Casey Dreier • December 24, 2013
This episode highlights the other big idea in Cosmos: that we are profoundly connected with the universe around us. Our constituent parts are forged in the bellies of massive stars; we exist through their deaths.
Casey Dreier • December 17, 2013
Sagan makes us confront the limitations of our mortality given the immensities of space and time presented to us by the cosmos.
Casey Dreier • December 12, 2013
We've waited long enough, Europa cries out for exploration and discovery. It's time to heed that cry.
Casey Dreier • December 11, 2013
A variety of AGU matters and unexpected political work and coverage will delay the Cosmos reviews by a week.
Casey Dreier • December 10, 2013
Ellen Stofan, NASA's Chief Scientist, and John Grunsfeld, the head of the Science Mission Directorate and a Hubble repair astronaut, highlighted recent NASA science discoveries at the American Geophysical Union conference in San Francisco.
Casey Dreier • December 10, 2013
The House Science Committee is considering giving a select few NASA programs special protected status against cancellation.
Casey Dreier • December 09, 2013
If you want to know why Cassini might be terminated early, or why NASA pulled out of its joint Mars mission with Europe, or why the new ASRG power source was put on indefinite hold, this chart has your answer.
Casey Dreier • December 06, 2013
Decisions about both the 2014 and 2015 budgets are happening soon.
Casey Dreier • December 04, 2013
Budget cuts mixed with a new way to fund science could disproportionately impact the next generation of planetary scientists.
Casey Dreier • December 04, 2013
Voyager Chief Scientist Ed Stone was the featured guest on the Colbert Report to celebrate the spacecraft's entry into interstellar space.
Casey Dreier • December 03, 2013
We return to the big idea of the series – that the universe can be known and we better ourselves in our efforts to understand it – in the best episode of Cosmos so far.
Casey Dreier • November 25, 2013
The Voyager mission may be the ultimate expression of our desire to explore, but why does that will exist in the first place? Why is it unique to humans?
Casey Dreier • November 15, 2013
The Advanced Stirling Radioisotope Program (ASRG) was just cancelled by NASA. This was to be the saving grace for Plutonium-238 availability, as it was a much more efficient way to generate electricity than classic RTG systems.
Casey Dreier • November 12, 2013
Episode 5 focuses on Mars, the planet that has stubbornly refused to conform to the wishes of humanity for hundreds of years, from Lowell to Sagan. Grab your cosmo and join our discussion of 'Blues for a Red Planet.'
Casey Dreier • November 08, 2013
Congress and the White House are making decisions that impact funding for NASA's Planetary Exploration missions. We need to tell them that YES we are paying attention and care about the future of exploration.
Casey Dreier • November 04, 2013
Humans face the consequences of our own knowledge about the cosmos in this latest episode recap and analysis of Carl Sagan's classic series.
Casey Dreier • October 29, 2013
We report on the current state of Plutonium-238 production in the United States, a crucial fuel source for planetary exploration spacecraft.
Casey Dreier • October 29, 2013
We continue our analysis of Cosmos as we jump back in time to see the birth of modern science with Johannes Kepler or, as Sagan calls it, the first fusion of "imagination with observation." Welcome to Episode 3: The Harmony of the Worlds.
Casey Dreier • October 21, 2013
In episode 2 we switch from cosmos to microcosm and discover how we are connected to all living things. Is Sagan too authoritative in this episode? Plus, a major error in one of the stories.
Casey Dreier • October 14, 2013
We face immensity and a taste of things to come in the first episode of Cosmos, but we're also provided with the tools to comprehend our own place within the universe.
Casey Dreier • October 10, 2013
Let's grab a drink and watch the original Cosmos together. We'll provide write-ups and discussion every week through the entire original series. Get together with your friends!
Casey Dreier • October 09, 2013
NASA's Juno spacecraft gets a gravity assist from the Earth on its way to Jupiter today. Learn all about today's close approach.
Casey Dreier • October 03, 2013
Launch preparations will resume for NASA's MAVEN spacecraft, due to launch to Mars on November 18th. Work had previously been suspended, potentially causing the spacecraft to miss its once-every-26-month launch opportunity.
Casey Dreier • October 01, 2013
We interview Dr. Franck Marchis from the SETI Institute about nanosats that can unfold in space to create sensitive telescopes that are orders of magnitudes cheaper than current hardware.
