Showing titles in Astronomy & Space Science

"That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind." Neil Armstrong spoke these words after placing his foot down onto lunar soil, and throughout the course of the Apollo program, 11 other astronauts also walked on the Moon. In this show, Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, and many others share their memories of Apollo, and say what they think should be NASA’s next step in space.

Starry, starry nights, stormy and sun-filled days. Long summer days of picnics and ballgames are played out under a vast and gorgeous canvas of astronomical and meteorological curiosities. From the stories of the stars told by the ancients, to a recent mammatus cloud over CitiField in New York, learn about the phenomena in the summer skies that keep us looking up.

Richard Branson has formed Virgin Galactic and is now taking reservations aboard the maiden voyage of SpaceShipOne. Would you spend the estimated $200,000 for a 45-minute trip into space? Neil and Lynne also discuss the mechanics of sex in space.

This year marks the 400th anniversary of Galileo’s use of the first telescope. On this week’s show, we reflect on how telescopes have changed our perception of our place in the universe, how small we are in size, space, and time. Our guests include Dava Sobel, author of The Planets, Vatican Astronomer Father Chris Corbally, and astronaut Paul Richards.

Looking up at the night sky fills a person with wonder, knowing there is so much unknown out there! Admiring the universe can put things in perspective – if only we could capture that feeling. Tonight, you can! The first ever photo was taken in 1826 and at the end of the following decade, the moon was captured. But it wasn’t until the late 19th century that technology advanced to the point where details of stars could be seen, and only really the last 20 years that software has taken this to a new level.

Space is a place of unparalleled possibility for humanity, and it's undergoing a revolution. A wave of companies led by gutsy entrepreneurs are unlocking opportunities that fire the imagination. No, it's not hotels on Mars or day trips to orbit (yet), but it's an awe-inspiring transformation driven by innovative technologies, creative approaches, hard work, and—for the first time—market forces.

Just over half a century since Neil Armstrong first stepped foot on the lunar surface, a new space race to the Moon is well underway and rapidly gaining momentum. Laying out a vision for the next fifty years, Back to the Moon is astrophysicist Joseph Silk's persuasive and impassioned case for putting scientific discovery at the forefront of lunar exploration.

Spaceflight is notoriously dangerous. Beyond launch mishaps and equipment failures, astronauts face serious health problems from long-term weightlessness and high-energy radiation. Not to mention, the space environment is a near-perfect vacuum that can quickly kill anyone who is unprotected. Drawing on the hard-won insights of NASA astronauts and space researchers, this 12-lecture course presents the perils of spaceflight and what experts have done to make them survivable. It also deals with livability in space, including nutrition, sleep, environmental control, and personal hygiene.

Explore the curiosities of our galaxy with this comprehensive, digestible guide to astronomy! Too often, textbooks obscure the beauty and wonder of outer space with tedious discourse that even Galileo would oppose. Astronomy 101 cuts out the boring details and lengthy explanations, and instead...

In this moving, inspirational memoir, a former NASA astronaut and NFL wide receiver shares his personal journey from the gridiron to the stars, examining the intersecting roles of community, perseverance and grace that align to create the opportunities for success. Leland Melvin is the only...

Heather Couper presents a sweeping history of astronomy, as heard on BBC Radio 4. In this 30-part BBC Radio 4 series, astronomer Heather Couper charts the history of our understanding of the universe. Her journey begins at the beginning as people first gaze in wonder at the life-giving Sun...

The heart of this course examines the planets themselves, and reveals how they are constructed and how they differ from one another. By studying the physical astronomy of all the planets in the Solar System, we can attempt to understand their true nature. Ultimately, these lectures will bring us to a greater understanding of the Solar System's creation, which brings us again back to the beginning and what it means to us as we look outward from our rotating Earth.

One of The Barnes and Noble Review Editors' Picks: Best Nonfiction of 2012 Selected by The Christian Science Monitor as one of "21 smart nonfiction titles we think you'll enjoy this summer" Selected by The New Scientist as one of 10 books to look out for in 2012 We've long understood black holes...

The galaxy, the multiverse, and the history of astronomy are explored in this engaging compilation of cosmological "tales" by multiple award-winning science writer Marcia Bartusiak. In 32 concise and engrossing essays, the author provides a deeper understanding of the nature of the universe and those who strive to uncover its mysteries. Bartusiak shares the back stories for many momentous astronomical discoveries, including the contributions of such pioneers as Beatrice Tinsley and her groundbreaking research in galactic evolution.

It is now known that we live in a galaxy with more planets than stars. The Milky Way alone encompasses 30 trillion potential home planets. Scientists Trefil and Summers bring listeners on a marvelous experimental voyage through the possibilities of life-unlike anything we have experienced so far - that could exist on planets outside our own solar system.

Imaginez un instant cette scène irréelle : des milliers, des millions peut-être, de voitures se trouvant soudainement enveloppées dans un halo de sécurité, les coussins gonflables se déployant avec une précision chirurgicale. Les rues, auparavant des artères de béton et d'asphalte, furent transformées en océans de coussins gonflables, où les véhicules devinrent les sommets de montagnes mouvantes, émergeant de vagues blanches et cotonneuses. C'était comme si la Terre elle-même se gonflait de précaution, se protégeant contre une menace invisible venue des confins de l'espace.

Human travel into space is an enormously expensive and unforgiving endeavor. So why go? In this accessible and authoritative book, astrophysicist Martin Elvis argues that the answer is the asteroid exploration, for the strong motives of love, fear, and greed. Elvis explains how each motive can be satisfied, and how they help one another. From the origins of life, to "space billiards," and space sports, Elvis looks at how asteroids may be used in the not-so-distant future.

More than half a century after humans first walked on the Moon, exciting new space adventures are in the works. Thanks to major advances in rocketry, robotics, and other space technologies, humanity is on the verge of returning to the Moon, exploring Mars, building permanent orbiting space stations, expanding space tourism, and pushing the boundaries of exploration throughout the solar system and beyond. The Future of Space Exploration explores these exciting developments in 12 half-hour episodes, hosted by aerospace engineer and executive Dr. Ariel Ekblaw.

Fight for the Final Frontier uses the concepts associated with irregular warfare to offer new insights for understanding the nature of strategic competition in space. Today's most pressing security concerns are best considered using an irregular warfare lens because incidents and points of potential conflict fall outside the definition of armed conflict. While some universal rules of combat apply across all domains, conflict in space up-ends those assumed standards of understanding.

Witty and thought provoking, two Vatican astronomers shed provocative light on some of the strange places where religion and science meet. “Imagine if a Martian showed up, all big ears and big nose like a child’s drawing, and he asked to be baptized. How would you react?” —Pope Francis...