The Science in The Fiction Tim Swindle on Planetary Protection in the OSIRIS-REx Mission and 'The Andromeda Strain'
This conversation was a great example of what we’re trying to do with this podcast, the perfect balance between Science and Science Fiction. Marty sits down with Dr. Tim Swindle to discuss The Andromeda Strain by Michael Crichton and The Andromeda Evolution by Daniel H. Wilson, in relation to NASA's OSIRIS REx mission which has returned a sample of Asteroid Bennu to Earth, as well as the upcoming Mars Sample Return mission. Dr. Swindle is a professor emeritus from the University of Arizona who specializes is radiometric chronology, which makes it possible measure the ages of very old things in space and on earth by characterizing the relative balance of various radio-isotopes, much like Carbon dating but with different atoms like Potassium and Argon. We discuss the natural exchange of material between all the bodies in our solar system and maybe even other solar systems, and reflect on the possibility that the genesis of life may be a collective effort of molecules created in various places across the solar system. We learn about meteors and cosmic dust and how they can penetrate our atmosphere to land on Earth without burning up. We also speculate about the likely carbon-based composition of extraterrestrial life if ever we find it, and the likelihood that life which evolved in a radically different extra-terrestrial environment could not harm the life that has evolved on Earth.
Timothy Swindle | Lunar and Planetary Laboratory & Department of Planetary Sciences | The University of Arizona:
https://www.lpl.arizona.edu/faculty/swindle
OSIRIS-REx - NASA Science:
https://science.nasa.gov/mission/osiris-rex/
The Andromeda Strain - Wikipedia:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Andromeda_Strain
The Andromeda Evolution - Wikipedia:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Andromeda_Evolution
The Andromeda Evolution (Andromeda, #2) by Daniel H. Wilson | Goodreads:
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/44148860-the-andromeda-evolution
Email:
thescienceinthefiction@gmail.com
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