Off-Nominal

Jake and Anthony are joined by Eric Berger, Senior Space Editor at Ars Technica and author of Reentry: SpaceX, Elon Musk, and the Reusable Rockets that Launched a Second Space Age, to talk about the 2024 US elections, the return of President Trump, Musk’s role in the next administration, and what space policy looks like over the next four years.

Topics

• Off-Nominal - YouTube
• Episode 174 - Burning Bridges Together (with Eric Berger) - YouTube
• What Will A Second Trump Term Mean for Space Policy? – SpacePolicyOnline.com
• Reentry: SpaceX, Elon Musk, and the Reusable Rockets that Launched a Second Space Age | West Houston's Neighborhood Bookshop
• Reentry by Eric Berger - Audiobook - Audible.com
• Reentry: SpaceX, Elon Musk, and the Reusable Rockets that Launched a Second Space Age Kindle Edition

Follow Eric

• Eric Berger | Ars Technica
• Eric Berger (@SciGuySpace) / X

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• Off-Nominal (@offnom) / Twitter
• Off-Nominal (@[email protected]) - Spacey Space

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• WeMartians Podcast - Follow Humanity's Journey to Mars
• WeMartians Podcast (@We_Martians) | Twitter
• Jake Robins (@JakeOnOrbit) | Twitter
• Jake Robins (@[email protected]) - Spacey Space

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• Main Engine Cut Off (@WeHaveMECO) | Twitter
• Main Engine Cut Off (@[email protected]) - Spacey Space
• Anthony Colangelo (@acolangelo) | Twitter
• Anthony Colangelo (@[email protected]) - jawns.club 🐘

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Jake and Anthony are joined by Scott “Kidd” Poteet, Mission Pilot of Polaris Dawn, retired United States Air Force Lieutenant Colonel, and former Thunderbird #4 Demonstration Pilot, to talk about his recent flight to space.

Topics

• Off-Nominal - YouTube
• Episode 173 - A Bigger Diaper (with Scott “Kidd” Poteet) - YouTube
• Polaris Program
• Polaris Dawn
• Polaris Dawn Crew Returns to Earth, Achieving Major Objectives During Their Five-Day Mission - Polaris Program
• Polaris Program Photos | Flickr

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• Kidd Poteet (@KiddPoteet) / X

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• Off-Nominal (@offnom) / Twitter
• Off-Nominal (@[email protected]) - Spacey Space

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• WeMartians Podcast - Follow Humanity's Journey to Mars
• WeMartians Podcast (@We_Martians) | Twitter
• Jake Robins (@JakeOnOrbit) | Twitter
• Jake Robins (@[email protected]) - Spacey Space

Follow Anthony

• Main Engine Cut Off
• Main Engine Cut Off (@WeHaveMECO) | Twitter
• Main Engine Cut Off (@[email protected]) - Spacey Space
• Anthony Colangelo (@acolangelo) | Twitter
• Anthony Colangelo (@[email protected]) - jawns.club 🐘

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Jake and Anthony are joined by Dr. Thomas Zurbuchen, Former Associate Administrator of NASA’s Science Mission Directorate and leader of ETH Zurich Space, to talk about some of the big stories in science at NASA—Mars Sample Return, cost growth in missions across the board, and more.

Note: Dr. Z cited the Europa Clipper solar arrays at 100 yards across, as in one football field, but clarified via email that they are actually 100 feet. He is European, so the football field mix up is understandable. Go Birds.

