Third Pod From The Sun

How do you study something that’s constantly shifting? That’s the challenge that USGS geologist Richard Iverson faced when he began his career in landslide research. He and his team developed a first-of-its-kind experimental facility to study how landslides happen, in order to better understand and prepare for them. This episode was produced by Molly Magid and mixed by Collin Warren. Illustration by Jace Steiner.

With a heliophysics career spanning across nearly five decades, Thomas Earle Moore has always been fascinated by the Sun’s relationship with the Earth and how that relationship affects life on our planet. The impacts of space weather can be super noticeable when it results in brilliant auroras or large radiation storms that send astronauts scrambling for cover. But Thom also advocates for studies of longer-timescale phenomena, many of which are poorly understood. For example, Earth’s magnetic field periodically reverses, but no one knows exactly how or why, or when the next reversal will be, or what consequences might ensue when it does. Now that some of these studies are finally getting funded, Thom hopes the next generation of heliophysicists will take up the mantle (maybe literally?) and explore Earth’s long-term future.This episode was produced by Katrina Jackson and mixed by Collin Warren. Illustration by Jace Steiner.

Tommy Dickey is an emeritus oceanographer from U.C. Santa Barbara and Naval Operations Chair in Ocean Sciences. His modeling and observational research yielded ocean monitoring technologies and tools. For retirement, Tommy trains and deploys Great Pyrenees as therapy dogs, while studying scent dogs’ capacity to detect COVID-19. We talked with Tommy about his path from a rural childhood to a career dedicated to oceans.This episode was produced by Devin Reese and mixed by Collin Warren.Illustration by Jace Steiner.

This episode is about how satellite technology is being used to study a big chunk of the earth’s surface. Seventy percent of the earth comprises water but we know very little about it. Color sensors aboard some satellites can actually reveal a lot about phytoplankton or microalgae blooms that are linked to ocean temperatures. These tiny organisms contribute to half the photosynthesis on the planet.Scientist Charles McClain has done such investigations. More importantly he has traced a technological evolution too having been in this sphere since the 1970s. In this interview McClain talks about path breaking research that he became a part of in the late 1970s and how he collaborated with biologists and space scientists for this.This episode was produced by Anupama Chandrasekaran and mixed by Collin Warren. Illustration by Jace Steiner. 

Choosing a major and university is one of the earliest major life decisions—but what if you had to leave those choices up to chance? Today we hear from Dr. Ameha Muluneh, who grew up wanting to be an engineer, but is now an award-winning geologist studying the African crust. He shares how he found his path after a chance assignment to major in geology and his vision for the future of science in Ethiopia.  This episode was produced by Sara Whitlock and mixed by Collin Warren.. Illustration by Jace Steiner.

In the past couple of decades, Earth and space science education for K-12 has evolved significantly, much due to the work of geologist, educator, and writer, Michael Wysession. This is a time where the science education we receive plays a big role in our response to climate change; an adaptive and engaging curriculum, beyond the usual textbook, is paramount – and way more fun! In this episode, we talk with Wysession about his career path as a research geologist and as a science educator, the challenging process of implementing new science standards in the United States, and how we can feel hopeful about our future.This episode was produced by Jace Steiner and mixed by Collin Warren. Illustration by Jace Steiner.

Science is all about experimentation, discover, and sharing those results. But what happens behind the scenes? What stories do scientists have to tell that don’t make it in the manuscript or the classroom lecture? Our next six-part miniseries, in collaboration for the AGU journals Perspectives of Earth and Space Scientists, explores geoscience education, continental rifts in Ethiopia, studying the oceans from Earth and space, our relationship with the sun, and landslides. This episode was produced by Shane M Hanlon and Jace Steiner, and mixed by Collin Warren. Artwork by Karen Romano Young.

To the untrained eye, Arctic ice appears unchanging, but conditions can shift quickly, and often reveal life-threatening hazards when they do. It is an unforgiving environment, but the Inuit know how to navigate it. That knowledge has been passed down through generations, and a new app is giving centuries-old Inuit knowledge a very modern form. SIKU was created by Joel Heath of the Arctic Eider Foundation, and it bills itself as the Indigenous Knowledge Social Network. It allows Inuit to share knowledge about ice hazards, animal sightings, and special places -- and to maintain control over that information. In this episode, we talk to Joel about why that’s so important, and how the app even works when Inuit are out on the ice, far out of range of any cell tower. This episode was produced by Ty Burke and mixed by Collin Warren. Editing, production assistance, and illustration by Jace Steiner. 

When you think of ice, you might imagine glaciers, the North Pole, a clink in your water glass. But it turns out that our closest neighbor in space isn’t just a dusty ball—the moon has ice tucked away in deep craters at each of its poles. On top of that, scientists think the moon stole its ice: from comets, asteroids, maybe even from the Earth. We talked with two scientists—Kathleen Mandt and Nicholas Hasson—who are studying how the moon snagged its ice and how astronauts might use that ice on future missions. This episode was produced by Sara Whitlock and mixed by Collin Warren. Editing and production assistance by Jace Steiner.

Brian Huber is a climate detective at the Smithsonian who grew up collecting arrowheads in the woods of Ohio, but now collects and studies fossils from sediment cores. Brian uses fossils of tiny organisms − foraminifera − to track climate over millions of years, including the Cretaceous Hot Greenhouse climate. We talked to Brian about a time when the poles were not so icy, how climate changed, and what that bodes for the future. This episode was produced by Devin Reese and mixed by Collin Warren. Editing and production assistance by Jace Steiner.

