Soviet Probe Alert, China’s Venus Mission, and the Hunt for Rogue Planets

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Language: en

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Welcome to a new episode of Astronomy


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Daily. I'm Anna and today we're diving


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into some truly fascinating developments


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from across the cosmos. We have a packed


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show exploring everything from relics of


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the space race to cutting edge


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astronomical research. Coming up, we'll


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update you on a story I brought you last


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week as we track a Soviet Venus probe


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making its return to Earth after more


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than 50 years in orbit. Then, we'll


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examine China's bold plan to sample


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Venus's toxic atmosphere. We'll also


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explore how the upcoming Roman Space


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Telescope will hunt for mysterious rogue


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planets wandering through our galaxy


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without a star to call home. Plus, we'll


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hear about an ingenious satellite rescue


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mission using gravity as a slingshot.


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And finally, look at new data that might


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challenge Einstein's theories about dark


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energy. It's an exciting day in space


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science. So, let's get


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started. To kick things off, let's get


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an update. In the early 1970s, as the


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space race between the United States and


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Soviet Union was in full swing, the


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Soviets launched an ambitious mission to


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explore our nearest planetary neighbor.


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The Cosmos 482 probe was designed to


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land on the inhospitable surface of


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Venus, protected by a 3.3 ft wide


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titanium shell lined with thermal


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insulation. Launched in 1972, the


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mission unfortunately never reached its


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Venian destination. A rocket anomaly


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during launch left the spacecraft


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stranded in an elliptical orbit around


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Earth where it has remained for over


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five decades, silently circling our


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planet as a relic of early space


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exploration. That lengthy orbital


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journey appears to be coming to an end.


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The


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1,190lb spacecraft is expected to


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re-enter Earth's atmosphere shortly with


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new predictions suggesting it would


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return around 1:54 a.m. Eastern time on


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May 10th, though with a substantial


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margin of error of plus or - 9 hours.


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Due to its orbital path, scientists


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calculated that the craft could re-enter


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anywhere between 52° north and 52° south


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latitude, a zone covering most of


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Earth's surface. This created some


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uncertainty about exactly when and where


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the probe might return. However, experts


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stressed there was little cause for


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concern. Unlike other space debris that


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often breaks into multiple pieces,


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Cosmos 482 was expected to remain


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largely intact during re-entry,


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presenting a lower risk profile. As the


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Aerospace Corporation noted, while the


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risk is non zero, any one individual on


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Earth is far likelier to be struck by


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lightning than to be injured by Cosmos


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482. Astronomers and satellite trackers


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have been monitoring the probe for


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years. Astrophotographer Ralph


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Vanderberg of the Netherlands has


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captured images of the craft for over a


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decade, recently photographing what some


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speculated might be a deployed


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parachute, though other experts


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attributed this to optical distortion.


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Cosmos 482 represents an important


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chapter in Venus exploration history. It


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was part of the Soviet Union's


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groundbreaking Vanera program, which


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achieved remarkable firsts, including


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landing the first probe on Venus's


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surface in 1970 with Vanera 7 and later


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capturing the first color images from


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the planet's surface with Vanera 13 in


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1982.


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As this cold war artifact makes its


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final journey, it serves as a testament


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to the ambitious early days of planetary


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exploration and the technological


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challenges involved in venturing to our


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most extreme neighboring


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world. While on the subject of Venus,


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China has set its sights on one of the


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most hostile environments in our solar


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system with an ambitious new plan to


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collect samples from Venus's toxic


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atmosphere and return them to Earth.


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This joint initiative involves several


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major Chinese space organizations,


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including the Chinese Academy of


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Sciences, the China National Space


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Administration, and the China Man Space


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Engineering Office. The mission is


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tenatively scheduled for launch


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somewhere between 2028 and


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2035. Though specific details about the


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methodology remain limited, what we do


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know is that the mission faces


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extraordinary challenges due to Venus's


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extreme environment. a planet where


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surface temperatures reach nearly 900


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degrees Fahrenheit. Atmospheric pressure


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is 90 times that of Earth and the air


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consists primarily of carbon dioxide


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with clouds of sulfuric acid. Despite


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these hostile conditions, Venus


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continues to intrigue scientists,


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particularly after recent research


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suggested that microbial life could


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potentially exist there in some form.


