Dr. Bill Miller, an evolutionary biologist and expert on the emerging science of the microbiome, chats with Steve about the ramifications of sending microbes into space. Follow ‘I Need My Space’ on Social Media: Twitter: @INeedMySpacePod Instagram: @INeedMySpacePod Find links to Dr. Miller’s book, Twitter, and oil paintings on his website (www.themicrocosmwithin.com). About Inverse: Inverse sparks curiosity about the future. We explore the science of anything, innovations that shape tomorrow and ideas that stretch our minds. Our goal is to motivate the next generation to build a better world. Credits: ‘I Need My Space’ is an Inverse production hosted by Steve Ward, produced by Sam Riddell, and executive produced by Hannah Margaret Allen and Weston Green. Our intro and outro music was created by Andrew Olivares. Steve: @stevejohnhenryw Andrew: https://soundcloud.com/andrewo

The Intergalactic Travel Bureau This week on 'I Need My Space' we talk to Jana Grcevich, Co-author of "Vacation Guide to the Solar System" about making travel plans in space! Grcevich is also data scientist, has a PhD in astronomy, and is an all around curious person. Check out her book: https://www.amazon.com/Vacation-Guide-Solar-System-Traveler/dp/0143129775/ Download Space Vacation from Guerilla Science: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/space-vacation/id1202068488 Twitter: @INeedMySpacePod Instagram: @INeedMySpacePod FB Group: I Need My Space Pod To continue the conversation from this episode, use the hashtag #INeedMySpace About Inverse: Inverse sparks curiosity about the future. We explore the science of anything, innovations that shape tomorrow, and ideas that stretch our minds. Our goal is to motivate the next generation to build a better world. Credits: ‘I Need My Space’ is an Inverse production hosted by Steve Ward, and executive produced by Hannah Margaret Allen and Weston Green. Our intro and outro music was created by Andrew Olivares. Steve: @stevejohnhenryw Andrew: https://soundcloud.com/andrewo Sponsors: Thanks to HelloFresh.com for supporting I Need My Space. Go to hellofresh.com/space60 and use the code Space60 to get a total of $60 off, that's $20 off your first 3 boxes.

NASA “Nasalnaut” George Aldrich sits down with Steve to discuss the importance of smell in space. Questions include: What does a NASA chemical specialist do? What is the process of conducting odor tests for NASA? Why must objects be odor tested?  What is a NASA-certified nose? What happens when an object fails NASA’s odor test? Who decides what smells bad? Is odor testing a risky job? How do you get a job working for NASA? What was NASA like in the 1970s? What item stinks the most in space? Why don’t dogs do space sniffing? What are the seven primary odors? What happens when a professional sniffer gets the flu or allergies? Follow ‘I Need My Space’ on Social Media: Twitter: @INeedMySpacePod Instagram: @INeedMySpacePod FB Group:  I Need My Space Pod To continue the conversation from this episode, use the hashtag #INeedMySpace Aldrich’s appearance on Stan Lee’s ‘Superhumans’:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-loAAuwJIM4 About Inverse: Inverse sparks curiosity about the future. We explore the science of anything, innovations that shape tomorrow, and ideas that stretch our minds. Our goal is to motivate the next generation to build a better world. Credits: ‘I Need My Space’ is an Inverse production hosted by Steve Ward, produced by Sam Riddell, and executive produced by Hannah Margaret Allen and Weston Green. Our intro and outro music was created by Andrew Olivares. Steve: @stevejohnhenryw Andrew: https://soundcloud.com/andrewo Sponsors: Get a free audiobook with a 30-day free trial at audible.com/SPACE or text SPACE to 500-500. Other Topics Discussed Include: The golden age of NASA and Stan Lee’s ‘Superhumans’

