Since 2002, Planetary Radio has visited with a scientist, engineer, project manager, advocate, or writer who provides a unique perspective on the quest for knowledge about our Solar System and beyond. The full show archive is available for free.

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Voyager Mission Project Scientist Linda Spilker

Cassini Mission Project Scientist Linda Spilker has now taken on the same job for the Voyager Interstellar Mission.

The Voyager Mission: A 45th Anniversary Celebration

It’s a party for Voyager and the team of scientists, engineers and others who have followed it across our Solar System. Then we’ll visit with Ann Druyan, creative director for the Voyager Golden Record.

Cassini’s Dramatic End: A Planetary Radio Reprise

We were there when the Cassini spacecraft ended 13 years of exploration and revelation at Saturn.

Legendary space physics pioneer Margaret Kivelson

A fascinating conversation with a space science and policy leader who is still hard at work in her 10th decade.

Space Policy Edition: Why are outer planets missions so expensive?

Casey talks with experts about the 50th anniversary of the Pioneer 10 launch toward Jupiter and beyond, and why most outer planets missions since then have been so costly.

The Case for a Return to Enceladus

Flying a spacecraft through geysers spewing from Saturn’s moon Enceladus might reveal the building blocks of life or even life itself.

Europa Clipper sails toward launch

Mission system manager Al Cangahuala says the robotic explorer of Jupiter’s ocean moon is making steady progress toward a 2024 launch.

Cassini, Voyager and beyond with Linda Spilker

Cassini mission project scientist Linda Spilker returns with new science from ocean moon Enceladus and anniversaries to celebrate with the Voyager mission.

Alan Stern says it's time for suborbital science

Planetary scientist and New Horizons principal investigator Alan Stern says great science will ride on Virgin Galactic’s SpaceShipTwo and Blue Origin’s New Shepard.

Mighty Jupiter Revealed

The Juno mission will continue its exploration of Jupiter till 2025, thanks to a four-year extension granted by NASA. Principal investigator Scott Bolton brings us up to date.

A Symphony for 7 Moons

Composer Amanda Lee Falkenberg is joined by Cassini project scientist Linda Spilker and retired astronaut Nicole Stott as she shares excerpts from The Moons Symphony.

Astronaut Stephanie Wilson Might Walk on the Moon

18 astronauts on the Artemis Team have a shot at walking on the Moon, and Stephanie Wilson is one of them.

To Pluto and Beyond with Alan Stern

Principal Investigator Alan Stern returns on the 5th anniversary of the New Horizons encounter with Pluto to tell us about the wealth of knowledge the spacecraft is still sending home from across the solar system.

Looking for Life in Alien Oceans

JPL scientist Kevin Hand is endlessly fascinated by the possibility of life in the hidden oceans of the outer solar system’s moons, and now he has written a great book about the quest to discover it.

The Next 10 Years: Continuing our Solar System Tour

Our look ahead at the near-future of solar system exploration continues with Mars, the giant outer worlds, and the smaller bodies that can be found throughout the neighborhood.

Mighty Jupiter Revealed

Juno mission principal investigator Scott Bolton provides an enticing taste of the Jupiter orbiter’s mind-bending discoveries.

A Spirited Conversation with Carolyn Porco

A fun conversation with the leader of the Cassini imaging team, and an audio tour of the transit of Mercury with astronomer Jay Pasachoff.

What Will You Send to the Moon?

Astrobotic is one of several companies that are building small, robotic landers to take commercial payloads to the surface of the Moon. With a new contract from NASA to support his company’s work, CEO John Thornton looks forward to touching down in 2021. Senior editor Emily Lakdawalla can’t wait for the Europa Clipper to reach Europa, one of Jupiter’s ocean moons. Who doesn’t want more cow bell? Chief scientist Bruce Betts gets his share as he helps us explore the current night sky in What’s Up.

The News From Saturn-With Linda Spilker

It has been many months since the great Cassini spacecraft plunged into Saturn’s atmosphere and fiery death. Yet the mission lives on as the reams of data and images reveal much more of this beautiful world, its rings and its moons.

Ice Worlds, A Moon Landing and Blasting an Asteroid

When will we return to Uranus and Neptune? Planetary scientist Amy Simon explains why a mission to the so-called ice giants is a high priority as she tells us about these mysterious, blue worlds.

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