Podcast appearances and mentions of Eileen Collins

Becoming an astronaut now or in the past was and remains a strict and demanding process. One needs 1,000 hours of pilot-in-command time in a jet aircraft, or two years of relevant professional training, along with a master's degree in STEM fields (not all degrees count), or a Ph.D. and test pilot training, etc. This is just to apply, not to mention 20/20 vision and meeting strict anthropometric requirements, before going through years of tough training. Astronauts are, in essence, the best of the best. And since American space work in particular got off the ground both men and women have made an impact in areas where others would simply not succeed. Therefore it is odd that Jeff Bezos is using his Blue Origin New Shepard rocket, actually shaped like a real penis, to shoot his girlfriend, Lauren Sánchez, and a crew of women into a suborbital flight for 15 minutes in the name of ‘women'. Sánchez, who is a trained pilot, will lead the crew, stating: “It's going to be women who are making a difference in the world and who are impactful and have a message to send.” But perhaps Bezos, Sánchez, and corporate media have forgotten about the countless pioneering women from all over the world who have already done what Blue Origin seeks to do as part of what could be just a PR stunt using women as the hook - Bezos, after all, did cheat on his ex-wife. For example, Kalpana Chawla, the first Indian astronaut, with two advanced engineering degrees and a Ph.D. in aerospace engineering, pioneered vertical take-off and landing concepts now being used by… SpaceX and Bezos' Blue Origin. Peggy Whitson holds the record for the most cumulative days in space period at 665. Christina Koch holds the record for the longest extended stay in space for a woman - 328 days. She also participated with Jessica Meir in the first all-female spacewalk. Kate Rubins was the first astronaut period to sequence DNA in space. Eileen Collins earned four degrees in STEM, economics and management while finding time to become a U.S. AF pilot, and eventually become the first woman ever to pilot a space shuttle. She also docked with the Russian space station and facilitated the deployment of the Chandra X-ray Observatory. The first African American woman in space, Mae Jemison, born in 1956 in Alabama went on to earn an engineering degree in her teens, and a doctorate shortly after, before becoming an astronaut and carrying out 44 science experiments in space. Nicole Mann become the first Native woman in space in 2022. Then there is the first American woman in space, Sally Ride, with a Ph.D. in physics and several NASA missions to her name. She also investigated the Challenger disaster and the Columbia crash. The first two women in space, however, were Russian, paving the way for all others: Valentina Tereshkova and Svetlana Savitskaya. Dismissing this inspiring history demeans and degrades and erases women from history.*The is the FREE archive, which includes advertisements. If you want an ad-free experience, you can subscribe below underneath the show description.-FREE ARCHIVE (w. ads)SUBSCRIPTION ARCHIVEX / TWITTER FACEBOOKMAIN WEBSITECashApp: $rdgable EMAIL: rdgable@yahoo.com / TSTRadio@protonmail.comBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-secret-teachings--5328407/support.

On this day in 1995, Eileen Collins became the first woman to pilot a space shuttle, the Discovery. Collins was also the US Air Force's first female flight instructor. 

Paratransit is the most expensive mode transit agencies in North America provide, so finding ways to save money and better serve the community is paramount. One way to do that is offer a bare-bones, only-what's-mandated service; which saves money, but underserves a vulnerable population. The other way is to get smart, to get innovative.And that's exactly what Eileen Collins Turvey of Portland's TriMet did, and it paid off because she won the 2024 APTA Innovation Award for her pilot program giving paratransit customers Instacart Plus memberships.It costs about $150 round trip for someone to use paratransit to go to the store. And they have to book ahead of time and can only bring two bags back from the store. But what if people could just have their groceries delivered instead? In her pilot, Eileen gave $10/mo Instacart Plus memberships to paratransit customers to let them buy groceries and have them delivered whenever they need from over 55 stores.How's it working?TriMet is saving $1500 per month per person and if the program is expanded to just half of their paratransit customers they could save $9 million per year.In her conversation with host Paul Comfort, Eileen also talks about her personal connection to paratransit and her vision for what paratransit could and should be. Tune in for this awesome interview with a true trailblazer.And if you'd like to learn more about it, Eileen provided us with a link to all her information and materials about the program. (text link: https://nextcloud.trimet.org/index.php/s/nyTqwgzefiGbNTB)Coming up next week we head to Connecticut and hear from Ben Limmer, Chief of Public Transportation at Connecticut Department of Transportation and learn about their revitalization programs.00:00 Introduction00:59 Our guest: Eileen Collins Turvey02:35 Winning the APTA Innovation Award04:39 The Instacart Program: Concept and Implementation05:59 Challenges and Solutions10:47 Program Impact and Future Prospects13:18 The Broader Vision for Paratransit18:26 Final Thoughts19:44 Coming up next week on Transit UnpluggedTransit Unplugged is brought to you by Modaxo https://www.modaxo.comHost: Paul ComfortProducer: Paul ComfortEditor and Writer: Tris HusseyExecutive Producer: Julie GatesSpecial thanks to:Brand design: Tina OlagundoyeSocial Media: Tatyana MechkarovaMarketing content, Transit Unplugged Newsletter, & transit puns: Tris HusseyIf you have a question or comment, email us at info@transitunplugged.com.Follow us on social media: LinkedIn - Twitter - Threads- Instagram - FacebookSign up for the Transit Unplugged NewsletterDisclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this program are those of the guests, and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of Modaxo Inc., its affiliates or subsidiaries, or any entities they represent (“Modaxo”). This...

Astronaut Eileen Collins and filmmaker Hannah Berryman discuss the new documentary SPACEWOMAN and the thrill of pushing human frontiers

Part 2 of 2: Eileen Collins talks about the pressure she felt to measure up at NASA, becoming the first woman to pilot and command the Space Shuttle, how traveling to space affected her, and the tragic day when Columbia disintegrated on re-entry, killing seven of her colleagues.

Part 1 of 2: Eileen Collins talks about her youthful fascination with flight, the stuttering that dented her confidence, negotiating the road from community-college math major to barrier-shattering U.S. Air Force pilot, and achieving her dream of becoming an astronaut.

Welcome back to another inspiring episode of Passive Income Pilots! In this episode, Tait and Ryan sit with Colonel Eileen Collins, the first woman to command a NASA space shuttle. Colonel Collins shares her incredible journey, from becoming a pilot to breaking barriers in space exploration. She dives into leadership lessons, risk management, and the challenges of balancing family life with her high-flying career. Whether you're an aspiring astronaut, pilot, or leader, this episode is packed with valuable insights and motivational stories that inspire you to aim higher!Colonel Eileen Collins is a retired NASA astronaut and the first woman to command a space shuttle. With over 800 hours in space, she's an aviation and space exploration trailblazer. Throughout her career, Collins broke barriers, serving as a U.S. Air Force test pilot and instructor before flying four space shuttle missions. In this episode, she shares her inspiring story of leadership, determination, and balancing family life with a high-risk career, offering invaluable lessons for anyone looking to reach new heights.

Send us a textWhat if mathematics could be as captivating and enjoyable as a symphony concert? In our latest episode, we promise you'll discover innovative ways to make math not only accessible but genuinely fun for everyone. Join me, Dr. Lisa Hassler, alongside Cindy Lawrence, the inspiring Executive Director and CEO of the National Museum of Mathematics (MoMath), as we explore the vital role of mathematics in our modern world and tackle the concerning decline in math performance among US students.Cindy shares her personal journey from CPA to leading MoMath, revealing how a volunteer opportunity ignited her passion for transforming public perceptions of math through interactive exhibits. Listen to our conversation about how the museum's engaging displays, like the square-wheeled tricycle and MotionScape, make complex concepts like calculus come to life. We discuss the importance of human interaction in teaching math, changing the narrative around the subject, and showcasing how deeply intertwined math is with our daily lives.Looking for ways to bring the joy of math into your home? We've got you covered with creative strategies for parents and educators. From noticing patterns and symmetry in your environment to solving real-world puzzles, we share practical tips to foster a positive math experience. You'll also hear inspiring stories like that of Eileen Collins, the first female commander of a space shuttle mission, who overcame her math struggles to achieve her dreams. Tune in to be inspired and learn how you can make math an exciting and integral part of learning and life.Need math help? Go to MoMath and talk to a mathematician!Support the showPlease subscribe and share this podcast with a friend to spread the good!If you find value to this podcast, consider becoming a supporter with a $3 subscription. Click on the link to join: https://www.buzzsprout.com/2048018/supportTo help this podcast reach others, rate and review on Apple Podcasts! Go to Library, choose The Brighter Side of Education:Research, Innovation and Resources, and scroll down to Reviews. It's just that easy. Thank you!Want to share a story? Email me at lisa@drlisarhassler.com.Visit my website for resources: http://www.drlisarhassler.com The music in this podcast was written and performed by Brandon Picciolini of the Lonesome Family Band. Visit and follow him on Instagram. My publications: America's Embarrassing Reading Crisis: What we learned from COVID, A guide to help educational leaders, teachers, and parents change the game, is available on Amazon, Kindle, and Audible, and iTunes. My Weekly Writing Journal: 15 Weeks of Writing for Primary Grades on Amazon.World of Words: A Middle School Writing Notebook Using...

In July 1999, space shuttle Columbia took to the skies to deliver its heaviest payload ever.

[Launch Control: 25 seconds…] When space shuttle Columbia headed for orbit 25 years ago tomorrow, it made history. It was the first mission commanded by a woman – Air Force pilot Eileen Collins. And it was carrying the heaviest payload ever lofted by a shuttle: Chandra X-Ray Observatory – the largest X-ray telescope ever flown. [Launch Control: 5, 4, 3, we have a go for engine start, zero. We have booster ignition and liftoff of Columbia! Reaching new heights for women and X-ray astronomy.] And Chandra is maintaining those heights – it’s still working. The telescope studies some of the hottest and most energetic objects and events in the universe – exploding stars, outbursts from normal stars, gas around black holes, and much more. Such objects produce much of their energy in the form of X-rays. But Earth’s atmosphere blocks most X-rays, so the only way to study them is from space. Chandra’s orbit carries it more than a third of the way to the Moon. That puts it outside most of Earth’s radiation belts, which can “fog” X-ray images. X-rays go right through a normal telescope mirror. So Chandra uses a set of mirrors along the sides of the telescope tube. X-rays graze off those mirrors and come to a focus at the telescope’s instruments. Chandra is still making history today – by keeping a sharp “eye” on the X-ray sky. Script by Damond Benningfield

Prepare for a lunar odyssey and celestial celebration in today's episode of Astronomy Daily - The Podcast. As we lift off into the vast unknown, we're tracking China's Chang'e 6 probe on its ambitious journey to the dark side of the moon to retrieve precious lunar material. We'll also marvel at the youthful origins of a moonlet orbiting the asteroid Dinkanish, discovered by NASA's Lucy mission. And hold tight as we count down to the launch of Boeing's Starliner, set for a historic crewed flight test that could herald a new era in space travel.Join us as we delve into the explosive beauty of solar flares with a recent X-class eruption that dazzled our solar observatory, and honor the trailblazing legacy of Eileen Collins with a collectible patch celebrating her achievements as the first female spacecraft commander. Plus, we're toasting to Astronauts Day, a tribute to the brave souls who venture into the cosmos, and unveiling the inaugural Astronaut Rockstar Awards.1. **Chang'e 6's Moonlit Mystery**: China's daring mission to the moon's far side.2. **Lucy's Young Moonlet**: Unveiling the age of asteroid companion, Selim.3. **Starliner's Stellar Ascent**: Boeing's crewed test flight to the ISS.4. **Solar Flare Spectacle**: The impact of an X-class eruption on Earth.5. **Commander Collins' Patch**: A symbol of shattered ceilings and space exploration.6. **Astronauts Day & Rockstar Awards**: Celebrating space heroes and their cultural impact.For an immersive experience of the cosmos, visit our website at astronomydaily.io, and join the stargazing community on X (@AstroDailyPod) for continuous updates and celestial conversations. Until our next stellar encounter, this is Steve reminding you to keep your eyes on the skies and your curiosity ever soaring. Clear skies and boundless wonder to all our fellow space enthusiasts!This episode is presented with the support of our cosmic companions at NordPass. Secure your interstellar journey with our special offer by visiting www.bitesz.com/nordpass. Support Astronomy Daily the Podcast and access the commercial-free episodes by checking out our supporter link.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/astronomy-daily-the-podcast--5648921/supportAnd for more Space and Astronomy News, listen to past episodes, check out sponsor links etc...just visit our website at astronomydaily.io

History was made when Col Eileen Collins commanded the Space Shuttle as the first woman commander and she sits with me for this weeks episode to discuss her historic run as a NASA Commander. Col Collins gives her riveting story and promotes her book and up and coming documentary of her life and experience. The honor of having this woman on my show is immense. Listen in for her beautiful trip straight into the history books. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

WITH ALL THE CRAZINESS HAPPENING HERE ON EARTH, RECENT STORIES OF BIG HAPPENINGS IN OUTER SPACE HAVEN'T RECEIVED AS MUCH MEDIA ATTENTION AS THE MIGHT DESERVE. WE SPEAK WITH COL. EILEEN COLLINS, RETIRED NASA ASTRONAUT, THE FIRST FEMALE SHUTTLE COMMANDER AND AUTHOR OF: “THROUGH THE GLASS CEILING TO THE STARS.”

Recorded at the 2023 Northeast Astro Forum, the first woman to command & pilot a U.S. Space Shuttle, Eileen Collins & Author Jonathan Ward discuss their book “Through The Glass Ceiling To The Stars” with many of Eileen's experiences as a Test & Space Shuttle Pilot… and the future of space exploration.

In this interview with Astronaut Pilot Eileen Collins, she talks about her path, from her childhood in Elmira, New York, through community college and ROTC, to Air Force Flight Training, Instructing, a combat mission in Grenada, Stanford, and Test Pilot School, to becoming the first female, and mother, NASA Space Shuttle pilot and mission commander. Thanks so much for listening! Stay up to date on book releases, author events, and Aviatrix Book Club discussion dates with the Literary Aviatrix Newsletter. Visit the Literary Aviatrix website to find over 600 books featuring women in aviation in all genres for all ages. Become a Literary Aviatrix Patron and help amplify the voices of women in aviation. Follow me on social media, join the book club, and find all of the things on the Literary Aviatrix linkt.ree. Blue skies, happy reading, and happy listening!-Liz Booker

Recorded July 23, 2023. Intro Music: Revised Version of "A Piece of Space History", by Andy Poniros. Closing Music: " 2001 Funk", composed by Larry Benigno.   DESCRIPTION:  Recorded at the 2023 Northeast Astro Forum, the first woman to command & pilot a U.S. Space Shuttle, Eileen Collins & Author Jonathan Ward discuss their book "Through The Glass Ceiling To The Stars" with many of Eileen's experiences as a Test & Space Shuttle Pilot... and the future of space exploration.   "Cosmic Perspective Radio" is an Andy Poniros Production.   We've added a new way to donate to 365 Days of Astronomy to support editing, hosting, and production costs.  Just visit: https://www.patreon.com/365DaysOfAstronomy and donate as much as you can! Share the podcast with your friends and send the Patreon link to them too!  Every bit helps! Thank you! ------------------------------------ Do go visit http://www.redbubble.com/people/CosmoQuestX/shop for cool Astronomy Cast and CosmoQuest t-shirts, coffee mugs and other awesomeness! http://cosmoquest.org/Donate This show is made possible through your donations.  Thank you! (Haven't donated? It's not too late! Just click!) ------------------------------------ The 365 Days of Astronomy Podcast is produced by the Planetary Science Institute. http://www.psi.edu Visit us on the web at 365DaysOfAstronomy.org or email us at info@365DaysOfAstronomy.org.

