What happens when a black hole spins? According to general relativity, it doesn't simply rotate in space, it actually drags spacetime around with it.

This episode explores the strange phenomenon known as frame dragging, from its first predictions more than a century ago to new observations that may let astronomers watch it at work around supermassive black holes. We'll visit a distant black hole where the remains of a shredded star appear to be wobbling through twisted spacetime, then return to the center of our own Milky Way to meet S301, a star racing around Sagittarius A* at more than eight percent of the speed of light. Its extreme orbit may eventually help astronomers measure the spin of our galaxy's central black hole.

And there's plenty happening closer to home. A spent Falcon 9 rocket stage is expected to crash into the Moon on August 5, Comet 10P/Tempel is making a favorable pass through the inner Solar System, and the Perseid meteor shower arrives under nearly perfect dark-sky conditions thanks to the New Moon.

We'll also look at Mercury, Venus, Mars, Saturn and Jupiter in the August sky, plus the total solar eclipse of August 12.

Finally, we look back fifty years to Viking 1 and the extraordinary moment when Mars stopped being merely a world seen from afar and became a place with rocks, dirt, sky, and a horizon.

It's a packed couple of weeks beneath the stars.

Connect with us on Bluesky @startrails.bsky.social

If you're enjoying the show, consider sharing it with a friend! Want to help? Buy us a coffee! Also, check out music made for Star Trails on our Bandcamp page!

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Most amateur astronomers spend their nights collecting light. But what if you could study our galaxy without looking through a telescope at all?

In this episode, we sit down with amateur astronomer and radio enthusiast Hap Griffin to explore the fascinating world of backyard radio astronomy. Using a homemade radio telescope consisting of a recycled microwave dish, and less than $100 worth of electronics, Hap is recreating one of the classic experiments that revealed the Milky Way's spiral structure.

Along the way, you'll learn how astronomers use the natural radio emission from hydrogen gas to map our galaxy, why radio astronomy works day or night, and why this remarkable corner of the hobby is far more accessible than most people realize.

Later in the episode, we'll head outside for a look at the night sky from July 19 through August 1, including the Full Buck Moon, Saturn's return to the late evening sky, the Double-Double in Lyra, M13, the Lagoon Nebula, and two summer meteor showers.

Links mentioned in this episode:

• RTL-SDR (Amazon.com)
• Low Noise Amplifier (LNA) for 21 cm use (Amazon.com)
• SDR# (SDRSharp) software
• Parabolic antenna for hydrogen line applications (Amazon.com)
• Hap's presentation on radio astronomy (PDF)

Connect with us on Bluesky @startrails.bsky.social

If you're enjoying the show, consider sharing it with a friend! Want to help? Buy us a coffee! Also, check out music made for Star Trails on our Bandcamp page!

Podcasting is better with RSS.com! If you're planning to start your own podcast, use our RSS.com affiliate link for a discount, and to help support Star Trails.

What if the mysterious "Planet Nine" isn't a planet at all?

In this episode, we journey to the distant frontier of our Solar System to explore one of astronomy's strangest modern hypotheses: the possibility that the unseen object influencing the orbits of distant icy worlds could actually be a primordial black hole, an ancient relic formed in the first moments after the Big Bang.

Along the way, we'll revisit the discovery of Neptune, learn how astronomers detect objects they can't even see, and discover why gravity often reveals secrets long before telescopes do. We'll also look at the real observatories and sky surveys that may one day solve the mystery once and for all.

Then we'll head outside for your complete night sky guide for July 5-18, 2026, featuring the upcoming New Moon, Saturn in the morning sky, a beautiful crescent Moon meeting Venus, prime Milky Way observing, deep-sky targets including M13 and the Ring Nebula, and the first hints of summer meteor activity.

Connect with us on Bluesky @startrails.bsky.social

If you’re enjoying the show, consider sharing it with a friend! Want to help? Buy us a coffee! Also, check out music made for Star Trails on our Bandcamp page!

Podcasting is better with RSS.com! If you’re planning to start your own podcast, use our RSS.com affiliate link for a discount, and to help support Star Trails.