Galactic Drama, Polar Perspectives, and Lunar Brick Innovations

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Language: en

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[Music]


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welcome to Astronomy Daily your daily


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dose of space and astronomy news This is


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Anna bringing you the latest updates on


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cosmic discoveries space missions and


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lunar exploration Today we've got a


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bumper lineup of stories that span our


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cosmic neighborhood and beyond We'll be


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exploring new research suggesting that


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one of our neighboring galaxies might be


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literally tearing another apart Hear


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firsthand accounts from the first humans


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to orbit Earth's poles and learn about


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China's ambitious plans to 3D print


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building materials on the lunar surface


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Plus we'll dive into a surprising


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discovery from the James Webb Space


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Telescope about a planet's demise and


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look at innovative robots that could


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soon be exploring beneath the moon


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surface So sit back and prepare for a


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journey through the latest developments


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in our understanding of the universe Our


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first story takes us to our cosmic


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neighborhood where a galactic drama is


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unfolding If you've ever been lucky


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enough to view the night sky from the


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southern hemisphere you might have


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spotted two fuzzy patches of light These


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are the melanic cloud satellite galaxies


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that orbit our own Milky Way like bees


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around a hive New research from Japan


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has revealed something quite remarkable


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about these celestial neighbors


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Scientists now believe that the large


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melanic cloud or LMC might actually be


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tearing apart its smaller companion the


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small melanic cloud Associate Professor


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Kango Tachihara and his team at Nagoya


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University use data from the Gaia Space


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Telescope to track the movements of over


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7,000 massive stars in the small melanic


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cloud These aren't just any stars


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They're giants more than 8 times the


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size of our sun young enough that they


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typically live only a few million years


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before exploding as


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supernovi What they discovered was


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startling The stars in the SMC were


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moving in opposite directions on either


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side of the galaxy as if being pulled


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apart by some invisible force Some stars


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are approaching the large melanic cloud


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while others are moving away from it


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Strong evidence of the larger galaxy's


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gravitational influence


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When we first got this result we


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suspected that there might be an error


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in our method of analysis Tachihara


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admitted But the data was clear The SMC


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appears to be undergoing a slow motion


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destruction Perhaps even more surprising


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was the finding that these massive stars


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and likely the interstellar gas from


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which they formed don't follow a


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rotational pattern This suggests the


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small melanic cloud itself doesn't


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rotate as previously thought As


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researcher Satoya Nano points out this


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could potentially change our


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understanding of the three-way


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interaction between the Melanic clouds


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and our own Milky Way galaxy The


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findings offer us a rare front row seat


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to cosmic disruption in action and may


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help astronomers better understand how


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galaxies evolve through gravitational


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interactions a process happening


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throughout the universe but rarely


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observable in such detail


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Next let's get an update on the Framm 2


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mission which just concluded The first


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humans to ever experience a polar orbit


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of our planet are now sharing what it


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was like to see Earth from this unique


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vantage point The FRAM 2 mission named


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after the famous polar exploration


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vessel launched on March 31st 2025 with


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SpaceX's Crew Dragon Resilience carrying


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an international crew of four on their


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groundbreaking journey Unlike typical


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space missions that orbit roughly along


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Earth's equator this crew ventured into


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a 90deree inclined orbit taking them


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directly over the north and south poles


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during their 3 and 1/2 day mission This


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unprecedented trajectory gave them an


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entirely different perspective on our


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home planet Mission commander Chun Wang


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who self-funded this historic flight


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described the experience in vivid terms


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People say Earth is a blue marble a blue


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planet but to us in polar orbit it's


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more like a frozen planet It gives you a


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feeling of not the Earth but another


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planet an icy planet such as Jupiter or


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Saturn's moons The crew all of whom had


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previously completed expeditions to both


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Earth's poles on the ground found


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themselves surprised by the stark


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difference between their expectations


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and reality Medical officer and mission


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specialist Eric Phillips noted "I was


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expecting to see a lot more of the Earth


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the brown Earth within the polar regions


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When we looked at it from above it was


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completely white This is one of the most


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stark contrasts between the images that


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we see online of these various polar and


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what we experienced Orientation proved


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particularly challenging in this unusual


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orbit." Vehicle commander Yaneka


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Mickelson recalled struggling to


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recognize her home in Swalbard an


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archipelago in the Arctic Ocean It took


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a few seconds before we identified it


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because depending on how we are


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positioned in the cupula we're seeing it


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upside down left right whatever Now this


