December 28, 2012 5:39 pm

What Were the Top 10 Most Listened To StarTalk Radio Episodes of 2012?

It’s almost the end of the year, and that means it’s time for every blogger on the planet to come up with their Top Ten lists. For me, it’s the Top 10 Most Listened To Episodes of 2012.

Before we get to the list, though, I want to give you the heads up that some time soon, in early January, we’re going to ask you to tell us your favorite episodes and guests so we can put together this year’s Season 3 Time Capsule show. (Please, don’t do it here in the comments.)

Here is the list. Keep in mind that the order is based on total downloads for the year, so some of our newer episodes like “The Best of Both Worlds” haven’t had the time to rack up enough listens to be in the Top 10. (FYI, it came in at #11 with only 750 listens less than #10.) And if you missed any of them, or you just want to listen again, you can click on any of the episodes to go to their page here on the site to listen.

#10: Advancing to the Next Level: The Science of Video Games Part 1

#9:   StarTalk Live: The Space Between Your Ears Part 2

#8:   StarTalk Live: The Space Between Your Ears Part 1

#7:   Real Science with Bill Maher Part 2

#6:   StarTalk Live: The Particle Party Part 1

#5:   A Conversation with Morgan Freeman

#4:   The Salt of the Earth Part 1

#3:   StarTalk Live: The Astronaut Session Part 2

#2:   StarTalk Live! A Night at Neptune Part 1

And the most listened to StarTalk Radio episode of 2012 is…

#1:   Real Science with Bill Maher Part 1

As many of you know, this is my first year as part of the StarTalk Team. I want to take a moment to thank all of you personally. Hanging out with all of you, tweeting and posting on Facebook and Google+, has been a real pleasure. There are so many of you that are funny and clever and witty and smart and ethical and passionate and willing to talk to each other that our conversations can be amazing. You make it easy for me to do my job as Social Media Director of StarTalk Radio. Unlike some other communities, even when the subject matter has gotten a bit controversial, you’ve all kept things civil. And that is quite refreshing.

You’ve also grown to become a vital part of the show with your participation in our fan surveys, at StarTalk Live and by providing outstanding Cosmic Queries for Neil to answer on our shows. Do you realize we’ve already aired 5 Cosmic Queries episodes, with another 10 or so in production?

Let me share one of the best parts of recording Cosmic Queries with you. It’s the way Neil reacts when Eugene Mirman or Chuck Nice or Colin Jost asks him one of your questions and it piques his interest in some way or another. After all, as one of the world’s leading astrophysicists and the director of the Hayden Planetarium, Neil gets asked questions all the time. (Frequently some of the same questions, over and over again.) So when one of you asks a question that gets Neil thinking, or laughing, or best of all, momentarily stumped, it’s joyful to witness. Thank you for those moments.

That’s it for now. There won’t be a new podcast this Sunday. The next new episode on The Nerdist will be January 3^rd, and the next new podcast on January 6^th.

Have a Happy New Year! And above all, Keep Looking Up!

–Jeffrey Simons