Explore Worlds
Find Life
Defend Earth
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.
Search Planetary Radio
Author David Baron has written the definitive, true story of a time when nearly everyone in America was utterly convinced there was a supremely intelligent civilization on the Red Planet, and they wanted to talk with us!
Physicist Daniel Whiteson and cartoonist Andy Warner join Sarah Al-Ahmed to explore their new book, “Do Aliens Speak Physics?”
Space Craze author Margaret Weitekamp of the National Air and Space Museum documents our fascination with all things space, as evidenced by the pop culture artifacts she lovingly oversees in the collection.
Author and historian of science Dava Sobel talks about her many wonderful books with The Planetary Society’s Mat Kaplan. Dava recently received the Society’s Cosmos Award.
Join host Sarah Al-Ahmed and Mark McCaughrean, adjunct scientist at the Max Planck Institute for Astronomy, for a tour of “111 Places in Space That You Must Not Miss”, a cosmic travel guide to the Universe.
Frank White is the author of “The Overview Effect: Space Exploration and Human Evolution. “ Now in its fourth edition, the book has crystallized and expanded on the profound sense of wonder and oneness experienced by nearly all astronauts.
Bestselling science fiction author Andy Weir joins The Planetary Society’s Mat Kaplan for a deeply fascinating and very entertaining conversation about his #1 bestselling novel, Project Hail Mary, soon to be a major motion picture.
We revisit a classic book on the limits of presidential power in setting the nation’s space agenda and explore how the increasingly powerful executive branch might be rewriting those expectations.
Every major NASA center built after the agency’s inception is located in the American South. Why? Dr. Brian Odom, NASA’s chief historian, joins the show to discuss the cultural, political, and historical implications of NASA’s expansion into the South.
We discuss the delightfully unpredictable nature of space discoveries with Chris Lintott, author of the upcoming book Accidental Astronomy.
Should policymakers spend more time looking - really looking - at the Moon? Chris Cokinos thinks so. He’s the author of a new book, Still As Bright, which explores the evolving role of the Moon in our culture, our history, and our dreams of spaceflight.
Dante Lauretta, the principal investigator for NASA's OSIRIS-REx mission, joins Planetary Radio to share stories from his new book, The Asteroid Hunter.
Louis Friedman, one of the three co-founders of The Planetary Society, joins Planetary Radio to discuss his new book, Alone but Not Lonely: Exploring for Extraterrestrial Life.
Sarafina El-Badry Nance joins Planetary Radio to discuss her new book, Starstruck: A Memoir of Astrophysics and Finding Light in the Dark.
Phil Plait, the Bad Astronomer, joins Planetary Radio to discuss his new book, Under Alien Skies: A Sightseer’s Guide to the Galaxy.
Psyche asteroid mission principal investigator Lindy Elkins-Tanton returns with her excellent new memoir, A Portrait of the Scientist as a Young Woman.
Britain’s Astronomer Royal Martin Rees and science writer Don Goldsmith question the value of putting astronauts in harm’s way at great expense in their new book.
Discovering Mars is the new chronicle of humanity’s long relationship with the Red Planet, assembled by space historian William Sheehan and Mars explorer Jim Bell.
Into the Anthropocosmos is MIT Space Exploration Initiative director Ariel Ekblaw’s collection of innovations that will improve life in space and on Earth.
The author of The Martian introduces us to his terrific new novel and shares his thoughts about the current state of space exploration.