Host: Jorge Salazar
Lead Producer: Mike Brennan
ES 22 Producers: Deborah Byrd, Ryan Britton, Emily Howard

Snowy owl sightings soar in early 2012. (USFWS)
Science news of the week:
Snowy owl sightings soaring in lower 48 states of U.S. in 2012
Two more planets orbiting in double star systems
Volcanoes might have triggered the Little Ice Age
Asteroid Eros at its closest since 1975 on January 31

Asteroid 433 Eros
GRAIL’s first video shows moon’s far side
New species of ancient crocodile nicknamed “Shieldcroc”
Song of the week:
The Lovely Sparrow’s “While Sailing”

LOFAR is a revolutionary new digital radio telescope and the largest of its kind. It is located in the Netherlands and spreads throughout Europe. It targets the early phase of the universe as well as the most energetic cosmic particles. Image via Radboud Universiteit Nijmegen
This week’s featured stories:
The Early Universe Jorge speaks with Dr. Ger de Bruyn about observing the early universe with the International LOFAR Telescope.
Snowy Owl Eruption Migration Jorge talks with biologist Denver Holt about the recent migration of arctic snowy owls into the lower 48 states.

The Frozen Thames, a painting by Abraham Hondius from 1677. Could all this freezing weather have been caused by volcanic eruptions? Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons

Could volcanic eruptions have led to ice-skating on the Thames in the 1600s? Volcano image via USGS
The Little Ice Age Jorge talks with Deborah Byrd about the new research suggesting that the Little Ice Age might have been caused by a series of volcanic eruptions.
Thanks for listening in. We’ll catch ya next week!
This week’s musical contributors: