Since 2002, Planetary Radio has visited with a scientist, engineer, project manager, advocate, or writer who provides a unique perspective on the quest for knowledge about our Solar System and beyond. The full show archive is available for free.

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Ann Druyan wishes you a happy Sagan Day

Celebrate Carl Sagan’s birthday with his longtime collaborator and life partner Ann Druyan.

Space Policy Edition Bonus: Q&A with Casey Dreier and Bill Nye

A special Space Policy Edition featuring a recent policy and advocacy webcast that gave Planetary Society members the opportunity to query Chief Advocate Casey Dreier and Society CEO Bill Nye.

DART smacked an asteroid! So what’s next in planetary defense?

The Double Asteroid Redirection Test was a brilliant success. The leaders of NASA’s Planetary Defense Coordination Office tell us what’s next in the quest to protect Earth.

Meet the new Planetary Radio host! (and enjoy a beer with a cosmologist)

20 years after its creation, Mat Kaplan is ready to introduce the great new host of Planetary Radio. We also join an assembly of astrophysicists as they toast each other and the cosmos.

Eyes on the Sky: Spacewatch and the Catalina Sky Survey

Meet leaders of two of the most successful Earth-based searches for asteroids, including many that could threaten Earth.

Innovate! NASA’s leading-edge fellows share their amazing projects

Join us at the 2022 NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts (NIAC) Symposium for a taste of projects that just might change the world.

Space Policy Edition: The Geopolitics of a Successful SETI Detection

How will nations react if (when?) humanity detects the presence of an alien intelligence or civilization? That’s the topic Planetary Society Chief Advocate Casey Dreier takes up with his guest, astrophysicist Jason Wright.

Grounded: The director of the SOFIA flying observatory looks back

Director of SOFIA Science Mission Operations Margaret Meixner joins us to lament the end of the giant flying observatory and to celebrate its tremendous successes.

DART Impact and Judy Schmidt Interview

Listen as the Double Asteroid Redirection Test spacecraft closes in on asteroid Dimorphos, followed by a triumphant conversation with DART Coordination Lead Nancy Chabot, and a visit with space image processor Judy Schmidt.

Countdown to DART: Will We Move an Asteroid?

The DART spacecraft’s impact on asteroid moonlet Dimorphos is days away, so we’ll check in with Mission Coordination Lead Nancy Chabot as well as Simone Pirrotta, program manager for the LICIACube probe that will be watching the smackdown.

It’s Not Just NASA: Space Agency Leaders at the Artemis 1 Launch Attempt

Leaders of several major, international space agencies talked with host Mat Kaplan during the first attempt to launch the Artemis 1 Moon mission.

Countdown to Artemis, The Return to the Moon

Join Mat Kaplan and Planetary Society colleagues in Florida for the first attempt to launch the Space Launch System rocket on a mission to the Moon.

Space Policy Edition: Mike Gold on Crafting the Artemis Accords

Former NASA Associate Administrator Mike Gold shepherded the Artemis Accords, a set of bilateral agreements for collaboration in human space exploration. Casey Dreier spoke with him in Florida as we awaited the launch of Artemis 1.

The Voyager Mission: A 45th Anniversary Celebration

It’s a party for Voyager and the team of scientists, engineers and others who have followed it across our Solar System. Then we’ll visit with Ann Druyan, creative director for the Voyager Golden Record.

Pieces of Mars: How We’ll Get Them to Earth

Getting precious Mars rocks into Earthbound labs is an unprecedented challenge. We'll learn how a lander, a rocket, a big solar-powered transfer vehicle and two helicopters will take on this task.

A Venus Phosphine Scoop! The Return of Jane Greaves

Delightful astronomer Jane Greaves is back with the latest evidence for phosphine gas in the atmosphere of Venus.

Comets Stink! The Chemical Zoo Found at Comet Chury

Scientists have found a menagerie of complex organic compounds on the comet visited by the Rosetta spacecraft that connect it with the birth of our solar system.

Space Policy Edition: Lori Garver on Bringing Change to NASA

Former NASA deputy administrator Lori Garver returns for a deep conversation with Casey Dreier about her fight to turn the agency toward commercial partnerships and away from the expensive Constellation program.

Citizen Science: Join the search for Martian clouds

Scientists need your help identifying clouds high above the surface of the red planet. The goal is to figure out where Mars’ water went.

New Jet Propulsion Lab Director Laurie Leshin

Laurie Leshin has just become the tenth director of JPL and the first woman to run the fabled center for space science and robotic exploration.

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