Astronauts' Vision Crisis, South Korea's Lunar Leap, and the Cosmic Promises of the Roman Telescope

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Anna: Hello and welcome to Astronomy Daily. I'm

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Anna, your host and I'm thrilled to have you join us

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for another journey through the latest and most captivating

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stories from the cosmos. Today

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we're delving into some truly fascinating developments

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that span from the challenges faced by astronauts

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in space to humanity's ambitious future on

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the Moon and beyond. We'll start by

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exploring an unexpected side effect of space

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travel. How it can permanently change an

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astronaut's eyesight. Then we're heading to the

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Moon to look at South Korea's bold plans for a lunar

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base by 2045, showcasing

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the growing global race to return to our celestial

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neighbour. Next up, we'll dive into the

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incredible potential of NASA's upcoming Nancy

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Grace Roman Telescope, which is poised to uncover

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tens of thousands of cosmic explosions and

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shed light on mysteries like dark energy.

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Finally, we'll take a trip back in time to the Apollo 11

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mission, revealing the little known stories of where the Eagle

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could have landed if circumstances had been different.

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Stick around. It's going to be an exciting episode.

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You've spent months aboard the International Space Station,

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witnessing Earth from an unparalleled vantage point,

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performing groundbreaking science and pushing the

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boundaries of human exploration. You return

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home a hero, but with an unexpected side

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effect. Your eyesight has changed. This

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isn't a rare occurrence. It affects about 70%

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of astronauts on long duration missions. And it's

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got NASA scientists intensely focused on understanding

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why weightlessness impacts our vision so

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profoundly. One astronaut, Dr. Sarah Johnson,

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reported that text perfectly clear before her six month ISS

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stay became blurry. She's far from

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alone. Astronauts frequently report difficulty

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reading blurred distance vision and other visual

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changes that can persist for years after returning to

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Earth. This condition has been given a

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spaceflight associated neuro ocular

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syndrome, or sans. It

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has rapidly become one of the most pressing health concerns

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for extended space missions. Unlike other

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temporary issues like motion sickness or or muscle

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weakness, which quickly resolve, on Earth,

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sans related vision changes can unfortunately

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be permanent. The primary culprit appears

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to be microgravity itself. Here on Earth,

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gravity consistently pulls fluids downwards through our

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bodies. In the microgravity environment of space,

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these fluids redistribute. This leads to facial

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puffiness and more critically, increased pressure inside the

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skull. This elevated intracranial pressure can

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flatten the back of the eyeball and cause swelling of the optic

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nerve, directly impacting vision.

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These findings carry significant implications for future

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missions to Mars, which could realistically

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last two to three years. As Dr. Michael

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Roberts, NASA's Vision Research Lead, put it,

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we need to understand whether these changes stabilise or

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continue worsening over time. An astronaut with

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severely compromised vision could jeopardise an entire

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Mars mission. To combat SANS,

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Dr. Roberts and his team at NASA are actively

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developing various countermeasures. These include

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specialised contact lenses, medications

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designed to reduce fluid pressure, and specific

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exercise protocols that might help maintain normal

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circulation. They are also testing an

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innovative device called the Visual Impairment

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Intracranial pressure, or viip

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chamber, which could simulate Earth like pressure conditions

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for the eyes while in space. While SANS

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presents a serious challenge for space exploration, this research

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offers a broader benefit for everyone on Earth.

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Scientists are gaining invaluable new insights into

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how pressure affects vision, which could potentially

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lead to improved treatments for conditions like glaucoma

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and intracranial hypertension. Here on our home planet,

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understanding how our bodies adapt to and are

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affected by space remains crucial as we continue to test

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the limits of human endurance and explore further

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into the cosmos. The research into

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solutions will continue at NASA and onboard the

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iss, with the hope that when humanity

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finally embarks on a trip to Mars, our vision will be

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clear enough to fully appreciate what we have accomplished.

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Shifting our gaze from astronaut health to ambitious

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national goals let's talk about South Korea's burgeoning

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space ambitions the nation is making headlines with

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its bold plan to establish a moon base by 2045.

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This significant goal was revealed in a long term

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exploration roadmap laid out by the Korea

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aerospace administration, or CASA, which

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was established just last year.

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CASA's roadmap outlines five core missions

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encompassing everything from low Earth orbit and

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microgravity exploration to lunar exploration

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and even solar and space science missions.

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A key focus for CASA is developing homegrown lunar

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landing and roving technology alongside the crucial

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ability to extract and utilise moon resources like water

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ice. Some of this preparatory work is

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already well underway. For instance, the

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Korea Institute of Geoscience and Mineral Resources

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has been testing prototype lunar rovers in an abandoned

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coal mine, practising techniques that could be vital for

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future space mining operations. South Korea

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isn't new to lunar endeavours. In August

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2022, the nation successfully launched its

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first moon probe, known as the Korea Pathfinder

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lunar orbiter, or Dnuri, atop a SpaceX

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Falcon 9 rocket. Dannuri reached lunar orbit

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four months later and is still actively studying the moon

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with its array of instruments, proving South Korea's

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growing capabilities in space. While South

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Korea had already aimed to place a robotic lander on the moon

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by 2032, this newly revealed

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roadmap significantly ups the ante.

