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Space Solar Farms, Blue Straggler Stars, & Earth’s Escape Plan

2026-03-17 Science & Technology
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StarTalk
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T-Mobile 5G Home Internet. https://T-Mobile.com/HomeInternet What if we took Earth… and pushed it somewhere else? Neil deGrasse Tyson and Chuck Nice answer grab bag fan questions about gravitons, hyperspeed, saving the sun, and more! Could you spin something in space and generate energy forever? Neil traces motion-based electricity back to Michael Faraday and electromagnetic induction. What about space-based solar power? Could orbiting panels beam limitless energy back to Earth? If the Sun were dying, could we throw Jupiter into it to refuel the core? Why do some stars, like blue stragglers, appear to get a second life? We discuss artificial gravity and warp drive. If your ship accelerates to hyperspeed, do you splatter against the wall? What does real physics say about force vectors and extreme acceleration? Where is the graviton and why is gravity so weak compared to electromagnetism? Is time truly a dimension, or does gravity treat it more like a field? Can identical steel wire contain information, or does information require difference? Are spiral galaxies evenly split between clockwise and counterclockwise spins or are we fooled by human bias? Could we ever move Earth to another star like Proxima Centauri? What remains invariant between observers in relativity? We talk about invariance and how galaxies can collide even though the universe is expanding. And can you ever really get behind a black hole or does curved spacetime let you see around it? Thanks to our Patrons Dez, Colton, Christian Zabriskie, Ignacio Ramirez, Brian Nadeau, Bryan Eder, Sai Apata, Xenõ The Warrior Princess, Roja, Bilal Dhooma, Evert Jethoe, Regina, Scott Webb, Joe Moran, Joanne Gaul, David Vaughn, Jeroen Kolkman, David Jensen, Daniel Lopez, Robert Jarvie, Skip Kilmer, Sandi Fjeld, Mairym Morales, Pat Burns, Sheila Lieberman, Tre Hutchins, Heather H. Ziegler, Benjamin, AstroCryptid, Gene Padilla, Lewis Thompson, Oscar Granat Wåhlstedt, Kasey Daniel, Hunter Brown, Renee C, Adam Creech, Daniela Maininger, Raymond Kaldany, Brian Kautzman, Sadness Fueled Raccoon 🦝, Ed Trobaugh, Talar, Jakub Jaša, Elmo3323), Dakota Natanson, New User, Thomas, Keon Daniels, Darrius Greene-Lewis, Ktdub, Alejandro Guardado, Darth Wormy, Guy Harrison, Dave Baxter, John Ehrhart RN. MICN, USCG Ret, Laurie Kelley, Frickin' Dumb Tariffs, Barbarian Island, Forrest Pollock, Harlen Roseberry, Aravind Sivaram, Brian LeVoguer, Jack Kendall, Stephen Lee, Michael Freamon, Patrick Mann, Vicky McGuirk, Margaret Marsden, Shawn Wilson, Nathan Bandy, Shane, Andy Gerberich, Ellisandra, Jomar The Artist, John, Ron Duguay, Damian Enright, Quennell Graham, Eric Ricohermoso, Toris, Dave Shearsby, Deshawn Cl, ShannonKM, Kevin Smith, Tracy Devore, Richard Freeman, Christopher Scott McCarson, Book Report1978, Dj Mula, Shane Hembree, Michael from Oz, Evangeline Vernandi, Eriel Deranger, Hugo Azevedo Simões, EVERYDAYZPRO, Sean Beacham, Sandi Milone, Luke Werner, Lee Dubey, and Zuntrix for supporting us this week. Timestamps: 01:29 - Generating Electricity in Space 07:29 - Could We Save the Sun By Giving it Jupiter? 12:08 - Would People Splatter to The Back of the Ship During Warp Drive? 16:59 - Where is the Gravity Particle? 19:27 - Is Time a Dimension or a Field? 21:16 - Information in Steel Wire 23:41 - Rotational Planes of Spiral Galaxies 29:59 - Could We Move Earth If We Needed To? 33:48 - What is Considered Invariant? 36:03 - How Can Galaxies Collide if Everything is Moving Away? 38:39 - Can You Hide Behind a Black Hole? Check out our second channel, @StarTalkPlus Get the NEW StarTalk book, 'To Infinity and Beyond: A Journey of Cosmic Discovery' on Amazon: https://amzn.to/3PL0NFn Support us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/startalkradio FOLLOW or SUBSCRIBE to StarTalk: Twitter: http://twitter.com/startalkradio Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/StarTalk Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/startalk About StarTalk: Science meets pop culture on StarTalk! Astrophysicist & Hayden Planetarium director Neil deGrasse Tyson, his comic co-hosts, guest celebrities & scientists discuss astronomy, physics, and everything else about life in the universe. Keep Looking Up! #StarTalk #NeildeGrasseTyson

Top Comments (10)

@davidplants 2026-03-17

"We like to grab em by the query"❤😂

284 18 replies
@HBMtv_ 2026-03-17

We like to grab em by the queries😂 Glad to have Chuck back😭

105 2 replies
@AlexanderGrateness 2026-03-17

Neil has gotten so much funnier over the years and I'm loving it LMAO. Hanging around Lord Nice is finally starting to rub off on him lol.

93 2 replies
@StarTalk 2026-03-17

If the Sun were dying, would you try to move Earth or move humanity somewhere else?

87 99 replies
@KohniHart 2026-03-17

1:28, They didn't answer her first question, so Sumit Sharma if youre reading this: you cant have it spinning constantly in space because the generation of electricity slows it down with a lot of force, which is why turbines need very pressurized steam to keep turning, Its not just air resistance that slows down the turbines but the generator itself

65 13 replies
@JeffreyMeades-jg6mc 2026-03-17

Chuck doing his Arnold impression made me realize he would be perfect for a recurring character on Futurama 😂

33 1 replies
@mcgyver42 2026-03-17

Neil missed the point of the question about wire containing information. Before the days of tape recording, there were wire recorders. The query was likely referring to an old Mission Impossible episode, "A Spool There Was" from its first season in 1966, where an agent hid a spool of recording wire before he was killed, and the team had to try to find it. A young boy had used some of the wire as fishing line, and they had to get it back.

28 1 replies
@m.a.ramirez1297 2026-03-18

19:31 my blood went cold when i heard my name 😂, i had this playing in the background and this surprised me lol

20
@nednoah1 2026-03-17

Man I love this show.. I just wish the episodes were longer haha

18 1 replies
@astrorad2000 2026-03-18

Before tape recorders there were wire recorders that used a thin wire to record sound magnetically.

6

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