Anant Pande is an Indian polar researcher who studies snow petrels - shy pelagic (sea-faring) birds who nest on rock crevices in Antarctica. These endemic birds prefer to nest near less icy waters. Climate change has melted polar oceans and perhaps made it less energy intensive -- as they have to fly shorter distances to find non-frozen oceans. But it has also increased extreme weather events that tend to flood homes of less experienced nesters who are unaware of safer, wind-free directions to house a nest. The story will uncover facts about snow petrels and the research process details of Indian scientist Anant Pande who goes on expeditions to Antarctica to study these birds. This episode was produced by Anupama Chandrasekaran and mixed by Collin Warren, with production assistance from Jace Steiner.

Glaciers around the world are melting because of climate change. Yet, while glaciers might be smaller than they once were, that’s not stopping tourists from flocking to see them. We talked with Heather Purdie, a glaciologist and former glacier guide, about how exactly glaciers are changing and how glacier tourism is adapting to these changes.This episode was produced by Molly Magid and mixed by Collin Warren, with production assistance from Jace Steiner.

Dive down into the freezing depths of Patricia Lake, in Alberta’s Jasper National Park, and you will find the wreck of the Habbakuk—a sixty-foot model battleship originally constructed of wood and ice.This “berg ship” was the brainchild of the eccentric wartime genius Geoffrey Pyke. In 1943, the Allies were being hard pressed by German U-boats, and British and American leaders were desperate to gain the upper hand in the War of the Atlantic. Pyke’s idea was to construct a fleet of the huge ships, each 1,970 feet long and made from a mixture of ice and wood pulp called Pykrete. He claimed the ships were bulletproof and unsinkable. The project was approved by Winston Churchill himself, and Project Habbakuk was born.The history of Project Habbakuk is more than a tale of unconventional ice engineering: it touches on theTitanic, the Bible and Superman.This episode was produced by Jamieson Findlay and mixed by Collin Warren, with production assistance from Jace Steiner.

Cool off from the summer heat with our next six-part miniseries all about ice – from those who call it home to its use as a tool in science. Experts tell us how this state of matter can create shelters and ships, document changes in climate, bring communities together, and even support future astronaut missions on the Moon.This episode was produced by Shane M Hanlon and Jace Steiner, and mixed by Collin Warren. Artwork by Karen Romano Young. 

The International Space Station feels like a permanent fixture. It’s been up there since 2000! But earlier this year, NASA announced it is bringing the ISS back to earth in the 2030s as it plans for new space stations. We talked with Justin Walsh about what he’s learned about human life in space by doing archaeology research on the ISS and what he’s racing to study before the space station goes extinct in a watery grave back on Earth.  This episode was produced by Sara Whitlock and mixed by Collin Warren, with production assistance from Jace Steiner.  

Hans Sues is a fossil guy at the Smithsonian. Born in Germany, he has been all over the world finding and interpreting fossils for more than 40 years. His focus is on vertebrates – both in his professional work and his personal attachment to cats. We talked with Hans about why the Triassic era had so many strange animals, what happened in the extinctions at each end, and why he worries about getting arrested while doing field work.This episode was produced by Devin Reese and mixed by Collin Warren. Editing and production assistance by Jace Steiner.

Dani DellaGiustina is one of the youngest leaders of a NASA mission, and she was in charge of image processing for OSIRIS-REx before she even got her PhD. OSIRIS-REx is a spacecraft sent to study asteroid Bennu and scheduled to return a sample to Earth in 2023. Dani walks us through the difference between asteroids and comets—it turns out there’s some overlap! There’s even a thing called “extinct comets,” and some think Bennu might be one, but Dani isn’t so sure. Along the way, Dani tells us about her non-traditional career path and attempts to avoid polar bears in Greenland.This episode was produced by Katrina Jackson and mixed by Collin Warren.

For many of us, the word “extinctions” conjures up images of dinosaurs, asteroids, and (maybe?) volcanos. And while that last point did likely play a role in the demise of the dinosaurs, volcanos in their own right can go extinct. In this episode, we chatted with volcanologist Janine Krippner, Honorary Research Associate at the University of Waikato, about what exactly makes a volcano extinct, the difference between volcanic ash and smoke, and what it’s like being up close and personal with a volcano.Oh, and the best volcano movie (spoiler: it’s not Volcano).This episode was produced by Shane M Hanlon and mixed by Collin Warren. Editing and production assistance by Jace Steiner.

The Cambrian explosion is commonly labelled as the time in Earth’s history when animals suddenly appear. But research from geoscientist Rachel Wood and her team turns this explanation on its head. We talked with Rachel about how this research changes our understanding of how animals arose on Earth and about whether we can even call this event the “Cambrian explosion,” anymore.This episode was produced by Molly Magid and mixed by Collin Warren.

When you hear the word “extinction,” what comes to mind? Dinosaurs? Asteroids? Volcanoes? How about the International Space Station? Join us for our next six-part miniseries on Extinctions as we learn about the demise of the dinosaurs, what makes a comet “extinct,” the Cambrian and Triassic periods, volcanoes, and the aforementioned (planned) fiery end of the International Space Station!This episode was produced by Shane M Hanlon and mixed by Collin Warren. Artwork by Karen Romano Young.