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Maria Varmazis (12:04)

Our guest today is Patrick o', Neill, Public affairs and outreach lead at the International Space Station US National Laboratory. The ISS National Lab has just unveiled a new mission patch with an unlikely partner and I asked Patrick to tell us all more about it.

Patrick O'Neill (12:22)

So this has been a long standing project with a lot of starts, stops and some changes in latitudes, quite literally. In the early origins of the ISS National Lab, we worked with a variety of companies, celebrities to develop mission patches that represented, you know, research that was happening on the space station during that particular year. And so we had the chance to work with some great, great figures, whether it was Ridley Scott, Lucasfilm and Star Wars, Marvel with Guardians of the Galaxy, Shepherd Fairy, Seth Green. So it's like we've worked with some interesting folks and we, we came into contact with Jimmy Buffett in 2018, 2019 and there was a mutual desire at one point to develop a mission patch. And the one thing that we had never done or that the partners we had Worked with, done, was sold that mission patch, this was always done with the intention of engaging the general public on the great things that are happening on the space station through the national laboratory. But Jimmy and his team at Margaritaville, they saw the value of maybe this is something that we can sell to our community and we can donate the proceeds from that to the ISS National Lab to further research to better understand or improve our planet. And, and so Obviously that was 2019, and a lot of time has since passed since that timeframe. And Unfortunately, Jimmy in 2023, he also passed after a long battle with cancer. But his team at Margaritaville, they reached back out to us and they said, listen, this was a passion project for Jimmy, and we see the value of this still going live because it provides an opportunity for us to honor Jimmy's legacy, both in singing, songwriting, entrepreneurship, but more importantly, being able to give back to potentially help fund research on the space station. So last week at the Space Economy Summit, Margaritaville announced this collaboration. And so they are selling the patches, they are selling stickers, they will be selling a variety of likeness thereof, and all of the proceeds will be going to Casis, the manager of the ISS National Lab, to again further research or ongoing research on the space station to improve our planet.

Maria Varmazis (14:36)

That's so wonderful. And I think it's so important that people also understand that these kinds of projects do take time. They can take years to just percolate and you know, things do happen. Sadly, losing Jimmy, that I could have seen that derail things. But how wonderful that Margaritaville wanted to continue with, with his legacy in this project.

Patrick O'Neill (14:53)

Yeah, no, I agree 100%. And it's funny, I still remember it like it, you know, it was yesterday where it was December 28, 2018. And I'm at Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex with my parents and they're walking around the Atlantis exhibit, and I'm actually standing right next to the ISS kind of exhibit that they have over there. And I get this email and I'm looking at it. It ends up being from Jimmy Buffett. And I'm like, oh my gosh. And he just says, yeah, I want to do the patch. And I mean, it's up on my computer right now where I was looking at that the other day when all this was happening and I was like that. You know, that's one of those moments where it just stops you right in your tracks. And it's something that is indelible to me. And I'm excited to see how this resonates with the general public. Not just the parrot heads out there, but also with the space enthusiasts and just those that want to see great things happen on the space station.

Maria Varmazis (15:41)

I love it. And for me, and I don't live anywhere near Florida. I'm in Massachusetts. So, like the exact opposite of Florida. But when I think of Florida, I think of the space program and Jimmy Buffett. I mean, truly, it's such a perfect match. I will now completely change topics to this awesome article I saw in Upward magazine, which I want you to tell us about what Upward magazine is about the Genes in Space program hitting its 10th anniversary this year. So I just threw a whole bunch of terms. Walk me through all this. Genes in Space, Upward, all of that.

Patrick O'Neill (16:11)

So I'm going to start first with Genes in Space. And I'm glad that you brought that up, because when you and I were chatting before and I was like, oh, yes, that's a, that's a great thing for us to talk about. So Genes in Space is a program that was developed through Boeing and Mini pcr. And it was done with the intention of having students propose genetics experiments on the space station. And so to your point, we've been now operating this project for 10 years. There have been, you know, gosh, dozens of students that have been involved in projects that have flown to the space station. And there have been thousands and tens of thousands of students around the United States that have proposed ideas about doing genetic experiments on the space station. And so what we did is we did kind of a compilation of where are some of those people at now? And one of the great things about the Genes in Space program. And listen, I love my beloved San Diego State University, but the students that have ultimately won the Genes in Space competition, they have gone on to some of the best institutions in the United States of America, and they have been specializing in either medical fields or engineering. So this was in some ways an opportunity to really inspire the next generation about what you can do when you think out of the box for STEM or STEAM related initiatives. And so this has been kind of a crown jewel for us to talk about from an educational perspective. And so again, we've highlighted multiple students that ended up winning and have now since moved on to either professional endeavors or now engrossed deeply into their academic studies. And they talked a little bit about how this program was instrumental to them.

Maria Varmazis (17:43)

These were high school students that got to. Yeah, I just feel like we got to emphasize that high schoolers doing this, this is amazing.

Patrick O'Neill (17:49)

They're proposing. And again, these are not fundamental investigations. These are hardcore Genetics experiments that would help to allow us to better understand how to live and work in space or also to bring some of that back to us here on Earth. So again, it's really a fantastic program. We've been honored to work alongside again, Boeing and many PCR during these 10 plus years. And it's not stopping. So that's the great thing about it. Now, where you can learn a little bit more about this particular piece is through Upward. And Upward is the official magazine of the ISS National Laboratory. We put out normally three to four volumes over the course of any given year. But what makes Upward different from press releases or blogs or things that we might put out there in the general ether is that this is focused on results. You know, we hear it all the time. You know, what, not just what's happening on the space station, but why does it matter? What are the things that we're learning and how are we able to impart that into our life here on Earth or to business models in space? And Upward is that magazine, is that mechanism for us here at the ISS National Lab where it's focused specifically on the results that are happening and why it matters and the impacts it has for all of us. And what I would also do is Shameless Plug. So first of all, you can go subscribe to it on our website@issnationallab.org but speaking of anniversaries, we mentioned 10 years for genes in space. Early next year, I want to say, in February 2026, that's going to be our 10th anniversary of Upward. So we're hoping to have a special edition of Upward that will go out to, to the masses. And again, it's a great opportunity for you to learn about what's been happening on station, but the results that have been derived from research.

