Eclipse Revelations, Ceres' Life Clues, and the Exoplanet with a Tail: S03E229

0:00 Speaker 1: Hello, space enthusiasts. Today we have an absolutely packed show

0:04 Speaker 1: with some incredible developments from across the cosmic frontier, from

0:07 Speaker 1: groundbreaking solar research during the recent eclipse to fascinating discoveries

0:11 Speaker 1: about distant worlds. We're covering it all. We'll dive into

0:15 Speaker 1: how scientists use the spectacular North American solar eclipse to

0:19 Speaker 1: unlock new secrets about our Son's corona, and we'll look

0:22 Speaker 1: ahead to an exciting Christmas Eve mission that will take

0:24 Speaker 1: us closer to our star than ever before. We've also

0:28 Speaker 1: got some intriguing news about organic compounds found on the

0:30 Speaker 1: Dwarf Planet series that could have major implications for the

0:34 Speaker 1: search for life. Plus a concerning incident with a satellite

0:37 Speaker 1: breakup that's raising important questions about space security. And don't

0:41 Speaker 1: miss our story about an extraordinary exoplanet that's literally leaving

0:45 Speaker 1: a trail through space. It's the kind of discovery that

0:48 Speaker 1: reminds us just how weird and wonderful our universe can be.

0:52 Speaker 1: We've got a lot to cover, so let's get started.

0:56 Speaker 1: Scientists have been making remarkable discoveries about our Son thanks

1:00 Speaker 1: to the recent solar eclipse that swept across North America,

1:04 Speaker 1: When the Moon perfectly blocked out the Sun's blindingly bright surface,

1:08 Speaker 1: researchers got a rare opportunity to study the mysterious corona,

1:13 Speaker 1: the Sun's outer atmosphere that's normally impossible to observe from Earth.

1:17 Speaker 1: The eclipse sparked multiple citizen science initiatives, including an ambitious

1:21 Speaker 1: project called Citizen Kate twenty twenty four, which deployed thirty

1:25 Speaker 1: five telescopes from Texas all the way to Maine. By

1:29 Speaker 1: combining data from these stations, researchers are creating an unprecedented

1:33 Speaker 1: sixty minute movie showing how the corona changed throughout the eclipse.

1:38 Speaker 1: What makes this project even more special is how it

1:41 Speaker 1: brought together people from all walks of life, from middle

1:44 Speaker 1: school students to retirees, to conduct cutting edge solar research.

1:49 Speaker 1: Another fascinating project involved over six thousand amateur radio operators

1:54 Speaker 1: across the continent. By tracking how radio signals behaved during

1:58 Speaker 1: the eclipse, they helped map changes in Earth's ionosphere, the

2:02 Speaker 1: electrically charged layer of our upper atmosphere that's critical for

2:06 Speaker 1: satellite communications. The sudden absence of sunlight during the eclipse

2:11 Speaker 1: created unique conditions that helped scientists better understand how solar

2:16 Speaker 1: radiation affects our planet's atmospheric layers. Weather balloons launched during

2:21 Speaker 1: the eclipse revealed something equally intriguing. The Moon's shadow actually

2:26 Speaker 1: generates waves in our atmosphere, similar to ripples in a pond.

2:30 Speaker 1: These atmospheric waves could help improve our weather forecasting models

2:34 Speaker 1: by showing us how different layers of our atmosphere interact.

2:38 Speaker 1: All of this research is about to get even more exciting.

2:42 Speaker 1: On Christmas Eve, NASA's Parker Solar Probe will make its

2:45 Speaker 1: closest approach yet to the Sun, diving to within just

2:48 Speaker 1: six point two one million kilometers of our star's surface.

2:52 Speaker 1: This will put it right in the middle of the

2:54 Speaker 1: corona regions that scientists observe during the eclipse. By combining

2:58 Speaker 1: these different perspectives from Earth based eclipse observations to direct

3:02 Speaker 1: measurements from Parker, researchers are building a more complete picture

3:06 Speaker 1: of how our Sun works and how it influences life

3:08 Speaker 1: here on Earth. As one NASA scientists put it, it's

3:12 Speaker 1: like different people trying to describe an elephant by touching

3:14 Speaker 1: different parts. The eclipse gives us one view of the corona,

3:19 Speaker 1: while Parker provides another perspective. By flying right through it together,

3:24 Speaker 1: they're helping us solve the complex puzzle of solar physics

3:27 Speaker 1: and its effects on our planet. Next up, exciting discoveries

3:32 Speaker 1: are emerging from NASA's Dawn mission to Series, the largest

3:36 Speaker 1: object in the asteroid belt. Scientists have identified eleven new

3:40 Speaker 1: regions containing organic compounds on this fascinating dwarf planet, suggesting

3:45 Speaker 1: the presence of vast internal reservoirs of organic materials. This

3:49 Speaker 1: finding builds upon the initial twenty seventeen discovery of organic

3:54 Speaker 1: compounds near ceres Ernutete Crater. What makes this discovery p

