Episode 108 of SfS – A Conversation with Les Johnson – is Now Live!

Episode 108 of SfS – A Conversation with Les Johnson – is Now Live!

This latest episode was particularly special. In addition to having NASA technologist Les Johnson on for the second time (Episode 25 – Going Interstellar!), we got to talk about our latest collaboration and the upcoming release of a major project – the Interstellar Travel Monograph. This series, edited by Les Johnson and fellow NASA alumnus Ken Roy, details interstellar travel’s benefits, possibilities, and challenges. Volume I covered the purpose and motivations, while Volume II addressed the technical and associated requirements of making the journey.

The latest installment, Volume III: After Arrival, addresses how humans will live on a distant planet, exploring questions of governance, economics, adaptation, and (my contribution) terraforming! This work builds on Les Johnson’s previous work, A Traveler’s Guide to the Stars, which lays out the case for interstellar travel for regular, everyday readers. The Monograph series targets scientists, engineers, and technical experts and will be used as textbooks in University-level courses. Everyone who contributed is an expert in their field, and they let me join in! What an honor!

This series also builds on previous work I had the honor of participating in, The Ross 248 Project (also edited by Johnson and Roy), which addressed how humans could live on rocky planets around red dwarf stars (like Proxima b). Check out the episode to hear more about Les Johnson’s work at NASA, the Monogram, and this fascinating subject matter!

Where to Listen:

“I’m no Hero”

“I’m no Hero”

I finally get what those words mean. I’ve heard them uttered many times by people who had praise heaped on them for something heroic they did. And I’m sure everyone who might read this can relate. Chances are, we’ve all heard someone say something like this—maybe even someone very close to us. It may have come from a family member, a veteran, an emergency responder, a doctor, a firefighter, or someone who was put in a bad situation and made their way out.

Parents who raised multiple kids while dealing with poverty, health issues, addiction, and traumas of their own come to mind. Over and over again, you’ll hear people say that they simply “did their best” under difficult circumstances. They did extraordinary things and were praised for it, but refused to accept accolades, special treatment, or the idea that they were somehow different from everyone else.

I thought I understood what they were saying and suspected it was a simple matter of modesty. After all, a mark of a true hero is that they don’t need or want to be praised for what they did, right? “No thanks required” is how they roll, right?

But the truth is, I didn’t get it. But I do now.

Continue reading ““I’m no Hero”” →

Episode 106 – Megastructures (Part III) – is now Live!

Episode 106 – Megastructures (Part III) – is now Live!

Sixty years ago, famed physicist Freeman Dyson theorized that in their ongoing quest to find more living space and energy, advanced civilizations might choose to convert their solar systems into megastructures enclosing their star. This came to be known as a “Dyson’s Sphere,” a concept that inspired countless variations and similar concepts. A few years later, Nikolai Kardashev mentioned the Dyson Sphere while presenting his scheme for classifying extraterrestrial intelligence (ETI) based on its level of technical development – aka. the Kardashev Scale.

In previous episodes, we examined the kinds of structures that a Type II and III Civilization might create. In this third and final installment, we looked at the types of megastructures a Type I+ Civilization might create (and that could include humanity someday). To break it down, these megastructures would belong to a civilization that had mastered its home planet (i.e., harnessing all of its energy sources) and was beginning to extend its presence across its solar system.

As always, these theoretical structures are a way to make futuristic predictions while also guiding SETI searches for potential technosignatures. Take a listen and be sure to check out the concept art of Neil Blevin at Soulburn Studios.

Further Reading:

Episode 105 – Megastructures (Part II) – is now live!

Episode 105 – Megastructures (Part II) – is now live!

This week’s episode is the second installment in my series about megastructures. In the previous installment, we took a look at the Dyson Sphere, the concept that started it all, as well as variations like the Niven Ring and Matrioshka Brain. As promised, this episode examines some of the more exotic concepts for Dyson structures that could allow an advanced species to harness the power of its star. This includes the Alderson Disk and the Shkadov Thruster (pictured above and below).