Our guest for today's episode is former NASA Astronaut Colonel Eileen Collins talking about her career trajectory and what she has experienced as an air force pilot and as a NASA astronaut.  Col. Collins has released a new book “Through the Glass Ceiling to the Stars: The Story of the First American Woman to Command a Space Mission” and you can connect with her on LinkedIn. Remember to leave us a 5-star rating and review in your favorite podcast app. Miss an episode? Sign-up for our weekly intelligence roundup, Signals and Space, and you'll never miss a beat. And be sure to follow T-Minus on Twitter and LinkedIn. Audience Survey We want to hear from you! Please complete our 4 question survey. It'll help us get better and deliver you the most mission-critical space intel every day. Want to hear your company in the show? You too can reach the most influential leaders and operators in the industry. Here's our media kit. Contact us at space@n2k.com to request more info. Want to join us for an interview? Please send your pitch to space-editor@n2k.com and include your name, affiliation, and topic proposal. T-Minus is a production of N2K Networks, your source for strategic workforce intelligence. © 2023 N2K Networks, Inc. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week Burke speaks with famous astronaut Eileen Collins. Eileen gained fame after becoming the first American woman to pilot a spacecraft. Today, she's promoting her book, Through the Glass Ceiling to the Stars. Eileen talks about her time at NASA and how she was able to navigate her and her team through difficult times after the Columbia Tragedy. Having a difficult home life as a child, Eileen worked hard and made history. Eileen had a strong career in the United States airforce and became a fierce pilot eventually becoming a flight instructor. The Big Time Talker is sponsored by Speakermatch.com.

Our guest for today's Deep Space episode is former NASA Astronaut Colonel Eileen Collins talking about current human spaceflight launches and future missions to Mars.  Col. Collins has released a new book “Through the Glass Ceiling to the Stars: The Story of the First American Woman to Command a Space Mission” and you can connect with her on LinkedIn. Remember to leave us a 5-star rating and review in your favorite podcast app. Miss an episode? Sign-up for our weekly intelligence roundup, Signals and Space, and you'll never miss a beat. And be sure to follow T-Minus on Twitter and LinkedIn. Audience Survey We want to hear from you! Please complete our 4 question survey. It'll help us get better and deliver you the most mission-critical space intel every day. Want to hear your company in the show? You too can reach the most influential leaders and operators in the industry. Here's our media kit. Contact us at space@n2k.com to request more info. Want to join us for an interview? Please send your pitch to space-editor@n2k.com and include your name, affiliation, and topic proposal. T-Minus is a production of N2K Networks, your source for strategic workforce intelligence. © 2023 N2K Networks, Inc. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We had Col. Eileen Collins on with us. She was the first woman to command and fly the space shuttle. Simon had some pretty fun questions for the Col.!

Hour Two: Col. Eileen Collins, the first woman to pilot the space shuttle, joins Simon to talk all things outer space. Plus, Ethan Blevins, a lawyer with the Pacific Legal Foundation, chats with Simon about a recent DEI lawsuit.

Col. Eileen Collins, the first woman to pilot a space shuttle, joins the show to chat about that and all things space.

Becoming an astronaut now or in the past was and remains a strict and demanding process. One needs 1,000 hours of pilot-in-command time in a jet aircraft, or two years of relevant professional training, along with a master's degree in STEM fields (not all degrees count), or a Ph.D. and test pilot training, etc. This is just to apply, not to mention 20/20 vision and meeting strict anthropometric requirements, before going through years of tough training. Astronauts are, in essence, the best of the best. And since American space work in particular got off the ground both men and women have made an impact in areas where others would simply not succeed. Therefore it is odd that Jeff Bezos is using his Blue Origin New Shepard rocket, actually shaped like a real penis, to shoot his girlfriend, Lauren Sánchez, and a crew of women into a suborbital flight for 15 minutes in the name of ‘women'. Sánchez, who is a trained pilot, will lead the crew, stating: “It's going to be women who are making a difference in the world and who are impactful and have a message to send.” But perhaps Bezos, Sánchez, and corporate media have forgotten about the countless pioneering women from all over the world who have already done what Blue Origin seeks to do as part of what could be just a PR stunt using women as the hook - Bezos, after all, did cheat on his ex-wife. For example, Kalpana Chawla, the first Indian astronaut, with two advanced engineering degrees and a Ph.D. in aerospace engineering, pioneered vertical take-off and landing concepts now being used by… SpaceX and Bezos' Blue Origin. Peggy Whitson holds the record for the most cumulative days in space period at 665. Christina Koch holds the record for the longest extended stay in space for a woman - 328 days. She also participated with Jessica Meir in the first all-female spacewalk. Kate Rubins was the first astronaut period to sequence DNA in space. Eileen Collins earned four degrees in STEM, economics and management while finding time to become a U.S. AF pilot, and eventually become the first woman ever to pilot a space shuttle. She also docked with the Russian space station and facilitated the deployment of the Chandra X-ray Observatory. The first African American woman in space, Mae Jemison, born in 1956 in Alabama went on to earn an engineering degree in her teens, and a doctorate shortly after, before becoming an astronaut and carrying out 44 science experiments in space. Nicole Mann become the first Native woman in space in 2022. Then there is the first American woman in space, Sally Ride, with a Ph.D. in physics and several NASA missions to her name. She also investigated the Challenger disaster and the Columbia crash. The first two women in space, however, were Russian, paving the way for all others: Valentina Tereshkova and Svetlana Savitskaya. Dismissing this inspiring history demeans and degrades and erases women from history.

The grand jury indictment against former President Donald Trump was unsealed in a Manhattan court today as the former president sat in the room while under arrest. New York Supreme Court Judge Juan Merchan, who is poised to preside over the historic alleged hush-money prosecution of former President Donald Trump, warned Trump to refrain from posting on social media, as it could foment civil unrest. Trump posted on his Truth Social account anyway. I was joined by Randy L. Noble to discuss his newest book, Uprising: We Are the Revolution. A Florida grand jury has accused the Biden administration of “facilitating” the trafficking of child refugees after a five-month investigation. In a rare nonpolitical conversation, I was joined by Col. Eileen Collins to discuss her book, Through the Glass Ceiling to the Stars, to discuss the book and the current state of NASA. Tennessee Republicans have moved to expel three Democratic state representatives from the House who joined protesters during their storming of the state capitol building last week.Get your 4Patriots Survival Food Kits before it's too late. Don't forget to use code TAPP to get 10% off your first purchase of 4Patriots Survival Food.Through the Glass Ceiling to the Stars: The Story of the First American Woman to Command a Space Mission Eileen Collins Uprising: We Are the Revolution Beanstox 2nd Skull

The grand jury indictment against former President Donald Trump was unsealed in a Manhattan court today as the former president sat in the room while under arrest. New York Supreme Court Judge Juan Merchan, who is poised to preside over the historic alleged hush-money prosecution of former President Donald Trump, warned Trump to refrain from posting on social media, as it could foment civil unrest. Trump posted on his Truth Social account anyway. I was joined by Randy L. Noble to discuss his newest book, Uprising: We Are the Revolution. A Florida grand jury has accused the Biden administration of “facilitating” the trafficking of child refugees after a five-month investigation. In a rare nonpolitical conversation, I was joined by Col. Eileen Collins to discuss her book, Through the Glass Ceiling to the Stars, to discuss the book and the current state of NASA. Tennessee Republicans have moved to expel three Democratic state representatives from the House who joined protesters during their storming of the state capitol building last week. Get your 4Patriots Survival Food Kits before it's too late. Don't forget to use code TAPP to get 10% off your first purchase of 4Patriots Survival Food. Through the Glass Ceiling to the Stars: The Story of the First American Woman to Command a Space Mission Eileen Collins Uprising: We Are the Revolution Beanstox 2nd Skull

NASA announced the next crew to head to the moon, the first in more than 50 years. Plus, a conversation with retired astronaut Eileen Collins.

Col. Eileen Collins joins Tariq Malik and Rod Pyle on This Week in Space to share her story of becoming the first female shuttle commander. Get her book at https://amzn.to/3mblWMC (affiliate) Full episode at twit.tv/twis55   Host: Tariq Malik Guest: Eileen Collins You can find more about TWiT and subscribe to our podcasts at https://podcasts.twit.tv/ Sponsor: GO.ACILEARNING.COM/TWIT

Col. Eileen Collins joins Tariq Malik and Rod Pyle on This Week in Space to share her story of becoming the first female shuttle commander. Get her book at https://amzn.to/3mblWMC (affiliate) Full episode at twit.tv/twis55   Host: Tariq Malik Guest: Eileen Collins You can find more about TWiT and subscribe to our podcasts at https://podcasts.twit.tv/ Sponsor: GO.ACILEARNING.COM/TWIT

Guest: Col. Eileen M. Collins USAF (Retired)Retired NASA astronaut and United States Air Force (USAF) colonel. A former flight instructor and test pilot, Collins was the first woman to pilot the Space Shuttle and the first to command a Space Shuttle mission.On Linkedin | https://www.linkedin.com/in/eileen-collins-8a582351/Host: Marco Ciappelli, Co-Founder at ITSPmagazine [@ITSPmagazine] and Host of Redefining Society PodcastOn ITSPmagazine | https://www.itspmagazine.com/itspmagazine-podcast-radio-hosts/marco-ciappelli_____________________________This Episode's SponsorsBlackCloak

Col. Eileen Collins was the first woman to pilot the space shuttle and command a NASA mission, but the journey was not easy. She was the second woman to go through the Air Force's test pilot school and was selected as an astronaut in 1990. In 1995 she piloted the shuttle Discovery in a mission to rendezvous with the Russian space station Mir, and in 1999 she commanded the STS-93 mission--the first woman to do so--and STS 114 in 2005, the shuttle's return to flight after the Columbia accident; in all, she flew four shuttle missions. Eileen retired from NASA in 2006 and co-authored "Through the Glass Ceiling to the Stars" with Jonathan Ward. She continues to inspire young women worldwide.  Host: Tariq Malik Guest: Eileen Collins Download or subscribe to this show at https://twit.tv/shows/this-week-in-space. Get episodes ad-free with Club TWiT at https://twit.tv/clubtwit

Col. Eileen Collins was the first woman to pilot the space shuttle and command a NASA mission, but the journey was not easy. She was the second woman to go through the Air Force's test pilot school and was selected as an astronaut in 1990. In 1995 she piloted the shuttle Discovery in a mission to rendezvous with the Russian space station Mir, and in 1999 she commanded the STS-93 mission--the first woman to do so--and STS 114 in 2005, the shuttle's return to flight after the Columbia accident; in all, she flew four shuttle missions. Eileen retired from NASA in 2006 and co-authored "Through the Glass Ceiling to the Stars" with Jonathan Ward. She continues to inspire young women worldwide.  Host: Tariq Malik Guest: Eileen Collins Download or subscribe to this show at https://twit.tv/shows/this-week-in-space. Get episodes ad-free with Club TWiT at https://twit.tv/clubtwit

Col. Eileen Collins was the first woman to pilot the space shuttle and command a NASA mission, but the journey was not easy. She was the second woman to go through the Air Force's test pilot school and was selected as an astronaut in 1990. In 1995 she piloted the shuttle Discovery in a mission to rendezvous with the Russian space station Mir, and in 1999 she commanded the STS-93 mission--the first woman to do so--and STS 114 in 2005, the shuttle's return to flight after the Columbia accident; in all, she flew four shuttle missions. Eileen retired from NASA in 2006 and co-authored "Through the Glass Ceiling to the Stars" with Jonathan Ward. She continues to inspire young women worldwide.  Host: Tariq Malik Guest: Eileen Collins Download or subscribe to this show at https://twit.tv/shows/this-week-in-space. Get episodes ad-free with Club TWiT at https://twit.tv/clubtwit

Legendary retired NASA Astronaut Eileen Collins – former flight instructor, test pilot, the first woman to pilot the Space Shuttle and the first to command a Space Shuttle mission – joins Tavis to discuss her career and accomplishments as we continue to observe trailblazing women during Women's History month. (HOUR 1)

Guest: Col. Eileen M. Collins USAF (Retired)Retired NASA astronaut and United States Air Force (USAF) colonel. A former flight instructor and test pilot, Collins was the first woman to pilot the Space Shuttle and the first to command a Space Shuttle mission.On Linkedin | https://www.linkedin.com/in/eileen-collins-8a582351/Host: Marco Ciappelli, Co-Founder at ITSPmagazine [@ITSPmagazine] and Host of Redefining Society PodcastOn ITSPmagazine | https://www.itspmagazine.com/itspmagazine-podcast-radio-hosts/marco-ciappelli_____________________________This Episode's SponsorsBugcrowd

Space Shuttle Commander Eileen Collins has spent more than 872 hours in space and logged 6,751 hours in the cockpits of 30 different types of aircraft.  In 1995 she became the first woman to pilot a space shuttle and then in 1999, the first woman to command a space shuttle mission.  Eileen joins us as part of our educational partnership with the Distinguished Flying Cross Society. Eileen's father used to take the family to the airport to watch airplanes take off and land. This first inspired her love of flying. “I was afraid to sign up for lessons because I thought they wouldn't want to teach a woman to fly. But they were great.”  When she was in pilot training at Vance Air Force Base, the first cadre of women selected to be astronauts were training there at the same time. She says she was completely accepted in the NASA program and credits the female mission specialists who preceded her.  “We were all in it for the mission and to be the best we could be.” Eileen shares some of the challenges and dangers of space flight. (She says space debris is currently the greatest threat) Eileen was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross for a 1999 mission on the Columbia shuttle. The 2003 Columbia tragedy hit her particularly hard. She was honored to be selected to command the first “return to flight” mission following the Challenger tragedy. We spend some time discussing the future of space flight including NASA's plans to return to the moon in 2024 to start building stations. She strongly believes that the public and private space programs complement each other quite well. Eileen earned her combat stripes flying a C-141 in the invasion of Grenada. TAKEAWAY: “We choose to fly despite the risks. Unless we fly these early missions we will never make it safer.”

Becoming an astronaut now or in the past was and remains a strict and demanding process. One needs 1,000 hours of pilot-in-command time in a jet aircraft, or two years of relevant professional training, along with a master's degree in STEM fields (not all degrees count), or a Ph.D. and test pilot training, etc. This is just to apply, not to mention 20/20 vision and meeting strict anthropometric requirements, before going through years of tough training. Astronauts are, in essence, the best of the best. And since American space work in particular got off the ground both men and women have made an impact in areas where others would simply not succeed. Therefore it is odd that Jeff Bezos is using his Blue Origin New Shepard rocket, actually shaped like a real penis, to shoot his girlfriend, Lauren Sánchez, and a crew of women into a suborbital flight for 15 minutes in the name of ‘women'. Sánchez, who is a trained pilot, will lead the crew, stating: “It's going to be women who are making a difference in the world and who are impactful and have a message to send.” But perhaps Bezos, Sánchez, and corporate media have forgotten about the countless pioneering women from all over the world who have already done what Blue Origin seeks to do as part of what could be just a PR stunt using women as the hook - Bezos, after all, did cheat on his ex-wife. For example, Kalpana Chawla, the first Indian astronaut, with two advanced engineering degrees and a Ph.D. in aerospace engineering, pioneered vertical take-off and landing concepts now being used by… SpaceX and Bezos' Blue Origin. Peggy Whitson holds the record for the most cumulative days in space period at 665. Christina Koch holds the record for the longest extended stay in space for a woman - 328 days. She also participated with Jessica Meir in the first all-female spacewalk. Kate Rubins was the first astronaut period to sequence DNA in space. Eileen Collins earned four degrees in STEM, economics and management while finding time to become a U.S. AF pilot, and eventually become the first woman ever to pilot a space shuttle. She also docked with the Russian space station and facilitated the deployment of the Chandra X-ray Observatory. The first African American woman in space, Mae Jemison, born in 1956 in Alabama went on to earn an engineering degree in her teens, and a doctorate shortly after, before becoming an astronaut and carrying out 44 science experiments in space. Nicole Mann become the first Native woman in space in 2022. Then there is the first American woman in space, Sally Ride, with a Ph.D. in physics and several NASA missions to her name. She also investigated the Challenger disaster and the Columbia crash. The first two women in space, however, were Russian, paving the way for all others: Valentina Tereshkova and Svetlana Savitskaya. Dismissing this inspiring history demeans and degrades and erases women from history.