Lynn Levy, host of Gimlet’s ‘The Habitat’, joins Steve and guest host Moiya McTier to talk about the true story of six strangers who were picked to live in a Mars simulation, work together, and have their lives taped. Questions Include: How does one become a fake astronaut? Will there be psychological therapy in space? Are the HI-SEAS participants safe? What kind of entertainment do you bring on a Mars simulation? What is it like listening to 200 hours of tape? What makes up a good crew of astronauts? What kinds of conflicts arise during a Mars simulation? Why is there a space simulation in Hawaii? Is being an astronaut boring? Why doesn’t NASA study sex or romantic relationships in space? Follow ‘I Need My Space’ on Social Media: Twitter: @INeedMySpacePod Instagram: @INeedMySpacePod FB Group:  I Need My Space Pod To continue the conversation from this episode, use the hashtag #INeedMySpace. Listen to ‘The Habitat’ on Gimlet: http://www.gimletmedia.com/the-habitat And on Apple: https://apple.co/2NJIy08 Follow Lynn on Twitter: @LynnRLevy About Inverse: Inverse sparks curiosity about the future. We explore the science of anything, innovations that shape tomorrow and ideas that stretch our minds. Our goal is to motivate the next generation to build a better world. Credits: ‘I Need My Space’ is an Inverse production hosted by Steve Ward, produced by Sam Riddell, and executive produced by Hannah Margaret Allen and Weston Green. This episode was also produced and hosted by Moiya McTier. Our intro and outro music was created by Andrew Olivares. Steve: @stevejohnhenryw Moiya: @GoAstroMo Andrew: https://soundcloud.com/andrewo Other Topics Discussed Include: Gimlet, ‘The Habitat’, Lynn Levy, HI-SEAS, Hawaii, and NASA

Jennifer Levasseur, museum specialist at the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum, joins Steve to discuss photography in space, astronaut personal artifacts, and the history of space flight. Questions Include: What is it like being a museum curator? Is stuff that has gone to space more valuable? Which astronauts take the best photos? What are the ins and outs of astronaut photography? Do we still use Apollo-era space equipment today? How is space food packaged? Why are so many astronauts’ watches stolen? What kinds of care goes into preserving space artifacts? What is the importance of astronaut Instagram and social media accounts? Do astronauts really eat freeze-dried ice cream in space? Why do all astronauts have several jobs? Follow ‘I Need My Space’ on Social Media: Twitter: @INeedMySpacePod Instagram: @INeedMySpacePod FB Group: I Need My Space Pod To continue the conversation from this episode, use the hashtag #INeedMySpace Follow Jennifer Levasseur on Twitter: @Mom2Remi The National Air and Space Museum’s website: https://airandspace.si.edu/ About Inverse: Inverse sparks curiosity about the future. We explore the science of anything, innovations that shape tomorrow and ideas that stretch our minds. Our goal is to motivate the next generation to build a better world. Credits: ‘I Need My Space’ is an Inverse production hosted by Steve Ward, produced by Sam Riddell, and executive produced by Hannah Margaret Allen and Weston Green. Our intro and outro music was created by Andrew Olivares. Steve: @stevejohnhenryw Andrew: https://soundcloud.com/andrewo Other Topics Discussed Include: John Glenn, Space Shuttle Challenger, ‘Indiana Jones’, ‘For All Mankind’, astronaut photography, ‘A Beautiful Planet’, the Apollo missions, thermostabilized food, ‘Hidden Figures’, Katherine Johnson Hashtags to Include in Metadata: Science, Space, Space Questions, Steve Ward, Aliens, SpaceX, Dope Space Pics, Space Travel, NASA, Astronauts in Space, UFOs, Mars, Earth, Alien, Planetary Society, Curiosity, Mars, Rover, Jennifer Levasseur, Smithsonian, National Air and Space Museum, Apollo, History, Skylab