Neil Blevins
Neil Blevins

These are all examples of megastructures that a Type II civilization (on the Kardashev Scale) could conceivably create. In part III, I hope to delve into proposed concepts that a Type I+ civilization could create someday (and that includes humanity). Some examples include a Space Elevator, an O’Neill Cylinder, a Stanford Torus, a Clarke Band, and more. As always, I will be referencing the artwork of Neil Blevins (and others) to illustrate what these fascinating concepts could look like. Follow the links below to learn more.

Where to Listen:

Episode 104 – Megastructures (Part I)! – is now Live!

Episode 104 – Megastructures (Part I)! – is now Live!

This past week, I did an episode that is long overdue! In truth, I can’t possibly explain why I’ve neglected it for so long. The subject at hand… MEGASTRUCTURES! Honestly, this is like one of my top five favorite topics and specialties when it comes to space, science fiction, and the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (SETI). Yet here we are, three years (happy third anniversary, Stories from Space!) and more than 100 episodes later, and I find out I haven’t done an episode dedicated to this lovely topic.

The story begins with Freeman Dyson, the famed British-American theoretical physicist and mathematician. In 1960, he wrote a paper outlining how advanced civilizations, in their drive to find more living space and energy, would someday convert their planets into artificial biospheres that would enclose their entire star. This became known as a Dyson Sphere, a concept that spawned an entire field of study. Decades later, there are innumerable proposed concepts, all of which were proposed to help constrain SETI searches.

Similar to Nikolai Kardashev‘s paper (released a few years later), in which he proposed what is now known as the Kardashev Scale, Dyson’s proposed structure was a means of suggesting the kind of technological signatures that SETI researchers should be looking for. Thanks to him, SETI researchers are not only looking for evidence of transmissions in the cosmos, but also evidence of planetary engineering. Given the richness of this topic, this episode is part of a series that may (as I hope) run for three episodes. Check it out!

Where to Listen:

Episode 103 – Space Health: My Interview with Shawna Pandya – is now live!

Episode 103 – Space Health: My Interview with Shawna Pandya – is now live!

Hello folks! My apologies for the delays in posting. The past few weeks have been a bit of a ringer over here (which I will address in a future post). Also, while the ringer situation was going on, I decided to share my AADYA Geo Talks interview on Stories from Space, which was the subject of episodes 101 and 102. Since I had already posted about that interview here (complete with the video), I saw no reason to talk about it again. But this most recent episode? That is something I need to rave about!

After months of scheduling, rescheduling, and delays (on my end), I finally got to interview Dr. Shawna Pandya! In addition to being a fellow Canuck and martial artist (Taekwon-Do, same federation as me!), Dr. Pandya is a physician, an emergency medic, an aeromedical transport doctor, pilot, analog astronaut, explorer, and aquanaut with NASA’s NEEMO analog missions. She is also the director of the International Institute for Astronautical Sciences’ (IIAS) Space Medicine Group, and will be (as soon as next year) Canada’s first female commercial astronaut.

During our interview, we discussed the path that brought her to medicine, space exploration, and the future for humans living and working in space. Follow the links below to check it out!

Where to Listen:

Episode 100 of Stories from Space is now Live!

Episode 100 of Stories from Space is now Live!

Welcome all! This week’s episode is one that I consider very important. Since the Trump administration was inaugurated, people at NASA were understandably afraid. Uncertainty about the future can do that to people, especially when an unelected, unconfirmed member of government (Elon Musk) begins making seemingly arbitrary cuts to departments, jobs, and spending. Those fears were confirmed with the release of the White House’s Fiscal Year 2026 Budget Request (FY 2006).

In addition to deep cuts, the Budget also calls for the cancellation of programs that NASA has been pursuing for years as part of its “Moon to Mars” mission architecture. These include the Space Launch System (SLS), the Orion Spacecraft, and the Lunar Gateway, which are integral to the Artemis Program and plans to send the first crewed missions to Mars. The Budget also pushes privatization as the solution to every proposed cut, and very deliberately and specifically targets funding for “woke” programs that seek to increase representation in the STEM fields.

To call this Budget a disaster in the making only undersells it. If enacted, it could throw NASA’s entire future into jeopardy. Whereas the Budget specifies that NASA’s only priority should be beating China to the Moon and Mars, it will likely make that goal much harder to achieve. And it would almost surely compromise the agency’s longstanding reputation for leadership in space.

