Podcasts by Space Boffins, from the Naked Scientists
Publishing monthly, Space Boffins brings you cutting edge conversation and debate about the past, present and future of space science.
Further podcasts by Richard Hollingham, Sue Nelson
Podcast on the topic Astronomie
All episodes
Brits in Space! from 2023-10-30T07:49:53
With the announcement of a planned all-UK astronaut mission, hosts Richard Hollingham and Sue Nelson chat to ESA reserve astronaut Meganne Christian about astronaut selection, life in Antarctica an...
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Shuttle Blankets and Space Burials from 2023-10-08T09:29:02
A Shuttle emergency you may not have heard of, sending your DNA into space, and a scientist studying the samples from asteroid Bennu. Sue Nelson and Richard Hollingham meet Natural History Museum m...
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Gui Bluford, and the end of ESA's Aeolus from 2023-08-28T02:50:37
We celebrate the 40th anniversary of the flight of the first black astronaut, Gui Bluford and speak to Diego Hurtado de Mendoza and Lisa Cortes, directors of The Space Race, which tells the story o...
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Space junk, giant claws and dark skies from 2023-07-28T09:04:35
This month it's all about the space environment - how do you remove space debris from orbit and make space more sustainable? The Earth Space Sustainability Initiative's (ESSI) Stuart Clark discusse...
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Space broadcast legend and 20 years at Mars from 2023-06-19T01:11:13
Irish journalist Leo Enright joins us to discuss commentating on Apollo 17, an unfortunate celebrity encounter, the world's first astronomers, 20 years of Mars Express, sun angles on the Moon and t...
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Hitchin to Houston: NASA's new science head from 2023-05-02T10:49:08
NASA's new head of science, Dr Nicola Fox, joins Space Boffins to chat about Mars sample return, solar missions and asteroids. Also, ESA new astronaut recruit, Pablo Alvarez, and experienced astron...
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Juice to Jupiter and forgotten space shuttles from 2023-03-22T08:12:20
European Space Agency Juice mission to Jupiter's Michele Dougherty talks about icy moons, magnetic fields and life elsewhere in the solar system, and the UK Space Agency's Caroline Harper discusses...
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Space Toilets and the New Guys from 2023-03-01T23:36:50
What's the toilet like in SpaceX's Dragon spacecraft? ESA astronaut Matthias Maurer reveals what a mission in the Dragon is like, from business class seats and spacious interior, to privacy curtain...
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Mike Massimino and Meet the Minister from 2023-02-06T10:43:15
Hubble astronaut Mike Massimino and UK 'Space Minister' George Freeman MP talk about inspiration from Apollo, Artemis, Hubble and what astronaut legend John Young imparted about going to the toilet...
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NASA's Dr Z from 2022-12-21T09:28:14
Nasa's outgoing head of science, Thomas Zurbuchen talks about saving the James Webb Space Telescope, future missions to the Moon and Mars, and research into UFOs. The team also visit the Science Mu...
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Cute Mars Rovers from 2022-12-05T07:59:50
Space Boffins Sue Nelson and Richard Hollingham celebrate the drama of the Spirit and Opportunity rover missions with NASA rover engineer Doug Ellison and JPL research scientist Abigail Fraeman fro...
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Last Man on the Moon: BONUS EPISODE from 2022-11-15T08:58:24
In this special bonus episode - for the first time in full - we play Richard's interview with the last man on the Moon, Gene Cernan. Recorded in summer 2016, it's thought to be the astronaut's last...
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Moon Trees from 2022-10-30T10:11:23
Astronaut Stuart Roosa was a real-life action hero - Sue Nelson and Richard Hollingham speak to his daughter about the Apollo 14 Command Module Pilot's life, mission and the seeds he carried with h...
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Space Tyranny! from 2022-09-30T10:21:56
How do you design a space settlement government without it descending into tyranny? Charles Cockell shares his research with hosts Sue Nelson and Richard Hollingham. And as the UK prepares for its ...
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Apollo Remastered from 2022-08-27T05:39:59
In a brave move, the Space Boffins attempt a podcast about pictures without any pictures! Joining them are science writer Andy Saunders, who's spent years remastering images from the Apollo mission...
