The Supermassive Podcast

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Rating
4.6
from
213 reviews
This podcast has
61 episodes
Language
Explicit
No
Date created
2020/01/17
Average duration
33 min.
Release period
17 days

Description

This is The Supermassive Podcast from the Royal Astronomical Society. Every month, science journalist Izzie Clarke and astrophysicist Dr Becky Smethurst take you through the universe with the latest research, history from the society’s archives and astronomy you can do from your own home. Support the team by buying their book, The Year in Space - https://geni.us/jNcrw You can send your questions to the team via podcast@ras.ac.uk or follow them on Instagram @SupermassivePod. The Supermassive Podcast is a Boffin Media Production by Izzie Clarke and Richard Hollingham.

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Podcast episodes

Check latest episodes from The Supermassive Podcast podcast


Double Yolker Galaxies
2024/02/12
Do we see black hole mergers as a result of galaxy mergers? What did the night sky look like to the dinosaurs? Is a gas giant just a rocky planet with a huge and dense atmosphere? Do all orbits eventually end up in resonance?  The Supermassive Team is back with the first bonus episode for 2024! Send in your questions to podcast@ras.ac.uk or find us on Instagram, @SupermassivePod. The Supermassive Podcast is a Boffin Media production for the Royal Astronomical Society. The producers are Izzie Clarke and Richard Hollingham. 
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The End of the World
2024/01/30
The Supermassive Podcast is back for 2024 and putting the "happy" in Happy New Year! What could be a cheerier start to the year than an episode about the End of the World… Astronomically speaking!? From supernova explosions, to super volcanoes, Izzie Clarke, Dr Becky Smethurst and Dr Robert Massey are running through the checklist of big bad things that put our planet at risk. Special thanks goes to Professor Chris Impey from the University of Arizona and author of How It Ends, and Dr Mike Cassidy from the University of Birmingham. Things we promised we'd put in the show notes:  NASA worksheet - https://spacemath.gsfc.nasa.gov/earth/10Page5.pdf Recent Betelgeuse paper - Saio et al. (2023; Betelgeuse in carbon fusion stage) - https://arxiv.org/pdf/2306.00287.pdf  Don't forget to leave us a review, send in your questions ,or share your astrophotography using podcast@ras.ac.uk or find us on Instagram @SupermassivePod.  The Supermassive Podcast is a Boffin Media production for The Royal Astronomical Society. The producers are Izzie Clarke and Richard Hollingham. 
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Do We Live In A Multiverse?
2023/12/22
Izzie Clarke and Dr Becky Smethurst are rounding off 2023 with a biggie. Arguably the biggest of them all. This episode is ALL about the Multiverse. What is it? What does it mean? Does it even exist?   A big thank you to Andrew Pontzen from UCL and author of "Universe in a Box" for explaining the basics, Katie Mack from The Perimeter Institute for going from physicist to film reviewer, and to listener Wendy Entwistle who suggested the Supermassive team cover this topic. The Supermassive Podcast is a Boffin Media production for the Royal Astronomical Society. The producers are Izzie Clarke and Richard Hollingham. 
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BONUS - Could Space Junk Block JWST's View?
2023/12/21
From barbie dolls, to birds baths, what will happen to all the stuff we have made between now and the end of time? Could a large black hole spaghettify a small black hole? Could more satellites block JWST's view? And what came first, the Big Bang or Inflation? It's time for another deep dive into The Supermassive Mailbox with Izzie Clarke, Dr Becky Smethurst and Dr Robert Massey.  The Supermassive Podcast is a Boffin Media Production for the Royal Astronomical Society. The producers are Izzie Clarke and Richard Hollingham. 
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Neptune... At Last!
2023/11/28
They've done it. It has taken them all year but Izzie Clarke and Dr Becky Smethurst have reached the final planet in our solar system; Neptune. Dr Leigh Fletcher from the University of Leicester is back to cover the basics of the planet and Carolyn Kennett, Chair of the Society for the History of Astronomy, tells Izzie about its controversial discovery. Plus, Dr Robert Massey is on hand for some winter stargazing. The Supermassive Podcast is a Boffin Media production by Izzie Clarke and Richard Hollingham for the Royal Astronomical Society. 
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BONUS - Space News Bulletin
2023/11/14
Bizarre free-floating planets in space, the retrieval mission from a 4.6 billion year old asteroid, and the first images from our dark universe. Join Izzie Clarke, Dr Becky Smethurst, and Dr Robert Massey as they take you through the latest space news.  The Supermassive Podcast is a Boffin Media Production by Izzie Clarke and Richard Hollingham. Follow or subscribe for free so you never miss an episode. 
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Q&A - Spice Girls, Black Holes, and Ice-Cream in Space
2023/10/27
It's been a while, so Izzie, Dr Becky and Robert dive into The Supermassive Mailbox for a Q&A Special. How is the mass of a star determined? Does JWST have fuel to come back? And is it possible for Voyager 1 or 2 to switch their cameras back on? Here's the link for space-related jobs that Becky mentioned: https://jobregister.aas.org/ Got a question for the team? Email it to podcast@ras.ac.uk or find us on Instagram, @SupermassivePod. The Supermassive Podcast is a Boffin Media Production for the Royal Astronomical Society. The producers are Izzie Clarke and Richard Hollingham. 
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BONUS - Have you heard of "Ploonets"?
2023/10/13
What is the furthest distance away we’ve ever observed? Why hasn't Venus lost its atmosphere from solar winds? Is Mercury a Ploonet? And how stable is the moon's orbit? It's another bonus episode with Izzie Clarke, Dr Becky Smethurst and Dr Robert Massey. See Micheal Brill's brilliant photos from Antarctica here. Read listener Andrew Street's article of Cassini's final moments:  Tracing Cassini's fiery death was like seeing a heart monitor flatline Send in your questions to The Supermassive Mailbox by emailing podcast@ras.ac.uk, tweet @RoyalAstroSoc or find us on Instagram @SupermassivePod. 
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Uranus the Oddball
2023/09/29
Izzie and Dr Becky have done episodes on Mars, gas giants, Saturn and Jupiter individually, so it’s about time that Uranus gets its own episode. And just so we're clear, it's UranUs, not UrAnus.  Professor Leigh Fletcher from the University of Leicester takes the team through the basics. Plus, Izzie pays a visit to the Royal Astronomical Society’s archive to see the Herschels' notebooks from when the planet was discovered.  Recommends  Late Prom 15: Moon and Stars https://www.bbc.co.uk/events/en8fbp Public Service Broadcasting - The Race for Space - https://open.spotify.com/album/4ZaAM16hw3xpp680FJahJJ?autoplay=true Our next main episode is a Q&A, so please send your questions to podcast@ras.ac.uk, tweet @RoyalAstroSoc or message us on Insta @SupermassivePod
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BONUS - Team Enceladus or Team Europa?
2023/09/18
What does Saturn look like? Why is Venus hotter than Mercury? Can the solar wind generate electricity on the Moon? Izzie, Dr Becky and Robert dive into The Supermassive Mailbox and answer your questions.  The Supermassive Podcast is a Boffin Media production by Izzie Clarke and Richard Hollingham.
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Here Comes the Sun...with NASA's Head of Science
2023/08/28
This month, Izzie and Dr Becky are off to the Sun…Partly because the UK summer has been rubbish but mostly because there are a lot of things we still don’t know about our local star.  Joining them on their voyage is the Head of Science at NASA, Dr Nicola Fox, to explain the latest efforts to study the sun, the Project Scientist for Solar Orbiter, Dr Daniel Mueller, and Dr Robert Massey is on hand to answer your questions.  Watch ESA's Solar Orbiter video, featuring the Supermassive's editor Richard Hollingham. https://www.esa.int/ESA_Multimedia/Videos/2022/05/Solar_Orbiter_s_first_close_encounter The Supermassive Podcast is a Boffin Media Production by Izzie Clarke and Richard Hollingham.
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BONUS - Aimless telescopes & beyond the Milky Way
2023/08/11
Could we detect exoplanets outside of the Milky Way? Could the Euclid Telescope disprove what we know about dark energy and matter? Are we just pointing telescopes aimlessly at patches of space? And is it possible for two black holes to merge and separate into two branches? Izzie Clarke, Dr Becky Smethurst and Dr Robert Massey tackle your burning questions.  Still, have an unanswered question? Send it to podcast@ras.ac.uk, tweet @RoyalAstroSoc, or find us on Instagram @SupermassivePod. The Supermassive Podcast from the Royal Astronomical Society is a Boffin Media Production. The producers are Izzie Clarke and Richard Hollingham.
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Podcast reviews

