WEBVTT 1 00:00:00.160 --> 00:00:04.080 Warning. The following podcast contains an entertaining look at astronomy, physics, 2 00:00:04.120 --> 00:00:07.040 and space news throughout the known universe. Listeners have been 3 00:00:07.080 --> 00:00:10.119 known to learn about astronomical phenomenon, the scientific method, and 4 00:00:10.199 --> 00:00:15.119 expanded vocabulary to include terms like quasar asterism and uranus. Listen, 5 00:00:15.160 --> 00:00:15.919 that's your own risk. 6 00:00:16.079 --> 00:00:25.920 Go ahead. When made of stars, made them stars. 7 00:00:26.000 --> 00:00:34.560 Made sizes. When made us stars, you could be from 8 00:00:34.679 --> 00:00:42.920 high they would New Mexicomus, where all stars? 9 00:00:43.439 --> 00:00:56.640 When we are made of stars. I'm Wes Carol, joined 10 00:00:56.679 --> 00:01:00.200 by my good friend doctor Sean Cruising, Executive Director or 11 00:01:00.200 --> 00:01:03.960 at Columbus State University's Coca Cola Space Science Center. 12 00:01:04.000 --> 00:01:07.519 Hey Sean, Hey Wes, good to be here. All right. 13 00:01:07.799 --> 00:01:10.959 We were there for the arrival of the Artemis two 14 00:01:11.120 --> 00:01:13.640 core stage at the Kennedy Space Center. We did not 15 00:01:13.719 --> 00:01:16.480 make the venture down for Artemis three. No disrespect to 16 00:01:16.599 --> 00:01:19.760 Artemis three. It's an important mission. It's a very significant 17 00:01:19.799 --> 00:01:24.959 part of the next mission towards getting human beings with 18 00:01:25.079 --> 00:01:28.599 their boots on the ground on the surface of the Moon. 19 00:01:28.680 --> 00:01:31.159 And we know that that mission then leads to hey, 20 00:01:31.239 --> 00:01:33.519 let's build a house here, and then hey, let's go 21 00:01:33.599 --> 00:01:36.079 to Mars and let's build a house there too. So 22 00:01:36.200 --> 00:01:38.920 this is important. This is that bridge mission that goes 23 00:01:39.000 --> 00:01:43.239 between going around the Moon and then going and landing 24 00:01:43.280 --> 00:01:46.200 on the Moon. But as a little bit less glitz 25 00:01:46.280 --> 00:01:49.319 to it, because this isn't the one. Initially we thought 26 00:01:49.319 --> 00:01:50.599 this is the one where they were going to be 27 00:01:50.599 --> 00:01:53.400 feet on the ground, but this isn't that mission. But 28 00:01:53.400 --> 00:01:55.319 there's a lot of important things that were going to 29 00:01:55.359 --> 00:01:59.359 take place on that mission. But this is a test mission, 30 00:01:59.439 --> 00:02:01.319 something that they need to do. So we didn't make 31 00:02:01.359 --> 00:02:04.920 this journey. It's no offense to Artemis three. We still 32 00:02:04.920 --> 00:02:06.680 acknowledge how important this mission is. 33 00:02:07.719 --> 00:02:10.080 I mean, if the good folks at NASA Media would 34 00:02:10.159 --> 00:02:13.680 like to invite us down for the launch of Artemis three, ye, 35 00:02:13.840 --> 00:02:16.240 we would more than happily accept that invitation. 36 00:02:16.400 --> 00:02:17.199 We're down for that. 37 00:02:17.879 --> 00:02:21.439 Justin Casher listening, we're already putting the date on our 38 00:02:21.479 --> 00:02:23.759 calendar in the you know, summer of twenty twenty seven. 39 00:02:24.319 --> 00:02:26.680 Well, we'll have it circled. We're ready to go. And 40 00:02:26.719 --> 00:02:28.680 while we're at it, I mean, just so that we 41 00:02:28.759 --> 00:02:33.039 don't discriminate in any capacity at all to the folks 42 00:02:33.039 --> 00:02:35.759 at SpaceX, we know you just launched another Falcon heavy. 43 00:02:36.240 --> 00:02:38.599 We'd be down to come cover that as well. So 44 00:02:38.719 --> 00:02:40.680 you just let us know. Any of those big boys 45 00:02:40.680 --> 00:02:44.400 going up has a different has a different feel to it. 46 00:02:44.400 --> 00:02:46.960 It's like a Luke Carroll belch. It will shake the house, 47 00:02:47.560 --> 00:02:50.400 you know, those one of those big boys going up. 48 00:02:50.439 --> 00:02:53.120 My son is very, very good at belching. That's all. 49 00:02:53.680 --> 00:02:57.319 We're looking into competitions. So let's talk about Artemis three 50 00:02:57.520 --> 00:02:59.879 and the arrival at Kennedy. We know what it looks like, 51 00:03:00.120 --> 00:03:02.240 we know the visuals. We know