Walkabout the Galaxy

Science marches onward, and the next steps in planetary science aim towards the seventh planet from the Sun, which shall not be named, and Saturn's little moon with a big ocean, Enceladus. Join us for a review of the new directions for planetary science research in the next decade, space news, and Uranus trivia.

Tiny fragments of the dinosaur-killing asteroid may have been found, preserved in amber, and new analysis of old data reveals a tiny, but potentially profound error in the mass of one of the fundamental particles, the W boson. It's not all small, as we also take a look at the largest comet nucleus and the most powerful laser.

Mars has a thin atmosphere, so little changes in the weather, even breezes, make big relative changes in how sound travels. We speculate on the sounds of future baseball game on Mars before turning to a fortuitous glimpse of the light from an individual star when the universe was less than a billion years old.

What if the stuff that makes up most of the stuff in the universe is so lightweight that you could barely call it stuff? Ultralight dark matter is one possible way to explain the puzzle of the very early formation of supermassive black holes. We explore this and the intriguing origins of Ceres, and much more.

We like to think we understand ordinary matter: the stuff we're familiar with that makes up stars, planets, and donuts. Sure Dark Energy and Dark Matter are mysterious, but the rest we have a handle on. Or do we? The New Horizons mission adds to a growing puzzle about the Cosmic Optical Background, not to be confused with the Cosmic Microwave Background, which is a beast of an entirely different color!

Even the emptiness between galaxies is filled with enough energy over those vast expanses to generate shock waves and giant structures when clusters of galaxies collide. We explore this, the lives of galaxies, and some intriguing results about activity on the asteroid Ceres.

We learn how binary star systems may create a second family of planets, Saturn's aurora may be powered by the ringed planet's high speed winds, and how thinking of planetary intelligence may guide future searches for extraterrestrial life.

A remarkably accurate test of general relativity confirms that not only does time run slower at your feet than at your head, but it runs slower at your eyes than your eyebrows. Plus, Psyche loses some of its metallic sheen, and we have spacewalk trivia and much more.

Sustained fusion reactions with a net production of energy may be getting closer, and a whole bunch of space junk is definitely getting closer. A long-standing mystery of Jupiter's aurorae has been resolved. Catch up on all the space news and hear the surprising history of satellite debris with the astroquarks.

How special is the Earth for having a large Moon, and what can it teach us about where to look for habitable planets? In this episode we explore new research on what kind of planets are likely to get helpful moons like our own, and then we take a look at the idea of an infinitely cycling, but not repeating universe.

Mimas, the heavily battered "death star" moon of Saturn, may harbor a sub-surface ocean of liquid water like its neighbor, Enceladus. Water may have flowed on the surface of Mars more recently than previously thought, and there's a new denizen in the menagerie of peculiar pulsars. Learn all about it and test your pulsar trivia knowledge.

The Astroquarks assemble to examine the mysterious of a star that is blocked out perhaps by a giant dust cloud. Meanwhile, the Sun is passing through a Local Bubble in the Milky Way that has triggered star formation all around us. Join us for all this, rainbow trivia, and more.

We welcome 2022 with a look at the future home of the James Webb Space Telescope - Earth's L2 Lagrange point, and an exploration of Lagrange points around the solar system. New research suggests the geysers of Enceladus may originate in a slush pool rather than the moon's ocean, and what would it mean if there were antimatter stars? All this and more can be found on this episode of Walkabout with your happy hosts, the astroquarks.

One of our favorite cosmological mysteries is why there is any stuff in the universe. We're here because there was a tiny fraction more matter than antimatter created. We learn about a new observational test for one theory of why that happened, and it has to do with gravitational waves and Q-Balls! Find out what they are and learn about an odd planet and giant stellar flares closer to home.

We take a deep dive into toffee planets with The Planetary Guy, Dr. Paul Byrne, who helps us explore the myriad types of exoplanets that might be lurking out there, including some with eggshell crusts and toffee interiors. And gravitational waves have yielded another secret, confirming Stephen Hawking's Black Hole Area Theorem. Find out all about it, and black hole trivia, on WtG.

On the eve of its long-anticipated launch, we explore one of the many areas of exploration of the JWST, the early universe after the birth of the first stars and the reionization of the interstellar medium. We also take a look at a large comet showing activity beyond the orbit of Uranus, historical trivia, space news updates, and more. Join us for a walkabout the galaxy.

Scientists are creating large, quantum-fuzzy atomic nuclei with large numbers of neutrons to get clues about nucleosynthesis in the very early universe. Closer to home, the Juno spacecraft has peered hundreds of km below the Jovian cloud tops to better understand its colorful stripy system of bands and zones. And we get to say "fugacity" a lot in understanding exoplanet geological activity. Join us for all this, space news, and top quark trivia.

We explore an exoplanet system where the orbits of the planets are at right angles to each other. A chunk of rock trailing the Earth around the Sun may be a chunk of the Moon, and we take a look at some of the more interesting ways of getting into space and traveling long distances once we're there.