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Poppy Northcutt and Launch UK from 2022-07-03T09:25:09
Apollo legend Poppy Northcutt joins Richard and Sue this month The only woman in mission control for the Moon missions, Poppy talks about the challenge of getting astronauts back from the Moon, the...
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Lessons from an Astronaut from 2022-05-27T08:09:16
Not one but four astronauts feature in this month's Space Boffins. Sue Nelson and Richard Hollingham chat to astronaut Nicole Stott about her book Back to Earth; we hear about the drama of launch, ...
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Return to the Moon from 2022-04-25T08:48:31
With the first Artemis mission on the launchpad, Space Boffins Sue Nelson and Richard Hollingham look ahead to the next footsteps on the Moon. They chat to Libby Jackson from the UK Space Agency ab...
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Do we need astronauts? from 2022-03-01T08:49:37
It's the Space Boffins' most controversial episode yet, as Don Goldsmith talks about his new book written with Astronomer Royal Martin Rees - The End of Astronauts and why robots are the future. Al...
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Fiery Worlds and go for Mars from 2022-01-28T12:57:58
In a bumper new year edition, we hear the latest on the Webb space telescope, discuss volcanoes on distant worlds and look ahead to Europe's mission to Mars. ESA's Mark McCaughrean talks about what...
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Flowers in Space from 2021-12-15T10:06:07
Gardeners of the Galaxy podcast host Emma Doughty discusses the challenges and joys of growing flowers, chillies and vines (for wine!) in space. Sue and Richard also chat to self-confessed space ne...
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James Webb and astronaut Jessica Meir from 2021-11-22T10:53:41
ESA's senior science advisor Mark McCaughrean joins Space Boffins Sue Nelson and Richard Hollingham to enthuse about the most powerful space telescope ever built. And NASA astronaut Jessica Meir di...
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BepiColombo lobster eyes and Apollo legends from 2021-11-01T08:05:01
After BepiColombo's recent flyby of Mercury, Space Boffins Richard Hollingham and Sue Nelson hear from the University of Leicester's Dr Charly Feldman about its onboard lobster eye optics and their...
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Europe leads the space station from 2021-09-10T09:49:02
ESA astronaut and soon to be Commander of the International Space Station, Samantha Cristoforetti, talks Dragons, Star City, and preparing for leadership. We hear from meteor expert Richard Greenwo...
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Space Station Commander from 2021-08-12T11:10:52
Shuttle pilot and International Space Station Commander, Terry Virts, chats to Space Boffins about flying the Shuttle, commanding the ISS, photographing the Earth ...and UFOs. And after the triumph...
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Wally Funk Heads for Space from 2021-07-13T10:36:33
On the 10th anniversary of Space Boffins, BBC Science and Space Correspondent Jonathan Amos comes aboard to celebrate Mercury 13 legend Wally Funk as she prepares to launch to space with Jeff Bezos...
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Mission to Europa from 2021-06-14T08:53:15
Two astronauts, one space hipster, a writer and a musician all feature in this month's Space Boffins. Sue Nelson and Richard Hollingham are joined by podcaster and founder of the Space Hipsters, Em...
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Britain's First Astronaut from 2021-05-14T08:47:32
In a podcast exclusive, Britain's first astronaut, Helen Sharman, joins the Space Boffins 30 years after her 1991 Juno mission. She describes the selection process, training in the Soviet Union and...
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Celebrating 60 years of human spaceflight from 2021-04-09T07:43:35
In an epic edition of the Space Boffins Podcast we ambitiously celebrate the 60th anniversary of Yuri Gagarin's flight and the 40th anniversary of the first flight of the Space Shuttle. Richard Hol...
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Perseverance on Mars from 2021-03-11T06:03:47
AS NASA's Perseverance rover makes it safely to Mars, we chat to science writer Elizabeth Howell about the array of missions now studying the red planet. Also the European Space Agency's head of di...
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Space Zombies from 2021-02-11T09:14:33
This month science journalist Katia Moskvitch joins the Space Boffins to discuss the zombies of the cosmos, neutron stars, as well as the European Space Agency's new astronaut recruitment and Yuri ...
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China on the Moon from 2021-01-13T02:24:36
Space journalist Andrew Jones and his cat join the Space Boffins this month to discuss China's ambitious plans for the Moon and beyond. Sue Nelson and Richard Hollingham also talk to Nellie Offord ...
