Morpheus

From Science Friday

What should astronauts do first when they reach Mars?

Published
August 31, 2026
Length
18:14

Audio is streamed from the publisher.

Show notes

When humans finally land on Mars, what should they do? A report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine lays out the science objectives for a crewed Mars mission. In January, planetary scientist Lindy Elkins-Tanton, who co-chaired the report committee, joined Host Flora Lichtman to talk about the [https://www.sciencefriday.com/segments/crewed-mars-mission-plan-psyche-asteroid/?utm\_source=wnyc&utm\_medium=podcast&utm\_campaign=scifri"]( plans to send people to Mars. We also get an update on the mission to survey the asteroid Psyche. Elkins-Tanton tells us how she managed the team that made the Psyche mission possible, and what she learned from her mistakes. Guest: Dr. Lindy Elkins-Tanton is a planetary scientist. She’s the head of NASA’s Psyche mission and director of UC Berkeley’s Space Sciences Laboratory. _Transcript will be available after the show airs on_ [https://www.sciencefriday.com/segments/crewed-mars-mission-plan-psyche-asteroid/?utm\_source=wnyc&utm\_medium=podcast&utm\_campaign=scifri"]( _sciencefriday.com._ [https://pod.link/73329284"]( _Subscribe to this podcast._ _Follow our show on_ [https://www.instagram.com/scifri/"]( _Instagram_ _,_ [https://www.tiktok.com/@scifri"]( _TikTok_ _,_ [https://www.facebook.com/scifri"]( _Facebook_ _, and_ [https://bsky.app/profile/scifri.bsky.social"]( _Bluesky_ _@scifri and_ [https://www.sciencefriday.com/newsletters/?utm\_source=wnyc&utm\_medium=podcast&utm\_campaign=scifri"]( _sign up for our newsletters_ _. Got a science question that’s keeping you up at night? Call us:_ _877-472-4374_ Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See [pcm.adswizz.com]( https://pcm.adswizz.com">pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.