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The plan now includes developing a more capable moon lander

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by 2040, all with the ultimate

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goal of building a robust lunar economic base

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by 2045. It's important to note

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that South Korea isn't alone in this race to the moon. The

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United States, through NASA's Artemis programme, also

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plans to build lunar outposts in the coming decade.

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China is pursuing similar goals, often in

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partnership with Russia and other nations. And India has

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set its sights on a moon base by 2047.

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The moon isn't Khasa's only distant destination either.

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The agency also has its sights set on South Korea's

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first ever Mars landing, also by

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2045.

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Now let's shift our focus to a truly exciting development

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on the horizon. NASA's next big space

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telescope project, the Nancy Grace Roman Telescope.

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Astronomers are absolutely buzzing with anticipation for

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its launch, currently set for no later than May

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2027. And for good reason.

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Recent research suggests that Roman, during its High

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Latitude Time Domain Survey observation programme,

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could discover an, uh, astounding 100,000

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powerful cosmic explosions. We're talking

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about a dazzling array of violent events, including

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supernovas, marking the dramatic deaths of massive stars,

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which occur when two of the universe's most extreme

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dead stars or neutron stars, Viking violently

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collide and even burps from actively feeding

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supermassive black holes. Roman might even

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detect the explosive destruction of the very first generation

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of stars in our universe. These cosmic

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fireworks are more than just spectacular sights. They're

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crucial clues that could help scientists finally crack

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the mystery of dark energy. That's the

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placeholder name for the strange unseen force that's

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causing the expansion of the universe to accelerate.

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According to Benjamin Rose, an assistant professor at Baylor

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University and the research leader, this survey will be

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a goldmine. Whether you're exploring dark energy,

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dying stars, galactic powerhouses,

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or even entirely new phenomena we've never

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encountered before, Roman will achieve these

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explosive results by systematically scanning the

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same vast region of space every five days

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for a period of two years. These

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observations will then be meticulously stitched together to

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create incredible cosmic movies, revealing a

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wealth of these dynamic events. Many of the

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explosions Roman detects will be type 1A

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supernovas. These particular cosmic

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blasts happen when a dead star known as a

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white dwarf greedily syphons material from a

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companion star until it becomes unstable and

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erupts. Type 1a supernovas

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are incredibly valuable to astronomers because their light

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output is and peak brightness are so consistent from

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one event to the next. This makes them what

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astronomers affectionately call standard candles,

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allowing them to accurately measure cosmic distances.

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The new research, which simulated Roman's entire High

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Latitude Time Domain Survey indicates the

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telescope could uncover up to 27,000 new

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Type 1A supernovas. That's about 10 times

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the combined total from all previous surveys.

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By observing these standard candles across immense and varying

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distances, astronomers are essentially looking back

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in time, enabling them to pinpoint how fast the

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universe was expanding at different points in cosmic history.

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This unprecedented wealth of type 1A supernovas

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should offer significant hints about the secrets of dark energy.

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It could even help confirm recent findings from the Dark Energy

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Spectroscopic Instrument, or dece, which

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suggests that this mysterious force might actually be weakening

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over time. As Rose explained, filling

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these data gaps could also fill in gaps in our understanding of

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dark energy. Evidence is mounting that dark energy

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has changed over time, and Roman will help us understand

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that change by exploring cosmic history in ways other

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telescopes can't. Beyond dark energy,

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Roman will also shed light on the life cycles of stars.

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The team estimates that as many as 60,000 of the

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100,000 cosmic explosions detected

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could be core collapse supernovas. These

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occur when massive stars at least eight times heavier

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than our sun exhaust their nuclear fuel

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and can no longer support themselves against gravitational

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collapse. As their cores rapidly

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implode, their outer layers are violently blasted

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away. This process disperses elements

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forged within these stars throughout the cosmos,

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providing the building blocks for the next generations of

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stars, their planets, and perhaps even

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life itself. While not directly linked to

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dark energy, these events are crucial for understanding

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stellar evolution and the chemical enrichment of the

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universe. Rebecca Hounsell, a member of

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the research team from NASA's Goddard Space Flight Centre,

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highlighted how Roman's data will allow scientists to

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distinguish between different types of cosmic flashes.

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She noted that while searching for type 1A

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supernovas, Roman will collect a lot of cosmic

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bycatch, other phenomena that may not be useful

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for some scientists, but will be invaluable to others.

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Among these rarer cosmic gems, Roman could

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detect tidal disruption events, or TDEs,

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where black holes ruthlessly devour stars that wander

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too close. As the star is torn apart by

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immense tidal forces, much of its material is

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spewed out at near light speed, creating powerful

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emissions that Roman will hunt for. The team

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predicts around 40 such star destroying events could be found.