it's coming out of 52 00:03:02.240 --> 00:03:06.120 that giant cigar, a cigarette cigar tube cigar, the big 53 00:03:06.159 --> 00:03:10.280 cigar tube coming off the off the barge, slowly coming 54 00:03:10.280 --> 00:03:15.199 off and then right on into the Kennedy Space Centers VAB. 55 00:03:15.919 --> 00:03:19.199 Yeah. The cigar carrier is the Pegasus barge. It's a 56 00:03:19.240 --> 00:03:23.639 weird looking ship that's made to carry big rockets like 57 00:03:23.680 --> 00:03:26.479 this one. And I'm glad that Luke's thinking of future careers, 58 00:03:26.520 --> 00:03:29.159 by the way, so that's a good thing. Career prep 59 00:03:29.240 --> 00:03:33.199 is important. Gotta do what you gotta do. So what allegedly, 60 00:03:33.319 --> 00:03:35.719 or what NASA keeps repeating is this is the top 61 00:03:35.919 --> 00:03:39.360 four fifths, the top four fifths. I was never great 62 00:03:39.400 --> 00:03:42.879 at fractions that seems like four out of five to me. 63 00:03:43.159 --> 00:03:46.599 The top four fifths of the agency's Space Launch System 64 00:03:46.759 --> 00:03:50.080 core stage for Artemis three. What's missing is the bottom 65 00:03:50.159 --> 00:03:54.000 fifth and the bottom fifth are the engines, right, That's 66 00:03:54.520 --> 00:03:56.800 that's where the power plant is down there at the bottom. 67 00:03:57.000 --> 00:04:01.240 That's the Mighty RS twenty five engines that go on 68 00:04:01.319 --> 00:04:02.960 and there's four of them that go on the bottom 69 00:04:03.000 --> 00:04:06.400 of that stage, and that's what they'll be attaching. One 70 00:04:06.400 --> 00:04:08.639 of the first things they'll be attaching to the top 71 00:04:08.680 --> 00:04:11.719 four fifths is that bottom fifth with all the actual 72 00:04:11.719 --> 00:04:13.840 engines on it. So the top four fifths more or 73 00:04:13.919 --> 00:04:17.480 less just a giant fuel tank and fuel routing system. 74 00:04:17.600 --> 00:04:20.240 So that's what's arrived down there at Kennedy Space Center. 75 00:04:20.399 --> 00:04:23.800 It's still a very impressive site. It's amazing to see 76 00:04:23.800 --> 00:04:27.160 that massive fuel tank core stage of the rocket come 77 00:04:27.240 --> 00:04:29.959 on shore and then all of the workers at Kennedy 78 00:04:30.000 --> 00:04:32.199 Space Center doing what they need to do to get 79 00:04:32.240 --> 00:04:37.480 it from the barge dock to the actual vertical assembly 80 00:04:37.480 --> 00:04:40.319 building or vehicle assembly building where they can actually take 81 00:04:40.399 --> 00:04:43.920 the rocket vertical and begin to assemble these other components. 82 00:04:43.920 --> 00:04:46.600 So that's what we've been watching. It came in on 83 00:04:46.720 --> 00:04:50.480 Monday of this week, Monday, April twenty seventh, twenty twenty six, 84 00:04:50.800 --> 00:04:55.720 and that Artemis III will hopefully be launching astronauts to 85 00:04:55.879 --> 00:04:57.720 Earth orbit, not to orbit around the Moon this time, 86 00:04:57.720 --> 00:05:00.040 but Earth orbit, so that they can test out the 87 00:05:00.120 --> 00:05:05.399 Oriyan's capability to dock up with a lunar lander. Which 88 00:05:05.480 --> 00:05:10.240 lunar lander is it going to be SpaceX or Blue Origin? Well, 89 00:05:10.279 --> 00:05:12.519 that's what we're still waiting to see, and that's what 90 00:05:12.959 --> 00:05:15.360 the further development of the Artemis three mission is going 91 00:05:15.439 --> 00:05:17.839 to be all about. It's going to be about finally 92 00:05:18.319 --> 00:05:22.439 settling on a platform to land astronauts on the surface 93 00:05:22.480 --> 00:05:25.160 of the Moon. And the two platforms that are in 94 00:05:25.319 --> 00:05:31.399 consideration as of now SpaceX and Blue Origin. So we're 95 00:05:31.399 --> 00:05:33.879 going to see We're going to be keeping a very 96 00:05:33.879 --> 00:05:37.360 close eye on how that Artomist three mission develops, because 97 00:05:37.399 --> 00:05:40.160 when you're in orbit around the Moon and you're trying 98 00:05:40.199 --> 00:05:42.560 to land on the surface of the Moon, you want 99 00:05:42.560 --> 00:05:45.399 to make sure that your lander is tested and reliable. 