ISS Back to Full Strength, Artemis 2 Battles Hydrogen Leaks, and Enceladus Goes Electromagnetic

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Good Monday everyone and welcome to


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Astronomy Daily, your go-to source for


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space and astronomy news. I'm Anna.


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>> And I'm Avery. It's February 16th, 2026,


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and what a weekend it's been in space.


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We've got six stories for you today.


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Starting with some very welcome news


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from low Earth orbit.


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>> That's right. After more than a month of


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operating with a skeleton crew, the


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International Space Station is finally


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back to full strength. SpaceX's Crew 12


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mission docked at the ISS on Saturday


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afternoon, Valentine's Day, no less,


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bringing four fresh crew members to the


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orbiting laboratory.


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>> And what a crew it is. We've got NASA


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astronauts Jessica Mayor and Jack


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Hathaway, ESA astronauts Sophie Adonaut


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from France, and Rosscosmos cosminaut


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Andre Fedv. They launched aboard a


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Falcon 9 rocket early on Friday the


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13th. The first time NASA has ever


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launched a crude mission on a Friday the


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13th. By the way,


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>> a lucky day after all. The Dragon


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capsule Freedom docked at the space-f


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facing port of the Harmony module at


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3:15 p.m. Eastern time on Saturday.


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Commander Jessica Mayer radioed up as


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they approached, and Chris Williams,


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who'd been holding the fort with just


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two cosminauts since mid January, was


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clearly delighted to see them arrive.


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>> You can understand why. The station had


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been down to just three crew members


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since January 15th when crew 11 departed


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a month ahead of schedule due to a


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medical issue with one of its


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astronauts. NASA hasn't identified which


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astronaut or given details, but it left


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the ISS short staffed for a lot longer


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than anyone wanted. Now, here's the


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interesting subplot to this mission. The


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original Crew 12 lineup was different.


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Russian cosminaut Oleg Artamev was


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originally assigned to the flight but


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was abruptly removed back in December.


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Ross Cosmos officially said he was


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transitioning to other work but reports


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from investigative journalists tell a


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rather different story.


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>> Right. As we reported last week,


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according to the insider, Artamev was


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expelled from the United States after


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being accused of violating international


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traffic and arms regulations, IT as it's


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known. He was allegedly caught


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photographing SpaceX engines, documents,


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and other sensitive technologies with


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his phone. That's a serious allegation


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in the world of space cooperation.


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>> Very serious indeed. It's a reminder


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that even in an era of international


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collaboration aboard the ISS,


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geopolitical tensions are never far from


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the surface. Fed YV stepped in as the


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replacement and the mission went ahead.


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>> The Crew 12 team is expected to stay


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aboard through October, making this a


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slightly longer stint than the usual 6


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months. Sophie Adano has a particularly


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packed schedule. She's expected to take


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part in nearly 200 experiments,


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including testing a development version


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of the new EVA suit called Euro Suit,


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which was developed by French companies


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Spartan Space and Decathlon along with


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the Institute of Space Medicine.


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>> Pesting space suits designed partly by


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the people who make hiking gear. I love


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that. All right, let's move to our


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second story, and it's the saga that


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just won't quit. Artemis 2 and its


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ongoing battle with hydrogen leaks.


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>> Oh, this is becoming quite the drama.


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So, here's where things stand. NASA


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conducted what they called a confidence


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test on February 12th, partially filling


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the SLS core stages liquid hydrogen tank


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to check whether newly replaced seals in


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the fueling interface were doing their


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job.


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>> And the result


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>> mixed. They encountered a problem with


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ground support equipment that reduced


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the flow of hydrogen into the rocket.


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But the good news is that engineers were


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able to gather data at the critical


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interfaces, the exact points where the


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leak had occurred during the earlier wet


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dress rehearsal on February 2nd. And


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from what NASA administrator Jared


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Isaacman said during the Crew 12


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coverage, the early signs are cautiously


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encouraging.


