This distant planet has wild weather and gemstone clouds

Summary

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Podcast Summary

Short Wave — "This distant planet has wild weather and gemstone clouds"

Hosts: Regina Barber, Kadia Riddle, Guest: Scott Detrow
Date: May 29, 2026

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Episode Overview

This episode of NPR’s Short Wave delves into recent fascinating discoveries about celestial weather, exoplanets, and the science of northern lights. Co-hosts Regina Barber and Kadia Riddle, along with guest Scott Detrow, space out on Neptune’s mysterious moon, Nereid, a wild “hot Jupiter” exoplanet with gemstone clouds, and the spectacle of auroras on Earth. Through accessible conversation and humor, they unpack the science behind these headlines, highlighting how new space telescopes like James Webb are transforming our understanding of the cosmos.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Neptune and Its Moons

(03:45 - 06:23)

• Focus on Neptune's Moons:

  • Neptune has 16 moons—more than many listeners (and some hosts) expected.
  • Special attention is given to Nereid, a moon long puzzling to astronomers.

• Nereid's Orbit:

  • Nereid has a highly elongated ("smooshed oval") orbit, unlike moons born around a planet, which usually have circular paths.
  • Scientists wondered if Nereid was "born" at Neptune or captured from elsewhere.

• New Findings:

  • Recent discoveries—thanks to the James Webb Space Telescope—show Nereid’s composition is consistent with a Neptune-born moon.
  • It was likely pushed into its eccentric orbit by massive neighboring moon Triton.

• Quote:

  • “Nereid has really unusual orbit... For years, that highly eccentric orbit led researchers to speculate that it was not formed around Neptune.”
    — Kadia Riddle (04:12)
  • “This may be the only intact moon remaining from Neptune’s original moons. Matthew says information like this leads to filling in other blanks around the solar system.”
    — Kadia Riddle (05:30)
  • “It's such a powerful tool, he says in his line of work, it's really like before the James Webb Space Telescope and after the telescope.”
    — Kadia Riddle, paraphrasing Matthew Beliakov (06:03)

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2. Wild Weather on a Distant Exoplanet

(06:23 - 09:02)

• Hot Jupiters:

  • Discussion shifts to WASP 94ab, an exoplanet much like Jupiter but orbiting another star—18 times closer to its sun than Earth is to ours.
  • These planets are tidally locked—permanent day on one side, night on the other—creating permanent extreme temperature zones.

• Weather Patterns:

  • Powerful wind systems are created due to drastic temperature differences between night and day.
  • Cloud Patterns:
    • The morning (dawn) edge of the planet is cloudy, while the perpetual day side has clear skies—clouds are burned away by the extreme heat.

• Gemstone Clouds:

  • The clouds found on WASP 94ab aren’t water-based like on Earth, but are made of dust and bits of rock—the consequence of the planet’s incredible heat.
  • Described as “gemstone clouds,” these exotic conditions fascinate astronomers.

• Quotes:

  • “The clouds are made of dust and bits of rock, and this is possible because it’s just so hot.”
    — Regina Barber (08:56)
  • “Having distinct night and day sides means there's also, there's this huge temperature difference. ... it sets off really fast winds.”
    — Regina Barber, with quote from Shagnik Mukherjee (08:23)
  • “The gemstones are clouds.”
    — Kadia Riddle (08:54)

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3. Marvels of Earth: The Northern Lights

(09:02 - 10:19)

• Recent Auroral Activity:

  • The group discusses the recent prevalence of auroras in the U.S., noting these “northern lights” are sparked by solar storms.
  • Sun cycles impact auroral visibility, with strong recent solar storms making the aurora visible farther south than usual.

• Historic Aurora Event:

  • Regina shares a fun fact: In 1859, a solar storm made auroras visible as far south as Cuba, confusing campers into thinking dawn had arrived.

• Current Aurora Viewing:

  • Biggest shows usually near the US-Canada border; listeners are encouraged to check NOAA’s predictions for best viewing opportunities.

