Airspace

On the scale of thrilling aviation activities, hot air balloon rides normally rank pretty low. But how would you feel if one balloon ride was your ticket to a better life? AND what if you had to not only pilot the balloon yourself, but build it from scratch, in secret? What started with a magazine article about the Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta ended with a thrilling aerial escape from East Germany in 1979. On this episode of AirSpace, we hear what it was like from someone who lived it firsthand. And we talk to a modern-day balloonist to learn just how difficult it is to create your own air-worthy balloon. Did you know AirSpace has a monthly newsletter? Sign up here! AirSpace is made possible by the generous support of Olay.

Anyone who’s observed the Milky Way or has seen a beautiful Hubble image can understand how space and space imagery can be a source of creative inspiration. When researching QueerSpace, we repeatedly saw creators blending themes of space and themes of queerness in their art. Many of these artists use their art to envision new futures. Futurist thinking uses the experience of the past and present to contextualize and reimagine what the future could be, often creating a future that’s more equitable and radically different than what we have now. In this episode of QueerSpace, Stamatina Gregory from the Leslie-Lohman Museum helps to contextualize the origins of this intersection of space, queerness, and futurism in art. And we hear from photographer Lola Flash and poet Nikki Giovanni on their art, inspiration, and visions of the future. QueerSpace is made possible by the generous support of Olay. Did you know we have a monthly AirSpace newsletter? Sign up here!

Historically, queer-identifying people in the U.S. military have been forced out or forced to hide who they are. It wasn’t until 2011 that gay, lesbian, and bisexual servicemembers could serve openly, and only in the last few years that trans servicemembers could serve at all. And while there’s still a ways to go, last year the Air Force and Space Force formed a working group specifically for LGBTQ+ issues. On this episode of QueerSpace, we speak to the Director of the LGBTQ Initiative Team (LIT), Maj. Gen. Leah Lauderback, to hear how LIT is working to change policy, change minds, and create opportunities for LGBTQ+ members of the military. QueerSpace is made possible by the generous support of Olay. Did you know we have a monthly AirSpace newsletter? Sign up here!

In science fiction, the possibilities are seemingly endless. Sci-fi writers often create entirely new civilizations where our social constructions can be upended and examined, or just thrown out entirely. They can literally rewrite a world in terms of gender, sexuality, and culture, making something that is more inclusive and often more interesting.  In this episode, we talk to bookseller Hannah Oliver Depp of Loyalty Books about the history of queer worldbuilding in sci-fi literature and get some book recommendations that are headed to the top of our to-read lists. QueerSpace is made possible by the generous support of Olay. Did you know we have a monthly AirSpace newsletter? Sign up here!

We’re working on the next season of AirSpace as we speak, but today, we’re excited to bring you QueerSpace — a limited series from the creators of AirSpace, featuring stories and people at the intersection of aviation, space, and LGBTQ+ history and culture. For the next two months, we’re highlighting the scope and diversity of queer experiences found across human flight and space science. The first episode spotlights the history and community built by male flight attendants. You may think that the role of flight attendant has always been a women-dominated profession. But that wasn’t always the case. Very early on in commercial aviation, all flight attendants (or stewards as they were then known) were men.  But in the mid-20th century, that changed as airlines began exclusively hiring women for the role. When, in the 1970s, a court case forced airlines to hire men and women on equal terms and more men became flight attendants, gay men created a community within the industry that was uniquely supportive and we

We’re hard at work on Season 6 (and a super special project coming in just a few weeks!!). But today, we’re revisiting one of our favorite episodes from last year. They’re incredibly dense, super cool, and mind-bendingly-mysterious -- BLACK HOLES! But how do you imagine – let alone study—the unseeable? And seriously—what happened at the end of “Interstellar?” The concept of black holes isn’t new—scientists first theorized their existence in the early 20th century. But in the last few years our knowledge of black holes has expanded – from confirmation of a supermassive black hole at the center of the Milky Way (it really ties the galaxy together) to the first-ever image of a black hole captured by the Event Horizon Telescope. We’re now making direct observations that prove their existence. And scientists even released an image of a black hole in polarized light, with signs of magnetic fields around the event horizon. And if you don’t understand what that means, you’re not alone!! We’re all on this magic schoo

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.