Appearing during the middle two hours, author and astronomer David Darling talked about a variety of strange ways the Earth and its inhabitants could meet with a sudden and unexpected end, with some possibilities more probable than others. A colliding asteroid 5-10 miles across could be a "planet-buster" in the sense that it would change the course of civilization, but it's more likely we'd be hit by a smaller object, he noted. A smaller asteroid, say 500 feet across, could hit with the impact of 100 H bombs, and cause regional devastation with massive tsunamis, he added.
If a rogue planet was headed toward us on a collision course, there might not be a lot we could do about it, but we'd know about it decades in advance, Darling continued. There is some danger to Earth from nearby stars going supernova. It's possible gamma ray bursts of radiation from such an explosion could be pointed at us and destroy our ozone layer, he detailed. Darling also talked about the possibility of a supervolcano eruption, such as at Yellowstone where the massive caldron is 35-40 miles across. This type of event would wipe out agriculture in North America for a number of years, he warned.
Philip Margo in Studio
First hour guest Philip Margo, a founding member of The Tokens, talked about his music career and his sci-fi book The Null Quotient. In addition to his work as a musician/singer, he also served as a record producer on such hits as "He's So Fine" by the Chiffons. His book, he explained, starts with the premise that there were 28 previous configurations of intelligent life on Earth that were destroyed, and that we are the 29th.
Paranormal Update
Last hour guest, paranormal investigator Joshua P. Warren spoke about the haunted West Virginia State Penitentiary, which he visited as a judge for an episode on the new TV series, Paranormal Challenge. Some of the violent occurrences/emotions at places like the prison may "supercharge" an area, and leave a kind of energy field imprint, he theorized.
News segment guests: Christian Wilde, Douglas Hagmann