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Even more elusive are kilonovas, those explosive bursts of

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light that happen when two neutron stars smash together and

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merge. The team estimates Roman could uncover around

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five new kilonovas. While that number seems small,

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it's a huge deal, as only one kilonova has been

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definitively confirmed to date. These

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observations are vital for understanding the origins of

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precious metals like gold and silver.

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While most elements are forged in the hearts of stars,

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the extreme conditions of neutron star collisions are thought

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to be the only cosmic furnaces powerful enough to create

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elements heavier than iron, like gold and

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plutonium. Studying the light from these

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kilonovas helps us understand this fundamental process.

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Kilonova studies could also reveal what types of

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celestial bodies are formed when neutron stars merge.

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Perhaps an even larger neutron star, an immediate black

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hole, or something entirely new. Perhaps

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the most thrilling, uh, potential discovery Roman could make is

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the observation of the strange explosive

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deaths of the universe's very first stars.

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Current theories suggest these early massive stars may

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have died differently than modern stars

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undergoing what's called a pair instability

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supernova. In these colossal

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blasts, gamma rays within the star could have

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generated matter antimatter pairs, leading

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to a self detonation so powerful it theorised to

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leave nothing behind but the elemental fingerprint of its

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lifetime. While astronomers have dozens of

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candidates for these events, none have been confirmed.

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The simulation suggests Roman could turn up as many

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as 10 confirmed pair instability supernovas.

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As Rose put it, they're incredibly far away and

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very rare. So you need a telescope that can survey

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a lot of the sky at a deep exposure level and in near

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infrared light, and that's Roman.

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The team plans further simulations to explore

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Roman's full capabilities, which might even include

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detecting phenomena not yet theorised.

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As Rebecca Hounsel aptly summarised,

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Roman's going to find a whole bunch of weird and wonderful things

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out in space, including some we haven't even thought of yet.

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We're definitely expecting the unexpected.

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This groundbreaking research, by the way, was published on

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July 15 in the Astrophysical Journal.

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From the cutting edge of cosmic discovery, let's take

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a quick look back at, ah, one of the most iconic moments in

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space. The Apollo 11 moon

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landing on July 20, 1969.

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Neil Armstrong's famous words Houston

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Tranquilly Base here, the Eagle has landed,

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marked humanity's first steps on another world. But

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what if those words had been uttered from a different location on the

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lunar surface? It's a fascinating thought, isn't

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it? The truth is that historic phrase could

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very easily have come from a completely different part of the

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moon. In February 1968,

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NASA's Apollo Site Selection board had narrowed down

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a list of 30 potential landing sites for Apollo 11

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to just five. Among these were two sites on the

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opposite side of the lunar disc from Tranquilly Base,

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specifically in Oceanus Procellarum, also

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known as the Ocean of Storms. Each of

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these prospective landing zones, which were roughly 3 by 5

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miles in size, underwent intensive orbital

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imaging and a rigorous selection process. The

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criteria were incredibly strict. Each site needed

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to be within 5 degrees of the lunar equator to minimise

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fuel consumption. There could be no large hills

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or deep craters along the lander's approach path, as

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these could confuse its landing radar.

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Furthermore, each site had to have a slope of less than

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2 degrees, with relatively few craters

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and excellent lighting conditions during the chosen landing

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windows. Ultimately, Site two

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in the Sea of Tranquilly was selected as the prime landing

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location. However, two of the other

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shortlisted zones were designated as contingency

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landing sites, ready to be targeted if the launch of

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Apollo 11's mighty Saturn V rocket had been

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delayed. Imagine if the mission's launch

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had slipped by just two days from July

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16 to July 18,

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1969. In that scenario,

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humanity's first steps on the moon would have taken place in the

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Sinus Medii region, right in the centre of the

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Earth facing lunar surface. And if the launch had been

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pushed back even further to July

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21, 1969,

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then the footprints would have been left in the regolith of

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Oceanus Procellarum. While Tranquilly

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Base has certainly become a legendary name,

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Procellarum Base just doesn't quite have the same ring to it,

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does it? It's a compelling reminder of the

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meticulous planning and the precise conditions that led

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to one of history's most defining moments.

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And that brings us to the end of another fascinating

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journey through the cosmos on Astronomy Daily.

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I hope you've enjoyed exploring these stories as much as

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I have enjoyed sharing them with you. Thank you

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for tuning in and being a part of our cosmic

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conversation. This has been Anna, your host,

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and I invite you to keep exploring the wonders of the

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universe with us. You can become a completionist

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and listen to all our back episodes and even get a

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shout out on the show by visiting our website at

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astronomydaily IO. That's

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00:16:23.550 --> 00:16:26.430
astronomydaily IO. And don't forget

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00:16:26.430 --> 00:16:28.790
to subscribe to Astronomy Daily on Apple

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get your podcasts so you never miss an update.

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Until tomorrow when I'll be back to do it all again. Keep looking

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up.