The Supermassive Podcast
This is The Supermassive Podcast from the Royal Astronomical Society. Every month, science journalist Izzie Clarke and astrophysicist Dr Becky Smethurst take you through the universe with the latest research, history from the society’s archives and astronomy you can do from your own home. Support the team by buying their book, The Year in Space - https://geni.us/jNcrw You can send your questions to the team via podcast@ras.ac.uk or follow them on Instagram @SupermassivePod. The Supermassive Podcast is a Boffin Media Production by Izzie Clarke and Richard Hollingham.
Episodes
April 29, 2024 • 47 mins
Two of the most remarkable spacecraft ever launched are the stars of this month’s episode: Voyager 1 and Voyager 2. Izzie and Dr Becky talk to Dr Jamie Rankin, the mission’s current Deputy project scientist, and editor Richard gets to chat to Ann Druyan, the original Creative Director of the Golden Record project, who worked alongside her husband Carl Sagan.
The Supermassive Podcast is a Boffin Media production for th...
The Supermassive Podcast is a Boffin Media production for th...
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April 10, 2024 • 13 mins
Can wobbly planets have more than two solstices? Are we earthlings receding from the sun and the other planets? What is dark flow and why is it controversial? When stars die, is their energy lost forever?
Send your questions to podcast@ras.ac.uk or find us on Instagram @SupermassivePod.
The Supermassive Podcast is a Boffin Media production for the Royal Astronomical Society. The producers are Izzie Clarke a...
Send your questions to podcast@ras.ac.uk or find us on Instagram @SupermassivePod.
The Supermassive Podcast is a Boffin Media production for the Royal Astronomical Society. The producers are Izzie Clarke a...
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March 26, 2024 • 45 mins
Izzie and Dr Becky are venturing into interstellar space. What is it? Where is it? And what do we know about it?
With special thanks to Professor Martin Barstow from University of Leicester and Professor Chris Lintott from the University of Oxford. Chris' new book "Our Accidental Universe" is out now.
Check out the RAS's video on Pons Brooks here: https://ras.ac.uk/news-and-press/news/12ppons-brooks-how-and...
With special thanks to Professor Martin Barstow from University of Leicester and Professor Chris Lintott from the University of Oxford. Chris' new book "Our Accidental Universe" is out now.
Check out the RAS's video on Pons Brooks here: https://ras.ac.uk/news-and-press/news/12ppons-brooks-how-and...
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March 13, 2024 • 12 mins
What is cosmic dust? Could we reignite a dying Sun with a nuclear weapon? How do we know what galaxies stars are in, and can the JWST see streetlights on alien worlds?
If you have a question for the Supermassive team, send them to podcast@ras.ac.uk or find us on Instagram, @SupermassivePod.
The Supermassive Podcast is a Boffin Media production for the Royal Astronomical Society. The producers are Izzie Cla...
If you have a question for the Supermassive team, send them to podcast@ras.ac.uk or find us on Instagram, @SupermassivePod.
The Supermassive Podcast is a Boffin Media production for the Royal Astronomical Society. The producers are Izzie Cla...
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February 28, 2024 • 53 mins
Izzie and Dr Becky are exploring shaky ground, whether that’s on Earth, other planets and even on our neighbour the Moon. This month is all about quakes.
With special thanks to Mark Panning, the project scientist for NASA's InSight mission, and Dr Jess Johnson from the University of East Anglia.
Join Izzie and the UK Space Education Office for Mars Day on Tuesday 5th March, sign up to the virtual event her...
With special thanks to Mark Panning, the project scientist for NASA's InSight mission, and Dr Jess Johnson from the University of East Anglia.
Join Izzie and the UK Space Education Office for Mars Day on Tuesday 5th March, sign up to the virtual event her...
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February 12, 2024 • 13 mins
Do we see black hole mergers as a result of galaxy mergers? What did the night sky look like to the dinosaurs? Is a gas giant just a rocky planet with a huge and dense atmosphere? Do all orbits eventually end up in resonance?
The Supermassive Team is back with the first bonus episode for 2024! Send in your questions to podcast@ras.ac.uk or find us on Instagram, @SupermassivePod.
The Supermassive Podcast is a...
