Impacts of Bright Objects in Orbit and Discoveries in Carrot Genetics and Synthetic Diamond

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Michael and Jeremy discuss the potential impacts of increasing numbers of bright objects orbiting the Earth on astronomy, wildlife, and cultural heritage, emphasizing the need to share the night sky without negative impacts. The chapter also mentions interesting scientific studies.

In this episode:

00:45 A bright satellite is concerning researchers

Satellites reflect sunlight down to Earth, and some do so with such intensity it risks obscuring astronomers' observations from ground-based telescopes. A paper in Nature suggests that the telecommunications satellite called BlueWalker 3 at times outshines most stars visible from Earth. Astronomers worry about the increasing number of such bright satellites making astronomy more difficult, and so the team suggest that future launches should undergo impact assessments.

Research article: Nandakumar et al.

Nature News: Huge new satellite outshines nearly every star in the sky

09:27 Research Highlights

Analysis of carrot genomes reveals how the vegetable got its orange hue, and the self-healing diamond that can fix microscopic fractures.

Research article: Coe et al.

Research Highlight: Crack this kind of diamond, and it heals itself

11:47 The last meal of a 400-million-year-old trilobite

Trilobites are a group of extinct marine arthropods distantly related to animals like crabs and spiders. Although found throughout the fossil record, little is known about the lives of this diverse group of animals. Now, a team has used powerful x-rays to peer inside a trilobite fossil and uncovered the contents of its last meal, over 400-million-years ago. This animal appears to have been an unfussy scavenger, gorging itself on a variety of small, shelled animals.

Research article: Kraft et al.