Casey Dreier • September 30, 2013
NASA confirmed that a government shutdown could affect pre-launch processing of the MAVEN spacecraft, currently scheduled to launch to Mars on November 18th.
Casey Dreier • September 20, 2013
Plutonium-238 provides electricity to deep space missions, but NASA only has a little bit left. A new article in Wired highlights the disastrous consequences of no plutonium for use in space, something the Planetary Society is currently fighting for in Washington, D.C.
Casey Dreier • September 13, 2013
A recent report shows that major programs within the Department of Energy are billions of dollars over budget due to lax oversight, yet the congressional committees responsible for the Department
Casey Dreier • September 10, 2013
A recent article in the NY Times Sunday Magazine highlights how the pernicious myth of NASA as wasteful spending perpetuates through our culture.
Casey Dreier • September 10, 2013
When scientists can't agree on priorities, will politicians listen? A reflection on a recent public policy session from the European Planetary Science Congress in London.
Casey Dreier • September 08, 2013
The Planetary Society will cover this week's European Planetary Science Congress in London.
Casey Dreier • September 05, 2013
The Advanced Stirling Radioisotope Generator (ASRG) is no longer an option for powering a potential Europa mission. The ASRG uses Plutonium-238 to generate electricity, but is far more efficient than past RTGs.
Casey Dreier • September 01, 2013
The final operating plan for the space agency provided $75 million more to planetary exploration than initially proposed.
Casey Dreier • August 30, 2013
The Planetary Society is "making a difference" in the space industry, according to SpaceNews, the world's leading newspaper covering the space business.
Casey Dreier • August 15, 2013
Planetary exploration sees strong support from both parties in the current budget process, but we have a long way to go before a budget is passed this year.
Casey Dreier • August 09, 2013
Both Deputy Administrator Lori Garver and CFO Beth Robinson are leaving NASA within the next few months.
Casey Dreier • August 06, 2013
It seems like it was just yesterday that 2000 people gathered in the Pasadena Convention Center to celebrate Curiosity's landing on Mars. All of Planetfest 2012 is online for your enjoyment.
Casey Dreier • August 05, 2013
It was just one year ago that Curiosity had her dramatic landing on the surface of Mars. Emily Lakdawalla and I will interview the Deputy Project Scientist of the Curiosity mission, Ashwin Vasavada, about the successes of the past year and the what to look forward to in the next
Casey Dreier • July 30, 2013
NASA responds to its advisory council's recommendations from April of this year.
Casey Dreier • July 30, 2013
The government employee responsible for the proposed restructuring of all STEM programs in 2014 has been identified by the journal Science. The initiative faces resistance from both Congress and the scientific community, who feel that they were not consulted during the decision making process.
Casey Dreier • July 22, 2013
The New Horizons mission to Pluto survived many near-death encounters with cancellation during its development. The Planetary Society worked the whole time to ensure it would launch.
Casey Dreier • July 21, 2013
The remake of Cosmos, starring Neil deGrasse Tyson and airing on Fox, just released its first teaser trailer at the San Diego Comic-Con.
Casey Dreier • July 15, 2013
NASA's plan to raid Planetary Science funding to pay for sequester cuts in other science programs was rejected by Congress earlier this month. NASA is now working on a new plan that has yet to be submitted for approval.
Casey Dreier • July 12, 2013
This budget, if enacted, would be the smallest budget NASA has seen since the mid '80s, when adjusted for inflation.
Casey Dreier • July 11, 2013
NASA Administrator Bolden and the Chairman of the House Science Committee published opposing op-eds in The Hill newspaper today, illustrating the uphill battle NASA faces to sell Congress on this mission.
Casey Dreier • July 09, 2013
Follow along as NASA reacts to the recommendations of the science definition team for the next Mars rover.
Casey Dreier • July 09, 2013
Follow along as scientists work through the possibilities and problems of NASA's asteroid retrieval mission.
Casey Dreier • June 27, 2013
Early detection is a crucial step in preventing or mitigating threats from space, but it's not NASA's job.
Casey Dreier • June 19, 2013
The House of Representatives held a hearing today to discuss their proposed NASA authorization bill, which would fund Planetary Science, cut Earth Science, forbid asteroid retrieval, and command NASA to pursue a path to Mars via the Moon.
Casey Dreier • June 13, 2013
We check in with Dr. Bruce Betts, our Director of Projects, on the latest from our current programs funded by our members.
