The Supermassive Podcast – Details, episodes & analysis

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The Supermassive Podcast

The Royal Astronomical Society

Science

History

Frequency: 1 episode/20d. Total Eps: 115

The UK's #1 space podcast.

Science journalist Izzie Clarke and astrophysicist Dr Becky Smethurst whizz through the universe to explore the latest research with leading experts, dive to history from the society’s archives and take on your weird and wonderful questions about all things space. Can we gravitationally hitch-hike out of the solar system? Do we live in a multiverse? What is time? Plus Dr Robert Massey is on hand with his top star-gazing tips.

Want to support the show? Join The Supermassive Club for exclusive content, star-gazing forums and ad-free listening... supermassive.supportingcast.fm

And keep adding to The Supermassive Mailbox with your pictures and questions for the team. Send them to podcast@ras.ac.uk or follow them on Instagram, @SupermassivePod.

The Supermassive Podcast is a Boffin Media production for the Royal Astronomical Society. The producers are Izzie Clarke and Richard Hollingham.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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🇬🇧 Great Britain - science
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https://www.britishpodcastawards.com/voting
1094 shares
https://geni.us/jNcrw
57 shares
https://ras.ac.uk/
21 shares

https://www.instagram.com/supermassivepod
24 shares
https://www.instagram.com/SUPERMASSIVEPOD
1 share

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RSS feed quality

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Score global : 59%

Publication history

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Latest published episodes

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Sample Return Missions - What Could Possibly Go Wrong?

Episode 62

vendredi 28 février 2025 • Duration 46:40

This time Dr Becky Smethurst and Izzie Clarke discover why it’s touch and go when it comes to returning asteroid samples to Earth and hear how we’ve been exchanging spit with Mars since the dawn of the Solar System.

The team is joined by Dr Sara Russell, a meteorite researcher at the Natural History Museum in London, and Dr Albert Haldemann, Mars Chief Engineer for the European Space Agency.

As ever, Dr Robert Massey is with us to answer your questions and look ahead to the next month in the night sky.

Keep you questions coming…you can email podcast@ras.ac.uk or find us on instagram, @SupermassivePod.

The Supermassive Podcast is a Boffin Media production. The producers are Izzie Clarke and Richard Hollingham.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

EMERGENCY BONUS - Asteroid 2024 YR4

Episode 61

mercredi 19 février 2025 • Duration 13:09

Scientists have detected an asteroid that has a small chance of hitting Earth. Resident expert Dr Robert Massey tells Izzie Clarke and Richard Hollingham why we shouldn't be worried.

Want to suggest a topic to the team? Contact podcast@ras.ac.uk or find us on Instagram @SupermassivePod.

The Supermassive Podcast is a Boffin Media production. The producers are Izzie Clarke and Richard Hollingham

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Untangling the Cosmic Web

Episode 57

mercredi 2 octobre 2024 • Duration 43:57

Izzie and Dr Becky are untangling the cosmic web - the large scale structure of the universe - with help from Dr Chiara Mingarelli from Yale University. What the heck is it? What do we know about it? And can we use gravitational waves to "see" it? Plus, Dr Robert Massey is on hand to answer your questions.

Got a question for the team? Contact us on podcast@ras.ac.uk or find us on Instagram, @SupermassivePod.

The Supermassive Podcast is a Boffin Media Production. The producers are Izzie Clarke and Richard Hollingham.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

BONUS - What distorts time?

Episode 56

jeudi 26 septembre 2024 • Duration 15:53

What happens when a black hole and gravitational wave collide? How will the moon's gravity impact tides with rising sea levels? And "the Supermassive Wise Ones" discuss Einstein vs Newton in this bonus episode.

Send your questions to podcast@ras.ac.uk.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We Made It To Mercury!

Episode 56

mercredi 4 septembre 2024 • Duration 35:26

Izzie and Dr Becky complete their tour of the solar system with a trip to Mercury, the space spirograph (copyright: Dr Becky). Join them as they explore what we know about the planet so far and what ESA's current mission, BepiColombo, is hoping to find. Plus, Dr Robert Massey is on hand to answer your questions.

Special thanks to guests Dr David Rothery from the Open University and Dr Simon Lindsay from the University of Leicester.

Don't forget to send your questions to the team via podcast@ras.ac.uk or Instagram @SupermassivePod

The Supermassive Podcast is a Boffin Media production for the Royal Astronomical Society. The producers are Izzie Clarke and Richard Hollingham.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

BONUS - Galaxy Spin and Saving Herstmonceux Observatory

Episode 55

mercredi 21 août 2024 • Duration 13:41

Does an instantaneous star map exist? Where are the perfect spheres in space? How did Venus get so close to the Sun? It's a bonus episode from The Supermassive team.

Sign the petition and support Herstmonceux Observatory here... https://www.change.org/p/save-the-observatory-science-centre-herstmonceux

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Venus aka "Earth's Evil Twin"

Episode 55

jeudi 1 août 2024 • Duration 42:49

This is Venus’ moment in the supermassive spotlight. What do we know about this hellish planet? And what missions are going there in the near future?

Izzie and Dr Becky speak with Dr Phillipa Mason from Imperial College London about EnVision, an upcoming mission to Venus, as well as RAS librarian Sian Prosser to explore the archive. Plus Dr Robert Massey is here to take on your questions.

The paper about the sounds on Venus can be found here.

The Supermassive Podcast is a Boffin Media production by Izzie Clarke and Richard Hollingham.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

BONUS - Overmassive Galaxies

Episode 54

samedi 20 juillet 2024 • Duration 22:39

The Supermassive Overmassive Podcast has a special bonus episode. Join Izzie, Dr Becky, Dr Robert and Richard as they discuss the last two years of JWST and share their recommendations for Space Book Club.

Recommendations:

Unseen Universe: New Secrets of the Cosmos Revealed by the James Webb Space Telescope by Dr Caroline Harper
The Possibility of Life by Jaime Green
When Galaxies Were Born - Richard Ellis
Challenger: A True Story of Heroism and Disaster on the Edge of Space By Adam Higginbotham

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Q&A - Black Hole Special

Episode 54

mercredi 3 juillet 2024 • Duration 50:18

Have black holes existed since the beginning of the Universe? Could we produce a black hole in the lab? Could we use gravitational waves to probe beyond the event horizon?

It's a black hole Q&A as Izzie put your questions to Becky and Robert. Plus, author and broadcaster, Marcus Chown, runs through a potted history of discovering black holes. His latest book on the same topic, A Crack In Everything, is out now: https://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/crack-in-everything-9781804544303/

The Supermassive Podcast is a Boffin Media production by Izzie Clarke and Richard Hollingham.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

BONUS - Lumpy Space Potatoes

Episode 53

vendredi 21 juin 2024 • Duration 14:04

In this month's bonus episode Izzie, Dr Becky Smethurst and Dr Robert Massey tackle questions on pulsars, woo woo sounds from black holes, imperfect spheres and alien aurorae. Send your questions to: podcast@ras.ac.uk, and we’re also on instagram @SupermassivePod.

The Supermassive podcast is produced by Izzie Clarke and Richard Hollingham and is a Boffin Media production for the Royal Astronomical Society.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.