24:34 --> 00:24:36 the calculations as to what's needed but
00:24:36 --> 00:24:39 uh but but so far I haven't seen any any
00:24:39 --> 00:24:41 details of the individual spacecraft. In
00:24:41 --> 00:24:44 fact, they may not exist. Uh but an acre
00:24:44 --> 00:24:47 for each one sounds like a lot of real
00:24:47 --> 00:24:49 estate for a million satellites and I
00:24:49 --> 00:24:51 suspect it's not going to be anything
00:24:51 --> 00:24:54 like as big as that. So I think the
00:24:54 --> 00:24:56 solar pagola idea will once again be
00:24:56 --> 00:24:58 shelved as it has done many times
00:24:58 --> 00:25:02 before. Maybe, maybe. Um, based on
00:25:02 --> 00:25:04 recent reports regarding SpaceX's
00:25:04 --> 00:25:07 proposed orbital data center plans, the
00:25:07 --> 00:25:08 solar panel infrastructure of these
00:25:08 --> 00:25:11 satellites is projected to be massive
00:25:11 --> 00:25:14 with some proposed structures stretching
00:25:14 --> 00:25:18 to 4x4 kilometers in size.
00:25:18 --> 00:25:21 >> Well, if you do that, you're you kind of
00:25:21 --> 00:25:24 this marks the end of astronomy really.
00:25:24 --> 00:25:28 >> Yeah. It can't be 4x4 kilometers.
00:25:28 --> 00:25:30 Not maybe not all of them, but some of
00:25:30 --> 00:25:32 them it says.
00:25:32 --> 00:25:37 >> Yeah. Um Yeah. Yeah. Interesting.
00:25:38 --> 00:25:40 >> I don't I don't even know that we have
00:25:40 --> 00:25:43 the the wherewithal to manufacture solar
00:25:43 --> 00:25:45 collectors of that sort of size.
00:25:45 --> 00:25:47 >> Yeah. I think I mean you'd have more
00:25:47 --> 00:25:51 like putting a pie in the sky, I reckon.
00:25:51 --> 00:25:55 Um the um current state of that uh
00:25:55 --> 00:25:58 venture is that it's gone to the Federal
00:25:58 --> 00:26:02 Communications Commission. Uh, and I
00:26:02 --> 00:26:04 will be interested to see whether they
00:26:04 --> 00:26:05 approve it because eventually it's got
00:26:06 --> 00:26:06 to go to the International
00:26:06 --> 00:26:08 Telecommunications Union
00:26:08 --> 00:26:10 >> and they will probably freak out a bit
00:26:10 --> 00:26:15 because they are whilst they are kind of
00:26:15 --> 00:26:17 mandated to issue launch permits to
00:26:17 --> 00:26:19 anybody who can demonstrate the
00:26:19 --> 00:26:21 likelihood of being able to put their
00:26:21 --> 00:26:24 spacecraft into orbit. Um, I think this
00:26:24 --> 00:26:26 one might actually cause them to swallow
00:26:26 --> 00:26:28 a little bit deeply. Although they did
00:26:28 --> 00:26:31 they did tick off on the 300
00:26:31 --> 00:26:33 spacecraft of uh the Rwanda government's
00:26:33 --> 00:26:37 proposal back in 2020. Uh I think that I
00:26:37 --> 00:26:39 think that will lapse next year. I think
00:26:39 --> 00:26:41 uh it's a seven-year period that you've
00:26:41 --> 00:26:43 got when you put in a filing to the
00:26:43 --> 00:26:45 International Telecommunications Union.
00:26:45 --> 00:26:46 I think you got seven years and if you
00:26:46 --> 00:26:49 don't launch anything before that then
00:26:49 --> 00:26:52 you basically lose the lose the slot.
00:26:52 --> 00:26:56 >> Yes, I believe so. And it may well be
00:26:56 --> 00:26:57 that that's what's going to happen in
00:26:58 --> 00:27:00 this case. Although Elon tends to have
00:27:00 --> 00:27:04 um you know the cash to back his ideas
00:27:04 --> 00:27:05 and he certainly followed through on a
00:27:05 --> 00:27:08 lot of them and uh they've been very
00:27:08 --> 00:27:10 very successful.
00:27:10 --> 00:27:11 So
00:27:11 --> 00:27:13 >> yeah, one wonders where this will end
00:27:13 --> 00:27:15 up. Are they really going to approve
00:27:15 --> 00:27:17 that kind of infrastructure in orbit if
00:27:17 --> 00:27:20 it's going to cause so many problems for
00:27:20 --> 00:27:23 so many other people, especially I mean
00:27:24 --> 00:27:25 space science.
