A panel known as the “God Squad”, consisting mostly of Trump cabinet members, recently voted to exempt the oil and gas industry operating in the Gulf of Mexico from the Endangered Species Act. If courts do not intervene, this decision would waive the standard ESA requirements to protect endangered species including the Rice’s whale, of which there are only a few dozen left. Pat Parenteau, Emeritus Professor at Vermont Law and Graduate School, joins Host Jenni Doering to discuss.

The astronauts of the Artemis II mission are prospecting for a planned base on the moon, the first lunar expedition since 1972. The crew includes the first woman, the first person of color, and first Canadian to travel to the Moon. John Daniel "Danny" Olivas, an engineer and retired NASA astronaut, speaks with Host Aynsley O’Neill about the mission objectives and challenges, why it faced delays and what sets the Artemis program apart from the Apollo visits to the moon of more than 50 years ago.

As the Artemis II launch counted down, folks of all ages gathered excitedly to watch the livestream at the McAuliffe–Shepard Discovery Center in New Hampshire, named for two prominent astronauts from the state. Living on Earth’s Steve Curwood was there and caught up with members of the University of New Hampshire Astronomy Club and others to get their reactions and hear their hopes for the mission and the future of space exploration.

The City Nature Challenge is an international contest known as a bioblitz: a brief, intensive survey of biological diversity over a set area and time. A few years back Host Aynsley O'Neill met up with the Boston BioBlitz Initiative for Girls during a trip to Thompson Island in Boston Harbor, where a group of teens practiced their observational skills for the competition. And anyone can participate in this year’s bioblitz.