Program Archives

MARS EXPLORATION ROVER PROJECT MANAGER JOHN CALLAS
July 27, 2009
Guests: John Callas
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Spirit is stuck in the sands of Mars. Opportunity is racing toward Endeavour Crater. Their boss, John Callas, reports on both rovers that have made the red planet their home for more than five...  more »

PHIL CHRISTENSEN WANTS YOUR HELP IMAGING MARS
June 22, 2009
Guests: Phil Christensen
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You can now help choose places on Mars for imaging by the Mars Odyssey orbiter's THEMIS camera. Principal Investigator Phil Christensen explains how. Bill Nye celebrates ten years of SETI@Home....  more »

CHRIS MCKAY ON THE PHOENIX MISSION'S BIG SURPRISE
June 1, 2009
Guests: Chris McKay
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NASA Planetary Scientist Chris McKay is a Co-Investigator on the Phoenix Mars Polar Lander Mission. He returns to Planetary Radio on the first anniversary of the landing to talk about the...  more »

A MARS EXPLORATION ROVER UPDATE WITH PROJECT SCIENTIST BRUCE BANERDT
May 4, 2009
Guests: Bruce Banerdt
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Spirit and Opportunity continue their treks across the Red Planet more than five years after their arrival. Bruce Banerdt provides a status report. Bill Nye has something old and something new to...  more »

ARE THERE PUDDLES ON MARS?
March 30, 2009
Guests: Nilton Renno
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The University of Michigan's Nilton Renno leads a team that last week announced discovery of persistent liquid water on Mars...right on a leg of the Phoenix Mars Lander. He'll tell us what makes...  more »

SIGNS OF LIFE? DISCOVERY OF MARTIAN METHANE PLUMES
February 23, 2009
Guests: Michael Mumma, Bill Nye
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Michael Mumma directs the Goddard Center for Astrobiology. A team he leads recently announced three plumes of methane on Mars. We talk with him about how they were discovered, and what they might...  more »

CELEBRATE THE MARS ROVERS WITH JIM BELL
January 19, 2009
Guests: Jim Bell, Bill Nye
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Planetary Society President Jim Bell leads the PanCam team for the Mars Exploration Rovers, Spirit and Opportunity. He came to Pasadena last week to help celebrate five years on Mars. Bill Nye...  more »

LOOKING BACK AT THE PHOENIX MARS POLAR LANDER WITH PETER SMITH
January 5, 2009
Guests: Peter Smith
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The Phoenix Lander is dead - probably - but it lives on in the reams of data it returned from the red planet, including data about the water ice it found. Principal Investigator Peter Smith reviews...  more »

REPORT ON THE ANNUAL MEETING OF THE AMERICAN GEOPHYSICAL UNION
December 22, 2008
Guests: Emily Lakdawalla
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Our own Emily Lakdawalla reports on her visit to the AGU, where she heard the latest news about Mars, two moons of Saturn and our own Moon. Bill Nye is inspired by a couple of house-shaking sonic...  more »

MARTIAN ICE IS EVERYWHERE...ALMOST
December 8, 2008
Guests: Jack Holt
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The new discovery of huge glaciers far from the Martian poles is reviewed by lead author Jack Holt of the University of Texas, Austin. Bill Nye says that, even with a two-year delay, the Mars...  more »