In this episode, we head to Homer, Alaska, where the northern lights glow and alpacas roam, to meet Laura Reiske: middle school math teacher, lifelong space nerd, and Chief of Staff for the APUS Analog Research Group. Laura shares how a love for black holes and clear Alaskan skies led her back to space, from NASA’s L’SPACE Mission Concept Academy (Deputy PM for Team SIGMA) to pursuing a master’s in Space Studies.

We dive into her first crewed analog at SAM in Arizona, where she commanded Team Red through a five-day isolation: tracking water, growing spirulina, sealing the habitat in full pressurization mode, and navigating a panic attack before her first EVA with crew-centered breathing techniques. Leadership, teaching, teamwork, and wonder, all in one orbit.

AARG Website: https://www.apusssrp.space/aarg

AARG Email Address: [email protected]

AARG LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/apus-analog-research-group-aarg/posts/?feedView=all

AARG Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/apusarg/

AARG X: https://x.com/APUS_Analog

Laura Reiske LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/laura-reiske/

Laura’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/l.reiske/

SAM at Biosphere 2: https://samb2.space/

AARG’s Mission Blog by SAM: https://samb2.space/blog/page/3/

AARG’s Mission Blog by AMU: https://amuedge.com/the-aarg-1s-mission-and-simulating-a-crew-shift-change/

The Airlock Module Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/AirlockModule