Today on AirSpace: the scandal of the century! Matt and Emily are joined by friend of the show and Museum curator Bob van der Linden to learn all the twists and turns of the Air Mail Crisis of 1934.

The controversy centered on one question: who should fly the mail? Conflicts between brand-new commercial airlines, Congress, and the Roosevelt administration reached a boiling point that led to lucrative contracts being cancelled and the disastrous involvement of the Army Air Corps. In the aftermath, new regulation shaped commercial flight and the Postal Service for generations. This story is a political drama, a postal drama, AND an aviation drama. What more can you ask for?

Thanks to our guest in this episode:

• Dr. Bob van der Linden, Curator for Commercial Aviation, National Air and Space Museum

Find the transcript for this episode and more information at s.si.edu/airspaces11e8.

To learn even more about the Air Mail Crisis, check out the Museum's website.

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AirSpace is made possible with the generous support of Lockheed Martin.

July 24th, 1969. After their historic mission to the Moon’s surface and back, there was one final step in the Apollo 11 mission: splashdown. As the command module floated (gracefully, we are sure) in the Pacific Ocean, a team of elite Navy divers known as Frogmen swam up to help the astronauts safely and securely onto a helicopter that would take them to the USS Hornet. 

Today on AirSpace, we hear from three of the Frogmen who plucked the Apollo astronauts out of the drink (and may have engaged in some horseplay on the floating capsule). We also hear from our Museum’s own Apollo Curator about the details of this critical final stage in the Apollo missions, and what to expect when capsules full of Artemis astronauts start splashing down this decade. 

Thanks to our guests in this episode:

Find the transcript for this episode and more information at s.si.edu/airspaces11e7.

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AirSpace is made possible with the generous support of Lockheed Martin.

Unfortunately, there are still more humans than dogs in the average airport terminal. Still, it’s not uncommon to see dogs as you run to catch your flight. Some dogs, like humans, are just travelers passing through. But others, increasingly, are at the airport to take care of business. Today on AirSpace: it’s Canine Career Day! We discuss the surprisingly wide variety of airport dog jobs, and hear from a few lucky humans about their unique coworkers. Matt and Emily learn about therapy dogs with trading cards; beagles and Labradors sniffing luggage for safety (and prohibited agricultural products); and even an elite doggie duo chasing wildlife off the runway.  

Thanks to our guests in this episode:

Find the transcript for this episode and more information at s.si.edu/airspaces11e6.

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AirSpace is made possible with the generous support of Lockheed Martin.

AirSpace logo courtesy of the Smithsonian Institution. Episode photo courtesy of West Virginia International Yeager Airport (CRW).

Space travel is hungry work. Humans have spent nearly six decades experimenting with different ways to feed astronauts (with mixed reviews). As astronauts live and work in space on longer missions further from home, a new generation of chefs and food scientists is thinking outside the box (and can, and tube, and pouch). What if space travelers had kitchens complete with appliances and pantries full of ingredients? 
 
In this episode of AirSpace, recorded in front of a live audience at the National Air and Space Museum, Matt and Emily spoke with an expert panel about the past and future of cooking and eating in space.

Thanks to our guests in this episode: 

Find the transcript for this episode and more information at s.si.edu/airspaces11e5.

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AirSpace is made possible with the generous support of Lockheed Martin.

Science fiction heroes aren't usually humanities professors, but Arrival  (2016) is the exception to that rule. Amy Adams stars as Dr. Louise Banks, who may be the only person on Earth who can figure out what a pair of mysterious aliens are trying to say. 

Today on AirSpace, Matt and Emily discuss the film, its source material (Ted Chiang's novella Story of Your Life), linguistics, non-linear time, extraterrestrials, explosions, geopolitical tension, oat milk, and other mysteries of the universe. 

The transcript for this episode is at s.si.edu/airspaces11e4 

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AirSpace is made possible with the generous support of Lockheed Martin.

Twinkle, twinkle, little star, how we wonder . . . well, where to even begin? How do stars form from gas and dust? Why do some stars go supernova? And what the heck is the "main sequence?" 

We brought in one of the Museum's astronomy educators for a stellar conversation about the birth, life, and death of stars. There's plenty to learn, and even more to wonder about, today on AirSpace. 

Thanks to our guest in this episode:

• Shauna Edson, Astronomy Educator, National Air and Space Museum

The transcript for this episode is at s.si.edu/airspaces11e3.

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AirSpace is made possible with the generous support of Lockheed Martin.

Have you ever wondered what happens to your checked bag once you've handed it over to the airline? Us too! We took a field trip to Dulles Airport to visit our friends at United Airlines and find out. Today on AirSpace, follow a suitcase on its journey from check-in through TSA, airline sorting, handling on the aircraft, and back to you on the baggage carousel. 

Thanks to our guest in this episode:

• Jim Decker, Director of Ramp Operations for United Airlines at Dulles International Airport

The transcript for this episode is at s.si.edu/airspaces11e2 

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AirSpace is made possible with the generous support of Lockheed Martin.

SEEKING: full time aviators slash weather enthusiasts for unique opportunity. SCHEDULE: hurricane season. WORK SITE: Lakeland, FL; Biloxi, MS; and the eye of a hurricane. Members of the Air Force and NOAA Corps spend months each year flying back and forth through hurricanes collecting information vital to weather prediction. On the Season 11 premiere of AirSpace, we talk to three of them and get the download on what it takes to do that job.

Thanks to our guests in this episode:

The transcript for this episode is at s.si.edu/airspaces11e1.

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AirSpace is made possible with the generous support of Lockheed Martin.

AirSpace will be back with Season 11 very soon. In the meantime we thought y'all would enjoy this episode from the Smithsonian Magazine's podcast, There's More to That: Why Auroras Are Suddenly Everywhere All at Once.

For millennia, auroras have both enchanted and haunted human beings. Ancient lore is filled with myths attempting to explain what caused the celestial phenomenon. More recent historic documentation of auroras may even help us predict damaging solar storms in the future.

As we head into a year expected to bring the best northern lights in two decades, we consider the science behind auroras and why they are suddenly so plentiful—even in places that hardly qualify as northern.

In this episode, Jo Marchant, author of The Human Cosmos, and Smithsonian science editor Carlyn Kranking revel in auroras through the ages and explain how to view these dazzling displays yourself.

The Women's Airforce Service Pilots (WASP) are relatively well-known in the U.S. today (to hear more about their story, see our previous episode), but they weren't the only women who flew planes in World War II. A small group of Americans joined pilots from 25 other countries in England's Air Transport Auxiliary, where they ferried hundreds of thousands of planes across the British Isles. Among the pilots were women from all countries and men too old or otherwise unfit for active duty (including a WWI Ace with only one eye and arm). They braved poor weather, mechanically iffy planes, regular bombings, and dangerous conditions to keep the Allies in the air.

Thanks to our guests in this episode

Oral histories in the episode came from the NASA Oral History Project and the TWU Libraries Women's Collection at Texas Women's University. 

The transcript for this episode is at s.si.edu/homefront4

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AirSpace is made possible by generous support from Lockheed Martin