100 00:05:46.079 --> 00:05:49.959 And this reminds me a lot of the Apollo ten mission, 101 00:05:50.959 --> 00:05:55.120 Apollo nine mission, where they were doing dress rehearsals of 102 00:05:55.160 --> 00:05:58.480 these very things so that they can make sure that 103 00:05:58.480 --> 00:06:02.560 the Apollo eleven mission went off without a hitch, and 104 00:06:02.680 --> 00:06:04.800 you know this one is more like the Apollo nine 105 00:06:04.800 --> 00:06:08.040 mission actually, which was performed in Earth orbit and which 106 00:06:08.120 --> 00:06:10.759 David Scott, Commander David Scott was part of that crew. 107 00:06:11.360 --> 00:06:13.120 Why is that important to us here at Space Science 108 00:06:13.120 --> 00:06:16.000 Center because we have a collection of Dave Scott artifacts 109 00:06:16.360 --> 00:06:18.720 on display that were donated by Dave and his family, 110 00:06:19.040 --> 00:06:22.879 Tom in particular, his brother. So so yeah, we like 111 00:06:22.920 --> 00:06:25.160 to harken back to the days of Apollo and say 112 00:06:25.680 --> 00:06:28.040 this next Artemiss three kind of looks a lot like 113 00:06:28.079 --> 00:06:30.839 Apollo nine where they did a bunch of testing of 114 00:06:30.920 --> 00:06:33.879 all the components in Earth orbit before actually trying to 115 00:06:33.879 --> 00:06:35.560 do it around the Moon. 116 00:06:36.439 --> 00:06:40.639 The Artemis two crew has been interviewed and they've been 117 00:06:40.680 --> 00:06:45.040 talking about this next mission. Obviously they could they couldn't 118 00:06:45.040 --> 00:06:48.160 have picked a better group of ambassadors for the whole 119 00:06:48.279 --> 00:06:54.160 Artemis mission than these four astronauts, but they've been now 120 00:06:54.360 --> 00:06:56.480 doing what you do, You talk about what you experienced, 121 00:06:56.600 --> 00:06:58.519 you talk about the personal side of it. I've seen 122 00:06:58.560 --> 00:07:01.959 them doing it, talking about their foht potos. Realizing in 123 00:07:02.000 --> 00:07:04.240 the moment when we take these photos with you know, 124 00:07:04.319 --> 00:07:07.600 a selfie that has my face in it. There was 125 00:07:07.639 --> 00:07:13.680 one photo that Christina took where she said, Christina cooks 126 00:07:13.720 --> 00:07:16.959 She basically said, I noticed it first, Hey, my hair 127 00:07:17.040 --> 00:07:21.079 is in the photo. We should probably retake it, and 128 00:07:21.120 --> 00:07:24.720 then she had the presence of mind to just say, no, 129 00:07:25.000 --> 00:07:26.959 leave it in there. This tells part of the story. 130 00:07:27.720 --> 00:07:29.920 And you know, that kind of personal side of things 131 00:07:29.959 --> 00:07:32.319 where they were trying to do that and let us 132 00:07:32.360 --> 00:07:34.160 and you and I've covered that over the past couple 133 00:07:34.199 --> 00:07:37.079 of weeks about that personal side the reason that's important. 134 00:07:37.439 --> 00:07:40.480 But I mentioned them because they, you know, looking ahead 135 00:07:40.480 --> 00:07:42.800 to this Artemis three mission and what it's going to 136 00:07:42.800 --> 00:07:47.360 be doing and ultimately Artemis four, and they talked a 137 00:07:47.360 --> 00:07:49.759 little bit. I've heard them talk about the importance of 138 00:07:49.800 --> 00:07:53.120 the South Pole and how that's ultimately where they're trying 139 00:07:53.160 --> 00:07:53.680 to get to. 140 00:07:55.040 --> 00:07:57.839 Yeah, so first of all, about the Christina Cook photograph. 141 00:07:57.920 --> 00:08:02.920 We actually have that image blown up into a giant 142 00:08:02.920 --> 00:08:06.160 poster and placed in our exhibit gallery because I think 143 00:08:06.360 --> 00:08:08.879 I happen to think that that this is for me personally. 144 00:08:09.160 --> 00:08:11.600 I think that's one of the best women in science 145 00:08:11.600 --> 00:08:15.360 photographs that I've seen in quite some time that should 146 00:08:15.399 --> 00:08:21.160 be just by pure visual power a great inspiration to 147 00:08:21.560 --> 00:08:25.839 a new generation of females wanting to pursue flight space. 148 00:08:25.879 --> 00:08:28.839 You young ladies can look up to Christina Cook as 149 00:08:28.839 --> 00:08:32.600 a role model. See that photograph instantly identify the power 150 00:08:33.240 --> 00:08:35.759 of being able to pursue science and be in that 151 00:08:35.919 --> 00:08:37.799 kind of a venue or in that kind of a 152 00:08:37.840 --> 00:08:40.519 circumstance and have that be an inspiration to them. So 153 00:08:40.559 --> 00:08:42.879 that's why we put that up in our exhibit gallery 154 00:08:42.879 --> 00:08:45.759 here at our facility at Coca Cola Space Science Center. 