• Quotes:

  • “This is actually one of my favorite stories. There was a massive solar storm in 1859, and you could see the northern lights as south as Cuba. And it was so bright that campers thought the sun was rising in the middle of the night.”
    — Regina Barber (09:35)

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Notable Moments & Tone

• The hosts keep the dialogue lively with space puns, playful teasing (“learn a secret handshake”), and relatable moments—making the science feel accessible and fun.
• Humor is frequent, e.g., mnemonic riffs like:
  • “My very educated mother just served us nine pizzas” turning into “just served us nothing” since Pluto’s demotion. (01:18)
• Memorable exchange:
  • On Neptune’s crowded moons:
    • “Our moon is lucky. It doesn’t have to compete for real estate around Earth.”
      — Kadia Riddle (05:06)
• Regina repeatedly invites listeners to nerd out, reinforcing the approachable, “science for everyone” tone.

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• 00:16 – 03:45: Intro & overview, hosts set the playful and accessible tone.
• 03:45 – 06:23: Deep dive into Neptune’s moons, spotlight on Nereid.
• 06:23 – 09:02: Exoplanet WASP 94ab’s wild, gemstone-cloudy weather.
• 09:02 – 10:19: The science and spectacle of the northern lights.
• 10:19 – 10:28: Hosts wrap up, extend nerdy club invitation to Kadia.

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Conclusion

This episode showcases Short Wave’s strength in turning cosmic discoveries into conversational science, shining a spotlight on Neptune’s mysterious moon, an exoplanet’s dazzling clouds, and the science behind auroras. Using wit, clear explanations, and expert commentary, the hosts illuminate how telescopes like James Webb are rewriting what we know about our universe—making even distant hot Jupiters and gemstone clouds feel closer to home.

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Transcript

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[Regina Barber]

You're listening to shortwave from npr. Hey, shortwavers. Regina Barber here. It's time for my favorite monthly episode, our our space news segment, Spacing out with Gina. We're here today with science correspondent Kadia Riddle. Hey, Kadia.

[Kadia Riddle]

Hey, Gina.

[Regina Barber]

I will say you're gonna have to learn a secret handshake by the end of the day.

[Kadia Riddle]

I'm ready. I'm ready for it.

[Regina Barber]

And space connoisseur and All Things Considered host Scott Detrow. Welcome back, Scott.

[Scott Detrow]

I like space Connoisseur. I'm excited to be here. I'm excited to hear what you will teach us this week.

[Regina Barber]

Yes, I actually did used to teach this stuff for, like, a dozen years. But, Cadia, you're actually gonna start us off, though, with a story about the furthest planet in our solar system.

[Kadia Riddle]

Exactly. Which, you know, I grew up learning with Pluto. But unfortunately, it's since been kicked out of the major planet guild.

[Regina Barber]

There's a lot of beef, lot of baggage.

[Kadia Riddle]

Yeah. I'll be telling you about Neptune today and how one of its moons could help us fill in the gaps of our solar system's origin story. But I promise it'll still be fun.

[Scott Detrow]

Can I rattle off the, like, slightly dated mnemonic. Mnemonic device. That is a hard word to say that I learned to sail the planets, including my very educated mot. Just served us nine pizzas.

[Regina Barber]

Just served us nothing.

[Scott Detrow]

Yes. Just nothing. Yeah, now it's nothing. Or, like, noodles. I don't know. Gotta update it. But Pluto aside, Neptune's cool, too. That's not the only planet on our agenda today, though, right?

[Regina Barber]

Yes. So there's a planet that isn't in our solar system. An exoplanet orbiting another star far, far away.

[Kadia Riddle]

And, Gina, you're also telling us another reason that the northern lights are awesome.

[Regina Barber]

Yes. Have either of you seen the northern lights?

[Scott Detrow]

Honestly, I never have. All the times that it was coming low in recent years, I'd get excited and then I'd be like, oh, wait, I live in a city.

[Regina Barber]

Yeah, it's not going to happen. I think I kind of did once. It was like a foggy green, but I can't confirm it. Right. So let's all pack our bags and let's all go to Alaska together, I think.

[Scott Detrow]

So take the show on the road.

[Kadia Riddle]

I'm there.