Guest: Eileen M. Collins, Colonel, USAF, Ret.On LinkedIn | https://www.linkedin.com/in/eileen-collins-8a582351/On Facebook | https://www.facebook.com/ECollinsSpace/Website | http://marklarson.com/eileencollins/one.html______________________Host: Charlie Camarda Ph.DOn ITSPmagazine  

Guest: Eileen M. Collins, Colonel, USAF, Ret.On LinkedIn | https://www.linkedin.com/in/eileen-collins-8a582351/On Facebook | https://www.facebook.com/ECollinsSpace/Website | http://marklarson.com/eileencollins/one.html______________________Host: Charlie Camarda Ph.DOn ITSPmagazine  

Strap in folks, we are going to Space with a very special guest who blazed her own trail, defying the grip of Earth's gravity, and breaking a glass ceiling into the cosmos. Our Guest today is Retired NASA Astronaut Eileen Collins.Col. Collins has lived an amazing life, and though she has retired from the NASA astronaut program, her mission to share her story and inspire the next generation of explorers is far from over. Many of us can only dream of a career like hers - from her achievements as the first woman to command an American space mission and the first to pilot the space shuttle to her early years as one of the Air Force's first female pilots.Eileen is one of those pioneers who forever changed the trajectory of space exploration - this one's going to be cool!Key Takeaways: Eileen Collins was born in 1956 in Elmira, New York. She received a Bachelor of Science degree in mathematics and economics from Syracuse University in 1978. Collins joined the Air Force in 1979 and became a pilot. She was selected for the astronaut program in 1990. Collins made her first trip to space in 1995 as a member of the STS-63 crew. In 1999, Collins became the first woman to command a space shuttle when she led the STS-93 mission. She commanded two more space shuttle missions: STS-114 in 2005 and STS-121 in 2006. Collins retired from NASA and the Air Force in 2006. After her retirement, she worked as a consultant and public speaker. Collins has received numerous awards and honors for her contributions to space exploration, including the Congressional Space Medal of Honor. Support Behind the Wings by making a financial contribution to Wings Over the Rockies Air & Space Museum's Annual Fund! (wingsmuseum.org)References: The official NASA website has a page dedicated to Eileen Collins that provides biographical information, photos, and details about her missions: https://www.nasa.gov/astronauts/biographies/eileen-m-collins/biography The Astronaut Scholarship Foundation has an interview with Collins on their website, where she discusses her career and experiences in space: https://astronautscholarship.org/eileen-collin The National Air and Space Museum has a page about Collins on their website, which includes information about her career and achievements: https://airandspace.si.edu/stories/editorial/eileen-collin The Encyclopedia Britannica has an entry about Collins that provides an overview of her life and career: https://www.britannica.com/biography/Eileen-Collins The Women in Aviation International organization has a profile of Collins on their website, which includes information about her achievements and contributions to the field of aviation: https://www.wai.org/pioneers/eileen-collins

Thanks so much for tuning in to the Pilot Briefing Podcast for the week of SEPTEMBER 19, 2022. In this episode you will learn more about:       Cirrus VisionJet parachute logs first save   Eileen Collins honored with Wright trophy   Unlimited aerobat lands first U.S. dealer   A pilot's guide to autumn colors   Tamarack tackling range, fuel emissions  

What makes one an icon, an idol, an exemplar? What defines our heroes? What does honor and greatness teach us—and why does it matter?Amy Spowart is the president and CEO of the National Aviation Hall of Fame (NAHF), where she has worked for over 20 years. Amy grew up in a rural town in Pennsylvania with dreams of traveling the world. At age 21, she took her first flight, but it was years later when she started working as the Special Projects Officer and Historian for the NAHF that she fell in love with aviation. Amy believes that learning about historical figures encourages the leaders of tomorrow to pursue their passions today. Through the NAHF, Amy shares stories of astronauts and aviators to inspire children and adults alike.   While leading the NAHF, Amy has raised capital, created new programs, grown awareness, and more. Recently the NAHF partnered with PBS for “Discovering Flight,” a curriculum that teaches elementary-age students about aviation and aerospace through STEAM concepts. Amy is passionate about celebrating aerospace and aviation heritage and helping the next generation learn about opportunities in aerospace and aviation.  In this episode, Sylvia and Amy talk about Amy's path to becoming the President and CEO of NAHF, the NAHF's collaboration with PBS and the curriculum rollout, and the 2022 NAHF's inductees. Topics Include:- Stories about pioneers of flight like Bessie Coleman, Eileen Collins, Joe Engles, Jacqueline Cochran, and more.  - Amy's role as CEO of NAHF- Why we all need heroes, children especially - Why history matters for today- How to develop future careers in aviation and aerospace- How to support women in aviation- The future of aviation- Challenges overcoming work/life balance - How sacrifice is necessary for the pursuit of greatness- Accomplishments of 2022 inductees Willa Brown, Margaret Hamilton, Geraldine Mark- And other topics…Amy Spowart is the President and CEO of the National Aviation Hall of Fame (NAHF), where she currently directs the production of Discovering Flight: Learning with the National Aviation Hall of Fame in collaboration with PBS. Amy is a member of the Women in Aviation Advisory Board (WIAAB), she is a 2019 Collier Selection Committee member, and is on the board of directors for the Academic Decathlon of Ohio.  Amy graduated Summa Cum Laude from Wright State University with a double major in History and Classical and Ancient Studies.  Resources Mentioned: National Aviation Hall of Fame: https://www.nationalaviation.org/ NAHF 2022 Inductees: https://www.nationalaviation.org/the-national-aviation-hall-of-fame-reveals-theclass-of-2022/ How to Nominate for NAHF: https://www.nationalaviation.org/nominations/ Women in Aviation International: https://www.wai.org/ Final Flight, Final Fight by Erin Miller: https://www.amazon.com/Final-Flight-Fight-Grandmother-Arlington/dp/1733560602 National Aviation Hall of Fame:https://www.facebook.com/National.Aviation.Hall.of.Famehttps://twitter.com/NAHFhttps://www.linkedin.com/company/national-aviation-hall-of-famehttps://www.instagram.com/nationalaviation/

Recently, Corning Community College Alum, class of 1976, Col. Eileen Collins spoke to a packed audience in the Digital Dome about her memoir Through the Glass Ceiling to the Stars: The Story of the First American Woman to Command a Space Mission,

Robert C. Lawrence and his wife, Carol Ann, were kayaking on an Adirondack lake, watching some loons, when she asked him how the mountain looming over them, Blue Mountain, got its name.Lawrence thought he'd buy a book on Adirondack place names at the Blue Mountain Museum to answer the question. But there was no such book.So he wrote one.He and his wife, both retired teachers, operate as a team, Lawrence says in this week's Enterprise podcast. “We just enjoy life,” he said — traveling cross-country in their camper, gardening, playing with their dachshund who is named Adirondack.“What's with Those Adirondack Mountain Names?” is Lawrence's second book. His first book, “Sailor of the Stars,” takes students through the process of astronaut training — beginning with the application process and ending with a post-mission press conference.Lawrence says, as a child of the sixties, he grew up on the space program, watching every space launch. He was a paperboy for the Watertown Daily Times in northern New York and “read every article on space.”That also inspired him to be a writer, Lawrence said. He wrote for the Space Launch News and once involved his eight most gifted writing students in interviewing and writing about astronaut Eileen Collins and Albany Med doctor Heidi DeBlock, who monitored the hearts of astronauts when they landed at Kennedy Space Center.“I was even able to interview my favorite folk singer,” Lawrence said. Judy Collins had written a song, “Beyond the Sky,” for Commander Collins and her crew before their launch in July 1999.His current book starts with a song written by a friend and fellow teacher, Dale Wade-Keszey: “Marcy was some important guy,” go the lyrics. “But the rest, can you tell me why?”Lawrence, who has retired from his career as a Guilderland teacher, taught fifth grade at three elementary schools — Lynnwood, the old Fort Hunter, and Guilderland — before teaching at Farnsworth Middle School. He's stayed in touch with some of his students and next month is going to the wedding of a former sixth-grader of his.Read the full article at https://altamontenterprise.com/04192022/retired-teacher-educates-others-adirondack-mountain-names See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

On Thursday's Houston Matters: On the anniversary of the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, we reflect on what took place and check in on some of the criminal cases of Texans and Houstonians accused of being involved. And we talk with the producer of the documentary Preserving Democracy: Pursuing a More Perfect Union, which chronicles the history of the democratic system from its origins to the present and addresses political divisiveness and threats to democracy around the world. Also this hour: We learn how the omicron-fueled wave of COVID-19 is affecting Texas nursing homes. And astronaut Eileen Collins reflects on her career. She was the first woman to pilot a space shuttle and the first woman mission commander. She has a new memoir called Through the Glass Ceiling to the Stars.

I had the honor and privilege of a one on one conversation with one of the most accomplished and inspiring female aviators on the planet. She has a new book out and the most interesting story to tell of pulling yourself up by the bootstraps, persevering, and sharing openly to inspire others.All Things Aviation & Aerospace is an aviation career webcast live-streamed weekly to provide its viewers/listeners insight on the variety of opportunities and possibilities in aviation and aerospace. It's host, Vince Mickens, is a long time private pilot who flies frequently for personal and business. His background includes executive roles with the National Business Aviation Association (NBAA), the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA), and the Bob Hoover Legacy Foundation, all after a 28-year broadcast journalism career working in seven major television and radio broadcast markets nationwide.

Eileen Collins is a retired NASA astronaut and United States Air Force colonel. She was the first female pilot and first female commander of a Space Shuttle. Eileen has been recognized by Encyclopædia Britannica as one of the top 300 women in history who have changed the world.  She has been inducted into the National Women's Hall Of Fame and the United States Astronaut Hall of Fame.  Her new book is called Through the Glass Ceiling to the Stars: The Story of the First American Woman to Command a Space Mission.   Some interesting insights from this episode: Her father was an alcoholic and her mother was institutionalized but she didn't let anything from her childhood define her for the rest of her life. She never shared her dream of becoming an astronaut with anyone until she got accepted into the astronaut training program. She didn't feel anyone would be supportive.  It takes a tremendous amount of focus and discipline to fly a jet but she wasn't always wired that way. These are skills that can be learned. When she gets nervous, to calm herself down, she would envision herself not as Eileen Collins but as the Commander of a spaceship. To be a good leader, you have to learn to listen to others and to be humble when you listen to them. People won't respect you as a leader if you're telling others what to do all the time. An investigation into the Space Shuttle Columbia accident revealed that a big contributing factor was NASA's culture. People weren't listening.  People assigned to safety were being intimated and weren't speaking up.  And they weren't thinking creatively.  “Excellence is about knowledge, communicating openly and having high integrity.”   Show Notes Book: Through the Glass Ceiling to the Stars: The Story of the First American Woman to Command a Space Mission

Jesse Ventura and Brigida Santos talk about the arrest and indictment of Christopher Steele's main source, Igor Danchenko, and its implications on the credibility of the Steele Dossier. NASA astronaut and author Eileen Collins talks about the history of women in space.

This week we got to speak to Colonel Eileen Collins and Jonathan Ward as the two of them are releasing a book about the life of Colonel Collins called Through the Glass Ceiling to the Stars - The Story of the First American Women to Command a Space Mission”The book: https://www.skyhorsepublishing.com/arcade-publishing/9781950994052/through-the-glass-ceiling-to-the-stars/Eileen Collins: http://marklarson.com/eileencollins/one.htmlJonathan Ward: https://www.jonathanhward.com/author/Jonathan's other books:Bringing Columbia Home: https://www.skyhorsepublishing.com/arcade-publishing/9781628728514/bringing-columbia-home/Rocket Ranch: https://www.springer.com/gp/book/9783319177885Countdown To A Moon Launch: https://www.springer.com/gp/book/9783319177915#otherversion=9783319177922Full show notes can be found at: https://spaceandthingspodcast.com/podcast/bnmcddpabge6669-2tylp-j3gk9-fk47l-dz7ae-jc6ft-7rn3l-8ew42-jf2mt-yfsp6-6dr7s-9kpx7-3tanj-kc9dj-c599y-4jzkk-xg47y-5had9-bmcjm-7ly9j-bggpx-sy68hShow notes include links to all articles mentioned and full details of our guest, plus videos of any launches.Image Credits: And Things Productions LtdSpace and Things:Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/spaceandthings1Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/spaceandthingspodcastFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/spaceandthingspodcast/Merch and Info: https://www.spaceandthingspodcast.comPatreon: https://www.patreon.com/SpaceandthingsBusiness Enquiries: info@andthingsproductions.comSpace and Things is brought to you And Things Productions https://www.andthingsproductions.comSupport this show http://supporter.acast.com/spaceandthings. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Margaret “Peggy” Dennis Carnahan is retired from the U.S. Air Force and currently a Captain for NetJets. Peggy is a member of the 1980 U.S. Air Force Academy Class, the first to graduate women! She rose to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel, serving as an Air Force Instructor Pilot and Squadron Commander. Her awards include Air Training Command Master Instructor (1985) and Outstanding Young Women of America (1987). Peggy’s impressive bio is included at the end of this article.  Being the first in anything is rarely easy. Each career path comes with its own set of challenges and the Air Force is no exception. Today Peggy is considered a trailblazer for women military aviators, but it almost didn’t come to be. Very early on in her career she began to realize obstacles she would need to overcome if she was going to have any success at all. We’re sharing Peggy’s story with our readers as a testament to what can be achieved if one is willing to break barriers, from within and without.  Peggy, the sixth of seven children, grew up on a farm approximately 60 miles south of Chicago in a small town whose population was less than 3,000. Peggy was named after her grandmother Margaret, who passed away a few months before she was born. Her small town wasn’t big enough to have two “Margarets”, so she was given the nickname “Peggy”. Her father, an engineer and farmer, and her mother, a schoolteacher, set expectations for all of their children to attend college. Peggy’s brother who is five years older went to the Air Force Academy, and her sister, two years older than her, got a full Army ROTC scholarship to Arizona State.  As Peggy was exploring her options, she spoke with the local insurance agent, who was her dad’s high-school friend. He was a Colonel in the Air Force Reserve and a local Liaison Officer. Peggy vividly remembers stopping by to see him on a Friday to pick up a letter of recommendation for an ROTC scholarship. He asked her to look at the Air Force Academy as on option, as President Ford had recently signed a law abolishing the all male tradition in military service academies. The only catch was that she needed to give him an answer by Monday! She was 17 years old, and as one might expect from the forward thinking of a 17 year old, she decided that it would be a good idea. Why not! Besides, she had the thought that mountains are prettier than cornfields! And, one of her male high-school classmates was going to attend as well. She would have an ally, though in reality she rarely saw him.  Peggy struggled throughout her four years at the Air Force Academy, close to quitting several times. Eventually she realized she didn’t think beyond her decision to attend. Where were her four years going to take her? The Academy was challenging because of her mindset and lack of clarity. It took Peggy two years before she developed a mindset of “I want what this will give me; I want to be part of this group; I want these people to be my peers; I want to be one of them”. Today when she speaks with young people who are considering going into the Academy, she encourages them to consider what it will give them, and what their other options don’t, and to be sure that they want it!  When Peggy entered the Academy, she knew she was there because the initiative of having women was mandated by Congress, but hadn’t spent much time thinking about what she wanted from her time spent there – what her future would look like. Flying was not an option when she entered; there were no female pilots at the time. The Air Force was just starting to test that possibility. Looking back, Peggy realized that she was presented with an opportunity, and to fully benefit from this, she had to be willing to want what they had to offer and to get through it!  The whole emphasis in the Academy is teamwork. The basic training premise is to make the individual go away and build cadets back up as a member of a team where they are all the same. Competing against each other is a great way to fail. You can’t get through there by yourself. You do it as a team. You do it as a military unit. You have to take care of your roommate, you have to take care of people in your squadron, and you work together as a team. Because if you try to make it as an individual, you’re not going to make it.  Peggy was in awe with the other women. Coming from a fairly sheltered small town, she didn’t even have girl’s sports in high school until her sophomore or junior year and then they had no uniforms. The girls had to buy their own t-shirts and use masking tape to make numbers to create their own uniforms. Coming from that kind of environment, she met other women who were playing soccer since they were six years old. Peggy was astounded with the other women’s backgrounds and talents. She was surrounded by superstars and found it eye-opening and humbling!  Peggy’s roommate in her upper class years was Gwen Knuckles, the daughter of an Air Force Master Sergeant. She had traveled the world and lived overseas, a very different upbringing from Peggy. But that was not the only difference in the two women. While Peggy continued to struggle, Gwen was excelling and enjoying her time in the Academy. Gwen was bound and determined she was going to medical school. Her focus and positive outlook had a huge influence and impact on Peggy’s own focus and looking ahead to the future, in terms of where she was going and what she was going to do. In Peggy’s words, “She was a lifesaver for me.” In retrospect, Peggy realized that Gwen wanted to be there, did not complain, knew why she was there and where the Academy was going to get her, was clear on what she wanted to do, and more than anything, had a positive attitude. From that point forward, Peggy began looking at the positive side of things, and gravitated towards people with positive energy.  Gwen would go on to medical school and serve as a doctor in the Air Force. Peggy went into the Air Force flight school and began the next phase of her career – pilot training. At the time, there was a pilot shortage and women could officially go to pilot training, it was no longer a test program. There were only 26 women who were pilot qualified in her class, and they were still pretty much considered an oddity! Another factor in Peggy’s decision to go to pilot training was that her older brother did his pilot training five years earlier, and she wanted to show him that she could do it! Once in pilot training, Peggy’s mindset was one of determination and she knew what she had to do. She knew it would require a lot of work, concentration, and studying. And she was determined that if she didn’t make it, it wasn’t going to be for lack of effort on her part! She was not going to fail because she didn’t work hard enough. Positive mindset and focus! Peggy became the dedicated disciplined student she could have been previously, asking herself, “What can I really do?” She made sure she had set study time, sleep time, etc., making sure she did her part to ensure a successful outcome. And, in her words, “It turned out that I was actually kind of good at it and that I enjoyed it!” Peggy realized that the Air Force airplane recognizes talent. It doesn’t care who you are; it just cares about the skills of the pilot that has the controls.  Peggy excelled in pilot training and stayed on as an instructor. The program has changed quite a bit since then with technology and new aircraft. Then, it was a two-phase program where she flew T-37 for about six months and then flew the T-38 twin-engine tandem seat supersonic jet, which is still in use for pilot training.  One of the reasons Peggy wanted to remain as an instructor was because she felt strongly that the military would open up combat aircraft to women. And in 1993 Congress repealed the Combat Exclusion Law, but it took another year for the Air Force to allow women into combat cockpits. By that time, Peggy was considered too close to her retirement for the Air Force to consider her a candidate. Up until that point, the Air Force had severely restricted opportunities for women to have orientation flights in fighter aircraft. Peggy noted that this restriction significantly hampered her ability to counsel future pilots on career choices. When a four-star General visited her base and stated that he wanted more fighter pilots, Peggy asked, “If you want me to convince people to become fighter pilots, why am I not allowed to learn what that entails?” Right then and there, the General turned to the Colonel and said “Make it happen!”  Additionally, when women started looking for other ways to move their careers, Eileen Collins, the first woman to command a space shuttle, was the only female T-38 instructor on Peggy’s base, and Peggy was there!  Greatest Obstacles Peggy’s positive attitude has served her well, through a great career in aviation. One of the biggest obstacles she had to overcome was her own mindset. When she began, she didn’t think she was capable of some things, didn’t think she was good enough, didn’t think she had the potential, and would sell herself short. Additionally, she was raised thinking her options were to become a schoolteacher, nurse, or secretary. Peggy really shifted her trajectory with pilot training, where she decided she was going to put in her full effort and be as good as she could be. She knew she would either make it or not, and that it was up to her. She eliminated the thought that had crossed her mind many times – the thought that she is a woman and shouldn’t be there. Peggy shifted that by telling herself that she had every right to be there; every right to be like the others who were there. If she was not good enough it was not going to be because of her gender. Today, when Peggy looks back she realizes the societal changes and how opportunities have progressed for women. The mindset of women had also changed in how they view themselves, and women still have a ways to go. It takes several generations.  Peggy’s insights and perceptual filter shifts inspire and empower those following in her footsteps. She has trained many cadets and has helped them with their mindset – they are worthy and can be a great contributor to the Air Force, even if they are not the best graduate in their Academy class. She did it, and they can do it too! Peggy would not change a thing from her past experiences. They have all contributed to where she is today, and she is happy where she is.  Peggy’s guiding philosophy: “Stay optimistic; then your eyes stay open to opportunities. You’ll see the positive in the opportunities, and it’s up to you to act on it. You’re the one responsible.” “People can see and feel a positive attitude.” She shared the following from Colin Powell leadership lessons: “Optimism is a force multiplier.”  Peggy overcame obstacles and shifted her mindset to a positive one, and as a result, became a pilot trainer pioneer to pave the path for other women to have an opportunity to fly military aircraft for their country and is considered a “warrior” for women and their advancement. Additionally, because of her positive attitude, she has had incredible opportunities to witness some important events in history, such as the awarding of the Congressional Gold Medal to the Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASP), her mentors. In the course of her military and commercial flying careers, she has had the opportunity to brush shoulders with aviation legends such as General Chuck Yeager, as well as notable persons in the worlds of politics and entertainment.