3:59 Speaker 1: ticularly intriguing is that these organic materials appear to be

4:03 Speaker 1: native to Series, rather than delivered by comets or asteroids

4:08 Speaker 1: as previously thought. This indicates that Series possesses internal energy

4:13 Speaker 1: sources potentially capable of supporting biological processes, making it an

4:18 Speaker 1: even more significant target for astrobiological studies. At over nine

4:22 Speaker 1: hundred and thirty kilometers in diameter, Series stands out as

4:26 Speaker 1: the most water rich body in the Inner Solar System

4:29 Speaker 1: after Earth. The presence of both water ice, and possibly

4:32 Speaker 1: liquid water beneath its surface places it among the ocean

4:36 Speaker 1: worlds that could harbour conditions suitable for life. This combination

4:40 Speaker 1: of water and organic compounds makes Series an increasingly compelling

4:43 Speaker 1: destination for future space exploration. The research team employed sophisticated

4:48 Speaker 1: analysis techniques to make these discoveries. They first characterize the

4:52 Speaker 1: compounds in the Airnutet crater, then systematically scanned Series' entire

4:57 Speaker 1: surface using high resolution images from the Dawn spacecraft. Most intriguingly,

5:03 Speaker 1: they found a particularly strong signature of organic materials in

5:07 Speaker 1: the region between the Orvara and yellow Da basins, where

5:10 Speaker 1: violent impacts had excavated material from deep within Series. Laboratory

5:15 Speaker 1: experiments supporting this research have shown that organic compounds degrade

5:19 Speaker 1: more rapidly under solar radiation than previously thought. Given the

5:24 Speaker 1: quantities of organic materials detected and their observed degradation levels,

5:29 Speaker 1: scientists believe there must be substantial reservoirs of organic compounds

5:33 Speaker 1: beneath Series' surface. These findings have significant implications for our

5:37 Speaker 1: understanding of the early Solar System and the potential for

5:40 Speaker 1: life supporting environments beyond Earth. As a remnant from our

5:44 Speaker 1: Solar system's formation four point six billion years ago, Series

5:48 Speaker 1: could provide crucial insights into the distribution of organic materials

5:52 Speaker 1: during planetary formation. Looking to the future, series might even

5:56 Speaker 1: serve as a strategic stopover point for deep space missions,

6:00 Speaker 1: offering valuable resources for space exploration beyond Mars. A concerning

6:06 Speaker 1: development in orbital space has emerged with the breakup of

6:08 Speaker 1: Intelsat thirty three E in geostationary orbit. Space tracking company

6:13 Speaker 1: Exoanalytics Solutions has identified more than seven hundred pieces of

6:17 Speaker 1: debris from this incident, which occurred on October nineteenth. The

6:21 Speaker 1: fragments ranged dramatically in size, from pieces as small as

6:25 Speaker 1: softballs to others as large as car doors. This event

6:29 Speaker 1: has raised significant concerns about space security. Exoanalytics Solutions chief

6:34 Speaker 1: growth officer warns that such breakups could potentially be exploited

6:38 Speaker 1: by adversaries, as the resulting debris cloud creates substantial noise

6:42 Speaker 1: in tracking systems that could mask other activities in geostationary orbit.

6:47 Speaker 1: The incident marks the second failure in Boeing series of

6:50 Speaker 1: epic aang high throughput satellites built for Intelsat. The First

6:54 Speaker 1: satellite in the series, Intelsat twenty nine E, was lost

6:58 Speaker 1: in twenty nineteen following what investigators determined was either a

7:01 Speaker 1: meteoroid impact or a wiring flaw. Boeing is currently investigating

7:06 Speaker 1: the cause of this latest breakup. While the immediate danger

7:09 Speaker 1: from the debris has significantly decreased over recent months, the

7:13 Speaker 1: incident highlights growing challenges in the increasingly contested space domain.

7:18 Speaker 1: Exoanalytics Solutions reports that collision alerts, which initially spiked to

7:23 Speaker 1: four times normal levels following the breakup, have now stabilized

7:27 Speaker 1: to typical frequencies. This event coincides with observations of increasing

7:32 Speaker 1: Chinese activities in geostationary orbit, including routine satellite maneuvers and

7:38 Speaker 1: close up inspections of other satellites. Space tracking experts have

7:42 Speaker 1: noted China's expanding presence in space, with their satellite fleet

7:46 Speaker 1: growing from just thirty six and twenty ten to more

7:48 Speaker 1: than one thousand to day, adding another layer of complexity

7:51 Speaker 1: to space domain awareness and security concerns. Now a quick

7:56 Speaker 1: but significant update. Rocket Lab has recently unveiled the purpose

8:00 Speaker 1: behind their secretive November launch, confirming it was a hypersonic

8:04 Speaker 1: technology test for the US Department of Defense. The suborbital mission,

8:08 Speaker 1: which took place on November twenty fourth from Virginia's Wallops

