Weekly Space Hangout - Dimethyl Ether Detected in a Planetary Disk?

https://youtu.be/8xFQGQsGurs Host: Fraser Cain ( @fcain )Special Guest: On March 8, the ESO announced in their Press Release ( https://www.eso.org/public/news/eso2205/?lang ) that a team of researchers from Leiden University, The Netherlands, had detected the largest molecule to date within a planetary disc. At 9-atoms, dimethyl ether is considered a precursor of larger organic molecules that can lead to the emergence of life. Tonight we are pleased to air Fraser's prerecorded interview with two members of the team that detected the molecule, Nashanty Brunken and Dr. Alice Booth, who will tell us more about this amazing detection.   Nashanty Brunken is an Astronomy Masters student at Leiden University with experience in Astrochemistry research. She is a writer at Leiden Science Magazine and De Universum. Previously, Nashanty was an astronomy Student Ambassador with experience in Public Relations and Communications.   Dr. Alice Booth is an Astrochemistry PostDoc at Leiden Observatory. She earned her PhD from the School of Physics and Astronomy at the University of Leeds, and her BS in Physics from the University of Aberdeen, her hometown, in 2016. She is interested in the formation, composition and detection of exoplanets, and her current research centers around the structure and composition of protoplanetary disks. In addition to her research, Alice is passionate about science communication, has been involved with the organization Pint of Science for a number of years, and coordinated Leeds Pint of Science 2019.   Be sure to follow Nashanty on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/nashanty-...). You can learn more about Alice on her personal website:  https://aliceboothastronomy.wordpress...  … her professional website: https://www.universiteitleiden.nl/en/... … and be sure to follow her on Twitter: https://twitter.com/Alice_Centauri   Regular Guests: Dr. Kimberly Cartier ( http://KimberlyCartier.org & @AstroKimCartier ) Dr. Nick Castle ( @PlanetaryGeoDoc / https://wanderingsci.com/ )  Dave Dickinson ( http://astroguyz.com/ & @Astroguyz ) This week's stories: - Apollo 17, Artemis & SLS. Internal volumes: Apollo: 210 cu ft, Orion: 316 cu ft, Crew Dragon: 328 cu ft. - JWST is focused! - Ingenuity extended! - Hot spots on magnetars. - How would a Mars sample return mission work?   We've added a new way to donate to 365 Days of Astronomy to support editing, hosting, and production costs.  Just visit: https://www.patreon.com/365DaysOfAstronomy and donate as much as you can! Share the podcast with your friends and send the Patreon link to them too!  Every bit helps! Thank you! ------------------------------------ Do go visit http://www.redbubble.com/people/CosmoQuestX/shop for cool Astronomy Cast and CosmoQuest t-shirts, coffee mugs and other awesomeness! http://cosmoquest.org/Donate This show is made possible through your donations.  Thank you! (Haven't donated? It's not too late! Just click!) ------------------------------------ The 365 Days of Astronomy Podcast is produced by the Planetary Science Institute. http://www.psi.edu Visit us on the web at 365DaysOfAstronomy.org or email us at [email protected].