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Tim Peake Reveals All from 2020-12-15T02:26:38
In a specially recorded face to (socially-distanced) face interview to mark the fifth anniversary of his mission to the International Space Station, British European Space Agency astronaut Tim Peak...
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Asteroids and Artemis from 2020-11-17T10:41:21
NASA has just collected a sample from an asteroid and work is well underway to land a woman on the Moon. Space journalist David Whitehouse chats about whether President Trump was good for space. Dr...
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Space Station Special from 2020-10-14T10:46:39
To celebrate 20 years of people living on the International Space Station, we feature only ISS astronauts in this special edition of Space Boffins. NASA Astronaut Nicole Stott joins Richard Holling...
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America's first space station from 2020-09-17T10:03:39
Skylab's perilous and dramatic mission, life on Venus, the religion of Cosmism, and Brexit all get discussed this month. Richard Hollingham and Sue Nelson are joined by astronomer and writer Dr Stu...
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Space Boffins celebrate their century from 2020-08-12T02:21:26
Space Boffins celebrate their 100th Naked Scientists' edition with two major guests: NASA's head of science, Thomas Zurbuchen, and the UK Space Agency's head of human space exploration, Libby Jacks...
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2020 Missions to Mars from 2020-07-14T06:34:02
Mars is the destination of choice for three Mars missions this summer, with the US, China and the United Arab Emirates all preparing for launch. Also, UAE plans for a Mars habitat, the UK engineer ...
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Splashdown! from 2020-06-15T11:08:14
Following the successful Crew Dragon launch, Apollo 8 commander Frank Borman talks about the terrors of splashdown, and Shuttle astronaut and aquanaut Kathy Sullivan describes the choreography of s...
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Maiden Flight from 2020-05-10T09:31:54
With astronauts preparing for the first flight in the Dragon spacecraft, space reporter Sarah Cruddas discusses this new era in space travel. Richard and Sue hear about the space industry's respons...
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The Loneliest Human: Space Boffins Special from 2020-05-01T10:23:18
In a special bonus episode of Space Boffins Richard Hollingham celebrates Apollo 15 astronaut Al Worden, who died in March. The podcast features extracts from interviews Richard conducted with Al, ...
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Cubesats, Hubble and Apollo 13 Trouble from 2020-04-14T10:23:41
Richard Hollingham and Sue Nelson celebrate Hubble's 30th birthday with Shuttle astronaut Kathy Sullivan, who deployed the space telescope, and hear from NASA engineer Jerry Woodfill about his warn...
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Solar Orbiter, stamps and exoplanets from 2020-03-10T06:24:35
The Sun, stamps and exoplanets in this edition. ESA's senior science advisor Mark McCaughrean reflects on the emotional launch of Solar Orbiter, Nobel Prize winner Didier Queloz talks CHEOPS as the...
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Hubble, TRUTHS and space Law from 2020-02-10T09:11:33
Live at Astrofest 2020, Sue Nelson and Richard Hollingham talk to UK Space Agency chief scientist Chris Lee, space law expert Chris Newman and the European Space Agency's Antonella Nota. They discu...
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Robot Arms and Space Toilets from 2020-01-10T01:55:11
Shuttle astronaut Mike Mullane recounts stories of space sexism, toilets and M and Ms in the first Space Boffins podcast of 2020. We also meet the engineer developing the controls for a new robotic...
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Glove Actually and the Sew Sisters from 2019-12-13T12:09:54
Rubber gloves, sew sisters and a mission to the Sun with Space Boffins Richard Hollingham and Sue Nelson this month. Richard talks to Solar Orbiter ESA and NASA mission scientists in Munich. Sue re...
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Moving to Mars from 2019-11-10T05:21:09
What would a house on Mars look like? Space Boffins Richard Hollingham and Sue Nelson tackle the tricky topic of Mars interior design and the challenges of moving to Mars. They're joined by the Hea...
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Cosmic Girl - from California to Cornwall from 2019-10-15T01:38:37
Space Boffins Sue Nelson and Richard Hollingham visit Virgin Orbit's LauncherOne factory floor in Long Beach, California and Sue heads to Spaceport Cornwall, where Virgin Orbit plans to launch its ...
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Boffins on Mars from 2019-09-10T10:10
How clean is really clean? This month, as Europe's Rosalind Franklin Mars rover leaves the UK, Space Boffins visit the clean room to discover the effort needed to keep Mars safe from Earth-bugs. Wi...