155 00:08:46.000 --> 00:08:49.039 Second of all, you're right about them being tremendous ambassadors. 156 00:08:49.080 --> 00:08:53.960 Every interview I've heard that featured the astronauts has been astounding. 157 00:08:54.279 --> 00:08:56.960 They have a lot of very insightful things to say, 158 00:08:57.679 --> 00:09:00.879 but a lot of very level headed and serious points 159 00:09:00.879 --> 00:09:04.440 to make, and they've really been able to humanize this 160 00:09:04.559 --> 00:09:07.799 trip around the Moon, which again we've talked about a 161 00:09:07.840 --> 00:09:11.279 lot on this podcast, a lot, which is humans are 162 00:09:11.399 --> 00:09:14.200 far more inspired to see humans going out and doing 163 00:09:14.600 --> 00:09:18.039 adventurous things. Yes, we can send robots to do a 164 00:09:18.039 --> 00:09:19.879 fair amount of things, but at the end of the day, 165 00:09:20.639 --> 00:09:23.679 the thing that inspires us is to see other human 166 00:09:23.720 --> 00:09:26.960 beings going off and being a part of this mission, 167 00:09:27.480 --> 00:09:32.200 being tactically involved, because then somehow we channel their experience 168 00:09:32.600 --> 00:09:36.399 and we get to feel just vicariously a small slice 169 00:09:36.440 --> 00:09:38.960 of what that must have been like for those astronauts 170 00:09:38.960 --> 00:09:41.200 to experience that. So the more of those kinds of 171 00:09:41.279 --> 00:09:45.240 human experiences that these astronauts share, I really think, and 172 00:09:45.279 --> 00:09:47.440 we've really felt that we've seen this impact here at 173 00:09:47.440 --> 00:09:50.559 Space Science Center, the more that people just are engaged 174 00:09:50.919 --> 00:09:58.159 with the whole event. We've done amazing robotic contributions to science, 175 00:09:58.679 --> 00:10:01.399 including all the Mars Rowe and many of the other 176 00:10:01.440 --> 00:10:04.960 probes like Osyrus Rex and those kinds of things, and 177 00:10:05.000 --> 00:10:08.320 people barely they barely engage with that in terms of 178 00:10:08.799 --> 00:10:10.679 you know, I'm not talking when to say people, I 179 00:10:10.679 --> 00:10:13.240 don't mean people like me, a big space geek. I 180 00:10:13.240 --> 00:10:16.279 mean just your average public person off the sidewalk coming 181 00:10:16.360 --> 00:10:18.960 into the Space Science Center. They're vaguely aware of it, 182 00:10:19.080 --> 00:10:20.919 or maybe they're not aware of it at all. But 183 00:10:21.120 --> 00:10:24.600 suddenly when people go out and do something amazing like 184 00:10:24.639 --> 00:10:26.879 go to the far side of the Moon, they know 185 00:10:27.000 --> 00:10:29.960 their names, they know their backstories, they know all about them, 186 00:10:30.159 --> 00:10:33.159 and they're watching each step of that amazing adventure. And 187 00:10:33.600 --> 00:10:36.399 as you say that, that photograph kind of really summed 188 00:10:36.519 --> 00:10:39.759 up a piece of that experience just in an image, 189 00:10:40.080 --> 00:10:42.639 which is worth a thousand words. So check that, check 190 00:10:42.679 --> 00:10:46.200 that photograph out, and you know, we're excited for Artemis three. 191 00:10:46.240 --> 00:10:48.639 We're excited for the continuing process. 192 00:10:50.000 --> 00:10:53.759 Our next story is one of hope, because there was 193 00:10:53.799 --> 00:10:57.759 a point where you came in to the studio with 194 00:10:57.840 --> 00:11:01.879 me years ago and you broke the news to me, Hey, 195 00:11:02.360 --> 00:11:05.360 Pluto's not a planet anymore, and this is happening, and 196 00:11:05.399 --> 00:11:07.240 I thought, well, what do we do to stop this? 197 00:11:07.360 --> 00:11:10.200 How do we how do we stop these crazy people 198 00:11:10.279 --> 00:11:12.159 from ruining Pluto? 