Overview
1263 Episodes
Dava Sobel receives The Planetary Society’s Cosmos Award for her extraordinary storytelling about science and discovery. We celebrate her work, hear from Bill Nye, and share updates on space policy and science communication.
Transcribed - Published: 18 June 2025
Space journalist Sarah Cruddas shares her journey from astrophysics to storytelling, exploring how journalism can make space exploration more accessible and meaningful.
Transcribed - Published: 11 June 2025
Former NASA Chief Economist Akhil Rao explains why NASA needs economic expertise to navigate the complex—and often misunderstood—market forces that will determine the success or failure of its private partnerships.
Transcribed - Published: 6 June 2025
The Fiscal Year 2026 congressional budget justification for NASA could mark the beginning of a dark age for NASA science. We examine what’s at stake and how you can help advocate for NASA’s future.
Transcribed - Published: 4 June 2025
Explore volcanoes across the solar system, from lava flows on Venus to icy eruptions on Enceladus and methane activity on Eris, with highlights from past Planetary Radio interviews. Plus, Bruce Betts shares new Juno insights from Jupiter’s moon Io.
Transcribed - Published: 28 May 2025
We tackle the biggest questions about NASA's value, space exploration, and why public investment matters. Join us for a Q&A with Casey Dreier and Ambre Trujillo, and a space policy update with Jack Kiraly.
Transcribed - Published: 21 May 2025
A Soviet-era Venus probe, Kosmos 482, spent 53 years in Earth's orbit before crashing back to the planet. Seismologist Ben Fernando explains its history, reentry, and how seismic technology could help track space debris.
Transcribed - Published: 14 May 2025
Explore the atmosphere of TOI-270 d with planetary geochemist Chris Glein as he unravels the secrets of this distant sub-Neptune using JWST data and geochemical modeling.
Transcribed - Published: 7 May 2025
No one person knows how to build a spaceship. What happens to NASA’s collective knowledge when thousands of employees lose their jobs?
Transcribed - Published: 2 May 2025
AstroKobi joins Sarah Al-Ahmed to explore the rise of a new generation of space communicators. Plus, updates on NASA’s science budget and the confirmation process for the next NASA administrator.
Transcribed - Published: 30 April 2025
Join us aboard the RMS Queen Mary as we celebrate 45 years of The Planetary Society at our Cosmic Shores Gala, featuring reflections from Bill Nye, Bethany Ehlmann, Jennifer Vaughn, and more.
Transcribed - Published: 23 April 2025
NASA's science programs face a proposed 47%budget cut. We break down what's at risk and how you can take action to help protect space exploration.
Transcribed - Published: 16 April 2025
Why is Mars red? A new study led by Brown University’s Adomas Valantinas points to ferrihydrite, not hematite, revealing a wetter past and new clues about the Red Planet’s potential to support life.
Transcribed - Published: 9 April 2025
The space sector is data-rich but insight-poor. Jack Kuhr of Payload talks about how he turns raw numbers into real narratives.
Transcribed - Published: 4 April 2025
Join Sarah Al-Ahmed and Casey Dreier for a special live recording of Planetary Radio at the Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg Center in Washington, D.C., immediately following The Planetary Society’s Day of Action.
Transcribed - Published: 2 April 2025
Joanne Higgins joins Planetary Radio to share the untold stories of Black engineers who helped make the Apollo program possible. We explore their legacy, the challenges they faced, and how their stories can inspire a more inclusive future in space.
Transcribed - Published: 26 March 2025
We explore bold ideas from the Mars Innovation Workshop and uncover why NASA’s decision to dissolve key advisory offices is raising concerns across the space community.
Transcribed - Published: 19 March 2025
A reported 50% cut to NASA’s science budget threatens to shut down missions, halt new discoveries, and devastate scientific space exploration. This week, we break down the fight ahead with The Planetary Society’s space policy team and explore how grassroots advocacy can help protect the future of space science.
Transcribed - Published: 12 March 2025
Can classical liberalism provide fresh insights to guide humanity’s activities in space? Philosopher Rebecca Lowe explains how it can.
Transcribed - Published: 7 March 2025
Scott Sandford, co-investigator on OSIRIS-REx and a research scientist at NASA’s Ames Research Center, discusses the first published analyses of the Bennu sample, revealing insights into the early Solar System and the origins of life.
Transcribed - Published: 5 March 2025
Amy Jurewicz, former project scientist for NASA’s Genesis mission, shares how the spacecraft survived a crash-landing and still reshaped our understanding of the solar wind and space weather.
Transcribed - Published: 26 February 2025
Hayley Arceneaux discusses her memoir “Wild Ride” and her newly released kid's book “Astronaut Hayley's Brave Adventure,” sharing the story of how her experiences with childhood cancer led to her space adventure aboard SpaceX's Inspiration4 mission.
Transcribed - Published: 19 February 2025
Asteroid 2024 YR4 has captured global attention, but is it really a threat? Kate Howells breaks it down. Then, Casey Dreier and Jack Kiraly analyze how the new Trump administration is shaping NASA’s future
Transcribed - Published: 12 February 2025
Rocket Lab CEO Peter Beck outlines a $4B fixed-price plan for Mars Sample Return — and reveals new Venus mission details — before VP Richard French explains how a single, integrated team cuts costs and ensures success.
