Best World Ocean Observatory Podcasts (2025)

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What If? 5:06

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3h ago5:06

5:06

This week: Is there no time left to explore other ways of seeing, being, solving, and surviving? Where can we place our energy and imagination to serve as functions of invention? What if there are new ways of thinking about what and how we invest for the future? About World Ocean Radio World Ocean Radio is a weekly series of five-minute audio essay…

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Exploring Earth's deep oceans and the state of commercial space 28:00

2h ago28:00

28:00

Co-hosts, Regina Barber and Emily Kwong, explore Earth's oceans in a special series running this summer from NPR’s science podcast, Short Wave: Sea Camp. Plus, a look at the commercial space company sector.

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Discovering Betelgeuse’s Betelbuddy 29:56

4d ago29:56

29:56

Have we found Betelgeuse’s ‘Betelbuddy?’ An astronomical mystery seems to be solved as the long-predicted stellar companion to the bright star Betelgeuse has been detected by a team of researchers led by Steve Howell of the NASA Ames Research Center using the Gemini North telescope in Hawaii. Steve discusses this breakthrough alongside astronomer A…

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Who Cares About the Ocean? 5:11

7d ago5:11

5:11

On June 8th, World Ocean Day, the new film OCEAN, presented by Sir David Attenborough, debuted in theatres and maritime museums around the world, a celebration of the ocean’s beauty and distress, and a passionate call for urgent protection. Who cares about the ocean? What will it take to reverse perspective and increase engagement? How do we best c…

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Searching for life in the clouds of Venus and creating space for birds 28:00

6d ago28:00

28:00

A new proposal suggests sending a spacecraft to Venus to search for gases that are often linked to biological cycles here on Earth. Plus, a look at veteran Canadian astronaut Roberta Bondar's book Space for Birds: Patterns and Parallels of Beauty and Flight.

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AI and the Ocean 5:59

13d ago5:59

5:59

This week, host Peter Neill reads verbatim an AI response to an action posed. He asked Chat GPT to write 750 words in the style of Peter Neill on World Ocean Radio, taking on the topic of artificial intelligence and the ocean. The response was quite shocking. Tune in to this special 6-minute episode to hear the entire assignment. About World Ocean …

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Biggest black hole merger observed 27:38

11d ago27:38

27:38

Two black holes have collided and combined in the largest merger yet observed. Mark Hannam of Cardiff University and member of the study explains how the Interferometer Gravitational Wave Observatories (LIGO) detected this ‘violent’ event through spacetime. The lifestyle of ancient humans had an impact on their risk for infectious diseases. Astrid …

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A new NASA leader and searching for life on distant ocean worlds 28:00

13d ago28:00

28:00

The Trump Administration named Sean Duffy, Secretary of Transportation, to be the interim NASA administrator. Plus, could life exist in an icy ocean on a distant moon within our solar system.By Marian Summerall, Brendan Byrne

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Tracking ocean circulation systems 33:47

18d ago33:47

33:47

The European Space Agency plans to use satellite gravity data to track weakening ocean circulation systems. Rory Bingham of the University of Bristol explains how these satellites can ‘weigh’ the Earth’s water and might help resolve whether we’re approaching the climate tipping point of a shutdown of ocean circulation in the Atlantic Ocean, somethi…

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Why War? 5:02

21d ago5:02

5:02

Why is there so much war? So much strife in the Middle East: what are we fighting for? This week Peter Neill,founder of W2O and host of World Ocean Radio, argues that it's all about the water. It's always been about the water: rivers, access to the sea...water is the source of life--and of conflict. Water, necessary to sustain our cities, our agric…

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Space reading recommendations and moving AI off the planet 28:00

23d ago28:00

28:00

Catching up on your summer reading list? How about adding one more -- a science fiction thriller series set in space? Plus, a new company is taking their design process off Earth and designing sneakers in space using AI designers and 3D printing.By Marian Summerall, Brendan Byrne

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Bird flu surges in Cambodia 35:50

25d ago35:50

35:50

There's a surge in cases and deaths from H5N1 bird flu in Cambodia - we hear what's the driver and how concerned we should be. Erik Karlsson, Head of Virology at the Pasteur Institute in Phnom Penh and director of the WHO’s H5 Reference Laboratory has been watching the uptick. An interstellar interloper has been spotted entering our solar system. M…

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Canals and the Circulation of Water 5:11

