Cosmic Ingredients: Planet Formation, Axion Searches, and NASA's Swift Mission

Cosmic Ingredients: Planet Formation, Axion Searches, and NASA's Swift Mission

From SpaceTime with Stuart Gary by Stuart Gary

August 21, 2026 · 21 min · Season 29 · Episode 100

About this episode

This episode discusses the early ingredients for planet formation, the search for axions, and updates on NASA's Swift mission.

SpaceTime Series 29 Episode 100 The ingredients for planets formed far earlier than thought A new study suggests that the basic ingredients needed to form planets - and possibly life - may have existed just a hundred million years after the big bang -- far earlier in the history of the Universe than previously thought. Hunting for the hypothetical axion For years scientists have been hunting for a hypothetical elementary particle called the AXION which could lead to new physics unlocking some of the greatest mysteries of the universe. Now the German Research Foundation has given a green light to the construction of a new six million Euro experiment called the BabyIAXO – a first step in the search for the elusive and as yet undetected particle. NASA’s Swift rescue mission back on track Katalyst Space has successfully uploaded a new flight software update designed to return its Link spacecraft into a more stable configuration. Link is on a rescue mission to save NASA’s Swift gamma ray space telescope from crashing back to Earth. The Science Report A new potential cure for baldness. Study shows people are most ticklish on the neck, armpits, belly, and the soles of their feet…

People in this episode

Host: Stuart Gary

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Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: German Research Foundation, Katalyst Space, NASA

Products: BabyIAXO, Swift gamma ray space telescope

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