It's the first Strange Up Top episode of Walkabout with Hannah Sargeant where we explore the odd core of the Andromeda galaxy, the formation of galactic clusters, and the thermodynamics of information. Find out how the odd orbits of stars in Andromeda may the relics of an ancient black hole merger, how clusters of galaxies got their starts, and the strange consequences of the second law of thermodynamics.

Meet Up Quark Hannah Sargeant as we explore the role of neutrinos in understanding the universe and the coupled evolution of Pluto's climate and spin state. A hypothesized sterile neutrino seems to be missing, extending the puzzle of dark matter. Catch up on all this and some truly odd balloon historical trivia, space news, and more.

Almost all exoplanets have been discovered in our local neighborhood of the Milky Way, with a few exceptions due to gravitational microlensing, still within our galaxy. Astronomers have likely identified the first exoplanet in a distant galaxy by it eclipsing an X-ray source. We also check in on models of cosmological inflation, and the Moon still has surprises in store. All this, trivia, sci-fi rants, and more with the Astroquarks on Walkabout the Galaxy.

So much going on: Shatner goes to space, the astroquarks ponder time travel, Tunguska may have been a near miss, free neutron decay holds the key to the universe, Fast Radio Bursts become more puzzling, and Strange Quark absolutely does not want any tortoises or any creatures at all, for that matter, to be harmed! Join us and special guest Dr. Hannah Sargeant for all this, Captain Kirk trivia, and more.

The intrepid New Horizons spacecraft has discovered close binary comets in the Kuiper belt, and the Lucy mission is getting ready to explore binary trojan asteroids sharing Jupiter's orbit. It's all about small bodies, including just how late we can nuke an inbound asteroid and live to tell the tale.

Comet 29P is on an odd, distant orbit, between Jupiter and Saturn, and like a fidgety child sent to the corner, it keeps having unpredictable outbursts. In other planetary systems, the numerous hot jupiter class of planets seem to have a uniform nighttime temperature due to the presence of clouds of rock droplets. Maybe a good name for a song: Rock Droplet? And we'll check in on the latest in Dark Energy news.

We discuss not one but two galactic civilizations (Dune and Foundation) coming to screens big and small this Fall. Life being a central part of most civilizations, we discuss some interesting new observations of biomolecules in space and review the bizarre menagerie of hypothesized exotic stars. Join us for all that and an Asimovian trivia.

Quasars, those incredibly bright and distant sources powered by supermassive black holes, may have a trick to their radiation that let's us use them as standard candles. We'll dive into that and take a dive in close to the Sun with the Parker Solar Probe to learn about its discoveries of new populations of dust in the inner solar system. Plus, impactor trivia, and how long would you want to stay in space?

Light's odd way of behaving both like a particle and a wave is nothing new, but a cool new experiment shows that it's not an either/or but a continuum of gradations from wave to particle. The universe has some crazy stuff going on. We use the wave nature to take a look at an odd transient phenomenon at the core of the Milky Way and for Top quark to embarrass Strange quark at trivia.

We explore dwarf galaxies with no star formation and dwarf planets with a clue to a lurking object in the outer solar system. But first Top Quark is stumped by a non-stumper stumper, and our trivia takes us out to the largest structures in the universe. Catch up on all the latest news with the astroquarks, and have fun at the same time.

Will we find extraterrestrial life on Mars, Europa, or an exoplanet like Earth? Or will it be on an entirely different kind of planet, larger than the Earth, smaller than Neptune, and with planet enormous quantities of water? These hydrogen-rich ocean worlds, or hycean worlds, may be habitable. And to keep our own planet habitable, we may need to think about gently nudging asteroids off a collision course rather than blasting them to smithereens.

Saturn's rings are so amazing that they have helped us learn that Saturn's core is a sludgy-soupy beast that doesn't have a sharp boundary. And the waves in the rings are like the Milky Way's spiral arms, one of which has a clump at an odd angle that may be similar to some clumps we see in Saturn's rings! The astroquarks are here to help you fit it all together. Plus, how fast can you walk on the Moon? You might be surprised.

The Galaxy is in turmoil. At the galactic council MEGACON, the forces of Cosplay, Comics, Sci-Fi, Fantasy, Gaming, and more have gathered to restore balance and reason to society. The Astroquarks have lost one of their trio: Top Astroquark. As Charm and Strange struggle to fight the forces of chaos and unreason, the bearded SPACE WHISPERER Brendan Byrne of WMFE arrives on a beam of radio waves to complete the triad and allow the Walkabout the Galaxy to continue… Plus Artemis, Mars, JWST, and Olympic Space Trivia!

It's a tale of pairs and "self-coupling", which causes Top quark endless mirth, in this episode, with Higgs boson pairs, self-annihilating photon pairs producing antimatter (in an electron/positron pair), and a pair of oddly red asteroids. Tune in for another wide ranging episode, also featuring olympic rants.

They have to be out there, and now we have a first direct glimpse of what is likely to be the birthplace of an exomoon - a moon forming in a disk around a planet orbiting another star. We check in on the curious case of FBOTs (fast blue optical transients), and closer to home we've learned that Mars' interior has a bigger core than anticipated. Get this news, space news, trivia linking sci-fi and planetary-sci, and much more.

