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The BBC brings you all the week's science news.

Science In Action: The Space Special

Rosetta and Philae at Comet, Credit: European Space Agency

25/12/2014

The Space Special

BBC World Service - Science In Action, The Space Special

Indian spacecraft enter Mars’ orbit, Rosetta lands on a comet and other space stories

2014 saw an Indian spacecraft enter Mars’ orbit, Rosetta’s Philae landing grip the world and the sighting of an Earthly exoplanet - Science in Action looks back with Stuart Clark.

News from space, whether from men on the moon or a spacecraft circling the Red Planet, has always made a regular appearance on Science in Action.  This year was no exception and in this special programme, we remember what extraordinary developments were made in space science in 2014.  Joining presenter Jack Stewart for this Space Special is Stuart Clark, an esteemed author and astronomy journalist and a Fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society.  

2014 has been dubbed as the Asian Space Race.  India gained some significant ground this year after they successfully placed their Mangalyaan spacecraft into orbit around the Red Planet… and they did it pretty cheaply too.

It was also Europe’s year with Rosetta, the European Space Agency’s ‘comet chaser’, reaching Comet Churyumov-Gerasimenko, entering orbit and landing its probe on it. 

Moving to human space flight, 2014 has seen success but also fatality in our quest to reach the stars.  In October, a rocket developed by Orbital Sciences and bound for the International Space Station exploded shortly after lift-off.  While thankfully unmanned, experiments and supplies were destroyed.  Three days later, Virgin Galactic’s space plane crashed in California.  This time the life of one of the pilots was lost.

The Kepler telescope has allowed astronomers to peer into distant galaxies, exoplanets and stars far beyond our own Solar System.  Almost 1000 exoplanets have been officially recognised, and the number keeps rising.  This year, however, one new exoplanet stood out - it is the size of the Earth and it could have liquid water on its surface. 

Titan, Saturn’s largest moon, is one of the most intriguing places in the Solar System.  NASA’s Cassini probe has given us some clues into Titan’s world as it flew past during its exploration orbit of Saturn.

All of the planets and moons in the Solar System were formed from cosmic dust that clumps and grows in size.  But where did this dust come from in the first place?  Astronomers in Denmark may have found an answer.


(Image: Rosetta and Philae at Comet, Credit: European Space Agency)

Presenter: Jack Stewart
Producer:  Ania Lichtarowicz

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