First Rock from the Sun

November 18, 2018

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The Sky at Night - S2018 - E10

A report on BepiColombo, a spacecraft sent on a seven-year journey to the heart of the solar system to study Mercury. The objective is to discover why the smallest planet in the solar system seems to be shrinking even further, how it survives orbiting so close to the sun, and how it was formed in the first place.

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The Sky at Night: Season 2018 - 11 Episode s

2018x1 - The Invisible Universe
January 14, 2018
The team reports on unnerving discoveries in the field of space science. Researchers estimate that 95 per cent of everything in the universe is "invisible", and while some of this number is made up of matter that just cannot be easily seen, the rest is thought to be comprised of nebulous concepts such as Dark Matter and Dark Energy. The team illustrates - as best they can - how the existence of these two hypothetical ideas - or lack thereof - could define the fate of the entire universe.
2018x2 - The Mystery of 'Oumuamua
February 11, 2018
The team investigates an astronomical detective story. In October 2017, astronomers spotted the first ever object to visit our solar system from outer space. They called it 'Oumuamua. Its discovery set off a hurricane of press speculation and a major scientific investigation. The Sky at Night goes to Queen's University in Belfast, which has become the centre of scientific research on this cosmic visitor. When they first spotted it, all scientists knew was that it was small, it was travelling fast, and it came from outside our solar system. What did it look like? How had it formed? What was it made of? Where had it come from? To answer these questions, the team pieces together all the clues that scientists have extracted from the small amounts of data collected as 'Oumuamua flashed through the solar system.
2018x3 - Mars: Red and Dead?
April 8, 2018
Chris Lintott and Maggie Aderin-Pocock reveal the latest results from NASA's Curiosity and ESA's ExoMars TGO missions that are attempting to find signs of life on Mars. Andy Weir, author of The Martian, shares his thoughts on the possibility of a manned mission.
2018x4 - Gaia: A Galactic Revolution
May 13, 2018
Maggie Aderin-Pocock and Chris Lintott examine the new information about the Milky Way recorded by the ESA's Gaia space telescope over the past three and a half years, including new data on how stars move over time and how the galaxy was originally formed.
2018x5 - Jupiter: Up Close and Personal
June 10, 2018
Nasa's Juno spacecraft is currently making its 13th orbit of Jupiter on one of the most ambitious and risky space missions ever undertaken. The astonishing images it has captured are not just visually stunning, they also deliver spectacular scientific insight, revolutionising our ideas about Jupiter. Maggie Aderin-Pocock explores these stunning discoveries, from a new understanding of Jupiter's core and formation to revelations about how deep its raging storms penetrate the planet's mysterious interior.
2018x6 - Outback Astronomy
July 8, 2018
Chris Lintott travels to the Murchison Radio-astronomy Observatory in Australia to find out how astronomers detected signals from the oldest stars in existence and what this discovery can reveal about the formation of the universe. In February 2018, news broke that astronomers had seen the cosmic dawn - the moment when stars first formed, flooding the universe with light. What's remarkable is that this incredible event was discovered by an instrument the size of a ping-pong table in a remote corner of Western Australia.
2018x7 - Death Star
August 12, 2018
One evening in early September 1859, a spectacular blood-red aurora borealis appeared across America. Earlier that same day, in a leafy garden in the UK, a gentleman astronomer had noted a 'white light flare' on the sun's surface. The two events were linked; it's now known that the flare caused the aurora. The flare was a particularly violent eruption from the sun's surface known as a CME, a coronal mass ejection. Back then, it was considered an astronomical curiosity. But when it happens again, it will be a different story. For the modern, technological world such a violent solar phenomenon could be devastating. This episode examines just how damaging a CME could be and how astronomers, using two new satellites that will travel closer to the sun than ever before, can better prepare us for its impact.
2018x8 - Expedition Asteroid
September 9, 2018
A look at two missions attempting one of the most difficult feats of space exploration - to collect a rock from another world. This episode checks in on the US and Japanese attempts to bring a piece of an asteroid back to Earth. The missions have taken decades of planning, but the results will be worth it. We find out how studying these space rocks can teach us about the origins of our solar system and may one day help save Earth from a catastrophic collision.
2018x9 - Space Britannia
October 14, 2018
The future of Britain's space programme, examining plans for the first UK spaceport in Scotland and the development of a new rocket system. The programme also examines a revolutionary new form of micro-satellites, and the plans to potentially launch thousands of them worldwide. Plus, Tim Peake takes a look at the history of British space exploration.
2018x10 - First Rock from the Sun
November 18, 2018
A report on BepiColombo, a spacecraft sent on a seven-year journey to the heart of the solar system to study Mercury. The objective is to discover why the smallest planet in the solar system seems to be shrinking even further, how it survives orbiting so close to the sun, and how it was formed in the first place.
2018x11 - The Flying Telescope
December 9, 2018
Chris Lintott visits an observatory aboard a jumbo jet, which carries an infra-red telescope able to observe space from the vantage point of 40,000 feet above sea level. Plus, a look at how planets form and why fewer newly formed stars are being recorded.

2018x1 - The Invisible Universe

2018x2 - The Mystery of 'Oumuamua

2018x3 - Mars: Red and Dead?

2018x4 - Gaia: A Galactic Revolution

2018x5 - Jupiter: Up Close and Personal

2018x6 - Outback Astronomy

2018x7 - Death Star

2018x8 - Expedition Asteroid

2018x9 - Space Britannia

2018x10 - First Rock from the Sun

2018x11 - The Flying Telescope

S0: Specials

S1: 1957

S2: 1958

S3: 1959

S4: 1960

S5: 1961

S6: 1962

S7: 1963

S8: 1964

S9: 1965

S10: 1966

S11: 1967

S12: 1968

S13: 1969

S14: 1970

S15: 1971

S16: 1972

S17: 1973

S18: 1974

S19: 1975

S1982: Season 1982

S2002: Season 2002

S2003: Season 2003

S2004: Season 2004

S2005: Season 2005

S2006: Season 2006

S2007: Season 2007

S2008: Season 2008

S2009: Season 2009

S2010: Season 2010

S2011: Season 2011

S2012: Season 2012

S2013: Season 2013

S2014: Season 2014

S2015: Season 2015

S2016: Season 2016

S2017: Season 2017

S2018: Season 2018

S2019: Season 2019

S2020: Season 2020

S2021: Season 2021

S2022: Season 2022

S2023: Season 2023

S2024: Season 2024