In this episode of “This Is Purdue,” we’re talking to five members of Purdue’s Cradle of Astronauts: Sirisha Bandla (BS aeronautical and astronautical engineering ’11), Drew Feustel (BS solid earth sciences ’89, MS geophysics ’91), Beth Moses (BS aeronautical and astronautical engineering ’92, MS aeronautics and astronautics ’94), Mark Polansky (BS aeronautical and astronautical engineering ’78, MS aeronautics and astronautics ’78) and Audrey Powers (BS aeronautical and astronautical engineering ’99). 

These five Purdue astronauts came together for the first time at the live “This Is Purdue” podcast panel during the Indianapolis Motor Speedway’s Total Solar Eclipse Viewing Event, presented by Purdue University.  

Listen as this panel of astronauts, which includes Boilermakers with both NASA and commercial spaceflight backgrounds at Virgin Galactic, Blue Origin and Barrios Technology, share what they found most surprising about their personal experiences in space, the specialness behind viewing a total solar eclipse with more than 50,000 people at the iconic IMS and their perspectives on where the future of spaceflight is heading. 

Plus, you’ll hear how the journeys and legacies of past Boilermaker astronauts brought them to Purdue, how their passion for space exploration deepened as students and what it means to them to inspire the next generation to take the leap into space as future members of Purdue’s Cradle of Astronauts. 

Check out this memorable episode — it’s only on “This Is Purdue,” the official Purdue University podcast!