The Backyard Astronomer Podcast

Taurus the Bull hosts the planet Mars this month, as well as many other star clusters and nebulae.  Check it out this month!
Follow us at https://www.facebook.com/BackyardAstronomerAZ
https://www.facebook.com/NAZAstro
Support local STEM education! https://www.patreon.com/NAZAstro
Our awesome sponsors!
https://www.facebook.com/prescottrockstars
https://www.facebook.com/manzanitains
 

Comet C/2022 E3 (ZTF) is making its close approach to Earth tonight, so bust out your binoculars or telescope and look to the sky!
Follow us at https://www.facebook.com/BackyardAstronomerAZ
 
https://www.facebook.com/NAZAstro
 
Support local STEM education! https://www.patreon.com/NAZAstro
 
Our awesome sponsors!
https://www.facebook.com/prescottrockstars
https://www.facebook.com/manzanitains
https://www.facebook.com/spotlightonprescott

Comet C/2022 E3(ZTF) has dominated the news recently, but today an even closer object will fly by Earth at just 2200 miles.  Asteroid 2023BU was discovered on 1/21/2023 by a Backyard Astronomer in Crimea.
#amateurastronomy #citizenscience #comet #asteroid #space #astronomy #telescope

On 5 Dec. 2022, scientists for the first time successfully produced a fusion reaction with more energy generated than that put in.  This month we talk about the Big Bang, the birth of stars, and why fusion matters.
Follow us at facebook.com/BackyardAstronomerAZ
Check out the NAZ Astro mission of STEM education at facebook.com/NAZAstro
Support STEM education patreon.com/NAZAstro
Our awesome sponsors:
facebook.com/prescottrockstars
facebook.com/manzanitains

Constellations have tales of striking similarity, despite the cultures that named them being displaced by thousands of years and thousands of miles.  The indigenous people across North America were no exception, and many still continue to provide a rich history.  Learn more about Native American cultures - including astronomy - at the Museum of Indigenous People at 147 N Arizona Ave. in Prescott, Arizona.
www.museumofindigenouspeople.org
 
Follow us at facebook.com/BackyardAstronomerAZ
Check out the NAZ Astro mission of STEM education at facebook.com/NAZAstro
Support STEM education patreon.com/NAZAstro
Our awesome sponsors:
facebook.com/prescottrockstars
facebook.com/manzanitains

Manuel Lucero and Joshua Ballze from the Museum of Indigenous People join me this month to talk about their work - in and out of the museum - to bring awareness to Native American cultures, history, art, language, and even indigenous astronomy, culminating in the presentation of names for the IAUs ExoWorlds 2022 competition.
Visit the Museum of Indigenous People at 147 N. Arizona Ave in Prescott, Arizona, or online at www.museumofindigenouspeople.org
Explore the Jurassic Paleo Art Expo at www.facebook.com/JurassicPaleoExpo or www.instagram.com/jurassic_paleoart_expo_jpx 
 
Follow us at facebook.com/BackyardAstronomerAZ
Check out the NAZ Astro mission of STEM education at facebook.com/NAZAstro
Support STEM education patreon.com/NAZAstro
Our awesome sponsors:
facebook.com/prescottrockstars
facebook.com/manzanitains
 
 

How long does it take to communicate across space, and who might be listening?  GJ 436b may be listing from 33 light years distant, but their planet needs a new name!  Follow the Backyard Astronomer, NAZ Astro, the Jim and Linda Lee Planetarium, and the Museum of Indigenous People as we come together for a project like no other.
 
https://www.museumofindigenouspeople.org/
https://prescott.erau.edu/about/planetarium
 
Follow us at https://www.facebook.com/BackyardAstronomerAZ
https://www.facebook.com/NAZAstro
Support local STEM education! https://www.patreon.com/NAZAstro
Our awesome sponsors!
https://www.facebook.com/prescottrockstars
https://www.facebook.com/manzanitains
https://www.facebook.com/spotlightonprescott
 
 

Born in 1943 West Virginia, Homer Hickam, Jr. was a barely a teenager when the Soviet space program launched Sputnik 1, and subsequently launched Homer into a lifelong relationship with space.  The 1999 movie "October Sky" is roughly based on his memoir, but we had the opportunity to sit down with Homer to learn the real stories behind the Big Creek Missile Agency of Coalwood, WV, and the amazing career afforded by the passions of one boy.
Visit www.HomerHickam.com to learn more about Homer, purchase his books, or support the causes he supports.
 
Follow us at facebook.com/BackyardAstronomerAZ
Check out the NAZ Astro mission of STEM education at facebook.com/NAZAstro
Support STEM education patreon.com/NAZAstro
Our awesome sponsors:
facebook.com/prescottrockstars
facebook.com/manzanitains

October 4th, 1957 ushered in the Space Age with the successful launch and orbit of Sputnik 1.  
Follow us at facebook.com/BackyardAstronomerAZ
Check out the NAZ Astro mission of STEM education at facebook.com/NAZAstro
Support STEM education patreon.com/NAZAstro
Our awesome sponsors:
facebook.com/prescottrockstars
facebook.com/manzanitains

A special interview with SR-71 pilot Pat Bledsoe.  Re-edited Audio.
Follow facebook.com/BackyardAstronomerAZ
facebook.com/NAZAstro
Support STEM patreon.com/NAZAstro
facebook.com/prescottrockstars
facebook.com/manzanitains