”We Failed Them” — Starliner Bombshell as Artemis II Gets the Green Light

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Language: en

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Hello and welcome back to Astronomy


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Daily. I'm Anna.


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>> And I'm Avery. It's Friday, February the


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20th, 2026, and our producer has


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absolutely loaded us up today. We've got


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eight stories to get through.


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>> Eight. That's right. And honestly,


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they're all worth it. We've got huge


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breaking news from the Kennedy Space


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Center about Artemis 2. A genuinely


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damning report that NASA itself has


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described as we failed them. some


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absolutely mindbending deep space


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discoveries. And yes, we are going to


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briefly talk about UFOs.


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>> We absolutely are. Just briefly and


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responsibly.


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>> Responsibly. That is the word. Right.


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Let's dive in. There is a lot of ground


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to cover.


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>> I think this might be the biggest


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episode we've ever done, but there's


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plenty to cover today.


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>> We are going to start with the biggest


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space story of the week, and it's one


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that broke overnight. NASA has just


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completed its second wet dress rehearsal


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of the Aremis 2 space launch system


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rocket. And from everything we're


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hearing, it went well.


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>> Really well, actually. Teams ran the SLS


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through a full countdown, fueling the


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rocket with its super cold liquid


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hydrogen and liquid oxygen, simulating


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launch day procedures right down to


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closing the Orion crew codle hatch. And


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they got all the way to tminus 29


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seconds before wrapping up. That is


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exactly where they wanted to stop.


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>> And this matters enormously because the


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first wet dress rehearsal back on


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February 2nd and 3rd had to be called


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off early due to hydrogen fuel leaks at


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launchpad 39B. That was a setback. NASA


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had to go in and replace seals. And


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there was very real uncertainty about


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whether they'd solved the problem.


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>> And it looks like they have. NASA is


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holding a media briefing this morning,


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11:00 a.m. Eastern, and we'll be


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watching that closely, but the early


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word is positive.


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>> So, for anyone who needs a refresher on


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what this mission actually is, Artemis 2


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is the first crude flight of the Aremis


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program. It's not a moon landing that


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comes later with Artemis 3, but it is


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the first time humans will travel to


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lunar distance since Apollo 17 in 1972.


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We are talking more than 50 years.


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>> And the crew is commander Reed Weisman,


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pilot Victor Glover, mission specialist


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Christina all NASA, and mission


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specialist Jeremy Hansen from the


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Canadian Space Agency. They're going to


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fly around the moon in a free return


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trajectory and come home. 10 days, no


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landing, but an absolutely historic


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journey. And if this morning's press


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conference gives the all clear, the


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launch window we're looking at is as


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early as March 6th, that is just 2 weeks


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away. Avery, what does that feel like to


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you?


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>> Honestly, it feels surreal. We've been


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living in the Aremis era for years now.


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Artemis 1 flew in 2022, and it's been a


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long road to get here, but 2 weeks from


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now, there could be four astronauts on


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their way to the moon.


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>> We will have full coverage as things


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develop. And if that briefing produces


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any surprises, we'll update you in


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tomorrow's episode. For now though,


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looking very good for Artemis 3.


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>> Now, while NASA is very much in


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celebratory mode for this morning,


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yesterday they were facing a very


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different kind of news day, an


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independent review board released its


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full report into the Boeing Starlininer


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crude flight test, and it is a damning


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document.


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>> Damning is the word. The report formally


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classifies the Starlininer mission as a


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quote typea mishap, the most serious


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category in NASA's safety framework.


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That means it was an event that could


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have resulted in death or permanent


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disability. And NASA administrator Jared


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Isaacman stood up in front of the


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cameras yesterday and said, and I'm


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paraphrasing here, "We almost did have a


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really terrible day. We failed them."


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them being astronauts Butch Wilmore and


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Sunni Williams who launched in June 2024


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expecting to be gone for 8 to 10 days


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and ended up spending $286


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days in orbit.


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>> Right? So, let's just remind listeners


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how we got here. Boeing won a $4.2


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billion contract from NASA back in 2014


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to build the Star Liner as a second


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commercial crew vehicle alongside Spac


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X's Crew Dragon. Starlininer ran into


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problems on its very first uncrrewed


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test flight in 2019, needed a second


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unpiloted flight before it was deemed


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ready, and Butch and Sunni finally


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launched in June of last year.


