Episodios

  • The Man Who Killed Pluto

    The Man Who Killed Pluto
    Mar 17 2026
    For seventy-six years, Pluto was a planet. Then, in 2005, astronomer Dr. Mike Brown discovered Eris - a distant icy world roughly the same size as Pluto - forcing astronomers to confront a question they had quietly avoided for decades: what actually counts as a planet? The answer led to the 2006 vote that redefined the solar system and stripped Pluto of its status, turning Brown into the unlikely public face of a controversial decision. But this story isn’t just about Pluto. It’s about how scientific definitions evolve. It’s about the vast, largely unexplored region beyond Neptune known as the Kuiper Belt. And it’s about Brown’s current hunt for something even bigger: a massive, unseen ninth planet whose gravity may already be shaping the outer solar system. In this episode, we go to the edge of our cosmic neighborhood with the astronomer who changed it - and may be on the verge of changing it again.
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    36 m
  • Aircraft Icing: Lessons Written in Tragedy

    Aircraft Icing: Lessons Written in Tragedy
    Mar 10 2026
    Every winter, aircraft depart in snow and freezing rain under a simple but unforgiving rule: a clean aircraft flies. That rule was shaped by tragedy. In this episode, we revisit the 1982 crash of Air Florida Flight 90 - a disaster that exposed the deadly consequences of ice contamination and inadequate thrust on takeoff, and helped transform winter flight standards. The lessons from that day reshaped deicing procedures, crew training, and federal regulations that still govern cold-weather operations. We’re joined by retired airline captain and aviation safety expert Steven Green, whose four decades of flying and deep work in aircraft icing and accident analysis bring critical perspective to the science and the stakes. Together, we examine how ice disrupts flight, the crashes that rewrote the rules, and why the margin for error in winter aviation remains razor thin.
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    47 m
  • The Blizzard of 2026: Behind the Forecast

    The Blizzard of 2026: Behind the Forecast
    Mar 3 2026
    One week after the Blizzard of 2026 buried parts of the Northeast under more than three feet of snow, we’re going behind the forecast. On this episode of Off the Radar, Emily Gracey sits down with fellow meteorologists Joe Martucci and Chris Gloninger to break down the science and strategy behind one of the most impactful winter storms of the season. From the early model signals to the moment confidence surged, they walk through how the forecast evolved as the bomb cyclone rapidly intensified. Joe and Chris also share what it was like to predict a major storm while living in the communities directly in its path, the biggest challenges they faced communicating impacts, and what made this blizzard stand out from others in recent memory. It is a behind-the-scenes look at the decisions, data, and real-world experience that shaped the forecast for the Blizzard of 2026.
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    54 m
  • Alaska’s Climate Crisis Part 2: The Human Cost

    Alaska’s Climate Crisis Part 2: The Human Cost
    Feb 24 2026
    In Part One of this series, meteorologist Emily Gracey examined the science behind Alaska’s rapidly changing climate - the warming trends, disappearing sea ice, and extreme storms reshaping the state. In Part Two, we hear what those changes sound like on the ground. When the remnants of Typhoon Halong struck Western Alaska in October 2025, more than a thousand people were displaced. Entire villages flooded overnight. In Kwigillingok, Tribal Resilience Coordinator Dustin Evon watched the tide rise at midnight and barely made it to safety. He was one of the lucky ones – entire homes drifted away, many still containing families who weren’t able to leave in time. It was the challenge of a lifetime to see a community disappear. Now, he faces a new challenge: how to rebuild ...or whether rebuilding is possible at all. With no roads connecting rural villages to the rest of Alaska, evacuations must happen by air. And with federal funding fragmented and competitive, long-term relocation can take years…if it happens at all. This episode explores the human cost of climate change in Alaska, the structural gaps in disaster assistance, and what it means to consider leaving behind the land that your ancestors have occupied for thousands of years. Because in Western Alaska, resilience isn’t just about surviving the storm. It’s about deciding whether it’s possible to stay once the storm is over.
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    16 m
  • How Thirsty is Generative AI?

    How Thirsty is Generative AI?
    Feb 17 2026
    Behind every chatbot response, AI-generated image, and large language model is a vast network of data centers consuming enormous amounts of electricity and water. In this episode, Emily talks with Dr. Amanda Smith of Project Drawdown about the hidden environmental footprint of generative AI and what it means for a warming, resource-constrained world. Dr. Smith explains how data centers operate, why they are often located where power is cheap and reliable, and why water remains the most efficient way to cool the servers that power today’s AI systems. We unpack the difference between carbon footprints and water footprints, explore why training AI models is especially energy intensive, and clarify common misconceptions about how much water tools like ChatGPT actually use. The key question is not whether we should use AI, but how we use it. Thoughtful deployment, smarter infrastructure, and informed users will shape whether generative AI becomes part of the climate problem or part of the solution.
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    32 m
  • Can the Winter Olympics Survive in a Warming World?

    Can the Winter Olympics Survive in a Warming World?
    Feb 10 2026
    For more than a century, the Winter Olympics have depended on cold, reliable conditions. But as the planet warms, that foundation is becoming harder to find. As the Games return to Northern Italy, this episode of Off the Radar examines how climate change is reshaping the future of winter sports. Meteorologist Emily Gracey speaks with Dr. Daniel Scott of the University of Waterloo, whose research shows a rapidly shrinking list of cities capable of hosting the Winter Olympics safely and fairly. We explore why warmer temperatures mean more than just artificial snow, how deteriorating snow and ice increase risks for athletes, and why the Paralympic Games face even steeper challenges as competition moves deeper into warmer months. With fewer cold places left on the map, the question is no longer theoretical. Can the Winter Olympics survive in a warming climate, and what decisions made today will determine their future?
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    26 m
  • The Year Ahead: A Sit-down with NWS Director Ken Graham

    The Year Ahead: A Sit-down with NWS Director Ken Graham
    Feb 3 2026
    The future of weather forecasting is being built right now. Recorded on site at the annual meeting of the American Meteorological Society in Houston, this conversation with Ken Graham, Director of the National Weather Service, looks at where meteorology has been, where it is headed, and what it will take to get there. This year’s conference theme, “Fast and Slow Thinking: the Human Factor in a Rapidly Changing World,” took on added meaning as a major winter storm disrupted travel and kept some participants away. But it did not slow the collaboration, innovation, and urgency inside the meeting rooms. Ken Graham shares how artificial intelligence is transforming weather models, why partnerships across the weather enterprise matter more than ever, and how modern communication, from weather radios to social media, plays a critical role when it matters most. He also talks about the energy he sees across the National Weather Service, the next wave of talent coming in, and why he is genuinely excited about the year ahead. It is a conversation about technology, trust, and turning forecasts into action.
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    17 m
  • Climate Melodies: Turning Data into Sound

    Climate Melodies: Turning Data into Sound
    Jan 27 2026
    Climate science is most often communicated through charts, graphs, and visual models. But data does not have to be seen to be understood. In this episode, meteorologist Emily Gracey explores how climate data can be translated into sound. Emily is joined by mathematician and musician Harlan Brothers, who creates climate sonifications by converting real datasets into music and audio you can hear. Using measurements such as global temperature over land, sea surface temperatures, and sea level rise, Harlan turns long term warming trends into melodies that reveal patterns over time. The conversation looks at how sonification works, why sound can engage people differently than visuals, and how music can add a new dimension to climate communication without compromising scientific integrity. Throughout the episode, listeners will hear examples of these climate sonifications woven into the discussion, offering a chance to experience climate data through a different sense.
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    31 m