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>> He said they didn't see the same leaks


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at comparable periods during this test


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that they'd seen during the full wet


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dress rehearsal. That's progress, even


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if it's not a definitive green light


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yet.


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>> For those catching up, here's the


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backstory. The first wet dress rehearsal


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ran from January 31st through February


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3rd. They managed to fully load both SLS


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stages with cryogenic propellant and


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even got the countdown to the tus 5


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minute mark. But then the ground launch


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sequencer automatically stopped


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everything because of a spike in the


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hydrogen leak rate. And these pesky


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hydrogen leaks are nothing new for the


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SLS program. They plagued Artemis 1 back


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in 2022, causing months of delays. The


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mission management team chair, John


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Honeyut, admitted this latest round


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caught them off guard. Hydrogen is such


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a tiny molecule, it can escape through


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the smallest imperfection in the


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propellant system.


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>> The February launch window has already


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been abandoned, and NASA's now targeting


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March for the earliest possible launch.


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Engineers worked through the weekend to


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purge lines, inspect equipment, and


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replace a filter suspected of causing


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the reduced flow. A second full wet


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dress rehearsal is expected before any


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launch attempt. We'll keep following


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this one closely. Artemis 2, when it


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does fly, will send four astronauts,


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Reed Wisman, Victor Glover, Christina


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and Canadian astronaut Jeremy


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Hansen, on a 10-day trip around the


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moon. The first crude lunar flyby since


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the Apollo era. Now, from the challenges


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of getting off our planet to the wonders


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of the outer solar system, our third


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story is a real beauty, Anna.


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>> Oh, I love this one. Saturn's tiny moon,


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Enceladus, just 500 km across, has been


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revealed as a giant electromagnetic


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powerhouse whose influence stretches


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over half a million km through Saturn's


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space environment.


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>> Half a million km. That's more than


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2,000 times the moon's own radius. An


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international team led by Lena Hadid


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from the Laborator the Plasmas in France


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analyzed 13 years of data from the


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Cassini spacecraft and what they found


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is stunning.


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>> So we all know Enceladus for its water


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geysers. Those spectacular plumes


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erupting from the South Pole. But it


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turns out those geysers do a lot more


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than just spray water into space. The


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water vapor and dust become ionized,


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creating an electrically charged plasma


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that interacts with Saturn's magnetic


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field as it sweeps past.


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>> And that interaction generates these


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structures called alphen wings. Think of


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them like electromagnetic vibrations


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traveling along a string, except the


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string is Saturn's magnetic field lines,


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and they're connecting this tiny moon to


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the giant planet's poles. The


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researchers found that the primary


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alphen wing isn't just a simple


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structure. It's threaded by finecale


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filaments produced by turbulence in the


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plasma. These filaments help the waves


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bounce back and forth between Saturn's


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ionosphere and the plasma taus that


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encircles Enceladus' orbit. The result


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is this incredible lattis-like pattern


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of crisscrossing electromagnetic waves.


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Across four different Cassini


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instruments, the team identified 36


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separate crossings that showed these


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wave signatures. And here's the


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remarkable part. 13 of those crossings


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occurred far from any close flyby of


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Enceladus. The moon's electromagnetic


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reach is simply enormous. Co-author


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Thomas Chust described Enceladus as a


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planetary scale alphan wave generator, a


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moon just 500 km wide capable of


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influencing the magnetospheric


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environment on the scale of Saturn


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itself. The team says this has major


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implications for understanding how small


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bodies regulate energy flow in giant


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planetary magnetospheres.


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>> And there's a forward-looking element,


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too. The researchers say their findings


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highlight the importance of future


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missions to Enceladus like the planned


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issa orbiter and lander in the 2040s


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carrying instruments specifically


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designed to study these electromagnetic


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interactions


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>> from Enceladus to interstellar space.