Topics

• Off-Nominal - YouTube
• Episode 172 (with Dr. Thomas Zurbuchen) - YouTube
• We’re finally going to the Solar System’s most intriguing but unexplored frontier - Ars Technica
• NASA's James Webb Space Telescope has reached its final destination. Let's celebrate the team that got it there (op-ed) | Space
• As Psyche Mission Moves Forward, NASA Responds to Independent Review | NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL)
• Psyche review finds institutional problems at JPL - SpaceNews
• Bridenstine to Lead NASA Mars Sample Return Strategy Review – SpacePolicyOnline.com

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• Thomas Zurbuchen
• Thomas Zurbuchen (@Dr_ThomasZ) / X

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• Off-Nominal (@offnom) / Twitter
• Off-Nominal (@[email protected]) - Spacey Space

Follow Jake

• WeMartians Podcast - Follow Humanity's Journey to Mars
• WeMartians Podcast (@We_Martians) | Twitter
• Jake Robins (@JakeOnOrbit) | Twitter
• Jake Robins (@[email protected]) - Spacey Space

Follow Anthony

• Main Engine Cut Off
• Main Engine Cut Off (@WeHaveMECO) | Twitter
• Main Engine Cut Off (@[email protected]) - Spacey Space
• Anthony Colangelo (@acolangelo) | Twitter
• Anthony Colangelo (@[email protected]) - jawns.club 🐘

Off-Nominal Merchandise

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Jake and Anthony are joined by Jack Beyer, Content Manager for NSF, to talk about SpaceX doing the dang thing! They caught the booster!

Topics

• Off-Nominal - YouTube
• Episode 171 - Stiletto Starship (with Jack Beyer) - YouTube
• SpaceX on X: “Watch Starship's fifth flight test”
• SpaceX on X: “Starship on its fifth flight test. Views powered by @Starlink”
• Starship’s Fifth Flight Test - SpaceX - Launches
• SpaceX Catches a Super Heavy Booster During a Milestone Flight 5 - NASASpaceFlight.com
• Starship | SN5 | 150m Flight Test - YouTube
• Douglas X-3 Stiletto - Wikipedia

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• Jack Beyer (@thejackbeyer) / X
• Jack Beyer
• NASASpaceFlight.com

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• Off-Nominal (@offnom) / Twitter
• Off-Nominal (@[email protected]) - Spacey Space

Follow Jake

• WeMartians Podcast - Follow Humanity's Journey to Mars
• WeMartians Podcast (@We_Martians) | Twitter
• Jake Robins (@JakeOnOrbit) | Twitter
• Jake Robins (@[email protected]) - Spacey Space

Follow Anthony

• Main Engine Cut Off
• Main Engine Cut Off (@WeHaveMECO) | Twitter
• Main Engine Cut Off (@[email protected]) - Spacey Space
• Anthony Colangelo (@acolangelo) | Twitter
• Anthony Colangelo (@[email protected]) - jawns.club 🐘

Off-Nominal Merchandise

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Jake and Anthony are joined by Casey Handmer, Founder of Terraform Industries, to talk about Mars Sample Return, and the general state of government projects, NASA, and so much more.

Topics

• Off-Nominal - YouTube
• Episode 170 - Luckily, We Did All the Math (with Casey Handmer) - YouTube
• SLS is still a national disgrace – Casey Handmer's blog
• What is going on with Mars Sample Return? – Casey Handmer's blog
• NASA awards Rocket Lab study contract for Mars Sample Return - SpaceNews

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• Casey Handmer
• Casey Handmer, PhD (@CJHandmer) / X
• Terraform Industries

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• Off-Nominal (@offnom) / Twitter
• Off-Nominal (@[email protected]) - Spacey Space

Follow Jake

• WeMartians Podcast - Follow Humanity's Journey to Mars
• WeMartians Podcast (@We_Martians) | Twitter
• Jake Robins (@JakeOnOrbit) | Twitter
• Jake Robins (@[email protected]) - Spacey Space

Follow Anthony

• Main Engine Cut Off
• Main Engine Cut Off (@WeHaveMECO) | Twitter
• Main Engine Cut Off (@[email protected]) - Spacey Space
• Anthony Colangelo (@acolangelo) | Twitter
• Anthony Colangelo (@[email protected]) - jawns.club 🐘

Off-Nominal Merchandise

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Jake arrives sad about space, and Anthony tries to cheer him up. We talk ISS, Artemis, budgets, and government strategy and goals.