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Lunar Heritage and Lost Meteorites from 2019-08-10T12:00
Space Boffins Richard Hollingham and Sue Nelson with a TinTin style headline for this month's podcast: lunar heritage and the lost meteorites of Antarctica. Recorded at the recent Bluedot festival,...
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Apollo 11 Special (Part 2) from 2019-07-10T12:00
This is a Space Boffins podcast to blow your minds. Celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Moon landings, it features the only woman in launch control for Apollo 11, JoAnn Morgan, talking about he...
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Apollo 11 Special (Part 1) from 2019-06-10T00:00
As mankind celebrates the 50th anniversary of the Moon landings, Space Boffins Sue Nelson and Richard Hollingham are joined by bestselling Apollo 11 author David Whitehouse at the British Interplan...
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Remarkable Women: A hidden history from 2019-05-16T00:00
Space Boffin Sue Nelson interviews two remarkable women for this podcast: Hidden Figure Christine Darden and Mercury 13 legend and astronaut wannabe, Wally Funk.  Darden, who featured in t...
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Giant Rockets to the Moon from 2019-04-10T00:00
The Space Boffins get to see inside the NASA's famous Vehicle Assembly Building at the Kennedy Space Centre - a building so large that it has its own weather system. It's being adapted so that NASA...
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Spacecraft Reunited from 2019-03-11T00:00
This month Space Boffins contemplates the missing universe, the nature of humanity and reunites astronaut Nicole Stott with her Space Shuttle Atlantis. Richard Hollingham is joined by theoretical p...
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Astrofest Live! from 2019-02-11T00:00
Space Boffins are live on stage at Astrofest 2019 in London with a stellar line-up of guests to discuss landing on Phobos, weirdly-shaped space rocks and Europe's mission to Mercury. They're joined...
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Flying hotdogs from 2019-01-16T00:00
Mice and flying hotdogs on the podcast as we report from NASA on how to save Apollo's famous mission control and discuss China's landing on the far side of the Moon. Space Boffins Sue Nelson and Ri...
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Mission to the Moon from 2018-12-13T00:00
Apollo 8 commander, Frank Borman, joins Space Boffins Richard Hollingham and Sue Nelson in this month's podcast. Fifty years ago Apollo 8 became the first manned mission to orbit the Moon and so th...
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Don't call me Fruit Loops! from 2018-11-12T00:00
The Space Boffins podcast is in New York with NASA astronaut, engineer and Big Bang Theory star Mike Massimino. Recorded on the Hudson River from the flight deck of the USS Intrepid - where Massimi...
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Space Boffins Live ESA Special from 2018-10-10T00:00
Astronaut Paolo Nespoli joins Space Boffins Sue Nelson and Richard Hollingham for a podcast special recorded at the European Space Agency's ESTEC facility in The Netherlands during their Open Day. ...
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Spy Satellite Special from 2018-09-11T00:00
In a special edition of Space Boffins, Richard Hollingham meets a man rarer than a Moonwalker - a spy satellite engineer. Phil Pressel led the team that built the camera for the Hexagon spy satelli...
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Space Boffins Blast Off! from 2018-08-10T00:00
It's a rocket special on this month's Space Boffins with Sue Nelson and Richard Hollingham. As the UK's plans for a Spaceport forge ahead, two microlauncher companies are at the forefront of a comm...
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Rockets in the Jungle from 2018-07-10T00:00
It's the 7th anniversary of Space Boffins and Sue and Richard are joined by BBC Science Correspondent, Jonathan Amos - a guest on the very first podcast. Meanwhile, Richard reports from the new Ari...
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Magnificent Mercury: BepiColombo from 2018-06-10T00:00
Magnificent Mercury is in full focus. Space Boffins Sue Nelson and Richard Hollingham are at the National Space Centre in Leicester with BepiColombo mission scientists Professor Emma Bunce and Dr S...
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Sampling An Asteroid from 2018-05-11T00:00
Asteroid expert Professor Simon Green joins the Space Boffins to discuss missions to collect samples from space rocks and return them to Earth, and the perils of re-directing asteroids heading our ...
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Water on Mars from 2018-04-10T00:00
After 2000 days on Mars, NASA's Curiosity rover is still going strong. In this month's Space Boffins Richard visits Imperial College London to talk to one of the lead scientists on the mission, San...