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This Chinese mission aims to help settle


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that debate by bringing actual


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atmospheric samples back to Earth for


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detailed analysis.


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The mission will also investigate one of


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Venus's most puzzling features. How its


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clouds apparently absorb ultraviolet


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radiation when according to our


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understanding of physics, they shouldn't


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be able to. This mysterious phenomenon


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has generated several scientific


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hypotheses that this mission could help


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confirm or rule out. Based on


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preliminary information, the ambitious


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undertaking will likely require at least


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two spacecraft working in tandem. One


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vessel would remain in orbit around


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Venus, while another would brave the


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planet's intensely stormy conditions,


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descending into the atmosphere to


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collect gases and particles before


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returning the samples to the orbiter. A


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similar concept was previously proposed


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by researchers at the Massachusetts


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Institute of Technology in 2022, though


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NASA ultimately didn't select it for


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development. That design featured a


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tefloncoated corrosion resistant balloon


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that would carry a collection canister


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through Venus's clouds before sending


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the samples back to orbit and eventually


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Earth. The value of returning physical


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samples to Earth cannot be overstated.


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Laboratory facilities here would allow


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for far more sophisticated and


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comprehensive analysis than any


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spacecraft could perform on its own at


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Venus.


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However, the technical challenges of


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accomplishing this across tens of


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millions of kilome presents


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extraordinary engineering hurdles. While


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several Russian probes did successfully


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land on Venus's surface in previous


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decades, they only survived for a couple


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of hours before succumbing to the


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extreme conditions, and none attempted a


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return journey. If China's mission


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succeeds, even with just a small sample


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of Venus's atmosphere, it would


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transform our understanding of Earth's


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nearest planetary neighbor, and


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potentially provide insights into the


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evolution of our own world's climate and


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atmosphere. Next up, have you ever


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wondered about planets that don't orbit


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stars? Astronomers call these wandering


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worlds rogue planets, and they might be


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more common in our galaxy than we ever


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imagined. The upcoming Nancy Grace Roman


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Space Telescope is poised to


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revolutionize our understanding of these


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mysterious cosmic


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nomads. Over the past decade, scientists


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have speculated extensively about rogue


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planets in the Milky Way. These free


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floating worlds don't have a home star


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providing them warmth and light.


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Instead, they roam through the vastness


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of interstellar space, ejected from


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their original star systems. With


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current technology, they're incredibly


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difficult to detect precisely because


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they don't shine or reflect light like


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planets orbiting stars. Astronomers


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estimate the Milky Way could contain


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millions or possibly billions of these


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planetary wanderers. If those numbers


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prove accurate, there could be more


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rogue planets in our galaxy than there


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are planets orbiting stars. A truly


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mind-boggling possibility. Without the


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warming influence of a star, these


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worlds are likely frozen, icy, and


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seemingly


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inhospitable. The Roman Space Telescope


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will employ a specialized search called


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the Galactic Bulge Time Domain Survey to


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detect these elusive objects. Scientists


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expect this survey will help them find


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anywhere from several hundred to several


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thousand free floating planets,


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providing an unprecedented census of


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these mysterious worlds. Roman will use


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both the transit method and microlensing


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to spot these rogues. The transit method


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detects the dimming of light when one


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object passes in front of another.


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Microl lensing, meanwhile, observes how


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gravity from a foreground object warps


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the light from a background star,


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creating a distinctive pattern that can


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reveal even non- luminous objects like


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rogue planets. What's particularly


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exciting is that Roman might help answer


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fundamental questions about how these


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planets form and get ejected from their


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original


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systems. The dynamics of early planetary


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systems are chaotic with gravitational


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forces sometimes flinging newly formed


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planets out into interstellar space. By


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analyzing the mass distribution of rogue


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planets, scientists can better


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understand these formative processes.