199 00:11:13.159 --> 00:11:14.399 And it's done. 200 00:11:14.639 --> 00:11:17.919 They've they've changed the standards, they've they've or whatever they did. 201 00:11:18.000 --> 00:11:20.600 They just said, we're just we don't we don't like 202 00:11:20.679 --> 00:11:23.200 planets discovered by Americans. I don't. I don't know what 203 00:11:23.240 --> 00:11:27.879 the what the deal was, but suddenly a planet that 204 00:11:28.000 --> 00:11:30.039 many considered their fair I know, as a kid, there 205 00:11:30.039 --> 00:11:33.519 were kids in school Pluto is my favorite planet, and 206 00:11:33.639 --> 00:11:36.639 I said, well, you know, as long as Uranus is around, 207 00:11:37.320 --> 00:11:38.559 you know, it's my second favorite. 208 00:11:38.600 --> 00:11:38.759 Now. 209 00:11:39.159 --> 00:11:43.000 But now, I wasn't even making Uranus jokes at that age. 210 00:11:43.120 --> 00:11:47.919 Sorry to disappoint, but I certainly would probably giggle, but 211 00:11:48.039 --> 00:11:51.039 not making the jokes. But my point is now it 212 00:11:51.200 --> 00:11:54.440 seems we have at least one heavy hitter who's on 213 00:11:54.519 --> 00:11:58.080 team let's bring Pluto back, and that is Jared Isaacman, 214 00:11:58.200 --> 00:12:00.960 the head of NASA, and this has come up a 215 00:12:00.960 --> 00:12:04.039 couple of times with him. It's come up again this week. 216 00:12:04.799 --> 00:12:10.159 And so are we saying there's a chance that Pluto 217 00:12:10.240 --> 00:12:12.159 may be back. I don't know. I don't know where 218 00:12:12.159 --> 00:12:15.080 this is, but I don't give me hope Sean cruising. 219 00:12:15.120 --> 00:12:18.720 If there's no hope, let me just tell you West 220 00:12:18.720 --> 00:12:22.440 Carrol that I don't really think there's a lot of hope. 221 00:12:22.679 --> 00:12:26.720 But it's interesting. It's an interesting discussion. So all right, 222 00:12:26.759 --> 00:12:31.279 So first of all, first of all, sentimentally, for me personally, 223 00:12:32.919 --> 00:12:37.879 the planet Pluto was discovered at the Loll Observatory in Flagstaff, Arizona. 224 00:12:38.360 --> 00:12:42.240 Loll Observatory in Flagstaff, Arizona happens to be a place 225 00:12:42.279 --> 00:12:45.200 where I've done a lot of my professional telescope work 226 00:12:46.000 --> 00:12:53.320 for my advisor, for fellow students, and published papers based 227 00:12:53.320 --> 00:12:56.720 on data taken at the low observatory. So I've actually 228 00:12:56.759 --> 00:13:01.559 been to the what they call Pluto camera, which is 229 00:13:01.559 --> 00:13:04.879 in its own little observatory dome I've actually been to 230 00:13:04.879 --> 00:13:08.600 the Pluto camera. I've touched the actual camera that Clyde 231 00:13:08.600 --> 00:13:13.200 Tomba an inspiring story in himself, by the way, because 232 00:13:13.200 --> 00:13:17.000 he was a really avid amateur astronomer who got to 233 00:13:17.039 --> 00:13:20.320 go pro as he joined the team at Little Observatory. 234 00:13:20.759 --> 00:13:25.519 Clyde Tomba then used that telescope to search for and 235 00:13:25.639 --> 00:13:31.039 locate what was then the ninth planet in our Solar system, 236 00:13:31.240 --> 00:13:34.000 which is why when it got booted out in two 237 00:13:34.039 --> 00:13:38.200 thousand and six and we went back to eight and 238 00:13:38.279 --> 00:13:41.559 all those plants were not discovered in the United States, 239 00:13:43.080 --> 00:13:45.320 and someone like me who's kind of a partisan, because 240 00:13:45.320 --> 00:13:49.039 I've actually been to that observatory, I emotionally just really 241 00:13:49.080 --> 00:13:52.240 wanted Pluto to stay a planet. And I've made that 242 00:13:52.279 --> 00:13:55.279 point clear on this podcast and on the radio broadcast 243 00:13:55.320 --> 00:13:58.200 before I will tell you this. There are bona fide 244 00:13:58.399 --> 00:14:04.720 science reasons for a reclassification, and part of that is 245 00:14:04.759 --> 00:14:08.879 because we started finding a bunch of other Pluto type objects, 246 00:14:10.080 --> 00:14:13.279 So we now know about more of those kinds of 247 00:14:13.320 --> 00:14:16.720 objects than we know about what we're calling planets currently. 248 00:14:17.320 --> 00:14:20.200 So then the question becomes, well, if you reinstate Pluto, 249 00:14:21.120 --> 00:14:23.759 does it bring all of its stray cat friends into 250 00:14:23.799 --> 00:14:27.200 the planet Club. And as I've made the point to 251 00:14:27.240 --> 00:14:29.759 students a long time, we can either have eight planets 252 00:14:29.840 --> 00:14:33.000 or we can have eight hundred planets eventually, right, And 253 00:14:33.080 --> 00:14:37.360 so does Pluto fall into a category that's worthwhile defining. 