Casey Dreier • June 10, 2013
Despite congressional rejection of massive cuts to Planetary Science this year, NASA has found a way to implement the cuts internally and use the money for other purposes.
Casey Dreier • June 05, 2013
When we visit Congress, this is what we leave them with. This one page summarizes the entire threat to continued planetary exploration at NASA in the proposed 2014 budget.
Casey Dreier • May 23, 2013
Charles Bolden stopped by JPL to highlight research being done on advanced propulsion techniques that would be used in the proposed asteroid retrieval mission.
Casey Dreier • May 23, 2013
NASA has still not sent its operating plan to Congress. Rumors of the agency reprogramming away all of the additional funding to Planetary Science remains just rumors.
Casey Dreier • May 23, 2013
The Planetary Society just returned from a major political advocacy trip out to D.C. what did we do and what did we achieve? What's going on with the current funding situation regarding Planetary Science and NASA at large? How does the asteroid retrieval mission help or hurt planetary exploration goals? What's the larger plan and what are the consequences if cuts continue?
Casey Dreier • May 21, 2013
The Planetary Society just returned from a big trip to Washington, D.C. to advocate for continued planetary exploration. Here's what happened.
Casey Dreier • May 15, 2013
NASA's leaked operating plan suggests that the agency is raiding money restored to the planetary program this year by Congress.
Casey Dreier • May 09, 2013
Thursday, May 9th, at noon PDT/3pm EDT/1900h UTC, we are joined by Emily Dean, who works on the camera team for the Opportunity rover on Mars.
Casey Dreier • May 09, 2013
We're storming D.C. next week to raise awareness of continued cuts to NASA's Planetary Science Division.
![Juno [DEPRECATED]](https://planetary.s3.amazonaws.com/assets/images/z_changeover/juno_art_at-jupiter_t233.jpg)
Casey Dreier • April 30, 2013
The AAS made a strong critique of proposed cuts to NASA's Planetary Science program today.
Casey Dreier • April 25, 2013
We take your questions on the 2014 NASA Budget, the Planetary Defense Conference, and Mars One.
Casey Dreier • April 24, 2013
Live blog of comments and analysis from the House Science Committee's hearing on NASA's 2014 Budget.
Casey Dreier • April 23, 2013
Here are the official Twitter accounts for key people in Congress associated with supporting Planetary Science.
Casey Dreier • April 23, 2013
Congress meets this week to discuss the 2014 NASA budget. We need as many people to reach out as possible so Planetary Science is on the agenda.
Casey Dreier • April 22, 2013
A powerful new op-ed in SpaceNews traces the inevitable decline of NASA's Planetary Science missions if the current cuts to the program are implemented.
Casey Dreier • April 18, 2013
JPL announced that its annual open house was suspended indefinitely on Tuesday, another victim of the arbitrary cuts known as the Sequester.
Casey Dreier • April 18, 2013
Due to unusual travel circumstances, we won't be hosting a live hangout this week.
Casey Dreier • April 11, 2013
NASA went on an unusual tweet-binge praising planetary science today, saying that the struggling division "thrives" and highlighting various missions mainly developed in better times. NASA made five tweets in a row about planetary science over the course of two hours.
Casey Dreier • April 10, 2013
NASA's new budget doubles down on cuts to Planetary Science, despite Congress rejecting a similar proposal last year.
Casey Dreier • April 08, 2013
NASA's Curiosity rover has acquired further evidence that Mars's atmosphere was once dense enough to support liquid water on the surface.
Casey Dreier • April 06, 2013
Despite a $223 million boost from Congress this year, NASA's Planetary Science Division may not be allowed to use that money so NASA can prevent cuts in other programs.
Casey Dreier • April 04, 2013
Live in Vienna? Attending EGU? I'll be covering the conference next week for the Society.
Casey Dreier • April 03, 2013
Here are the big items to watch for when the White House proposes its 2014 budget on April 10th.
Casey Dreier • April 03, 2013
Thursday, Apr 4th at noon PDT/1900 UTC we continue our weekly Live Hangouts. Join us this week with Chase Million, founder of Million Concepts, a company devoted to providing high-quality code to scientists.
Casey Dreier • March 28, 2013
Sequestration claims its next victim at NASA, as all Education and Public Outreach activities are suspended until further review.
