Something strange is going on at the outer reaches of the solar system. One astronomer thinks it might be a Neptune-sized ninth planet, and he’s on a quest to find it.
That search is happening at an enormous telescope on the summit of Maunakea, a dormant Hawaiian volcano with a long astronomical and cultural history. But many Native Hawaiian scientists are a ... Show More
Yesterday
Emily St. John Mandel on science in fiction
Science has some really weird, wonderful ideas. Some of them are hard to prove in fact, but Emily St. John Mandel does a great job of playing with them in fiction — in works like Station Eleven, Sea of Tranquility, and her newest novel, Exit Party. Guest: Emily St. John Mandel, a ... Show More
27m 29s
Nov 4
What are you laughing at?
Scientists are trying to figure out what makes something funny. We compare notes with comedians Atsuko Okatsuka, Josh Johnson, Dulcé Sloan, and Chris Fleming (Originally published in 2023) Guests: Allie Volpe, Vox correspondent; Peter McGraw, professor at University o ... Show More
19m 3s
Aug 2024
Hide and seek with Planet 9
<p>A ninth planet may be lurking in our Solar System out beyond Neptune. Caltech's Mike Brown and Konstantin Batygin join us to discuss their new paper, the latest evidence for Planet 9, and why they believe their hunt may soon be over. Then, Bruce Betts, chief scientist of The P ... Show More
52m 11s
Feb 2019
The Lost Daughters of Aten, Part 1
Pluto may not be a planet, but it definitely exists. Not every case is so clear. The history of near-Earth astronomy contains many cases of bodies that may or may not have ever existed in the solar system we call home. In this episode of Stuff to Blow Your Mind, Robert Lamb and J ... Show More
53m 19s