The Supermassive Team is back with the first bonus episode for 2024! Send in your questions to podcast@ras.ac.uk or find us on Instagram, @SupermassivePod.
The Supermassive Podcast is a...
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January 30, 2024 • 47 mins
The Supermassive Podcast is back for 2024 and putting the "happy" in Happy New Year! What could be a cheerier start to the year than an episode about the End of the World… Astronomically speaking!?
From supernova explosions, to super volcanoes, Izzie Clarke, Dr Becky Smethurst and Dr Robert Massey are running through the checklist of big bad things that put our planet at risk. Special thanks goes to Professor Chris Im...
From supernova explosions, to super volcanoes, Izzie Clarke, Dr Becky Smethurst and Dr Robert Massey are running through the checklist of big bad things that put our planet at risk. Special thanks goes to Professor Chris Im...
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December 22, 2023 • 48 mins
Izzie Clarke and Dr Becky Smethurst are rounding off 2023 with a biggie. Arguably the biggest of them all. This episode is ALL about the Multiverse. What is it? What does it mean? Does it even exist?
A big thank you to Andrew Pontzen from UCL and author of "Universe in a Box" for explaining the basics, Katie Mack from The Perimeter Institute for going from physicist to film reviewer, and to listener Wendy Entwistle ...
A big thank you to Andrew Pontzen from UCL and author of "Universe in a Box" for explaining the basics, Katie Mack from The Perimeter Institute for going from physicist to film reviewer, and to listener Wendy Entwistle ...
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December 21, 2023 • 13 mins
From barbie dolls, to birds baths, what will happen to all the stuff we have made between now and the end of time? Could a large black hole spaghettify a small black hole? Could more satellites block JWST's view? And what came first, the Big Bang or Inflation?
It's time for another deep dive into The Supermassive Mailbox with Izzie Clarke, Dr Becky Smethurst and Dr Robert Massey.
The Supermassive Podcast is ...
It's time for another deep dive into The Supermassive Mailbox with Izzie Clarke, Dr Becky Smethurst and Dr Robert Massey.
The Supermassive Podcast is ...
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November 28, 2023 • 49 mins
They've done it. It has taken them all year but Izzie Clarke and Dr Becky Smethurst have reached the final planet in our solar system; Neptune.
Dr Leigh Fletcher from the University of Leicester is back to cover the basics of the planet and Carolyn Kennett, Chair of the Society for the History of Astronomy, tells Izzie about its controversial discovery. Plus, Dr Robert Massey is on hand for some winter stargazing.
Dr Leigh Fletcher from the University of Leicester is back to cover the basics of the planet and Carolyn Kennett, Chair of the Society for the History of Astronomy, tells Izzie about its controversial discovery. Plus, Dr Robert Massey is on hand for some winter stargazing.
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November 14, 2023 • 28 mins
Bizarre free-floating planets in space, the retrieval mission from a 4.6 billion year old asteroid, and the first images from our dark universe. Join Izzie Clarke, Dr Becky Smethurst, and Dr Robert Massey as they take you through the latest space news.
The Supermassive Podcast is a Boffin Media Production by Izzie Clarke and Richard Hollingham. Follow or subscribe for free so you never miss an episode.
The Supermassive Podcast is a Boffin Media Production by Izzie Clarke and Richard Hollingham. Follow or subscribe for free so you never miss an episode.
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October 27, 2023 • 40 mins
It's been a while, so Izzie, Dr Becky and Robert dive into The Supermassive Mailbox for a Q&A Special. How is the mass of a star determined? Does JWST have fuel to come back? And is it possible for Voyager 1 or 2 to switch their cameras back on?
Here's the link for space-related jobs that Becky mentioned: https://jobregister.aas.org/
Got a question for the team? Email it to podcast@ras.ac.uk or find us on...
Here's the link for space-related jobs that Becky mentioned: https://jobregister.aas.org/
Got a question for the team? Email it to podcast@ras.ac.uk or find us on...
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October 13, 2023 • 18 mins
What is the furthest distance away we’ve ever observed? Why hasn't Venus lost its atmosphere from solar winds? Is Mercury a Ploonet? And how stable is the moon's orbit? It's another bonus episode with Izzie Clarke, Dr Becky Smethurst and Dr Robert Massey.
See Micheal Brill's brilliant photos from Antarctica here.
