Astronomy (Video)

About Astronomy (Video)

UCTV programs explore astronomy, the physical universe and other space related topics with University of California faculty and experts from around the world.

Publisher

UCTV

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

8 Oct 2012

Latest episode

10 Jul 2026

Latest episodes

1 of 52 episodes have a transcript.

1. 

   10 Jul 2026

   Returning to the Moon

   Professor Neil Farber discusses NASA's Artemis Project, detailing the challenges and evolving goals of returning humans to the Moon for sustainable exploration and future Mars missions.

2. 

   15 May 2026TRANSCRIPT

   Leveraging Space

   Jessica Pham, UC San Diego, discusses how spaceflight impacts stem cell health and cancer research, offering insights into astronaut well-being and long-duration missions.

3. 

   6 Sept 2025

   The Exploration of Space Asteroids: The Fossils of the Universe

   Asteroids, often called “fossils of the solar system,” are remnants from its formation that offer clues about planetary origins and the potential beginnings of life. Dr. Neil Farber, Solar System Ambassador for NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, explains that some, known as near-Earth objects, pose impact risks—though large, dangerous collisions are rare—and NASA’s Near-Earth Object Surveyor mission aims to detect and track them to inform planetary defense strategies. Asteroids may also hold resources, such as metals or water, that could one day support space exploration, though current technology limits mining feasibility. Recent missions like OSIRIS-REx, Lucy, and Psyche are expanding our understanding of asteroid composition, history, and diversity, with findings including evidence of past water, amino acids, and nucleotide bases—key building blocks of life—raising intriguing questions about whether asteroids helped seed life on Earth. Series: "Osher UC San Diego Distinguished Lecture Series" [Science] [Show ID: 40964]

Inside a recent episode

Leveraging Space

Published 15 May 2026 · Transcript excerpt

[…] So we're really interested in understanding what happens to the stem cell health. So what we found was increased cycling in space, less dormancy, and as Kat mentioned earlier, stem shells should primarily stay dormant our entire lifespan, right? So they're supposed to be able to live our whole life. They're supposed to be able to differentiate under times of stress, and they're supposed to remain dormant. But this is exactly opposite of what we saw in space. So we saw increased proliferation. And then upon return, we did a few assays, especially a functional one, which is called the Colonies Survival Self-Renewal Assay to really test whether or not the stem cells were still functioning as stem cells, which one of the hallmarks of stem cells is really their self-renewal capacity, which means that they're able to clone without changing themselves. […]

Reach and audience

Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.

Apple Podcasts (US)

3.7 / 5

45 ratings

Podcast Authority Score: 40 / 100

A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.

Quality

59

Social presence

0

YouTube

0

Engagement

50

Contact Astronomy (Video)

Guest appearances

Books guests

Based on episode analysis; this does not confirm that the show is currently accepting guests.

Questions about Astronomy (Video)