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disorientation wasn't just a curiosity


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It was part of several experiments


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conducted during the flight The crew


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tested methods to reduce space


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adaptation sickness by finding familiar


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orientations They also studied the


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aurora from above capturing images of


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what Mickelson called ghost auroras and


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the wavelengths that go perpendicular to


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the aurora and the magnetic field


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Interestingly Wong noted that despite


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their privileged position the auroras


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are beautiful from the capsule but I


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think all earthlings have the best


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perspective of auroras from the surface


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The mission concluded with another first


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The Crew Dragon splashed down in the


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Pacific Ocean rather than the Atlantic


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part of Space X's transition to West


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Coast recovery operations The crew


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attempted to exit the capsule


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independently but quickly discovered how


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challenging readaptation to gravity


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could be after even such a short mission


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I was so disappointed in my own body


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after only 3 and 1/2 days Mickelson


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admitted My body had completely


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forgotten what it's known its whole life


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and that's gravity


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Next up China is preparing to take a


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significant step toward establishing a


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human presence on the moon with plans to


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3D print building materials using lunar


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soil The Chong A8 spacecraft scheduled


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to launch around 2028 will carry


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revolutionary technology designed to


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transform the moon's surface material


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into construction bricks without


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bringing manufacturing equipment from


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Earth


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Wuerin chief designer of the Chinese


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lunar exploration program recently


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revealed details about this ambitious


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project Now we have developed the


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world's first device that produces


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bricks made of lunar soil This system


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harnesses sunlight collects solar energy


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and transmits it to the moon using fiber


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optics Woo explained The Ingenious


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system works by concentrating sunlight


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to achieve temperatures between 1,400


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to,500° C hot enough to melt lunar soil


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The device then uses 3D printing


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technology to shape this molten material


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into bricks of various


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specifications What makes this approach


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particularly valuable is that it


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eliminates the need to transport water


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and other materials from Earth


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significantly reducing mission costs


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This technology represents a major


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advancement in what space agencies call


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institu resource utilization The


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practice of using materials already


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present at the destination rather than


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carrying everything from Earth Given the


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extreme expense of launching anything


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into space utilizing lunar resources


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could dramatically expand possibilities


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for sustainable lunar exploration and


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eventual habitation The brickmaking


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experiment is part of China's broader


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lunar exploration road map Before Chang


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8's brickmaking mission China will


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launch Chang 7 in 2026 to explore


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resources at the moon's south pole with


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a particular focus on searching for


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water ice If substantial water is found


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it could provide drinking water oxygen


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and even rocket fuel for future missions


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China has already begun testing the


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concept on a smaller scale The country


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has sent samples of bricks made from


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lunar soil simulant to its Tiangong


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space station where they'll remain


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exposed to the harsh conditions of space


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for three years to test their


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durability These efforts follow China's


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impressive series of successful lunar


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missions including the historic Chong 6


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far side sample return last year The


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country is also planning to land its


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first astronauts on the lunar surface


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before 2030 potentially using


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technologies like these 3D printed


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bricks to establish more permanent


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infrastructure Moving on in an


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astronomical plot twist NASA's James Web


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Space Telescope has rewritten our


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understanding of what happens when a


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star devour a planet Observing what


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scientists believe to be the first star


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caught in the act of swallowing a planet


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web has revealed a surprising mechanism


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behind this cosmic


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catastrophe Located about 12,000 light


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years away in our Milky Way galaxy the


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star system known as ZTFSRN 2020 was


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originally spotted when it flashed


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brightly in optical light


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Initial theories suggested that as the


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star aged it had swelled into a red


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giant gradually engulfing its nearby


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planet A process astronomers believed


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might one day happen to our own inner


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planets as the sun expands However Web's


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mid infrared instrument told a


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completely different story With its


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unprecedented sensitivity and resolution


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Web measured the hidden emission from


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the star with remarkable precision What


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the telescope found was that the star


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wasn't as bright as it should have been


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if it had evolved into a red giant This


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means there was no stellar swelling to


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envelop the planet as previously thought


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Instead Web's data suggests that the


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Jupiterized planet's orbit gradually


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decayed over millions of years bringing


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it closer and closer to its star much


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closer than Mercury orbits our sun


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Eventually the planet began grazing the


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stars atmosphere triggering a runaway


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process


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The planet as it's falling in started to


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sort of smear around the star explained


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team member Morgan Mloud of the Harvard


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Smithsonian Center for


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Astrophysics This final planetary plunge