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Killer Asteroids from 2018-03-12T00:00
Could life on Earth be wiped out by a killer asteroid? The short answer is yes. This month the Space Boffins hear about a new European telescope to spot the threat before it's too late. Richard Hol...
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Space, Boffins&Rock Stars from 2018-02-09T00:00
Queen guitarist, rock star and astronomer Brian May adds some celebrity stardust and big hair on this month's podcast for the launch of the 2019 Starmus Festival. May talks about the essential huma...
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Space Highlights of 2017 from 2017-12-11T00:00
Richard Hollingham and Sue Nelson are joined by space journalist Sarah Cruddas and rocket insurer, David Wade, to discuss 2017 and look ahead to 2018 in space. Featuring genetically engineered astr...
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How to Leave the Planet from 2017-11-10T00:00
This month, TV science presenter Dallas Campbell joins Sue and Richard to discuss how to leave the planet. The Space Boffins also hear from Apollo 15 legend Al Worden, who spent 3 days isolated in ...
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Space Boffins Explore ESTEC from 2017-10-10T00:00
Two astronauts and an Imperial Storm Trooper join the Space Boffins podcast from The Netherlands at the European Space Agency's ESTEC Open Day - where thousands of people can see the Agency's space...
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Cassini's Grand Finale from 2017-09-10T00:00
Space Boffins Sue Nelson, Richard Hollingham and studio guest Sarah Cruddas talk rockets, total eclipses and Cassini's final days at Saturn. Apollo, Mercury and Shuttle propulsions engineer John Tr...
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Extraterrestrial Humans from 2017-08-10T00:00
This month, European astronaut Luca Parmitano suggests a future for genetically engineered space travellers, the Space Boffins celebrate 40 years of the Voyager mission and look forward to the demi...
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Mission To Mercury from 2017-07-10T00:00
Space Boffins Sue Nelson and the Guardian's Stuart Clark are at the European Space Agency's ESTEC facility in The Netherlands to see the BepiColombo spacecraft - Europe's mission to Mercury. As the...
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Space Alien Special from 2017-05-10T00:00
Richard is at SETI in California to hunt space aliens with the institute's chief astronomer, Seth Shostak. He also reports from the iconic Parkes space telescope in Australia on the Breakthrough Li...
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Mission Control from 2017-04-10T00:00
This month, Space Boffins highlights the unsung heroes of the space programme - mission controllers. Featuring the director of a new documentary film on mission control, David Fairhhead, we hear fr...
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Space Tomatoes in Urine from 2017-03-10T00:00
SpaceX and NASA compete to get people back to the Moon, Richard meets a man who grows space tomatoes in human urine, and heads to a lab where volunteers are being paid to stay awake. This month, Ri...
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Space Boffins at Astrofest from 2017-02-10T00:00
The Space Boffins are at Astrofest in London in front of a live audience. Guests include an Antarctic meteorite hunter, the scientist tracking down the Solar System's missing planet and the flight ...
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Double Hubble from 2017-01-10T00:00
Broadcaster Dallas Campbell joins the Space Boffins at the British Interplanetary Society to discuss the giant new replacement for Hubble, hypersonic spaceplanes and balloon flights to the edge of ...
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The Best of Space Boffins from 2016-12-10T00:00
In a bumper end of year special, Space Boffins features Buzz Aldrin, last man on the Moon Gene Cernan, the nurse to the astronauts, a cosmic piano and a space sofa. Sue Nelson and Richard Hollingha...
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X15: To Infinity and Beyond! from 2016-11-14T00:00
Space Boffins' Sue Nelson was at ESA mission control recently when the ExoMars spacecraft arrived at Mars after a seven month journey. She hears from ExoMars and Open University scientist Dr Manish...
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Roving Over Mars from 2016-10-10T01:00
Space Boffins Sue Nelson and Richard Hollingham are on Mars - which turns out to be behind a blue door in the Hertfordshire town of Stevenage. With guest Airbus head of science, Ralph Cordey, they ...
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Nursing NASA's Astronauts from 2016-09-10T00:00
The Space Boffins meet the Mercury 7 nurse, Dee O'Hara, recalling what it was like to work with America's first astronauts. SETI's Seth Shostak explains why we should target AI to discover ET, and ...
