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The Supermassive Podcast

The Supermassive Podcast

The Royal Astronomical Society

This is The Supermassive Podcast from the Royal Astronomical Society. Every month, science journalist Izzie Clarke and astrophysicist Dr Becky Smethurst take you through the universe with the latest research, history from the society’s archives and astronomy you can do from your own home. Support the team by buying their book, The Year in Space - https://geni.us/jNcrw You can send your questions to the team via [email protected] or follow them on Instagram @SupermassivePod. The Supermassive Podcast is a Boffin Media Production by Izzie Clarke and Richard Hollingham.
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Top 10 The Supermassive Podcast Episodes

Goodpods has curated a list of the 10 best The Supermassive Podcast episodes, ranked by the number of listens and likes each episode have garnered from our listeners. If you are listening to The Supermassive Podcast for the first time, there's no better place to start than with one of these standout episodes. If you are a fan of the show, vote for your favorite The Supermassive Podcast episode by adding your comments to the episode page.

The Supermassive Podcast - 38: BONUS - More Comets, Less Asteroids
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03/10/23 • 12 min

Is there a Cosmological Horizon? Can we change a comet's orbit to see more of them? What's the most distant human-made object in space? Izzie, Dr Becky and Robert dive into The Supermassive Mailbox to answer your questions.
Want to support The Supermassive Podcast? Why not buy our book The Year In Space - https://geni.us/jNcrw
The Supermassive Podcast is a Boffin Media Production by Izzie Clarke and Richard Hollingham.

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The Supermassive Podcast - 39: Jupiter The Monster

39: Jupiter The Monster

The Supermassive Podcast

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03/24/23 • 47 min

Izzie and Dr Becky explore the largest planet in our solar system, Jupiter. What do we know about this big ol’ planet? And what are the missions that will find out even more? The team is joined by Scott Boulton, Principal Investigator of NASA's Juno mission, and Professor Emma Bunce from the University of Leicester, also involved with ESA's Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer (aka JUICE). Plus Robert Massey shares his top stargazing tips for spring.
Everyday STEM Science - Space! by Izzie Clarke
https://www.panmacmillan.com/authors/izzie-clarke/everyday-stem-science-space/9780753447963
The Year in Space by The Supermassive Podcast
https://geni.us/jNcrw
The Supermassive Podcast is a Boffin Media production by Izzie Clarke and Richard Hollingham.

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The Supermassive Podcast - 26: The Marvellous Moon

26: The Marvellous Moon

The Supermassive Podcast

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02/25/22 • 52 min

Who doesn’t love looking up at the moon?! Joining Izzie and Dr Becky, Professor Katherine Joy from the University of Manchester explains what past and future lunar missions can tell us, and Dr Megan Barford from Royal Museums Greenwich gives us a tour of two stunning moon maps from the 17th century. Plus, Dr Robert Massey takes on your questions and shares his top tips for moon-gazing.
See the moon maps here...
By Riccioli & Grimaldi, 1651: https://www.sciencephoto.com/media/1179815/view By Cassini, 1679: https://www.sciencephoto.com/media/1093522/view
The Supermassive Podcast is a Boffin Media production by Izzie Clarke and Richard Hollingham.

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The Supermassive Podcast - 28: How to Kill a Galaxy

28: How to Kill a Galaxy

The Supermassive Podcast

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04/30/22 • 43 min

How does a galaxy evolve and die? Izzie and Dr Becky find out with help from Tim Davis at Cardiff University. Plus, Dr Robert Massey from the Royal Astronomical Society answers your questions and explains how to spot galaxies in the night sky.
Thank you to Brilliant for sponsoring this episode. Head to brilliant.org/supermassive to start free courses in maths, science, and computer science. The first 200 subscribers will get 20% off.
The link below has more information on the RAS Public Talk with Astronomer Royal Martin Rees, Space exploration and the search for extraterrestrial life - with humans and with robots.
https://ras.ac.uk/events-and-meetings/ras-public-lectures-and-events/space-exploration-and-search-extraterrestrial
A Year In Space by The Supermassive Team will be out on Oct 13th 2022. Pre-order here:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Year-Space-Supermassive-Podcast-Astronomical/dp/1472299507/ref=sr_1_3?crid=1O3PS3QUCPP2A&keywords=the+year+in+space&qid=1650904438&s=books&sprefix=the+year+in+space%2Cstripbooks%2C94&sr=1-3
The Supermassive Podcast is a Boffin Media Production by Izzie Clarke and Richard Hollingham.

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The Supermassive Podcast - 25: A Supermassive Q&A!

25: A Supermassive Q&A!

The Supermassive Podcast

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01/28/22 • 44 min

The Supermassive team is finally doing something about all the questions that have been sent in. It’s Q&A time! From "fluffy" planets, to cake on the moon, join Izzie Clarke as she puts your questions to Dr Becky Smethurst, Dr Robert Massey and science and space journalist Richard Hollingham.

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The Supermassive Podcast - 31: Life on Mars - LIVE from Standon Calling
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07/29/22 • 42 min

The Supermassive team dust off their wellies and peg down their tents for Standon Calling. And to celebrate 10 years of NASA's Curiosity rover landing on Mars, Izzie and Dr Becky are asking the question everyone at the festival wants answered... Is there life on Mars?
With special thanks to Dr Robert Massey, David Rothery, Professor of Planetary Geosciences at the Open University, and Alice Armstrong from Agile Rabbit.
Pre-order our book, The Year In Space, out October 2022:
https://geni.us/jNcrw
The Supermassive Podcast is a Boffin Media Production, by Izzie Clarke and Richard Hollingham.

