Chasing an Asteroid

Big Picture Science

Science, Technology

4.5 • 1K Ratings

🗓️ 2 March 2026

⏱️ 54 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Everyone knows that a big rock wiped out the dinosaurs. But the danger from an asteroid hitting Earth is not limited to ancient history. To deal with this threat, scientists recently ran an experiment to deflect a potential “city killer.” We’ll hear the results of that experiment, and about a visit to another asteroid. In the dusty material NASA brought back from the asteroid Bennu, scientists found the chemical building blocks of life, including many of the amino acids that are found in our cells. Could an asteroid have brought the ingredients for life to ancient Earth? In this episode, we look at our paradoxical relationship with the space rocks that taketh way – and may help giveth - life. Guests: Scott Sandford - Astrophysicist and Research Scientist at NASA’s Ames Research Center Robin George Andrews - Science journalist, volcanologist, and author of "How to Kill an Asteroid: The Real Science of Planetary Defense" Descripción en español Featuring music by Dewey Dellay and Jun Miyake Big Picture Science is part of the Airwave Media podcast network. Please contact advertising@airwavemedia.com to inquire about advertising on Big Picture Science. You can get early access to ad-free versions of every episode by joining us on Patreon. Thanks for your support! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	You're listening to an Airwave Media podcast.
0:14.0	What pops to mind when I say the word asteroid?
0:17.4	Well, if you're a fan of sci-fi movies, you're probably picturing a large rock hurtling through the solar system and threatening the Earth.
0:24.6	Now, if this comet continues on his path around the sun and keeps its present course, there's a chance that we might have impact.
0:31.6	All of us will entertain our worst fears and concerns.
0:35.6	The danger posed by an asteroid hitting our planet is not only a conceit of Hollywood movies,
0:41.3	it's real.
0:42.3	But asteroids are more than triggers of extinction-level events.
0:45.3	Most people are familiar with amino acids, the building blocks of proteins, and so we wanted to know are they present, and they are in fact present.
0:53.3	This means asteroids present an intriguing paradox.
0:56.7	The space rocks that can takeeth life away might also giveeth its start.
1:01.5	But that raises some questions.
1:03.7	If asteroids seeded our planet billions of years ago with the building blocks of life,
1:07.7	does that mean we are all aliens?
1:10.7	Could a similar scenario have played out elsewhere in the
1:12.9	universe? I'm Seth Shostak, and welcome to big picture science. I'm Molly Bentley. In this episode,
1:18.8	the science of space rocks, from those we catch and sample to learn about the origins of life,
1:23.5	to those we need to deflect to keep us from going the way of the dinosaurs. In either case, in this episode, we are chasing an asteroid.
1:32.3	When a piece of an asteroid when a piece of an asteroid breaks off and enters Earth's atmosphere, quickly burning up as a result, it becomes a meteor.
1:50.4	Large ones can produce fireballs, and a fireball streaking across the sky is a remarkable sight.
1:56.7	If you're lucky enough to see one.
1:58.7	Daytime fireballs are fairly rare, and New Yorkers got to see one this morning.
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