Join Emily and Alexa in conversation with Dr. Soyeon Yi, Korea's first and only astronaut! We discuss her trajectory towards the stars and her experiences navigating gender and cultural dynamics in STEM in Korea, the US, and Star City in Russia. Dr. Yi also speaks about her time in space and the colorful story of the tradition of the welcome apple upon her return back to Earth. Last but not least, we touch on the necessity of diversity in engineering and space science, as well as Dr. Yi's advice for folks interested in pursuing a similar path.

Emily and Alexa chat with astrophotographer Andrew McCarthy about his work capturing the stars, rocket launches, and other celestial phenomena. Listen in to hear behind-the-scenes stories of what it takes to get the incredible shots McCarthy has captured of the ISS transiting the Moon, his collaborations with Artemis II Commander Reid Wiseman and artist Cathrin Machin, and more!

Andrew's work can be found on his website at cosmicbackground.io. He is also found on Instagram at @cosmic_background and on X at @AJamesMcCarthy.

Please see the Art Astra website (artastra.space) for this episode's transcript and show notes.

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Music credit: "Space" by Music_Unlimited

Emily and Alexa chat with NASA Historian Dr. Lois Rosson about the history of illustration in space exploration, how the NASA Art Program came to be, and the dark story behind the rocket emoji. 🚀

Dr. Lois Rosson is a historian of science and technology based in Los Angeles, where she currently works as a field historian in the NASA History Office. At NASA, Lois just completed a history of the Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy, SOFIA, and is currently working on a history of exoplanet research at the agency.

Her current book project traces the impact of Los Angeles's art and special effects industry on the look of the space environment in planetary science and in popular culture. She has held the Guggenheim Pre-Doctoral Fellowship at the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum and the Octavia E. Butler Fellowship at the Huntington Library. Her work has been supported by the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, the Berggruen Institute, and the American Philosophical Society.

Please see the Art Astra website (artastra.space) for this episode's transcript and show notes.

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Music credit: "Space" by Music_Unlimited