Episodes
Friday Apr 04, 2014
Episode 608: Safety of Soyuz and Sinkholes
Friday Apr 04, 2014
Friday Apr 04, 2014
On this episode of Talking Space, we talk about the recent Soyuz launch to the ISS, and the glitch that turned a few hour rendezvous into a two-day event. We look into what may have caused the event and look back at the classic "Era of Reliability" Russia declared at the end of the shuttle program in 2011. We then talk about a range outage that has delayed two launches until an unknown time and what it means for the future launch schedule for one of the commercial companies it affects. Next, we look at a wind measuring field finally getting a well-needed upgrade. On the second trip around the table, we talk about NASA's new spacesuit designs which the public can vote for, and how we probably wouldn't vote for any of them. Then it's on to our thoughts on some interesting comments made by Charlie Bolden and a discussion on the state of NASA. Then it's on to how NASA equipment helped predict sinkholes before they formed. For the third round, we discuss a record set by the mostly-classified X-37B and check out an award going to the Dawn spacecraft makers.
To vote for the next spacesuit design, visit http://jscfeatures.jsc.nasa.gov/z2/
Host this week: Sawyer Rosenstein. Panel Members: Mark Ratterman and the Spaceflight Group's Jason Rhian
Show Recorded 3/31/2014
Thursday Mar 13, 2014
Episode 606: Exploring the "Cosmos"
Thursday Mar 13, 2014
Thursday Mar 13, 2014
On this episode of Talking Space, we return from a long hiatus to recap some of the space news of the last few weeks that was important to us. We begin with a look at the 2015 NASA Budget proposal and what that means for some NASA programs and what we think of the cuts and gains. Next, we talk about the ISS, including the release of a record 33 CubeSats and the return of the Expedition 37/38 crew from the station. On our second trip around the table, we discuss some launches, including GPS 2F-5 which involved a lot of possums, and the Global Precipitation Measurement Mission or GPM which launched from Japan. On our final trip around the table, we talk about raining iron on a brown dwarf, and lastly review the first episode of the Cosmos reboot, Cosmos: A Space Time Odyssey hosted by Neil DeGrasse Tyson.
We want to hear from you about Cosmos. Send us your thoughts via email tomailbag@talkingspaceonline.com, tweet us @talkingspace, or post it on our Facebook wall atfacebook.com/talkingspace
Host this week: Sawyer Rosenstein. Panel Members: Gina Herlihy, Mark Ratterman and the Spaceflight Group's Jason Rhian
Friday Jan 31, 2014
Episode 604: TDRS from a Spaceflight Insider
Friday Jan 31, 2014
Friday Jan 31, 2014
On this episode of Talking Space, we welcome The Spaceflight Group's Jason Rhian to discuss his trip to see TDRS-L launch. Along with talking about the launch and TDRS-L, we discuss some other experiences he had while at the Kennedy Space Center including some insider information on Dreamchaser as well as a "look" at Orion. We wrap things up with a happier look at NASA's Remembrance Week.
For more on The Spaceflight Group, visit http://spaceflightinsider.com and follow them on Twitter@SpaceflightGrp and like them on Facebook
Host this week: Sawyer Rosenstein. Panel Member: Gene Mikulka with special guest Jason Rhian of The Spaceflight Group
Show Recorded 1/27/2014
Wednesday Jan 15, 2014
Episode 602: The Social Space Station
Wednesday Jan 15, 2014
Wednesday Jan 15, 2014
On this episode of Talking Space, our first news show in 2014, we discuss a whole bunch of commercial news. We discuss Virgin Galactic's latest test flight of SpaceShipTwo, SpaceX's most recent launch of Thaicom 6 aboard a Falcon 9 v1.1, and Orbital's Antares launch bringing Cygnus to the ISS. In regards to Orbital, we also look at the man behind the name of this particular Cygnus capsule, C. Gordon Fullerton. We then look at National Geographic's upcoming live two hour show from the International Space Station and what in particular they plan on doing that excites us the most. We then talk about the recent announcement extending the life of the space station until 2024. Finally, Mark brings us a special follow-up interview with NASA's Social Media Manager and Deputy Manager John Yembrick and Jason Townsend.