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blasted gas from the stars outer layers


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which expanded and cooled forming a


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cloud of dust over the following year


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Web's near infrared spectrograph added


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another surprise detecting a hot


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circumstellar disc of molecular gas


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containing carbon monoxide reminiscent


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of a planet forming region Though


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planets certainly aren't forming here


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this cosmic autopsy provides valuable


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insights into the fate that might await


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planets in other systems and potentially


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our own solar system in the distant


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future The researchers hope this is just


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the beginning of understanding these


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dramatic stellar events with NASA's


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upcoming Nancy Grace Roman Space


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Telescope expected to detect more


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examples of stars consuming their


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planetary


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companions Finally today we head back to


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the moon for a look at some more


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innovation Our understanding of the moon


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has advanced considerably thanks to the


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Apollo missions and robotic explorers


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but there's still much to learn about


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our closest celestial neighbor To tackle


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this knowledge gap and prepare for


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future lunar habitation scientists are


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now proposing an innovative exploration


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method subsurface


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robots A team of researchers has


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developed a concept called Pleaser


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Persistent Lunar Exploration with


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autonomous subsurface robots This


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mission would feature a snake-like robot


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specifically designed to penetrate the


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lunar regalith allowing unprecedented


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access to what lies beneath the moon's


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surface Unlike traditional rovers that


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can only study surface features Pleaser


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would be able to burrow into the


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regalith and even slither into skylights