Colonel Eileen Collins, USAF (Retired) is the first woman to ever command a space mission. She sits down with Greg Kelly to share how her dream of shooting to the stars turned her into not only one of the most accomplished astronauts, but a seasoned politician. Colonel Collins is not afraid of voicing her conservative views, and her belief that the American dream can extend to the Stars and beyond.For more on Colonel Eileen Collins, check out her memoir Through the Glass Ceiling to the Stars (skyhorsepublishing.com).Follow Greg Kelly on: Twitter: https://twitter.com/gregkellyusaInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/gregkellyusa/ Find out more information at:https://gregkellypodcast.com/Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

More from Women's History Month (which we have decided is now going to be all the time) - Bea Arthur, Ann Dunwoody, Eileen Collins, and Elsie Ott. These ladies are true gifts to the world! --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/vixen-vets/support

Ernie Prado was diagnosed with type 1 as a teenager and is now a project engineer at NASA. He has a terrific story and it's not exactly what you'd expect. Ernie wasn't a diabetes superstar who lived a perfect diabetes life all along. We're so grateful he was generous enough to share the real story! This is our first in a new series of "Classic Episodes." In addition to our regular Tuesday episodes, we'll bring you an additional episode like this every Thursday. What’s a classic episode? It’s an interview that aired a long time ago but isn't dated in a way that takes away from the experience. We’ve been around for a while, so there’s a good chance you missed some of these back in 2015 or 2016. Stacey first spoke to Ernie Prado in 2016 and he's now the Project Engineer for something called the Super Guppy. He says it transports outsize spaceflight cargo in support of Artemis which will take the first woman and next man to the moon. Check it out here Check out Stacey's book: The World's Worst Diabetes Mom! Join the Diabetes Connections Facebook Group! Sign up for our newsletter here ----- Use this link to get one free download and one free month of Audible, available to Diabetes Connections listeners! ----- Get the App and listen to Diabetes Connections wherever you go! Click here for iPhone      Click here for Android Episode Transcription: Stacey Simms  0:00 This episode of Diabetes Connections is brought to you by Inside the Breakthrough, a new history of science podcast full of digital stuff with quite a few laughs along the way.   Announcer  0:15 This is Diabetes Connections with Stacey Simms.   Stacey Simms  0:21 Welcome to a Classic episode of Diabetes Connections, something a little new this year. But as always, we aim to educate and inspire by sharing stories of connection with a focus on people who use insulin. I am your host, Stacey Simms, and I am really glad that you are here. So I said something new starting this week in 2021. In addition to our regular Tuesday episodes, I'm going to be bringing you an additional episode like this on Thursdays. So what is a classic episode, it is an interview that has already aired a long time ago, but it is still what we would call evergreen. It's not dated in a way that takes away from listening to it. Now we have a lot of episodes. We've been around for a while. So there is a good chance that you missed some of these interviews back in 2015, or 2016. And these are really interesting, fun people and I wanted to bring their stories to a wider audience. This week, you are going to hear the story of a NASA engineer, a rocket scientist who lives with type one. Ernie Prado has a really great story. But it's not exactly what you would expect. He wasn't a diabetes superstar who lived a perfect diabetes life all along. And I'm really grateful that he was generous enough to share the real story you will hear from Ernie in just a moment. But first, these classic episodes are brought to you by a brand new podcast. And this is pretty cool to have a sponsor who is also a podcast. So let me tell you all about this. This is inside the breakthrough. A new history of science podcast full of Did you know stuff like did you know Henry Ford and Thomas Edison were really good buddies. They even work together on an electric car, and it still failed. Episode One dives into stories including Archimedes yelling Eureka while naked in the streets and Alexander Fleming's discovery of penicillin by accident inside the breakthrough was created by SciMar SciMar is a group of Canadian researchers dedicated to changing the way we detect, treat and even reverse type two diabetes. This show is historical wisdom mixed with modern insight with quite a few laughs along the way. I've listened to it. It's a great show really high production value, great host and great information search for inside the breakthrough anywhere you listen to podcasts and at Diabetes connections.com. It has been almost five years since I first spoke to Ernie. What is he doing now? He is the project engineer for something called the super Guppy. It sounds funny, but this thing is really amazing. I'll put a photo and a story behind it in the Diabetes Connections Facebook group, Ernie tells me it transports outsize spaceflight cargo in support of Artemis, which will take the first woman and next man to the moon. So pretty important job really interesting stuff. And I think as you listen to this interview, you'll see that Ernie is really where he wants to be. Please remember, this podcast is not intended as medical advice. If you have those kinds of questions, please contact your health care provider. So here is my interview with NASA's Ernie Prado from June of 2016. Ernie, thank you so much for making some time to talk to me today. I really appreciate it. Yeah, before we get to the rocket science and NASA and everything that's going on now, take me back to the beginning you were diagnosed with Type One Diabetes at the age of 15. Did you know at that point, that you wanted to have some kind of career with the space program?   Ernie Prado  3:55 Oh, yeah. So my life goal, I guess when I was younger, I was always drawn to space and airplanes. And my mom said, I cry if I didn't watch Star Trek when I was like four. So I wanted to be an astronaut. And before that I wanted to be a fighter pilot and fly f 18. So I was always drawn towards this and my goal was to end up in space.   Stacey Simms  4:18 Well, you were diagnosed, as I said, age 15. The diagnosis was about, let's say 15 years ago, you're you're 29 you're 30   Ernie Prado  4:26 Yeah, it's half half my life now. Yeah. Um,   Stacey Simms  4:31 what did the doctor tell you at that point was that you have type one. And you're never going to do these things that you always wanted to do? Or was it a little bit more kind?   Ernie Prado  4:41 So actually, the past few months, I've been trying to figure out the exact date I was diagnosed just because, you know, I've been reading about folks and a lot of folks have a die of diversity. And I kind of was trying to figure out mine. And I've been thinking about that actually contacted the hospital. And unfortunately, I don't have the records. More, but I don't remember the doctor saying, you know, you're not gonna be able to do a lot of this. I feel like I've encountered more that, you know, outside of maybe the medical community. So I've been lucky enough to take part in a medical study from with FA and utmb about trying to get folks of chronic conditions like diabetes into space through companies like Virgin Galactic, and XCOR. And so I got to go into centrifuge. And that's pretty cool thing for diabetics to do. I did encounter some resistance when I was trying to become a flight controller. And so at the time, I had other projects coming up, so I kind of, you know, let that go to the wayside. But I haven't stopped me from doing most of the things I wanted to do. Maybe a few, but I try to find ways around it and still do them anyway.   Stacey Simms  5:52 Yeah, and I want to talk more about that. I'm just trying to kind of figure out what this was like for teenage you. Because that's a tough time anyway, and to be diagnosed at age 15. When you're hopefully, you know, you're busy with a lot of other things. Do you remember what it was like at that point in your life to make that kind of change?   Ernie Prado  6:10 Yeah, it was really hard, actually. So I came to accept that a lot more about the time I was 18. I was about three years after those first three years were a little bit difficult. Because, unfortunately, and you know, I love my mom to death, but she kind of told me not to talk about my diabetes, and to not let people know I had it. And over the years, I've realized that was a little bit, not probably not the best method to approach it. And so I dealt with it on my own a lot or just with support at home and from my family. You know,   Stacey Simms  6:44 I'm sorry to interrupt. I've heard that from other people that at, it seems like a better idea to try to avoid discrimination, ignorance by kind of just keeping it to yourself, is that maybe what your mother was trying to do?   Ernie Prado  6:59 I think so. And, you know, I think she did with the best intentions. But it was, it was really difficult to not talk about something that I considered So in general, about myself, because it was kind of thrust on me and said, hey, you're earning now you're diabetic, and, you know, it was through no fault of my own, it just happened. So it would be the same thing, as you know, having like a really strong interest in you know, like space, I wouldn't be able to hide that. I didn't want to hide the fact that I was out back. When I got to college, I started telling everybody and you know, I've continued that. But it was difficult, you know, to try to explain why I wasn't eating certain things around my friends, or why couldn't go out sometimes, or why I had to stop playing football and wrestling and all that. So it was a, I'd say it was a pretty good difficult time in my teenage years.   Stacey Simms  7:49 And you had to stop playing sports was that because of I'm gonna just guess, because your mom was not comfortable? Or was it something that happened?   Ernie Prado  7:57 Yeah, partly that. And my first doctor, I think, you know, in the abundance of caution said, you know, you might want to take it off for a little bit and learn about your diabetes and how to manage it. And it might have been understood as he shouldn't be playing sports anymore. But depressing. Yeah.   Stacey Simms  8:18 Well, okay, so you get to college. You're you. You're telling everybody you have diabetes, what you study in college, were you now going ahead with the engineering with the career in space program?   Ernie Prado  8:31 Yeah, absolutely. So when I got to college, actually declared my major before getting except for as soon as I got accepted, I believe. And I chose to pursue a double major in aeronautical sciences and engineering, and then mechanical engineering. Because I figured, you know, if maybe right now, I can't fly, or do what I want. I'm going to get involved somehow at NASA. And luckily enough, it ended working out. And I kept my majors throughout. And I tried to add a minor and do some pre med stuff, but I ran out of time and money, so I didn't get that.   Stacey Simms  9:03 And were you able to go to work for NASA right away? Where'd you go to work? Um,   Ernie Prado  9:08 so yeah, I was very fortunate. I began working at NASA as a co op at the age of 20. So it was my sophomore year in college, and I've been here since. So it's been about eight and a half a while on this cluster nine years. I've been out here. And so full time for about a little over five years now, though, for the first few years, I went between school and working here at Johnson Space Center. And I think in total of my college time was about a year and a half out here. So I really got my degrees in about three and a half years. Although I was in Davis for five years.   Stacey Simms  9:39 What was it like? And maybe this moment happened when you were as you said, you were 20 and you went to work there but you're still in college, or maybe it happened after? What was it like when you walked into NASA and realized I am going to be here, at least in this capacity.   Ernie Prado  9:55 So I'm kind of smiling like I believe right now. Remember that first day I mean, I'd never been to Johnson Space Center before, you know, being hired here. I've been at Kennedy Space Center with my dad, that was my graduation gift from high school, he took me there and in his big truck, and we tried to see a launch of, I believe, is STS 114, which was returned to fly and Stephen Robinson was going to launch that mission, which he was an Aggie from UC Davis. And that's where I was going to school. Then hurricane Ernesto roll through, me and my dad are both named Ernesto, and it hit a lightning tower. So they delayed the launch, and I didn't get to see it. But then, you know, a few years down the road, showing up here and saying, Man, I'm walking the same like ground, the astronauts have walked in flight controllers, and all these people in history. It was this really cool sense of I can't believe it. And I still kind of get that pretty often. It's a really cool job.   Stacey Simms  10:55 It's so amazing when you get to do the things you've always wanted to do. That's a great story. I love hearing that. I was reading an article that the writer and author Moira McCarthy wrote about you more has been on the show a couple of times already. And she talked about I guess you told her, there was a point at which you realize that, you know, diabetes was something that you needed to kind of pay more attention to, during your time at NASA. Can you tell me a little bit about that?   Ernie Prado  11:29 Yeah, so I guess that happened. Because I was working at the NBL, which is the Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory. It's our big environment for it was a gigantic pool, 6.2 million gallons. And it's the environment where we train astronauts at a spacewalk. Typically, if you're a co-op, in that building, you as a guest, at the end of your rotation, you get to dive in this big pool, which has a mock up of the space station in it. So it's this amazing, cool, cool thing to do. And my A1C was at 13.9. so incredibly high. I wasn't taking care of myself, just because I was stressed at school and more focused on getting good grades and kind of in a, I knew I had to diabetes, and I couldn't get rid of it. But I guess, and even though I told people, I wasn't accepting it, so my mindset was, well, you know, if I don't think about it, I don't have to deal with it. And that was a very poor mindset to have. So once they told me, Well, you know, your sugar is not controlled, you're not gonna be able to dive in this pool. I was, it was kind of a wake up call. And I was going to Well, that's a real bummer, because I don't know if I'll ever get to be here again. Or if I have this opportunity again. And so unfortunately, I didn't get to dive in the pool. But I had a very cool boss, he said, Well, you're still scuba certified. And although the medical folks won't sign off on you to do this, you can still snorkel the pool. So that's exactly what I did. I had my snorkel and I got to go about six feet deep in a 40 foot deep pool, I would have loved to sit on the floor and have my UC Davis flag. But, you know, I still got to hover above the mockups of the Space Station. And actually, there was two astronauts in there when I dove, I think it was Lincoln and Patrick, from STS 130. And I got to see them practicing for their spacewalk that they would do. And then later on, when I was back at school, I got to see them through the spacewalk in space, and I was going, I got to be in that tank with them. So I got I still got to experience it, luckily. But that was the point where not taking care of myself almost hindered something really cool that I could have done.   Stacey Simms  13:29 Okay, so I have a dumb question for you. They learn to spacewalk or they practice spacewalk in in a pool.   Ernie Prado  13:35 Yeah, so it's interesting, you want to think that you learn how to do space walking in a pool. When you're in orbit, you're in microgravity. And you're basically falling at the same rate as gravity, so you kind of just float. And so what the pools can simulate is the weightlessness. What it doesn't simulate is the resistance to movement. So in space, there is no atmosphere. So you can move very easily with very low friction. In comparison to work in a tank, you know, full of water, you have a lot of friction, when you try to move, it's kind of like when you extend your arm and try to swim in the pool. It's very difficult to do. So you can't simulate that, but the weightlessness portion you can. And they do that by attaching weights or foam on to the spaces that are in the pool, and you become neutrally buoyant, hence the name of the laboratory. So you don't sink in, you don't float just kind of hover there in one space and water. And so you actually can't even swim. If you can translate along the mock up or along the space station mock up with the hand rails on like you would on orbit. But if you need to go from one location to another, and you don't have anything to grab onto divers have to come and move you.   Stacey Simms  14:40 Wow. That's amazing. What made you decide Do you remember when you were younger? You said earlier your mom said you got upset if you couldn't watch Star Trek at age four. Okay, first of all next generation or original Star Trek? Very important question,   Ernie Prado  14:55 I believe, I think next generation but I like them all. Now. And when they come on, I will watch them. So I'm a big fan. Anything space related? And I'm in love with.   Stacey Simms  15:07 It's funny but but what would you remember what got you really excited about it as a kid? Was there anything you can think back on and say that, you know, you just really wanted to go into space? We were fascinated by the planets. I'm always curious what, what sparks a passion in someone?   Ernie Prado  15:23 So I feel like that's the hardest question to ask. And it's typically one of the ones that is asked, because it is an interesting thing. But you know, and you always hear the folk folk say, I just got the space bug, and it's kind of like this thing that just happens. So I do remember loving planets, loading stars, loving spaceships, is kind of everything about that. I'm not sure exactly what did I just think I was fascinated. There's one moment that kind of stands out to me, that was pretty neat. And it was this. eight and a half by 11, kind of photo of the first few shuttle astronauts are john young and Bob Crippen, and they were in their orange pumpkin suits. And I just remember looking at that, you know, at the time, I drew on the back and wrote my name, and like pink highlighter, and going, Wow, these folks are really cool. They get to go into space. And it didn't really dawn on me just how cool their job was, for some reason that picture always stands out in my mind. And then, you know, at 21, about a year after I started working here, I actually got to meet john young and shake his hand. Oh, wow. And, you know, so he was the commander of the first shuttle flight. But he also flew in Gemini, and then Apollo and he walked on the moon. So I shook the hand of a Moonwalker. And then that kind of like, is what threw me back to that memory of that of that picture going, whoa, that's really cool. And, you know, I think my dad probably has something to do with it, because he was in love with the shuttle program. And he told me about, you know, driving loads in his truck over to, I think, Edwards Air Force Base and Palmdale when they were building enterprise, which was tested shuttle for kind of clarity, and never flew into space. But it did the approach and landing test, and he has pictures of it, you know, back before the real shuttle ever flew. And then I remember asking him, did you ever think you'd have a kid that worked for NASA? And he said, No. Probably some of his interest rubbed off on me.   Stacey Simms  17:15 That's great. You mentioned earlier, a couple of things I wanted to go through. You mentioned that you were in a centrifuge. Yeah. Tell me about that. What was that was that for testing. And I mean, that's just that's one of my nightmares, to be honest with you. So tell me all about that.   Ernie Prado  17:30 So that was a really awesome experience that happened about three years ago, the commercial space tourism industry is starting to come up, it's still very young, but they need to do your research on how a more average person will fare in the environment of elevated g loads and weightlessness. And so they need to gather data right now, you know, most of the folks that go up into space are I consider them superhuman, these people can take all kinds of abuse, and they're in peak physical health. But that's not everybody that would be interested in going in space. So as they start to open up this market, folks have back problem and lung issues and diabetes and heart problems. They want to understand how they will react to the forces and weightlessness and the stresses that it puts on their body. So one of my friends sent me a link that was saying that, you know, recruiting folks with these kind of conditions, to see how they will fare and I was like, amen. So I went and applied. And before even getting selected, they said, these are the weekends that you would come Are you available, I went and bought my tickets, before I was even approved. And so I showed up to the doctor for my physical, and he goes, Okay, well, you're good to go. And I said, often he goes, what we can do on goal is, like, already bought tickets, and the doctor just looked at me incredulously and goes, what you didn't know, you'd be if you'd be approved? And I said, Well, I love Southwest, because you can still use those funds towards another flight. He goes, Okay, well, you get to go on that weekend. So I flew out to Pennsylvania, and it was the NASCAR facility. And this is like, a really incredible facility where they train pilots, you know, how to survive these incredible maneuvers that they perform, and jet aircraft and, you know, folks that are hoping to go to space and just training for a variety of things that includes stresses on the body. So they stuck me in this centrifuge. And I had another participant there with me, who was a former F15 pilot, which is just the coolest thing ever. And they subjected us to the flight profile of the XCore link and the Virgin Galactic spaceship two, or one I believe at the time. And so I think I peaked at about seven and a half G's for about 15 seconds or so. But you went through the profiles and got to see how it would be the experience of spaceflight. And so they put you through the asset and the decent, not so much the weightlessness portion, but it's very interesting to see just how much it affects you. My sugar levels were good, but I was so tired because you have to flex your entire body to prevent from blacking out and there's specialized breathing techniques to keep kind of pressure in the lungs and just to maintain how Consciousness. So luckily, I had a very experienced person there with me who taught me, you know, this is how you how you hold your breath, or this is how you flex all your muscles at once. And I did, they seem to think that I did very well. And it was a really cool enjoyable experience, and a video of it and pictures and probably something that I'll never forget, I was just so neat.   Stacey Simms  20:19 Were they very interested in your blood sugar particularly did they measure that throughout?   Ernie Prado  20:24 So I measured it before and after, you know, a few times during the day. I didn't have my CGM at the time, I didn't have it available to me. But I wasn't worrying because the needle kind of hurt a bit. It was one of the older ones, just painful. So I kind of was avoiding it. So I did the finger pricks. And yeah, my sugar levels maintained pretty well, they said, you know, keep a little bit higher than normal. So that way you don't tank and so I think I was staying around like the 170s or so. But it didn't affect me at all. And I think I was playing around going that this was the first instance of an insulin pump going through that kind of G load. And it probably should have told because   Stacey Simms  21:00 that was my next question. Did you do you worry your pump during   Ernie Prado  21:03 this? Yeah. And I didn't capitalize on it.   Stacey Simms  21:07 What kind of pump? Do you Where did you were at the time.   Ernie Prado  21:10 So at the time, I was wearing my Medtronic, and I think it was the 720 paradigm. And it performed pretty well. I mean, I still have the same pump right now it's lying on my counter, because I’ve switched to a Tslim. But it's survived it just fine. And it performed perfectly after that. And apparently during. So that actually would probably would have provided some really cool data to that team. And I just didn't make the connection at the time, unfortunately.   Stacey Simms  21:39 Well, you had other things to think about. And it's interesting that they didn't ask I mean, that's, you know, that's just one of those things where they're, they're studying people with diabetes. You know, I would assume they looked at all of that, but the upshot was that you were just pretty much really worn out.   Ernie Prado  21:51 Yeah, I was, it was, I was surprised how tired it was. Because I think throughout the it was two days, and I think throughout each day, maybe 15 to 30 minutes of that day, we're you know, the elevated g loads. And I went home and or to my hotel, and I just asked all those exhausted because you don't realize it but you're working out every single muscle in your body for that short timeframe. And it actually takes a lot of energy others. And you know, Bobby, the guys that said that you eventually get used to it, you know, once you're fighting jet, and you were a GC to help put pressure on your body, and it helps do some of that work for you. But we didn't have any of that equipment.   