logo
episode-header-image
Jun 2022
14m 56s

Is the megalodon shark still alive?

POPULAR SCIENCE
About this episode

Could the legendary megalodon shark still be lurking in our oceans? PopSci's Purbita Saha dishes out the details.

--

Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/AskPopSciPod

Hosted by Purbita Saha: https://twitter.com/hahabita

Produced by Jess Boddy: https://twitter.com/JessicaBoddy

Music by Billy Cadden: https://open.spotify.com/artist/6LqT4DCuAXlBzX8XlNy4Wq

Art by Katie Belloff: https://twitter.com/Katie_Bellz

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Up next
Today
What happens to your bag after you check it in?
Each year, roughly 500 MILLION bags are checked at U.S airports, with only 0.4% getting lost - so how DO airlines move your bags around and keep track of them. PopSci Editors ⁠⁠⁠Sarah Durn⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠Laura Baisas go on a journey to explain it all. Read the full story that inspire ... Show More
15m 47s
Nov 12
What is human composting?
A growing number of Americans are choosing to return to earth after death—literally. Green burials, and specifically human composting, is an environmentally conscious, life-sustaining option that’s now legal in 14 states. But how does a human composting vessel work? And what exac ... Show More
14m 57s
Nov 12
Why do we get goosebumps? Plus: RL Stine!
Goosebumps are a valuable tool for many animals. They keep mammals with thick fur warm by trapping air near their skin, or help make them look bigger when facing off against a rival. However, in humans a wide range of emotions can also induce goosebumps. BUT WHY? Join PopSci Edit ... Show More
14 m
Recommended Episodes
Jul 2025
Shark Week Gets Toxic: Forrest Galante Tracks Alien Sharks
Shark Week returns July 20 on Discovery! This episode is the Shark Week audio companion Part 1! Dr. Samantha Yammine dives into the most surprising shark science of 2025, from sharks that make noise to the nano-scale ‘sharkitecture’ inside their skeletons. Sam also interviews For ... Show More
31m 27s
Jul 2025
Megalodon
As part of our week of Sharks on the Ancients, today we tell the story of Megalodon, the largest living marine animal, ever.Does this colossal prehistoric shark still lurk beneath the waves? Tristan Hughes is joined by leading expert Professor John Long to unveil the jaw-dropping ... Show More
40m 20s
Nov 2024
Hollywood lied to us: Jaws
<p>Jaws (1975) was a massive hit that also created a whole lot of fear, but does anything in the film really stand up to shark science? Do sharks stalk humans? Do they roar? What can they sense? There are so many misconceptions when it comes to sharks that even now, 50 years late ... Show More
24m 59s
Jun 2025
The Cage
<p>This is episode two of Swimming with Shadows: A Radiolab Week of Sharks.</p><p><i>Jaws</i> spawned a thousand imitators: sharks in tornados, sharks in avalanches, sharks that battle giant octopuses. Hollywood has officially turned sharks into monsters of every shape and size. ... Show More
18m 22s
Jun 2025
Baby Shark
<p>This is episode five of Swimming with Shadows: A Radiolab Week of Sharks.</p><p>Today, the strange, squirmy magic behind how sharks make more sharks. Drills. Drama. Death. Even a coliseum of baby sharks duking it out inside mom’s womb. And a man on a small island in the Medite ... Show More
28m 12s
Aug 2024
208 - Tattoos
<p>On today’s episode: How do sharks swim so fast? Denticles! How do tattoos work? And how safe are they? Hybrid swarms are causing extinctions… and we’re one of them! Why do we play? All that and more today on All Around Science...</p><p>RESOURCES</p><ul><li><a href="https://ars ... Show More
50m 59s
Jul 2025
What Does an Ailing Coral Reef Sound Like?
Sick coral reefs are visually striking—bleached and lifeless, far from the vibrancy we’ve come to expect. But what does an unhealthy coral system sound like? In this rerun, conservation bioacoustics researcher Isla Keesje Davidson tells Science Quickly all about the changing soun ... Show More
16m 51s
Jul 2024
What's Going On With Sharks?
We are getting into all the Shark Week fun here on Getting Curious with Dr. Gavin Naylor! Jonathan and Gavin dive deep into all things sharks: Are attacks really becoming more common, or is that just our perception? Why are there only 530 species of sharks, and what makes them so ... Show More
52m 59s
Sep 2024
Antibiotics for coral reefs
Vox’s Benji Jones takes us diving in a coral reef to learn how scientists are trying to save them. This episode was produced by Avishay Artsy, edited by Amina Al-Sadi, fact-checked by Laura Bullard, engineered by Patrick Boyd, and hosted by Sean Rameswaram. Transcript at vox.com/ ... Show More
26m 46s
Aug 11
The Shark Attacks That Made Us Fear the Water
August 15, 1915. American diplomat J. T. Du Bois publishes a letter in The New York Times. It’s not about diplomacy or foreign affairs. This letter is about sharks. It’s Du Bois’ attempt to prove to the American public that “Man-Eating Sharks” - as he calls them - are real. Becau ... Show More
32m 53s