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From The Blue Dot Festival from 2016-08-10T00:00
The Space Boffins are at the Blue Dot music festival at Jodrell Bank in Cheshire where they hear live music from Cern's cosmic piano and chat to Rosetta project scientist (and space celebrity) Matt...
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Jupiter's Juno Mission from 2016-07-10T00:00
Jupiter's Juno mission, the magical world of Pluto and spacewalking feature in this special fifth anniversary edition of the podcast. ESA's head of the neutral buoyancy facility, Herve Stevenin, ex...
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Hot from Spacefest from 2016-06-10T00:00
Last man on the Moon, Captain Gene Cernan, and Apollo 9 lunar module pilot Rusty Schweickart join Space Boffin Richard at Spacefest in Tucson, Arizona. Apollo 17 commander Cernan expresses his frus...
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Have you been mis-sold time? from 2016-05-10T00:00
This month the Space Boffins get to grips with relativity, watch as British astronaut Tim Peake manoeuvres a Mars rover in a cave, and go inside a section of NASA's new giant rocket. With their gue...
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Riding on a Space Sofa from 2016-04-10T00:00
Space Boffins Sue Nelson and Richard Hollingham bring news of space sofas, super flat floors and Martian sunsets. They are joined at The Open University by ExoMars mission principal investigator Dr...
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Buzz Aldrin and his master plan for Mars from 2016-03-10T00:00
Buzz Aldrin is the legendary Apollo 11 and Gemini 12 astronaut who made history in 1969 when he became one of the first men to walk on the lunar surface. Today, he has his sights firmly on the futu...
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Russian Lunar Rovers and Floating Number Twos from 2016-02-10T00:00
Space Boffins Sue Nelson and Richard Hollingham talk Mars rovers, Russian lunar rovers and floating number twos during this month's podcast. Europe's ExoMars mission scientist Nicholas Thomas revea...
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Surgery in Space from 2016-01-10T00:00
The Space Boffins talk surgery in space with a real life Dr McCoy, NASA astronaut and physician Michael Barratt, and report from a school in St Albans during Tim Peake's first ham radio contact wit...
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Christmas in Space from 2015-12-10T10:59
Space Boffins Sue Nelson and Richard Hollingham prepare for Tim Peake's launch to the International Space Station by speaking to Britain's first astronaut - Helen Sharman. ESA's Dr Volker Damann, H...
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Gravity and Guitars with Tim Peake from 2015-11-10T00:00
Richard sits down with British European Space Agency astronaut, Tim Peake, to discuss gravity, guitars, 1980s computers and future missions to the Moon and Mars. Recorded on location at the Nationa...
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The First Woman in Space from 2015-10-10T00:00
Space Boffins Richard Hollingham and Sue Nelson's star (and space) studded podcast includes the first woman in space, cosmonaut Valentina Tereshkova, and astronaut Tim Peake. Britain's first Europe...
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Done and Dusted: What's Next for Rosetta? from 2015-09-10T00:00
Space Boffins Richard Hollingham and Sue Nelson are joined by the Rosetta's project scientist, Dr Matt Taylor, to hear the latest on ESA's comet chasing mission now that perihelion is done and dust...
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Hello, this is the International Space Station from 2015-08-12T00:00
In a first for the Space Boffins podcast - an interview with astronauts in space! NASA's Scott Kelly and cosmonaut Mikhail Kornienko are on a year long mission on board the International Space Stat...
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Rocketing into Space from 2015-07-13T00:00
The Space Boffins celebrate their 4th year producing monthly podcasts in - aptly - a British rocket lab. Richard Hollingham joins engineer Adam Baker at the University of Kingston to discuss recent...
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How to Fly a Space Shuttle from 2015-06-10T00:00
In a Space Boffins special - Sue Nelson meets the first female Space Shuttle Commander, Eileen Collins. The retired astronaut - one of NASA's most experienced - reveals the challenges of flying the...
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Rosetta: Six Months Later from 2015-05-10T00:00
Space Boffins Richard Hollingham and Sue Nelson are joined by astronomer, Guardian writer and guitarist Stuart Clark for a Rosetta mission special - six months after it made history by landing on a...
