Spacetime With Stuart Gary

*New study challenges popular theory about dwarf galaxies Existing hypothesis about how dwarf galaxies are spread across the universe is being challenged following the discovery of a plane of dwarf galaxies orbiting around Centaurus A. The findings challenge the long-held idea there are thousands of dwarf galaxies in all directions around large galaxies -- like bees swarming around a hive.*A new theory to explain the discovery of matter in hostile black hole winds Scientists have developed a new hypothesis to try to explain the origins of molecules discovered in the destructive cosmic outflows produced by supermassive black holes. If correct it could explain how stars form in extreme environments. *Arianespace places satellites into wrong orbits Arianespace has set up an independent investigation commission chaired by ESA’s General Inspector after its first launch for the year placed two telecommunications satellites into the wrong orbits. Video at : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g47aftHgOnk *NASA goes for

*New evidence that our galaxy is a cannibal  Astronomers have discovered evidence confirming that the outer halo of the Milky Way contains stars stolen from neighbouring dwarf galaxies. The new findings support the idea of galactic cannibalism in which big galaxies grow bigger by merging or consuming smaller galaxies. *All systems go for Falcon heavy  Space X is about to launch its largest and most powerful rocket ever -- the Falcon Heavy. The new 70 metre tall launch vehicle combines three Falcon 9 core stages mounted side by side. Instead of the usual dummy payload packed with scientific monitoring equipment – SpaceX boss Elon Musk is sending his own midnight cherry Tesla Roadster with David Bowie’s Space Oddity playing through the speakers. *Scientists discover how black holes regulate star formation in massive galaxies For year astronomers have noticed a direct relationship between the size of a galaxy and the mass of the supermassive black hole at its centre -- But the machinations of how it all worked h

*New model links high energy cosmic rays, neutrinos, and gamma rays One of the biggest mysteries in astro-particle physics may have been solved by a new model linking ultrahigh-energy cosmic rays, very high-energy neutrinos, and high-energy gamma rays to supermassive black holes. *Black Hole discovered hiding in globular cluster Astronomers have for the first time discovered an inactive black hole hiding silently in the heart of a globular cluster. *New study could help predict volcanic eruptions Scientists have found a link between volcanic activity and tidal cycles. *February Skywatch We check out Orion, the Pleiades, Sirius and the Magellanic Clouds on February’s Skywatch. *The Science Report The oldest human fossil discovered outside Africa found in an Israeli cave. Using tiny crystals to predict volcanic eruptions. Discovery of a link between vitamin D blood levels and respiratory health. Scientists discover that most female cats are right handed. For enhanced Show Notes including photos to accompany thi

*Neutron star merger poses new puzzles Astronomers are puzzled by the continued brightening of the afterglow generated by the merger of two neutron stars detected last August. *The hunt continues for mysterious Fast Radio Bursts Mystery still surrounds the origins of fast radio bursts – strange, rare, extremely powerful, -- yet incredibly short, millisecond bursts of energy from billions of light years away. *Total lunar blue super moon eclipse provides a jargon trifecta Depending on where on Earth you are -- January 31st will be a busy date for sky watchers with a total lunar blue super moon eclipse jargon trifecta for your listening and dancing pleasure *The Science Report A new study warns that billions of pieces of plastic waste are choking coral reefs and making them sick. A genetic study of the Irish uncovers a history of invasion by the British, the Normans and the Vikings. Warnings that diabetes and blood sugar problems can accelerate the brain’s decline. The first cloned monkeys made using the somati

*New Zealand reaches orbit  New Zealand has successfully placed a spacecraft into orbit for the first time. Rocket Lab’s unmanned Electron launch vehicle – named Still Testing – blasted off from the Lift off Mahia Peninsula launch pad on Sunday afternoon. You tube video url: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sPcsZgmTRrg   *Black hole burping Astronomers have caught a monster black hole in a distant galaxy snacking on gas and then "burping" — not once, but twice. The findings show two separate episodes of feeding frenzy by the supermassive black hole about 800 million light-years away. *The changing Sun Like the waistband of a couch potato in midlife, the orbits of planets in our solar system are expanding. It happens because the Sun’s gravitational grip gradually weakens as our star ages and loses mass.  *Tiangong-1 crashing back to Earth Chinese space officials say their Tiangong 1 space station is still under control and will likely crash back to Earth in mid to late March. However, their inability to provide