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The telescope will be especially


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valuable for detecting smaller rogue


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planets, worlds less massive than Earth


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that have previously escaped our notice.


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These smaller planets would


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theoretically require less energy to


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eject from their star systems than their


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larger counterparts, potentially making


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them the most common type of rogue


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planet. Though the Roman telescope is


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still a couple of years from launch,


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astronomers are already anticipating the


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transformative impact its observations


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will have. Beyond rogue planets, it


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might even detect other non- luminous


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objects wandering through our galaxy,


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potentially including primordial black


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holes. When it comes to understanding


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the full population and characteristics


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of objects in our galaxy, the Nancy


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Grace Roman Space Telescope promises to


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fill in crucial gaps in our knowledge,


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helping complete the cosmic census of


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our galactic neighborhood like never


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before. Next, today, more Chinese space


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news. In what can only be described as


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an impressive display of cosmic problem


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solving, China's Technology and


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Engineering Center for Space Utilization


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recently pulled off a remarkable rescue


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mission in space, saving a pair of


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weward lunar satellites through an


00:10:04.720 --> 00:10:07.430
ingenious gravity slingshot technique.


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Back in March 2024, China launched two


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satellites named DRO A and DRO B aboard


00:10:13.200 --> 00:10:16.069
a long March 2C rocket. These satellites


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were destined for what's called a


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distant retrograde orbit around the


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moon. That's what the DRRO in their name


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stands for. Their mission was to provide


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navigation and tracking for spacecraft


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operating in Earth moon space,


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essentially serving as celestial


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lighouses. While the rocket's first and


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second stages performed flawlessly, a


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technical issue with the Yuan Jang 1's


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upper stage prevented the satellites


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from reaching their intended orbit. To


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make matters worse, mission control


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temporarily lost contact with the duo


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entirely. When the team finally located


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the satellites, they discovered the pair


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were spinning in an orbit much closer to


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Earth than planned. This could have


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spelled disaster for the mission with


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years of work and significant investment


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potentially wasted. As Jangha, a member


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of the rescue team, explained, it would


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also be a mental blow to the team. The


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challenge was particularly complex


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because the satellites had sustained


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partial damage during the launch,


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limiting their ability to capture enough


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sunlight to power the necessary course


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correction. This is where the team's


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creativity truly shined. Rather than


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attempting to force the satellites into


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position using their limited power


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resources, engineers devised a plan to


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use the natural gravitational forces of


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the Earth, Moon, and Sun to gradually


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slingshot the satellites toward their


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destination.


00:11:38.480 --> 00:11:40.069
This gravity assist technique


00:11:40.079 --> 00:11:41.829
essentially borrowed energy from these


00:11:41.839 --> 00:11:44.150
celestial bodies rather than relying on


00:11:44.160 --> 00:11:46.269
the satellite's own limited fuel


00:11:46.279 --> 00:11:49.350
reserves. As CSU researcher Mao Shinuan


00:11:49.360 --> 00:11:51.509
put it, "If you don't want to consume


00:11:51.519 --> 00:11:53.430
much energy, you must replace it with


00:11:53.440 --> 00:11:55.590
something else. We chose to consume more


00:11:55.600 --> 00:11:57.990
time in order to save energy." The


00:11:58.000 --> 00:11:59.910
patience paid off, though the rescue


00:11:59.920 --> 00:12:02.870
operation took a substantial 123 days to


00:12:02.880 --> 00:12:05.990
complete. By mid July 2024, both


00:12:06.000 --> 00:12:07.670
satellites had successfully reached


00:12:07.680 --> 00:12:09.829
their intended orbits around the moon.


00:12:09.839 --> 00:12:13.190
And about 6 weeks later, DRO A and Dro B


00:12:13.200 --> 00:12:15.350
separated from each other as planned.