Maria Varmazis (19:31)

That's so wonderful. And you know, we, I was saying to you offline, there's only so much I can cover in a podcast. I feel like we're just always a little taster. And for folks, we always emphasize you want to get something more in depth, we will happily send you to places that do much more in depth than we can possibly do. So for sure. I mean, I was just, I had been briefly looking through Upward and it's wonderful how, whoops, I hit my mic. It's wonderful how in depth.

Patrick O'Neill (19:53)

You're that excited about it. Yeah. And again, it's not, it's not like a. To your point, it's a deeper dive. It's much deeper than that. It's a feature, you know, each there's normally three or four features in each volume. And so, and again, there are multiple pages. So you know, if you got 10, 15 minutes, you're gonna, you're gonna enjoy that read. So it's not, it's not just a Cliff Notes version. It is truly, you know, how, how things started to, how they ended to now what are we doing moving forward? So it's a great look at a lot of historical R D that's happened on station and you know, how that sets the foundation for what we can do next.

Maria Varmazis (20:27)

It's a highly recommended read. So we'll make sure we have links in the show notes for everybody if they don't already know about it, which I would imagine many of our listeners do. But in case they don't, they will now.

Patrick O'Neill (20:35)

So I appreciate the plug. We appreciate the plug.

Maria Varmazis (20:39)

Of course. No, I mentioned earlier I got my start ages ago in writing. So I'm a big fan of the written word. This big, big fan. What can I say, Patrick, is there anything else you want to make sure to mention for today's segment?

Patrick O'Neill (20:51)

You know, again, I think that we're happy to be kind of back to that full speed moment again. There's going to be some moments, hopefully we'll be able to talk about in the DEC time frame. But one thing I would also float out to those that are very deep into space, R and D, or those that maybe are already actively involved in doing research on the space station. There will be a conference that will be happening in early December. The Let me see if I get this right. It's ASGsR, which is the American Society of Gravitational and Space Research. And they're going to be having their annual gathering. It's going to be December 3rd through December 6th out in Phoenix, Arizona, which is probably about one of the best places you can be in that December time frame. So we're going to be talking about a lot of, of research that's happening on station. And think of that as when we talk about upward. This is the same thing, except you're doing it in person and people are presenting and going in depth on the research that they've been doing on station and what they've learned and what the next steps might look like. So if there are those that are out there that are interested, there will be a large contingent, I think not large, but there'll be a contingent from the National Lab, from our friends over at NASA, as well as the research community as a whole.

Maria Varmazis (21:55)

That's wonderful. Well, welcome back everybody. Patrick, good to speak with you as always.

Patrick O'Neill (22:00)

Always a pleasure.

Maria Varmazis (22:01)

I'm sure next month when we catch up, it'll be really busy, given all the catching up.

Patrick O'Neill (22:05)

Trust me, it's gonna be, it's, it's already busy, but it's, hopefully it's gonna be even more busy, but that's how it should be. We always want things to be rapid and accelerating on the space station or in our, in, you know, down here on Earth, getting ready to send things to the space.

Maria Varmazis (22:31)

We'll be right back.

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Maria Varmazis (23:26)

Welcome back. Chinese scientists studying lunar regolith samples found by Chang' E6 at the South Pole Aitken Basin or SPA, say that they have found micrometer scale hematite and maghemite and they are both oxidized iron minerals. Yes, they found rust on the moon and of hematite and maghemite, the latter is also magnetic. In both cases they weren't expected to be found on the moon. And the team from CNSA Shandong University and the Chinese Academy of Sciences reported their discovery in Science Advances, calling it the first sample based evidence of both hematite and maghemite on the lunar surface. And the researchers posit that large ancient impacts are likely what caused temporary oxygen rich vapor plumes that then oxidized lunar iron and produced these materials. And this could also maybe help explain magnetic anomalies around the SPA basin since again, maghamite is magnetic. So for our geologist friends and for lunar scientists, these tiny, tiny findings are an interesting evolution in our understanding of the Moon's redox history. In other words, our understanding of how reduction, oxidation chemical reactions happened on the Moon. And now it's onwards to go from these clues to figure out more about how major impacts shaped the Moon's chemistry and its sublimely unique magnetic environment. Yes, all of that from humble rust, foreign. And that is T minus. Brought to you by N2K CyberWire. We'd love to know what you think of our podcast. Your feedback ensures we deliver the insights that keep you a step ahead in the rapidly changing space industry. If you like our show. Please share a rating and review in your podcast app. Please also fill out the survey in the show notes or send an email to space@n2k.com we are proud that N2K CyberWire is part of the daily routine of the most influential leaders and operators in the public and private sector. From the Fortune 500 to many of the world's preeminent intelligence and law enforcement agencies, N2K helps space and cybersecurity professionals grow, learn and stay informed. As a nexus for discovery and connection, we bring you the people, the technology and the ideas shaping the future of secure innovation. Learn how@n2k.com N2K's senior producer is Alice Carouse. Our producer is Liz Stokes. We are mixed by Elliot Peltzman and Trey Hester with original music by Elliot Peltzman. Our executive producer is Jennifer Ibin. Peter Kilpe is our publisher and I am your host, Maria Varmazis. Thank you for listening. We'll see you tomorrow.

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