27d ago5:11

5:11

This week we're discussing the circulation of water worldwide, and the importance of our waterways--canals in particular--as the great highways and distribution centers of our busy lives, now storing and transferring water and energy, and revitalized for recreational use and enjoyment of natural spaces. About World Ocean Radio World Ocean Radio is …

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A Chilean observatory comes online. Two rovers explore the watery past of Mars 28:00

28d ago28:00

28:00

A new observatory in Chile, the Vera C. Rubin Observatory, is searching the skies for things like asteroids, dark matter and dark energy. What new things might it uncover about the cosmos? Plus, the rovers on Mars are exploring two craters that have evidence of past water. Could they also be home to ancient life? lead scientists closer to finding o…

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Vera C. Rubin Observatory first images 37:48

1M ago37:48

37:48

A spectacular new 10-year telescopic survey of the universe gets underway in Chile. Also, a project to create human chromosomes completely synthetically. Almost three decades ago Tony Tyson (now of UC Davis) and colleagues were standing in the control room of the world’s biggest (at the time) digital astronomical camera. It was 3am when he suggeste…

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How to have an out of this world summer 28:00

1M ago28:00

28:00

With warmer weather and more free time for some, summer is a time to relax, unwind and to stargaze. Plus, another way to unwind is by reading space books like Star Bound: A Beginner's Guide to the American Space Program, from Goddard's Rockets to Goldilocks Planets and Everything in BetweenBy Marian Summerall, Brendan Byrne

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Ocean Literacy and How to Understand the Ocean 5:12

1M ago5:12

5:12

This week on World Ocean Radio we are discussing the Ocean Literacy movement and the need for more ocean science and fresh water understanding in the classroom. Ocean Literacy is comprised of seven basic principles, and host Peter Neill provides further perspective to include the global fresh water cycle by which to expand the principles into a set…

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Half a universe once lost now found 41:41

1M ago41:41

41:41

The universe is thought to consist of 70% Dark Energy, 25% Dark Matter, and just 5% Baryonic matter which is the atoms that make up you and me. At least, that’s what the models suggest. But a well-kept secret between astronomers and cosmologists for all these years has been that they have not actually ever seen almost half of that 5% normal matter …

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A puzzling, pulsing cosmic phenomenon. Plus, how astronauts deal with delays 28:00

1M ago28:00

28:00

Astronomers have discovered an object light-years away that’s emitting timely pulses like nothing ever seen before. Plus, the next private space crew is grounded. How are they dealing with the delay?

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The first solar polar pictures 34:56

2M ago34:56

34:56

ESA’s Solar Orbiter camera probe begins raising its orbit towards the sun’s poles, whilst Betelgeuse’s elusive buddy continues to sneak past our best telescopes. Earlier this year, Solar Orbiter started to stretch its orbit over greater latitudes – effectively standing on cosmic tiptoes to catch a glimpse of the Sun’s poles. This week, we have seen…

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Apprenticing: A Manifesto 5:14

2M ago5:14

5:14

Apprenticing has long been thought of as a term to describe someone working beside a master craftsperson to learn a trade and to refine a professional skill: whether it be pottery or electrical, cabinetry or plumbing. As an educational model it has long been mostly lost or forgotten, except in a place in midcoast Maine: The Apprenticeshop, where ap…

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Science at the Edge of the Solar System 1:23:12

2M ago1:23:12

1:23:12

A Talk by Dr. Oliver White (SETI Institute) May 28, 2025 Ten years ago, the New Horizons spacecraft flew by the Pluto system and revealed an unexpectedly diverse range of landscapes on that dwarf planet and its largest moon Charon -- implying much more complex geological histories for these distant worlds than anyone expected. Dr. White leads a viv…

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Death in space 28:00

2M ago28:00

28:00

From our cells to our universe, everything comes to an end.By Marian Summerall, Brendan Byrne

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Potential fungal 'Agroterror'? 44:17

2M ago44:17

44:17

What is Fusarium graminearum and why were scientists allegedly smuggling it into the US? Also, Alpine Glacier collapse and an HIV capitulation. The FBI has accused two Chinese scientists of trying to smuggle a dangerous crop fungus into the US, calling it a potential agro-terrorist threat. But the fungus has long been widespread across US farms, an…

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What is Ocean Day Meant to Do? 4:47