00:12:15.360 --> 00:12:17.030
They're now working alongside a third


00:12:17.040 --> 00:12:19.829
satellite, DAR, which had previously


00:12:19.839 --> 00:12:22.230
launched to low Earth orbit. Together,


00:12:22.240 --> 00:12:23.829
these satellites form a navigation


00:12:23.839 --> 00:12:25.990
network that can dramatically reduce the


00:12:26.000 --> 00:12:27.910
time needed to locate spacecraft in


00:12:27.920 --> 00:12:30.629
Earth Moon space. According to Mao, they


00:12:30.639 --> 00:12:32.870
can now pinpoint a spacecraft's position


00:12:32.880 --> 00:12:35.190
in just 3 hours, compared to the two


00:12:35.200 --> 00:12:36.870
days or more required by traditional


00:12:36.880 --> 00:12:39.670
land-based positioning systems. This


00:12:39.680 --> 00:12:41.590
remarkable save demonstrates not only


00:12:41.600 --> 00:12:43.389
China's growing expertise in space


00:12:43.399 --> 00:12:45.829
operations, but also the ingenuity that


00:12:45.839 --> 00:12:48.150
makes space exploration possible even


00:12:48.160 --> 00:12:50.430
when things don't go according to


00:12:50.440 --> 00:12:54.550
plan. And wrapping things up today, some


00:12:54.560 --> 00:12:56.470
of the most fundamental aspects of our


00:12:56.480 --> 00:12:58.590
universe may be up for


00:12:58.600 --> 00:13:01.269
reconsideration as recent findings from


00:13:01.279 --> 00:13:03.509
the dark energy spectroscopic instrument


00:13:03.519 --> 00:13:07.030
or desi suggest that dark energy, the


00:13:07.040 --> 00:13:08.949
mysterious force thought to be driving


00:13:08.959 --> 00:13:11.670
the accelerated expansion of our cosmos,


00:13:11.680 --> 00:13:14.310
might not be constant after all. This


00:13:14.320 --> 00:13:16.150
potential discovery challenges one of


00:13:16.160 --> 00:13:18.710
modern physics cornerstone ideas,


00:13:18.720 --> 00:13:21.509
Einstein's cosmological constant. For


00:13:21.519 --> 00:13:23.030
those unfamiliar with the history,


00:13:23.040 --> 00:13:24.790
Einstein originally introduced this


00:13:24.800 --> 00:13:27.990
concept in 1917 as an addition to his


00:13:28.000 --> 00:13:30.790
equations of general relativity. At the


00:13:30.800 --> 00:13:32.470
time, he was trying to create a model


00:13:32.480 --> 00:13:34.790
for a static universe, one that neither


00:13:34.800 --> 00:13:37.110
expanded nor contracted. When


00:13:37.120 --> 00:13:38.629
astronomers later discovered the


00:13:38.639 --> 00:13:41.030
universe was indeed expanding, Einstein


00:13:41.040 --> 00:13:42.870
reportedly called the cosmological


00:13:42.880 --> 00:13:46.230
constant his greatest blunder. Fast


00:13:46.240 --> 00:13:48.230
forward to the 1990s when astronomers


00:13:48.240 --> 00:13:50.310
made the shocking discovery that the


00:13:50.320 --> 00:13:52.710
universe wasn't just expanding, it was


00:13:52.720 --> 00:13:55.590
doing so at an accelerating rate. This


00:13:55.600 --> 00:13:57.829
unexpected cosmic acceleration led


00:13:57.839 --> 00:13:59.750
scientists to revive the idea of a


00:13:59.760 --> 00:14:02.389
cosmological constant. but now as an


00:14:02.399 --> 00:14:04.230
explanation for the mysterious dark


00:14:04.240 --> 00:14:06.870
energy driving this acceleration. For


00:14:06.880 --> 00:14:09.269
years, the simplest explanation has been


00:14:09.279 --> 00:14:11.350
that dark energy maintains a constant


00:14:11.360 --> 00:14:13.670
value throughout space and time. But


00:14:13.680 --> 00:14:15.670
DC's firstear observations hint at


00:14:15.680 --> 00:14:17.990
something potentially revolutionary.


