Space4U

Michael Soluri - Documentary Photographer

In this episode:

 

We meet photographer Michael Soluri. Michael tells us how he got into photography and is currently documenting behind-the-scenes NASA human and robotic space exploration missions. He explains the trust NASA and individual astronauts have put into him to tell their story through non-scripted photography.

 

Michael documented the New Horizons mission to Pluto from 2005 all the way through the historic flyby, which brought endless information about the dwarf planet back to Earth. Michael also tells us about his portrayal of flown astronaut space tools as pieces of sculpture as part of the permanent collection of the Smithsonian National Air & Space Museum.

 

We discuss the story Michael told through images of the final Space Shuttle mission to the Hubble Telescope, a story which began years before the actual launch and included photography training to the astronauts.

 

Michael is also the author of Infinite Worlds-the People and Places of Space Exploration (Simon & Schuster). Learn more about Michael on his website: michaelsoluri.com 

 

Introductory and closing music: Paint the Sky by Hans Atom (c) copyright 2015 Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution (3.0) license. http://dig.ccmixter.org/files/hansatom/50718 Ft: Miss Judged 

Alex Wagner - AIA Vice President, Strategic Initiatives

In this episode:

 

We meet Alex Wagner, the Aerospace Industries Association’s Vice President, Strategic Initiatives and the Senior Advisor to the President.

 

Alex joined AIA after serving nearly seven years in the Department of Defense, most recently as Chief of Staff to the 22nd Secretary of the Army. Previously, Alex managed Uber’s global policy development team, practiced law at K&L Gates in Seattle, and served in various capacities on four U.S. presidential campaigns. Prior to law school, he worked as a reporter and policy analyst for the Arms Control Association, a national security think tank in Washington, D.C. Alex received his B.A. from Brown University and his J.D. from Georgetown Law, where he has taught as an adjunct professor since 2011.

 

Alex shares with us his interest with law, government and technology, as well as the work he is currently doing with the Aerospace Industries Association (AIA). Alex also shares AIA’s Vision for 2050, "an optimistic vision of where aerospace & defense can take our world in the coming years." 

 

Introductory and closing music: Paint the Sky by Hans Atom (c) copyright 2015 Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution (3.0) license. http://dig.ccmixter.org/files/hansatom/50718 Ft: Miss Judged

Bill Barry - NASA Historian

In this episode:

 

We meet Chief NASA Historian, Dr. Bill Barry. Bill became NASA’s sixth Chief Historian in September 2010. He began work at NASA in 2001 after retiring from a 22-year career in the U.S. Air Force.  Initially, he worked in NASA’s international relations office, and then served as the NASA European Representative at the United States Embassy in Paris, before being appointed Chief Historian. 

 

Bill shares with us what it takes to become a NASA Historian, a few of his favorite NASA history moments and the three people he would choose to have dinner with.

 

Introductory and closing music: Paint the Sky by Hans Atom (c) copyright 2015 Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution (3.0) license. http://dig.ccmixter.org/files/hansatom/50718 Ft: Miss Judged

Emily Boster - Mars Mission Engineer

In this episode:

 

We meet Mars Mission engineer from Lockheed Martin, Emily Boster. Emily is a Senior Systems Engineer for Lockheed Martin Space Government Affairs. She previously led the system configuration team for Deep Space Exploration mission proposals including Discovery, CLPS, and others. Prior to that, she served as a mechanical design engineer for the InSight Mars Lander and Mars 2020 aeroshell programs. 

 

Emily shares what it is like to work on a mission to the red planet and how she got into the amazing field of space.

 

Introductory and closing music: Paint the Sky by Hans Atom (c) copyright 2015 Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution (3.0) license. http://dig.ccmixter.org/files/hansatom/50718 Ft: Miss Judged

Ed Rosenthal - Florikan Founder

In this episode:

 

We meet the Founder Chairman of the Board of Florikan ESA, Ed Rosenthal. 

 

Ed Rosenthal grew up on a Canadian farm, but the last thing he wanted to do was go into agriculture. In 1971, he found himself working for a polymer company in Canada, where he learned the ins and outs of its manufacturing, injection and molding processes.

 

Ed and his wife Betty founded Florikan ESA in 1982 and they set out to help growers and farmers and make farming more efficient.

 

Florikan is a Controlled Release Fertilizer manufacturing company with a legacy of business success and awards for ethics. Florikan has received 13 major awards for ethical business practice, product innovation, job creation and environmental leadership; one of the few companies in the country with such a vast array of recognition over 35 years. In 2017, Florikan was inducted into the Space Foundation's Space Technology Hall of Fame®.

