Casual Space

In this two-part series, RSE Dean Mikolajczyk shares several examples of how NASA learned valuable lessons from manned spaceflight mistakes including:  (Part 2 will feature manned flights and will be posted January 2020) What we learned from the Surveyer Program (the very first unmanned lunar landers) Mars Polar Lander (just a bit of a fast landing) Mars Express (this lesson really hurts) and The...

Ed shares with Beth: Becoming a Space Camp Hall of Fame Honoree and meeting his childhood hero astronaut Charlie Duke Details regarding the many job responsibilities the NASA Mission Control Flight Director has, getting to crew to space safely and back home safely is always the first priority. Big and small success that are worth celebrating- and learning from- during days/ nights on the Internati...

Beth Meets Airline Captain Mark Hardcastle and learns: How the air force academy put Mark on the path to a future in aviation. What's Mark's favorite plane? (It's the Cadillac of planes)… Mark explains "The magic of the 4th" How do we respond when things challenge us? Mark's got 60+ years of inspirational stories he's gathered and shares both on stage and in his book, The Symphony of Your Life – R...

Robert explains… While the Swedes may not be very braggadocios, they've launched more than 650 balloon missions with NASA, JAXA, and others to test things in 50+ kilometer altitudes…and more than 550 rocket launches! They go straight up, 400-700 kilometers, and come right back down, (often in the snow). Launching near the polar north of Sweden allows balloons with experiments and materials to hove...

This week, Beth gains a deeper understanding & appreciation on how COMPUTERS help NASA explore the cosmos with her returning guest and Resident Space Expert Dean Mikolajczyk. Here are the highlights: Dean shares his insights from his days as programmer for the MARS rovers Spirit and Opportunity! Dean explains how a democratic computer system works down to the second before a launch SAFE MODE (and...

Charles Pappas shares with Beth details from the stories within his new book, including; What kind of sandwich was snuck on board an early Gemini mission!! How Charles always wanted to be an astronomer, and got to meet astronaut Gus Grissom as a young boy What one historic item Charles would select from all the possible spaceflight memorabilia     About Charles Pappas: Charles Pappas is a senior w...

Friend of the show Rod Pyle returns to discuss his latest book, and all things Apollo with Beth AND… Receiving the foreword from Buzz Aldrin himself! Rod's impressions and insights from speaking with the Apollo 11 astronauts' children (now grown adults) Combing through the NASA archives to find incredible, never before shared documents, photos and stories from the Apollo era And what the future of...

"Eight Years to the Moon" with Nancy Atkinson

Introducing our RSE; Resident Space Expert Dean! Beth and Dean enjoy; Reminiscing about what each of thought when we looked through a telescope for the first time, and last year's Great American Solar Eclipse! Understanding the difference between seeing something in the night sky and looking at something in the night sky Highlighting all the many types of telescopes, places to look through a teles...

On this episode of Casual Space, Beth meets Ed Finn! Ed shares his origin story for how the Center for Science and Imagination got started at ASU when a great question is presented to the college president We review some of Ed's favorite movies that opened his mind to merge Hollywood with space and science exploration… We touch upon the recent The Boeing 737 Max as an AI story; what it means to tr...

  On this episode, Beth and Astrobiologist Dr. David Warmflash discuss his new book, Moon: An Illustrated History; From Ancient Myths to the Colonies of Tomorrow.   Here are some highlights from both the book and the Casual (Space) conversation: This new and different book about the moon includes images on every left side of the page, and illuminating text on every right side!   Moon: An Illustrat...

Show Notes for Lance Bush In the aftermath of the Challenger accident, the crew's families came together, firmly committed to the belief that they must carry on the spirit of their loved ones by continuing the Challenger crew's educational mission. Their efforts resulted in the creation of Challenger Center for Space Science Education. Challenger Centers use space-themed simulated learning and rol...

Brian is an experienced test engineer in our nation's space and defense industry. He's worked to test and improve space suits, parachutes, and F-14's. Which makes Brian pretty damn cool. Beth and Brian enjoyed talking: Star Wars talk & who is the best villain (Emperor) Brian remembers the theater he saw Star Wars in. Working in air traffic control software in Dallas, working on F-16 program at Loc...