00:14:18.000 --> 00:14:20.550
Dark energy that changes over time.


00:14:20.560 --> 00:14:22.629
Andrew Herin, a physicist at Argon


00:14:22.639 --> 00:14:24.870
National Laboratory and Desi member puts


00:14:24.880 --> 00:14:27.269
it in perspective. If the desi result


00:14:27.279 --> 00:14:29.189
holds up, it means that a cosmological


00:14:29.199 --> 00:14:31.230
constant is not the origin of cosmic


00:14:31.240 --> 00:14:33.590
acceleration. It's much more exciting.


00:14:33.600 --> 00:14:35.430
It would mean that space is pervaded by


00:14:35.440 --> 00:14:37.430
a dynamically evolving fluid with


00:14:37.440 --> 00:14:39.350
negative gravity, which has never been


00:14:39.360 --> 00:14:41.470
observed in any tabletop experiment on


00:14:41.480 --> 00:14:43.750
Earth. To help investigate these


00:14:43.760 --> 00:14:46.230
potentially groundbreaking observations,


00:14:46.240 --> 00:14:47.829
researchers at Argon have turned to


00:14:47.839 --> 00:14:49.910
Aurora, one of the world's most powerful


00:14:49.920 --> 00:14:52.230
exoscale supercomputers.


00:14:52.240 --> 00:14:53.829
They're running enormous simulations


00:14:53.839 --> 00:14:55.590
that model how the universe evolves


00:14:55.600 --> 00:14:58.389
under different dark energy scenarios.


00:14:58.399 --> 00:14:59.910
The team created two massive


00:14:59.920 --> 00:15:02.230
simulations. One assuming constant dark


00:15:02.240 --> 00:15:04.949
energy as Einstein's theory suggests and


00:15:04.959 --> 00:15:07.350
another where it changes over time.


00:15:07.360 --> 00:15:08.790
Starting with identical initial


00:15:08.800 --> 00:15:10.870
conditions, they can track even the


00:15:10.880 --> 00:15:12.710
smallest differences that emerge as


00:15:12.720 --> 00:15:15.590
these virtual universes evolve.


00:15:15.600 --> 00:15:17.430
These simulations would have taken weeks


00:15:17.440 --> 00:15:19.069
of compute time on our earlier


00:15:19.079 --> 00:15:21.509
supercomputers, but each simulation took


00:15:21.519 --> 00:15:23.590
just 2 days on Aurora, explained


00:15:23.600 --> 00:15:26.310
computational scientist Adrien Pope.


