physics

Life on Mars? Explorations of a SETI Planetary Scientist-PPW093

Life on Mars? Dr. Jr. R. Skok of the SETI Institute discusses Current and Upcoming Exploration and Research on MARS Dr. Skok, explorer and planetary scientist with SETI, earned his B.S. at Cornell University and his Ph.D. from  Brown in Geological Sciences. In the spring of 2017, he took part in an international scientific expedition • Read More »


Earth and Mars Scientists Discuss Current Research-PW091

  Chris McKay, NASA Mars Researcher, and Friederike Otto, University of Oxford climate modeller Science is the focus of this week’s Planet Watch.  Senior NASA scientist Chris McKay, in the Planetary Systems Branch of NASA Ames, is an expert on the evolution of the solar system and the origins of life. Chris is also involved in • Read More »


Happy Holidays from Planet Watch-PW050

In this podcast we hear from family and far flung friends (in Norway and Virginia) and explore the traditions, rituals and science behind winter time and solstice. Rachel reads from Jean Ritchie’s “Singing Family of the Cumberlands” about old Christmas and the first Christmas trees to come into the mountains in the 1930’s. Plus, talk • Read More »


A Passive House That Uses 80% Less Energy-PW049

Chie Kawahara and Kurt Hurley designed their passive house to save tons of energy. Find out how they turned a 95-year old house into a modern energy saving miracle. And they did it without solar electricity! More at Midorihaus.com. Plus, what’s greener, fake or real Christmas trees? Alexis Navarro explores this vexing question.  Air Date: • Read More »


Life on Mars: A Chat with NASA’s Carol Stoker-PW017

An interview with NASA scientist Carol Stoker, an expert on Mars, the Red Planet. Carol Stoker is a staff planetary scientist at NASA Ames Research Center. Her most recent work is focused on developing instruments and robotic systems for space exploration and testing them in terrestrial analog environments. She has led field experiments in the Antarctic, • Read More »



Mitigating Global Warming by Engineering Carbon Out of the Atmosphere – PW002

Global warming, or human-induced climate change, is a “hot topic” worldwide. Innovations in sustainable energy technologies are being implemented around the world to help reduce CO2 in Earth’s atmosphere, with positive impacts on the climate. But even if CO2 emissions trend downward globally, we will not be able to sufficiently mitigate climate change by just replacing • Read More »