Let's Go to Space: BLUE-SKY Learning

Today we meet with Eric Harkleroad— a systems engineer for APeX Systems in New Jersey.  He holds a Master of Engineering in Mechanical & Aerospace and a Bachelor’s degree in Physics both from Princeton University and he previously served as a crew member for a two-week rotation at the Mars Society’s Mars Desert Research Station (MDRS).

A long time Space Ambassador for the National Space Society, Eric gained an interest in engineering due to attending NASA Space Camp in elementary school and taking part in math and science clubs during grades 7-12.

He is also a lifelong fan of science fiction; stories from the Star Trek universe and books by Arthur C. Clarke, Isaac Asimov and Phillip K. Dick provided early inspiration.

Today we meet with Julia Brodsky, a STEM education researcher at the Blue Marble Space Institute of Science, and a Forbes Education contributing author. Ms. Brodsky was not only an NASA astronaut instructor, but she worked as an independent school teacher, an informal math education book author, and an educational consultant for gifted students. Additionally, she is the homeschooling mom of a special needs child (and two other kids). Her academic training is in astrophysics and science education. As the founder of the Art of Inquiry - an interactive online science program for curious pre-teens - Brodsky introduces students to space exploration, astrobiology, cognitive science and AI as means for developing their scientific reasoning, systems thinking, and questioning skills.

Art of Inquiry website https://www.artofinquiry.net/about

Today we meet with ,Matt Orvis who graduated with a Bachelors degree in Physics in 2013, with an Masters in 2015. Since then he's been working with NearSpace Launch building satellites and other space subsystems as a project engineer. Working in a small business, Matt has the privilege of operating in a variety of tasks, including proposal writing, mission design, system layout, assembly/integration, mission operations, data analysis, and writing publications. He's also married with 2 kids, which has proven to be more challenging than building spacecraft.

Matt and NearSpace Launch has been especially instrumental to the development of the WCDT and we know you are going to love today’s episode as much as we do.

NSL website: https://www.nearspacelaunch.com/

Today Kevin and In meet with Rayon Harris, an Aeronautical Design Engineer at Lockheed Martin’s Skunkworks residing in Southern California.  Prior to his experience at the Skunkworks, Rayon was an avid member of  AIAA’s UCF student branch and obtained his Aerospace Engineering degree in 2019.  As an active member of AIAA national since 2015, Rayon has engaged  in various AIAA activities from student design projects,  college executive leadership, volunteering, mentorship as well as advocating for the aerospace committee in Capitol Hill. When he is not working, Rayon enjoys spending his free time working out, traveling to new places, watching sports and hanging out with friends. From some very humble upbringings of Lakeland & Miami FL, Rayon has never forgotten where he came from and always dedicates time and effort to give back to his community and inspire the future of aerospace.

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Today we meet with Chris Kapp. Chris is Vice President of Compression in the energy group AF Global. He has 25+ years experience with nearly all aspects of turbo machinery in nearly every area of Oil & gas as well as industrial applications. Starting out abroad, Chris started up a joint venture company, Demag Kirloskar Compressors. He then Immigrated to the US and he worked for Cooper Energy Services / Rolls-Royce Energy Systems in Mt. Vernon, OH as a director of marketing and director of product standardization for gas turbines and centrifugal pipeline compressors. Chris then worked for Siemens Industrial Turbomachinery (O&G) in Houston, TX.

Chris studied mechanical & aerospace engineering at universities in Aachen, Germany as well as in Trondheim, Norway and completed a masters of science/engineering. Chris has numerous publications to his credit and is a published author. His new book, “Selling Engineered Products” will be coming out soon.

Chris got the space bug early in life with his father working for the US Air Force at Wright Patterson AFB. He serves this passion currently as a National Space Society Ambassador.Take a moment to write a review to help us grow our audience organically and stay tuned after the episode for takeaways.