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>> The trip up went okay. They docked


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successfully with the International


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Space Station. But during the rendevous


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approach, the capsule experienced


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multiple helium leaks in the propulsion


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system and several of the maneuvering


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thrusters failed. There was a moment


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where they temporarily lost what a


00:05:02.639 --> 00:05:04.950
report calls six degrees of freedom


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control. Had things gone differently in


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those minutes. Had the thrusters not


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recovered, docking might not have been


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possible. And what's really chilling


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about reading the report is discovering


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just how many warning signs were there.


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The investigation found that NASA and


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Boeing were aware of concerns that


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weren't fully understood but were


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considered acceptable for flight.


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Anyway, there was pressure,


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institutional pressure to make this


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mission succeed because the entire


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commercial crew program's credibility


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depended on having two viable crew


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vehicles. The report quotes unnamed NASA


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personnel saying things like, "There was


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yelling in meetings. It was emotionally


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charged and unproductive. And if you


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weren't aligned with the desired


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outcome, your input was filtered out or


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dismissed." One person said they stopped


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speaking up entirely because they knew


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they'd be dismissed.


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>> That is a profoundly troubling portrait


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of an organization under pressure. And


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what makes it worse is this. One NASA


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worker told the investigation panel


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roughly 11 months after the mission,


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"Nobody within NASA or outside of NASA


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has been held accountable. Nobody."


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>> Administrator Isaacman addressed that


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headon. He said there will be


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accountability. He said the report


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reveals that advocacy for the mission


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success quote exceeded reasonable bounds


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and placed the mission, the crew and


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America's space program at risk. He also


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made clear that NASA will not fly


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another crew on Starlininer until the


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technical causes are understood. The


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propulsion system is fully qualified and


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all 61 recommendations from this report


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are implemented. 61 recommendations


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spanning technical, organizational, and


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cultural domains. Boeing, for its part,


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said they've made substantial progress


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and driven significant cultural changes.


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We'll see.


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>> It's worth noting Butch and Sunni are


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safe. They got home in a SpaceX Crew


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Dragon in early 2025 and have since


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retired from NASA. But this report is a


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stark reminder of just how close things


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came to going very wrong and how


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important it is that the lessons are


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actually learned.


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>> One more thing before we move on.


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Isaacman confirmed the eventual cost of


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Starlininer's wos exceeded the $2


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million typea mishap threshold by quote


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a hundfold. So, not just a safety


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crisis, an enormous financial one, too.


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>> All right, we promised you this and here


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it is. President Trump has been making


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noise again about UAPs, unidentified


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aerial phenomena, and the possibility of


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releasing classified government files,


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including apparently what's actually


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going on at Area 51.


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>> And look, the serious astronomy


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community broadly keeps its distance


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from this territory for good reasons. We


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are not going to go deep on it today


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because there is genuinely not much new


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substance to report yet. It's hints and


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statements rather than actual


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declassification.


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But, and this is an honest butt, if


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genuine classified data about UAP


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encounters were actually released in a


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verifiable, scientifically usable form,


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that would be worth serious examination.


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The scientific community has actually


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been pushing for more transparency in


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this area for years. The issue has never


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been whether UFOs are real as a


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phenomenon. There are clearly things


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being observed that pilots and sensors


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can't immediately explain. The question


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is what they actually are.


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>> Right? And the history of these big


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reveals is, shall we say, not


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encouraging. You get a lot of heavily


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redacted documents, a lot of blurry


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footage, and then not much.


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>> Area 51, though, that is a name. If


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files about what's actually been going


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on out there in the Nevada desert come


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out, even if it's all just experimental


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aircraft, that's going to be a


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fascinating day. Regardless, we will


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watch this space. Pun intended. If


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something genuinely newsworthy emerges


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from the UAP file story, we will cover


00:09:05.680 --> 00:09:08.389
it properly. For now, back to the actual


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cosmos.


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>> Now, this is one of those stories that


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really makes you stop and think about


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how strange the universe is. NASA's


00:09:16.480 --> 00:09:18.310
Hubble Space Telescope has identified


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what may be the most heavily dark matter


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dominated galaxy ever discovered. The


00:09:23.519 --> 00:09:27.590
object is called CDG2 and CDG stands for


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circumgalactic diffused galaxy which is


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already a fascinating description. It's


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an extraordinarily faint low surface


00:09:35.519 --> 00:09:37.509
brightness galaxy that's basically


00:09:37.519 --> 00:09:39.829
invisible when you look at it. There are


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only a sparse scattering of faint stars,


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but according to the measurements, the


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vast majority of its total mass is dark


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matter. We should take a moment here to


00:09:49.519 --> 00:09:51.670
explain what dark matter actually is.


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For anyone who's new to the show, dark


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matter is a name we give to whatever


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makes up most of the mass of the


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universe that we can't see, can't detect


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directly, and don't fully understand. We


00:10:03.519 --> 00:10:05.110
know it exists because of its


00:10:05.120 --> 00:10:07.509
gravitational effects. The way galaxies


00:10:07.519 --> 00:10:09.750
rotate, the way light bends around


00:10:09.760 --> 00:10:12.389
galaxy clusters, but beyond that, it


00:10:12.399 --> 00:10:14.069
remains one of the great unsolved


00:10:14.079 --> 00:10:15.509
problems in physics.


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>> And CDG2 is interesting because it seems


00:10:18.640 --> 00:10:21.269
to be almost entirely dark matter. The


00:10:21.279 --> 00:10:23.670
few stars it contains are almost an


00:10:23.680 --> 00:10:25.910
afterthought. It's like finding a house


00:10:25.920 --> 00:10:27.829
that's built almost entirely of


00:10:27.839 --> 00:10:30.230
invisible walls. You can only see the


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wallpaper. What makes this particularly


00:10:32.800 --> 00:10:34.870
significant is that we've long theorized


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that galaxies like this should exist. In


00:10:37.680 --> 00:10:39.910
the standard model of cosmology, dark


00:10:39.920 --> 00:10:41.829
matter forms the scaffolding that


00:10:41.839 --> 00:10:45.509
ordinary matter, gas, stars, planets,


00:10:45.519 --> 00:10:48.389
falls into and clumps around. But most


00:10:48.399 --> 00:10:50.310
galaxies have converted a good portion


00:10:50.320 --> 00:10:53.910
of that gas into stars by now. CDG2


00:10:53.920 --> 00:10:56.069
seems to have barely bothered.


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>> The question is why? Why did so little


00:10:59.279 --> 00:11:01.509
star formation occur here? Was it


00:11:01.519 --> 00:11:03.750
stripped of its gas by interactions with


00:11:03.760 --> 00:11:05.910
neighboring galaxies? Is it in an


00:11:05.920 --> 00:11:08.470
unusually isolated environment? Those


00:11:08.480 --> 00:11:09.750
are the questions that will keep


00:11:09.760 --> 00:11:12.230
astronomers busy for a while, but as a


00:11:12.240 --> 00:11:14.470
window into dark matter's dominant role


00:11:14.480 --> 00:11:16.949
in shaping the cosmos. This one is


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remarkable.


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>> Amen to that.


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>> From one galaxy mystery to another,


00:11:22.399 --> 00:11:24.470
astronomers have spotted a candidate


00:11:24.480 --> 00:11:26.630
jellyfish galaxy. One of the most


00:11:26.640 --> 00:11:28.870
visually striking types of galaxies we


00:11:28.880 --> 00:11:31.750
know of, dating back to just 5 billion


00:11:31.760 --> 00:11:34.069
years after the Big Bang. And the reason


00:11:34.079 --> 00:11:36.310
this is extraordinary is because theory


00:11:36.320 --> 00:11:38.710
said this shouldn't be possible. Let me


00:11:38.720 --> 00:11:41.030
explain what a jellyfish galaxy is for


00:11:41.040 --> 00:11:43.190
anyone picturing an actual jellyfish


00:11:43.200 --> 00:11:45.269
floating through space, which honestly


00:11:45.279 --> 00:11:48.150
is not a bad mental image. A jellyfish


00:11:48.160 --> 00:11:50.069
galaxy gets its name from the long


00:11:50.079 --> 00:11:52.470
streamers of gas and young stars that


00:11:52.480 --> 00:11:54.949
trail behind it like tentacles. They


00:11:54.959 --> 00:11:56.949
form through a process called RAM


00:11:56.959 --> 00:11:58.230
pressure stripping.


