Episode

How do you build the aeroplane of the future?

Podcast
Oxford Sparks Big Questions
Published
Jun 3, 2026
Duration seconds
661
Processing state
not_requested
Canonical source
https://oxfordsparks.libsyn.com/how-do-you-build-the-aeroplane-of-the-future
Audio
https://traffic.libsyn.com/secure/oxfordsparks/Ox-Alloys-v2.mp3?dest-id=790107
JSON
/v1/public/podcasts/oxford-sparks-big-questions-420721/episodes/how-do-you-build-the-aeroplane-of-the-future
Markdown
/podcast/oxford-sparks-big-questions-420721/how-do-you-build-the-aeroplane-of-the-future.md

Actions

  • POST https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/oxford-sparks-big-questions-420721/episodes/how-do-you-build-the-aeroplane-of-the-future/transcription-requests
    Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode.
  • GET https://stenobird.com/podcast/oxford-sparks-big-questions-420721/how-do-you-build-the-aeroplane-of-the-future.md
    Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource.

Summary

In 2022, 7% of the UK's total carbon emissions came from the aviation sector - a figure that's on the rise. This means that - while a flight is often the start of a well-deserved holiday - a lot of us feel at least a sprinkling of guilt over our carbon footprint. So, what if we could reduce the carbon emissions associated with air travel? In this episode, we chat to Dr Tamsin Whitfield from Oxford's Department of Materials Science, and hear about her research developing new metals, which will ultimately allow jet engines to burn hotter, increasing their efficiency.