Airspace

We get it—the early days of aviation were full of outlandish characters, and it can be a little exhausting. But trust us on this one—it’ll be worth it. Wiley Post was an oil-worker and armed robber-turned-recording breaking pilot who discovered the jet stream while wearing a sweet eye-patch and a suit straight out of 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (it was a lewk). That should be enough but wait! There’s more! That steampunk getup, which Wiley designed and built with tire company BF Goodrich, was the very first successful pressure suit. And it did more than unlock the stratosphere, it laid the groundwork for the first spacesuits—and modern spacesuits aren’t much different. This tall tale keeps getting higher, but again—trust us (we’ve got the suit!). Special thanks to Tested’s Adam Savage, whose answer for “history’s most important spacesuit” was both unexpected and absolutely on the mark. AirSpace is made possible by the generous support of Olay.

On a spring evening in 1933, Amelia Earhart took first lady Eleanor Roosevelt on a joyride. Imagine two women—dressed for dinner at the White House (white gloves and all)—stealing away from 1600 Pennsylvania Ave to pilot and co-pilot a nighttime flight to Baltimore. On this episode of AirSpace, we’re detailing the high-flying friendship of these two women – from their shared background as social workers to their mutual love of flight and advocacy of women’s empowerment and social justice. Amelia and Elanor took the business of being role models seriously, leading by example and using their influence to elevate important societal issues. Talk about an influencer power couple! Thanks to our guests who helped us contextualize their history and friendship – biographers Allida Black and Susan Butler. AirSpace is made possible by the generous support of Olay. Did you know we have a monthly newsletter? Get on the list!

Traveling for the holidays? Would you rather take a trip to the Moon? On this episode of AirSpace, we’re breaking down Georges Méliès' iconic 1902 film “Le Voyage dans la Lune.” Silent and only about 13 minutes long, this classic might lack a bit of 21st century movie pizazz but it was absolutely groundbreaking to science fiction and filmmaking.  Based on Jules Verne’s “From the Earth to the Moon,” it was the first film to depict space travel. It also features many moviemaking techniques Méliès pioneered in filming, editing, and storytelling that are still used by the film industry today.  We hear lunar weather this time of year is lovely – come on in, the spaceship is fine!

At AirSpace we absolutely LOVE spotlighting stories about incredible aviators who might not already be on your radar. Today, we’re introducing you to the Chinese aviatrix Li Xiaqing: A literal movie star who learned to fly with the aspiration of serving her country. Li’s story is not only inspiring, it’s practically a screenplay waiting to be written. Born in 1911 into a rapidly changing China, she took flying lessons in Switzerland and the United States before returning to China in the 1930s. Despite being grounded by her home country during the war, she still found a way to use her skills in the war effort barnstorming across the US raising money for China. An actress, aviatrix, and altruist? Now, that’s a true triple threat. Thanks to our guests - Author Patti Gully for sharing Li’s incredible story and historian Stephen MacKinnon for providing the historical context of China in the early 20th century.   AirSpace is made possible by the generous support of Olay.

93% of televisions in the United States tuned in to see Neil Armstrong walk on the Moon. Can you believe 7% were watching something else? At 11pm on a Sunday?? But as much as we love it now, Apollo 11’s contemporary acclaim wasn’t exactly universal. Many people, all over America, had reservations about spending billions of dollars on space exploration instead of solving problems here on Earth. And some Americans had their eyes on a very different, much more important prize. The rise of Apollo coincided with the peak of the Civil Rights Movement (which technically ended with the signing of the Civil Rights Act in 1968—but we all know the struggle and the movement didn’t end there). In this episode, Emily, Matt, and Nick explore the intersection of these two moments in American history, discuss the protests, activists, and anthems of the time, and talk to Sylvia Drew Ivie about the issues then and how we’re still working to turn it all around. AirSpace is made possible by the generous support of Olay.

Have you always wanted to experience what it’s like to be an astronaut but without the queasy upshot of actually shooting into space? Then we’ve got news for you! Only around 550 people have been to outer space (like, ever!).  But many more can and do participate in simulated space missions right here on Earth—and it turns out they’re super important. While the mission brief might require a little imagination, these analog astronauts perform real science and research, and sometimes go on to become actual high-flying space travelers. And, as it turns out, these virtual versions really capture the (ahem) atmosphere of living and working on orbit (with slightly different views). One such analog outpost, HI-SEAS, located on Hawai’i, runs simulated space missions to the Moon and Mars to help answer critical questions about what to do and how to do it when we get there. In this episode, we talk to the center’s director, Dr. Michaela Musilova, and one of their former analog astronauts who just this September flew h

Ever wonder what would happen to your body in space without a spacesuit? Given it’s spooky szn, we figured we’d do something a little different for this Halloween episode of AirSpace and dissect one the scariest situations an astronaut could be in. For a crash course in the intersection between astronaut life and rapid decompression we talk to Mary Roach.  And having authored the nonfiction books Packing for Mars, Stiff, and Grunt she’s kind of perfectly qualified to talk about this bizarre venn diagram. But some peace-of-mind spoilers for our squeamish friends, there’s no threat of exploding or even freezing to death when you’re stuck in space sans suit (despite what literally every tv show has taught us). Don’t let the pressure get to you--just remember to breathe (out). AirSpace is made possible by the generous support of Olay.

Mirror, mirror under the football field, what secrets of the universe will you yield?  Okay, so we’re terrible poets (except maybe Matt). But we are feeling a bit reflective these days, so we’re taking this opportunity to ponder reflecting telescopes of all sizes, shapes, and types. Reflectors use mirrors to gather light and produce an image. Some are meant for space (we’re looking at you Hubble and JWST), and others are used here on Earth. In this episode, we’re taking you into two labs – one under the football stadium at the University of Arizona that makes some of the biggest telescope mirrors in the world, and another under the house (okay, it’s a basement) of someone who makes their own telescope mirrors at home. Same deal, way different scale. We promise this one isn’t a grind! AirSpace is made possible by the generous support of Olay.

100 years ago Bessie Coleman became the first African American woman to earn her pilot’s license. You might remember Bessie from a previous episode of the pod (last season’s Chicago Flyer) – she inspired many of her contemporaries, including those who formed the Challenger Air Pilots Association. But Bessie’s tremendous determination and perseverance is beyond worthy of another episode. In part because she was a woman, and especially a woman of color, Bessie had to travel all the way to Europe to get her flight training. Today on AirSpace, we're looking back on Bessie's experiences in France and Germany in the 1920s and exploring just how far she went to earn her historic license (and inspire generations of pilots along the way). AirSpace is made possible by the generous support of Olay.

Raise a glass and cheers to a new season of AirSpace! And to help us get in the celebratory mood, today's episode is about a truly intoxicating period of American history – prohibition. You might know [we didn’t] that NASCAR has its roots in bootleggers driving illicit hooch in the 1920s. But it turns out, not all bootleggers were driving their contraband around in cars. In addition to rum runners there were also rum flyers (pinot pilots? alcohol aviators? booze-stormers?). And beyond smuggling alcohol, party-planes were also used to get thirsty customers to destinations outside the US where they could drink legally. Today on AirSpace, learn how prohibition and passenger airlines went hand-in-hand. AirSpace is made possible by the generous support of Olay.

We’re just two weeks away from a brand new season of AirSpace!  Today, though, we’re revisiting a favorite from May 2020 – the first installment of the AirSpace Movie Club, our very first episode recorded from our respective pandemic bunkers. At this point, we’re old hands at remote recording and thankfully our techniques have improved since this first go round but we love this episode nonetheless. Join us on this trip down memory lane and listen to Emily, Matt, and Nick break down the Voyager-referencing, Bowie-fueled, and endlessly endearing Troop Zero. And don’t miss new episodes of AirSpace beginning September 9th!

We’re hard at work on Season 5 (launching this September!) but before then, we’re giving you a second bite at a topic we spent a long time thinking about this year: what’s in a name? Earlier this season we explored how planetary bodies and their geological features get named. And to our surprise, it’s not all Greek and Roman mythology (we’re looking at you, Titan’s hills Gandalf and Bilbo). We also recorded an explainer on how NASA names their spacecraft, but we just didn’t have time for it in the original episode. So, what do Snoopy, Spider, and Gumdrop have in common? Find out in this bonus episode!

We have a flair for the dramatic here at AirSpace (Who… US?!). And we’d be lying if we told you we don’t occasionally daydream about the end of the world. But, like, scientifically speaking. We’ve seen plenty of sci-fi depictions of what the end might look like, but what will actually happen when the Sun engulfs the Earth? And what does the “end of the universe” even mean? To dissect these grim questions, we’re diving into a sci-fi series that offers a lot of hopeful examples of humanity’s perseverance: Doctor Who.   Is this an elaborate ploy to do an episode about one of our favorite television series? You bet it is! But it’s the last episode of the season and we want to go out with a bang. Strap in, we’re going to the end of it all. This is the end of the world according to Doctor Who.  