*Setting a size limit on neutron stars A new study claims super dense stellar corpses known as neutron stars couldn’t get much bigger than twice the mass of the Sun. The findings solve a forty year old mystery that’s baffled scientists ever since neutron stars were first discovered. *New clues about the recipe for making stars Astronomers have shed fresh light on the importance of hydrogen atoms in the birth of new stars. Only hydrogen molecules are thought to directly fuel star formation. But new research shows there are more hydrogen atoms than molecules even in young galaxies that are making a lot of new stars. *Midwest Meteor The citizenry of the American mid-west have been treated to an unexpected celestial spectacular with the evening skies lit up by a bright meteor and sonic boom. People in the states of Ohio and Michigan and across the border in Ontario Canada witnessed the event around 8’0 clock local time. *No link between earthquakes and the full Moon A new study has provided more evidence to dispe

*Dragon docks with the International Space Station  A dragon cargo ship loaded with fresh supplies has successfully docked with the International Space Station two days after launching aboard a Falcon 9 rocket from the Cape Canaveral Air Force Base in Florida. The Falcon 9 rocket blasted off into clear blue skies with the first stage returning to the launch facility following MECO main engine cut out and stage separation. See the video here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCdF5d0UwSJJunRcRVzP1uDg *Blue Origin test flight  Blue Origin has conducted a successful test flight of its new reusable New Shepard launch system. The flight saw the spacecraft blast off from the company’s West Texas launch pad on a ballistic sub orbital trajectory *Arianespace launches four new Galileo satellites  An Ariane 5 rocket has successfully carried four European Galileo navigation system satellites in to Orbit. See the video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iThcAxOaU6g   *China launches new spy satellite Beijing has success

*New clues about mysterious Fast Radio Bursts Astronomers have discovered new clues about mysterious cosmic blasts called Fast Radio Bursts – finding they originate from an environment bathed in extreme magnetic fields. While the new findings don’t shed any fresh light on what causes them – the research has provided some new insights to the deep space environment in which they occur. *Underground Martian water ice deposits exposed New images have revealed eight sites on Mars where thick subsurface deposits of water ice have been exposed on the cliff faces of eroding slopes. As well as holding clues about the red planet’s climate history – the findings also show how frozen water may be far more accessible for future missions to Mars than previously thought. *The universe has far more massive stars than expected Astronomers have discovered an excess of massive stars being formed in a giant stellar nursery in our neighbouring galaxy -- the Large Magellanic cloud. The findings are based on observations of 30 Dora

Hi SpaceTime fans, Just a heads up. Stuart has experienced a major PC failure this week meaning he's been unable to record his regular show. Hopefully, everything will return to normal next week. Fingers crossed. But rather than give you no space news at all. we thought we'd feature this weeks episode of Space nuts with Dr. Fred Watson and Andrew Dunkley. If you like what you hear, you can subscribe via all good podcast outlets like Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Castbox.fm, Google Podcasts, Spreakr...wherever you normally get your podcasts. You'll find Space Nuts on iHeartRadio and Spotify too if that's your thing. We hope you enjoy... In Episode 85 of Space Nuts:  * The first super blue blood moon eclipse in more than 150 yrs. * Construction of the Extremely Large Telescope (ELT) begins. * The incredible stretching astronaut.... Subscribe, rate and review Space Nuts via all good podcatcher apps, including Apple Podcasts (formerly iTunes) (featured in New & Noteworthy), audioBoom, Stitcher, Pocket Casts, Podb

*Black holes control star formation in galaxies  Astronomers have discovered a close correlation between the mass of a galaxy’s central black hole and how quickly that galaxy shunts down star formation. Young galaxies blaze with bright new stars forming at a rapid rate, but star formation eventually shuts down or quenches as galaxies evolves. *The Advanced Aviation Threat Identification Program via Space Nuts podcast The United States military has confirmed the existence of a modern-day version of Project Blue Book. Project blue book was a program run by the US Air Force during the 1960s to deal with reports of flying saucers and other Unidentified Flying Objects. *The Science Report Over a quarter of the world's landmass to become significantly drier because of global warming. The new study that’s found that bad people really do win Warnings that energy drinks and junk food might have unique risks for teenagers. Discovery of a strange new species of semi-aquatic theropod dinosaur related to Velociraptor. Sto

