This program is sponsored by the Kavli Prize, which honors scientists for breakthroughs in astrophysics,

nanoscience, and neuroscience.

The Kavli Prize is a partnership among the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters, the Norwegian Ministry of Education and

research, and the U.S.-based Cobbly Foundation in Los Angeles, California.

I'm Alan Alda, and this is clear and vivid conversations about connecting and communicating. The winners of this year's Caudley prizes will be announced next Wednesday, June 12th,

and I'll be here to talk with two of them.

In today's episode, though, we're celebrating two previous Cavely Laureates.

My guests are David Jewett and Jane Lou.

They're both winners of the 2012 Cavely Prize in astrophysics

for discovering a missing part of the solar system.

A missing part that no one realized was missing until David and Jane found it.

After five frustrating years at the top of an extinct volcano in Hawaii, searching beyond the known planets.

They found a ring of leftovers from the birth of the solar system

known as the Kuiper belt.

Here's David Jewett.

Ever since I first read about it, the Kuiper belt has intrigued me.

And you along with Jane Lou and Mike Brown

got the Kavley Prize for discovering it.

Tell me a little bit more about it.

What is it?

How would you describe it to somebody who's unfamiliar with it?

It's basically the region of the solar system beyond Neptune

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