Stacey Simms  22:31 You talked very early on in the interview about flying about I think you said flying F18s. Is that something that you would like to be doing? Or is that something that you have done?   Ernie Prado  22:40 I've never gotten to fly an F18. So that's a military jet that the Navy uses, you know, as one of their fleet. And so that's like a dream of mine still at this point. But you know, I mean, even any other military jet would be incredible.   Stacey Simms  22:58 Do you fly? I mean, I dumb question. Are you do you have a pilot's license? Do you fly at all?   Ernie Prado  23:03 I don't. I've gotten some stick time before on several. What are they called? The word is escaping   Stacey Simms  23:12 like a simulator.   Ernie Prado  23:14 And then I've flown simulators I've even flown the shuttle simulator. That was a lot of fun. But, like so in college, or the stick time on a Cessna 152 or 172. So they're single engine, you know, planes basically. And so they're they're not advanced, like, you know, the jets that fly like that. So I've gotten to do that. I am fortunate cam and gotten a pilot's license just because a it's really expensive. It's several $1,000 that I just haven't had to put towards that. But eventually, I'd love to do it. You can get a a pilot's license, private pilot's license, there we go. That's what I was looking for. As a diabetic, you just have to show good control of your blood sugar for about six months prior and maintain that. So you can pass the class to physical. And you can also get I believe in experimental pilot's license, but you can't make money from flying as a diabetic, at least that I know of as a type one, because they're concerned with the liability of. And I believe the terms were subtle incapacitation, and sudden incapacitation. And if you have cargo or humans, you know that you're responsible for the really big risk. And so that's my understanding of why you can't do that. And same reason for the military, because then you'd be putting other folks at risk if you know if something happens to you.   Stacey Simms  24:32 And in what context, though, and I apologize because I wrote down, F18 that I don't remember we were talking about trying to get more good people with diabetes to be able to fly more.   Ernie Prado  24:44 Oh, so definitely F18 is just one of the planes that I really love the beautiful they're so over powerful and they're just, they're sleek, and they're so cool until the Navy flies over them on carriers, you know, and actually have a buddy or two that flying is just kind of jealous. But no. So as far as I know, you probably would not have a type one diabetic find those, especially, you know, they're just not available in the civilian world. And since we can't join the military at the moment, and probably for the foreseeable future, there's, you can probably fly backseat, you know, as a passenger, but not as the pilot. But you know, I do, there's apparently a stunt pilot that does fly, you know, his personal aircraft at AIR shows. And he performs some really amazing stunts. So we can fly is just, it's a limited set of aircraft.   Stacey Simms  25:36 And you want to be a flight controller, you said, what is what is that job is that one of the guys that sits where we see the movies, you know, see the Apollo movies, they're sitting in the, in the back home on the front of the computer? What is that?   Ernie Prado  25:49 Yeah, so that's kind of the image that's conjured up when flight controller is talking to. So we have, so shuttle, and ISS and Apollo and Mercury and Gemini, they've all had flight controllers. And basically, if I controller that helps monitor the systems onboard spacecraft, make sure that everything is going fine for the crew members try to keep them safe, address real time problem. So it's a whole host of responsibilities. And so there's an entire team that does this, and it's going 24 seven, so there's always somebody monitoring the spacecraft, and it's fine. And there's Capcom, which talks to the crew, there's a flight director who's responsible for the mission. One of the disciplines that I can talk about is also which is operations support officer. And that's the group that I was in. They are responsible for mechanisms, maintenance, and things of that nature. There's then there's other groups such as Prop, which is propulsion. And so they all have different responsibilities. And but yeah, so those folks have, you know, responsibility over the crew safety, and, you know, to help them perform science, when they're in space, and just help maintain that aircraft or spacecraft. And one of the terms that they use to describe a flight controller is a steely eyed missile man. And it's a throwback back to the early days of flight when we actually put astronauts on modified ICBMs and shove them up into space. So, yeah, I was trying to do that. I was working halftime in that group and halftime at the space vehicle mock up facility, which is where I still work now. That's where we train astronauts for the inside of the space station, and I had a big project coming up. And at the same time, I was trying to see if I could become flight controller. And I encountered some resistance from the medical side, because they were concerned about, you know, my ability to handle the stresses. And so I did have support from upper management saying that if I had the technical knowledge and know how and competent that they would support me in trying to still become flight controller. But Tom had this really cool project to create the note three mock up, that was, you know, had a large budget, and it was high visibility and a long term schedule. So I kind of gravitated towards that. And it was really cool, because it culminated in me getting to brief the ISS program manager on this mock up, bill for the ability, and I never thought I get the, you know, speak to a person like that. So that was very cool for a person that only been around as a full timer for about two years.   Stacey Simms  28:31 Yeah, and that sounds pretty amazing. This is kind of a silly question. But it's in my head after I mentioned the Apollo 13. In the movies, we watch movies like that, can you walk, can you watch movies like that? I can,   Ernie Prado  28:42 and I enjoy them. And so actually, this is this one's pretty cool. And we saw the co op, you get to do a lot of neat things, visit the historical sites and talk to historical people are influential people. So we actually watched Apollo 13, in the Mission Control Room where Apollo 13 was controlled. Wow, that was one of the coolest things that I've done. And I took a picture of the console that I was sitting at, and that same wall, a replica of that console was in the movie on the screen. And so I was showing both of them on one picture, and I was going, this is cool. One thing that I tend to do is point out the errors about that, and my friends are like just enjoy the movie. But it's it's kind of fun. And it's a little bit of the you know, the nitpick Enos of actually what's going on and that's wrong, this is wrong. But the the movies are good at inspire folks, and they get them interested in space. And be there just enjoyable, you know, it's what got me interested in it in the first place. And without that, you know, you wouldn't interest other folks. So like, for instance, gravity, that movie was just beautifully done with the cinematography. I mean, it's just incredible. And it sucks you in but there was a few technical details or are lovable and that's not quite right. Right. But overall, they're really I love watching them.   Stacey Simms  30:03 That's great. You know, and when we think about the space program, and you've mentioned Gemini and Apollo in the beginning of the space shuttle, and that's when I was a kid, the space shuttle was what was new, and it was so exciting. And it seemed like a few years ago, that Americans might not be that excited about space anymore. You know, the funding was going down, and people weren't talking about it. And then you have things like Scott Kelly's year in space that he just returned from where he was tweeting all these pictures out and getting people interested again, and we have, you know, the the interest in Mars and different projects. Do you feel like it's on an upswing again?   Ernie Prado  30:35 Oh, yeah, definitely. And that's such a heartening thing. So I was lucky and got to work a little bit during the time of shuttle that got the Washington Actually, this is a really cool experience that I just remembered right now, because you were talking about how you were around, you know, during the beginning of shuttle in 1981, which is the first launch. And if you haven't heard the video, or seen the music video, actually, countdown by rush, I highly suggest it for anybody. They attended the first launch of the shuttle Columbia, and they put together this just amazing video that kind of makes my hair stand on that when I watch it, because it's just so cool. And it's like, it's just really powerful. And I got to watch the last shuttle launch, not in person to hear Johnson Space Center and Sony Williams, who's an astronaut was right there, kind of next to me and a few other folks. And you know, she was an astronaut that has flown on the shuttle, and it was just kind of really cool to see her emotions for the final flight of the program, when it was closed out. So that was that was a cool experience. And seeing the the, I guess, resurgence or like the increasing enthusiasm about what we're doing is just so cool. And, you know, we can go out and advertise for ourselves, we really just kind of rely on the science that we put out to benefit, you know, every day portions of our lives. And spin off that influence people. So you know, a lot of folks on being NASA influences them, or their lives. But you know, a lot of the technology that's around it has some that NASA influence. And so you know, movies like The Martian, and the mission that we just did with Scott Kelly are so cool, and so, so essential to keep folks interested in what we're doing. So it really does, it makes you feel proud of the work that you do and makes you want to do it better. Because really everything we do is for the benefit of our country and just afford, you know, knowledge for humanity. And that's, that's our entire mission is to learn about where we are and what's out in the cosmos. And it's really great to see people, you know, start to feel great about that.   Stacey Simms  32:49 And when you talk about the things that come from the space program that are relatable, I mean, you know, it's kind of jokey like oh, Tang, but you know, all the things that we use in everyday life didn't the insulin pump wasn't that developed, I thought I read a while ago, that part of it was developed because of NASA.   Ernie Prado  33:07 So I'm gonna have to check my history on that, because I'm not exactly sure exactly how we have impacted that. But if you look at some of the broader history, not just insulin pumps, integrated circuits were influenced by, you know, NASA engineers and advancements in technology. And, you know, coding and signals and mechanics and all sorts of things. So in a broad way, I'm sure it was benefited Somehow,   Stacey Simms  33:36 I just, we took a tour of the we took a tour a couple years ago of the Kennedy Space Center. And I remember them saying that because we all went What? So I'll look that up. I'll fact check that before we put that Yeah,   Ernie Prado  33:48 I'd be very interested in learning more about that. That would be so cool. And I can't believe I haven't looked into it already. If I taught you something, I'd be so excited that you did   Stacey Simms  33:59 and say, Oh, you know, talk to a rocket scientist. Didn't know something I knew. But let's get back to diabetes. When if we could. How are you doing now? I mean, you mentioned you struggled when you were in college and as a young adult, are you? Do you feel like you have incorporated more into your everyday life? You do? Okay.   Ernie Prado  34:19 Yeah. So I actually, as soon as you asked that, I looked at my pump, and I'm currently at 119. And I've been in my perfect range here for see at least three hours, six hours, 12 hours ago had a little blip above 224 hours, I had a little blip about 250. So I'm doing pretty good. You   Stacey Simms  34:36 were nervous. You were nervous about talking to me. Oh,   Ernie Prado  34:39 not at all. I do manage it a lot better. My A1C is not perfect. It's not eight right now. My goal is to get it down to those 7.5. But you know, using the CGM and you know, actually, you know, checking my my sugar with pricking my finger, you know, four to five times a day. It does help. Sometimes it can be hard to get the point Five times, or five times to check it in one day, but you know, I try to make it a priority as it should be. And really not try to brush it off at all, you know, I'll be fine, because it really does have a huge impact on my life and so levina looking to do is get back to work and out if you went back out about a year ago, and it kind of delayed me in that process. So I've started to start to do that a little bit more. So that's helping, and, you know, trying to eat better, has also helped. And, you know, I, I don't really drink a lot of alcohol, which, you know, also does help keep the numbers controlled, though I'm doing much better than it was in college. Because there was one point where I didn't check my sugar for four months. And when I think about that, now I'm going What in the world was I thinking?   Unknown Speaker  35:51 Yeah, well, you know, I and   Stacey Simms  35:53 I asked that question not, and I appreciate you sharing numbers. And I always feel really nosy when that happens, but but it just sounds to me like somehow you've gotten from that college kid who didn't want to check it. All right. And I appreciate you saying that, too. Because that's reality that happens to somebody who's now really accepted this and and doing your best was what you got?   Ernie Prado  36:14 Yeah. And, you know, I figured it's not going anywhere. Am I still frustrated about it? And sometimes wonder, you know why this happened, of course. But, you know, I'm trying, you look at the positive aspect of it. And so actually, you know, like Sarah Sanders, and I had, luckily had a chance to meet her. And I read her book and talk to her about it. And her view on it was just so positive. And just, you know, a woman make the best of this, that it had a huge impact on me. And you know, I've been more accepting of it. In the past few years, I remember when I first got my pump I was all excited about us showed everybody. So being in control of it also helped me be a lot more accepting of it. You know, when it was my numbers were out of range. I didn't want to think about it. And I didn't want to talk and advocate and teach people but I was just like, kind of burned out. So it's actually kind of like this cyclical thing where the better control you take of it, the more accepting you are, and the more you want to educate and get, hopefully, influence other people that have to do the same. And I'm not sure exactly how that works. It seems to be a strange tie. But yeah, I just, you know, I probably talked too much about it now. I think, folks, okay, or you get it, but yeah, I think it's great. Yeah,   Stacey Simms  37:34 I just jump in and say for now, I should jump in and say Sierra Sandison, if you're not familiar with her is of course, Miss Idaho. She were insulin pump in the Miss America Pageant. I think it was two years ago, starting the show me your pump, social media movement, how did you meet her?   Ernie Prado  37:50 So she came down to the ADA convention in Houston. And, you know, I'd heard about her a few years ago, because of why she did wearing the pump on her, on her on her body when she was getting the pageant, and I was just thinking, that is so cool. You know, she's old enough, or, you know, being proud of, of being diabetic. And I guess I hadn't ever thought of it in that perspective. And I was just like, you know, I really kind of admire that that's so cool that she's, and you know, just a response how parents are like, you know, you help my kid feel like that it's okay to be diabetic. And thinking back to the early days, and I had it and where I was told kind of young, just don't talk about it. It was it was really just a nice feeling. That's good to have that kind of inspiration for other folks. And so I said, Well, I will buy your book, read it. I'm a little hyper sided. I want to talk to her just because she seems really cool. And so I talked to her for probably God, who knows half hour at least. And so we ended up being, you know, friends on Twitter, and all that stuff. And so she's been, you know, a really cool person to know. And, you know, just somebody that I kind of look up to just for being such a role model for diabetics, and raising advocacy for it and all that.   Stacey Simms  39:09 That's fantastic. I love hearing that. And we talked to Sierra last year on the podcast, and she's just, she's just terrific. And she's also you know, she's this it will see in her words, I think she's like a real math and science geek too. She's really cool that way.   Ernie Prado  39:24 Yeah, I think she's actually chosen to pursue engineering, which I was just like, Oh, that's awesome. Yeah. If you ever need any help with with yourself or college, let me know. Because, like, I mean, you know, you got the common thing of diabetes that then you know, whenever I meet an engineer, I'm like, Hey, cool, you know, the pain in college, you've been through it. So I always like to encourage more engineers and get them into the into the STEM fields just you know, cuz we need that talent. And it's really cool to see folks be passionate about the stuff that dorks like, like myself, you know, like math and science, chemistry and all that. So Yo, it's awesome. We need more dorks.   Stacey Simms  40:03 All right, so what's next for you? What's next for you at NASA? What are you doing now? Where would you like to be in a few years?   Ernie Prado  40:11 So that's always kind of a hard question for me to answer.   Stacey Simms  40:15 I feel like it's a job interview. I didn't mean to phrase it like, yeah,   Ernie Prado  40:17 oh, no, it's okay. It's the way I think of it. I'm the type of person that kind of sets a goal. I don't know how in the world, I'm going to get there. But somehow I tried to chart my path. And so it seemed to work out in several instances for me, so I keep taking that approach. Currently, I'm a market manager, project manager at the svms. And so I lead technical projects to build mock ups, improve them, upgrade them to approve engineering activities and training activities, I lead with outside companies, other centers, divisions, and directorates. So it's kind of this big catch, catch all integration job. And I get to meet a lot of cool, interesting people and, you know, still get to use my technical background for projects, but also get to learn about the management side of the house. So you know, dealing with budgets, and, you know, managing a project. So that was something I didn't learn in school, and it's a cool skill to learn.   And, you know, the first few years, it was a trial by fire because I had no idea what I was doing, I was in the technical background. So currently, I've been involved in an agency project about how to apply models, a systems engineering, to the projects that we're doing. And it's an approach that kind of takes a consolidated view of projects, including cost development, schedule, requirements, activities, you name it, everything goes into one single source of truth. So that that's a neat project. And it will be reported to the agency headquarters here, by the end of the year, I really don't know where I see myself at though, I know, I'd like to continue here. And just keep being involved. And, you know, giving my small contribution to, to what I think is man's greatest mankind's greatest endeavor, you know, it's just an honor to be here and contribute to something. So I think scran and you're working amongst these, you know, so many folks that have a passion for what we do, and just they're so bright and talented. And, you know, I consider myself an average person here at you know, because there's so many bright folks out here. So, like I said, it's a hard question, eventually, if I can try to fly some knowledge base on down, and I will try to do that. I can. That's one of my goals. Right now. I don't know how it's gonna be achieved. But you know, I'm gonna work towards it. Yeah.   Stacey Simms  42:37 Let me ask you one more diabetes question. Ah, there are a phrase this, what would you say to somebody, maybe a 15 year old kid, maybe somebody older who's diagnosed with type one and is told, I'm sorry, but the dream you had, is not going to work out? At least not now. You are so positive about things. I'm curious, you know, how do you get past that? And what would you advise somebody else to think about if they're told, I'm sorry, but you just can't,   Ernie Prado  43:04 because of diabetes. So I'd say you know, at first, it's a little bit of a blow. Because some, it's something that's out of your control. So one of my friends who's a pilot said, you know, you'd be a shoo in, in the Air Force to be a pilot, because of your technical background, it sucks that you can't do it, because you're diabetic. And I was just like, I remember going. That's depressing. Um, but, you know, there, I think there are realistically some things that we probably can't do. And realistically, there's others that, you know, we're just told we can't, but we absolutely can. And so I would say, you know, fight an uphill battle, don't give up and try every single Avenue available, to try to do what you want to do. Because more than likely, there will be a way that you can find, and without folks, you know, kind of Blazing those trails. It's not going to happen. And, you know, I know, it's not the same thing. But going back to 1980, there were only male astronauts, and they used to tell women, you know, don't bother applying, you're not going to get selected. And now we have a number of female astronauts. And in fact, you have commanders like Eileen Collins, who was an incredible person to have in our astronaut corps, Peggy Whitson and, you know, Sally Ride and just a number of these very influential people that were told, you know, don't apply it. Why even try and you know, they forged the path. And because of them, now, other people are able to do that same thing with African Americans like Guy blueford and make Jameson. You know, they were astronauts, and in the earlier days, you know, they weren't selected. So I think that without butting your head against the current limitations, don't never, you know, what we can do will never be expanded. So fight the good fight. as cliche as that sounds.   Stacey Simms  44:57 That's a great answer. I love it. So thank you so much for joining me today. I'd love to check in with you periodically and see how you're doing. And it's just, it's such a cool story, and I really appreciate you spending some time with me.   Ernie Prado  45:10 Oh, absolutely. I appreciate you. Thank you for speaking to me. It's kind of cool to talk about some things I've forgotten and every day. Yeah, absolute pleasure. And I appreciate you know, the invitation.   Unknown Speaker  45:27 You're listening to Diabetes Connections with Stacey Simms.   Stacey Simms  45:33 I will link up more information about where he is today. You can always find out more at Diabetes connections.com. I will of course include information about the super Guppy which is the project he is currently working on. He's the project engineer there. I'm trying to remember the last time I saw him you know, it's it's funny these days trying to remember when you saw anybody because of course, all of 2020 we saw nobody but I saw him at a friend's for life conference, I want to say two years ago, and I'm bringing it up because it's a little embarrassing. The last time I saw Ernie, he was chasing me down because I forgot my phone. I left it with him. And my phone also has my wallet in it. I have one of those cases where it's got my license, you know, my credit cards, all that stuff. And I hadn't even noticed it was gone. And then all of a sudden here he is running up.   Stacey Simms  46:18 Oh my gosh, so embarrassing. But thank you. He's just a Boy Scout, in addition to being a rocket scientist, and I do appreciate you. He's also been really great to Benny. He met Benny This is a different time. But another friends for life conference. It had to be four years ago helped me out people when it was at the Marriott maybe it was five years ago now. I'd have to look that up. But it was it was the year of the Irish dancers. Oh, my goodness. But anyway, we sat down with Ernie and we were just talking and introducing and Benny absolutely adores him and was eating this enormous dessert. I know Ernie remembers this because his eyes are so wide. It's like you're letting them eat this. But then Benny was going swimming. It was night he was doing this nighttime swim with some friends of his and they're having a really good time. And you know, you kind of need to carp up before you jump in the pool. And I was so excited to show him the next day to show Ernie that he was like 100 all night long after eating this enormous dessert. It's funny after during the show for so long, how I've become friendly with so many of you as you listen and as your guests and man that's so rewarding to me. All right. Remember, Tuesday is our regular scheduled episode all this year. Tuesday will be the regular interview episodes with all the segments and info that we do. And on Thursdays I will have these classic episodes where we take a look back didn't expect to reminisce there at the end. But you know, as we look back on the last couple of years, that is bound to happen. So let me know what you think. I always like to hear from you. big thank you to John Bukenas from audio editing solutions. My editor who is great about taking on new projects like this, I appreciate you john.   Stacey Simms  47:43 Thank you so much for listening. I'm Stacey Simms. Until next time, be kind to yourself.   Benny  47:53 Diabetes Connections is a production of Stacey Simms Media. All rights reserved. All wrongs avenged