Host this week: Sawyer Rosenstein. Panel Members: Emily Carney, Gene Mikulka, with Mark Ratterman and his guests NASA's Social Media Manager John Yembrick and NASA's Deputy Social Media Manager Jason Townsend
Show Recorded 1/13/2013
Thursday Oct 24, 2013
Episode 533: Rocket Science, Then and Now
Thursday Oct 24, 2013
Thursday Oct 24, 2013
On this episode of Talking Space we discuss release of the Cygnus capsule from the ISS and an upcoming SpaceX Falcon 9.1 Dragon launch. Also the most recent test flight of the SpaceX Grasshopper and the reusability it may provide.
Sierra Nevada readies for a drop test of their Dreamchaser test vehicle. Did you hear about the concern raised on twitter that the Near Earth Object discovered Oct 8th could hit earth on a future pass in 2032. Odds are 1 in 63,000 of a hit from this 1300 ft long object. Gene says don't worry, rest easy and check the facts from sources like NASA or the B612 Foundation.
Want to be part of the Mars Artic 365 Mission? Crew of 6 volunteers will spend 365 days at Flashline Mars Artic Research Station at Devon Island near Resolute in Nunavut, Canada. See http://ma365.marssociety.org/ for all the details.
There has been a launch delay of a Minotaur 1 from Pad 0B at Wallops Flight Facility due to the US Government shutdown. Original launch date was Nov 4 and is now scheduled for Nov 19. Also a Delta IV was scheduled to launch on Oct 23 but is being delayed to look into possible problems following an Oct 2012 Delta IV launch due to reduced thrust the second stage RL10B-2 engine.
How about a sleeping trip to the Red Planet? Well the NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts Program announced 2013 Phase I and II Selections. One of which included a proposal from Spaceworks Enterprises Inc. for research on a "Torpor Inducing Transfer Habitat For Human Stasis To Mars".
See http://goo.gl/gBGnce for links to all selections.
Jellyfish born in space have difficulty adapting when returned to earth. Swimming does not come naturally in 1 G following birth in microgravity. Sawyer brings us the story "Debugging a Live Saturn V". Take a few minutes and read this for yourself from the memoirs of a Saturn V "Rocket Scientist", it is phenomenal!
http://www.zamiang.com/posts/2013/10/13/red-team/
Host this week: Sawyer Rosenstein. Panel Member: Gene Mikulka, Mark Ratterman
Show Recorded 10/21/2013
Thursday Sep 15, 2011
Episode 337: Clean Up Time for Low Earth Orbit
Thursday Sep 15, 2011
Thursday Sep 15, 2011
Low Earth orbit is a mess, with flotsam floating around at speeds between 17,000 to 20,000 MPH. These pieces of space debris, some that are relics from the beginning of the space age are numerous. They are various sizes ranging from the very large, (spent boosters and the like) to the to the very small like bolts, washers and various pieces of small hardware. Their presence threatens communications and weather satellites, and yes piloted spacecraft and orbiting manned platforms like the International Space Station. A report issued last week by the National Research Council indicated that the orbital debris problem may have reached a tipping point where collisions of decommissioned satellites, empty boosters and smaller pieces will continually collied with each other. The result:more debris in low earth orbit causing the problem to get worse. This may prevent future utilization of low earth orbit, and cause a threat to orbiting satellites and yes the International Space Station. To talk about this problem further and discuss ways to solve this looming crisis, we asked two recent graduates of Singularity University's GSP 2011 class; Major Franz Gayl United States Marine Corps (ret) and the author of the book "It's Only Rocket Science", Doctor Lucy Rogers from the United Kingdom, both already quite accomplished in their respective fields to discuses the issue of space debris. Both had studied the issue of Earth Orbital Debris, and brainstormed ways to attempt to solve the problem while at Singularity university. You may follow Dr. Lucy Rogers on Twitter. Her Twitter address is @DrLucyRogers Links: Space Debris Research - http://www.spacedebrisresearch.com/ Web site of Dr. Lucy Rogers - http://www.lucyrogers.com/ Web Site for "It's Only Rocket Science" - http://www.itsonlyrocketscience.com/ Singularity University - http://singularityu.org/ Discovery News - "What Can We Do About the Space Junk Problem " by Dr. Lucy Rogers - http://news.discovery.com/space/space-junk-recycle-problem-110904.html
Tuesday May 10, 2011
Episode 318: Turn to Page Talking Space of your History Books