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Out of this World: Britain's history in space from 2015-04-16T00:00
Space Boffins Richard Hollingham and Sue Nelson are inside London's Science Museum with the museum's curator of space, Doug Millard, and the original Apollo 10 capsule. Apart from a tribute to Apol...
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All Systems Go: NASA's new giant rocket from 2015-03-10T00:00
This month Richard sees NASA's new giant rocket, the Space Launch System, taking shape in New Orleans. In the studio the Space Boffins are joined by poet Simon Barraclough to discuss the poetic pow...
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Recovering Beagle 2 from Mars from 2015-02-10T00:00
Space Boffins Richard Hollingham and Sue Nelson discover why we should recover Beagle 2 from the surface of Mars; why we need the Uranus Pathfinder mission; and how exoplanets are putting a twinkle...
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Space Exploration in 2015 from 2015-01-10T00:00
Space Boffins Sue Nelson and Richard Hollingham are joined by the BBC's Jon Amos and ExoMars' Andrew Coates. They look ahead at the most exciting missions of 2015 so expect New Horizons, Ceres and ...
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Orion: the first step to Mars? from 2014-12-10T00:00
Sue Nelson joins space fans in Florida to witness the Orion launch and meets Mars candidate Elmo. Meanwhile, Richard Hollingham talks to the DG of the UK Space Agency, David Parker, about the Inter...
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Space: triumph and tragedy from 2014-11-14T00:00
Emotions are running high in this month's Space Boffins as Sue reports from Germany on Europe's cometary landing. And, following the SpaceShipTwo tragedy and Antares explosion, Sue and Richard disc...
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ESTEC: The heart of the European Space Agency from 2014-10-10T00:00
Space Boffin Sue Nelson is at the European Space Agency's technical heart - ESTEC in the Netherlands - where spacecraft undergo a crucial 'shake and bake' before launch. She's joined by astronauts...
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The Spacewalk from Hell from 2014-09-10T00:00
Space Boffins Sue Nelson and Richard Hollingham hear from the Rosetta mission's Flight Director, Andrea Accomazzo, about choosing a landing site on comet 67P - plus Apollo astronaut and last man on...
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The Last Man on the Moon from 2014-08-10T00:00
In this special edition, the Last Man on the Moon, Gene Cernan, talks exclusively to Richard Hollingham about the final step, mortality and his disappointment about the way the space programme has ...
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Rescuing astronauts from space from 2014-07-10T00:00
How do you orbit a comet? Set up a government in space or rescue a space shuttle crew? These questions and more in the latest edition of Space Boffins. Sue and Richard are at University College Lon...
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Drowning in Space from 2014-06-10T00:00
How do you design the inside of a starship? Space Boffins Sue Nelson and Richard Hollingham talk to space architect Rachel Armstrong about journeys to the stars. They also meet Luca Parmitano, the ...
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Virtual Rides into Space from 2014-05-10T00:00
Aaron Knoll and Chris Bridges join Space Boffins Sue Nelson and Richard Hollingham at the Surrey Space Centre for a virtual ride into space. Plus science minister David Willetts argues for a spacep...
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The Mars Yard from 2014-04-10T00:00
The Space Boffins are in America to hear about Neil Armstrong and the hypersonic X-15 at the Edwards Air Force base, and they're also reporting from the surface of Mars. More precisely, from the UK...
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Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence from 2014-03-10T00:00
The Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence and the challenge of looking for space aliens and why they never attack Belgium is under scrutiny this month. Plus, Richard Hollingham also reports from...
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Exo Mars and Crowd-funded SpaceCraft from 2014-02-10T00:00
Space Boffins Sue Nelson and Richard Hollingham dodge a prototype Mars rover on location at Airbus Defence and Space in Stevenage - where the future Exo Mars mission rover is going to be built. The...
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Chris Hadfield: How to fix a space toilet from 2014-01-10T00:00
Space Boffins Sue Nelson and Richard Hollingham meet astronaut Chris Hadfield. In this special edition of the podcast, Commander Hadfield talks about fixing a space toilet, how rifle practice hel...
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The future of lunar space missions from 2013-12-10T00:00
Join Space Boffins Sue Nelson and Richard Hollingham for a lunar love-in featuring Apollo 13 astronaut Jim Lovell and studio guests David Baker, author of the latest Apollo 13 Haines Manual, and...
