Planetary Radio • Jan 27, 2015

LightSail Prepares to Take Flight

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On This Episode

20140806 Stetson

Doug Stetson

President of FreeFall Aerospace and of the Space Science and Exploration Consulting Group

Jason headshot sept 2020

Jason Davis

Senior Editor for The Planetary Society

The Planetary Society has just announced that LightSail will be launched into orbit on its first test flight in May. We’ll talk with Project Manager Doug Stetson and embedded LightSail reporter Jason Davis about what to expect. Bill Nye welcomes a special guest to a conversation about the meaning of this privately-funded solar sail. Emily Lakdawalla updates the Curiosity Mars rover mission and shares spectacular images from the Rosetta comet exploration. We close with Director of Science and Technology Bruce Betts and his recommendations of What’s Up this week.

LightSail from above
LightSail from above This shot of LightSail's deployed solar sails was taken from the second story window above the high bay in the Cal Poly Bonderson Projects Center.Image: The Planetary Society

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This week's question:

Ceres, Pallas and Vesta are the largest asteroids. What is the fourth largest asteroid?

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Last week's question:

Of the five currently IAU-recognized dwarf planets, which has the longest orbital period or year, and how long is that year?

Answer:

The answer will be revealed next week.

Question from the week before:

To the nearest half-hour, how long did it take the Huygens probe to descend from the top of Titan’s atmosphere to the surface?

Answer:

It took just under two-and-a-half hours for the Huygens probe to descend from the top of Titan’s atmosphere to the moon’s surface.