00:11:58.240 --> 00:12:00.470
>> Ram pressure stripping is essentially


00:12:00.480 --> 00:12:02.310
what happens when a galaxy moves through


00:12:02.320 --> 00:12:05.110
the hot diffused gas that fills galaxy


00:12:05.120 --> 00:12:07.110
clusters. What astronomers call the


00:12:07.120 --> 00:12:09.590
intercluster medium. The galaxy is


00:12:09.600 --> 00:12:11.910
moving so fast through this medium that


00:12:11.920 --> 00:12:14.230
it gets the cosmic equivalent of a blast


00:12:14.240 --> 00:12:16.310
of wind from the front and the gas in


00:12:16.320 --> 00:12:18.949
its outer regions gets blown backwards


00:12:18.959 --> 00:12:21.990
forming those trailing streams. Now, the


00:12:22.000 --> 00:12:24.470
reason this discovery is so significant


00:12:24.480 --> 00:12:26.389
is that RAM pressure stripping was


00:12:26.399 --> 00:12:28.150
thought to require a dense enough


00:12:28.160 --> 00:12:30.550
cluster environment to operate. And in


00:12:30.560 --> 00:12:32.790
the early universe, 5 billion years


00:12:32.800 --> 00:12:35.110
after the Big Bang, clusters weren't


00:12:35.120 --> 00:12:37.350
expected to be dense enough yet. The


00:12:37.360 --> 00:12:39.829
universe was younger, less evolved.


00:12:39.839 --> 00:12:41.590
Clusters were less mature.


00:12:41.600 --> 00:12:44.069
>> And yet, here we have what looks like a


00:12:44.079 --> 00:12:46.790
fully formed jellyfish galaxy from that


00:12:46.800 --> 00:12:49.590
early era. It challenges our timeline of


00:12:49.600 --> 00:12:52.069
how galaxy clusters developed and how


00:12:52.079 --> 00:12:54.230
RAM pressure stripping operated in the


00:12:54.240 --> 00:12:55.509
young universe.


00:12:55.519 --> 00:12:58.310
>> There's also a bonus mystery here. The


00:12:58.320 --> 00:12:59.990
discovery may shed light on the


00:13:00.000 --> 00:13:03.190
so-called red nugget galaxies. Compact


00:13:03.200 --> 00:13:05.430
red massive galaxies from the early


00:13:05.440 --> 00:13:07.430
universe that have puzzled astronomers


00:13:07.440 --> 00:13:09.910
for years. The theory is that RAM


00:13:09.920 --> 00:13:12.150
pressure stripping in jellyfish galaxies


00:13:12.160 --> 00:13:13.829
could be one of the mechanisms that


00:13:13.839 --> 00:13:16.310
transform normal star forming galaxies


00:13:16.320 --> 00:13:19.190
into those quiescent red nuggets. If


00:13:19.200 --> 00:13:21.829
confirmed, this single galaxy could be a


00:13:21.839 --> 00:13:23.750
crucial missing link in understanding


00:13:23.760 --> 00:13:25.509
how galaxies evolve.


00:13:25.519 --> 00:13:27.910
>> It does still need to be confirmed. It's


00:13:27.920 --> 00:13:30.069
officially a candidate at this stage,


00:13:30.079 --> 00:13:32.150
but the evidence looks strong, and this


00:13:32.160 --> 00:13:33.990
is exactly the kind of thing that makes


00:13:34.000 --> 00:13:36.389
deep sky astronomy so endlessly


00:13:36.399 --> 00:13:38.629
fascinating. All right, here's a story


00:13:38.639 --> 00:13:40.470
that's a little different in flavor.


00:13:40.480 --> 00:13:44.550
It's part wow, cool science, part should


00:13:44.560 --> 00:13:45.910
we be thinking about this more


00:13:45.920 --> 00:13:49.110
carefully? Yes. For the first time ever,


00:13:49.120 --> 00:13:51.269
scientists have observed a cloud of air


00:13:51.279 --> 00:13:54.150
pollution forming in near real time as a


00:13:54.160 --> 00:13:56.550
SpaceX rocket burned up during re-entry


00:13:56.560 --> 00:13:58.870
into Earth's atmosphere. And I want to


00:13:58.880 --> 00:14:00.949
be clear about what we mean by burned up


00:14:00.959 --> 00:14:03.509
here. This isn't a failed mission. This


00:14:03.519 --> 00:14:05.670
is the normal end of life process for a


00:14:05.680 --> 00:14:07.750
rocket stage where it re-enters the


00:14:07.760 --> 00:14:09.670
atmosphere and disintegrates through the


00:14:09.680 --> 00:14:11.030
heat of re-entry.


