In this episode I talk with Dr. Nancy Currie-Gregg, a formerArmy aviation officer, NASA astronaut and current Professor of Practice, Industrial & Systems Engineering and Aerospace Engineering at Texas A&M University.

In the episode, we discuss how Nancy became interested in aviation at a young age, her decision to join the Army Reserve Officers’ Training Corps, Nancy’s work as an Army Aviator, her time as a NASA flight simulation engineer, attending the Astronaut Candidate Training Program, the experience of taking off into space, her role as a flight engineer across fourNASA space missions, the Space Shuttle Columbia disaster, Nancy leading the Space Shuttle Program’s Safety and Mission Assurance Office after the Columbia disaster, her recommendation to aspiring Astronauts and much more. I hope you enjoy!

ARTICLES:

STS-57: https://www.nasa.gov/mission/sts-57/

STS-88: https://www.nasa.gov/mission/sts-88/

Columbia Accident Investigation Board (CAIB) Report (2003): https://govinfo.library.unt.edu/caib/news/report/volume1/default.html

The Challenger STS-51L Accident: https://www.nasa.gov/challenger-sts-51l-accident/

What we know about the midair plane and helicopter crashnear Washington, D.C.: https://www.npr.org/2025/01/30/nx-s1-5280198/plane-crash-washington-dc-helicopter-potomac

Neil Armstrong, Ohio teachers inspired astronaut NancyCurrie-Gregg: https://www.dispatch.com/story/news/usa250/2026/04/12/nancy-currie-gregg-astronaut-challenger-explosion-ohio/89441020007/

BOOKS:

The Challenger launch decision by Diane Vaughan

Normal Accidents by Charles Perrow

MUSIC INTRO/OUTRO:

massobeats - bonsai (https://youtu.be/BgjrxtC_WlE)

CONNECT:

LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/adrian-dolinay-frm-96a289106/

GitHub: https://github.com/ad17171717 X:https://twitter.com/DolinayG

Odysee: https://odysee.com/@adriandolinay:0

Medium: https://medium.com/@adriandolinay

PODCAST:

Apple Podcasts:https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-aspiring-stem-geek/id1765996824

Audible: https://www.audible.com/podcast/The-Aspiring-STEM-Geek/B0DC73S9SN

iHeart Radio: https://iheart.com/podcast/202676097/

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/60dPNJbDPaPw7ru8g5btxV

|-Video Chapters-|

0:00 – Intro
0:21 – Nancy’s interest in math and science growing up
1:09 – Studying Biological Science and joining Army Reserve Officers' TrainingCorps
4:55 – Army aviation school
8:17 –Helicopter Instructor Pilot
10:22 – NASA Simulation Engineer
14:54 – NASA’s Shuttle Training Aircraft
19:14 – Fault injection in flight simulation
21:57 – NASA’s Astronaut Candidate Training Program
24:56 – Space Transportation System 57 (STS-57)
32:16 –Space Transportation System 88 (STS-88)
37:00 – The Space Shuttle Columbia disaster and the aftermath
41:38 – Breaking into the space industry
43:56 – Book recommendation
46:34 – Conclusion