Derrick Pitts

The Chief Astronomer at The Franklin Institute Science Museum talks about the Mars Rover, Black Holes, and more!

Derrick Pitts, chief astronomer at the Franklin Institute, discusses the future of the U.S. space program now that the last shuttle mission is set to launch.

Orbital debris is quickly becoming a serious problem for satellites and manned spacecraft. Collisions and other incidents have increased the amount of potentially harmful space junk floating around in low earth orbit by a third in the past year-and-a-half alone. Mark Matney, of NASA’s Orbital Debris Program Office, and Derrick Pitts, chief astronomer at the Franklin Institute, tell us about the problem and what (if anything) can be done about it.

Earlier this month a group of European astronomers announced that they have discovered distant planets which orbit their suns the wrong way. The discovery has shattered the way scientists thought planets formed. For more, we'll speak with Derrick Pitts, the chief astronomer of the Franklin Institute Science Museum.

This month, the Hubble Telescope celebrates twenty years in space. Why should we care? And does an orbiting telescope matter to those of us who aren't scientists?

Caroline Moore became the youngest person to discover a supernova on November 7, 2008 (at the age of 14).  She explains why, yes, the Hubble matters.

And Derrick Pitts, chief astronomer at the Franklin Institute in Philadelphia, shares discoveries that the Hubble has revealed about the universe, which will blow your mind.

Caroline's eleven facts about the Hubble, as well as a Nova-sponsored video profile on her own work, are below. To learn more about the Hubble, tune in to Nova's mini-series "Hunting the Edge of Space."

The Obama Administration’s NASA budget was released this month and some critics claim its proposals have shifted the space program toward a more commercial footing. We’ll talk with Dr. Henry Hertzfeld, of the Space Policy Institute at George Washington University, former astronaut Scott Horowitz, and with Derrick Pitts, Chief Astronomer ...