8:11 Speaker 1: Island utilized their HASTE Vehicle, a modified version of their

8:16 Speaker 1: Electron rocket designed specifically for suborbital flights. What makes this

8:21 Speaker 1: mission particularly remarkable is that it was a part of

8:24 Speaker 1: an unprecedented double header for rocket Lab. Less than twenty

8:28 Speaker 1: two hours after the military test, they successfully launched another

8:32 Speaker 1: mission from a completely different hemisphere, deploying five Internet of

8:36 Speaker 1: Thing satellites for French company Qineis. The military test flight

8:40 Speaker 1: was conducted under the Multi Service Advanced Capability Hypersonics Test

8:43 Speaker 1: Bed Project known as Match TB. This initiative aims to

8:47 Speaker 1: expand hypersonic flight testing capabilities for the United States Military.

8:51 Speaker 1: Rocket Lab not only provided the launch platform, but also

8:54 Speaker 1: designed and manufactured the experimental hypersonic instrumentation for the mission,

8:59 Speaker 1: completing this on an accelerated timeline. This mission marked only

9:03 Speaker 1: the second flight of the Haste vehicle, with its debut

9:06 Speaker 1: launch occurring in June twenty twenty three from the same

9:09 Speaker 1: launch facility. The subsequent orbital launch the next day proved

9:13 Speaker 1: equally significant for rocket Lab, as it pushed their total

9:16 Speaker 1: satellite deployment count past the two hundred mark, reaching two

9:21 Speaker 1: hundred and three satellites launched aboard their electron rocket across

9:25 Speaker 1: fifty four successful missions, with thirteen of those launches occurring

9:29 Speaker 1: this year alone. Meanwhile, further out in space, in an

9:34 Speaker 1: intriguing astronomical discovery, scientists have identified something quite unusual about

9:39 Speaker 1: the exoplanet WASP sixty nine BEE. It's sporting a massive

9:43 Speaker 1: tail of gas that stretches more than three hundred fifty

9:46 Speaker 1: thousand miles behind it. This remarkable feature is actually the

9:49 Speaker 1: planet's atmosphere being slowly stripped away into space, creating a

9:53 Speaker 1: comet like tail that's more than seven and a half

9:56 Speaker 1: times the planet's radius. The process creating this celestial spectacle

10:01 Speaker 1: is fascinating. WASP sixty nine B is what we call

10:04 Speaker 1: a hot Jupiter, orbiting extremely close to its host star.

10:09 Speaker 1: The intense stellar radiation heats the planet's outer atmosphere so

10:12 Speaker 1: much that lightweight gases like hydrogen and helium are literally

10:15 Speaker 1: being launched into space. But here's where it gets really interesting.

10:20 Speaker 1: Instead of escaping uniformly around the planet, these gases are

10:24 Speaker 1: swept into a tail by the stellar wind from the

10:26 Speaker 1: planet's star, much like how a windsock behaves in a breeze.

10:31 Speaker 1: While losing two hundred thousand tons of gas per second

10:33 Speaker 1: might sound catastrophic, the planet is actually losing its atmosphere

10:37 Speaker 1: very gradually. To put this in perspective, it takes about

10:40 Speaker 1: a billion years for WASP sixty nine B to lose

10:43 Speaker 1: an amount of material equivalent to the mass of Earth.

10:46 Speaker 1: Given that this Solar system is around seven billion years old,

10:49 Speaker 1: the planet has likely lost the equivalent of seven earths

10:52 Speaker 1: worth of mass over its lifetime. The tail's exact length

10:56 Speaker 1: remains a mystery, as researchers had to end their observation

11:00 Speaker 1: before the tale's signal completely disappeared. Even more intriguingly, the

11:05 Speaker 1: tale's size and shape can change over time as the

11:08 Speaker 1: stellar wind fluctuates, making it a dynamic feature that could

11:12 Speaker 1: help scientists better understand the complex relationship between stars and

11:16 Speaker 1: their planets. This discovery isn't just a cosmic curiosity. It's

11:21 Speaker 1: providing valuable insights into how planetary atmospheres interact with their

11:25 Speaker 1: host stars and evolve over time. Well. That brings us

11:30 Speaker 1: to the end of today's fascinating journey through space. This

11:34 Speaker 1: is Anna and I want to thank you for joining

11:36 Speaker 1: me on another episode of Astronomy Daily from Solar Studies

11:40 Speaker 1: during the recent eclipse to gastailed exoplanets. It's been quite

11:44 Speaker 1: a ride through our cosmic neighborhood. If you've enjoyed today's

11:47 Speaker 1: show and want to stay up to date with all

11:49 Speaker 1: things space and astronomy, I invite you to visit our

11:52 Speaker 1: website at Astronomy Daily dot io. There you'll find all

11:56 Speaker 1: our back episodes, and you can sign up for our

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12:20 Speaker 1: about the mysteries of our universe. This has been anna

12:23 Speaker 1: with Astronomy Daily, Star Star