Tuesday May 10, 2011
Tuesday May 10, 2011
On this episode of Talking Space, we start with the update on STS-134, the final flight of Endeavour, and its new launch date. By the way, don't miss our live launch coverage beginning on May 16th at 8:30am EDT on http://astronomy.fm! We then discuss the 50h successful Atlas V launch. We move on to SpaceX's possibility of combining two of their preparatory flights, COTS-2 and COTS-3, possibly leading them to an ISS docking sooner than later. Following that, we crack open some history books on the 50th anniversary of Alan Shepard's flight, the first American in space. The next topic became the Astronaut Hall of Fame and the amazing Astronaut Scholarship Foundation. Lastly, we went on to discuss a spacesuit for sale and the recovery of the BTS-1 team, consisting of a rubber chicken (@Camilla_SDO), a teddy bear, (@AstroFuzz), and a stuffed pig (@SkyeBleu). We wish them all the best! For more information on the Astronaut Scholarship Foundation, visit http://astronautscholarship.org Please note: We did have technical problems, and we realize some audio is muffled or is skipping and difficult to understand. We are aware of the problem and working to fix it. Host this week: Sawyer Rosenstein. Panel Members: Gina Herlihy, Gene Mikulka, and Mark Ratterman Show Recorded - 5/9/2011
Tuesday May 03, 2011
Episode 317: The STS-134 Scrubcast
Tuesday May 03, 2011
Tuesday May 03, 2011
On this episode of Talking Space, we devote the entire show to the days leading up to the scrub of the launch of the shuttle Endeavour on Friday, April 29, 2011. Mark and Gene participated in press events at the Kennedy Space Center, and we discuss tours of launch pads, astronaut interviews, and more! Listen in for some spectacular stories you can ONLY hear here! Also, stay tuned for a STS-134 clip show. To view the pictures mentioned in the show, click on the Photo Album link on our website, http://talkingspaceonline.com. Below are some teaser images. (Two images were inserted here. To view them, please visit http://talkingspaceonline.com Host this week: Sawyer Rosenstein. Panel Members: Gina Herlihy, Gene Mikulka, and Mark Ratterman Show Recorded - 5/1/2011
Tuesday Apr 26, 2011
Episode 316: The Space Shuttle Shuffle
Tuesday Apr 26, 2011
Tuesday Apr 26, 2011
On this episode, we begin with STS-134 and the Flight Readiness Review setting the launch date and time as April 29th at 3:47pm EDT. Endeavour will be launching on her final mission carrying the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer (AMS-02) and a special payload which survived the Columbia disaster in 2003. We then move on to NASA's CCDev, or the Commercial Crew Development Agreement, and who will be getting money supporting their concepts ranging from $22 million to $92 million. Lastly, we get into a heated argument about an editorial posted online and in the New York edition of the New York Times calling the space shuttle Enterprise, which will soon be housed at the Inrepid Sea, Air, and Space Museum in New York city, a pile of garbage and a hand-me-down. The article to which is referenced from the New York Times is available online at http://nyti.ms/halISu Don't forget to tune in to http://astronomy.fm at 3pm EDT on April 29, 2011 for LIVE STS-134 launch coverage! Even if you can't make the live launch, check out the site, which replays our podcasts throughout the week, but the difference is, you can chat with other fans live in their chatroom. Host this week: Sawyer Rosenstein. Panel Members: Gina Herlihy, Gene Mikulka, and Mark Ratterman Show Recorded - 4/24/2011
Tuesday Apr 12, 2011
Episode 313: 30 Years of STS-1 Beautiful Vehicle
Tuesday Apr 12, 2011
Tuesday Apr 12, 2011
On this episode, we discuss the postponement of the STS-134 launch which we briefly mentioned last week. We also talk about some debris which avoided the ISS, sending its crew to safety onboard their Soyuz. We continue with our correct speculations last week about the SpaceX announcement of the Falcon Heavy. Following that, we move onto some big anniversaries, including the 30th anniversary of STS-1 and the 50th anniversary of Yuri Gagarin's 1st flight aboard Vostok-1. We speculate where the shuttles will go once they retire, and then reveal the announcement of where they'll go. Be sure to listen to find out their final resting places. We end with our reflections of 50 years in space and what Gagarin's flight meant to us. Host this week: Sawyer Rosenstein. Panel Members: Gene Mikulka and Mark Ratterman Show Recorded - 4/10/2011