Self-described ‘professional space history nerd’ Amy Shira Teitel joins Dr Karl to talk about spaceflight before NASA in her book ‘Breaking the Chains of Gravity’. Hear about cutting edge rocket planes like the X-15 (and its surprising link with tractor seats), the team of seamstresses behind the launch of high-altitude balloons to the edge of space, and how paper plates inspired the engineering of early spacecraft. Tune in for extraordinary, intimate stories from a time that is often forgotten in space-age literature.