Third Pod from the Sun is the American Geophysical Union’s podcast where we hear stories from scientists, for everyone.

Latest Episodes

26-Fire: Deep space burn

At the end of the decade, NASA’s Artemis missions will return to the moon—traveling through deep space to get there. A lot of things make deep space travel complicated, but one you might not have considered is the risk of fire on the space craft. And how to put fires out if they do start?

25-Fire: Forests under (mega)fire in the Pacific Northwest

Climate change is accelerating as human-made greenhouse gasses continue to warm our atmosphere.  Megafires certainly evoke climate change doomsday feelings, but are these types of fires new to the PNW or were similar instances occurring prior to 2020? 

Halloween special: Nessie & the kraken

We’ve all heard stories about fantastical creatures that people swear they’ve seen and have evidence of but can never be confirmed. Think Bigfoot or the Loch Ness monster. Mermaids or the Kraken. While there’s no evidence backing the existence of these creatures, either in present day or at any point in the past, there must…

Halloween special: Sasquatches & mermaids

We’ve all heard stories about fantastical creatures that people swear they’ve seen and have evidence of but can never be confirmed. Think Bigfoot or the Loch Ness monster. Mermaids or the Kraken. While there’s no evidence backing the existence of these creatures, either in present day or at any point in the past, there must be a reason why such legends were created in the first place. In most cases, the legend in grounded in fact. 

24.5-A podcast of fire and ice

As the leaves change and temperatures cool, head inside, fire up your headphones, and get ready for hot-podcast fall as share stories about, well, fire. Join us over the next six weeks to hear stories about wildfires, volcanoes, fire in space, and on other planets, indigenous fire knowledge, and…fireflies!

24-Storied Careers: Gaining a footing in landslide science

How do you study something that’s constantly shifting? That’s the challenge that USGS geologist Richard Iverson faced when he began his career in landslide research. He and his team developed a first-of-its-kind experimental facility to study how landslides happen, in order to better understand and prepare for them.

23-Storied careers: Auroras, deadly radiation, and Earth’s long-term future

With a heliophysics career spanning across nearly five decades, Thomas Earle Moore has always been fascinated by the Sun’s relationship with the Earth and how that relationship affects life on our planet.

22-Storied careers: Ocean sensors and dog scenters

Tommy Dickey is an emeritus oceanographer from U.C. Santa Barbara and Naval Operations Chair in Ocean Sciences. His modeling and observational research yielded ocean monitoring technologies and tools. For retirement, Tommy trains and deploys Great Pyrenees as therapy dogs, while studying scent dogs’ capacity to detect COVID-19.

21-Storied careers: Scouring seas from the skies

This episode is about how satellite technology is being used to study a big chunk of the earth’s surface. Seventy percent of the earth comprises water but we know very little about it. Color sensors aboard some satellites can actually reveal a lot about phytoplankton or microalgae blooms that are linked to ocean temperatures. These tiny organisms contribute to half the photosynthesis on the planet.

20-Storied careers: The unexpected path to Ethiopian rifts

Choosing a major and university is one of the earliest major life decisions—but what if you had to leave those choices up to chance?