Nature Podcast

Flight simulator for moths reveals they navigate by starlight

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Synopsis

We’d like to learn more about our listeners, please help us out by filling in this short survey.In this episode:00:45 The tiny moths that use the stars to navigateBogong moths use the stars to help them navigate during their enormous migration across Australia, according to new research. Every year, billions of these nocturnal moths travel up to 1,000 km to cool caves in the Australian Alps, despite having never been there before. By placing moths in a flight-simulator that also acted as a planetarium, the team behind the work showed that moths could use the bright Milky Way to help them fly in the correct direction.Research article: Dreyer et al.10:17 Research HighlightsNigeria's pangolins are under threat because their meat is delicious, and how the gravitational pull of other galaxies may prevent the Milky Way colliding with Andromeda.Research Highlight: Why pangolins are poached: they’re the tastiest animal aroundResearch Highlight: A long-predicted cosmic collision might not happen af