00:15:26.320 --> 00:15:27.829
This dramatic speed up allows


00:15:27.839 --> 00:15:29.750
researchers to respond much faster to


00:15:29.760 --> 00:15:31.470
new cosmological


00:15:31.480 --> 00:15:34.470
observations. Jillian Belts Mormon, a


00:15:34.480 --> 00:15:37.030
post-doal research fellow at Argon


00:15:37.040 --> 00:15:38.430
emphasized the value of these


00:15:38.440 --> 00:15:40.710
simulations. Since we can't create a


00:15:40.720 --> 00:15:43.269
mini universe to conduct experiments, we


00:15:43.279 --> 00:15:45.189
can test theories by using really big


00:15:45.199 --> 00:15:47.509
computers like Aurora to simulate the


00:15:47.519 --> 00:15:49.870
growth of structure in the universe over


00:15:49.880 --> 00:15:52.310
time. While these simulations can't


00:15:52.320 --> 00:15:54.949
directly confirm Desi's findings, they


00:15:54.959 --> 00:15:56.790
provide a crucial testing ground for


00:15:56.800 --> 00:15:58.150
examining different measurement


00:15:58.160 --> 00:16:00.150
techniques and determining whether the


00:16:00.160 --> 00:16:02.389
patterns observed by Desi represent


00:16:02.399 --> 00:16:05.269
genuine new physics or are artifacts of


00:16:05.279 --> 00:16:07.990
how we collect and analyze data. To


00:16:08.000 --> 00:16:10.150
maximize the impact of this work, the


00:16:10.160 --> 00:16:12.470
Argon team has made all their simulation


00:16:12.480 --> 00:16:14.790
data publicly available, allowing the


00:16:14.800 --> 00:16:17.269
broader scientific community to explore


00:16:17.279 --> 00:16:19.189
different analysis methods and help


00:16:19.199 --> 00:16:20.550
determine whether Einstein's


00:16:20.560 --> 00:16:23.030
cosmological constant truly needs to be


00:16:23.040 --> 00:16:25.030
replaced with a more dynamic model of


00:16:25.040 --> 00:16:28.629
dark energy. If confirmed, this finding


00:16:28.639 --> 00:16:30.069
would represent one of the most


00:16:30.079 --> 00:16:31.990
significant shifts in our understanding


00:16:32.000 --> 00:16:34.710
of the universe in decades, potentially


00:16:34.720 --> 00:16:37.430
opening doorways to entirely new physics


00:16:37.440 --> 00:16:40.749
beyond our current standard model of


00:16:40.759 --> 00:16:43.030
cosmology. That wraps up today's episode


00:16:43.040 --> 00:16:45.910
of Astronomy Daily. What an incredible


00:16:45.920 --> 00:16:47.430
journey through our cosmic neighborhood


00:16:47.440 --> 00:16:49.509
we've had. From a Soviet probe


00:16:49.519 --> 00:16:51.910
completing its 50-year orbit of Earth,


00:16:51.920 --> 00:16:53.990
to China's ambitious plans to sample


00:16:54.000 --> 00:16:56.470
Venus's toxic atmosphere, the hunt for


00:16:56.480 --> 00:16:59.030
rogue planets wandering our galaxy, an


00:16:59.040 --> 00:17:00.949
ingenious satellite rescue mission and


00:17:00.959 --> 00:17:02.710
potentially revolutionary discoveries


00:17:02.720 --> 00:17:05.350
about the very nature of dark energy.


00:17:05.360 --> 00:17:07.590
I'm your host, Anna, and I want to thank


00:17:07.600 --> 00:17:09.590
you for joining me as we explore these


00:17:09.600 --> 00:17:11.110
fascinating developments in space


00:17:11.120 --> 00:17:13.110
science and astronomy. The universe


00:17:13.120 --> 00:17:15.189
continues to surprise us, challenging


00:17:15.199 --> 00:17:16.789
our understanding and pushing the


00:17:16.799 --> 00:17:19.590
boundaries of what we know. And before I


00:17:19.600 --> 00:17:21.909
go, a quick reminder to visit our


00:17:21.919 --> 00:17:23.150
website at


00:17:23.160 --> 00:17:25.029
astronomydaily.io, where you can sign up


00:17:25.039 --> 00:17:26.949
for our free daily newsletter and listen


00:17:26.959 --> 00:17:28.350
to all our back


00:17:28.360 --> 00:17:30.870
episodes. We're constantly updating with


00:17:30.880 --> 00:17:32.870
the latest astronomical discoveries and


00:17:32.880 --> 00:17:34.710
space exploration news that you won't


00:17:34.720 --> 00:17:36.950
want to miss. Don't forget to subscribe


00:17:36.960 --> 00:17:39.710
to the podcast on Apple Podcasts,


00:17:39.720 --> 00:17:42.549
Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get


00:17:42.559 --> 00:17:44.470
your podcast to stay connected to the


00:17:44.480 --> 00:17:47.430
cosmic frontier. Until next time, keep


00:17:47.440 --> 00:17:59.270
looking up.


00:17:59.280 --> 00:18:01.510
Stories told.


00:18:01.520 --> 00:18:08.119
[Music]