Space NOW! Podcast
- 25th Nov 2025
- Author: Paul Millington
The Podcast
Welcome to Space NOW! The space news podcast from the National Space Centre that goes beyond the headlines. On this show we explore what’s actually happening in space right now, with insights and analysis from our team of experts and presenters!
Our goal is to help you make up your own mind on the big space stories. Are space tourists really astronauts? What can we do about the growing space junk problem? Are we alone in the Universe?
In each episode, we'll dive into current space topics and answer these questions and more.
How to listen
You can watch our full episodes on YouTube or listen to the podcast on Podbean, Spotify and Apple.
Get in touch
Episode 19 | The End of Missions to Venus
Listen on Spotify.
Episode 18 | The Most Terrifying Space Stories (Halloween Special)
Listen on Spotify.
Episode 17 | Can you Play Video Games on the ISS?
Plus: comet-spotting, "Super-puff" planets and how to spot a Supermoon.
Listen on Spotify.
Episode 16 | From Paralympian to Astronaut: A Conversation with John McFall
We were delighted to sit down with John McFall: Paralympian, Orthopaedic Surgeon, and now the first person with a physical disability to be certified for space flight.
We talk about John's extraordinary journey, the hardest parts of astronaut training, the weird science experiments he'd like to try out in space and his experience with the ESA Fly! study, which proved that a physical disability need not be a barrier for the astronauts of the future.
Mission X - Train Like an Astronaut.
Listen on Spotify.
Episode 15 | NASA might have Discovered Life on Mars
This is not a drill: NASA have discovered a new biosignature and it's on Mars!
Ed and Dhara dive into all the nerdy details of this latest discovery, and explore why humans have always been obsessed with the red planet.
Plus: a quasi-moon, solar shifts and a chance to sleep-over at the National Space Centre!
Help scientists by cloudspotting on Mars.
Listen on Spotify.
Episode 14 | Is this the End of the UK Space Agency?
Episode 13 | Debunking Moon Landing Conspiracies
How do we know we landed on the Moon? Well, because it happened and there's loads of evidence. On this episode, Ed and Dhara tackle some of the major conspiracies about the Moon landing head on and ask what the future holds for conspiracy theories as we approach the Artemis landings.
We also celebrate the life of Apollo astronaut Jim Lovell.
Listen on Spotify.
Episode 12 | This Asteroid is Worth $100,000,000,000,000,000,000
You find an asteroid rich in natural resources. Do you:
a. leave it be?
b. explore it scientifically (like NASA's Psyche mission)?
c. strip it for parts and bring those parts back home?
If we can mine much needed minerals from space, should we? In this episode, Josh and David explain the feasibility and thorny ethics of asteroid mining. Plus: the first female Astronomer Royal, the Voyager Declaration, and how to spot a meteor shower.
Listen on Spotify.
Episode 11 | The Sci-Fi tech we'll Need on Mars ft. Aaron Bradbury, NSC Creative
What will it take for humanity to get to Mars? Why do we want to go there? And how will we survive once we get there?
Those are just some of the questions explored in the new planetarium show from NSC Creative, our in-house team that makes amazing immersive shows for the National Space Centre and others around the world!
As humanity gears up to return to the Moon and take the first crewed missions to Mars, 'One Step Beyond: A Journey to Mars' takes audiences on those journeys, showing both the technological and emotional sides of this massive undertaking and introducing us to cheeky astronaut toy Ziggy who is along for the ride!
In this episode, Dhara sits down with one of the Creative Directors of NSC Creative, Aaron Bradbury, for a conversation about planetaria, Mars missions and the cool near-future tech they researched for this film! What could a journey to Mars look like?
Listen on Spotify.
Episode 10 | 6 Space Missions you Need to Know About!
Which two countries aren't allowed to work together on space missions (but do it anyway)? Which country teamed up with ITV to pay for the first Brit to go to space?
This summer at the National Space Centre we are exploring Space Across the world, so to celebrate that on this episode we are taking a look at all the ways that nations have worked together in space. From the Apollo-Soyuz handshake that celebrated 50 years this week to a probe that is journeying from Leicester to Mercury.
Plus Ed spots an interstellar comet and David brings us updates on the Artemis programme.
Listen on Spotify.
Episode 9 | Is the UK prepared for Space War? ft. Dr Bleddyn Bowen
We are joined by the UK's leading expert in Astropolitics and Space Warfare, Dr Bleddyn Bowen, to talk all things Satellites, Superpowers and Space War. What capabilities do the most advanced nations have in Space? And what could a modern Space War look like?
Listen on Spotify.
Episode 8 | Would Aliens be Friendly or Hostile?
In light of the new Disney-Pixar film Elio, Josh and David discuss first contact movies. How similar are Hollywood plots to real-life protocols? Plus, should you go to see Elio?
Listen on Spotify.
Episode 7 | How Far Can We See Into the Universe? | Mailbag
Join David and Dhara as they answer your space questions, including space litter, space smells and the best place in the Universe to go on holiday! Plus all the latest from the Vera Rubin telescope.
Listen on Spotify.
Episode 6 | Can this Spacecraft Touch the SUN?! Parker Solar Probe
It's SUN-believable! As the Parker Solar Probe makes its final flyby of the Sun, Dhara and Ed dig into the headlines on this amazing spacecraft.
And get out your history books as we explore the Carrington Event, a huge solar storm from 1859 that set fire to electrical equipment all over the world! In our modern, electrified world, could this happen again?
Listen on Spotify.
Episode 5 | Why does Saturn have so many moons? | Pluto and Planet X
Join Josh and David as they unlock the mysteries of the Solar System! Why are we STILL discovering moons on our own doorstep? And will we ever find the mysterious Planet X? Plus a NASA/Space X update and why Pluto isn't a planet.
Listen on Spotify.
Try our Stargazing Challenges.
Take a Space Selfie.
Episode 4 | Q&A: Your Space Questions Answered!
Join Josh Barker and David Southworth for this mailbag episode of Space NOW! where we're answering YOUR space questions. Including: Can we use nukes to terraform Mars? Does space have a North, South, East and West? And how far could the Voyager probes get from the Earth?
Listen on Spotify.
Episode 3 | Space Tourists or Astronauts?
On this episode: Dhara Patel and Zoe Baily dig into Katy Perry's trip to space and explore whether the space tourist/astronaut debate is useful. We also learn about growing brains in space!
Listen on Spotify.
Help scientists to identify galaxies with Galaxy Zoo.
Episode 2 | NASA's New Budget Explained
On this episode: Join David Southworth and Josh Barker as they discuss NASA's recent budget cuts. What does this mean for the future of space in America and internationally? We also explore the benefits of funding space research and ask what are the biggest mysteries of our Universe.
Listen on Spotify.
Episode 1 | Stranded in Space?
Join Ed Kellond-Turner and Dhara Patel for this first episode of Space NOW! The space news podcast from the National Space Centre that goes beyond the headlines.
On this episode: we find out what really happened to the astronauts that were stranded in on the ISS, and get you up to speed on the ins and outs of the modern space industry.
Listen on Spotify.
