Entrepreneurs in Space: Episode 3 - Axiom Space, Mike Suffredini

This week, we are excited to welcome Frank Slazer, the Coalition’s very own President and CEO, to the Deep Space Podcast’s Leadership in Space Series. In this episode, Slazer shares his vision for the organization moving forward and speaks about how he sees it changing to a more robust advocacy model. Our guest also speaks about the traits that he considers to be crucial in a leader and what he’s learned about leadership in the space field after over 40 years of work in the sector. 

We are thrilled to welcome Robert Curbeam to the Deep Space Podcast. A former astronaut and test pilot, Curbeam has held several leadership roles in the industry, and is currently the Senior Vice President for Space Capture at Maxar Technologies. This week, he joins the Coalition for Deep Space Exploration’s Christen Kapavik and Jamil Castillo for a conversation about what it means to be a leader in the space sector, leadership traits he learned from his time as an astronaut, why we should continue to pursue human space exploration, and more. 

This week, the Coalition for Deep Space Exploration is excited to welcome Barbara Slayton, Leidos’ VP and strategic account executive for NASA, NOAA, and NSF, to the Deep Space Podcast. Barbara joins Coalition team members Christen Kapavik and Jamil Castillo for a discussion about leadership and what it means to lead a team working in the space sector. Our guest also shares insight into what motivated her to become a leader in the space industry, what she would like her legacy to be, and why exploring space is so crucial for humanity. 

We are launching our Deep Space Podcast’s Leadership in Space series. This week, United Launch Alliance President and CEO Tory Bruno joins the Coalition for Deep Space Exploration’s Christen Kapavik and Jamil Castillo for a conversation about the qualities that he considers to be fundamental in a leader, especially when working in a challenging and visionary field such as space. Tory also touches on what he would like his and his company’s legacy to be, and highlights the importance of developing humanity’s potential in space as well as of using space to be better custodians of our own planet.

This week, we're releasing a special edition of the Deep Space Podcast, A Roadmap for Space Exploration. In this new episode, the former CEO of the Coalition for Deep Space Exploration, Dr. Mary Lynne Dittmar, joins Coalition team members Christen Kapavik and Jamil Castillo for a discussion about NASA’s Moon-to-Mars initiative, national programs and public-private partnerships for space, thoughts on a strategy for a permanent human presence in low Earth orbit in the future, and the ways in which space science and exploration help our home planet. These topics are also discussed in our recently released policy paper, “A Space Exploration Roadmap for the New Administration”, which you can find here: https://bit.ly/3iW39Pj 

Join us for Episode 3 of the Deep Space Podcast’s Workforce of the Future Series, featuring Ty Lee, a systems engineer at Maxar and Sapna Rao, a systems engineer at Lockheed Martin. From museums to science fiction to astronauts, Ty and Sapna tell us about their sources of inspiration to pursue careers in space. Sapna and Ty also dive into the importance of space exploration for our planet and for humanity, and explain how the Orion next-generation spacecraft and the Gateway will contribute to sustainable missions to the Moon and future crewed trips to Mars. 

This week, we are launching Episode 2 of our Deep Space Podcast’s Workforce of the Future series. Join young professionals Beverly Case of Jacobs Space Operations Group and David Vaughn of Northrop Grumman as they share insights into their careers and what it has taken for them to thrive in aerospace. David and Beverly provide details about the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket booster production at the Northrop Grumman facilities in Utah and stacking at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, as well as the wide range of activities of NASA’s Exploration Ground Systems.

This week, we are launching the first episode of our Deep Space Podcast’s Workforce of the Future series. Young professionals Amanda Gertjejansen, a senior production manager at Boeing, and Kevin Chau, a Project Component Engineer at Aerojet Rocketdyne, join us to share their experience working on the hardware that will enable human deep space exploration again. Part of the teams working on the NASA Space Launch System’s (SLS) rocket core stage and RS-25 engines, our guests speak about the Green Run test campaign currently underway at NASA’s Stennis Space Center. Amanda and Kevin also offer thoughts on the future of deep space exploration and share their experience working and growing within big aerospace companies.

The Space Policy series of our Deep Space Podcast features Jared Stout, who has served in various space policy positions in Congress, the National Space Council, and the Federal Aviation Administration Office of Commercial Space Transportation. Having worked on multiple space-related legislative initiatives and participated in the development of several Space Policy Directives, Jared shares his thoughts on what has changed in the space field over the last decade, what has remained the same, and the road ahead. Drawing on his experience, Jared also speaks about the relationship between Congress and NASA, and the importance of balancing the different factors that play a role in the development of the space sector, such as international partnerships and commercial space interests.

Joining us in this week’s episode of The Deep Space Podcast is Pam Melroy, former NASA astronaut, U.S. Air Force colonel (retired), and current space consultant. Melroy joins the Coalition for Deep Space Exploration’s CEO and President Dr. Mary Lynne Dittmar for a candid conversation about the human side of spaceflight, in which she reflects on the most memorable times in her astronaut career and walks listeners through the journey of flying to space. Having spent extended periods of time in quarantine and away from her family as an astronaut, Melroy also shares thoughts and ideas on how to adapt to our current way of life resulting from a global pandemic, and the role of technology in keeping people united.