Dr. Roden brings his Texas tales to share: His assessment whether or not Beth could be medically qualified for space flight Why increased  exercise  helps space travel How growing up on a west Texas ranch allowed him to become the perfect medic for the  Royal Flying Doctor Service  in Australia  How he works to support "rock star" NASA astronaut Christina Koch's 11-month mission on the Internation...

In this episode, Brian shares with Beth How his father took him to air shows, space museums and started the foundation of an influence in air and space exploration. Then Star Wars came out and changed everything . What it was like to work with Marvel and DC Comics right out of college! What it would look like if all the planets in the Star Wars universe had their own luggage tags!? Brian's favorit...

Nick and Beth talk space specifics in this episode, including: Nick's fascinating job working on composite structures- inner stage and the fearing (nose cone) and payload attachment structures  How quality control plays such a major part of the rocket creation process, and how much is hand made!  Nick's interpretations on the culture of SpaceX, and how new ideas are tested & encouraged   Key Takea...

Professor Kristen Thompson and Loras College student Audrey Miller share with Beth: Why there was a need to improve the Hientkamp Planetarium at Loras College  How a select group of honors students raised funding for a new projector  Why the planetarium is an important part of both the college and the community  How a man traveled all the way from Israel on the coldest day of the year to install t...

In this episode, Beth and Chad geek out about: Impressions from the   Star Wars Celebration  event in Chicago- what it IS and what it was like to be among the 70,00+ attendees Chad shares an amazing story of how storm trooper fans in costume made it into a real Star Wars production  Collectibles! Art! Costumes! Comics! Tattoos? AND What Star Wars tattoo Chad  would  get.. Presentations! Panel and...

In this episode, Beth and Stuart laugh about: The  stories from his family that helped inspire him to write "hard sci-fi"   W hy going to the moon was really expensive and incredible How writing allows you to learn about people and about yourself    Key Takeaways: Becoming an award-winning sci-fi writer didn't happen overnight, but when it happened… wow!  Science can't answer everything, but reali...

In this episode, Beth and Stu discuss: The differences between the retired Space Shuttle and NASA's (new) Orion spacecraft* What it was like to work as an engineer for the B52 bomber, the NASA shuttle program, and now NASA Orion program How a horrible commute turned into a 30+ successful NASA career Key Takeaways: NASA's work with international and commercial partners has played a large role in bu...

  In this episode, Beth and Stephanie discuss: Helping the astronauts communicate (and educate) through social media What happened when Stephanie gets a phone call direct from the International Space Station What responsibilities come with the title, "Social Media Coordinator for the Astronaut Office" How NASA found Stephanie     Key Takeaways: Posts that have the most engagement are the most huma...

In this episode,  Beth  and Chad review two astronaut lectures they attended this week: Working at NASA with astronaut coworkers. Captain Mark Kelly and Colonel Frederick Gregory. Following a mission checklist. Being adventurous and curious.   Key Takeaways: Cpt. Kelly's experience as a test pilot helped shape him for his time as an astronaut, as did Col. Gregory's experience as a career pilot. NA...

Michael Wall joined Space.com in 2010 as a senior writer reporting on Mars exploration, exoplanet discoveries, astrophysics and space technology. For Space.com, Mike has wandered through California's Mojave Desert with scientists on NASA's Mars rover Curiosity mission and helped launch balloon missions through Earth's auroras in Alaska. He's based in San Francisco, where he chronicles the space te...

Born in 1955, James Vaughan grew up in the idyllic surroundings of a small town near Akron, Ohio. His father was a scientist and director of research for one of America's largest corporations. His mother was an artist and a poet.   Vaughan completed high school a year ahead of his classmates and in 1972 left for Chicago and college. He studied both photography and journalism and, while still a stu...

In this episode, Beth and Leroy discuss:            Changing technology: how far we've come and the exciting changes in our future.      What we need to master (on the moon) before we go to Mars          What it was like to fly on board the International Space Station for more than 6 months.          How do you eat in space? What was it like to be weightless? Kids questions and astronaut Chiao ans...