Today, astronomers announced the discovery of 12 new moons around Jupiter. Inverse writer Matthew Phelan sat down with the Carnegie Institute’s Scott S. Sheppard who led the team that located the Jovian moons to tell us what this means for our solar systems and why one of the moons is especially odd. Two of the new dozen were uncovered in the spring of 2017 by Sheppard’s team bringing Jupiter’s moon count to 69 (nice), which means we now know there are 79 moons orbiting Jupiter. Questions Include: How did we find these new Jovian moons and why was it a serendipitous finding? What is the criteria that determines whether or not an object is a moon? How many new moons around Jupiter did we find? How do we detect new moons? What are Trojan asteroids? What are prograde and retrograde moons? What is this new “oddball” moon Valetudo and why is it different? Will there be more moons discovered around Jupiter? Is there a minimum size for a moon? What do retrograde and prograde objects tell us about the formation of our solar system? How do moons in our solar system get their names? Follow ‘I Need My Space’ on Social Media: Twitter: @INeedMySpacePod Instagram: @INeedMySpacePod FB Group: I Need My Space Pod To continue the conversation from this episode, use the hashtag #INeedMySpace Follow Dr. Scott  S. Sheppard on the Web: https://carnegiescience.edu/scientist/scott-sheppard https://sites.google.com/carnegiescience.edu/sheppard/home?authuser=0 About Inverse: Inverse sparks curiosity about the future. We explore the science of anything, innovations that shape tomorrow and ideas that stretch our minds. Our goal is to motivate the next generation to build a better world. Credits: ‘I Need My Space’ is an Inverse production hosted by Steve Ward, produced by Sam Riddell, and executive produced by Hannah Margaret Allen and Weston Green. This episode was also produced and hosted by Matthew Phelan. Our intro and outro music was created by Andrew Olivares. Steve: @stevejohnhenryw Andrew: https://soundcloud.com/andrewo Other Topics Discussed Include: Comet Shoemaker–Levy 9, The Jupiter Trojans, The Kuiper Belt, The Galilean Moons, Io, Europa, Ganymede, Callisto, Himalia, Valetudo

Author of "The Design and Engineering of Curiosity: How the Mars Rover Performs Its Job" and planetary evangelist and senior editor at The Planetary Society, Emily Lakdawalla, joins Rae and Steve to discuss NASA’s Mars rover Curiosity. Questions Include: What kind of data is the Curiosity rover collecting? What does a habitable environment consist of? Is Curiosity a stepping stone towards crewed missions to Mars? How are repairs handled on planetary rovers? What is a planetary evangelist? Why is the universe more creative than humanity? Follow ‘I Need My Space’ on Social Media: Twitter: @INeedMySpacePod Instagram: @INeedMySpacePod FB Group: I Need My Space Pod To continue the conversation from this episode, use the hashtag #INeedMySpace Follow Emily Lakdawalla on Twitter: @elakdawalla Follow Planetary Society on Twitter: @exploreplanets Planetary Society’s website: http://planetary.org/ This episode of ‘I Need My Space’ is sponsored by HelloFresh. Receive $30 off your first week of deliveries when you go to hellofresh.com/space30 and use the code SPACE30. About Inverse: Inverse sparks curiosity about the future. We explore the science of anything, innovations that shape tomorrow and ideas that stretch our minds. Our goal is to motivate the next generation to build a better world. Credits: ‘I Need My Space’ is an Inverse production hosted by Rae Paoletta and Steve Ward, produced by Sam Riddell, and executive produced by Hannah Margaret Allen. Our intro and outro music was created by Andrew Olivares. Rae: @payoletter Steve: @stevejohnhenryw Andrew: https://soundcloud.com/andrewo Other Topics Discussed Include: Mars Mariner and Viking programs, the Spirit and Opportunity Mars rovers, Yellowknife Bay, FPGAs, the Stardust mission, and Uranus

