"I ask a question that can connect what I'm doing with research in the past or planned for the future." an interview with Nathan Kurtz

The potential downside of a career in always seeking discoveries is that it may stunt the development of your confidence. Even as someone who walked into NASA, living the dream in his mind, Nathan Kurtz experiences that downside, politely calling...

“People don't fully understand what climate science is. It's a significant achievement to make them aware.” An interview with Bidyut Goswami

Bidyut Bikash Goswami has found that people are very interested in his field of climate science and meteorology, even if they don’t fully understand it at first. He notes that people tend to assume that climate science means climate change...

"When we met, it was a Reese's Peanut Butter moment: we had the peanut butter & he had the chocolate." an interview with David Young

David Young, Director of Science at NASA Langley Research Center, discusses his life's work studying the earth's climate. After an early interest in astrophysics, he focused in on earth science due to his desire to do research to help humans....

“By changing how science is done, we open it up to… more diverse experiences.” An Interview with Chelle Gentemann

Dr. Chelle Gentemann is the Open Science Program scientist in NASA’s Office of the Chief Science Data Officer. In this role, she works to understand the impact, and development assessments, of NASA’s strategy for Open Science. She recently sat down...

“We know that diverse perspectives bring science innovation.” An interview with Chris Atchison

Chris Atchison didn’t set out to create a project tailored for students with physical and sensory disabilities but ending up doing so anyway. He talks here about working on a virtual reality project and, when trying to find students who...

“Volcanoes are where we’re making new earth, every day." an interview with Lori Glaze

Lori Glaze, Acting Director of the Planetary Science Division at NASA Headquarters, works with everything from understanding asteroid trajectories and material make up to the InSight mission which recently landed a rover on Mars. It’s no exaggeration to say Lori...

"Be curious, look up, ask someone" Interview with Padma Yanamandra-Fisher

Padma Yanamandra-Fisher, a research scientist at the Space Science Institute, shares stories of her career in planetary science. She recounts how defining the launch of Voyager was and the significance of the growth in the field since. Padma shares her...

"We’re constantly inventing new ways to use our data for societal benefits.” an interview with Sandra Cauffman

Sandra Cauffman was told growing up in Costa Rica that she couldn’t be an electrical engineer because she was a woman. Decades into a career which has largely involved getting her hands dirty building instruments to fix on spacecraft, the...

“I spent my childhood driving around the most beautiful place in the world.” an Interview with Jim Pizzuto

For Jim Pizzuto, a career in science was never the plan. His father was a landscape painter, and he grew up surrounded by art and the majestic landscape paintings that his father produced. By the time he entered college, he...

“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...

"We're really just scratching the surface about how the earth works." an interview with Daniel Minguez

Daniel Minguez, a geophysicist for Chevron, helps create new geologic models of the earth’s layers, trying “to build geologic stories for how different geologic elements got there.” Daniel discusses his work which focuses on boring techniques and navigating plate tectonics....

"In Search of New Chapters in a Rich Life Story." an interview with Ho-Kwang (Dave) Mao

After one spends 50 years with the same organization, what’s next? That’s the question Dave Mao is attempting to answer after a highly-decorated career at the Carnegie Institution for Science. Born in Shangai and raised in Taiwan, Mao came to...

"The sun kind of affects everything here on Earth in one way or another." An interview with Nicholeen Viall.

Nicholeen Viall is a research astrophysicist at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, with her research focus being the sun and solar wind. Listen to Dr. Viall talk about her start in space science, her greatest accomplishment, and her hopes for...

“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...

“As long as you have the foundation, a unique worldview can be really useful in science.” An Interview with Ashley Greeley

Ashley Greeley is a research scientist in the Heliophysics Division at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center where she studies particles trapped in the magnetic field surrounding Earth. She sits down with us to talk about overcoming imposter syndrome, building innovative...

“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...

“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...

“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...

"I love to solve puzzles. The more pieces of the puzzle you get, the larger the puzzle becomes. " an interview with Ingrid Hendy

Ingrid Hendy, Professor at the University of Michigan and section president-elect, shares stories about discoveries in her field and the challenges she faced. She reflected on the curious zebra striped sediment that lured her into her field – mud she...

“You are so far up in space, that the Earth, the cities and the landscape all kinda of blends." an interview with Andi Thomas

A picture may be worth a thousand words, but Andi Brinn Thomas is dealing with thousands of pictures of the world. The Image Data Scientist in the Earth Science and Remote Sensing Unit within the Astromaterials Research Exploration and Science Division...

"Giving Your Attention to Something Different." an interview with Trevor McDougall

It took 21 years for Trevor McDougall to leave Australia, but when he did, he was on a plane headed to the University of Cambridge and a masters and Ph.D. in Oceanography. Besides the life-changing event of going from one...

"Kicking and Perturbing Your Way to Discovery." an interview with Doug Jerolmack

The next time you see a young kid skateboarding through the neighborhood, possibly listening to punk rock on their earbuds, remember that one day that kid could be your local science professor. Doug Jerolmack’s sturdy voice and love of experimenting...

"It’s really amazing how difficult it is to study something like the ocean." An interview with Ved Chirayath

Dr. Ved Chirayath is the director of the Laboratory for Advanced Sensing (LAS) in the Earth Science Division at NASA Ames Silicon Valley. There, he develops and invents new instruments for NASA missions on Earth and in space, with much of his current work focusing on creating technology that will increase our...