Planetary Radio, Podcasts, and Video

by Mat Kaplan

The voice of Planetary Radio and our man about town, Mat Kaplan visits with scientists, engineers, project managers, advocates, writers, and all sorts of cool space people who provide a unique perspective on the quest for knowledge about our solar system and beyond and brings them all to you weekly via radio, podcast, and video.

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Visiting a Solar Sail in the OC

Posted by Mat Kaplan on 2012/03/16 06:33 CDT

The city of Tustin is about an hour's drive from Planetary Society HQ in Pasadena. That's when the freeway gods are kind, which they never are. The trip I made there yesterday was well worth the trouble.

New "Snapshot From Space": Defending Our Planet

Posted by Mat Kaplan on 2012/03/06 10:18 CST

A new installment of our "Snapshots" video series examines the threat posed by asteroids on collision courses with our home planet. Emily Lakdawalla explains why it's so important to find, understand and learn to deflect these potential civilization enders.

Third Rock Rocks!

Posted by Mat Kaplan on 2012/03/01 02:58 CST

Have you heard it? "America's Space Station, Powered With NASA" is how they describe themselves. It immediately became my favorite online music source when it premiered late last year.

Snapshots From Space: NASA's Treasure Trove of Unprocessed Images

Posted by Mat Kaplan on 2012/02/27 10:22 CST

The second episode of Emily Lakdawalla's new video series reveals the gigantic library of solar system images captured by NASA spacecraft, and explains why we've seen so few of them. Emily says they're all online, waiting for space geeks to turn them into gold.

Emily's New Video Series: Snapshots From Space

Posted by Mat Kaplan on 2012/02/20 04:29 CST

This is the first episode of editor Emily Lakdawalla's new video series exploring the solar system.

Visiting the San Diego SpaceUp Unconference

Posted by Mat Kaplan on 2012/02/14 08:38 CST

Emily Lakdawalla and I drove down to the 3rd annual San Diego SpaceUp Unconference on February 4. We had great fun hanging out with the other space geeks.

Planetary Radio: A Modest Plea For Both Big and Not-So-Big Space Science Funding

Posted by Mat Kaplan on 2012/02/06 09:46 CST

This weeks Planetary Radio features updates on the James Webb Space Telescope, from Deputy Project Director Eric Smith. The discussion centers around the budget controversy, and why the JWST is worth the money.

Bruce Betts' Free Online Intro To Astronomy Course

Posted by Mat Kaplan on 2012/01/31 08:35 CST

Bruce Betts will be returning to the virtual classroom at California State University, Dominguez Hills for an Intro To Astronomy course. The first lecture will be Wednesday, February 8, from 3:00 to 4:30pm Pacific Time.

Today's 365 Days of Astronomy Podcast Offers a Free, Online Astronomy Class!

Posted by Mat Kaplan on 2012/01/26 09:06 CST

The 365 Days of Astronomy Podcast begins this year's effort with an interview with Bruce Betts, who will be starting an online astronomy course. A transcription of the interview is included in this post, as well as a link to the podcast.

How Spacecraft Make Color Pictures--Emily's Slides From the December, 2011 Planetary Radio Live

Posted by Mat Kaplan on 2012/01/02 02:07 CST

How Spacecraft Make Color Pictures--Emily's Slides From the December, 2011 Planetary Radio Live