January 28, 1986. It's freezing in Central Florida, a historically cold day. That's bad news for citrus growers, and for NASA, which is scheduled to launch the Space Shuttle Challenger from Cape Canaveral this morning.
Engineers have ben cautioning NASA that cold temperatures can make space launches dangerous. And yet, NASA decides to move ahead. They consid ... Show More
Feb 9
Shut Out of the Majors, They Created Their Own
LINK TO OUR LIVE SHOW! (or visit historythisweekpodcast.com) Feb 13, 1920. For over thirty years, Black baseball players have been locked out of the major leagues. So on this day in Kansas City, Rube Foster, a former pitcher and now a team owner, is trying to make his own league ... Show More
31m 25s
Feb 2
The Great Comic Book Scare
February 4, 1955. In a New York courtroom, the Comics Czar takes the stand. He’s in charge of enforcing a new code, meant to keep comic books from corrupting America’s youth, and he’s here to prove that his work has cleaned up the industry. But that afternoon, a noted psychologis ... Show More
31m 13s
Jan 26
The Dogs Who Saved Nome, Alaska
On January 5, 2026, Jirdes Winther Baxter passed away at 101 years old — the last known survivor of the 1925 diphtheria epidemic in Nome, Alaska. A few years ago, we told the story of the Serum Run: the desperate relay of mushers and sled dogs who carried a life-saving antitoxin ... Show More
37m 21s
Feb 2025
Near-Earth Asteroid 2024 YR4 and NASA under a new administration
<p>The internet is buzzing about Asteroid 2024 YR4, currently ranked as the highest-threat asteroid in our skies. But is it really cause for concern? Our Public Education Specialist, Kate Howells, breaks down the facts. Then, we shift from potential impacts to stunning space imag ... Show More
1h 2m
Nov 2024
Space Policy Edition: NASA at a Crossroads
<p>Norm Augustine, the distinguished aerospace industry veteran behind numerous influential studies, joins the show to discuss “NASA at a Crossroads,” the new report that raises alarm bells for NASA’s workforce, infrastructure, and technology capabilities.</p> <p>Augustine, who c ... Show More
56m 12s
Mar 2025
An extinction-level event for NASA science
<p>NASA's science missions have transformed our understanding of the Universe, from breathtaking images of deep space to robotic explorers on Mars. But now, a reported 50% cut to NASA's science budget threatens to shut down missions, halt discoveries, and devastate the future of ... Show More
1h 7m
Jul 2024
Space Policy Edition: NASA and the American South
<p>Every major NASA center built after the agency’s inception is located in the American South. Why? Dr. Brian Odom, NASA’s chief historian, joins the show to explore the relationship between NASA and the South, how politics and geography led to this focus, and why NASA’s expansi ... Show More
58m 26s
Dec 2023
Moonshot with NASA Astronaut Mike Massimino 12/7/23
Mike Massimino, serving as a NASA astronaut until 2014, has a slew of accomplishments: the first human to tweet from space, the last astronaut to work inside the Hubble Telescope and the speculated inspiration for George Clooney’s role in “Gravity.” He’s now out with a book, titl ... Show More
16m 56s
Nov 2024
What does the U.S. election mean for NASA?
<p> </p> <p dir="ltr">Presidential elections in the United States don’t just shape the country’s future — they set the course for space exploration. This week, Casey Dreier, the chief of space policy at The Planetary Society, analyzes what the incoming Trump administration could ... Show More
59m 41s