254 00:14:38.399 --> 00:14:41.080 The reason we're talking about that on the podcast today 255 00:14:41.240 --> 00:14:46.279 is because the NASA Administrator, Jared Isiacman, said in a 256 00:14:46.320 --> 00:14:52.720 meeting on Monday with the House Appropriation Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science, 257 00:14:52.919 --> 00:14:57.559 and Related Agencies they were reviewing the twenty twenty seven 258 00:14:57.639 --> 00:15:02.519 fiscal year budget for NASA on and then in a 259 00:15:02.639 --> 00:15:05.200 kind of a side comment toward the end of the meeting, 260 00:15:05.600 --> 00:15:11.000 Republican Senator Jerry Moran asked NASA administrator his thoughts on Pluto. 261 00:15:11.320 --> 00:15:13.360 And here's the thing you need to know about Jerry Moran. 262 00:15:13.519 --> 00:15:14.639 He's from Kansas. 263 00:15:15.039 --> 00:15:19.080 He is one of the two senators from Kansas. That's right. 264 00:15:19.759 --> 00:15:23.679 So Pluto, we're not in Kansas anymore, I mean anyway, 265 00:15:23.879 --> 00:15:26.799 So why is Pluto tied to Kansas? Well, you see, 266 00:15:26.960 --> 00:15:30.919 that's the home state of Clyde Tombaugh. There's the punchline. 267 00:15:31.879 --> 00:15:36.080 That's Clyde Tombaugh's home state. Yes, he discovered the planet 268 00:15:36.120 --> 00:15:39.320 while working in Arizona, but he grew up in Kansas 269 00:15:39.320 --> 00:15:44.080 and attended the University of Kansas. So so, then this 270 00:15:44.799 --> 00:15:49.759 Republican senator from the Great State of Kansas asked the 271 00:15:49.879 --> 00:15:52.720 NASA administrator, what are your feelings on Pluto? What do 272 00:15:52.759 --> 00:15:56.360 you think about that Pluto situation. Jared Isagman responded with 273 00:15:56.399 --> 00:15:59.720 something kind of maybe a little bit surprising. He said, quote, Senator, 274 00:15:59.759 --> 00:16:02.080 I am very much in the camp of make Pluto 275 00:16:02.159 --> 00:16:05.399 a planet again. Does that sound like a phrase we've 276 00:16:05.440 --> 00:16:08.919 heard somewhere else? It does a red hat or something. 277 00:16:08.960 --> 00:16:11.960 Something like that. Yes, I think we've had a certain 278 00:16:13.559 --> 00:16:18.200 a certain president has even uttered those words before to make. 279 00:16:18.080 --> 00:16:20.279 A planet again. I don't know something like that anyway, 280 00:16:20.279 --> 00:16:23.320 all right, So so, but then Jaredisacan went on to say, 281 00:16:23.519 --> 00:16:27.320 we are doing some papers right now on I think 282 00:16:27.320 --> 00:16:30.240 a position that we would love to escalate through the 283 00:16:30.279 --> 00:16:35.679 scientific community to revisit this discussion. And then Jaredisigman continued, 284 00:16:36.039 --> 00:16:38.559 Jaredisigman being the director of NASA, by the way, NASA 285 00:16:38.559 --> 00:16:42.120 Administrator Jaredizegman went on to say he wanted to ensure 286 00:16:42.159 --> 00:16:45.840 that Clyde Tombaugh gets the credit he received once and 287 00:16:46.039 --> 00:16:52.799 rightly deserves to receive again unquote the credit mister Isaacman 288 00:16:52.919 --> 00:16:57.240 speaking of is the discoverer of a planet, a discoverer 289 00:16:57.279 --> 00:17:02.559 of worlds rightly should be in the discoverer of World's club. 290 00:17:02.759 --> 00:17:06.960 I happen to agree with this. Again. I'm not going 291 00:17:07.000 --> 00:17:09.839 to deny the scientific justifications out there, I get it. 292 00:17:10.960 --> 00:17:14.119 But maybe for historic reasons we should just make an 293 00:17:14.119 --> 00:17:17.319 exception for Pluto and reclassify all the rest of those 294 00:17:17.359 --> 00:17:20.440 buggers out there. That's kind of what I think. So anyway, 295 00:17:20.759 --> 00:17:24.359 this is an interesting open the chapter from two thousand 296 00:17:24.400 --> 00:17:26.440 and six. It feels all like two thousand and six 297 00:17:26.480 --> 00:17:29.720 again when we're talking about this, But all right, reopen 298 00:17:29.759 --> 00:17:32.599 that chapter from two thousand and six. Let's go back 299 00:17:32.640 --> 00:17:36.880 and maybe take one more look at the classification for 300 00:17:36.960 --> 00:17:40.960 what is and for what is not a planet. Wes, 301 00:17:41.039 --> 00:17:42.799 I think you mis mentioned this to me before we 302 00:17:42.839 --> 00:17:45.799 went on air today, that some of those some of 303 00:17:45.839 --> 00:17:48.359 those conditions don't match some of the other planets that 304 00:17:48.359 --> 00:17:49.880 are already in the Solar. 