Transcribed - Published: 7 February 2025
How did Pluto meet its largest moon, Charon? Adeene Denton, a research scientist at the University of Arizona, suggests a "kiss-and-capture" may solve this mystery.
Transcribed - Published: 5 February 2025
We celebrate Ed Stone’s lasting legacy with the unveiling of the Dr. Edward Stone Exploration Trail at JPL.
Transcribed - Published: 29 January 2025
We discuss how to examine the science behind our favorite TV shows and movies with the co-hosts of the "Does It Fly?" podcast, Hakeem Oluseyi and Tamara Krinsky.
Transcribed - Published: 22 January 2025
Knicole ColĂłn, the deputy project scientist for exoplanet science for JWST, joins Planetary Radio to discuss the detection of methane and carbon dioxide in the atmosphere of K2-18 b.
Transcribed - Published: 15 January 2025
Emily Calandrelli, also known as “the Space Gal,” shares her experience becoming the hundredth woman in space after blasting off on a Blue Origin suborbital rocket.
Transcribed - Published: 8 January 2025
Marcia Smith, founder of Space Policy Online, joins the show to discuss the motivations and risks of pursuing change at NASA—and how much change can ultimately happen with Congress holding the purse strings.
Transcribed - Published: 3 January 2025
Planetary Radio kicks off The Planetary Society's 45th anniversary year with CEO, Bill Nye.
Transcribed - Published: 1 January 2025
The Planetary Society team reviews the best space moments of 2024, from the China National Space Administration's return of samples from the far side of the Moon to the triumphant launch of NASA's Europa Clipper mission.
Transcribed - Published: 25 December 2024
Lauren Mc Keown, a postdoctoral fellow at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, discusses her experiences recreating Martian araneiform terrain, also called Mars spiders, in the lab.
Transcribed - Published: 18 December 2024
We revisit a classic book on the limits of presidential power in setting the nation’s space agenda and explore how the increasingly powerful executive branch might be rewriting those expectations.
Transcribed - Published: 13 December 2024
We take you to Planetary Society headquarters, where Neil deGrasse Tyson, host of StarTalk, interviews Planetary Society CEO Bill Nye.
Transcribed - Published: 11 December 2024
Sarah Al-Ahmed, the host of Planetary Radio, marks her one-hundredth episode with a look back at the defining moments of the past 100 weeks of space exploration.
Transcribed - Published: 4 December 2024
Mohsen Al Awadhi and Hoor Al Hazmi, the director and science team lead for the Emirates Mission to the Asteroid Belt, join Planetary Radio for an update on the mission’s progress.
Transcribed - Published: 27 November 2024
Casey Dreier, the chief of space policy at The Planetary Society, analyzes what the incoming Trump administration could mean for NASA’s funding, human spaceflight, and its Science Mission Directorate.
Transcribed - Published: 20 November 2024
Morgan Cable and Hiro Ono from NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory join Planetary Radio to discuss the Exobiology Extant Life Surveyor (EELS) robot concept.
Transcribed - Published: 13 November 2024
This week, we learn more about Spaceport Nova Scotia, Canada’s first commercial launch site, with Steve Matier and Sasha Jacob, the CEO and Chairman of Maritime Launch Services.
Transcribed - Published: 6 November 2024
Norm Augustine, the distinguished aerospace industry veteran behind numerous influential studies, joins the show to discuss NASA at a Crossroads, the new report that raises alarm bells for NASA’s workforce, infrastructure, and technology capabilities.
Transcribed - Published: 1 November 2024
This week we discuss recent research on the origins of Pluto’s heart and what it can tell us about whether or not the dwarf planet has a subsurface ocean with Adeene Denton from the University of Arizona.
Transcribed - Published: 30 October 2024
Bob Pappalardo, Europa Clipper project scientist, recounts the mission team's dramatic encounter with Hurricane Milton before their triumphant launch.
Transcribed - Published: 23 October 2024
This week, Planetary Radio offers advice for students pursuing higher education in space-related fields. From internship insights to conference strategies and grad school survival tips, we've got you covered.
Transcribed - Published: 16 October 2024
The Planetary Society and space advocates around the world fought to make Europa Clipper a reality. This week, we learn more about the tumultuous history of the mission with Casey Dreier, The Planetary Society’s chief of space policy.
Transcribed - Published: 9 October 2024
Space expert Lori Garver joins the show to explore Kamala Harris’ space policy priorities, the major issues facing NASA in the next four years, and Garver’s thoughts on the evolution of Elon Musk and NASA’s increasing reliance on the commercial space industry.
Transcribed - Published: 4 October 2024
We look forward to the Oct. 7 launch of the European Space Agency's Hera spacecraft with Michael KĂĽppers, project scientist for the mission.
Transcribed - Published: 2 October 2024
We return to the 2024 NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts (NIAC) Symposium for part two of our coverage as we explore an Artemis-enabled stellar imager and an add-on to large-scale water mining operations on Mars to screen for introduced and alien life.
Transcribed - Published: 25 September 2024
Join us for part one of our journey to the 2024 NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts (NIAC) Symposium. We'll hear from the teams behind two of this year's NIAC projects that could help us study distant planets and potentially reach them ourselves.
Transcribed - Published: 18 September 2024
Vince Ledvina, also known as the Aurora Guy, joins Planetary Radio to discuss the science behind the northern and southern lights and what they can tell us about our Sun, our planet, and worlds across our galaxy.
Transcribed - Published: 11 September 2024
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