Rocket scientist and entrepreneur Natalya Bailey joins Steve to discuss the climate of NewSpace. Questions Include: What is NewSpace? Who are the key players besides Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos? How is competition driving the space race? How can a regular person keep up with the space industry? Are new space and old space competitors? How does defunding NASA hurt commercial space? Is there a NewSpace bubble? Is the space industry a boys club? How do we get kids excited about the cosmos? Follow ‘I Need My Space’ on Social Media: Twitter: @INeedMySpacePod Instagram: @INeedMySpacePod FB Group: I Need My Space Pod To continue the conversation from this episode, use the hashtag #INeedMySpace Follow Natalya on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/natalyabrikner/   Follow Accion Systems on the web: https://www.accion-systems.com/ This episode of ‘I Need My Space’ is sponsored by Audible. For a free audiobook with a 30-day free trial, go to audible.com/SPACE or text SPACE to 500-500. About Inverse: Inverse sparks curiosity about the future. We explore the science of anything, innovations that shape tomorrow, and ideas that stretch our minds. Our goal is to motivate the next generation to build a better world. Credits: ‘I Need My Space’ is an Inverse production hosted by Rae Paoletta and Steve Ward, produced by Sam Riddell, and executive produced by Hannah Margaret Allen. Our intro and outro music was created by Andrew Olivares. Rae: @payoletter Steve: @stevejohnhenryw Andrew: https://soundcloud.com/andrewo Other Topics Discussed Include: Elon Musk, Virgin Galactic, commercial space, SXSW, Jeff Bezos, satellites, HBO, the internet, rockets, and propulsion systems.

Retired NASA astronaut Dr. Mae Jemison joins Rae to discuss how to diversify the space industry. Questions Include: How does it feel to be an inspiration to women and girls everywhere? Is there a representation issue in NASA? Who are the people who make space flight possible? Why is it important to make space flight more inclusive? What was the impact of the film ‘Hidden Figures’? What are most astronauts’ favorite planet? Follow ‘I Need My Space’ on Social Media: Twitter: @INeedMySpacePod Instagram: @INeedMySpacePod FB Group: I Need My Space Pod To continue the conversation from this episode, use the hashtag #INeedMySpace Dr. Mae’s website: http://www.drmae.com/ Watch ‘One Strange Rock’: https://on.natgeo.com/2pe6AGO About Inverse: Inverse sparks curiosity about the future. We explore the science of anything, innovations that shape tomorrow, and ideas that stretch our minds. Our goal is to motivate the next generation to build a better world. Credits: ‘I Need My Space’ is an Inverse production hosted by Rae Paoletta and Steve Ward, produced by Sam Riddell, and executive produced by Hannah Margaret Allen. Our intro and outro music was created by Andrew Olivares. Rae: @payoletter Steve: @stevejohnhenryw Andrew: https://soundcloud.com/andrewo

Rae and Steve are joined by Afrofuturist author Ytasha Womack to discuss the importance of centering humanity as we journey through space. Question Include: How do we not ruin space colonies like we did on Earth? How do we ensure that people on space colonies are happy and healthy? What will determine who gets to go to space and who doesn’t?  What is the cultural history of the term “alien”? What holidays do we celebrate on another planet? What is a citizen of the universe? How do you make ice cream on Mars? What aspects of Earthly life will we come to value on Mars? Will languages blend on space colonies? What language will we speak on Mars? Follow ‘I Need My Space’ on Social Media: Twitter: @INeedMySpacePod Instagram: @INeedMySpacePod FB Group: I Need My Space Pod To continue the conversation from this episode, use the hashtag #INeedMySpace Follow Ytasha on Twitter: @ytashawomack Read Afrofuturism: https://amzn.to/2lbWunr Read Rayla 2212 & Rayla 2213: https://amzn.to/2JHs3ju & https://amzn.to/2t5P7S0 About Inverse: Inverse sparks curiosity about the future. We explore the science of anything, innovations that shape tomorrow, and ideas that stretch our minds. Our goal is to motivate the next generation to build a better world. Credits: ‘I Need My Space’ is an Inverse production hosted by Rae Paoletta and Steve Ward, produced by Sam Riddell, and executive produced by Hannah Margaret Allen. Our intro and outro music was created by Andrew Olivares. Rae: @payoletter Steve: @stevejohnhenryw Andrew: https://soundcloud.com/andrewo Other Topics Discussed Include:  Budweiser brewing beer on Mars, Earthling jealousy towards space colonies, Rayla 2212, Afrofuturism, space food, agriculture in space, currency and an economy in space, Rayla 2212, Westworld