00:11:47.600 --> 00:11:49.590
collapsed sections that provide access


00:11:49.600 --> 00:11:51.829
to underground lava tubes These


00:11:51.839 --> 00:11:53.670
subsurface caverns are particularly


00:11:53.680 --> 00:11:55.509
exciting as potential sites for future


00:11:55.519 --> 00:11:57.750
lunar bases since they offer natural


00:11:57.760 --> 00:11:59.710
protection from the harsh lunar


00:11:59.720 --> 00:12:02.150
environment Just like on Earth the


00:12:02.160 --> 00:12:03.829
different layers tell the history of the


00:12:03.839 --> 00:12:07.110
area you are in explains Jared Longfox a


00:12:07.120 --> 00:12:09.269
planetary exploration research scientist


00:12:09.279 --> 00:12:11.670
involved in the research On the moon


00:12:11.680 --> 00:12:13.910
there is no wind or flowing water so the


00:12:13.920 --> 00:12:15.910
main processes that shape the surface


00:12:15.920 --> 00:12:18.550
are impacts The robot's snake- like


00:12:18.560 --> 00:12:20.069
configuration would allow it to measure


00:12:20.079 --> 00:12:22.310
critical properties of the lunar soil


00:12:22.320 --> 00:12:24.790
including strength thermal conductivity


00:12:24.800 --> 00:12:27.350
and dialectric properties It could also


00:12:27.360 --> 00:12:28.870
detect the presence of valuable


00:12:28.880 --> 00:12:31.350
resources like water ice crucial for


00:12:31.360 --> 00:12:33.069
sustainable lunar exploration and


00:12:33.079 --> 00:12:35.269
habitation For power the team has


00:12:35.279 --> 00:12:37.910
explored multiple options One intriguing


00:12:37.920 --> 00:12:39.829
design features solar panels embedded


00:12:39.839 --> 00:12:41.509
along the robot's body that could be


00:12:41.519 --> 00:12:43.670
deployed when it surfaces to bathe in


00:12:43.680 --> 00:12:45.910
the sun This would allow the robot to


00:12:45.920 --> 00:12:48.069
operate during lunar daytime while


00:12:48.079 --> 00:12:50.230
exploring the subsurface regardless of


00:12:50.240 --> 00:12:53.190
external conditions Beyond scientific


00:12:53.200 --> 00:12:55.190
discovery these robots could identify


00:12:55.200 --> 00:12:57.190
areas suitable for developing lunar


00:12:57.200 --> 00:12:59.750
infrastructure like habitats roadways


00:12:59.760 --> 00:13:02.389
and landing pads They could even deploy


00:13:02.399 --> 00:13:04.710
subsurface sensors like seismometers to


00:13:04.720 --> 00:13:06.949
study the moon's interior structure


00:13:06.959 --> 00:13:08.629
Instruments that are notoriously


00:13:08.639 --> 00:13:10.230
difficult to place effectively on the


00:13:10.240 --> 00:13:13.350
surface Looking further ahead researcher


00:13:13.360 --> 00:13:15.910
Adrienne Stoica speculates that advanced


00:13:15.920 --> 00:13:18.150
versions of these robots might someday


00:13:18.160 --> 00:13:20.269
create subsurface tunnels for lunar


00:13:20.279 --> 00:13:22.470
habitats These may be like the machines


00:13:22.480 --> 00:13:24.310
that build underground tunnels but


00:13:24.320 --> 00:13:26.470
perhaps more in the formation of teams


00:13:26.480 --> 00:13:29.829
rather than a big machine He suggests as


00:13:29.839 --> 00:13:31.590
we plan for a sustained human presence


00:13:31.600 --> 00:13:34.069
on the moon these subsurface explorers


00:13:34.079 --> 00:13:36.069
could prove essential in both unlocking


00:13:36.079 --> 00:13:38.710
the secrets of lunar geology and paving


00:13:38.720 --> 00:13:41.269
the way for our future among the stars


00:13:41.279 --> 00:13:44.509
But isn't it a wild idea that sounds


00:13:44.519 --> 00:13:46.710
plausible that wraps up our cosmic


00:13:46.720 --> 00:13:49.110
journey for today What a remarkable


00:13:49.120 --> 00:13:51.190
collection of stories that remind us how


00:13:51.200 --> 00:13:54.310
dynamic our universe truly is From the


00:13:54.320 --> 00:13:56.550
large melanic cloud potentially tearing


00:13:56.560 --> 00:13:59.110
apart its smaller companion to humans


00:13:59.120 --> 00:14:01.110
experiencing Earth from polar orbit for


00:14:01.120 --> 00:14:03.110
the first time we're constantly gaining


00:14:03.120 --> 00:14:04.910
new perspectives on our place in the


00:14:04.920 --> 00:14:07.269
cosmos The innovations we discussed


00:14:07.279 --> 00:14:09.189
today paint an exciting picture of our


00:14:09.199 --> 00:14:12.069
future in space China's plans to 3D


00:14:12.079 --> 00:14:14.790
print bricks from lunar soil by 2028


00:14:14.800 --> 00:14:16.550
could revolutionize how we approach


00:14:16.560 --> 00:14:19.189
building off-world Meanwhile the


00:14:19.199 --> 00:14:21.509
proposed snake- like pleaser robots


00:14:21.519 --> 00:14:23.110
might soon be slithering beneath the


00:14:23.120 --> 00:14:25.750
lunar surface uncovering secrets hidden


00:14:25.760 --> 00:14:28.230
for billions of years Perhaps most


00:14:28.240 --> 00:14:30.069
humbling is Web's observation of a


00:14:30.079 --> 00:14:31.910
planet's final moments as it spiraled


00:14:31.920 --> 00:14:35.350
into its star These cosmic autopsies not


00:14:35.360 --> 00:14:37.829
only satisfy our curiosity but also


00:14:37.839 --> 00:14:39.910
provide glimpses into possible futures


00:14:39.920 --> 00:14:41.670
for planetary systems throughout the


00:14:41.680 --> 00:14:44.790
universe including our own The pace of


00:14:44.800 --> 00:14:46.389
discovery in astronomy and space


00:14:46.399 --> 00:14:48.710
exploration continues to accelerate


00:14:48.720 --> 00:14:50.790
revealing a universe more complex and


00:14:50.800 --> 00:14:53.910
fascinating than we ever imagined Each


00:14:53.920 --> 00:14:56.389
new finding raises fresh questions and


00:14:56.399 --> 00:14:59.269
ignites our desire to explore further


00:14:59.279 --> 00:15:01.350
This is Anna having been your host on


00:15:01.360 --> 00:15:04.069
Astronomy Daily And today a small


00:15:04.079 --> 00:15:06.470
request from me to you If you're


00:15:06.480 --> 00:15:08.310
enjoying Astronomy Daily how about


00:15:08.320 --> 00:15:09.910
sharing us with any family or friends


00:15:09.920 --> 00:15:11.430
who you think might get some benefit


00:15:11.440 --> 00:15:13.670
from our stories and news updates i'd


00:15:13.680 --> 00:15:16.069
really appreciate that And with that I'm


00:15:16.079 --> 00:15:17.990
out of here Thank you for joining me on


00:15:18.000 --> 00:15:20.230
this journey through the cosmos Until


00:15:20.240 --> 00:15:24.110
next time keep looking up


00:15:24.120 --> 00:15:27.550
Day stories told


00:15:27.560 --> 00:15:41.919
[Music]