Space: The New Frontier

Mark Seen

From Here to There Dec 13, 1901 The sky above is studded with stars and countless galaxies. In them, we can read not only our origin, but also our final destination. Technology is on the brink of taking us to places we have only dreamed of.

Mark Seen

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Return to the Moon Dec 13, 1901 The moon is our closest celestial companion. It lights our night sky and gently tugs at our shores. Few have walked on her surface, but her allure remains strong.

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The Inner Worlds Dec 13, 1901 They orbit between our planet and our star. Mercury and Venus make up half of our terrestrial planets, but we still know very little about them. As we take a closer look at our companions, we find more questions than answers.

Mark Seen

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Next Stop Mars Dec 13, 1901 Mars has fired our imagination for thousands of years. The tantilizing possibility of life has made it the most inviting planet in our solar system. It is the only other place that man may one day call home.

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The Planet Makers Dec 13, 1901 From the beginnings of our solar system 4.5 billions years ago, there remain many clues to reveal its evolution. Remnant debris, asteroids, and comets are what's left of the building blocks to our celestial neighborhood.

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The Gas Giants Dec 13, 1901 In the cold, dark expanse of our solar system, beyond the asteroid belt, lie the giant planets. Some can be seen with the naked eye, others have been visited by our camera. What secrets do they hold?

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The Moons of Olympus Dec 13, 1901 There are many more worlds in our solar system than just the planets. The mysterious moons of the gas giants may hold much more than we ever imagined. Each one is unique, and each one deserves a scrutinous eye.

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The Astronauts Jun 3, 2016 Who are these people that venture into space? Once they were test pilots, then scientists and engineers. Now teachers, politicians and paying tourists can go to space! What does it take to earn the astronaut wings?

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Space: Getting There Jun 3, 2016 Take a look at the new surge in space transportation, with privately owned companies vying for government contracts and private entrepreneurs looking to build hotels in space.

Mark Seen

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Orbit Jun 3, 2016 Chances are, you are watching this program by satellite, one way or another. Every day we use these wonders of human design, from communication and weather observation, to GPS and recourse management. As time goes on, the need for these amazing machines grows and grows.

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Mars: Adapt or Leave Jun 3, 2016 Air, water, food, electricity, and fuel - all the essentials to explore the solar system. This episode explores the innovative plans for astronauts to grow their own food and extract water and fuel at their destinations.

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Shore to Shore Jun 3, 2016 With low Earth orbit delegated to private companies, NASA is free to develop the deep space hardware for missions to Mars and beyond. The Orion space craft and SLS launch system are well on their way to delivering this capability.

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Emissaries Jun 3, 2016 NASA and others are developing new innovative propulsion systems, ion thrusters, and solar sails. The science fiction 'Warp drive' is not as far away as once thought.

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Danger, Asteroids Ahead Jun 3, 2016 The threat of an asteroid strike is a very real danger in our solar system. Mankind is now in a position to defend the planet from such an eventuality.

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Living with Space Nov 21, 2017 Astronauts and Cosmonauts train and study for years to work and live aboard the International Space Station. We have seen countless hours of their activities live on television and in the media. With this wealth of experience and insight behind them what do they think when they return to Earth? Without exception these space farers can not wait to get back into space.

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Atmosphere Nov 28, 2017 The tenuous envelope of gas surrounding our planet is an unbelievably complex machine that protects us from the vacuum of space, shelters us from harmful radiation and allows us and the biosphere to breath; it is our atmosphere and we need to learn much more about it so we can better it.

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Flight Status Dec 5, 2017 New projects are advancing slowly, moving hardware into the testing phase, new designs, new capabilities. The next 12 months will see an intense rise in flight tests, demonstration launches and high priority flights some are on time others are not. We check the flight status of some of this new hardware and these new capabilities.

Mark Seen

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Invasion Mars Dec 12, 2017 For over 50 years we have bombarded Mars with our probes and landers. Spying from orbit to map the terrain, finding her strengths and weaknesses. The time nearing for the full scale invasion of the planet- when humans walk on Mars and claim it for their own.

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Juno, Cassini and Beyond Dec 19, 2017 The Amazing Cassini spacecraft and its sibling lander, Huygens, have now concluded their scientific studies, bringing back years of data to be combed through by scientists, plotting their next journey to Saturn's space. Now, Juno piercing the cloak of Jupiter and her distant relative New Horizons at the edge of the solar system.

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Sling Shot Dec 26, 2017 The Soviet Era Luna 3 was the first spacecraft to utilize gravity to change course to photograph the dark side of the Moon. The NASA Mariner 10 mission used the technique to swing by Venus to target Mercury. The gravity assist or sling shot maneuver has become a standard for navigating the solar system. With our probes reaching further, faster and more accurately than ever before.

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Living Planet Jan 2, 2018 We have been observing Earth for 40 years now, in the last 20 we have focus with intensity on the planet with new technologies and capabilities, we have accumulated a mass of data that is now revealing a complex and ever changing living planet.

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Mercury or Bust Mar 16, 2018 The JAXA-ESA joint "BepiColombo" Mission is moments away from launch. The target is Mercury, which has been too long neglected by the world's space exploration programs. This mission will shed new light on this strange, tiny world.

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Set Course for the Heart of the Sun Mar 23, 2018 NASA's Parker Solar Probe Mission is on its way and will be shortly followed by Europe's Solar probe Mission. No spacecraft have traveled so fast or so close to a star before. The hope is to reveal the source of the solar winds that affect us here on Earth.

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Tickets Please Mar 30, 2018 The commercial space flight companies are edging closer and closer to flight readiness. Paying customers will soon be launching into space; tourist revenue is projected to be a major stepping stone toward space exploration and colonization.

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Planet X Apr 6, 2018 The New Horizons Mission continues deeper into space. With its next target looming close, some speculate that there may be evidence of a mysterious new planet, one long steeped in folklore. Could Planet X exist?

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Hyabusa Apr 13, 2018 The Japanese Asteroid Sample Return Mission has reached its target and is surveying the space rock, ready to dip down to acquire its sample. The return of asteroid material to Earth will aid scientists in the development in planetary defense systems.

Mark Seen

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Fresh Eyes Apr 13, 2018 Two new space telescopes, Gaia and TESS, are in orbit with their primary missions coming to a close. They will be joined by the James Webb Telescope, and together they will open up a whole new vista into time and space.

Mark Seen

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Martian Attractions Apr 20, 2018 This is the latest in Martian exploration, not just from orbit but also from rovers on the ground. New sources of water and planetary dust storms are a few of the stories unfolding on the Red Planet.