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The Supermassive Podcast - 30: Rocky Planets Rock

30: Rocky Planets Rock

The Supermassive Podcast

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07/01/22 • 51 min

Izzie and Dr Becky are flying closer to home to look at the Rocky Planets; Mercury, Venus, Earth and Mars. How are they different? How are they similar? And can understanding their past tell us anything about Earth’s future? Plus, Dr Robert Massey has his stargazing tips for summer.
With special thanks to Dr Suzie Imber from the University of Leicester, and Sian Prosser from the Royal Astronomical Society.
Thank you to Brilliant for sponsoring this episode. Head to brilliant.org/supermassive to start free courses in maths, science, and computer science. The first 200 subscribers will get 20% off.
Our book, The Year In Space 2023, will be out in Oct 2022. Pre-order here: https://geni.us/jNcrw
We'll be LIVE at Standon Calling, Friday 22nd July 2022 at 2pm. Find out more: https://standon-calling.com/
The Supermassive Podcast is a Boffin Media Production by Izzie Clarke and Richard Hollingham.

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The Supermassive Podcast - 35: Astronaut Special: Returning to the Moon
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11/25/22 • 50 min

The Astronaut Alarm is in overdrive... Izzie, Dr Becky, and his excellency Richard Hollingham have not one but TWO astronauts on this month's episode.
From the archive, Richard speaks to NASA astronaut Gene Cernan about Apollo 17 and being the last man on the Moon. ESA Astronaut Matthias Maurer talks about the upcoming Artemis missions which will see humans (hopefully, Matthias himself) return to our rocky neighbour. Plus, Robert Massey is on hand to answer your questions and share his stargazing tips for the month.
Read the full interview with the Last Man on the Moon, Gene Cernan, and find out more about Artemis in our book, The Year In Space.
Order here (it's an excellent Christmas present): https://geni.us/jNcrw
What cheese is the Moon made of? Email [email protected] or tweet @RoyalAstroSoc with your thoughts on the debate.
The Supermassive Podcast is a Boffin Media production by Izzie Clarke and Richard Hollingham.

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The Supermassive Podcast - 29: Gas Giants are Weird

29: Gas Giants are Weird

The Supermassive Podcast

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05/31/22 • 49 min

From hexagonal shaped storms to spinning sideways, Izzie and Dr Becky are exploring our weird and wonderful Gas Giants. Joining them are Dr Tom Stallard from the University of Leicester and Dr Robert Massey, Deputy Director of the Royal Astronomical Society. Plus editor, Richard Hollingham, takes a trip to the Royal Astronomical Society’s library to see Galileo’s first observations of Saturn’s rings and William Herschel’s notebook from when he discovered Uranus.
See Jupiter's fast rotation (thanks to Dr James O'Donoghue) https://twitter.com/physicsJ/status/1519023430053818368
Thank you to Brilliant for sponsoring this episode. Head to brilliant.org/supermassive to start free courses in maths, science, and computer science. The first 200 subscribers will get 20% off.
The Year In Space 2023 by The Supermassive Team will be out on Oct 2022. Pre-order here: https://geni.us/jNcrw
The Supermassive Podcast is a Boffin Media Production by Izzie Clarke and Richard Hollingham. Edited by Sarah Moore.

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The Supermassive Podcast - 27: How to Build a Galaxy

27: How to Build a Galaxy

The Supermassive Podcast

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03/25/22 • 44 min

Izzie and Dr Becky are attempting to tackle the massive subject of building a galaxy.
Professor Mike Merrifield from The University of Nottingham explains how galaxies form and our very own galaxy expert, Dr Becky, tells us why they come in different shapes and sizes. Plus, Dr Robert Massey has his top tips for stargazing in spring.
Thank you to Brilliant for sponsoring this episode. Head to brilliant.org/supermassive to start free courses in maths, science, and computer science. The first 200 subscribers will get 20% off.
Explore the Galaxy Zoo here:
https://www.zooniverse.org/projects/zookeeper/galaxy-zoo/
Space Book Club recommendations...
Back to Earth - Nicole Stott The End of Astronauts - Donald Goldsmith & Martin Rees The Disordered Cosmos - Chanda Prescod-Weinstein
"A Year In Space" by The Supermassive Team will be out on Oct 13th 2022. Pre-order here:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Year-Space-Supermassive-Podcast-Astronomical/dp/1472299507/ref=sr_1_3?crid=1O3PS3QUCPP2A&keywords=the+year+in+space&qid=1650904438&s=books&sprefix=the+year+in+space%2Cstripbooks%2C94&sr=1-3
The Supermassive Podcast is a Boffin Media Production by Izzie Clarke and Richard Hollingham. Editing this month is by Sarah Moore.

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FAQ

How many episodes does The Supermassive Podcast have?

The Supermassive Podcast currently has 78 episodes available.

What topics does The Supermassive Podcast cover?

The podcast is about Astronomy, Podcasts, Science and Physics.

What is the most popular episode on The Supermassive Podcast?

The episode title '38: BONUS - More Comets, Less Asteroids' is the most popular.

What is the average episode length on The Supermassive Podcast?

The average episode length on The Supermassive Podcast is 37 minutes.

How often are episodes of The Supermassive Podcast released?

Episodes of The Supermassive Podcast are typically released every 23 days, 8 hours.

When was the first episode of The Supermassive Podcast?

The first episode of The Supermassive Podcast was released on Jan 17, 2020.

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