The release of this episode is also a milestone for me and the podcast I launched almost three years ago (July 12th, 2022). Its inception can be trace to an interview I had with the hosts of the Intersection of Technology and Society Magazine (ITSM), Sean Martin and Marco Ciappelli. The funny thing is, they wanted to interview me for an article I wrote for Interesting Engineering titled “Life in 2050: A Glimpse at Education in the Future.”

Afterward, I told them what my main subject was (i.e., space and spacey stuff), and they had me back on for two more episodes to discuss the future of space exploration and exoplanet studies. During the second interview, we announced that I was joining ITSP with a new podcast – Stories from Space!

As such, I wish this episode’s subject were less alarming or depressing. But I promise future episodes (knock on wood!) will be cheerier and feature better news!

Where to Listen:

Episode 99 of Stories from Space is now Live!

Episode 99 of Stories from Space is now Live!

This week’s episode was an exciting one! I sat down with aerospace engineer, astrophysicist, and analog astronaut Dr. Rodrigo Schmitt. For years, he and other engineers have used the Kerbal Space Program (with the realism mods) to assist with spacecraft design and mission planning. KSP and other “sandbox games” have also been hailed as a vital educational tool for people studying to become aerospace engineers.

During our interview, we chatted about his recent paper, in which he proposes how KSP and other sandbox games could be integrated into the actual spaceship and mission design process. Based on NASA’s Program/Project Life Cycles, he explained how the software could become part of Pre-Phase A: Concept Studies, the initial design phase. Our interview also focused on how he and his team simulated the Artemis V mission and how orbital refueling will play an important role.

It was honestly one of the most fun interviews I’ve done in recent history. Check out the links below to hear more…

Where to Listen:

Episode 98 of Stories from Space – The Growing Problem of Space Junk – is now Live!

Episode 98 of Stories from Space – The Growing Problem of Space Junk – is now Live!

After a wee hiatus, Stories from Space is back! And this week’s episode is dedicated to something that is overdue: Space Junk! Otherwise known as orbital debris, this problem is the result of decades’ worth of launches (roughly 7000) that have placed 21,620 satellites into orbit. About 14,240 of these satellites are still there, and 11,400 are still operational. Similarly, every launch made before the advent of reusable rockets has left thousands of spent first and second stage rockets in orbit.

Over time, collisions between these objects have littered Low Earth Orbit (LEO) with literally millions of objects ranging from the massive to the incredibly small. Regardless, objects in orbit are accelerated to speeds of 7 to 8 km/s (4.35 to 5 mi/s), making them potentially lethal. And the worst part is, it’s only going to get worse. With more and more space companies conducting regular launches to deploy satellite “mega constellations,” CubeSats, and commercial space stations are deployed, the situation in orbit is projected to get worse.

But the greatest threat is what is known as Kessler Syndrome, where the saturation of LEO with debris will create a cascade effect – where more collisions will mean more debris objects, and so on. Hence why this episode also gets into mitigation strategies and proposals for active debris removal (ADR). But of course, the greatest challenge is changing the way we think!

Check out the links below to learn more.

Where to Listen:

My Interview with From Here to the Stars!

My Interview with From Here to the Stars!

Okay, now this was a surprise! Twice this month, interviews I previously did (months or even more than a year ago!) have aired. The first was the interview I had with Bharti Sharma of AADYA Geo Talks, which recently aired after a few months (and was the subject of my last post). The other was an interview with Stephen Euin Cobb, the host of the Interstellar Research Group‘s podcast From Here to the Stars, that aired in January. However, I only heard about it now because the Interstellar Research Group (IRG) featured me in a promo posted on LinkedIn!

I was honored, to say the least. I imagine they do this all the time, but on this particular occasion, they put my face on their podcast series. Little ol’ me, how about that? Anyway, it was a lovely reminder of a very good interview I had with a distinguished science fiction author and award-winning podcaster and videographer. The subject of our chat was the chapter I wrote for the anthology The Ross 248 Project, a collection of SF shorts and science essays (edited by NASA scientists Les Johnson and Ken Roy) that explores the possibility of terraforming planets that orbit red dwarf suns.

This one is not so long, so please feel free to check it out: