Know the Past...Shape the Future--The Official Podcast of AFHF

Join host Matt Jolley as he discusses the role of one of the first aeronautical scientists in America--Professor Theodore von Karman, with Dr. Michael Gorn (author of The Universal Man: Theodore von Karman's Life in Aeronautics). Together with Gen Hap Arnold, he helped to establish the technological foundations of today's USAF and USSF.

Join Lt Col Dik Daso, USAF (ret), PhD, Executive Director of the Air Force Historical Foundation, as he introduces you to Gen Hap Arnold, Professor Theodore von Karman and early aviation technology. Dr Daso also discusses AFHF programing for 2025 and introduces new AFHF developments in research, membership and leadership.

Born at Patrick Air Force Base and raised in Huntsville, Alabama, Jan Davis has been surrounded by aviation and space her entire life. She followed up her biomedical engineering degree from Georgia Institute of Technology with a mechanical engineering degree from Auburn University and a Ph.D. from the University of Alabama in Huntsville. During her career, she worked for Texaco and for NASA before being selected as an astronaut in 1987. Davis flew on three Space Shuttle missions and continued her NASA career in the Senior Executive Service. After her retirement from NASA, she went on to become an industry executive. Now a consultant and speaker, she also enjoys traveling, quilting, exploring the outdoors, and working with her non-profit organization, AstraFemina, to encourage girls to pursue science, technology, engineering, and math careers. 

Follow Dr. Davis as she retraces her path to the stars.

Nancy Jan Davis (née Smotherman; born November 1, 1953) is a former American astronaut. A veteran of three space flights, Davis logged over 673 hours in space. She is now retired from NASA. She flew on STS-47, STS-60, and STS-75.

Davis became an astronaut in June 1987. Her first assignment was in the Astronaut Office Mission Development Branch, where she provided technical support for Space Shuttle payloads. Following this, Davis was a CAPCOM in Mission Control, responsible for communicating with Shuttle crews for seven missions. After her first space flight, Davis served as the Astronaut Office representative for the Remote Manipulator System (RMS), with responsibility for RMS operations, training, and payloads. After her second space flight, she served as the Chairperson of the NASA Education Working Group and as Chief for the Payloads Branch, which provided Astronaut Office support for all Shuttle and International Space Station payloads.