00:14:11.040 --> 00:14:13.110
>> So these things happen routinely and


00:14:13.120 --> 00:14:15.509
what scientists have now been able to do


00:14:15.519 --> 00:14:17.910
using atmospheric monitoring instruments


00:14:17.920 --> 00:14:20.629
is actually watch in something close to


00:14:20.639 --> 00:14:23.430
real time the chemical cloud that forms


00:14:23.440 --> 00:14:25.829
as the rocket material vaporizes.


00:14:25.839 --> 00:14:28.389
Metals, aluminum oxide particles,


00:14:28.399 --> 00:14:30.870
various combustion products, all of it


00:14:30.880 --> 00:14:33.110
lighting up in the instruments. And this


00:14:33.120 --> 00:14:34.790
matters because we're launching things


00:14:34.800 --> 00:14:38.069
at an everinccreasing rate. SpaceX alone


00:14:38.079 --> 00:14:40.069
is launching dozens of missions per


00:14:40.079 --> 00:14:42.949
year. If every re-entry deposits a cloud


00:14:42.959 --> 00:14:44.790
of metallic particles and other


00:14:44.800 --> 00:14:47.030
pollutants into the upper atmosphere,


00:14:47.040 --> 00:14:49.110
and we're doing this hundreds of times a


00:14:49.120 --> 00:14:51.430
year, what does that add up to over a


00:14:51.440 --> 00:14:52.230
decade?


00:14:52.240 --> 00:14:54.790
>> The honest answer right now is we don't


00:14:54.800 --> 00:14:57.269
fully know. This is genuinely new


00:14:57.279 --> 00:14:59.509
science. Researchers have been raising


00:14:59.519 --> 00:15:01.430
concerns about the potential impact of


00:15:01.440 --> 00:15:03.590
rocket exhaust and re-entry pollution in


00:15:03.600 --> 00:15:05.670
the stratosphere for a few years now,


00:15:05.680 --> 00:15:07.670
but being able to observe it in real


00:15:07.680 --> 00:15:10.150
time to actually characterize what's


00:15:10.160 --> 00:15:12.629
happening is a significant step towards


00:15:12.639 --> 00:15:14.949
understanding the cumulative effect.


00:15:14.959 --> 00:15:16.550
>> It's one of those stories where the


00:15:16.560 --> 00:15:19.189
science itself is fascinating, but the


00:15:19.199 --> 00:15:21.189
implications quietly deserve more


00:15:21.199 --> 00:15:22.790
attention than they're getting. The


00:15:22.800 --> 00:15:24.949
space economy is booming. That's


00:15:24.959 --> 00:15:27.350
wonderful in many ways, but what are the


00:15:27.360 --> 00:15:29.509
environmental costs of a high cadence


00:15:29.519 --> 00:15:31.910
launch industry is a question that needs


00:15:31.920 --> 00:15:34.150
answering and researchers are now


00:15:34.160 --> 00:15:36.069
developing the tools to start answering


00:15:36.079 --> 00:15:38.629
it. Something to watch and full credit


00:15:38.639 --> 00:15:40.069
to the scientists making these


00:15:40.079 --> 00:15:42.550
observations. Pioneering work.


00:15:42.560 --> 00:15:44.870
>> Now we come to a story that, and I say


00:15:44.880 --> 00:15:47.829
this with genuine enthusiasm, is about


00:15:47.839 --> 00:15:50.550
as mindbending as astronomy gets.


00:15:50.560 --> 00:15:52.949
Researchers may have confirmed the very


00:15:52.959 --> 00:15:55.910
first true dark galaxy. Not just a


00:15:55.920 --> 00:15:58.310
galaxy dominated by dark matter like


00:15:58.320 --> 00:16:01.430
CDG2 we discussed earlier, but a galaxy


00:16:01.440 --> 00:16:04.310
made almost entirely of dark matter with


00:16:04.320 --> 00:16:06.710
effectively no stars at all.


00:16:06.720 --> 00:16:09.509
>> A dark galaxy in theory is a region of


00:16:09.519 --> 00:16:11.350
space where dark matter has clumped


00:16:11.360 --> 00:16:13.990
together in sufficient quantity to form


00:16:14.000 --> 00:16:16.470
a gravitationally bound structure.


00:16:16.480 --> 00:16:19.030
essentially a galaxyshaped thing, but


00:16:19.040 --> 00:16:21.350
where ordinary matter has never clumped


00:16:21.360 --> 00:16:23.829
enough to form stars or has been


00:16:23.839 --> 00:16:26.710
stripped away entirely. We've theorized


00:16:26.720 --> 00:16:28.949
they should exist for decades, and now


00:16:28.959 --> 00:16:30.949
we may finally have one.


