© 2025 Central Florida Public Media. All Rights Reserved.
90.7 FM Orlando • 89.5 FM Ocala
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Moon landers and sipping cocktails in space

NASA’s ISRU Pilot Excavator (IPEx) performs a simulated lunar mission in a testbed at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center on Friday, Aug. 30, 2024. IPEx functions as both an excavator and a dump truck to mine and transport lunar regolith, the loose rocky material on the Moon’s surface, which is crucial for future lunar missions and In-Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU) processes. This dual capability makes IPEx an indispensable tool for sustainable lunar exploration.
NASA/Frank Micheaux
NASA’s ISRU Pilot Excavator (IPEx) performs a simulated lunar mission in a testbed at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center on Friday, Aug. 30, 2024. IPEx functions as both an excavator and a dump truck to mine and transport lunar regolith, the loose rocky material on the Moon’s surface, which is crucial for future lunar missions and In-Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU) processes. This dual capability makes IPEx an indispensable tool for sustainable lunar exploration.

As humans head to the moon for exploration and maybe even permanent residence in the future, knowing where water is, or was, on the moon is vital for long duration stays.

The goal of NASA’s Lunar Trailblazer is to identify where, and how, water is stored beneath the lunar surface. But, that mission appears to be lost in space

We’ll speak with Joe Palca, a former NPR science correspondent about Trailblazer, the mission objectives and the uncertainty surrounding the spacecraft.

Then, what if you could have a margarita or an old fashioned in orbit or on the moon?!

The book “Alcohol in Space” explores the tie that alcohol has to human culture, companies working towards making alcohol orbital.

Plus, it’s now a documentary! We’ll speak with filmmaker Sam Burbank and author Chris Carberry about how space could have happy hours in space.

Marian is a multimedia journalist at Central Florida Public Media working as a reporter and producer for the 'Are We There Yet?' space podcast.
Brendan Byrne is Central Florida Public Media's Assistant News Director, managing the day-to-day operations of the newsroom, editing daily news stories, and managing the organization's internship program. Byrne also hosts Central Florida Public Media's weekly radio show and podcast "Are We There Yet?" which explores human space exploration, and the weekly news roundup podcast "The Wrap."
More Episodes