Earth and Space Science

Collecting Pokémon cards. Trading friendship bracelets. Painting your nails black. All these things have been trendy at some point, somewhere. But how did they become cool? And who made them popular?

Solar panels capture energy from the sun and turn it into electricity. But how do they work?Join guest host Rosie duPont and co-host Anna as they explore the ins and outs of solar energy!

Coral is one of the coolest creatures in the ocean. It comes in all shapes, sizes and colors, from bright yellow stars to big round brains. Sometimes, coral looks like rocks or even plants – but did you know it’s actually an animal?

Some call Jupiter “Earth’s bodyguard” because it keeps asteroids and comets from hitting our planet. But is Jupiter really protecting Earth?

In today’s episode, we’re talking with a therapist about how to process the wildfires happening in Los Angeles County and we’ll learn about smoke and how it travels. We’re also going to check in with Sanden Totten, who had to evacuate his home with his family. Then, we’re also going to play some parts of a 2021 episode about how wildfires start and how people work to contain them.

Humans have visited the moon but we’ve never lived there. Could we build a home on our lunar neighbor?

Looking for an escape? Join Molly and co-host Julian as they explore Antarctica! They’ll learn about Antarctica’s massive ice sheets and active volcanoes — plus they’ll meet the largest land animal on the continent!

Satellites are like robots in the sky: they monitor the weather, make GPS possible, and take stunning pictures of outer space! But how exactly do they work?

Sand! We use it to make all kinds of things, from spectacular sandcastles to roads and bridges. But where does it come from? And why is the sand on so many beaches disappearing?

Listener Gideon sent in this brilliant question: “How did ferns survive the dinosaur extinction and are they the same ferns we see now?”

Grab your raincoat, and join Molly and co-host Lily as they float into the clouds to learn about lightning!

Explore the dark with Molly and co-host Sasha!

Pluto is tiny, icy, and used to be the ninth planet in the solar system. Used to be. So why isn’t Pluto a planet anymore?

Everything in our world is powered by energy!

What would life look like in other parts of the galaxy, or beyond?

We’ll unpack one of the most important ideas in science, the Theory of General Relativity!

Plastic is useful but also a danger, because a lot of it is ending up in our oceans, where it’s sucked into swirly twirly whirlpools of garbage.

There are more than a million different species of insects out there, from speedy dragonflies that zip through the air as fast as a car to rainbow-colored beetles living in tropical rainforests. But why does the world need bugs?