Universe Today Podcast

Artemis II rolls out to the launch pad, Europe’s comet interceptor mission could fly a little earlier, NASA is racing to build a nuclear reactor for the Moon, and in Space Bites+, bacteriaphages evolved in space learn to kill bacteria in new ways.
Watch the video here (with no ads) or on YouTube https://youtu.be/o9kb5caf7vw
00:00 Intro

00:19 Comet Interceptor Accelerated https://spacenews.com/esas-comet-interceptor-mission-moves-up-launch/

02:11 Artemis II Rollout https://www.universetoday.com/articles/nasa-enters-final-preparations-for-artemis-ii-mission

04:14 Chang'e-6 Samples https://www.universetoday.com/articles/analysis-of-change-6-samples-addresses-mysteries-about-the-far-side-of-the-moon

05:50 Moon Reactor Race https://www.universetoday.com/articles/the-2030-race-for-a-moon-reactor

08:08 Vote results https://www.youtube.com/@frasercain/posts

08:31 Potential Ocean Habitability of Enceladus https://www.universetoday.com/articles/enceladus-plumes-may-hold-a-clear-clue-to-ocean-habitability

10:33 Helix Nebula https://www.universetoday.com/articles/gazing-into-the-eye-of-sauron-with-the-jwst

11:48 Lupus-3 https://www.universetoday.com/articles/hunting-for-t-tauri-stars-in-a-dark-cloud

12:43 Galaxy Evolution https://www.yorku.ca/news/2025/12/18/canadian-astronomers-use-webb-to-uncover-milky-ways-turbulent-youth-through-galactic-twins/

14:50 More space news

17:00 My new smart telescope

Which space object would I want to see with my own eyes? Can you meaningfully contribute to science without an Astronomy degree? Has dark matter always been around? And in Q&A+, my weird relationship with Venus as a planet.
BONUS QUESTION STARTS AT 17:39
Watch the video here (with no ads) or on YouTube:
Here's a link to the full, unedited livestream: https://youtube.com/live/SiGmJkeCPl8?feature=share

Europa is considered one of the most promising places in the solar system to look for extraterrestrial life. But new studies suggest that we were wrong. That the sub-surface ocean is most probably uninhabitable and lifeless. Why is it so and what does it mean for future missions and search for life? Finding out in this interview.
BONUS PART STARTS AT 43:02
🟣 Guest: Dr. Paul Byrne
https://bsky.app/profile/theplanetaryguy.bsky.social
📜 Europa May Be Lifeless and Unihabitable After All https://www.universetoday.com/articles/europa-may-be-lifeless-and-unihabitable-after-all
Watch the video here (with no ads) or on YouTube: https://youtu.be/Sj3JwQde-b8
00:00 Intro

00:57 Why life could exist on Europa

10:48 Details of the research

17:57 Potential conditions for life

23:52 Crushing hopes

30:21 What it means for other sub-surface ocean worlds

36:30 The emotional response

43:02 Venus updates

56:32 Current obsessions

01:02:35 Final thoughts

Has AI already written any good science papers? Which are the primary targets for the Extremely Large Telescope? Which is scarier, finding aliens or not finding them? And in Q&A+, what happens if you keep feeding a black hole forever?
BONUS QUESTION STARTS AT 16:54
Watch the video here (with no ads) or on YouTube: https://youtu.be/55VE01fptAM
Here's a link to the full, unedited livestream: https://youtube.com/live/SiGmJkeCPl8?feature=share

Gravitational waves revolutionised Astronomy. But LIGO, VIRGO and KAGRA only operate in one spectrum. To detect longer waves we need bigger telescopes. Much bigger. Ones that don't fit on Earth. That is where LISA comes in, which will be humanity's biggest telescope.
🟣 Guest: Dr. Stefano Vitale 
Watch the video here (with no ads) or on YouTube: https://youtu.be/AUS8A9J3d5g
00:00 Intro

02:43 The evolution of gravitational wave search

05:33 Proving the concept with LISA Pathfinder

15:34 What will LISA see?

31:09 What are the next steps for LISA?

43:17 What happens after LISA?

50:02 Current obsessions

51:43 Final Thoughts