#118 - April 2022 Part 1

The Discussion:

• Observing trip with Cardiff Uni students
• Really bright ISS passes
• Jen’s first TV presenting gig about to be released
• Watching a SpaceX launch
• Listeners' email about previous episodes

The News:

Rounding up the astronomy news in April, we have:

• NASA think JWST will perform better than expected! (see also https://youtu.be/YJMBvcG7nRM)
• A milestone 5,000 confirmed exoplanets (see also https://youtu.be/ByfigQW-6Mk)
• The carbon impact of running large observatories
• ’Impossible’ supermassive-blackhole orbits discovered

The Sky Guide:

This month we’re taking a look at the constellation of Leo with a guide to its history, how to find it, a couple of deep sky objects and a round-up of the solar system views on offer in April.

Q&A:

How soon, at current space travel speeds, would we as a species have to leave the galactic neighbourhood in order to avoid the inevitable Milky Way/Andromeda galaxy collision catastrophe?