*Solving the mystery of what came first? Astronomers may be a step closer to solving one of the greatest mysteries in astrophysics – which came first the galaxy – or the supermassive black hole at its centre. The problem is do galaxies form first from the accumulation of stars, globular clusters, and molecular gas and dust clouds -- with densities at the galactic centre eventually becoming so high it forms a black hole. *Supermassive black hole stellar factory Astronomers have discovered 11 newly formed infant protostars within three light years of the supermassive black hole at the centre of our galaxy. Black holes generate powerful gravitational tidal forces and intense ultraviolet and X-ray radiation – environments far more conducive to destroying stars rather than creating them. *Mars may not be as dry as it seems A new study suggests water on Mars is being absorbed by the red planet’s rocks like a sponge. The findings reported in the journal Nature suggest that Martian basalt rocks can hold up to 25 perc

Happy New Year!*Fireworks predicted from Rare Stellar Encounter in 2018 Astronomers are gearing up for high-energy fireworks in the next few months when a pulsar plows through the outer atmosphere of one of the galaxy’s brightest stars. The cosmic light show spectacular will occur just 5000 light years from Earth – astronomers aren’t sure exactly when – but it will be soon. *Bright Areas on Ceres Suggest Geologic Activity If you could fly aboard NASA's Dawn spacecraft, the surface of the dwarf planet Ceres would generally look quite dark, but with notable exceptions. These exceptions are the hundreds of bright areas that stand out in images Dawn has returned. *2018 promises to be another stellar year for astronomy There’ll be three partial Solar Eclipse in 2018. And as solar eclipses always occur about two weeks before or after a lunar eclipse there’ll be a couple of total lunar eclipses as well. *Cometary close encounter The next big cometary visitor scheduled to make a close encounter with Earth is the come

*NASA looking at missions to a comet and to Saturn’s moon Titan NASA has selected two finalist concepts for a robotic mission planned to launch in the mid-2020s. The agency is considering a comet sample return mission and a drone-like rotorcraft that would explore potential landing sites on Saturn’s largest moon, Titan. *Was the star of Bethlehem a real thing? For astronomy the idea of three wise men being guided by a star to a stable in a little town called Bethlehem two thousand years ago raises a number of problems. But let’s for a moment just suppose it really happened -- So, what star were they following? *ET’s not calling Scientists say they’ve detected no alien signals or any evidence of extraterrestrial technology coming from the strange cigar shaped interstellar visitor which speed through our solar system in September and October. The 400 metre long 40 metre wide asteroid designated A/2017 U1 and named Oumuamua the Hawaiian name meaning "messenger" or "scout"— has been the centre of astronomical att

*Artificial Intelligence used to discover an eighth exoplanet orbiting a distant star. Our solar system now is tied for most number of planets around a single star, following the discovery of an eighth planet orbiting the Sun like star Kepler-90 some 2,545 light years away in the constellation Draco. The planet was discovered in data from NASA's planet hunting Kepler Space Telescope. *NASA’s mission to asteroid 16 Psyche NASA has accelerated its plans to send a spacecraft to the asteroid 16 Psyche. The mission which was slated to launch in 2023 will now fly a year earlier. *Expedition 54 crew blasts into orbit Three expedition 54 crew members have blasted into orbit on a two day flight to the International Space Station. The new crew members will join three existing expedition 53/54 crew conducting some 250 science experiments in microgravity. *Soyuz touches down safely Three Expedition 52 crew members have returned safely to Earth after five months in orbit aboard the International Space Station. Their Soyuz

*Juno probes the depths of Jupiter's Great Red Spot Data collected by NASA's Juno spacecraft during its first pass over Jupiter's Great Red Spot in July indicate that this iconic feature penetrates well below the clouds. Other revelations from the mission include that Jupiter has two previously uncharted radiation zones. *Life discovered living on just thin air Scientists have discovered microbes that literally live on thin air. 01The findings have implications for the search for life on other planets, suggesting extra-terrestrial microbes could also rely on trace atmospheric gases for survival. *Claims that Mars does have a protective magnetosphere after all A new study claims the Martian atmosphere is well protected from the effects of the solar wind despite the absence of a global Earth-like magnetic field. While Mars now lacks Earth’s geodynamo driven magnetic field, the Sun’s solar wind instead induces currents in the ionized upper Martian atmosphere -- creating an induced magnetosphere. *Sceptics guide