305 00:17:49.599 --> 00:17:54.359 System, including Earth, including Earth, and including Jupiter, which quite 306 00:17:54.359 --> 00:17:57.200 honestly is the most planity planet you can imagine. It's 307 00:17:57.200 --> 00:17:59.799 about as planety as you can get and of course 308 00:17:59.839 --> 00:18:01.960 you know the one that's got people on it. I mean, 309 00:18:01.960 --> 00:18:04.440 those are the two most planity planets. 310 00:18:03.960 --> 00:18:07.279 A couple of pretty planty planets there. So anyway, so yeah, 311 00:18:07.319 --> 00:18:08.880 so they're gonna go back and they're gonna look at 312 00:18:08.880 --> 00:18:13.039 that circumstance again. They're gonna they're gonna reevaluate that scientific 313 00:18:13.079 --> 00:18:17.960 criteria and maybe send one more requisition up to the 314 00:18:18.000 --> 00:18:23.440 International Astronomical Union the IAU, the governing body for deciding 315 00:18:23.480 --> 00:18:26.599 what is and what is not a planet, and maybe 316 00:18:26.720 --> 00:18:29.519 let them reevaluate that one more time. Now, what what 317 00:18:29.559 --> 00:18:31.559 do you think the odds are in twenty twenty six? 318 00:18:32.079 --> 00:18:35.640 The IAU going, oh, yeah, those folks over in America, 319 00:18:35.839 --> 00:18:38.680 they've got a good point. Let's go with what they say. 320 00:18:39.160 --> 00:18:42.440 Doesn't feel likely right now, but okay, there it is. 321 00:18:42.799 --> 00:18:44.200 Maybe it also might. 322 00:18:44.240 --> 00:18:46.839 And this is just you know, we don't do politics, 323 00:18:46.920 --> 00:18:49.759 but just on the spirit of just pointing out the 324 00:18:49.799 --> 00:18:53.559 pr side of it, might not be doing themselves any 325 00:18:53.559 --> 00:18:57.720 favors by making any sort of statement that sounds like 326 00:18:57.799 --> 00:18:59.920 anything on a red hat just for the purposes of 327 00:19:00.039 --> 00:19:04.000 international science. That might not be helping the cause. No 328 00:19:04.000 --> 00:19:06.119 matter where you stand on the red hat, we're not 329 00:19:06.160 --> 00:19:10.200 making necessarily a statement on that. We're just saying it 330 00:19:10.480 --> 00:19:12.200 might be a better way to word it just for 331 00:19:12.279 --> 00:19:15.200 the purposes of a campaign to get behind it. But 332 00:19:15.759 --> 00:19:17.119 that's just my two cents on them. 333 00:19:17.279 --> 00:19:19.720 That phrase might play well with a senator from Kansas, 334 00:19:20.160 --> 00:19:23.920 I'm sure it would, and it probably would play well 335 00:19:23.960 --> 00:19:27.039 for I don't know about half the country, but we're 336 00:19:27.039 --> 00:19:28.119 not talking about the country. 337 00:19:28.119 --> 00:19:31.480 We're talking about sending this overseas to sign serious doubts. 338 00:19:31.519 --> 00:19:32.839 If that's going to play well in front of the 339 00:19:32.880 --> 00:19:34.680 International Astronomical. 340 00:19:34.119 --> 00:19:37.359 Union's that's I just feel like, yeah, that's a fair 341 00:19:37.400 --> 00:19:40.440 way to put it. More made of stars right after this, 342 00:20:01.039 --> 00:20:03.160 all right, Our next story is one of those stories 343 00:20:03.200 --> 00:20:05.200 that you see the headline and you go, my gosh, 344 00:20:05.200 --> 00:20:08.960 this almost sounds like, you know, back in the day, 345 00:20:09.160 --> 00:20:13.400 one of those atomic era movie titles, the Arctic Tongues 346 00:20:13.400 --> 00:20:14.400 of Ionization. 347 00:20:14.720 --> 00:20:18.359 Wow, Wow, beautiful man like that could have that could 348 00:20:18.359 --> 00:20:21.319 have come off the trailer for the thing. It could 349 00:20:21.319 --> 00:20:24.079 have this or this the world in the nineteen fifties 350 00:20:24.079 --> 00:20:27.920 with James Arnest walking around like Frankenstein, or you know, 351 00:20:28.079 --> 00:20:30.799 throw the Antarctic Station of Science. 