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Now our fourth story takes us to the


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ongoing saga of 3ATLS


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the third interstellar object ever


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detected in our solar system. And today,


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researchers from the Initiative for


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Interstellar Studies, I4IS, have


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published a fascinating new paper


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proposing how we might actually catch up


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with this cosmic visitor. The comet is


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heading away from us now, approaching


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Jupiter for its closest pass on March


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the 16th before it leaves our solar


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system forever.


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>> The challenge is obvious. By the time


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3IIATLS was discovered in July 2025, it


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was already moving too fast for any


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direct intercept mission from Earth.


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Even the issa's planned comet


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interceptor sitting ready at the Sun


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Earth L2 point wouldn't have been able


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to reach it.


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>> So, Adam Hibbert and colleagues at I4IS


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took a different approach. They're


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proposing what's called a solar oath


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maneuver. The idea is to launch a


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spacecraft in 2035 that would first


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swing past Jupiter for a gravity assist,


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then plunge close to the sun, firing its


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engines at the closest approach to


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maximize the slingshot effect. This


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would hurl the probe out of the solar


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system fast enough to catch three ATLS.


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The downside, a 50-year flight time, but


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the researchers argue it's worth it.


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Every interstellar object that passes


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through is a message in a bottle from


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another star system. The science return


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from a close-up study would be


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extraordinary.


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>> And there have been earlier proposals,


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too, including one that suggested NASA's


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Juno probe could be redirected from


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Jupiter orbit to intercept 3IA ATLS. But


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with Juno low on fuel and having engine


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issues, that always seemed like a long


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shot. 3IIA ATLS remains one of the most


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fascinating objects to visit our solar


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system. Bigger and more active than


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either OmuA MUA or Borosov, it's given


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us an unprecedented look at material


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from beyond our stellar neighborhood.


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Even if we can't catch it this time,


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studies like this are laying the


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groundwork for when the next


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interstellar visitor comes calling.


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>> Now, let's turn our gaze back to our own


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star for story number five. If you're an


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aurora chaser, today might be worth


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keeping an eye on.


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>> That's right. There's currently a G1


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minor geomagnetic storm watch in effect


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for today, February 16th, and it's being


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driven by a combination of factors.


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>> First, there's a huge transquatorial


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corona hole directly facing Earth right


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now, and it looks like an old friend.


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Observers believe it's the same corona


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hole we saw back in mid January, having


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survived its transit across the far side


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of the sun and come back around for


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another pass. These corona holes act


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like solar wind lighouses, sweeping


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Earth with fast solar wind roughly every


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27 days as the sun rotates.


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>> On top of that, an M1.0 0 solar flare


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erupted from active region 4373 on


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February 13th, launching a coronal mass


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ejection that's expected to arrive at


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Earth right about now. If the CME


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interacts strongly with the coronal


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holes high-speed stream, we could see


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conditions bump up to G2 moderate


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levels. For our listeners at higher


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latitudes, thank northern Europe,


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Canada, and the northern tier US states,


00:12:08.720 --> 00:12:10.790
it's worth checking those Aurora apps


00:12:10.800 --> 00:12:13.750
tonight. Even at G1 levels, Aurora


00:12:13.760 --> 00:12:15.910
displays can be visible in Scotland,


00:12:15.920 --> 00:12:18.150
Scandinavia, and across the northern


00:12:18.160 --> 00:12:21.430
tier US states. And with the sun now in


00:12:21.440 --> 00:12:24.710
the declining phase of solar cycle 25,


00:12:24.720 --> 00:12:27.269
space weather experts say that while big


00:12:27.279 --> 00:12:29.430
explosive events may become less


00:12:29.440 --> 00:12:31.829
frequent, coronal holes can actually


00:12:31.839 --> 00:12:34.310
provide a steadier rhythm of minor to


00:12:34.320 --> 00:12:36.870
moderate storms, aurora chasers


00:12:36.880 --> 00:12:38.790
shouldn't pack away their cameras just


00:12:38.800 --> 00:12:39.670
yet.