Read The Supermassive Podcast podcast reviews


4.6 out of 5
213 reviews
JB East Bay 2023/11/14
Greatest podcast in the universe
Intelligent, fun, funny, energetic: Becky and Izzie are amazing hosts. I love all the science, which they take seriously, and I love even more being p...
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Jenny Jerry Jerry 2024/01/05
Despise all the banter
I like the topics but the hosts can’t get over themselves and are clearly uncomfortable…..laughing because they all are looking to Eachother for somet...
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Astrophysics kid 2023/08/02
Hi Dr. Becky
I don’t know if you guys even read the reviews, but I’m the kid (Luke from Minnesota) who interviewed you for a school project. I just want to let you...
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Sjp0889 2023/07/30
Super massive awesomeness!!!
Love it!!
inn ar the seventh court 2023/05/07
The best
This is one of the greatest extant podcasts. Massive.
a mixt mover 2023/04/08
Love it
Love hearing women in science!
PoetFarmer 2023/04/07
Huntsville, Alabama
Love the new bonus shorties! Would also love to see y’all record an episode under the Saturn V at the NASA center if you’re ever on this side of the ...
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babyvanjou 2022/12/30
My thoughts :)
I think this podcast is excellent for anyone who loves or is interested astronomy + space, even though I only listened to one episode I love this podc...
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MarkChicagoIL 2023/02/11
Dumb
The latest episode is 14 minutes. Kind of stupid.
blaumax777 2022/10/29
Absolutely smashing
While I listen to a few science (and sci-fi) podcasts, this one is by far my favorite. Super Massive is friendly, trustworthy, and I live for the hone...
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check all reviews on aple podcasts

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