 

Introductory and closing music: Paint the Sky by Hans Atom (c) copyright 2015 Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution (3.0) license. http://dig.ccmixter.org/files/hansatom/50718 Ft: Miss Judged

Basil Hero - Apollo Author

In this episode:

 

We meet author Basil Hero, an award-winning former investigative reporter with NBC News television stations. He recently released a new book, The Mission of a Lifetime, Lessons From the Men Who Went to the Moon, where he gets first-person insights on the amazing journeys that changed humanity and exploration forever. From childhood, and throughout his career as a media entrepreneur, Basil has maintained a lifelong fascination with space exploration and the men who went to the Moon.

 

In this Space4U podcast, he shares how he got the Apollo legends to share even more powerful insights on their Moon missions and how it changed them, their families and the world.

 

Introductory and closing music: Paint the Sky by Hans Atom (c) copyright 2015 Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution (3.0) license. http://dig.ccmixter.org/files/hansatom/50718 Ft: Miss Judged

 

Chris Blackerby - Astroscale Chief Operating Officer

In this episode:

 

We meet Chris Blackerby, Astroscale Group COO & Director, Japan. Chris served as the NASA Attaché for Asia, the senior space policy official in the U.S. Embassy Tokyo, from 2012-2017. In that capacity he identified multiple opportunities for cooperation in the region; served as strategic space advisor to the US Ambassador to Japan and senior US Government officials; acted as an official intermediary between NASA and its partners in Asia in negotiating agreements and resolving disputes; and participated in numerous outreach events highlighting NASA activities. 

 

Chris explains why the public should care about space debris and the actions Astroscale is taking to prevent more space clutter. 

 

Introductory and closing music: Paint the Sky by Hans Atom (c) copyright 2015 Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution (3.0) license. http://dig.ccmixter.org/files/hansatom/50718 Ft: Miss Judged

Alice Bunn - UK Space Agency International Director

In this episode:

 

We meet Alice Bunn. Alice Bunn is the International Director at the UK Space Agency (UKSA), responsible for international engagement through multilateral and bilateral frameworks, capturing the wider societal benefits of space programmes and harnessing the inspirational effect of space for skills and education. She also leads security and resilience of the UK’s infrastructure and space applications.

 

Alice is vice chair of the Council of the European Space Agency; sits on the Board of Directors at the Space Foundation; and is a member of the Imperial Space Lab Strategic Advisory Board; co-chair of the World Economic Forum Future Council on space technology; and is a fellow of the Royal Aeronautical Society.

 

Alice shares with us what the USKA is up to and the plans for the future.

 

Introductory and closing music: Paint the Sky by Hans Atom (c) copyright 2015 Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution (3.0) license. http://dig.ccmixter.org/files/hansatom/50718 Ft: Miss Judged

Erin Roethlisberger - Mars Insight Engineer

In this episode: 

 

We meet Erin Roethlisberger, the Mission Operations Systems Lead for the InSight Mars Lander with Lockheed Martin Space. In this role, she is responsible for successful operations of the spacecraft in flight and throughout the landed mission. Previously, she worked on the interplanetary mission experience on GRAIL and Juno missions as a Systems Engineer, and for MAVEN, Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, Odyssey, GRAIL, Juno, OSIRIS-Rex performing Real-Time Operations.

 

Roethlisberger shares with us what it is like to work on a mission to another planet, the challenges she faced and how she has grown professionally and personally working in the aerospace field. 

 

Introductory and closing music: Paint the Sky by Hans Atom (c) copyright 2015 Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution (3.0) license. http://dig.ccmixter.org/files/hansatom/50718 Ft: Miss Judged

Geoff Chester – Navy Observatory PAO

In this episode:

 

We meet Geoff Chester, the Public Affairs Officer (PAO) for the United States Naval Observatory in Washington, D.C., a position he has held since 1997.  Prior to joining the Observatory Geoff worked for the Smithsonian Institution's Albert Einstein Planetarium in positions that ranged from Special Effects Technician to Staff Astronomer.  

 

Chester shares with us the history and work done by the Naval Observatory in Washington, D.C., as well explaining to listeners how and why we keep time and what a clock really is. This information is used along with physics to determine where a celestial object is located and provides us a map of the stars.

 

Introductory and closing music: Paint the Sky by Hans Atom (c) copyright 2015 Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution (3.0) license. http://dig.ccmixter.org/files/hansatom/50718 Ft: Miss Judged