[Regina Barber]

Okay. Today on the show, we're traveling up and out from Earth's northern lights to the edges of our solar system and past outside of it. You're listening to Shortwave, the science podcast from npr.

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[Kadia Riddle]

Okay. Gina Scott, I'm sure you've heard a lot about Neptune, but I bet you don't know much about its moons. Did you know that it has 16 of them?

[Scott Detrow]

I definitely did not. You probably did.

[Regina Barber]

No, I did not. I knew it was a lot, but I didn't know it was like 16.

[Scott Detrow]

Well, now we know.

[Kadia Riddle]

There's been questions about one specifically called Nereid. For decades, researchers have been wondering whether this moon was formed right in Neptune's orbit or if it's an interloper from elsewhere.

[Scott Detrow]

What makes them think that could be the case?

[Kadia Riddle]

Well, for starters, Nereid has really unusual orbit. It stretched into this elongated oval shape. For years, that highly eccentric orbit led researchers to speculate that it was not formed around Neptune. Moons that are born, so to speak, around a planet tend to travel in a kind of regular circular path. But now we're able to look more closely at Nereid's composition and see evidence that despite this weird orbit, it is more consistent with the moon that formed around Neptune than one that was captured from elsewhere.

[Scott Detrow]

What is going on with this smooshed orbit shape then?

[Kadia Riddle]

Yeah, the idea now is that it was shoved into this unusual orbit by another moon called Triton at an earlier point. Triton is big. It's about eight times bigger than Nereid. And it turns out it's kind of a bully.

[Regina Barber]

I actually kind of like Triton, but. Okay, but when you have 16 moons, things are going to be very competitive.

[Kadia Riddle]

Yeah, exactly. Our moon is lucky. It doesn't have to compete for real estate around Earth. I talked to Matthew Beliakov from the California Institute of Technology. He's the lead research on a new paper out about this in the journal Science Advances.

[Matthew Beliakov]

I think there's a lot of value to having a new understanding of Nereid. It's a time capsule.

[Regina Barber]

So what does he mean by time capsule?

[Kadia Riddle]

Well, this may be the only intact moon remaining from Neptune's original moons. Matthew says information like this leads to filling in other blanks around the solar system.

[Matthew Beliakov]

It's pretty important to understand how the early solar system transpired because that tells us something about our formation here on Earth.

[Scott Detrow]

I'm moving past the fact I'm just, like, really dwelling on 16 moons jostling for space and moons swapping in and out.

[Regina Barber]

Yeah.

[Scott Detrow]

But I'm going to get past that. Like, I guess my one question here is that this is something scientists have been thinking about studying for a long time. How are we able to get this new information?

[Kadia Riddle]

Yeah, it all comes back to the James Webb talking to Matthew. He just underscored how much of a game changer this telescope has been. It's such a powerful tool, he says in his line of work, it's really like before the James Webb Space Telescope and after the telescope. It' is such a richer and more nuanced understanding of the universe.

[Scott Detrow]

Okay, so let's switch gears here. Let's go from a cold planet to a hot planet, and let's go from our solar system to another solar system. Gina, you're gonna talk to us about a hot Jupiter, like, planet orbiting another star.

[Regina Barber]

Yeah. So we're gonna talk about an exoplanet. So this is a planet around another star, and we're gonna be talking about its weather.

[Kadia Riddle]

We can see things like storms in Jupiter, but planets orbiting other stars, what's their weather like?

[Regina Barber]

That's Eliza Kempton, an astronomer at the University of Chicago. I talked to her about a new study she didn't work on, but she was excited about. It looks at a specific exoplanet that's a hot gas giant. So, like Jupiter, but it's 18 times closer to its star than Earth is to the sun.

[Scott Detrow]

That is super close.

[Regina Barber]

It's so close.

[Scott Detrow]

What else makes this interesting for scientists to study and learn more about?

[Regina Barber]

Yeah, so these planets are called hot Jupiters? It's not Jupiter, but it kind of is slightly bigger. It has a permanent day and a permanent night. This planet is always facing its star. On one side. It's tidally locked with that star. And that star is about 700 light years from Earth.

[Kadia Riddle]

And that affects the weather.

[Regina Barber]

Yes. So astrophysicists at Johns Hopkins University also used the new and very precise James Webb Space Telescope to look at the atmosphere of this exoplanet called WASP 94ab.

[Scott Detrow]

That's a catchy name.

[Regina Barber]

Yeah, it is. And researchers looked at the morning part of the planet at the boundary separating the day and night side, and that's riddled with clouds. But then if you travel along the sunlit day side, the clouds get burned off. So there are clear skies on the day side of the exoplanet and clouds at the dawn and dusk parts.

[Scott Detrow]

Wow. And then based on the way that it's tidally locked, does that mean that these are like semi permanent weather patterns?

[Regina Barber]

Yeah. So I talked to Shagnik Mukherjee about all of this. He's the lead author of a new paper about this in the journal Science. And he says having distinct night and day sides means there's also there's this huge temperature difference.

[Matthew Beliakov]

What it does is it sets off really fast winds.

[Scott Detrow]

One other thing I want to know. One of my questions I've always had about WASP 94 AB.

[Regina Barber]

Right. Going back since you've learned about it.

[Scott Detrow]

Yeah, yeah. What are the clouds made of?

[Regina Barber]

Scott, I'm so glad you asked that. So the clouds are not made of water like on Earth.

[Scott Detrow]

Okay.

[Regina Barber]

Here's Maria Steinrich of the University of Chicago. Also, she's an astrophysicist who didn't work on the study, but she says her favorite part of the study and hot gas giants in general, is these planets are so hot.

[Kadia Riddle]

The gemstones are clouds.

[Regina Barber]

Yeah. So the clouds are made of dust and bits of rock, and this is possible because it's just so hot.

[Scott Detrow]

Let's close this out by coming back to Earth. The northern lights. This is something we've talked a lot about lately because there's been so much activity. These come from solar storms, right?

[Kadia Riddle]

Yeah. It's more. More space weather, Scott.

[Scott Detrow]

Yes. Let's do it.

[Regina Barber]

Yep, Very true, Katia. So the sun goes through these cycles, and this year and last, we saw strong auroras in a lot of the US States. There was a big solar storm last fall, where people claim to see the northern lights as south as Atlanta. I don't know if you all remember this?

[Scott Detrow]

And this is, it's, it's fair to say the bigger the solar storm is, the further south we see the aurora borealis. Right?

[Regina Barber]

Yeah. I mean, that's, that's a pretty good general rule. Fun fact. This is actually one of my favorite stories. There was a massive solar storm in 1859, and you could see the northern lights as south as Cuba. And it was so bright that campers thought the sun was rising in the middle of the night.

[Scott Detrow]

Wow.

[Regina Barber]

Yeah.

[Kadia Riddle]

But nothing like that has happened this year or last.

[Regina Barber]

No, no, no. Thankfully, all of the solar storms NOAA and NASA has tracked lately have been smaller than that famous one. For the most part, people who live on the US Canada border have, like, the best chance to see northern lights. But for any curious listeners, you should definitely go to Noah's website and check out predictions on when and where you're going to see northern lights. Kadia, how would you rate your first time on Spacing out with Gina?

[Kadia Riddle]

5 out of 5 stars? I'm game to nerd out anytime on space stuff, guys. Aw.

[Regina Barber]

We hope you'll join our nerd club again sometime. Only after you learn that handshake.

[Kadia Riddle]

I'm ready. I'm ready for it.

[Regina Barber]

If you like this episode, please share it with a friend. It really helps the show. And hey, give us a follow on the NPR app or wherever you're listening from. This way, you'll never miss a new episode. This episode was produced by Arun nair and Kai McNamee. It was edited by Christopher Intagliata, Amina Khan and our showrunner, Rebecca Ramirez. Kadia, myself and Tyler Jones checked the facts. Jimmy Keeley and Ted Memebain were the audio engineers. I'm Regina Barber. Thank you for listening to Short Wave, the science podcast from npr. See you Monday.

[Kadia Riddle]

Foreign.

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