Topics

• Off-Nominal - YouTube
• Episode 169 - Sexy Atlantis - YouTube
• NASA is working on a plan to replace its space station, but time is running out - Ars Technica
• NASA confirms space station cracking a “highest” risk and consequence problem - Ars Technica
• The politically incorrect guide to saving NASA’s floundering Artemis Program - Ars Technica
• A key NASA commercial partner faces severe financial challenges - Ars Technica
• One company appears to be thriving as part of NASA’s return to the Moon - Ars Technica

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• Off-Nominal (@offnom) / Twitter
• Off-Nominal (@[email protected]) - Spacey Space

Follow Jake

• WeMartians Podcast - Follow Humanity's Journey to Mars
• WeMartians Podcast (@We_Martians) | Twitter
• Jake Robins (@JakeOnOrbit) | Twitter
• Jake Robins (@[email protected]) - Spacey Space

Follow Anthony

• Main Engine Cut Off
• Main Engine Cut Off (@WeHaveMECO) | Twitter
• Main Engine Cut Off (@[email protected]) - Spacey Space
• Anthony Colangelo (@acolangelo) | Twitter
• Anthony Colangelo (@[email protected]) - jawns.club 🐘

Off-Nominal Merchandise

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Jake and Anthony are joined by Joe Barnard to air their grievances with the FAA.

Topics

• Off-Nominal - YouTube
• Episode 168 - Elon Munch (with Joe Barnard) - YouTube
• The war of words between SpaceX and the FAA keeps escalating | Ars Technica
• Andrew Jones on X: “Drone footage from Deep Blue Aerospace's VTVL attempt today. Great view of the landing and explosion.”
• Deep Blue Aerospace hop test suffers anomaly moments before landing - SpaceNews
• The Interstellar Gateway on X: “B11 is finally coming home 🥹”
• Elon Musk on X: “Starship Super Heavy Booster Flight 4”
• SpaceX on X: “SpaceX engineers have spent years preparing and months testing for the booster catch attempt on Flight 5, with technicians pouring tens of thousands of hours into building the infrastructure to maximize our chances for success”
• Dr. Phil Metzger on X: “Amen. Space is too important. We need parts of the Earth available for launching rockets. Space helps, not hurts, the global environment and security of the public.”
• Dr. Phil Metzger on X (Thread)
• Joe Barnard 🚀 on X: “The FAA should let SpaceX launch whatever they want, whenever they want, and the only catch is they have to do it live on YouTube in 4K”
• Joe Barnard 🚀 on X: “Servos/cables potted - I’m so so excited for this project”

Follow Joe

• BPS.space - YouTube
• Joe Barnard (@joebarnard) / Twitter
• BPS.Space

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• Off-Nominal (@offnom) / Twitter
• Off-Nominal (@[email protected]) - Spacey Space

Follow Jake

• WeMartians Podcast - Follow Humanity's Journey to Mars
• WeMartians Podcast (@We_Martians) | Twitter
• Jake Robins (@JakeOnOrbit) | Twitter
• Jake Robins (@[email protected]) - Spacey Space

Follow Anthony

• Main Engine Cut Off
• Main Engine Cut Off (@WeHaveMECO) | Twitter
• Main Engine Cut Off (@[email protected]) - Spacey Space
• Anthony Colangelo (@acolangelo) | Twitter
• Anthony Colangelo (@[email protected]) - jawns.club 🐘

Off-Nominal Merchandise

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Jake and Anthony are joined by Eric Berger, Senior Space Editor at Ars Technica and author of Liftoff: Elon Musk and the Desperate Early Days That Launched SpaceX, to talk about his newest book, Reentry: SpaceX, Elon Musk, and the Reusable Rockets that Launched a Second Space Age.

