Planetary Radio

Series produced by Mat Kaplan

Series image

The Planetary Society's travel show that takes you to the final frontier, featuring commentary by Society CEO Bill Nye the Science Guy.

For over 20 years, we've been proud to bring Planetary Radio to our dedicated listeners. However, after careful consideration, we discontinued our traditional broadcast distribution on Aug. 2, 2023. We invite Radio stations to continue airing the extended podcast version of the show, along with any of our previous episodes. You can find the extensive archive of our broadcasts and our new podcast MP3s here: https://www.planetary.org/planetary-radio/radio-episodes-files For more information about Planetary Radio, visit our website at https://www.planetary.org/radio. For inquiries or support, contact Sarah Al-Ahmed, the host and producer of Planetary Radio, at planetaryradio@planetary.org. Thank you again for being an integral part of the Planetary Radio family. We look forward to continuing our cosmic journey together through the wonders of our podcast and beyond. Hide full description

For over 20 years, we've been proud to bring Planetary Radio to our dedicated listeners. However, after careful consideration, we discontinued our traditional broadcast distribution on Aug. 2, 2023. We invite Radio stations to continue airing the extended podcast version of the show, along with any of our previous episodes. You can find the extensive archive of our broadcasts and our new podcast MP3s here: https://www.planetary.org/planetary-radio/radio-episodes-files For more information about Planetary Radio, visit our website at https://www.planetary.org/radio. For inquiries or support, contact Sarah Al-Ahmed, the host and producer of Planetary Radio, at planetaryradio@planetary.org. Thank you again for being an integral part of the Planetary Radio family. We look forward to... Show full description


519 Pieces

Order by: Newest First | Oldest First
Caption: Australian astronomer Julian Oey has just been awarded a second Shoemaker Near Earth Object grant., Credit: Blue Mountains Observatory
Seven astronomers have been selected to receive Shoemaker NEO (Near Earth Object) grants from the Planetary Society. They and their observatories ...

Bought by KDNK, KNVC Carson City Community Radio, KWMR, WXAV 88.3FM Chicago, WMUU-LP and more


  • Added: Mar 13, 2018
  • Length: 28:50
  • Purchases: 8
Caption: 3D-printed PlanetVac prototypes at Honeybee Robotics., Credit: Bruce Betts
Space is hard. Sample collection and return is harder still. That’s why the radically-simplified PlanetVac system from Honeybee Robotics is so in...

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  • Added: Mar 07, 2018
  • Length: 28:50
  • Purchases: 8
Caption: •	The cover for the Voyager Golden Record, headed into interstellar space on Voyagers 1 and 2, Credit: NASA/JPL
It has been 40 years since Carl Sagan and others shared the best of humanity with the stars. A new online multimedia project has been created as a ...

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  • Added: Feb 28, 2018
  • Length: 28:50
  • Purchases: 8
Caption: Artist Concept of the Mars 2020 Rover, with Mastcam-Z, Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech
Mat Kaplan attended a meeting of the science team for the zoom lens camera that will be atop the Mars 2020 rover mast. Planetary Scientist Jim Bel...

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  • Added: Feb 21, 2018
  • Length: 28:50
  • Purchases: 8
Caption: Starman in his Tesla Roadster bids farewell to Earth after being launched by the first SpaceX Falcon Heavy., Credit: SpaceX
Republican Randy Hultgren and Democrat Derek Kilmer celebrate formation of the new bipartisan, bicameral caucus of US representatives and senators....

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  • Added: Feb 14, 2018
  • Length: 28:50
  • Purchases: 8
Caption: The SETI Institute’s Allen Telescope Array in northern California searches the sky for radio signals from an alien intelligence., Credit: The SETI Institute
Where is everybody? That was the question physicist Enrico Fermi asked when he wondered why we hadn’t yet met ET. What will happen if we do? Will ...

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  • Added: Feb 07, 2018
  • Length: 28:50
  • Purchases: 8
Caption: US Navy divers assist NASA and the San Antonio-class amphibious transport dock USS Anchorage (LPD-23) in recovery of a mock-up capsule designed to roughly simulate the size, shape, mass and center of gravity of the Orion crew module., Credit: US Navy
Join Mat Kaplan on a visit to Naval Base San Diego and the USS Anchorage, the amphibious ship that has just completed a round of Orion spacecraft r...

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  • Added: Jan 30, 2018
  • Length: 28:50
  • Purchases: 8
Caption: Will humans in the distant future build and live in tremendous space habitats like the one picture here?  The first steps are being taken by NASA, SpaceX and many other organizations., Credit: Skyframe Research & Development/Peter Rubin, Iron Rooster Studios
Mat Kaplan talks with participants in the National Space Society’s recent Space Settlement Summit about human destiny in space. There’s a consensus...

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  • Added: Jan 23, 2018
  • Length: 28:50
  • Purchases: 8
Caption: Radar images from NASA's Cassini spacecraft reveal many lakes on Titan's surface, some filled with liquid, and some appearing as empty depressions. The data were obtained by Cassini's radar instrument from 2004 to 2013., Credit: NASA / JPL-Caltech / ASI / USGS
A computer model based on our best data about Saturn’s cloud-shrouded moon says that torrential liquid methane pounds the surface far more frequent...

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  • Added: Jan 17, 2018
  • Length: 28:50
  • Purchases: 8
Caption: Artist concept of uneven dust ring surrounding “Tabby’s Star” KIC 8462852, Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech
It may not host an alien “megastructure” but Tabby’s Star still guards many mysteries of science. Astronomer and astrophysicist Tabetha “Tabby” Boy...

Bought by KDNK, KNVC Carson City Community Radio, KSVR Studios: Skagit Valley Radio, KWMR, WXAV 88.3FM Chicago and more


  • Added: Jan 09, 2018
  • Length: 28:50
  • Purchases: 9
Caption: Artist concept of SpaceX Falcon Heavy launch., Credit: SpaceX
Mat’s first-ever four-way conversation with colleagues Jason Davis, Casey Dreier and Emily Lakdawalla provides their predictions of space milestone...

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  • Added: Jan 02, 2018
  • Length: 28:50
  • Purchases: 7
Caption: Recurring slope lineae or RSLs on Mars are not likely to indicate flowing water according to new research., Credit: NASA/JPL/UA/Emily Lakdawalla
Mars scientists dubbed them recurring slope lineae or RSLs. They sure looked like evidence of liquid water flowing down hillsides and ridges on th...

Bought by KNVC Carson City Community Radio, KDNK, KSVR Studios: Skagit Valley Radio, KWMR, KRZA and more


  • Added: Dec 26, 2017
  • Length: 28:50
  • Purchases: 8
Caption: A Voyager 2 image of Jupiter’s Great Red Spot, after image processing with modern tools., Credit: NASA-JPL-Björn Jónsson-Seán Doran
A holiday edition of Planetary Radio welcomes the Planetary Society’s Senior Editor back from the annual meeting of the American Geophysical Union....

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  • Added: Dec 19, 2017
  • Length: 28:50
  • Purchases: 4
Caption: Representatives of Congress and the National Space Council, along with several astronauts, joined President Donald J. Trump, for the president’s signing of Space Policy Directive 1., Credit: NASA/Aubrey Gemignani
On December 11th President Donald Trump signed a memorandum that firmly points the US space effort toward the Moon, but without providing many deta...

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  • Added: Dec 12, 2017
  • Length: 28:50
  • Purchases: 7
Caption: This artist's impression shows the first detected interstellar asteroid: `Oumuamua. This unique object was discovered on October 19, 2017 by the Pan-STARRS 1 telescope in Hawai`i. `Oumuamua seems to be a dark red highly-elongated metallic or rocky object,, Credit: ESO/M. Kornmesser
The first confirmed interstellar visitor to our solar system is a needle-shaped asteroid given the Hawaiian name ‘Oumuamua. Karen Meech leads the ...

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  • Added: Dec 06, 2017
  • Length: 28:50
  • Purchases: 7
Caption: Artist concept of Moon Express MX-9 Sample Return Ascent, Credit: Moon Express
Moon Express Founder and CEO Bob Richards shares an inspiring vision for a return to the Moon. It includes introduction of a sophisticated line of...

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  • Added: Nov 29, 2017
  • Length: 28:50
  • Purchases: 7
Piece image
Canada has a new Space Advisory Board, and the Planetary Society’s Kate Howells is a member. Mat Kaplan also talks with Jeff Kuhn and Thomas Rimme...

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  • Added: Nov 22, 2017
  • Length: 28:50
  • Purchases: 7
Caption: California Congressman Adam Schiff 	, Credit: Adam Schiff
They may disagree about nearly every other issue, but many Republican and Democratic congressional representatives find common ground where there i...

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  • Added: Nov 15, 2017
  • Length: 28:50
  • Purchases: 8
Caption: Andy Weir’s Artemis is the new novel set in a city on the Moon. , Credit: Crown Publishing
The author of #1 bestseller The Martian is back with Artemis, a superbly-researched, rollicking adventure in the first city on the Moon. You might ...

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  • Added: Nov 08, 2017
  • Length: 28:50
  • Purchases: 7
Caption: This beautiful view of the Lagoon Nebula was acquired in May–June 2015.  It’s about 55 light years wide, and is just over 4,000 light years from our solar system., Credit: Adam Block / Mount Lemmon SkyCenter / University of Arizona
Join us for a wide-ranging, salon-style conversation about space exploration, science, art and more. Mat’s guests are astronomer, television produ...

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  • Added: Nov 01, 2017
  • Length: 28:50
  • Purchases: 6