00:16:30.959 --> 00:16:33.749
>> I want to sit with that for a second. A


00:16:33.759 --> 00:16:36.550
galaxy, a structure that has all the


00:16:36.560 --> 00:16:39.509
gravitational signatures of a galaxy


00:16:39.519 --> 00:16:42.389
with no stars in it. You literally


00:16:42.399 --> 00:16:44.389
cannot see it with any optical


00:16:44.399 --> 00:16:47.509
telescope. It's detectable only by its


00:16:47.519 --> 00:16:50.550
gravitational effects on nearby visible


00:16:50.560 --> 00:16:51.509
matter.


00:16:51.519 --> 00:16:53.829
>> It's like detecting a ghost by watching


00:16:53.839 --> 00:16:55.829
how other people react to the room it's


00:16:55.839 --> 00:16:56.870
standing in.


00:16:56.880 --> 00:16:59.110
>> That is exactly the right analogy.


00:16:59.120 --> 00:17:01.829
Actually, the way astronomers identify


00:17:01.839 --> 00:17:04.710
these objects is by looking at how their


00:17:04.720 --> 00:17:07.590
gravity warps the light and motion of


00:17:07.600 --> 00:17:10.230
surrounding galaxies. And when they do


00:17:10.240 --> 00:17:12.789
the maths on the candidate identified in


00:17:12.799 --> 00:17:15.590
this new research, the numbers point to


00:17:15.600 --> 00:17:18.789
a massive dark matter structure with


00:17:18.799 --> 00:17:21.669
essentially no luminous component.


00:17:21.679 --> 00:17:24.309
>> If confirmed, this would be a genuinely


00:17:24.319 --> 00:17:26.789
landmark moment in cosmology. We've


00:17:26.799 --> 00:17:28.630
known for decades that dark matter


00:17:28.640 --> 00:17:30.950
vastly outweighs ordinary matter in the


00:17:30.960 --> 00:17:34.470
universe, roughly 5:1. But actually


00:17:34.480 --> 00:17:36.870
finding a structure that is purely dark


00:17:36.880 --> 00:17:38.950
matter with no ordinary matter


00:17:38.960 --> 00:17:41.669
hitchhiking along inside it would be


00:17:41.679 --> 00:17:44.310
extraordinary observational proof of how


00:17:44.320 --> 00:17:46.070
dark matter can organize itself


00:17:46.080 --> 00:17:47.190
independently.


00:17:47.200 --> 00:17:49.590
>> The researchers are being appropriately


00:17:49.600 --> 00:17:52.150
cautious. This requires further


00:17:52.160 --> 00:17:54.070
confirmation and independent


00:17:54.080 --> 00:17:56.630
verification, but the evidence is


00:17:56.640 --> 00:17:58.710
compelling. We'll keep you posted as


00:17:58.720 --> 00:18:01.350
this one develops. And we close today


00:18:01.360 --> 00:18:03.190
with something a little different in


00:18:03.200 --> 00:18:05.669
mood, something poetic actually.


00:18:05.679 --> 00:18:10.150
>> Comet C/2024E1


00:18:10.160 --> 00:18:12.549
known as comet where Kosh after its


00:18:12.559 --> 00:18:14.870
discoverer. As we mentioned earlier in


00:18:14.880 --> 00:18:17.669
the week, is making its closest approach


00:18:17.679 --> 00:18:20.630
to Earth today. Right now, as you listen


00:18:20.640 --> 00:18:23.350
to this, the comet is passing at roughly


00:18:23.360 --> 00:18:26.390
the same distance from us as the sun,


00:18:26.400 --> 00:18:29.270
about one astronomical unit, and it's


00:18:29.280 --> 00:18:32.150
putting on a genuinely beautiful display


00:18:32.160 --> 00:18:34.789
for those with telescopes or binoculars


00:18:34.799 --> 00:18:36.390
in the right conditions.


00:18:36.400 --> 00:18:39.029
>> There are images out already, a gorgeous


00:18:39.039 --> 00:18:41.350
30inut exposure taken last week from


00:18:41.360 --> 00:18:44.789
Chile, showing a 5° long ion tail.