2M ago4:47

4:47

Each year on June 8th we celebrate World Ocean Day to recognize our relationship with the ocean, the vast watery world that covers 71% of our planet. Despite gains in ocean education and increased awareness and importance of the Ocean Literacy movement, public awareness of ocean issues in the United States does not advance much over time. What does…

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Slashed budget, uncertain leadership. What’s ahead for NASA? 28:00

2M ago28:00

28:00

A budget proposal from the White House would cut about a quarter of NASA’s budget and cut key science missions if approved by Congress. Plus, President Trump withdrew his nomination of Jared Isaacman for NASA administrator and SpaceX once again launched its massive Starship rocket.By Marian Summerall, Brendan Byrne

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Thirteen months to a chip off the moon 35:53

2M ago35:53

35:53

China is aiming to join the small club of nations who have successfully returned scientific samples of asteroids for analysis on earth, teaching us more about how our and potentially other solar systems formed. Tianwen-2 launched successfully this week, bound for an asteroid known as Kamo‘oalewa, which sits in a very strange orbit of both the earth…

1
Circulation 5:00

2M ago5:00

5:00

We live in a world of invisible circulation. It swirls in us and around us at all times, transporting and exchanging all things good and bad, some natural, some man-made. This week we're discussing the ocean-fresh water system--the full global circulation, from mountaintop to abyssal plain, upon which all life depends. About World Ocean Radio World…

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Varda's hat trick and Earth’s twin Venus 28:00

2M ago28:00

28:00

Varda Space is sending "huggable" capsules into low-Earth orbit for autonomous research and just recently, it returned its third successful mission. Plus, often nicknamed Earth’s twin, Venus didn’t evolve like Earth at all.By Marian Summerall, Brendan Byrne

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WHO Pandemic Agreement reached 40:18

2M ago40:18

40:18

This week, 124 countries agreed at the World Health Assembly in Geneva on measures aimed at preventing a future pandemic. The agreement very strongly favours a “One Health” approach, appreciating how so many potential pathogens originate in human-animal interactions. Still to agree on the terms of how to share pathogens and information with global …

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Will the Children Will Set Us Free? 5:07

2M ago5:07

5:07

Will the children set us free? Has it come to that? Have we abandoned the future for our children to solve, leaving them accountable for what we have failed to do? This week on World Ocean Radio host Peter Neill shares where he finds hope for the future, including in a web-based educational initiative that introduces children worldwide to the compl…

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Artemis II is closer to flight and Voyager’s thrusters get a deep space fix 28:00

2M ago28:00

28:00

Lockheed Martin delivered the Orion spacecraft for NASA’s Artemis II mission. Now, the agency is preparing the vehicle for the more than ten-day flyby of our moon—with a crew of four. Plus, Voyager's thrusters are back online after over two decades.By Brendan Byrne, Marian Summerall

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Vaccinating rabies’ reservoir dogs 38:45

2M ago38:45

38:45

In 2015, the World Health Organisation set the goal of eradicating rabies deaths from dog-bites to “Zero by 2030”. A team at the University of Glasgow and colleagues in Tanzania have been assessing the efficacy of dog vaccination schemes for reducing the numbers of human infections over the last 20 years. As Prof Katie Hampson tells Science in Acti…

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15 Years of World Ocean Radio 5:09

3M ago5:09

5:09

This week marks the 750th episode of World Ocean Radio: 15 years of weekly short audio that reaches millions around the globe, sharing concepts, demands, and solutions related to ocean technology and science, policy, examples of best practice, personal reflections, and solutions for how the ocean connects, sustains, inspires, and engages us in comm…

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Mega rockets, private space stations and sweaty spacecraft 28:00

3M ago28:00

28:00

From the inaugural launch of Blue Origin’s New Glenn rocket to plans for SpaceX’s Starship to lift once off again, it’s been a busy year for commercial space. Plus, one engineer is making a sweat shield to protect spacecraft when re-entering Earth’s atmosphere.By Marian Summerall, Brendan Byrne

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Gain-of-Function: Loss-of-Funding 26:30

3M ago26:30

26:30

This week, the White House posted an executive order which details the administration’s intent to stop ‘dangerous gain-of-function research’. We talk to Gigi Gronvall, an immunologist and biosecurity expert at Johns Hopkins University who fears the timing and added bureaucracy could stop all sorts of important biosciences unnecessarily, and that th…

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Proposed NASA funding cuts and tracking hurricanes from space 28:00

3M ago28:00

28:00

By Marian Summerall, Brendan Byrne