“It’s been interesting and rewarding to see science taken seriously and have some action being taken.” An interview with Steve Montzka

Steve Montzka has been at NOAA for 28 years, working on atmospheric science, atmosphere chemistry, and trace gases in the atmosphere. He started there as a post-doc, drawn by the work he saw NOAA scientists doing on the hole in...

ddv002665
40:12
Shakoya Hoyte and Jeb Backe

Shakoya Hoyte (21) speaks with StoryCorps Facilitator, Jeb Backe (26), about her upbringing and her current military career. Shakoya describes her reasoning to be in the military— so that her education can be payed for and she may one day...

“Important astrobiology questions require that people in a lot of different fields… find common language.” An interview with Lindsay Hays

As a program scientist for the astrobiology program, the Mars Sample Return program, and the DAVINCI mission, Lindsay Hays’s domain spans from NASA HQ to Venus to Mars and back again. Lindsay became one of the first to witness images...

‘I was one of those kids who thought everybody became a scientist… I was always fascinated with galaxies." An interview with Tom Statler

As the program scientist in NASA’s Planetary Science Division and the Planetary Defense Coordination Office, Tom Statler works with mission teams as they send robots to asteroids and other entities in our Solar System. From a science-rich upbringing to his...

“I just could not help wanting to know why things are.” An interview with Sylvain Costes

Sylvain Costes is the Branch Chief, Open Science project manager, and principal investigator for NASA’s Ames Research Center. Sylvain oversees over 80 NASA scientists and technicians, but he’s primarily a biophysicist leading research on radiation and DNA to understand how...

“We are people who sit around campfires and tell stories and learn from stories… It's got to be a story.” An interview with Lin Chambers

Dr. Lin Chambers is the Deputy Director of Science Activation at NASA Headquarters, and she spends her time there sharing NASA’s science with learners in local communities across the country. Lin started at NASA after her freshman year of college...

Yasir Mahboba and Evelyn Garey

[Recorded: Thursday, April 27, 2023] Yasir (22) and Evelyn (21) have a One Small Step conversation in Charlottesville, Virginia. Yasir is an undergraduate student at the University of Virginia studying biology on a pre-med track. Evelyn is also an undergraduate...

“I'm really good at translating. I can talk to scientists and engineers and help them understand each other.” An Interview with Charles Webb

Charles Webb is the Deputy Director of NASA’s Joint Agency Satellite Division, where he helps lead a team to develop and launch satellite missions for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Charles has a gift for translating between scientists and...

“My mother would tell me stories about the stars and the moon." An interview with Hashima Hasan.

Hashima Hasan is the program scientist for NASA’s James Webb, XP, and NuSTAR telescopes, helping to bring those missions from cradle to grave. Hashima followed the space race closely growing up in India, which inspired her to navigate into the...

“We give them a little bit of a show. " An Interview With Duane Waliser

Duane Waliser’s path in science meandered from an Oregon apple farm to a UCSD Oceanography institute to NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, where he now serves as the Chief Scientist for the Earth Science and Technology Directorate. At JPL, Duane helps...

“You get the space bug and … it just opened a whole new world to me. " An interview with Delia Santiago-Materese.

Delia Santiago-Materese is a program scientist at the NASA’s Planetary Space Division in Washington, D.C., where she helps facilitate science and works with the community to make decisions about where NASA’s scientists should be exploring next. She spends her days...

“This is motivated by a desire to be of service, to disrupt colonial narratives, and to bring healing." An Interview With Daniella Scalice

Daniella Scalice is the Education and Communications Lead for NASA’s Astrobiology program, and she sits in NASA’s MAIANSE program for incorporating American Indian and Alaska Native science into NASA’s STEM research and education initiatives. She works in western and Indigenous...

“It's very exciting to think about how we can have more voices at the table." An interview with Cynthia Hall

Cynthia Hall is the community coordinator for NASA’s Transform to Open Science program, where she works with organizations and communities to build diverse scientific collaborations with NASA. She works to make scientific research and processes more inclusive and accessible to...

“The best thing I could do with my astronomy degree was to share astronomy with other people." An interview with Alex Lockwood

Dr. Alex Lockwood is the project scientist on the science communication team for the James Webb Space Telescope at the Space Telescope Science Institute. While earning her Ph.D. in Planetary Astronomy and Science, Alex had the unique opportunity to star...

atl004755
40:16
Adrian Woolfitt and Rosemary Woolfitt

Rosemary Woolfitt (63) talks with her husband, Adrian Woolfitt (65), about his native home of Brighton, England.

Indira Garcia and Alex Wu

Creating Community Through Sharing Stories: Indira Garcia was born in Chile during the 1973 Chilean coup d'état, which had a significant effect on her childhood. She was raised in Mexico with a strong focus on intellectualism and family bonds. She...

“It's never been easier to make your own space.” An interview with David Shiffman

David Shiffman is a shark guy first, marine conservation biologist second. Sharks are in his Twitter handle, he’s writing a book about them, and he was wearing a shark shirt the day we interviewed him. We talked with David about...

ddv001669
43:22
Katie Pina and Mario Navarro

One Small Step partners Katie Pina (36) and Mario Navarro (52) share a conversation about growing up, their families, their children, and the COVID-19 pandemic. They also talk about their frustrations with US politics, their perspectives on religion, and their...

dda003095
46:24
Melissa Jane Pascual and Nicole Le Blanc

Colleagues and friends Melissa Jane Pascual (26) and Nicole LeBlanc (44) discuss the progression of their careers in education, what they are most proud of, and what it means to be a part of the KIPP community.

mby021578
36:12
Samuel Elzay and Sarah Elzay

Spouses, Sarah Elzay (35) and Samuel Elzay (37), share a conversation about how they first met, how their relationship developed, and the partnership they have formed together.

mby021557
38:02
Lusharon Wiley and Ernest Dawson

Lusharon Wiley (70) and her fiancé Ernest Dawson (70) discuss Ernest's family, his time attending Pensacola High School during integration, being the first black football player on the team, his time at Tuskegee University and those who encouraged him along...

mby021500
41:19
Lisa Sims, Paige Spencer, and Grace Sims

Lisa Sims (63) and her daughters, Paige Spencer (35) and Grace Sims (25), sit down for a conversation about their fondest memories, career goals, and spiritual experiences, as well as the love they have for one another.

mby021451
25:03
Diane Schick and David Schick

Spouses, Diane Schick (71) and David Schick (71), share a conversation about serendipity, how they first met in Iran, and their travels in Europe after leaving Iran.

mby021342
39:42
Kasia Chodyla and Bernard Chodyla

Kasia Chodyla (55) shares a conversation with her husband, Bernard Chodyla (54), about their experiences growing up in Poland, how they met, how they came to live in the United States, and the life they've built together.

mby021322
40:57
Fran Close and C. Perry Brown

Dr. Fran Close (54) interviews her good friend and colleague Dr. C. Perry Brown (74) about his journey toward becoming an epidemiologist, his work as a researcher and college professor, and the relationships that both keep him grounded and make...