Earth’s twin or Earth’s evil twin? It depends on who you ask. And no, we’re NOT talking about Mars (take a break from the news cycle, Ingenuity). We’re talking about the beautiful, enigmatic, and hot (VERY hot) VENUS. Not one but TWO NASA spacecraft are heading to Venus later this decade (NASA’s first Venus missions since the early 90s!). But, how do you study a planet whose surface is too hot for robots and whose atmosphere is too dense for the visible light observation? On today’s episode we’re taking a look at the wonder of Venus and the magic of radar.  

We’re all movie buffs here at AirSpace *gestures to extensive movie episode back catalog.* And while we’re not exactly film critics, we know what we like—and we love when people see themselves represented in their favorite stories. And a long time ago (2013), and not so far away (New Mexico), a group embarked on a quest of their own: to translate Star Wars: A New Hope into Navajo. Their goal was to help preserve the language by introducing it to new generations and audiences beyond the reservation. In this episode, we’ll recount our decade+ hero’s journey from the call to action, to seeking a greenlight from Lucasfilm, to finding the translators and voice actors, creating whole new words for terms like “lightsaber” and “droid,” and finally the triumphant fanfare of a live audience seeing the famous opening crawl for the first time in their language. A herculean grassroots effort to create the first indigenous translation of a major motion picture has become a movement to interpret other indelible pieces of po

In the early days of aviation flying was dangerous and expensive. Even if you could afford it, societal barriers in the United States kept many would-be pilots grounded. In this episode, we’re telling the story of how pioneering Black aviators improvised, innovated, and overcame those barriers to fulfill their dreams of flight. Across the U.S., Black aviators banded together to form clubs to instruct others and grow interest in aviation. In Chicago, the Challenger Air Pilots Association cultivated a community that has since helped thousands of Black pilots learn how to fly. And it all started with a broken down car.

If you’ve flown commercial, you’re familiar with the preflight safety spiel (and if you’ve only ever flown private, we wanna know why, but it’ll have to be a different episode). You know the moves: stow your tray tables, life vests are under the seat, insert the metal end into the buckle until it clicks, and please don’t forget the nearest exit may be behind you. Frequent fliers can probably recite these instructions in their sleep, and we have a whole selfcare philosophy based around securing your own oxygen mask before helping others. But in the last 15 years or so, the safety presentation has become a cinematic celebre -- with everything from famous actors, eye-catching FX, and even Marvel superheroes. Emily, Matt, and Nick dive into the history of the inflight safety briefing to better understand the evolution from straight-forward instruction to Hollywood production, and an expert in cabin safety weighs in on whether these flashy videos  actually make air travel safer. Please note the no smoking light wi

Did you know the National Air and Space Museum has a huge art collection? Yeah, we keep that secret pretty well. It all STEMs (see what we did there?) from a program organized by NASA beginning in the 1960s where a small number of American artists got tons of access to launch sites, clean rooms, space suits, spacecraft—you name it, they painted it. The result was thousands of works that represented some (but not all, not by a long shot) of the most important art ever inspired by space exploration. On today’s show, we sketch out the origin story of a space agency art’s program, explain where our museum enters the picture, and explore works within and beyond the NASA art scene.

Any child of the 80s or 90s knows about Space Camp. Even if you didn’t attend, you likely have an image of it burned into your brain – the flight suits, the teamwork, the spinning contraption that makes you hurl (aka the multi-axis trainer). Born at the dawn of the Shuttle era, Space Camp has given nearly a million campers a taste of astronaut life, inspired thousands of students to pursue STEM fields, and even gave some real astronauts an early boost. But, what’s its origin story? And how did it become such a part of the millennial zeitgeist? (Even Mary Kate and Ashley solved a Space Camp mystery—spoiler alert: it was woodpeckers). Emily, Matt, and Nick break it down.   

Have you ever wondered how the stuff in space gets named? Sure, names like Earth, Venus, and Mars have been canon for *forever.* But lest you think naming is all about Greek and Roman mythology, think again. Six of Titan’s hills are named after Lord of the Rings characters. Seriously. These days, there’s one organization that approves and keeps track of ALL of the official names from stars and asteroids to mountains on Mars and geysers on Enceladus. We break down the naming process and some of our favorites on today’s episode!