{"podcast":{"title":"Unexplainable","slug":"unexplainable-1382958","podcast_index_feed_id":1382958,"rss_url":"https://feeds.megaphone.fm/VMP9331026707","website_url":null,"image_url":"https://megaphone.imgix.net/podcasts/bf04a680-6afe-11eb-a86a-3f07259749a3/image/d510ec950f9a501094c11003381fcedc.jpg?ixlib=rails-4.3.1&max-w=3000&max-h=3000&fit=crop&auto=format,compress","author":"Vox","episode_count":293,"summary":"Unexplainable takes listeners right up to the edge of what we know…and then keeps on going. The Unexplainable team — Noam Hassenfeld, Julia Longoria, Byrd Pinkerton, and Meradith Hoddinott — tackles scientific mysteries, unanswered questions, and everything we learn diving into the unknown. New episodes Mondays and Wednesdays. From Vox and the Vox Media Podcast Network.","last_synced_at":"2026-07-10T02:20:38.923746+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/unexplainable-1382958"},"episode":{"title":"The Hitchhiking Microbe’s Guide to the Galaxy","slug":"the-hitchhiking-microbe-s-guide-to-the-galaxy","published_at":"2026-04-15T08:00:00+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/unexplainable-1382958/the-hitchhiking-microbe-s-guide-to-the-galaxy","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/unexplainable-1382958","url":"https://www.vox.com/unexplainable","audio_url":"https://www.podtrac.com/pts/redirect.mp3/pdst.fm/e/pscrb.fm/rss/p/mgln.ai/e/257/traffic.megaphone.fm/VMP4398682600.mp3?updated=1776198923","summary":"Can microbes travel through space on meteorites? It’s an idea called “lithopanspermia,” and to work out if it’s even feasible, some researchers decided to shoot microbes — with a gun. Guests: K.T. Ramesh, professor of science and engineering at Johns Hopkins University; Lily Zhao, mechanical engineer at Johns Hopkins University For show transcripts, go to ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠vox.com/unxtranscripts⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠For more, go to ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠vox.com/unexplainable⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ And please email us! ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠unexplainable@vox.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ We read every email. Support Unexplainable (and get ad-free episodes) by becoming a Vox Member today: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠vox.com/members⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Thank you! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices","meta_description":"Can microbes travel through space on meteorites? It’s an idea called “lithopanspermia,” and to work out if it’s even feasible, some researchers decided to…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":1578,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/unexplainable-1382958/episodes/the-hitchhiking-microbe-s-guide-to-the-galaxy/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/unexplainable-1382958/the-hitchhiking-microbe-s-guide-to-the-galaxy.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}