The Supermassive Podcast

What are the biggest space missions of 2026? And what are the best stargazing opportunities this year? The Supermassive Team - Izzie Clarke, Dr Becky Smethurst, Dr Robert Massey and Richard Hollingham - share their astronomical excitement for the year ahead and ponder if they should charter a boat for the August eclipse.Thank you to listeners Anne Edgeworth and Karolina who inspired this episode.To support the show, join The Supermassive Club for ad-free listening, forum access, and extra content from the team. If you have a question for the team - or have a boat we can borrow! - get in touch via podcast@ras.ac.uk or on Instagram, @SupermassivePod.The Supermassive Podcast is a Boffin Media production. The producers are Izzie Clarke and Richard Hollingham.

The Supermassive Podcast is back for 2026, and we've got a MEGA Q&A. What happens when two nebulae collide? Where did Neptune and Uranus form? What’s the procedure for a medical emergency on the ISS? And more. Plus, Izzie, Dr Becky, Robert and Richard cover everything you need to know ahead of the launch of Artemis II. And here are the links to things we promised you in this episode... Our episode "How to Time Travel"Our episode "Do We Live in a Multiverse?"Richard's brilliant Space Boffins podcastJoin The Supermassive Club for ad-free listening, forum access, and extra content from the team. And email your questions to podcast@ras.ac.uk or follow us on Instagram, @SupermassivePod.The Supermassive Podcast is a Boffin Media production. The producers are Izzie Clarke and Richard Hollingham.

Fire up your flux capacitor and dematerialise your Tardis because The Supermassive Podcast is traveling in time. Is it possible? How does it work? And, crucially, which films got the physics right (or wrong!)? Thank you to Dr Emma Osborne from the University of York, and Dr Alfredo Carpinetti from IFLScience for their help on this episode. Alfredo's upcoming book, Invisible Rainbows, will be available for pre-order soon. Here's the Time Travel in Fiction Rundown from Minute PhysicsJoin The Supermassive Club for ad-free listening, forum access, and extra content from the team. And email your questions to podcast@ras.ac.uk or follow us on Instagram, @SupermassivePod. The Supermassive Podcast is a Boffin Media production. The producers are Izzie Clarke and Richard Hollingham.

What would it be like to feel gravitational waves? How are satellites protected from extreme solar storms? How do gravity slingshots work? Are aliens potentially communicating outside of the electromagnetic spectrum? Plus Izzie, Dr Becky and Robert share their annual Christmas present recommendations.Keep sending your questions to podcast@ras.ac.uk, Instagram @SupermassivePod or members can post on The Supermassive Club's forum. Join The Supermassive Club for ad-free listening, forum access, and extra content from the team. The Supermassive Podcast is a Boffin Media production. The producers are Izzie Clarke and Richard Hollingham.The Supermassive Podcast is a Boffin Media production. The producers are Izzie Clarke and Richard Hollingham.

What are the threats to our dark night skies? And what needs to be done to protect them? Izzie, Dr Becky and Robert explore this important topic and head outside (...and the weather was not on their side!) Thank you to Dr Samantha Lawler at the University of Regina in Saskatchewan and Andy Lawrence, the Regis professor of astronomy at the University of Edinburgh. Don't forget to join The Supermassive Club for ad-free listening, forum access, and extra content from the team. The Supermassive Podcast is a Boffin Media production. The producers are Izzie Clarke and Richard Hollingham.

Can JWST detect exomoons? How can black holes keep absorbing more mass? How big is our cosmic neighbourhood? And what is a rogue black hole?! Izzie, Dr Becky and Robert answer YOUR questions. You can add to The Supermassive Mailbox by emailing podcast@ras.ac.uk or messaging us on instagram @SupermassivePod. To support the show join The Supermassive Club and access ad-free listening, forum discussions, and member's only content.

Grab your space swimsuit, Izzie and Dr Becky explore Mars' wet past. When did the red planet have water? Where did it go? And were there canals on Mars? Thank you to Joe McNeil from the Natural History Museum and Sian Prosser from the Royal Astronomical Society. If you like this topic, you might want to check out the NHM's new exhibition Space: Could life exist beyond Earth?Don't forget to join The Supermassive Club for ad-free listening, forum access, and behind the scenes from the team. The Supermassive Podcast is a Boffin Media production. The producers are Izzie Clarke and Richard Hollingham. 

It’s space book club time, featuring the latest book by author and photography expert Andy Saunders: Gemini and Mercury Remastered. Producer Richard enthuses about these mid-60s missions and we talk to the author. Meanwhile, Dr Becky, Izzie and Dr Robert also discuss Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir and A City on Mars by Kelly and Zach Weinersmith. With questions on the size of space and why the centres of galaxies are brighter, it really is quite the bonus episode. You can hear a longer version of the interview with Andy Saunders in the latest Space Boffins Podcast.  Join The Supermassive Club for ad-free listening and share your questions, images and more. Or email reach us at podcast@ras.ac.uk or on Instagram @SupermassivePod (particularly if you discover a comet). The Supermassive Podcast is a Boffin Media production. The producers are Izzie Clarke and Richard Hollingham.

It's been 166 years since scientists recorded the world's most powerful solar explosion. Izzie, Dr Becky and Dr Robert Massey are big fans of anniversaries, so they investigate how the Carrington Event affected the Earth - and why something similar today could be devastating.Thanks to Kate Bond from the Royal Astronomical Society and Matthew West from ESA's Vigil for joining us on this episode.Join The Supermassive Club for ad-free listening and to share you questions, images and more. Or email them to podcast@ras.ac.uk or on Instagram @SupermassivePod.The Supermassive Podcast is a Boffin Media production. The producers are Izzie Clarke and Richard Hollingham.