00:18:44.799 --> 00:18:46.950
That's 10 times the width of the full


00:18:46.960 --> 00:18:49.750
moon in the sky, plus three shorter dust


00:18:49.760 --> 00:18:52.789
tails. The coma of the comet glows green


00:18:52.799 --> 00:18:55.110
from the breakdown of dicarbon molecules


00:18:55.120 --> 00:18:56.310
by sunlight.


00:18:56.320 --> 00:18:58.630
>> But here's what makes this one special


00:18:58.640 --> 00:19:00.870
and why we wanted to close the show with


00:19:00.880 --> 00:19:04.710
it. Comet where Kosh is on a hyperbolic


00:19:04.720 --> 00:19:05.669
orbit,


00:19:05.679 --> 00:19:08.390
>> which means it is not coming back.


00:19:08.400 --> 00:19:11.350
>> It is not coming back. This comet has


00:19:11.360 --> 00:19:13.750
traveled from the outermost reaches of


00:19:13.760 --> 00:19:16.710
the solar system, swung around the sun,


00:19:16.720 --> 00:19:19.830
passed close by our little blue dot, and


00:19:19.840 --> 00:19:22.710
when it leaves, it will leave forever.


00:19:22.720 --> 00:19:25.110
Its orbit carries it out of the solar


00:19:25.120 --> 00:19:28.950
system entirely into interstellar space.


00:19:28.960 --> 00:19:31.350
It will become a wanderer between the


00:19:31.360 --> 00:19:32.230
stars.


00:19:32.240 --> 00:19:34.870
>> You know, we had 3i.atls ATLS this


00:19:34.880 --> 00:19:36.950
season. The interstellar object that


00:19:36.960 --> 00:19:38.470
came into our solar system from


00:19:38.480 --> 00:19:40.789
somewhere else entirely. That was a


00:19:40.799 --> 00:19:43.669
visitor from interstellar space. Comet


00:19:43.679 --> 00:19:46.070
where Kosh is going the other direction.


00:19:46.080 --> 00:19:48.870
It's leaving. We're waving goodbye to a


00:19:48.880 --> 00:19:52.310
comet that no human will ever see again.


00:19:52.320 --> 00:19:55.350
And I find that genuinely moving. So, if


00:19:55.360 --> 00:19:57.669
you have clear skies tonight or this


00:19:57.679 --> 00:20:00.150
weekend and you can get to a dark spot


00:20:00.160 --> 00:20:02.789
with a pair of binoculars, it is worth


00:20:02.799 --> 00:20:05.190
trying to find it. Check the astronomy


00:20:05.200 --> 00:20:07.669
apps for its exact position. It is


00:20:07.679 --> 00:20:09.270
bright enough to see.


00:20:09.280 --> 00:20:12.310
>> Last chance, a cosmic farewell.


00:20:12.320 --> 00:20:15.110
>> And that's a wrap on a genuinely packed


00:20:15.120 --> 00:20:17.750
episode of Astronomy Daily. Eight


00:20:17.760 --> 00:20:20.549
stories, breaking news, accountability


00:20:20.559 --> 00:20:23.430
journalism, mindbending deep space


00:20:23.440 --> 00:20:26.390
science, and a cosmic goodbye.


00:20:26.400 --> 00:20:28.149
>> Thank you so much for spending part of


00:20:28.159 --> 00:20:30.070
your Friday with us. If you enjoyed


00:20:30.080 --> 00:20:31.990
today's show, please do leave a review


00:20:32.000 --> 00:20:34.230
wherever you listen. It makes a huge


00:20:34.240 --> 00:20:35.990
difference in helping new listeners find


00:20:36.000 --> 00:20:36.630
us.


00:20:36.640 --> 00:20:39.830
>> You can find us at astronomyaily.io


00:20:39.840 --> 00:20:42.230
for the blog and show notes, and we're


00:20:42.240 --> 00:20:45.190
at astroaily pod across all the social


00:20:45.200 --> 00:20:47.669
platforms. We'll see you again tomorrow.


00:20:47.679 --> 00:20:50.070
And if Artemis 2 gets a launch date


00:20:50.080 --> 00:20:52.470
confirmed today, we'll make sure that's


00:20:52.480 --> 00:20:53.830
front and center.


00:20:53.840 --> 00:20:56.230
>> Until then, keep looking up.


00:20:56.240 --> 00:21:08.870
>> Clear skies, everyone.


00:21:08.880 --> 00:21:12.679
Stories told.