Hoy te presento a la primera mujer piloto y comandante de un transbordador espacial, un ejemplo a seguir para perseguir tus sueños. Que nadie te diga que por ser mujer no puedes, TU PUEDES. Te recomiendo que escuches está cápsula porque está buenísima.

I sit down with 787 pilot Donna Miller to talk about her journey from flying lessons in Korea to flying one of the most advanced aircraft in the world.  Starting with equating finances and purchases to literal minutes of flying time, then flying and unloading car parts in Mexico during the week and skydivers on the weekend.  Chipping away and continually driving towards becoming an airline pilot - only a few months before September 11, 2001.   Donna then tells amazing stories about meeting and flying some of the largest legends in aviation:  Elray Jeppesen father of modern aviation charts,  Louie Zamparini - subject of Laura Hillenbrand's Unbroken, Emily Warner, first woman captain of a US airline, Bob Guilliland, the first pilot of the SR71 Blackbird, Eileen Collins, first woman commander of the Space Shuttle - and the story of one amazing necklace, and Neil Armstrong.  Yes, that Neil Armstrong. Donna is a member of and author for the 99's (International Organization of Women Pilots), Women in Aviation, ISA+21, the Experimental Aircraft Association.★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Jodi Reynosa is a KMTR-TV anchor who has worked at NBC, ABC, CBS, and Fox, interviewing presidential hopefuls such as John Kerry, Ted Cruz, Rudy Giuliani, Hillary Clinton, and Dick Cheney, as well as notables such as Judge Jeanine Pirro, space shuttle commander Eileen Collins, and pop band ZZ Top. She’s hosted talk shows and launched the YouTube series Guided. She studied acting at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts and at First Take. She earned a bachelor’s in broadcasting, a master’s in education, and an executive MBA.

In many high-intensity careers, women have had to prove themselves equal to men and have often had to choose between the career and aspirations of a family life. This has historically been prevalent in the Armed Forces. Today, Melissa May shares her experience of girls flying fighters and how her determination to set the bar for those who followed after her meant she was able to have it all.  Melissa has always stood apart from the crowd. Whether it was her hobbies, her upbringing, or her lavish red hair bringing her to the focus, it’s no surprise that her career choice placed her outside the mainstream, too.  Entering the Air Force with no background experience in the field, meant that Melissa had a whole new world open up to her. Her journey has seen her medically discharged, reinstated with a waiver that prohibited her from flying, travel the world, attain unattainable goals, fly fighter jets you can only dream of, walk away from air combat unscathed, and so much more. What’s more, Melissa is one of the very few women ever to be awarded a Distinguished Flying Cross, an award presented to Amelia Earhart and Eileen Collins, a space shuttle commander. Not content with this life, Melissa decided that she also wanted a family and was not willing to accept that it was one or the other. Working in an industry that housed only 8% of female employees, she set out to create a community in which women fighter pilots could find support, morale, and mentorship.  Listen in to today’s episode to find out how she believes that it was her unwavering acceptance of being different that set her up to become one of the first female fighter pilots in the USA, and how she balances her dramatic lifestyle with the roles of wife, mother, and friend. Links mentioned in the show: 50 for 50 Lifestyle Strategy Guide Where can people discover more about Melissa? LinkedIn Instagram Facebook LISTEN: APPLE PODCAST / STITCHER / SPOTIFY / GOOGLE PLAY / iHeartRADIO Subscribe and Review on Apple Podcast Are you subscribed to my podcast? If you are not, then I want to encourage you to do that right now. I don’t want you to miss out on an episode. Click here to subscribe to Apple Podcast. While you are there I would love it you left me a review over on Apple Podcast too. Those reviews help other people find my podcast, and I love reading them. Just click here to review, select “Ratings and Reviews” and “Write a review” and let me know what your favorite part of the podcast is. Thank you so much. For other episodes click here If you have your own crazy lifestyle that you’re trying to take control of, then download my free 5 for 50 Lifestyle Strategy Guide to help you master strategies for your health, fitness, and mindset.   

