Tackling The Three-Body Problem

Published: April 13, 2024, 5 a.m.

Netflix has a big new show named after and inspired by a classic problem in astrophysics, 'The Three Body Problem', where predicting the course and orbits of three or more celestial bodies proves near impossible.

But how faithful is the Netflix show - and original novel - to the actual physics?\nDr Anna Lisa Varri from the University of Edinburgh explains what we can and can't say about the complex and beautiful motions of planets, stars and moons, and brings a dose of scientific facts to science fiction.

Presenter: Kate Lamble\nProducer: Nathan Gower\nSound Engineer: Graham Puddifoot\nEditor: Richard Vadon