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Sep 2024
21m 34s

Small Steps, Giant Leaps: Episode 138: T...

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)
About this episode
The Sun is the ultimate source of life in our solar system, a radiant powerhouse that bathes Earth in the energy necessary for everything from photosynthesis to weather patterns. Its warmth and light sustain us. However, the Sun’s influence isn't always benign. Its solar wind—a stream of charged particles—can disrupt our technology, causing communications bl ... Show More
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Sep 18
6,000 Exoplanets and Counting
On September 17, 2025, NASA announced that the number of exoplanets, planets outside our solar system, tracked by NASA has reached 6,000. In the three decades since the groundbreaking detection of exoplanet 51 Pegasi b, the first confirmed planet orbiting a Sun-like star, astrono ... Show More
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Sep 3
NASA's Zero Gravity Research Facility
A steel vacuum chamber 50 stories deep at NASA’s Glenn Research Center lets researchers simulate near-weightlessness by letting test hardware freefall for 5.18 seconds. 
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Aug 20
Turning Space Data Into Sound
From black holes to star clusters, scientists are turning space data into sound with a process called sonification. Dr. Kimberly Arcand, visual scientist with the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, joins us to explore how data sonification lets more people experience th ... Show More
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