00:12:39.680 --> 00:12:41.910
>> And finally, our sixth story is a quick


00:12:41.920 --> 00:12:43.910
one, but it shows just how relentless


00:12:43.920 --> 00:12:46.629
the pace of space flight has become.


00:12:46.639 --> 00:12:49.269
SpaceX launched yet another Starlink


00:12:49.279 --> 00:12:51.110
mission in the early hours of this


00:12:51.120 --> 00:12:54.629
morning. The Starlink 6-103 mission,


00:12:54.639 --> 00:12:56.870
lifting off from Cape Canaveral's Space


00:12:56.880 --> 00:12:59.910
Launch Complex 40. It carried 29


00:12:59.920 --> 00:13:02.870
Starlink V2 mini satellites to low Earth


00:13:02.880 --> 00:13:03.990
orbit.


00:13:04.000 --> 00:13:06.150
>> This was the 10th orbital flight from


00:13:06.160 --> 00:13:09.350
Cape Canaveral so far in 2026, and we're


00:13:09.360 --> 00:13:11.590
not even through February. The first


00:13:11.600 --> 00:13:14.310
stage booster flying for its 10th time


00:13:14.320 --> 00:13:16.389
successfully landed on the drone ship a


00:13:16.399 --> 00:13:19.110
shortfall of gravitas in the Atlantic.


00:13:19.120 --> 00:13:21.990
>> 10 flights for that booster. SpaceX


00:13:22.000 --> 00:13:24.230
continues to demonstrate the reliability


00:13:24.240 --> 00:13:26.949
and reusability of Falcon 9 at a pace


00:13:26.959 --> 00:13:28.790
that would have seemed extraordinary


00:13:28.800 --> 00:13:31.190
just a few years ago. Combined with the


00:13:31.200 --> 00:13:35.110
Crew 12 launch on Friday, SpaceX's 600th


00:13:35.120 --> 00:13:37.430
Falcon 9 flight. It's been quite the


00:13:37.440 --> 00:13:41.269
week for Hawthorne. the 600th Falcon 9.


00:13:41.279 --> 00:13:43.190
That's genuinely remarkable when you


00:13:43.200 --> 00:13:44.150
think about it.


00:13:44.160 --> 00:13:46.710
>> It really is. And that brings us to the


00:13:46.720 --> 00:13:49.030
end of today's episode of Astronomy


00:13:49.040 --> 00:13:51.829
Daily. Fix stories covering human space


00:13:51.839 --> 00:13:54.389
flight, lunar ambitions, Saturnian


00:13:54.399 --> 00:13:57.189
science, interstellar visitors, space


00:13:57.199 --> 00:13:59.430
weather, and the unstoppable launch


00:13:59.440 --> 00:14:01.269
cadence of SpaceX.


00:14:01.279 --> 00:14:03.030
>> If you've enjoyed today's show, please


00:14:03.040 --> 00:14:04.710
do leave us a review on your favorite


00:14:04.720 --> 00:14:06.949
podcast platform. It really helps new


00:14:06.959 --> 00:14:09.269
listeners find us. And follow us on


00:14:09.279 --> 00:14:11.829
social media at astrodaily pod for


00:14:11.839 --> 00:14:13.430
updates throughout the day.


00:14:13.440 --> 00:14:15.110
>> You can also check out our full show


00:14:15.120 --> 00:14:18.629
notes and blog post at astronomyaily.io


00:14:18.639 --> 00:14:20.470
where we've got links to all the sources


00:14:20.480 --> 00:14:22.629
and studies we've discussed today.


00:14:22.639 --> 00:14:24.949
>> Until tomorrow, keep looking up.


00:14:24.959 --> 00:14:31.030
>> Pierce everyone.


00:14:31.040 --> 00:14:37.509
Oh,


00:14:37.519 --> 00:14:41.320
stories told.