March 22, 2001: Infinite Energy - Dr. Eugene Mallove & Richard C. Hoagland #124; Fall of Mir - Steve 'Dr. Sky' Kates

Eugene Mallove and Richard C. Hoagland discuss infinite energy possibilities as the Russian space station Mir makes its historic plunge to Earth. The episode begins with technical difficulties and Art literally smacking his microphone to make it work, joking about how they fixed things on Mir. Dr. Sky joins to discuss the spectacular re-entry, with eyewitness accounts describing fingers of material streaking across the Pacific sky near Fiji and Tonga. The conversation turns to concerns about a fungus aboard Mir that reportedly consumed titanium and whether it survived the ocean impact. Hoagland notes the sunspot that triggered the event sits at the hyperdimensional 19.5 degree latitude. The discussion explores whether Russia might build Mir 2, the fate of organisms from space entering Earth's biosphere, and the possibility of a Godzilla-type creature emerging from contaminated debris. The space station's end marks a poignant moment in Soviet aerospace history.