Welcome to the StarXiv! A monthly podcast that delves into the latest astronomy papers & results from the arXiv.
Hosted by Michelle, Payel, and Nicole.



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Episode 46 – the origin of life and globular clusters, and local little red dots
In this week’s episode, Michelle and Payel discuss whether comets are able to deliver prebiotic feedstock molecules in the high concentrations required for prebiotic chemistry, whether merger-driven and secular-drive starburst dwarf galaxies, whether ultra-diffuse galaxies could be the missing link for globulater cluster formation, and whether examining local little red dots can shed light on…
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Episode 45 – r-process origins, moons of Uranus, and systmatic uncertainties
In this week’s episode, Michelle and Payel discuss whether neuron-star mergers are even needed to explain r-process abundances, the origin of the inner moons of Uranus, and the impact of systematic uncertainties on the Hubble tension and gamma-ray searches for dark matter. Tune in below, or on Spotify and Apple. Check out this week’s papers…
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Episode 22 – ORCs, rings, and Galactic histories
In this episode, Payel and Nicole discuss what happens to the metallicity gradient of a satellite galaxy after it merges with its host, the existence of intermediate-age RR lyrae and radio rings, the possibility of determining the history of the inner Milky Way from radially migrated stars, and the possibility of finding more Einstein rings…
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Episode 21 – Mercury, chemistry and quasi periodic eruptions
In this episode, Michelle and Nicole explore various astronomical topics, including merger debris around a galaxy, metal-mixing in early stars, quasi-periodic eruptions in Ansky, relic galaxies, Mercury’s magnetosphere, and second-generation stars in globular clusters. Tune in on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or other platforms for more insights.

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Episode 20 – Dark galaxies, black holes, star formation and life in the faintest galaxies?
In this episode of StarXiv, Michelle and Payel discuss black holes, feedback-free star formation, dark galaxies, runaway dwarf galaxies, and exploring the potential for life in the faintest galaxies. Accessible on major podcast platforms.

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Episode 19 – Peering into the Local Universe, distant black holes, forming planets and alien signatures
In this episode, Michelle and Payel explore the chemistry of nearby M-dwarf stars and the formation of giant planets at significant distances from their hosts. They discuss supermassive black holes and the search for alien technosignatures. Relevant research papers discussed are also highlighted for further reading.
The Hosts
Payel Das & Michelle Collins are astronomers at the University of Surrey. They love research, but struggle to find time to read a lot of papers. They’re hoping this podcast fixes that. Nicole Buckley is a PhD student at the University of Surrey. She loves reading papers!
Keep in touch
We’re thrilled to have you here! If you want to interact with us, you can subscribe to our website, follow us on social media, or send us an email. You can also listen to us through Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and Amazon Music. We also provide a direct link to our RSS feed.
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