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The moon landing and another big space anniversary

The comet Shoemaker – Levy 9 spectacularly crashed into Jupiter 25 years ago. And we ask when will sci fi’s favourite technologies become reality?

Its 50 years since the moon landing and 25 years since Shoemaker - Levy 9 crashed into Jupiter. The Apollo missions returned to earth with cargos of moon rocks and the comet crash showed us what happens when celestial bodies collide.

We look at the significance of both this week, and also contemplate a return to the moon. What will the next generation of moonwalking astronauts do there?

One thing’s for sure, they’ll be examining moon rocks once more – though this time with a range of scientific tools which hadn’t been invented when the Apollo missions ceased.

Laser swords, time machines, matter transporters - before the turn of the millennium, movies, books and television promised some extraordinary future technology. How far into the future will we have to go to find a time machine as imagined by H.G. Wells in 1895? Where are the lightsabers wielded by fictional Jedi? Why are we still using cars, planes and trains when a matter transporter or a flying taxi could be so much more convenient? We are joined by a panel of experts to find out if and when any of these much-longed for items are going to arrive.

(Photo: Shoemaker – Levy 9 Comet Impact Marks on Jupiter. Credit: Getty Images)

50 minutes

Last on

Sun 21 Jul 2019 15:06GMT

Broadcasts

  • Sun 21 Jul 2019 14:06GMT
  • Sun 21 Jul 2019 15:06GMT

Podcast