(recorded over zoom) The women of the top-secret Mercury13 training program were as ready as their male counterparts to serve their country in the Cold War Space Race. But it was the early 1960s and they were passed over. It would be 20 more years before NASA accepted women into its astronaut ranks. Join host Karen Bellinger and guest Analog Astronaut Dr Sian Proctor to get the inside story of the largely unknown women who gave their all as pioneers in America’s race to be first into space.

Spaceflight news— Spacewalk to repair AMS (spacenews.com) (youtube.com) — AMS overview (nasa.gov) — Footage from the EVA — The cover is detached from the restraint clip (youtu.be) — Jettisoning the cover (youtu.be) — Chris Cassidy shows off a zip tie cutter/capture device (youtu.be)Short & Sweet— Hayabusa2 departs Ryugu (japantimes.co.jp)— SpaceX completes Crew Dragon Static Fire tests (spacenews.com)— Launcher gets funding from the Air Force. (spacenews.com)Questions, comments, corrections— Win a book! — Zach and Kelly Weinersmith wrote Soonish: Ten Emerging Technologies That'll Improve and/or Ruin Everything. — We have signed copies to give away! In honor of the alternate first words featured on the new TV show For All Mankind, tweet at us with what your first words on Mars would be. — Random winners selected from Twitter and email.— Episode 2 is missing! — Do you have a copy of episode-2.mp3 lying around? Squarespace ate our copy!This week in SF history— November 19, 1956 Birth of Eileen Collins (wikipedia.org)— Next week in 1964: The cold, dead 1%

Yes, it is that time at last; the latest episode from the Nerds is here, so everyone can relax, the wait is over. Once again, we bring you an awesome show that is jam packed full of the topics that are crossing our desks. First up we bring you news that many of us will find refreshing, Buck does. Now hold tight to your pencils as we tell you about how the all-powerful Nintendo are being sued in a class action because of faulty equipment involved in the Switch. Want to know more to see if this can help you with that dodgy gadget playing up? Well it is the first topic and there is some truly interesting developments arising from this.Next we have a brief news update from San Diego Comic Con, with the talk from Marvel and also some from DC. No, we still aren’t getting paid by them, contrary to the way it appears. But there are some really cool things coming up to look forward to from both groups. We hear about the Marvel Phase 4 universe and the various upcoming movies. DJ is excited about these and is quite eager to see these unfold. There is the news about the various DC series with some shows seeing a possible end and others announcing the latest seasons.Next up we need to go grab our magnifying glasses as we look at micro bots. That’s right micro bots, tiny little robots that are going to help change the world. One operates in response to specific frequencies and is called a Bristle bot, totally cool. The other is even smaller and is operated by optoelectronic tweezers (OET), which use light patterns to directly interact with the bots. That’s right – LIGHT FEAKING TWEEZERS!!! Sorry about that, but that is so cool, these bots are so small normal tweezers are too big. Would you like to know more? Well then, you are going to love this, listen to the episode and you will hear a lot more.As normal we have the Shout outs, Remembrances, Birthdays and Special Events for the week. What do you me and a poltergeist have in common, probably more than you would realise, to find out more head over to our friends at the great new podcast from TNC by that very name (You, me and a poltergeist). Now that is a Segway, now it is time for me to go, time for this to end, but before I vanish let me just say this last little thing. Look after yourselves and take care of each other, stay hydrated and keep Nerdy. Catch you all next time.EPISODE NOTES:Nintendo America being Sued-http://chimicles.com/cskd-files-class-action-lawsuit-against-nintendo-of-america-inc-relating-to-joy-con-drifting-issues/-http://www.nintendolife.com/news/2019/07/class_action_lawsuit_officially_filed_against_nintendo_for_switch_joy-con_drifting_issues-https://www.kotaku.com.au/2019/07/nintendo-responds-to-sufferers-of-joy-con-drift/Comic-con Announcements - https://comicbook.com/marvel/2019/07/21/marvel-phase-4-schedule-complete-kevin-feige-comic-con/Microrobots in cells- https://www.scienceandtechnologyresearchnews.com/these-u-of-t-researchers-use-tiny-microrobots-to-scoop-up-transport-and-deliver-cell-material/- https://www.scienceandtechnologyresearchnews.com/tiny-vibration-powered-robots-are-the-size-of-the-worlds-smallest-ant/Games currently playingProfessor– They Are Billions - https://store.steampowered.com/app/644930/They_Are_Billions/Buck– Company of Heroes - https://store.steampowered.com/app/228200/Company_of_Heroes/DJ– Dawn of War 40,000 : Dawn of War - https://store.steampowered.com/app/4570/Warhammer_40000_Dawn_of_War__Game_of_the_Year_Edition/Other topics discussedGraphite (a crystalline form of the element carbon)- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GraphiteNintendo: Quality over quantity- https://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/336293/Quality_over_quantity_is_Nintendos_firstparty_focus_as_the_Switch_nears_year_3.phpXbox Red ring of death- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xbox_360_technical_problemsPS4 Blue screen of death- https://www.reddit.com/r/PS4/comments/7byh2i/blue_screen_of_death_on_ps4/Nintendo 64 joystick injuries- https://www.cnet.com/news/nintendo-offers-glove-to-prevent-joystick-injuries/Nintendo 3DS problems and solutions- https://www.digitaltrends.com/gaming/common-nintendo-3ds-problems-and-how-to-fix-them/Simu Liu (Chinese-Canadian actor playing Shang Chi)- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Simu_LiuGreen Book (2018 film)- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Green_Book_(film)Young Justice (DC animated TV series)- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Young_Justice_(TV_series)DC Universe Animated Original Movies- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DC_Universe_Animated_Original_MoviesBatman: Hush (DC animated movie)- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Batman:_Hush_(film)How to make a bristle bot- https://www.robotgear.com.au/Share.aspx/Post/5K’nex- https://www.knex.com/The optoelectronic microrobot: A versatile toolbox for micromanipulation- https://www-pnas-org.ezp01.library.qut.edu.au/content/pnas/116/30/14823.full.pdfMu or µ (SI prefix for micro)- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mu_(letter)#MeasurementPrey (2002 Michael Crichton novel)- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prey_(novel)Help KyoAni Heal- GoFundMe link - https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-kyoani-healKyoto Animation has opened an account to receive donations- http://www.kyotoanimation.co.jp/information/?id=3075Kyoto animation studio and their works- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kyoto_AnimationRutger Hauer (Dutch actor 1944 – 2019)- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rutger_Hauer"Tears in rain" is a monologue delivered by character Roy Batty (portrayed by Rutger Hauer) in the 1982 Ridley Scott film Blade Runner.- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tears_in_rain_monologueShoutouts18 Jul 2019 - Kyoto animation studio fire - https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/kyoto-animation-anime-studio-arson-attack-122523223 Jul 1967 - First successful liver transplant, on 19-month-old Julie Rodriguez by Dr Starzl at the University of Colorado - https://www.express.co.uk/news/obituaries/777849/lives-remembered-dr-thomas-starzl-liver-surgeon-pioneer23 Jul 2015 - NASA's Kepler mission announces discovery of the most Earth-like planet yet - Kepler-452b, 1,400 light years from Earth - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kepler-452bRemembrances23 Jul 1916 - William Ramsay, Scottish chemist who discovered the noble gases and received the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1904 "in recognition of his services in the discovery of the inert gaseous elements in air" (along with his collaborator, John William Strutt, 3rd Baron Rayleigh, who received the Nobel Prize in Physics that same year for their discovery of argon). After the two men identified argon, Ramsay investigated other atmospheric gases. His work in isolating argon, helium,neon, krypton and xenon led to the development of a new section of the periodic table. He died from nasal cancer at the age of 63 in High Wycombe,Bucks. - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Ramsay23 Jul 1942 - Valdemar Poulsen, Danishengineer who made significant contributions to early radio technology. He developed a magnetic wire recorder called the telegraphone in 1898 and the first continuous wave radio transmitter, the Poulsen arc transmitter, in 1903, which was used in some of the first broadcasting stations until the early 1920s. He died from natural causes at the age of 72 in Gentofte. - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Valdemar_Poulsen23 Jul 2012 - Sally Ride, Americanastronaut and physicist. She joined NASA in 1978 and became the first American woman in space in 1983. Ride was the third woman in space overall, after USSR cosmonautsValentina Tereshkova and Svetlana Savitskaya. Ride remains the youngest American astronaut to have traveled to space, having done so at the age of 32. After flying twice on the Orbiter Challenger, she left NASA in 1987. She worked for two years at Stanford University's Center for International Security and Arms Control, then at the University of California, San Diego as a professor of physics, primarily researching nonlinear optics and Thomson scattering. She served on the committees that investigated the Challenger and Columbia space shuttle disasters, the only person to participate in both. She died from pancreatic cancer at the age of 61 in La Jolla, California. - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sally_RideFamous Birthdays21 Jul 1951 - Robin Williams, American actor and comedian. Williams began performing stand-up comedy in San Francisco and Los Angeles during the mid-1970s, and is credited with leading San Francisco's comedy renaissance. After rising to fame playing the alien Mork in the sitcom Mork & Mindy (spun off from Happy Days), Williams established a career in both stand-up comedy and feature film acting. He was known for his improvisation skills and the wide variety of memorable character voices he created. Williams has been voted the funniest person of all time. Williams was nominated four times for the Academy Awards, winning for Best Supporting Actor for his performance as psychologist Sean Maguire in Good Will Hunting. He also received two Primetime Emmy Awards, six Golden Globe Awards, two Screen Actors Guild Awards, and four Grammy Awards. He was born in Chicago,Illinois - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robin_Williams23 Jul 1892 - Haile Selassie, was an Ethiopian regent from 1916 to 1930 and emperor from 1930 to 1974. He is a defining figure in modern Ethiopian history. During his rule the Harari people were persecuted and many left the Harari Region. His regime was also criticized by human rights groups as autocratic and illiberal, such as Human Rights Watch. Among the Rastafari movement, whose followers are estimated to number between 700,000 and one million, Haile Selassie is revered as the returned messiah of the Bible, God incarnate. Beginning in Jamaica in the 1930s, the Rastafari movement perceives Haile Selassie as a messianic figure who will lead a future golden age of eternal peace, righteousness, and prosperity. He was born in Ejersa Goro - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haile_Selassie23 Jul 1967 - Philip Seymour Hoffman, American actor, director, and producer. Best known for his distinctive supporting and character roles – typically lowlifes, eccentrics, bullies, and misfits – Hoffman acted in many films from the early 1990s until his death in 2014. He began his screen career in a 1991 episode of Law & Order and started to appear in films in 1992. He gained recognition for his supporting work, notably in Scent of a Woman, Boogie Nights,Happiness, Patch Adams, The Talented Mr. Ripley among other movies. He began to occasionally play leading roles, and for his portrayal of the author Truman Capote in Capote, won multiple accolades, including the Academy Award for Best Actor. Hoffman's profile continued to grow and he received three more Oscar nominations for his supporting work in Charlie Wilson's War, Doubt & The Master. Remembered for his fearlessness in playing reprehensible characters, and for bringing depth and humanity to such roles, Hoffman was described in his New York Times obituary as "perhaps the most ambitious and widely admired American actor of his generation". He was born in Fairport, New York - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philip_Seymour_Hoffman23 Jul 1989 - Daniel Radcliffe, English actor and producer. He is known for playing the titular protagonist in the Harry Potter film series, based on the novels by J. K. Rowling. Radcliffe made his acting debut at 10 years of age in BBC One's 1999 television film David Copperfield, followed by his cinematic debut in 2001's The Tailor of Panama. At age 11, he was cast as Potter in the series' first film Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, and starred in the series for 10 years, starring in the lead role in all eight films culminating with the final film in the series, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2, released in 2011. Radcliffe became one of the highest paid actors in the world during the filming of the Potter films, earned worldwide fame, popularity, and critical acclaim for his role, and received many accolades for his performance in the series. Following the success of Harry Potter, he acted in other movies such as the Edwardian horror filmThe Woman in Black, Kill Your Darlings, Victor Frankenstein, Swiss Army Man among others. Radcliffe began to branch out to stage acting in 2007, starring in the London and New York productions of Equus for which he received immense praise from critics and audiences alike, and in the 2011 Broadway revival of the musical How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying. He was born in London - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daniel_RadcliffeEvents of Interest23 Jul 1983 – Gimli Glider:Air Canada Flight 143 runs out of fuel and makes a deadstick landing at Gimli, Manitoba. The subsequent investigation revealed that a combination of company failures, human errors and confusion over unit measures had led to the aircraft being refuelled with insufficient fuel for the planned flight. - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gimli_Glider23 Jul 1995 – Alan Hale and Thomas Bopp discovered Comet Hale-Bopp separately before it became visible to the naked eye. It is difficult to predict the maximum brightness of new comets with any degree of certainty, but Hale–Bopp met or exceeded most predictions when it passed perihelion on April 1, 1997. It was visible to the naked eye for a record 18 months, twice as long as the Great Comet of 1811, the previous record holder. Accordingly, Hale–Bopp was dubbed the Great Comet of 1997. - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comet_Hale%E2%80%93Bopp23 Jul 1999 – Space Shuttle Columbia launches on STS-93, with Eileen Collins becoming the first female space shuttle commander. The shuttle also carried and deployed the Chandra X-ray Observatory.- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/STS-93- https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2019/07/sts-93-at-twenty-years-planning-to-launch-chandra/IntroArtist – Goblins from MarsSong Title – Super Mario - Overworld Theme (GFM Trap Remix)Song Link - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-GNMe6kF0j0&index=4&list=PLHmTsVREU3Ar1AJWkimkl6Pux3R5PB-QJFollow us on Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/NerdsAmalgamated/Email - Nerds.Amalgamated@gmail.comTwitter - https://twitter.com/NAmalgamatedSpotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/6Nux69rftdBeeEXwD8GXrSiTunes - https://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/top-shelf-nerds/id1347661094RSS - http://www.thatsnotcanonproductions.com/topshelfnerdspodcast?format=rss

Sue Nelson is an award-winning science journalist, producer and broadcaster. A former BBC TV science correspondent and Radio 4 presenter, Sue makes short films on space missions for the European Space Agency and co-presents the Space Boffins podcast, whose guests have included astronauts Buzz Aldrin, Eileen Collins, Tim Peake and Helen Sharman. Sue's extensive broadcasting career has taken her from rocket launches in South America to driving a lunar buggy in London alongside Gene Cernan, the last man to walk on the Moon. Her 2016 documentary 'Women with the Right Stuff', on the history of women in space, won a New York Festival International Radio Program Award. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

We look at women who have paved the way for all us ladies who love a bit of outer space! This is an accidental special episode which looks at the Mercury 13 and their legacy in the world of space exploration. We hope you enjoy! Rebecca & Rhea xx Recorded by Rebecca Hansell & Rhea Brooks Edited by Rebecca Hansell Intro music sourced on Filmstro.com See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Mark checks in with Eileen Collins, the first female space shuttle pilot and commander as it's the anniversary of her incredible achievements back in 1995. Also, David Bossie is President Trump's former deputy campaign manager, and he shares some thoughts on what we can expect from tonight's State of the Union speech, both inside and outside of the box.

Welcome to The Story After Show! In this week's show, Chad Grills and Ian Faison are joined by Stephanie Postles and Lacey Peace to discuss Episodes 1 and 2 of Season 4 of The Story. They highlight: The BIG ideas from the stories this week that featured J.R.R. Tolkien (3:14) and Eileen Collins (14:10). Their favorite quotes from these veterans. Plus, they share how to apply these ideas in your own life. Season 4 of The Story features eight veteran trailblazers whose sacrifices and service changed the world. The Story is brought to you exclusively by Salesforce, the world's #1 customer relationship management platform. More than one hundred and fifty thousand businesses are using Salesforce to blaze their own trails to success. You can learn more at salesforce.com.

