Site • RSS • Apple PodcastsDescription (podcaster-provided):
The new space age is upon us, and This Week in Space leaves no topic untouched. Every Friday, join Editor-in-Chief of Ad Astra magazine, Rod Pyle and Managing Editor of Space.com, Tariq Malik as they explore everything related to the cosmos. You can join Club TWiT for $10 per month and get ad-free audio and video feeds for all our shows plus everything else the club offers...or get just this podcast ad-free for $5 per month.Themes and summary (AI-generated based on podcaster-provided show and episode descriptions):
➤ Spaceflight news and mission updates • Artemis program and ISS operations • Human vs robotic exploration, AI/automation • Mars exploration, settlement biology • Outer solar system missions (Titan Dragonfly) • Space policy, treaties, UN governance • Space history, accidents, risk managementThis podcast is a weekly conversation about current spaceflight and space science, blending near-term news with deeper explainers and interviews. Across the episodes, the hosts track major developments in human spaceflight—especially NASA’s Artemis program, ISS operations, and commercial crew and station plans—often focusing on schedule changes, testing milestones, safety issues, and how decision-making evolves after hard lessons from past accidents.
A recurring theme is how the “new space age” is reshaping exploration: the expanding role of private companies, rapid progress in AI and robotics, and debates about when humans add unique value versus when robotic systems may be safer or more capable. The show also spends significant time on Mars-related questions, from mission architecture and science priorities to longer-term challenges of living off Earth, including partial-gravity health effects, reproduction, ethics, and the possibility of human biological and cultural divergence in space settlements.
Solar system exploration beyond Mars also features prominently, with attention to ambitious planetary missions and the kinds of environments and chemistry they aim to study. Alongside science and engineering, the podcast frequently examines governance: the role of international institutions, the adequacy of existing space law, emerging norms for sustainability and debris mitigation, resource use on the Moon and beyond, and the policy implications of megaconstellations and potential militarization.
Overall, listeners can expect a mix of space news roundups, interviews with scientists, historians, and policy experts, and context-setting discussions that connect technical progress to societal, legal, and strategic questions.
| Episodes: |
TWiS 201: Born to Explore - With Jay Gallentine2026-Mar-13 70 minutes |
TWiS 200: Our 200th Episode Listener Special! - We're Talking to You!2026-Mar-06 79 minutes |
TWiS 199: The Obsolete Astronaut? - And a New Report on Crewed Mars Missions2026-Feb-27 61 minutes |
TWiS 198: A Dragonfly on Titan - Inside the Dragonfly Mission2026-Feb-20 59 minutes |
TWiS 197: Inside UNOOSA - The UN and Space2026-Feb-13 58 minutes |
TWiS 196: Becoming Martian! - How Will Human Beings Evolve on Mars?2026-Feb-06 63 minutes |
TWiS 195: Remembering Apollo 1, Challenger, and Columbia - NASA's Week of Remembrance with Gerry Griffin2026-Jan-30 74 minutes |
TWiS 194: COPs in Space! - Is the Outer Space Treaty Ready for the New Space Race?2026-Jan-23 63 minutes |
TWiS 193: A History of Tomorrow - A Conversation with Former NASA Chief Historian, Dr. Roger Launius2026-Jan-17 57 minutes |
TWiS 192: Space, 2026! - What's Coming in Spaceflight This Year2026-Jan-09 59 minutes |