Category: Space

Joshua Santora (Host): The soil beneath your feet, the food on your table, the roof over your head…these are luxuries on Mars. Getting there isn’t a problem, it’s surviving once you land. Launch Countdown Sequence: EGS Program Chief Engineer, verify no constraints to launch. EGS Chief Engineer team has no constraints. I copy that. You are clear to launch. Five, four, three, two, one, and lift-off. All clear. Now passing through max q, maximum dynamic pressure. Welcome to space. Host: Welcome to the rocket ranch. I’m Joshua Santora. While our current focus is on the Moon, it is our…

NARRATOR NASA is working with commercial and international partners to design and develop a small spaceship that will orbit the Moon. The agency has dubbed this spacecraft “the Gateway,” as it will be an access point for both lunar surface exploration and crewed voyages to Mars and beyond. This spaceship will be a temporary home and office for Artemis astronauts — a five-day, 250,000-mile commute from Earth. NASA plans to build the Gateway with just five or six rocket launches, compared to the 34 launches it took to build the International Space Station, NASA’s low-Earth orbit laboratory. Much like…

A conversation with Robin Aube-Warren, the director of center operations at NASA’s Ames Research Center in Silicon Valley. We talk about the Disaster Assistance and Rescue Team and their emergency response activities. We also chat about what it means to direct the various areas of center operations here at Ames. Transcript: Abby Tabor:You’re listening to NASA in Silicon Valley, episode 89! This week our guest is Robin Aube-Warren, the director of center operations here at NASA Ames. In this conversation we talk about our Disaster Assistance and Rescue Team, or DART, their emergency response activities and the 30th anniversary…

Dana Bolles has worked in many exciting areas of NASA including assuring the safety of experiments and spacecraft going to space, managing environmental programs, and thinking about the possibility of life beyond Earth. In her journey as a space professional, a key challenge has been encountering other people’s assumptions about what she can and cannot do. Dana gets around in a wheelchair and uses hooks for hands. In this episode, she talks about her experiences around NASA and how everyone can be a better ally for people with diverse abilities: “By getting to know us first, without preconceived notions,…

Perry Como’s “Catch a Falling Star”Catch a falling star and put it in your pocket,Never let it fade away.Catch a falling star and put it in your pocket… Instrumental version of “Catch a Falling Star” [0:14] Narrator: There once was a mission to outer space that caught a falling star by its tail. The mission was called Stardust. As it came close to comet Wild-2, this NASA spacecraft captured some of the icy, dusty particles that fly off the comet and make up its spectacular tail. Stardust brought this precious comet cargo back to Earth in 2006. Perry Como’s…

From Earth orbit to the Moon and Mars, explore the world of human spaceflight with NASA each week on the official podcast of the Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas. Listen to in-depth conversations with the astronauts, scientists and engineers who make it possible. On episode 374, four communications experts from NASA’s Mission Control Center discuss their roles in connecting astronauts in space to partners, control centers, and the general public. This episode was recorded on December 16, 2024. Transcript Host (Joseph Zakrzewski): Houston, we have a podcast. Welcome to the official podcast of the NASA Johnson Space Center, episode…

Dr. Nicky Fox:Everything is driven by the Sun. It’s like the missing piece of the puzzle. We don’t know, truly, what physics is going on in that region because we’ve never been there. Launch Countdown Sequence: EGS Program Chief Engineer, verify no constraints for launch. EGS Chief Engineer team has no constraints. I copy that. You are clear to launch. Five, four, three, two, one, and lift-off. All clear. Now passing through max Q, maximum dynamic pressure. Welcome to space. Joshua Santora (Host):Welcome to the Rocket Ranch. I’m Joshua Santora. Even though our sun shines bright in the sky,…

NARRATOR Mr. Montleone, my high school geometry teacher, did not think I was very good at math. To be fair, he was right. You see — I tend to make silly mistakes. Looking at a series of arithmetic problems, I get bored; I get sloppy. Throw some exponential functions my way and I’ll start to sweat like I’m about the take the AP calculus exam all over again. Show me a logarithmic function and I pass out on the spot. I’m hyperbolizing, of course, but I think many can relate. While many, especially at NASA, delight in arithmetic, reveling…