Lithium is not just in demand for all those new electric car batteries, it seems there's a problem with missing lithium in the universe. We explore the Cosmological Lithium Problem, take a look at what tree rings and the sea floor have to tell us about Earth's space environment, and take a deep dive into wormholes for our trivia.

Beware the Squire of Gothos for the Kepler mission has discovered 4 more new free-floating planets. LIGO has observed the first collision between a black hole and a neutron star, and the ocean of Enceladus just might harbor life. Learn about these astronomical developments and much more, including a Venus exploration trivia and science fiction film rants.

In another wide-ranging episode, we discuss how atmospheric and oceanic chemistry changes wiped out most life on Earth 250 million years ago, the best evidence yet for a third type of supernova, and the importance of timekeeping for astronomy and space missions. We also have historical clock trivia and a lot of space news to share.

Just when the mysterious dimming of nearby giant star Betelgeuse is explained, a more distant giant star was almost completely blocked out. We discuss the very different explanations for these two stellar events, and we check in with updates on metallic asteroid Psyche and other Astroquarkian asteroid news.

These days it goes without saying that the universe is the same in every direction, at least on large scales. Or is it? We take a look at a new result from the Sloane Digital Sky Survey that seems to show a big smiley face in space, or more precisely, a decidedly non-random distribution of matter on a very large scale. We'll discuss what it means, or doesn't, take a look at citizen science, and discuss the latest in space news, nerd news, and a sci-fi trivia.

We're feeling happy, chatty, and ranty in the first show back in our studio since February, 2020, with a look at two new missions to Venus, a cool experiment about Aurora, magnetic field trivia, and so much more.

On our 239th episode the Astroquarks reflect on the Friends Reunion where they reflected on their time making only 236 episodes. The Friends and the Astroquarks have aged, but nothing compared to the Universe. We take a look at the first results from an ambitious all-sky survey to compare the distribution of matter in the universe today to what is predicted from our baby pictures of the universe. The results are a bit surprising. Also surprising: our helicopter trivia.

Neptune, as the outermost big planet, has an outsized effect on the countless objects in the Kuiper belt in the distant reaches of the solar system. We take a look at how the orbits of Kuiper belt comets today can teach us about Neptune's orbit 4 billion years ago, which is pretty cool if you think about it, and even if you don't. We also get a clue that cosmic rays may come from supernovae, including one in our own galactic back yard. Get all this and top quark trivia on this episode of WtG.

We are kidding, neutrinos. We love you. You're just a little bit scary! In this episode we discuss a way we'll learn about the mysterious tiny particles and their interactions with matter, as well as new spacecraft observations of the Sun, and a black hole caught in the act of spaghettification of a nearby star. Plus: special neutrino trivia from Top astroquark!

How many licks does it take to get to the center of Saturn? We don't know, but when you get there you will find a gooey surprise. Saturn's core is more massive than previously thought, and has a mixing transition to the gases above, revealed by studying Saturn's rings of all things. Meanwhile the center of the galaxy has an odd source of antimatter. Learn about all that, giant telescopes, and upcoming missions on Walkabout the Galaxy.

A quackery of astroquarks takes a close look at neutron stars thanks to observations from the NICER observatory on the International Space Station and some clever scientific modeling that reveals these rapidly spinning stellar remnants are not too soft, not too stiff, but just the right amount of squeezable. Join us to find out the hidden mysteries of neutron stars, and just what do you call a group of black holes, anyway? How about moons, craters, planets, and comets? Get the answers to all this and more on Walkabout the Galaxy.

Not all dark matter is "dark matter" dark matter. Some is simply dark, well, matter. An Australian radio telescope has found a long filament of cold plasma from the scintillations it produces in the radio waves of background sources. We'll explain all that, and take a deep dive into dust from space and dust from your face in another wide-ranging episode of Walkabout the Galaxy.

The center of our galaxy is producing more gamma rays than we can account for. Some say dark matter is the explanation, and others say no way. We explore the different scenarios for the high energy source of this extra light, and closer to home check in on Mars with updates from Perseverance, the Ingenuity drone, and Mars Insight quakes.

We explain the polarization of light in the context of the image of the black hole event horizon in M87 and take a new look at the interstellar object Oumuamua and what may have powered its peculiar motion through our solar system. Was it the dark side of the force? Tune in for a Dark Side themed episode to find out.

A supermassive black hole seems to be going on a walkabout its own galaxy, and dust from Mars (or its moons) seems to be going on a walkabout the solar system. We explain how that's possible and how we know about it on this episode which features space news updates and an elemental and historical trivia question.

If space is the final frontier, where does it begin? That deceptively simple question is one of many topics the Astroquarks ponder in this episode, as well as unusual supernovae, and planets that recycle their atmospheres. There's some other completely random and inappropriate trivia, and some nerd news ranting. In other words, your typical Walkabout the Galaxy.

The astroquarks explain the physics behind Warp Drive and a new solution to Einstein's general theory of relativity. Closer to home, the Moon showers the Earth with sodium atoms, and ancient comets may have provided the carbon necessary for life. Plus, we have a brain-twisting math trivia that unites economics and cosmology. Only on Walkabout the Galaxy.