Read listener Andrew Street's article of Cassini's final moments:
See Micheal Brill's brilliant photos from Antarctica here.
Read listener Andrew Street's article of Cassini's final moments:
Tracing Cassini's f...
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September 29, 2023 • 52 mins
Izzie and Dr Becky have done episodes on Mars, gas giants, Saturn and Jupiter individually, so it’s about time that Uranus gets its own episode. And just so we're clear, it's UranUs, not UrAnus.
Professor Leigh Fletcher from the University of Leicester takes the team through the basics. Plus, Izzie pays a visit to the Royal Astronomical Society’s archive to see the Herschels' notebooks from when the planet was discov...
Professor Leigh Fletcher from the University of Leicester takes the team through the basics. Plus, Izzie pays a visit to the Royal Astronomical Society’s archive to see the Herschels' notebooks from when the planet was discov...
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September 18, 2023 • 13 mins
What does Saturn look like? Why is Venus hotter than Mercury? Can the solar wind generate electricity on the Moon? Izzie, Dr Becky and Robert dive into The Supermassive Mailbox and answer your questions.
The Supermassive Podcast is a Boffin Media production by Izzie Clarke and Richard Hollingham.
The Supermassive Podcast is a Boffin Media production by Izzie Clarke and Richard Hollingham.
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August 28, 2023 • 50 mins
This month, Izzie and Dr Becky are off to the Sun…Partly because the UK summer has been rubbish but mostly because there are a lot of things we still don’t know about our local star.
Joining them on their voyage is the Head of Science at NASA, Dr Nicola Fox, to explain the latest efforts to study the sun, the Project Scientist for Solar Orbiter, Dr Daniel Mueller, and Dr Robert Massey is on hand to answer your quest...
Joining them on their voyage is the Head of Science at NASA, Dr Nicola Fox, to explain the latest efforts to study the sun, the Project Scientist for Solar Orbiter, Dr Daniel Mueller, and Dr Robert Massey is on hand to answer your quest...
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August 11, 2023 • 11 mins
Could we detect exoplanets outside of the Milky Way? Could the Euclid Telescope disprove what we know about dark energy and matter? Are we just pointing telescopes aimlessly at patches of space? And is it possible for two black holes to merge and separate into two branches? Izzie Clarke, Dr Becky Smethurst and Dr Robert Massey tackle your burning questions.
Still, have an unanswered question? Send it to podcast@ras.a...
Still, have an unanswered question? Send it to podcast@ras.a...
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July 28, 2023 • 46 mins
The Supermassive Team have spent the last three years attempting to talk about ALL the stuff in space. But that only makes up 5% of our universe. Where the heck is the rest?
This month, Izzie and Dr Becky dive into the topic of Dark Matter and Dark Energy... The stuff that makes up that missing 95% of the universe. With special thanks to Dr Alex Hall from the University of Edinburgh for covering the basics, and to Dr...
This month, Izzie and Dr Becky dive into the topic of Dark Matter and Dark Energy... The stuff that makes up that missing 95% of the universe. With special thanks to Dr Alex Hall from the University of Edinburgh for covering the basics, and to Dr...
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July 6, 2023 • 17 mins
What’s a white hole and could one appear above the Earth tomorrow? Do different cultures sort stars into similar patterns? Why is Venus so hot and how do the Supermassive team cope when someone calls them an astrologer?
Dr Becky Smethurst and Dr Robert Massey take on your questions from the Supermassive mailbox.
Send your questions to podcast@ras.ac.uk, tweet @RoyalAstroSoc, or find us on Instagram @Supermas...
Dr Becky Smethurst and Dr Robert Massey take on your questions from the Supermassive mailbox.
Send your questions to podcast@ras.ac.uk, tweet @RoyalAstroSoc, or find us on Instagram @Supermas...
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June 22, 2023 • 48 mins
Dr Becky and Izzie dust-down the Supermassive Tardis to explore the history of astronomy. From fossilised baboon bones and baby lamas to Einstein and black holes, the Supermassive team discovers how we came to understand the Universe the way we do today. Editor Richard talks to astronomer and science writer, Dr Stuart Clark, who reveals where the phrase ‘the dog days of summer’ comes from. And Izzie chats to President of the R...
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