00:27:25 --> 00:27:28 >> The first Yes, that that that's a good
00:27:28 --> 00:27:32 question. We we kind of hope that um
00:27:32 --> 00:27:34 common sense prevails. Another of the
00:27:34 --> 00:27:37 problems, of course, and this is already
00:27:37 --> 00:27:40 being noticed by Starlink, more or less
00:27:40 --> 00:27:42 one at one one Starink spacecraft a day
00:27:42 --> 00:27:44 that now re-enters uh because they they
00:27:44 --> 00:27:48 only have a 5year lifetime. Uh and we're
00:27:48 --> 00:27:51 already starting to see um pollutants in
00:27:51 --> 00:27:52 the upper atmosphere that come from the
00:27:52 --> 00:27:56 spacecraft burning up. Uh now I was in a
00:27:56 --> 00:28:01 meeting last week that uh I heard one of
00:28:01 --> 00:28:02 my colleagues, it was a meeting actually
00:28:02 --> 00:28:04 in Vienna and I was just dialing into
00:28:04 --> 00:28:07 it, but one of my colleagues uh who's
00:28:07 --> 00:28:10 based in the UK had a throwaway line um
00:28:10 --> 00:28:15 which was that Musk is going to put the
00:28:15 --> 00:28:21 defunct um data center spacecraft into a
00:28:21 --> 00:28:24 solar system orbit rather than basically
00:28:24 --> 00:28:25 bring them back into the Earth's
00:28:25 --> 00:28:28 atmosphere to avoid that problem. Uh but
00:28:28 --> 00:28:30 I'm not I don't know whether that's
00:28:30 --> 00:28:32 true. I haven't found any references to
00:28:32 --> 00:28:35 that online. And it would mean to do
00:28:35 --> 00:28:37 that you need um effectively an awful
00:28:37 --> 00:28:39 lot of rocket power on each spacecraft
00:28:39 --> 00:28:41 because it takes much more
00:28:41 --> 00:28:44 >> yeah much more oomph to get to get rid
00:28:44 --> 00:28:46 of a spacecraft that way uh to put it
00:28:46 --> 00:28:48 into orbit around the sun than it does
00:28:48 --> 00:28:50 to put it back into the Earth's
00:28:50 --> 00:28:51 atmosphere. So all of these are
00:28:52 --> 00:28:54 questions that I think will be raised by
00:28:54 --> 00:28:57 by you know anybody who's really
00:28:57 --> 00:28:58 interested in this stuff and that
00:28:58 --> 00:28:59 includes space nuts.
00:29:00 --> 00:29:03 >> Yes. Well Rusty at least and Rusty. Well
00:29:03 --> 00:29:04 Rusty is a space nut.
00:29:04 --> 00:29:06 >> He certainly is. Yes.
00:29:06 --> 00:29:08 >> Good question though. Love it. Um keep
00:29:08 --> 00:29:09 working on it Rusty. I'm sure you'll
00:29:09 --> 00:29:12 come up with another solder pagola
00:29:12 --> 00:29:14 theory in the not too distant future.
00:29:14 --> 00:29:16 Good to hear from you and good to hear
00:29:16 --> 00:29:18 from everybody who sent us in questions.
00:29:18 --> 00:29:19 If you've got questions for us, we'd
00:29:19 --> 00:29:21 love to get them. Just go to our
00:29:21 --> 00:29:23 website, spacenutspodcast.com,
00:29:23 --> 00:29:25 spacenuts.io,
00:29:25 --> 00:29:28 click on the AMA button at the top, the
00:29:28 --> 00:29:30 link, uh, that says ask me anything
00:29:30 --> 00:29:32 basically, and that's what you do. Uh,
00:29:32 --> 00:29:34 and don't forget to tell us who you are
00:29:34 --> 00:29:35 or where you're from. Text and audio
00:29:35 --> 00:29:37 questions most welcome. And have a look
00:29:37 --> 00:29:39 around while you're there. Don't forget
00:29:39 --> 00:29:42 to visit our social media pages as well.
00:29:42 --> 00:29:44 Fred, we're done. Thank you very much.
00:29:44 --> 00:29:47 >> It's a pleasure, Andrew. Uh we're um uh
00:29:47 --> 00:29:51 it's always good to be done. Uh and
00:29:51 --> 00:29:53 sometimes it's good to be undone as
00:29:53 --> 00:29:54 well.
00:29:54 --> 00:29:55 >> Yes. Yes. Well, that's you know getting
00:29:56 --> 00:29:57 a bit too personal. But anyway, we'll
00:29:57 --> 00:29:59 carry on.
00:29:59 --> 00:30:02 >> Thanks Fred. We'll see you later.
00:30:02 --> 00:30:03 >> See you next time.
00:30:03 --> 00:30:04 >> Professor Fred Watson, astronomer at
00:30:04 --> 00:30:06 large. And thanks to Hugh in the studio,
00:30:06 --> 00:30:08 uh who couldn't be with us today. He was
00:30:08 --> 00:30:11 looking into Bailey's question about
00:30:11 --> 00:30:12 things that are yet to be discovered and
00:30:12 --> 00:30:17 he realized that nobody knew he existed.
00:30:17 --> 00:30:19 From me, Andrew and Dunley, thanks for
00:30:19 --> 00:30:20 your company. We'll see you on the next
00:30:20 --> 00:30:22 episode of Space Nuts. Bye-bye.
00:30:22 --> 00:30:23 >> Space Nuts.
00:30:23 --> 00:30:25 >> You'll be listening to the Space Nuts
00:30:25 --> 00:30:27 podcast
00:30:27 --> 00:30:30 >> available at Apple Podcasts, Spotify,
00:30:30 --> 00:30:33 iHeart Radio, or your favorite podcast
00:30:33 --> 00:30:35 player. You can also stream on demand at
00:30:35 --> 00:30:38 byes.com. This has been another quality
00:30:38 --> 00:30:43 podcast production from sites.com.