Podcast: Powering Space Exploration with STEM Learning

In our latest podcast, we had the honour of hosting former NASA Astronaut Dr. Tom Jones, a distinguished figure in space exploration. We delve into the pivotal role of STEM education in propelling humanity’s journey into the cosmos, where Dr. Jones passionately articulated the fundamental link between our understanding of the universe and the imperative need for STEM expertise.

Here’s a sneak peek into our conversation:

“We want to understand the solar system and the family of planets that we’re a part of. And then beyond that, we want to understand our galaxy and the entire universe and find out what makes it all tick, to find out what caused the creation of the universe for example. What caused the creation of our solar system and the formation of the Earth? So, we go to space to study these things, but we can’t get up to space and take instruments there to study our environment unless we understand what’s out there, what the conditions are.

All of these aeronautical and astronomical sciences and engineering disciplines come together to enable us to go to space, and so you’ve got to master those STEM skills here on Earth to enable us to move human beings and our entire species out into space someday. It’s very fundamental. You’ve got to really have those precise skills so you can build machines that will work and keep people alive and get them back safely.”