Today Kevin and I meet with Loretta Hall,  a freelance writer and nonfiction book author. She has been interested in space travel since her teenage years, when she followed closely the early NASA programs: selection of the Mercury Seven astronauts, the suborbital and orbital missions of Mercury and Gemini, and the Apollo steps toward a moon landing. About fifteen years ago, her latent fascination with space exploration resurfaced, and she has since concentrated on that subject. She has written nine nonfiction books, including five on the history and future of space travel. Loretta loves finding ways to participate in space activities without being an astronaut. That led her to write one of her books, The Complete Space Buff’s Bucket List: 100 Space Things to Do Before You Die. Her newest book, Higher, Faster, Longer: My Life in Aviation and My Quest for Spaceflight, was a cooperative effort to produce the memoir of Wally Funk, an icon in the fields of aviation and spaceflight. Loretta is a Certified Space Ambassador for the National Space Society, an officer of New Mexico Press Women, and a member of the Historical Society of New Mexico's Speakers Bureau.

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Today we meet with Ted Tagami. Mr. Tagami is the CEO and co-founder of Magnitude. Io, which was created to bring learning right to the edge of human discovery and exploration with their ExoLab experiments about the International Space Station. Ted also is the education chair on the User Advisory Committee of the ISS US National Lab. Stationed in San Francisco, Tagami started Magnitude in 2013 understanding that many things were changing, including the learning landscape. The possibility of new tools that would enable learner agency were becoming apparent including Microcontrollers, sensors, entire systems on a chip,Machine learning, 3D printing, and desktop genomics to name just a few. In short, Tagami aspires to bring about the highest return on education. And we know this interview will inspire our listeners to do the same.

Today we meet with Stevan Akerley, a retired aerospace engineer from Pratt & Whitney, with more than 40 years of manufacturing and engineering experience with automated equipment and measurement sensor systems in manufacturing applications. He also has experience in precision manufacturing, machine measurement, CAD CAM software development, quality assurance, and tool and equipment design. He holds a BS degree in industrial technology, and an MBA degree in Management Information Systems and International Business.

Akerly was one of the finalists and  award winners of the Space Ambassadors, Phase 1 Program, and is currently serving as a Space Ambassador Program Director for the National Space Society. He has even taken graduate level classes at the Kepler Space Institute.Before we begin please take a moment to like, share and subscribe to our podcast. These simple steps will help us reach more likemindeed followers. As always, stay tuned for our takeaway.

Today we meet with John D. Moore, an Albert Einstein Distinguished Educator Fellow. John also served in the National Science Foundation’s Directorate for Geosciences 2009-2011. Currently he is the founder and Executive Director for the Institute for Earth Observations in New Jersey. Prior to his fellowship, he developed and was an instructor at he the Burlington County Institute of Technology, a four-year CTE high school, focusing on the development of applications of satellite data, remote sensing, and computer visualizations at the pre-college level. He has numerous publications and is a contributing author in the “Einstein Fellows Best Practices in STEM Education”. John is the founder and developer of the A3Sat Project. And worked with Kevin early on to bring CubeSats into the forefront as a disruptive educational model. Stay tuned after for our takeawyas and be sure to check the show notes for important links mentioned.

Today, we meet with Ken Ruffin. Ken is a Senior Environmental Engineer for one of the largest electric utilities in the USA, with over 25 years of experience in air quality inspections, consulting, permit applications, and compliance in both public and private organizations. But his passion for science doesn’t stop at the end of his workday. Mr. Ruffin is also the President of the award-winning National Space Society of North Texas (NSS-NT). For the fourth time in the last eight years, NSS-NT has earned the #1 NSS Chapter in the World Award! During public events, monthly meetings, and news interviews, Ken informs audiences of all ages and backgrounds about "the latest and greatest information in space travel and space development".

Make sure you stay tuned after the interview for our takeaways as well as information about the next iteration of SPACE CLUB starting in January. And of course, please take a moment to like, share, and subscribe to our podcast so we can continue to grow our audience organically.