Episodes
Thursday Feb 25, 2021
Jonathan Gardner – Deputy Senior Project Scientist, James Webb Space Telescope
Thursday Feb 25, 2021
Thursday Feb 25, 2021
In this episode:
We meet Dr. Jonathan Gardner, the Deputy Senior Project Scientist for the James Webb Space Telescope and the Chief of the Laboratory for Observational Cosmology in the Astrophysics Science Division at NASA Goddard. He received his bachelor’s degree in Astronomy in Astrophysics from Harvard University, and then attended graduate school at the University of Hawaii, earning a master’s degree and a PhD in Astronomy. He began working on Webb as a member of the Ad-Hoc Science Working Group in the late 1990s, and then joined the project as the Deputy Senior Project Scientist in 2002.
The James Webb Space Telescope project began in 1996 and is currently scheduled for launch on October 31, 2021. It will be the largest and most powerful space telescope ever built and launched into space — 100 times more powerful than the Hubble Space Telescope, and it promises to fundamentally alter our understandings of the universe. The telescope is an international collaboration between NASA, the European Space Agency, and the Canadian Space Agency, and with an almost $10 billion price tag it's one of the most expensive space missions in history.
In our conversation, Dr. Gardner explains how Webb will be able to see the first light created in the universe after the big bang 13.5 billion years ago, how it will create a 3D model of our universe together with Hubble, how it’ll have the capability to detect signs of life in the atmospheres of 300+ exoplanets, and he tells us when the public will begin to see images of what Webb is observing.
Sharing what he's looking forward to most about the mission, Gardner says, “I’m most excited about the fact that whenever we put up a new capability that is a hundred times better than anything that’s happened before ... we find discoveries that we really were not expecting.”
To learn more about the James Webb Space Telescope, visit webb.nasa.gov.
Introductory and closing music: Paint the Sky by Hans Atom © copyright 2015, licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution (3.0) license. http://dig.ccmixter.org/files/hansatom/50718 Ft: Miss Judged
Wednesday Feb 17, 2021
Joe Urso — Founder/CEO ActivePure Technologies
Wednesday Feb 17, 2021
Wednesday Feb 17, 2021
In this episode:
We meet Joe Urso, Founder, Chairman and CEO of ActivePure Technologies, LLC. Urso purchased the former Electrolux North America in 1998 and has transformed the company into what is now an industry leader in creating healthy indoor environments. Their air-cleansing technology, initially used exclusively by NASA on space missions, has been reengineered for use in a range of portable and installed units that serve both residential and commercial markets, including healthcare, education, and hospitality. It is for this adaptation that ActivePure Technologies was inducted into the Space Technology Hall of Fame in 2017.
In our conversation, Joe explains how he took the concept of the space-based ethylene scrubber and adapted the technology to build a family of products that benefit people in their everyday lives. He also shares his passion for bringing peace of mind to everyone who uses their line of products, and testimonials of people’s lives who have been changed because of ActivePure’s ability to eliminate bacteria, viruses, and allergens.
Joe describes a time in the mid-1990s when he attended a global summit at the White House where leaders were discussing plans to address a future bacterial or viral pandemic. Regarding the technology now known as ActivePure, Joe says, “So, when I saw this technology, the early stage of it, I thought ‘My gosh — this has a chance to make a difference.’”
To learn more about ActivePure Technologies, visit https://www.activepure.com/
Introductory and closing music: Paint the Sky by Hans Atom © copyright 2015, licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution (3.0) license. http://dig.ccmixter.org/files/hansatom/50718 Ft: Miss Judged
Wednesday Feb 10, 2021
Jack Gregg — Author of ‘The Cosmos Economy’
Wednesday Feb 10, 2021
Wednesday Feb 10, 2021
In this episode:
We meet Dr. Jack Gregg, author of the forthcoming book The Cosmos Economy, currently scheduled for publication on March 14, 2021. Dr. Gregg has served in corporate learning as the Founding Dean of the Space Sector Corporate University at Northrop Grumman, and in the nonprofit sector as Executive Director of the California Space Authority.
Dr. Gregg has also held leadership positions in public and private higher education, as Associate Dean of Graduate Programs at Loyola Marymount University, and as Assistant Dean at the University of California-Irvine, California State University-Long Beach, and the University of California-Riverside.
In our conversation, Dr. Gregg discusses what the cosmos economy is, how the drivers for the cosmos economy are different compared to those of the space economy, the role of governments in developing the cosmos economy, and the skills and jobs that are going to be in the highest demand.
Referring to the questions he’s sought to answer in his research and writing, Dr. Gregg says, “What are the industries that will thrive in space? How will space business differ from Earth business? How will the cosmos economy impact Earth’s industries and economy? When will all this stuff start to happen? And how will investors and entrepreneurs know they’re on the right track?”
To learn more about the cosmos economy visit http://cosmoseconomy.com, and to preorder Dr. Gregg’s book, go to https://www.amazon.com/Cosmos-Economy-Industrialization-Space/dp/3030625680.
Note: This podcast was recorded in December 2020 and mentions an anticipated publication date for “The Cosmos Economy” in January 2021. The confirmed release date for the book is now March 14, 2021.
Introductory and closing music: Paint the Sky by Hans Atom © copyright 2015, licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution (3.0) license. http://dig.ccmixter.org/files/hansatom/50718 Ft: Miss Judged