A conversation with Karen Bradford, chief of staff for the center director at NASA’s Ames Research Center in Silicon Valley. Transcript Matthew Buffington:You’re listening to NASA in Silicon Valley, episode 90! This week our guest is Karen Bradford, chief of staff to the center director here at NASA Ames. Karen tells a great story about how she came to NASA and the roll she plays in pulling order out of chaos to help bring people together. Karen recently received the Deane-Greene S.T.E.M. award for her work in promoting S.T.E.M. and S.T.E.A.M. movements here in Silicon Valley. Also joining me…

“In some ways, spaceflight changes you forever,” says Ken Bowersox. Since he was 7 years old, Ken knew he wanted to become an astronaut. In his astronaut career, he participated in many exciting missions, including an extended stay on the International Space Station. What did he eat? How did he feel when he came home? Now a leader in NASA’s Human Exploration and Operations Mission Directorate, Ken currently works on plans for sending astronauts to the Moon through the Artemis program, with an eventual goal of Mars. Jim Green: What’s it like for humans in space? What do they…

(sound of desert wind) [0:01] Narrator: Sometimes it seems like our future is doomed. Climate change, killer viruses, nuclear holocaust… there are too many ways our species could flicker and die out like a sputtering candle in the dark. Dystopian movies about the future, like 2015’s “Mad Max, Fury Road,” reflect this bleak outlook. (movie trailer clip: “Mad Max Fury Road”) “In this wasteland, I am the one who runs from both the living and the dead. A man reduced to a single instinct: survive.” [0:38] Narrator: Up until now, much of this season’s podcast has been about asteroids…

From Earth orbit to the Moon and Mars, explore the world of human spaceflight with NASA each week on the official podcast of the Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas. Listen to in-depth conversations with the astronauts, scientists and engineers who make it possible. On episode 375, NASA’s SpaceX Crew-10 cadre each discuss their backgrounds and upcoming mission to the International Space Station. This episode was recorded between October 2024 and February 2025. Transcript Leah Cheshier (Host) Houston, we have a podcast. Welcome to the official podcast of the NASA Johnson Space Center. Episode 375, Crew 10. I’m Leah…

Michael Leinbach: It’s an indescribably empty feeling. That day that they didn’t come home. Knowing that the astronauts were gone and we-we failed them. [ MUSIC ] Launch Countdown Sequence: EGS Program Chief Engineer. Verify no constraints to launch. EGS Chief Engineer team has no constraints. I copy that. You are clear to launch. Five, four, three, two, one, and lift-off. All clear. Now passing through max Q, maximum dynamic pressure. Welcome to space. Amanda Griffin: Welcome to the Rocket Ranch. I’m NASA Kennedy’s Amanda Griffin. Shout-out to our host, Joshua Santora, who welcomed a baby girl into the…

NARRATOR Freytag’s pyramid cannot be climbed. It is not at Giza or Chichén Itzá. It is a structure, but not one used by architects like Gehry or Lloyd Wright. Developed by German playwright Gustav Freytag, it is a method to divide a five-act play into its component parts. Dividing a play into neat categorical pieces isn’t easy, nor is it always possible. Yet, there’s something so human about attempting to bring order to the chaos around us. Freytag’s pyramid is one way to break down the complexities of the theatre. By bringing a play’s components into sharper focus, we…

A conversation with Jon Jenkins, the science lead for the Science Processing Operations Center at NASA’s Ames Research Center in Silicon Valley. At the SPOC, the raw data from NASA’s newly launched planet hunter, TESS, is prepared for scientists to analyze. Transcript Host (Matthew Buffington): You’re listening to NASA in Silicon Valley episode 91. This week we’ve brought on Jon Jenkins. Jon’s the science lead for the Science Processing Operations Center, that’s where the raw data from NASA’s newly-launched planet-hunter, TESS, goes to be cleaned up for science. In case you forgot, TESS or the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite…

NASA spacecraft deliver stunning visual imagery of the cosmos, but we can also experience that data by turning it into sound. Kim Arcand at the Chandra X-Ray Observatory has helped develop many different sonifications including from galaxies, black holes, nebulae and more. Kim chats with NASA’s Chief Scientist Jim Green about her process of choosing instruments to represent different kinds of light, and plays a few examples of these cosmic sounds. Check out the full series of sonifications atchandra.si.edu/sound. Jim Green:From Earth, when we look into the sky, we use our eyes. But can we use our ears? Jim…

