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b'SpaceX Explosion Damages Environment Around Launch Site\\nLast Thursday, SpaceX\\u2019s South Texas facility was awash in noise and fire, as crowds gathered in South Padre Island and Port Isabel to watch Starship\\u2019s first orbital launch.\\nIt was the largest and most powerful rocket ever made, standing at around 400 feet tall. Four minutes into the launch, SpaceX detonated the rocket after the SuperHeavy booster failed to separate from the Starship as planned.\\nThe launch destroyed the company\\u2019s launch pad, spreading concrete up to three quarters of a mile away.\\xa0Cameras left by YouTubers were either knocked down or destroyed in the rumble, along with some of the fence surrounding the launch pad\\u2019s road-facing property.\\nTo read the rest, visit sciencefriday.com.\\n\\n\\xa0\\nThe Private Space Race Takes A Toll On Planet Earth\\nAfter the SpaceX explosion last month, debris wasn\\u2019t the only thing on the minds of Science Friday listeners. The following messages arrived in our inbox after we reported on 3-D printed rockets in March.\\nIt was interesting to hear you discuss 7 space launches in 5 days, and then just moments later the fact that we\\u2019re not on track to reduce carbon emissions. My understanding is that rocket launches release huge amounts of carbon and other greenhouse gases. Story idea?\\u2014@RevBobIerien, Twitter\\nAlso regarding the 3-D rockets there wasn\\u2019t any concern made for space pollution was there? I may have tuned out unhappily before the end.\\xa0\\u2014Juanita H, email\\nHow much carbon do rockets contribute to global warming?\\xa0\\u2014Robert C, email\\nVery disappointing to hear the report of new \\u201ccheaper\\u201d 3D-printed rockets are available so that, like fast food pods and big gulps, we can now drop even more cheap **** into the ocean. And, *immediately* following a story about the new report on climate change, what exactly is the carbon footprint resulting from the ability of more people to more cheaply fire rockets into space?\\xa0\\u2014David M, email\\nCarbon isn\\u2019t the big pollutant that comes from spaceflight, says Dr. Eloise Marais, associate professor in physical geography at University College London. Instead, black carbon or soot particles are generated and released directly into the atmosphere, alongside reactive nitrogen and nitrogen oxides.\\nDr. Marais joins Ira to talk about how much of an impact increased rocket launches could have on the atmosphere, and how that compares to the auto industry.\\xa0\\n\\n\\xa0\\nHow To Combat The Antibiotic Resistance Crisis\\nFor years scientists have been ringing alarm bells about a global antibiotic resistance crisis. Now hospitals and healthcare facilities face the consequences: In the United States, there are 2.8 million antimicrobial-resistant infections every year, and more than 35,000 people die from these infections.\\nBacteria naturally try to outsmart the drugs designed to kill them, which causes treatments to become ineffective over time. While new antibiotics are made to respond to these resistant strains, the bacteria continue to evolve\\u2014creating a constant, and costly, cycle. There\\u2019s a number of added factors driving the crisis, including antibiotic use in livestock and the general overprescription of antibiotics. About 1 in 3 antibiotic prescriptions in outpatient settings like urgent care or emergency departments are unnecessary.\\nScientists are struggling to keep up with the need to replace antibiotics that no longer work. It\\u2019s a never ending game of catch up.\\nIra discusses some of the possible solutions to this vexing problem and takes listener questions with Dr. Victor Nizet, faculty lead of the Collaborative to Halt Antibiotic-Resistant Microbes at the University of California San Diego and Dr. Eddie Stenehjem, executive vice chair of medicine at the University of Colorado.\\n\\n\\xa0\\nAre Phages A New Page In Medicine?\\nOne of the many possible solutions to the global antibiotic resistance crisis is an old idea that\\u2019s new again\\u2014bacteriophages, or phages for short.\\nPhages are viruses that exist solely to kill bacteria and are abundant in nature.\\nWhile scientists first discovered phages\\u2019 ability to treat bacterial infections about a century ago, there\\u2019s been little interest in turning them into a treatment for patients with antibiotic resistant infections\\u2014until recently.\\nIra talks with Dr. Graham Hatfull, professor of biotechnology at the University of Pittsburgh about the latest in phage science.\\n\\n\\xa0\\nTranscripts for each segment will be available the week after the show airs on\\xa0sciencefriday.com.'