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Looking forward to ExoMars from 2013-11-08T00:00
Space Boffins Sue Nelson and Richard Hollingham are joined by new Mars Society president Jerry Stone and aspiring astronaut Kate Arkless Gray. Sue reports from the UK control room of the Mars SA...
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Sue in a Centrifuge from 2013-10-10T00:00
Space Boffins Sue Nelson and Richard Hollingham discover what it's like to undergo G forces with a special podcast from QinetiQ's centrifuge facility - the only one of its kind in the UK. As Sue...
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Missions to Mars from 2013-09-10T00:00
Space Boffins Sue Nelson and Richard Hollingham present a Mars podcast special. Interviews include Curiosity Rover's Principal Investigator for its Radiation Assessment Detector, and the Britis...
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NOAA's Space Weather Centre from 2013-08-10T00:00
Space Boffins Sue Nelson and Richard Hollingham are joined by a cosmic hedgehog with a report from NOAA's space weather centre in Colorado and details on how to own the latest affordable pocket s...
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Landing on a Comet from 2013-07-10T00:00
Space Boffins Richard Hollingham and Sue Nelson go to a comet, Mars and into space. This month's podcast is from the Open University's Rosetta mission room and includes NASA's Curiosity rover m...
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Britain's First Official Astronaut from 2013-06-10T00:00
A full, frank and funny interview with Tim Peake, Richard goes inside NASA's 'crazy ideas', and Sue meets with 'astrogirls'. Like this podcast? Please help us by Listen
Dodging Space Harpoons from 2013-05-10T00:00
Space Boffins Sue Nelson and Richard Hollingham dodge space harpoons, discuss whether Mars One will encourage Big Brother in space and report from the Mojave desert on why risk is encouraged at i...
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Solar Science and Space Planes from 2013-04-10T00:00
Space Boffins Sue Nelson and Richard Hollingham are reduced to tears of laughter by Apollo 15 astronaut Al Worden, enlightened by studio guest and space scientist Dr Lucie Green, and XCOR's Jeff Gr...
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The First Phone in Space from 2013-03-10T00:00
Comets, Mars and the first phone in space are featured in the latest Space Boffins podcast. Recorded at the Royal Astronomical Society in London, Richard and Sue are joined by Rosetta mission scien...
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Methane on Mars and Meeting Astronauts from 2013-02-10T00:00
Space Boffins Sue Nelson and Richard Hollingham meet British astronaut Tim Peake at the British Interplanetary Society. They are joined by space scientist Jane MacArthur, whose methane experiment i...
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Don't Panic! Keeping Your Cool in Space from 2013-01-10T00:00
This month in Space Boffins: why space can seriously damage your health, the cameras being installed on the Space Station to give live views of Earth and crisis management tips from an Apollo 13 ...
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Space Boffins on the ISS from 2012-12-10T00:00
This month in the Space Boffins podcast: a tour of the International Space Station, an Apollo astronaut and the mission to the edge of the Solar System. Space Boffins Richard Hollingham and Sue Nel...
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Houston, we have a Podcast from 2012-11-10T00:00
This time the award winning Space Boffins podcast comes from Houston to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the last man on the Moon. Richard visits the Apollo 17 capsule and talks to an Apollo vet...
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Space Boffins Search for ET from 2012-10-10T00:00
The Space Boffins Podcast comes to you this month from the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (SETI) in Silicon Valley California and features the search for life and Earth 2.0. Richard talks...
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Mars InSights, rings around Saturn and satellite docking games... from 2012-09-10T00:00
Curiosity had barely scratched the surface of Mars when NASA announced another new mission to the red planet. It's called InSight and Dr Tom Pike, from Imperial College London, will be part of the...
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The First American Spacewalk from 2012-08-10T00:00
This month on the Space Boffins Podcast, we will be exploring strange new worlds, discovering a Swedish spaceport, and celebrating the first American space walk. Richard Hollingham and Sue Nelson ...
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Work, rest and play: Mars and space tourism from 2012-07-10T00:00
NASA's Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) mission lands on Mars next month after a nine-month journey across our Solar System. On arrival the most advanced suite of instruments ever sent to the red pla...
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Introducing Space Boffins! from 2012-06-10T00:00
This week at Naked Astronomy, we're launching something very special. We've teamed up with the Space Boffins podcast to bring you even more space science. Each month, Richard Hollingham and Sue N...
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