Topics

• Off-Nominal - YouTube
• Episode 167 - Bechtold (with Eric Berger) - YouTube
• Reentry: SpaceX, Elon Musk, and the Reusable Rockets that Launched a Second Space Age | West Houston's Neighborhood Bookshop
• Reentry by Eric Berger - Audiobook - Audible.com
• Reentry: SpaceX, Elon Musk, and the Reusable Rockets that Launched a Second Space Age Kindle Edition
• For the first time in more than three years, SpaceX misses a booster landing | Ars Technica

Follow Eric

• Eric Berger | Ars Technica
• Eric Berger (@SciGuySpace) / X

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• Off-Nominal (@offnom) / Twitter
• Off-Nominal (@[email protected]) - Spacey Space

Follow Jake

• WeMartians Podcast - Follow Humanity's Journey to Mars
• WeMartians Podcast (@We_Martians) | Twitter
• Jake Robins (@JakeOnOrbit) | Twitter
• Jake Robins (@[email protected]) - Spacey Space

Follow Anthony

• Main Engine Cut Off
• Main Engine Cut Off (@WeHaveMECO) | Twitter
• Main Engine Cut Off (@[email protected]) - Spacey Space
• Anthony Colangelo (@acolangelo) | Twitter
• Anthony Colangelo (@[email protected]) - jawns.club 🐘

Off-Nominal Merchandise

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Jake is joined by Emma Louden and Tanya Harrison to talk about their new children's book Mia and the Martians and how distilling space down to a child's level is a fascinating and challenging topic.

Topics

• Off-Nominal - YouTube
• Episode 166 - General Five Year Old (with Tanya Harrison and Emma Louden) - YouTube
• Mia the Martians | Indiegogo

Follow Emma

• Emma Louden | Website

Follow Tanya

• Tanya Harrison | Website

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• Off-Nominal (@offnom) / Twitter
• Off-Nominal (@offnom.com) / Bluesky
• Off-Nominal (@[email protected]) - Spacey Space

Follow Jake

• Jake Robins | Blog
• Jake Robins (@JakeOnOrbit) | Twitter
• Jake Robins (@jakerobins.com) - Bluesky
• WeMartians Podcast - Follow Humanity's Journey to Mars
• WeMartians Podcast (@We_Martians) | Twitter

Follow Anthony

• Main Engine Cut Off
• Main Engine Cut Off (@WeHaveMECO) | Twitter
• Main Engine Cut Off (@[email protected]) - Spacey Space
• Anthony Colangelo (@acolangelo) | Twitter
• Anthony Colangelo (@[email protected]) - jawns.club 🐘

Off-Nominal Merchandise

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Jake and Anthony are joined by Dr. Gerard van Belle, Astronomer at Lowell Observatory, to talk about the recurrent nova T Coronae Borealis, which is about to do some crazy stuff that it does every 78 years and honestly, we really need help understanding it.

Topics

• Off-Nominal - YouTube
• Episode 165 - Vacuum Light Pipe (with Dr. Gerard van Belle) - YouTube
• The Home of Pluto | Lowell Observatory in Flagstaff, AZ
• Quirks & Quarks - Wikipedia
• T Coronae Borealis - Wikipedia
• NASA, Global Astronomers Await Rare Nova Explosion - NASA
• Nova explosion visible to the naked eye expected any day now | Ars Technica

Follow Gerard

• Dr. Gerard van Belle (@FringeDoctor) / X
• Dr. Gerard van Belle - Lowell Observatory

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• Off-Nominal (@[email protected]) - Spacey Space

Follow Jake

• WeMartians Podcast - Follow Humanity's Journey to Mars
• WeMartians Podcast (@We_Martians) | Twitter
• Jake Robins (@JakeOnOrbit) | Twitter
• Jake Robins (@[email protected]) - Spacey Space

Follow Anthony

• Main Engine Cut Off
• Main Engine Cut Off (@WeHaveMECO) | Twitter
• Main Engine Cut Off (@[email protected]) - Spacey Space
• Anthony Colangelo (@acolangelo) | Twitter
• Anthony Colangelo (@[email protected]) - jawns.club 🐘

Off-Nominal Merchandise

• Off-Nominal Logo Tee
• WeMartians Shop | MECO Shop