Alan Stern's Golden Spike Sets Sights on the Moon

Alan Stern is back to tell us about Golden Spike, his new company that plans to put human clients on the surface of the moon by the end of this decade. Emily Lakdawalla explains why asteroids don’t look at scary as science fiction told us they would. Sequestration of federal budgets has begun.  Bill Nye is worried about what this may mean for NASA.  Bruce Betts and Mat Kaplan go panning for astronomical gold as they offer a new space trivia contest. You may win Bill Nye’s voice on your answering machine!

Related Links

• Golden Spike
• VIDEO: Author Andrew Chaikin on Golden Spike
• BLOG: Galileo Spacecraft's Images of Asteroid Gaspra
• BLOG: Mat Kaplan's Atacama Diary
  

Trivia Contest

This week's prize is Bill Nye the Science Guy's voice on your answering system!

This week's question:
In what country and state or province was the beryllium mined for the James Webb Space Telescope mirror segments?

To submit your answer:
Complete the contest entry form at http:planetary.org/radiocontest no later than Monday, March 11, at 2pm Pacific Time.

Last week's question:
On what two bodies does Copernicus have craters named after him?

Answer:
The answer will be revealed next week.

Question from the week before:
What is the largest refracting telescope ever used for research?  (Not the largest refractor ever!)

Answer:
The 40-inch refractor at the Yerkes Observatory in Wisconsin.