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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Europa Clipper sails toward launch

Mission system manager Al Cangahuala says the robotic explorer of Jupiter’s ocean moon is making steady progress toward a 2024 launch.

Cassini, Voyager and beyond with Linda Spilker

Cassini mission project scientist Linda Spilker returns with new science from ocean moon Enceladus and anniversaries to celebrate with the Voyager mission.

How Perseverance drives itself around Mars

The Perseverance rover’s chief robotics engineer takes us for a spin across Mars.

Alan Stern says it's time for suborbital science

Planetary scientist and New Horizons principal investigator Alan Stern says great science will ride on Virgin Galactic’s SpaceShipTwo and Blue Origin’s New Shepard.

Andy Chaikin on Apollo 15 and the lessons of Apollo

Space historian and author of A Man on the Moon Andy Chaikin returns as we celebrate Apollo 15’s 50th anniversary.

Amy Mainzer and a New Asteroid-Hunting Space Telescope

NASA has approved development of the NEO Surveyor space telescope. Project lead Amy Mainzer shares her hopes for this vital planetary defense tool.

We’re Going Back to Venus

Leaders of the DAVINCI and VERITAS missions tell us what their spacecraft will reveal about the planet that is so much like Earth and yet so terribly different.

Visiting the James Webb Space Telescope

Host Mat Kaplan visits the James Webb Space Telescope in California to see the observatory before it launches and speak with project leaders.

Finding Life by Looking for Complexity

University of Glasgow chemist Lee Cronin believes he and his collaborators have found a way to recognize life as we know it and as we don’t know it.

The Pearly Clouds of Mars

Atmospheric scientist Mark Lemmon discusses the beautiful clouds on Mars imaged by NASA's Curiosity rover.

Amateur Astronomers Saving the World

Planetary Society grants have enabled amateur astronomers to discover and track asteroids that cross Earth’s path. We’ll meet two of them.

Experimental Cosmologist Brian Keating

A fascinating, wide-ranging conversation with Brian Keating, director of the Simons Observatory that will search for our cosmic origins from a mountaintop in Chile’s Atacama region.

Mighty Jupiter Revealed

The Juno mission will continue its exploration of Jupiter till 2025, thanks to a four-year extension granted by NASA. Principal investigator Scott Bolton brings us up to date.

The New Great Space Observatories

Astrophysicist Grant Tremblay describes how four proposed space telescopes could reveal our solar system and the universe as never before.

Ingenuity Mars Helicopter Project Manager MiMi Aung

The leader of the Mars Helicopter test mission celebrates her team’s success and explores the daunting challenges they overcame.

Defenders of Earth on Planetary Radio

Six planetary defense leaders report on progress toward protecting Earth from near-Earth objects.

Author Andy Weir and Project Hail Mary

The author of The Martian introduces us to his terrific new novel and shares his thoughts about the current state of space exploration.

A Conversation with Kyoto Prize Recipient James Gunn

Jim Gunn co-created and led the Sloan Digital Sky Survey that has revealed the universe as never before.

Is ‘Oumuamua a Piece of a Pluto-Like Planet? And Ingenuity’s First Flight on Mars

NASA’s Ingenuity Mars Helicopter makes a successful first flight on the Red Planet, while two researchers offer new insights on the first interstellar object discovered in our solar system.

The High Frontier: A New Documentary About Gerard K. O’Neill

Gerard K. O’Neill envisioned vast, magnificent human settlements in space. His followers, including Jeff Bezos, are working to turn his vision into reality.

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