Planetary Radio Episodes

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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Voyager and the heliopause: Exploring where the Sun gives way to the stars

Linda Spilker, project scientist for the Voyager mission, explains what Voyager has revealed about the heliopause and the Solar System’s outer edge.

Galileo at 30: How a mission transformed our understanding of Jupiter

Thirty years after NASA’s Galileo spacecraft became the first to orbit Jupiter, scientists and engineers gathered to reflect on the mission that transformed how we see the giant planet and its moons.

Uranus revealed: Solving the ice giant’s heat mystery

Michael Roman, assistant professor at the Universidad Adolfo Ibáñez in Chile, joins Sarah Al-Ahmed to discuss new research confirming that Uranus radiates excess heat, finally resolving a decades-long mystery first sparked by Voyager 2.

New Horizons: Celebrating a decade since the Pluto flyby

New Horizons Principal Investigator Alan Stern joins us to celebrate the Pluto flyby’s 10th anniversary, with updates from planetary scientist Adeene Denton and Planetary Society Director of Government Relations Jack Kiraly. Plus, a look at Arrokoth in What’s Up with Bruce Betts.

Live from Washington, D.C.: The future of space politics

Join Sarah Al-Ahmed and Casey Dreier for a special live recording of Planetary Radio at the Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg Center in Washington, D.C., immediately following The Planetary Society’s Day of Action.

Kiss-and-capture: The dance of Pluto and Charon

How did Pluto meet its largest moon, Charon? Adeene Denton, a research scientist at the University of Arizona, suggests a "kiss-and-capture" may solve this mystery.

The Edward Stone Voyager Exploration Trail

We celebrate Ed Stone’s lasting legacy with the unveiling of the Dr. Edward Stone Exploration Trail at JPL.

Looking back on 2024

The Planetary Society team reviews the best space moments of 2024, from the China National Space Administration's return of samples from the far side of the Moon to the triumphant launch of NASA's Europa Clipper mission.

A hundred weeks in space exploration

Sarah Al-Ahmed, the host of Planetary Radio, marks her one-hundredth episode with a look back at the defining moments of the past 100 weeks of space exploration.

Splat or subsurface ocean? The mysterious positioning of Pluto’s heart

This week we discuss recent research on the origins of Pluto’s heart and what it can tell us about whether or not the dwarf planet has a subsurface ocean with Adeene Denton from the University of Arizona.

Europa Clipper blasts off: How the mission team weathered Hurricane Milton

Bob Pappalardo, Europa Clipper project scientist, recounts the mission team's dramatic encounter with Hurricane Milton before their triumphant launch.

Clipper’s champions: Space advocates and the fight for a mission to Europa

The Planetary Society and space advocates around the world fought to make Europa Clipper a reality. This week, we learn more about the tumultuous history of the mission with Casey Dreier, The Planetary Society’s chief of space policy.

Europa in reflection: A compilation of two decades

With less than two months to go until the highly anticipated launch of NASA's Europa Clipper mission, we take a look back at over twenty years of Planetary Radio episodes about Jupiter's most intriguing moon.

A big year for heliophysics and Parker Solar Probe

We explore recent solar activity and discoveries from NASA's Parker Solar Probe with Nour Rawafi, the mission's project scientist.

Europa Clipper’s message in a bottle

Bob Pappalardo, Europa Clipper's project scientist, visits The Planetary Society headquarters in Pasadena, CA, to share the story of the mission's vault plate, humanity's next collection of messages to another world.

Revisiting the discovery of phosphorus on Enceladus

Chris Glein, a lead scientist at the Southwest Research Institute, joins Planetary Radio to talk about the discovery of phosphorus in the oceans of Saturn’s moon Enceladus and the implications for the search for life.

Dragonfly soars to final design phase

NASA's Dragonfly mission to Saturn's moon Titan has been authorized to proceed with work on final mission design and fabrication. This week on Planetary Radio, we get an update on the mission's progress and new timeline.

Io and Voyager 2: Lost oceans and found signals

Voyager project manager Suzanne Dodd and Voyager project scientist Linda Spilker discuss reestablishing contact with Voyager 2 and Carver Bierson from Arizona State University tells the tale of how Io went from a water-rich moon into a world with lakes of lava.

The slow evolution of Europa

Kevin Trinh from Arizona State University joins Planetary Radio to discuss his research into Europa's formation history and the consequences for the moon's habitability.

An essential ingredient for life in the oceans of Enceladus

Chris Glein, a lead scientist at the Southwest Research Institute, joins Planetary Radio to talk about the discovery of phosphorus in the oceans of Saturn’s moon Enceladus and the implications for the search for life.

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