352 00:20:30.839 --> 00:20:34.200 Throw way past his prime. Bell Legosi in there and 353 00:20:34.240 --> 00:20:36.599 it could be an Edward d. Wood junior movie. You know, 354 00:20:36.759 --> 00:20:39.599 it's it's very possible. 355 00:20:40.079 --> 00:20:42.519 But this came from This came from the website spaceweather 356 00:20:42.559 --> 00:20:43.279 dot com. 357 00:20:43.400 --> 00:20:48.480 Yeah, so what are tongues of ionization? This sounds interesting 358 00:20:48.519 --> 00:20:51.440 and I'm hoping to god this isn't something that they're 359 00:20:51.440 --> 00:20:53.519 about to reveal to us in this big, you know, 360 00:20:53.759 --> 00:20:58.359 information drop about aliens that's coming, because it sounds terrifying 361 00:20:58.400 --> 00:20:59.559 in that regard. 362 00:20:59.440 --> 00:21:04.519 Arcticus of ionization. Does you know? It feels enough surreal 363 00:21:04.519 --> 00:21:07.119 that it gives you just a little jolt of fear, like, oh, 364 00:21:07.160 --> 00:21:09.599 I should pay a tent. It's a news story and 365 00:21:09.640 --> 00:21:12.160 the headline is something about Arctic tongues of ionization. I 366 00:21:12.160 --> 00:21:15.680 should pay attention to that, And yeah, you probably should, 367 00:21:15.799 --> 00:21:18.359 so all right, our good friends from spaceweather dot com 368 00:21:18.640 --> 00:21:21.079 wrote this. I call them good friends not because we 369 00:21:21.119 --> 00:21:23.119 know them. I just like we quote them a lot 370 00:21:23.160 --> 00:21:25.480 on this podcast because they are one of the best 371 00:21:26.519 --> 00:21:30.400 space news websites out there. Go check out spaceweather dot 372 00:21:30.480 --> 00:21:34.160 com every chance you get, because they're just great. Doctor 373 00:21:34.200 --> 00:21:36.599 Tony Phillips and the crew over at space weather dot 374 00:21:36.640 --> 00:21:38.720 Com all right, So you and I my friend got 375 00:21:38.720 --> 00:21:41.319 to enjoy a phenomenon in the actual nighttime sky together 376 00:21:41.799 --> 00:21:44.480 back in May of twenty twenty four. In fact, it 377 00:21:44.519 --> 00:21:47.599 was May the tenth of twenty twenty four. I remember 378 00:21:47.599 --> 00:21:49.759 because we were slamming texts back and forth to each other, 379 00:21:49.799 --> 00:21:53.480 going why is our sky glowing? And the reason it 380 00:21:53.519 --> 00:21:56.039 was glowing is because there was a giant geomagnetic storm 381 00:21:56.079 --> 00:21:58.920 that took place on May the tenth. Oddly enough, October 382 00:21:58.960 --> 00:22:01.160 the tenth of the same year, that was another giant 383 00:22:01.160 --> 00:22:03.839 geomagnetic storm. And people might be going, okay, well a 384 00:22:03.839 --> 00:22:07.839 big deal. Northern lights. No, we live in Georgia. Yes, 385 00:22:08.519 --> 00:22:12.799 these are not northern lights. These are southern lights in 386 00:22:12.839 --> 00:22:15.799 the direction of north is what they are, which makes 387 00:22:15.799 --> 00:22:19.039 that of tad unusual. So we saw this geomagnetic storm, 388 00:22:19.480 --> 00:22:23.079 and the story on spaceweather dot com today is all 389 00:22:23.119 --> 00:22:25.920 about the big storm that happened in May of twenty 390 00:22:25.960 --> 00:22:29.000 twenty four. If you happen to be hanging out in 391 00:22:29.119 --> 00:22:34.480 Antarctica at that time, there were giant tongues of ionization. 392 00:22:34.680 --> 00:22:37.920 What does that mean? There were rivers of electric current 393 00:22:38.039 --> 00:22:42.240 passing through the atmosphere due to all of the impending 394 00:22:42.319 --> 00:22:46.640 solar radiation on the geomagnetic system here around our own 395 00:22:46.680 --> 00:22:50.400 Earth that bent down into our atmosphere, that caused these 396 00:22:50.559 --> 00:22:54.160 rivers of plasma in our own ionosphere that messed up 397 00:22:54.200 --> 00:22:58.640 the GPS system. Friends, And okay, well all right, can 398 00:22:58.720 --> 00:23:01.440 we live without you know, Google Maps for a couple hours? 399 00:23:01.480 --> 00:23:03.880 I mean, what's the big deal? No, no, no, no, 400 00:23:04.279 --> 00:23:07.720 you're thinking like an American. Think like you're in Antarctica 401 00:23:08.039 --> 00:23:11.400