The Nature Podcast team select some of their favourite stories from the past 12 months.

In this episode:

00:32 Following the Viking footprint across Europe

In September, we heard about the researchers mapping ancient genomes to better understand who the Vikings were, and where they went.

Nature Podcast: 16 September 2020

Research Article: Margaryan et al.

08:09 Mars hopes

In July, the UAE launched its first mission to Mars. We spoke to the mission leads to learn about the aims of the project, and how they developed the mission in under six years.

Nature Podcast: 08 July 2020

News Feature: How a small Arab nation built a Mars mission from scratch in six years

News Feature: Countdown to Mars: three daring missions take aim at the red planet

17:42 Disaster in San Quentin

In July, we reported on a massive COVID-19 outbreak in San Quentin. In Coronapod, we dug into how they got there. Also in the episode, we investigated whether lockdowns could have any lasting impact on young minds.

Coronapod: 10 July 2020

News: California's San Quentin prison declined free coronavirus tests and urgent advice — now it has a massive outbreak

25:23 Communicating complex data

In April, we found out about some of the methods that communications experts and behavioural scientists recommend to keep the public informed about risks and evidence – something that remains key for governments and other organisations during the pandemic.

Coronapod: 17 April 2020

37:19 ‘Stick to the science’: when science gets political

In November, we published our miniseries “Stick to the science” which aimed to find out why a journal of science needs to cover politics. In the series we explored the history, philosophy and reality of science’s complicated relationship with politics.

‘Stick to the science’: when science gets political

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Julian Salisbury, Global Co-Head of Asset Management at Goldman Sachs