Thanks to everyone that's subscribed to the podcast. If you could do me a favor and leave a review for the podcast, I'd appreciate it! If you take a screenshot of your review and send it to @johnmulnix, pretty much anywhere on the Internet, I will send you a Space Shot sticker and a thank you! Connect with me on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, just click the links below. Facebook (https://m.facebook.com/thespaceshot/) Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/johnmulnix/) Twitter (https://twitter.com/johnmulnix) Episode Links: Luna 9 (https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraftDisplay.do?id=1966-006A) STS-41-B Mission Summary- NASA (https://science.ksc.nasa.gov/shuttle/missions/41-b/mission-41-b.html) Space Shuttle Flight 10 (STS-41B)- National Space Society Post Flight Conference Video (http://www.nss.org/resources/library/shuttlevideos/shuttle10.htm) STS-60 Mission Summary- NASA (https://science.ksc.nasa.gov/shuttle/missions/sts-60/mission-sts-60.html) Space Shuttle Flight 60 (STS-60)- National Space Society Post Flight Conference Video (http://www.nss.org/resources/library/shuttlevideos/shuttle60.htm) STS-63 Mission Summary (https://science.ksc.nasa.gov/shuttle/missions/sts-63/mission-sts-63.html) Space Shuttle Flight 67 (STS-63)- National Space Society Post Flight Conference Video (http://www.nss.org/resources/library/shuttlevideos/shuttle67.htm) The Space Shot- Episode 70 (https://thespaceshot.fireside.fm/70) SpaceX confirms it will try to land all of Falcon Heavy's boosters- Engadget.com (https://www.engadget.com/2018/02/03/spacex-confirms-falcon-heavy-booster-landing-attempt/)

Mark brings in Eileen Collins, who is a former space shuttle astronaut, and the first female shutter pilot and first female Commander. Yesterday marked the 15th anniversary of the Columbia disaster. She commanded the next shuttle months later, which had to be perfect and it was what they called “return to flight“ Sandy Rios is the director of governmental affairs for the American Family Association, and she has a few thoughts on the FBI/Russia intelligence memo.

Episode Links: STS-114 Video Highlights- National Space Society (http://www.nss.org/resources/library/shuttlevideos/shuttle114.htm) STS-114 Return To Flight- NASA Webpage (https://www.nasa.gov/returntoflight/main/index.html) NASA Apollo 15 Mission Page (https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/apollo/missions/apollo15.html) Apollo 15 Lunar Surface Journal (https://www.hq.nasa.gov/alsj/a15/a15.html) Syncom 2- NASA Satellite Information Page (https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraftDisplay.do?id=1963-031A) The Expanse Series- Amazon.com (https://www.amazon.com/The-Expanse-5-Book-Series/dp/B00ZQWOSG4) The Expanse- SyFy.com (http://www.syfy.com/theexpanse)

Episode Links: Timelapse- Google Earth Engine (https://earthengine.google.com/timelapse/) NASA- STS-93 Deploys Chandra X-Ray Observatory (https://spaceflight.nasa.gov/shuttle/archives/sts-93/) Chandra Top 10 Facts (http://chandra.harvard.edu/about/top_ten.html) NASA Chandra X-Ray Observatory Homepage (https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/chandra/main/index.html) Eileen Collins- NASA Biography (https://www.jsc.nasa.gov/Bios/htmlbios/collins.html) NASA Administrator Bridenstine? His name's in the mix for Trump's space team (http://spacenews.com/nasa-administrator-bridenstine-his-names-in-the-mix-for-trumps-space-team/) (PDF) NASA 2017 Budget Estimates (https://www.nasa.gov/sites/default/files/atoms/files/fy_2017_budget_estimates.pdf) Landsat 1 NASA Mission Page (https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraftDisplay.do?id=1972-058A)

Sally Ride was the first American woman to rocket into space. Eileen Collins was the first woman to command the Space Shuttle. These two astronauts changed history and broke a very high glass ceiling for little girls. But they traveled different paths to get to NASA and achieve their dreams. Sally Ride graduated from an elite private school in Los Angeles and earned a doctorate in Physics at Stanford, while Eileen Collins was raised in public housing in upstate New York and joined the U.S. Air Force, where she became a test pilot. In this episode, both women talk about the obstacles they overcame to reach the highest of heights.

In this episode, the first woman to command an American spacecraft, Col. Eileen Collins, USAF (Ret.), discusses how she became interested in flight and her path to becoming a pilot and an astronaut, her thought process on leading the first manned spaceflight after the Columbia disaster, and her advice to youth on the importance of following your dreams. Collins is the Keynote Speaker for the upcoming SAME Joint Engineer Training Conference in Columbus, Ohio, May 23-25, 2017. Real TiME Podcasts feature an inside look at the work of SAME's 30,000 members and 105 Posts contributing to the 2020 SAME Strategic Plan and to strengthening the engineering potential of the United States.

To end 2016, we want to share with you some of our favorite interviews with favorite Solid Gold Satellite Sisters. This week, we bring you Commander Eileen Collins. When the space shuttle Columbia blasted off on July 23, 1999, pilot Eileen Collins became NASA's first female shuttle commander.SynopsisIn 1990, Eileen Collins was only the second woman to graduate as a test pilot and be selected as a NASA astronaut. She became the first woman to pilot a space shuttle mission during the Discovery's rendezvous with the Mir space station in 1995. By 1999, she had logged 419 hours in space and was given command of the space shuttle Columbia, another first for a woman.Early Life and EducationLike Amelia Earhart, Valentina Tereshkova (a Soviet cosmonaut and the first woman in space, in 1963), and Sally Ride (the first American woman in space, in 1983), Collins has become a pioneer in the world of aviation, as the first woman to command a space shuttle mission.From the time she was very young, Eileen Marie Collins wanted to be a pilot. She earned an associate's degree in science from Corning Community College in New York and a B.A. in mathematics and economics from Syracuse University in 1978. After college, Collins enrolled in the pilot training course at Oklahoma's Vance Air Force Base; her class was one of the first at the base to include women. She completed the course in 1979 and then stayed on at Vance for three years as an instructor.In 1983, Collins was transferred to Travis Air Force Base in California, where she flew C-141 cargo planes as part of various military and humanitarian missions all over the world. She received an M.S. degree in operations research from Stanford University in 1986 and an M.A. in space systems management from Webster University in 1989. That same year, she was accepted at the competitive Air Force Test Pilot School at Edwards Air Force Base, also in California. In 1990, she became only the second woman to graduate as a test pilot and was selected to be an astronaut by NASA.First Female AstronautIn February 1995, after several years of training with NASA, Collins became the first female astronaut to pilot a space shuttle mission, she served as second-in-command of the shuttle Discovery during its unprecedented rendezvous with the Russian space station Mir. In 1996, she took time off to give birth to a daughter, with her husband Pat Youngs, a former Air Force pilot who works for Delta Airlines. A year later, in May 1997, Collins piloted her second mission, on the shuttle Atlantis, during its delivery of 7,000 pounds of equipment to Mir.Collins had logged 419 hours in space by the time she was chosen by NASA to become its first female shuttle commander. The shuttle Columbia, under Collins' command, made history on July 23, 1999, when it blasted off from Cape Canaveral, Florida, on its way to the deployment of a $1.5 billion telescope into earth's orbit.In 2005, Collins retired from the Air Force and in 2006 from NASA. Since her retirement, Collins has received numerous awards and honors, including induction into the National Women's Hall of Fame and inclusion on the Encyclopedia Britannica's list of 300 Women Who Changed the World.

Donna Miller learned to fly in South Korea while working as a civilian for the Air Force. She flew general aviation in Europe while working for Jeppesen in the Frankfurt office, then transferred to Jeppesen in Denver and helped Elrey Jeppesen catalog his memorabilia.  He gave her a piece of fabric from the original Wright Flyer, and she had it made into a necklace that Eileen Collins took to space when they docked with MIR. She had the honor of flying Neil Armstrong to Kitty Hawk for the centennial of flight celebration in 2003. She gave the necklace to one of the pilots who did the recreation flight, so it went from Kitty Hawk to space and back to Kitty Hawk 100 years later. She also had the honor of knowing Louie Zamperini very well for the last 8 years of his life and traveled with him on several occasions to speaking engagements. In addition to her job as an airline pilot, she also flies  WWII bombers (B-17, B-24, B-25) for the Collings Foundation.

Guests this hour - Mark Larson (The Mark Larson Show), and Stephen Moore (Freedom Works). : - San Diego is about to enforce a plastic bad ban. Retailers will have to charge for reusable paper or recyclable bags. – Victoria recaps last night’s GOP convention coverage. – Mark Larson joins his own show to discuss how Hillary will be covered in the media once she is the official nominee for the democrats. Mark talks about her response to Chris Christie (over twitter) and what he came back with over his imperfections. Mark talks about Eileen Collins being given a speaking roll tonight at the convention . – Stephen Moore discusses with Victoria, Trump’s raising of great kids, and their speaking well of their dad at the convention, talking about school choice, and what is he suggesting Donald to say in tomorrow’s speech? The Mark Larson Show mornings 6-9, on AM 1170 "The Answer". Today, Victoria Taft sitting in.

The first footsteps on the Moon were one giant step for 'man', but from the early days of aeronautics women have also been involved in space travel. In Women with the Right Stuff, presenter, pilot and aspiring astronaut Wally Funk pays tribute to the pioneers, meets some of those involved within today's space industry, and hears from the woman who might be among the crew for the first human mission to Mars. Wally has first hand experience of the early days of space travel in America. She undertook secret tests to become an astronaut in 1961 and, along with 12 other female pilots, passed the extremely tough physical tests to become an unofficial member of the ‘Mercury 13' – the women who, given a chance, could have gone into space before Russia's Valentina Tereshkova made history. Wally hears from astronauts Jessica Meier, Helen Sharman, Eileen Collins and Samantha Cristoforetti; mission control flight director Mary Lawrence; space historian David J Shayler; and shares her 1961 astronaut medical tests with NASA flight surgeon Shannan Moynihan. Over 50 years after those tests, Wally is still flying (she takes her producer above Dallas in a Cessna) but she is yet to get into space. However Wally is on the waiting list for one of the first commercial space tourism flights and is prepared to make history as yet another woman with the right stuff.Image: A Wally Funk playing card, Wally was one of the original Mercury 13, Credit: BBC

The first footsteps on the Moon were one giant step for 'man', but from the early days of aeronautics women have also been involved in space travel. Presenter, pilot and aspiring astronaut Wally Funk pays tribute to the pioneers, meets some of those involved within today’s space industry, and hears from the woman who might be among the crew for the first human mission to Mars. Wally has first hand experience of the early days of space travel in America. She undertook secret tests to become an astronaut in 1961 and, along with 12 other female pilots, passed the extremely tough physical tests to become an unofficial member of the ‘Mercury 13’ – the women who, given a chance, could have gone into space before Russia’s Valentina Tereshkova made history. Wally hears from astronauts Jessica Meir, Helen Sharman, Eileen Collins and Samantha Cristoforetti; mission control flight director Mary Lawrence; space historian David J Shayler; and shares her 1961 astronaut medical tests with NASA flight surgeon Shannan Moynihan. Over 50 years after those tests, Wally is still flying (she takes her producer above Dallas in a Cessna) but she is yet to get into space. However Wally is on the waiting list for one of the first commercial space tourism flights and is prepared to make history as yet another woman with the right stuff. This is a Boffin Media production for BBC World Service.

– Eileen Collins discusses with Mark, her inspiration in being an astronaut, the mission of getting people off planet earth (to The Moon, Mars, and beyond).

Guests this hour include - Eileen Collins (astronaut), and Mehran Aram (Aramco Mortgage). - Chaffetz: We Will Refer Hillary Clinton to the FBI for Perjury. Mark carries congressional meeting with James Comey; a questioning of why he made the decision to not pursue anything with criminal charges regarding Hillary Clinton. – Eileen Collins discusses with Mark, her inspiration in being an astronaut, the mission of getting people off planet earth (to The Moon, Mars, and beyond). – Mehran Aram calls the show to enlighten Mark about Comey speaking before congress, the next workshop, and the Fed (will interest rates go up?). The Mark Larson Show mornings 6-9, on AM 1170 "The Answer".

A You're The Best Encore Interview from the satellite Sisters Archives. This week, we talk to Commander Eileen Collins.  When the space shuttle Columbia blasted off on July 23, 1999, pilot Eileen Collins became NASA's first female shuttle commander. Synopsis In 1990, Eileen Collins was only the second woman to graduate as a test pilot and be selected as a NASA astronaut. She became the first woman to pilot a space shuttle mission during the Discovery's rendezvous with the Mir space station in 1995. By 1999, she had logged 419 hours in space and was given command of the space shuttle Columbia, another first for a woman. Early Life and Education Like Amelia Earhart, Valentina Tereshkova (a Soviet cosmonaut and the first woman in space, in 1963), and Sally Ride (the first American woman in space, in 1983), Collins has become a pioneer in the world of aviation, as the first woman to command a space shuttle mission. From the time she was very young, Eileen Marie Collins wanted to be a pilot. She earned an associate's degree in science from Corning Community College in New York and a B.A. in mathematics and economics from Syracuse University in 1978. After college, Collins enrolled in the pilot training course at Oklahoma's Vance Air Force Base; her class was one of the first at the base to include women. She completed the course in 1979 and then stayed on at Vance for three years as an instructor. In 1983, Collins was transferred to Travis Air Force Base in California, where she flew C-141 cargo planes as part of various military and humanitarian missions all over the world. She received an M.S. degree in operations research from Stanford University in 1986 and an M.A. in space systems management from Webster University in 1989. That same year, she was accepted at the competitive Air Force Test Pilot School at Edwards Air Force Base, also in California. In 1990, she became only the second woman to graduate as a test pilot and was selected to be an astronaut by NASA. First Female Astronaut In February 1995, after several years of training with NASA, Collins became the first female astronaut to pilot a space shuttle mission, she served as second-in-command of the shuttle Discovery during its unprecedented rendezvous with the Russian space station Mir. In 1996, she took time off to give birth to a daughter, with her husband Pat Youngs, a former Air Force pilot who works for Delta Airlines. A year later, in May 1997, Collins piloted her second mission, on the shuttle Atlantis, during its delivery of 7,000 pounds of equipment to Mir. Collins had logged 419 hours in space by the time she was chosen by NASA to become its first female shuttle commander. The shuttle Columbia, under Collins' command, made history on July 23, 1999, when it blasted off from Cape Canaveral, Florida, on its way to the deployment of a $1.5 billion telescope into earth's orbit. In 2005, Collins retired from the Air Force and in 2006 from NASA. Since her retirement, Collins has received numerous awards and honors, including induction into the National Women's Hall of Fame and inclusion on the Encyclopedia Britannica's list of 300 Women Who Changed the World.  

In a Space Boffins special - Sue Nelson meets the first female Space Shuttle Commander, Eileen Collins. The retired astronaut - one of NASA's most experienced - reveals the challenges of flying the Shuttle, the flaws in its design and what happened in the aftermath of the Columbia disaster. They also talk about the way female astronauts are treated by the media and the next generation of spacecraft. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

In a Space Boffins special - Sue Nelson meets the first female Space Shuttle Commander, Eileen Collins. The retired astronaut - one of NASA's most experienced - reveals the challenges of flying the Shuttle, the flaws in its design and what happened in the aftermath of the Columbia disaster. They also talk about the way female astronauts are treated by the media and the next generation of spacecraft. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

In a Space Boffins special - Sue Nelson meets the first female Space Shuttle Commander, Eileen Collins. The retired astronaut - one of NASA's most experienced - reveals the challenges of flying the Shuttle, the flaws in its design and what happened in the aftermath of the Columbia disaster. They also talk about the way female astronauts are treated by the media and the next generation of spacecraft. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

If you're traveling on board a space shuttle, you'll have no shortage of picturesque views; as the shuttle orbits around earth, the sun rises and sets 16 times a day! The latest in science, culture, and history from Smithsonian Channel.

In podcast #11 Cat and Olivia discuss the latest news about Amelia Earhart, the return of Twinkies, Tomboy of the Month Commander Eileen Collins and they play the road trip version of "If I Could" and Pep!