Transcript (music: “We are the Planets” by StoryBots)We are the planets of the solar systemDifferent sizes for every oneThe music never endsWe are such good friendsAnd we all orbit the sun (music) [0:10] Narrator: How many planets are in our solar system? Growing up, most of us were told there are nine. The four rocky planets close to the Sun – Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars – plus the more distant giant planets Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune. And then finally, the tiniest and most distant planet, Pluto. People now debate whether Pluto is a planet, or if it…

From Earth orbit to the Moon and Mars, explore the world of human spaceflight with NASA each week on the official podcast of the Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas. Listen to in-depth conversations with the astronauts, scientists and engineers who make it possible. On episode 376, NASA Johnson’s multimedia team leads discuss what it takes to capture and share the story of space exploration and how methods have evolved since the Apollo era. This episode was recorded February 19, 2025. Transcript Joseph Zakrzewski (Host) Houston, we have a podcast. Welcome to the official podcast of the NASA Johnson Space…

Tim Dunn: I am the launch director for the Launch Services Program, and so it sounds like a pretty cool job… Joshua Santora (Host): It does. Tim Dunn: It is. [ MUSIC ] Launch Countdown Sequence: EGS Program Chief Engineer. Verify no constraints to launch. EGS Chief Engineer team has no constraints. I copy that. You are clear to launch. Five, four, three, two, one, and lift-off. All clear. Now passing through max Q, maximum dynamic pressure. Welcome to space. Amanda Griffin: Welcome to the rocket ranch. I’m Amanda Griffin. Earlier this month, our host, Joshua Santora sat down…

NARRATOR For billions of years, the Earth and the Moon have danced together. Their performance began, many scientists believe, when a celestial body the size of Mars slammed into Earth. The debris jettisoned from the impact would swirl and coalesce into a molten sphere of magma, eventually crystalizing into the gray, luminescent specter we see in the night sky. We only see one side of the Moon from our earthly vantage. It is tidally locked, meaning it completes a rotation on its axis in the same time it takes to orbit Earth. This behavior is a natural phenomenon caused…

A conversation with Lika Guhathakurta, lead program scientist for new initiatives in the Exploration Technology Directorate at NASA’s Ames Research Center in Silicon Valley, and Ryan McGranaghan, postdoctoral researcher from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. Transcript Host (Abby Tabor):You’re listening to NASA in Silicon Valley, episode 92! This week we have two guests – Lika Guhathakurta and Ryan McGranaghan. They talked to us about how data science is changing heliophysics. That’s the study of our Sun and how it and other stars affect their solar systems. They explain how a new data-rich approach to this research is…

The Moon doesn’t have WiFi; neither does Mars. When future astronauts explore the surfaces of the Moon, Mars, or beyond, they’ll have big challenges communicating with Mission Control back on Earth. Darlene Lim at NASA Ames Research Center has been organizing expeditions on Earth that simulate science operations on other planetary bodies. Her team demonstrates how astronauts, scientists, and mission operations specialists can collaborate on expeditions, despite communication delays and location differences. She also discusses her role on VIPER, a rover that will explore ice deposits on the Moon and drill in shadowed craters colder than Pluto. Jim Green:How…

Transcript: Nina Lanza field recording: Well good morning from a beautiful day in the South Miller Range. You know, I think Antarctica just doesn’t want us to move our tents ever. Because every time we’ve tried to move somewhere, there’ve been some crazy winds and storms. We were all hosed from our camp move in the crazy 30-mile-an-hour winds. So we only worked a half day to get our camp in order and then we just essentially collapsed. Now, we’re planning on spending a whole day outside, looking for more space rocks! [0:32] Narrator: Every year, a small group…

From Earth orbit to the Moon and Mars, explore the world of human spaceflight with NASA each week on the official podcast of the Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas. Listen to in-depth conversations with the astronauts, scientists and engineers who make it possible. On episode 377, Three flight controllers from NASA’s Mission Control Center discuss their roles and how they monitor and maintain a healthy crew aboard the International Space Station. This episode was recorded December 17, 2024. Transcript Nilufar Ramji  (Host) Houston, we have a podcast. Welcome to the official podcast of NASA’s Johnson Space Center. Episode 377, Mission…