Casey Dreier • March 27, 2013
The President signed the Senate's bill to fund the government for the remainder of 2013, and it includes some positive news for NASA's Planetary Science division, which is facing a 21% cut.
Casey Dreier • March 21, 2013
We celebrate success as Congress passes a bill that restores funding to NASA's Planetary Science program, allowing for more missions, begins a mission to Europa, and funds Plutonium fuel development.
Casey Dreier • March 15, 2013
Are you a scientist or student that has felt an impact from sequestration? Tell us your story.
Casey Dreier • March 14, 2013
The first major effects of Sequestration were felt at NASA yesterday, with new rules severely restricting travel and scientific conference attendance by NASA scientists and contractors.
Casey Dreier • March 08, 2013
Rep. Adam Schiff's response to the state of Planetary Science funding from his recent online town hall.
Casey Dreier • March 07, 2013
Thursday at noon PST/3pm EST/20:00 UT we check in with Emily Lakdawalla to bring us up to speed with Curiosity's computer problems and we check in on NASA's budget status.
Casey Dreier • March 05, 2013
Rep. Adam Schiff is holding an online town hall on Wednesday, March 6th at 2:30pm PST. If you live in his district, it is a great time to ask about the status of Planetary Science funding on Twitter or his Facebook page.
Casey Dreier • March 04, 2013
The U.S. House of Representatives unveiled their new funding bill for the remainder of the 2013 fiscal year, which funds NASA at 2012 levels with the exception of its SLS and Commercial Crew programs.
Casey Dreier • February 27, 2013
Reporting from NASA's Mars Exploration Program working group on the latest updates in scientific exploration of the red planet.
Casey Dreier • February 26, 2013
From March 1st - 3rd I'll be representing the Planetary Society at the 2nd annual MarsFest, located in Death Valley National Park.
Casey Dreier • February 21, 2013
How will the Sequester effect NASA? Dr. Jon Morse, former Director of the Astrophysics Division at NASA, will help us understand the cuts, the process, and the hard decisions being made right now.
Casey Dreier • February 14, 2013
Brand new information about the effects of the across-the-board cuts known as Sequestration, if they were to be enacted.
Casey Dreier • February 13, 2013
NASA released its Spinoff 2012 report, detailing the numerous technology transfers, inventions, and economic impact by the U.S. space program.
Casey Dreier • February 12, 2013
Bobak "Mohawk Guy" Ferdowsi of JPL will join First Lady Michelle Obama as a guest at today's State of the Union address.
Casey Dreier • February 07, 2013
Join us this week as we feature our guest, Dr. Paul Hayne from JPL. Dr. Hayne studies snow and ice on Mars, extreme temperatures of the Moon, and is on the Cassini science team. He also founded the group Young Scientists for Planetary Exploration to help organize early-career scientists to be aware of the politics of space.
Casey Dreier • February 06, 2013
Submit an entry comparing the cost of Planetary Science at NASA to...anything. You'll be entered to win a prize. Exploring the solar system costs less than many people think, let's give everyone food for thought.
Casey Dreier • January 29, 2013
The Planetary Society remains committed to a balanced program of solar system exploration, with Mars, outer planets, and small missions all playing an important part.
Casey Dreier • January 28, 2013
The European Space Agency will enjoy a 6.5% increase in funding this year, reports SpaceNews.
Casey Dreier • January 25, 2013
The Planetary Society makes another visit to Capitol Hill to advocate for Planetary Science funding at NASA.
Casey Dreier • January 24, 2013
Gary Hug is an asteroid hunter. He scans the skies every night looking for new near-Earth objects and refining orbital measurements for existing ones. Join Casey Dreier and Dr. Bruce Betts as they interview Gary Hug about his work and his recent discovery of a new NEO on January 7th.
Casey Dreier • January 17, 2013
Join Emily Lakdawalla and Joel Hurowitz of the MSL Curiosity sample acquisition team to talk about the upcoming "first drill" by the martian rover.
Casey Dreier • January 10, 2013
The 2020 Rover will achieve its cost-savings by using $200 million of existing hardware left over from the Curiosity mission, said the Director of the Planetary Science division within NASA.
Casey Dreier • January 09, 2013
It's not just the Planetary Sciences division within NASA that's under harsh budgetary times. The NSF Division of Astronomical Sciences is facing a choice between funding scientists and funding telescopes. A report from the 221st AAS meeting in Long Beach.
