SPACE IN 60

Welcome to the SPACE IN 60 podcast, where Clint Graumann, Andrew Pylypchuk and Chad Baker bring you into the world of the NewSpace industry! Today, Clint and Chad are joined by guest, Dr. Sheila Kanani. Dr. Kanani is a planetary scientist, space comedienne, author, teacher, mother, co-founder of Stem Sisters, and an overall space enthusiast! Dr. Sheila Kanani is the Education, Outreach and Diversity Officer at the Royal Astronomical Society, as well as a children’s book author. At the age of 13, she saw the Apollo 13 film with Tom Hanks and knew she wanted to be an astronaut. She holds master’s degrees in physics and astrophysics, and a PhD in planetary science. As much as she loved the science she studied, she realized that she loved talking and teaching about it even more. She retrained as a teacher before the position at the Royal Astronomical Society appeared, which is where she remains today. The Royal Astronomical Society is a U.K.-based membership organization for astronomers and geophysicists founded in 1820. Now, there are over 4,000 members. Building an interest in space and bringing people into the industry is serious business, however, there is a funny side to the story too. Dr. Kanani herself has dabbled in stand-up comedy through her experiences in space and even shares one of her clever space jokes with us today! Then, she explains how she accidentally fell into a PhD using Cassini data. Before Cassini data, it was assumed that Saturn had about 20 moons, but we now know that number is over 50 and each ring varies in size. The idea of Cassini was conceived in the late 80’s, but took a fair few years for the spacecraft to be built. In 1997, it was launched powered by nuclear power batteries, and took 7 years to arrive in Saturn. The spacecraft was recommissioned until 2017 and was the longest-running planetary mission providing data on seasonal changes on the planet. As the episode wraps up. Dr. Kanani reveals her goals and aspirations for the future. She also reveals her unfavorable opinion about commercial space flight and Starlink. Finally, she reveals the things in the industry which are exciting her most. Links: Connect with Dr. Sheila Kanani, follow her on Twitter, and learn more about the RAS. Connect with Clint Graumann on LinkedIn and Twitter. Connect with Chad Baker on LinkedIn Learn more about SPACE IN 60 and connect on Twitter.