*Voyager 1 Fires Up Thrusters After 37 Years If you tried to start a car that's been sitting in a garage for decades, you might not expect the engine to respond. But a set of thrusters aboard the Voyager 1 spacecraft successfully fired up Wednesday after 37 years without use. Voyager 1, NASA's farthest and fastest spacecraft, is the only human-made object in interstellar space, the environment between the stars. *Back to the Moon as well as to Mars and beyond The United States is returning humans to the Moon. President Donald Trump signed Space Policy Directive 1 at the White House, which is designed to refocus national space policy, with a U.S. led, integrated program involving the private sector and international partners for a human return to the Moon, followed by missions to Mars and beyond. *The night skies are getting brighter The night skies are getting brighter – and it’s our increased efforts to get rid of inefficient incandescent lighting replacing them with eco-friendly LED lights that’s become par

Stream episodes on demand via www.bitesz.com (mobile friendly) *Earliest supermassive black hole ever seen Astronomers have discovered a monstrous supermassive black hole some 800 million times the mass of the Sun in the very early universe -- just 690 million years after the big bang. The observations represents the most distant supermassive black hole ever detected. *Rare glimpse of the magnetic field around a black hole A sudden flare and cooling of gas has given astronomers a rare glimpse of the magnetic field around a black hole. The findings indicate the gravity well’s magnetic field is far weaker than expected. *Massive primordial galaxies discovered swimming in a vast ocean of dark matter Astronomers have been astounded by the discovery of two massive primordial galaxies swimming in a vast ocean of dark matter near the dawn of time – just 780 million years after the big bang. The findings are forcing scientists to go back to the drawing board to explain how such massive objects could have formed so so

Stream episodes on demand via www.bitesz.com (mobile friendly) *New evidence shows the Earth got a bigger beating than thought A new study suggests the early Earth may have been subjected to five times as many impact events as previously thought -- following the big one which formed the Moon. The findings were revealed in new models of the planet’s impact history based on its mineral composition. *A new contender in the fight to understand dark matter The road to understanding dark matter is littered with failed hypothesis. MACHOS are dead, and WIMPS are a no show so far. So, say hello to Strongly Interacting Massive ParticleS or SIMPS. *New mission to search for life on the Saturnian moon Enceladus Russian physicist and entrepreneur Uri Milner is backing a new private venture to search for the building blocks of life around the Saturnian ice moon Enceladus. Breakthrough Initiatives -- a program founded by the billionaire tech investor is now work-shopping the idea which would take over from where NASA’s Cass

Stream episodes on demand from www.bitesz.com (mobile friendly) *Infant stars discovered near supermassive black hole Astronomers have discovered 11 newly formed infant protostars where they shouldn’t exist – right next to the monstrous supermassive black hole at the centre of our galaxy. The findings have shocked scientists as regions around black holes are wracked by powerful gravitational tidal forces and bathed in intense ultraviolet and X-ray radiation -- generating extremely harsh conditions which shouldn’t favour star formation. *Rosetta gives a recipe for making a comet. Scientists have developed the recipe for making a comet. The findings based on data from the Rosetta spacecraft provides the first quantitative analysis of the chemical elements that make up the cometary dust of comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko. *Buccaneer in stable orbit Mission managers at the University of New South Wales say the Buccaneer satellite has attained stable orbit and is operating nominally. Buccaneer was deployed aboard

*The universe before the big bang A new hypothesis is proposing to eliminate the need for cosmological spacetime singularity and with it the big bang which kicked of the cosmos 13.8 billion years ago. Instead, physicists suggest the universe’s current expansion phase was preceded by a big crunch contraction and possibly a bouncing universe with infinite prior cycles of expansion and contraction. *The next nearest planet to our solar system A temperate Earth-sized planet has been discovered just 11 light-years away. The new world named Ross 128 b is currently the second-closest temperate planet ever detected – the nearest being Proxima b which orbits the star Proxima Centauri some 4.25 light years from Earth. *Dawn explores Ceres’ interior evolution Scientists have begun studying the internal structure and composition of the dwarf planet Ceres finding a close relationship between its internal evolution and its surface features. The findings used data collected by NASA’s Dawn spacecraft to analyse Ceres’ surfac