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AirSpace

National Air and Space Museum

We see the connections to aviation and space in literally everything. From our favorite movies and the songs in our playlists to the latest news of space exploration and your commercial flight home for the holidays – aerospace is literally everywhere you look. Twice a month our hosts riff on some of the coolest stories of aviation and space history, news, and culture. We promise, whether you’re an AVGeek, wannabe Space Camper, or none of the above, you’ll find not only a connection to your life but you’ll learn something interesting in the process.

We see the connections to aviation and space in literally everything. From our favorite movies and the songs in our playlists to the latest news of space exploration and your commercial flight home for the holidays – aerospace is literally everywhere you look. Twice a month our hosts riff on some of the coolest stories of aviation and space history, news, and culture. We promise, whether you’re an AVGeek, wannabe Space Camper, or none of the above, you’ll find not only a connection to your life but you’ll learn something interesting in the process.

VOYAGES TO MARS: Robots

Thumbnail for "VOYAGES TO MARS: Robots".
October 20, 202018min 16sec

We're back with the third installment of our literary mixtape, Voyages to Mars! Humans aren't yet able to go to Mars ourselves, so we’re reliant on the help of rovers and landers to be our eyes and ears on the surface - our mechanical “boots on the ground.” This episode is our ode to ROBOTS!

Our two stories today come from a time before the word “robot” had even entered our vocabulary. L. Frank Baum (of Wizard of Oz fame) introduces us to a wind-up man named Tik-Tok in Ozma of Oz. And in The Steam Man of the Prairies, author Edward Ellis sets his steam powered man against the backdrop of the industrialization of the American West.

About Voyages to Mars: On July 30, 2020 NASA's Perseverance rover launched from Cape Canaveral, Florida to Jezero Crater, Mars. To accompany Percy on its seven-month journey, we're compiling a literary mixtape of Martian-themed sci-fi set to music by DJ Kid Koala.

Voyages to Mars is made possible by the support of the Secretary of the Smithsonian and the Smithsonian Orlando Regional Council.