The Eyes of WISE Deliver Sky Survey Prize

Episode Summary

Executive Summary: This Planetary Radio episode spotlights three major space stories: WISE completing its first all-sky infrared survey with thousands of asteroid discoveries and new brown dwarfs, Titan’s methane-ethane lakes shrinking with seasonal change, and Curiosity’s first lab steps on Mars alongside a stunning global Mars thermal map. The show also covers current evening sky sights, space history, and listener trivia.

Main Topics: WISE completes its first all-sky infrared survey: Ned Wright explains how WISE rapidly mapped the entire sky in infrared, enabling major discoveries of asteroids, near-Earth objects, and brown dwarfs, while also producing beautiful sky mosaics and setting up a long-term scientific legacy. Titan’s methane-ethane lakes and the possibility of exploration by boat: Bill Nye discusses Cassini radar measurements showing a lake on Titan shrinking with seasonal change, emphasizing that radar can measure liquid depth and that a future boat mission could explore the moon’s hydrocarbon seas. Curiosity’s first movements and Mars infrared global mapping: Emily Lakdawalla reports on Curiosity’s first baby steps in the JPL lab and on a nearly complete global Mars thermal map created from nine years of THEMIS infrared observations, revealing geologic detail beyond visible-light imagery. What’s Up: current night sky and planetary lineup: Bruce Betts previews a busy western sky with multiple planets in close proximity, plus Jupiter later at night, and notes upcoming conjunctions between Mars-Saturn and Mercury-Regulus. Space history, sample return, and human presence in orbit: The segment recalls Apollo 15 and Skylab 3, highlights the rarity of successful robotic sample returns from beyond low Earth orbit, and answers trivia about the longest continuous human presence in space. Planetary Society updates and community engagement: The episode promotes Emily’s new Facebook page, Planetary Radio’s online presence, an upcoming Planetary Society open house, and a listener contest about ISS solar arrays.

Key Arguments: WISE’s infrared sensitivity makes it exceptionally effective for finding room-temperature objects like asteroids and brown dwarfs. Asteroid catalogs matter for planetary defense because early warning time is the most important factor in mitigating impact risk. Brown dwarfs are difficult to characterize fully without follow-up, because distances require observing motion over time. Titan’s lake measurements show that liquid bodies on other worlds can be studied like Earth lakes, including changes in depth over seasons. The Mars THEMIS thermal map is scientifically rich because infrared reveals dust, rock, and heat retention differences invisible in standard images. Wide-field survey missions like WISE complement narrower instruments such as Spitzer, Hubble, and James Webb by finding targets for deeper study. The episode frames space exploration as both scientifically productive and inherently open-ended: missions reveal what we do not yet know to look for.

Data Points: WISE sky survey duration: About 6-7 months - Ned Wright says WISE mapped the entire sky from mid-December launch to completion of the first survey about seven months later. Asteroids observed by WISE: About 130,000 - Total asteroid detections, including known and new objects. New asteroid discoveries by WISE: Over 25,000 - Distinct new asteroid discoveries from the first survey. Near-Earth objects discovered by WISE: 100 - WISE found 100 NEOs, some of which could pose hazard concerns. WISE share of near-Earth asteroids found that year: About 25% - Wright notes WISE discovered roughly a quarter of all near-Earth asteroids found that year. WISE detector temperature: About 8 K - Long-wavelength detectors are operated near 8 degrees Kelvin above absolute zero. WISE images captured: Nearly 1.4 million - Total number of images transmitted so far. WISE daily image rate: About 7,000 per day - Current daily imaging output. WISE pixels transmitted: About 5 trillion - Cumulative data volume sent to Earth. Titan year: About 29.5 Earth years - Bill Nye uses Titan’s long year to explain seasonal changes in the lake. Continuous human presence in space: 3,644 days - Trivia answer for the Mir/ISS continuous habitation record period. Longest continuous human presence start date: September 5, 1989 - Launch of Soyuz TM-8 beginning the record period. Longest continuous human presence end date: August 28, 1999 - Landing of Soyuz TM-29 ending that record period. Apollo 15 launch year: 1971 - Bruce Betts notes Apollo 15 launched and landed during this week in 1971. Skylab 3 mission year: 1973 - Bruce Betts notes Skylab 3 launched this week in 1973. Robotic sample return missions beyond low Earth orbit: 6 - Three lunar missions, Stardust, Genesis, and Hayabusa are counted as successful sample returns.

Pivotal Quotes: "It really got a tear in my eye when I was looking at this map" — Emily Lakdawalla: Describing the emotional response to the new global Mars thermal map. "This is the kind of thing that can change the world." — Bill Nye: Talking about measuring Titan’s lake depth and imagining a future boat mission. "The purpose of WISE is to be the wide-angle panoramic survey instrument that finds the most interesting objects for these big telescopes" — Ned Wright: Explaining WISE’s role in the broader astronomy ecosystem.

Implications: WISE greatly expands the inventory of asteroids and brown dwarfs, improving planetary defense and target selection for future missions. Titan and Mars coverage show how infrared and radar reveal dynamic worlds, while the night-sky and history segments keep listeners connected to ongoing exploration.