On this episode of This Week in Space (opens in new tab), Rod Pyle and Tariq Malik speak with acclaimed author Andy Chaikin (opens in new tab) about his epic Apollo book “A Man On the Moon” and moon exploration.
In 1984, author Andy Chaikin began work on a groundbreaking book about the Apollo program that became “A Man on the Moon (opens in new tab),” published in 1994. In it, he interviewed 23 of the 24 lunar Apollo astronauts, with the exception of Apollo 13‘s Jack Swigert, who had sadly died before the project began.
It became an instant bestseller and continues to move briskly, and was also the inspiration for Tom Hanks’ HBO series “From Earth To The Moon.” What was so special? It was the first comprehensive look at the Apollo program as told by the astronauts to a writer who could weave a dynamic, compelling narrative. We talk to Andy about this amazing book, his other works, and what the future holds for space books.
You can learn more about Andy’s books at his website: https://www.andrewchaikin.com/books/ (opens in new tab).
Also in this episode, NASA’s latest update on Artemis 1 is that there’s an update coming on Nov.3 (opens in new tab)! There’s something spooky happening at the edge of our solar system, SpaceX’s Falcon Heavy will fly again on Nov. 1, the first time in 3 years.
Download or subscribe to this show at: https://twit.tv/shows/this-week-in-space (opens in new tab).
Get episodes ad-free with Club TWiT at https://twit.tv/clubtwit (opens in new tab)
Related news story links:
This Week in Space (opens in new tab) covers the new space age. Every Friday we take a deep dive into a fascinating topic. What’s happening with the new race to the moon and other planets? When will SpaceX really send people to Mars?
Join Rod Pyle and Tariq Malik from Space.com (opens in new tab) as they tackle those questions and more each week on Friday afternoons. You can subscribe today on your favorite podcatcher.
Rod Pyle (opens in new tab) is an author, journalist, television producer and Editor-in-Chief of Ad Astra magazine (opens in new tab). He has written 18 books (opens in new tab) on space history, exploration, and development, including Space 2.0, Innovation the NASA Way, Interplanetary Robots, Blueprint for a Battlestar, Amazing Stories of the Space Age, First On the Moon, and Destination Mars
In a previous life, Rod produced numerous documentaries and short films for The History Channel, Discovery Communications, and Disney. He also worked in visual effects on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine and the Battlestar Galactica reboot, as well as various sci-fi TV pilots. His most recent TV credit was with the NatGeo documentary on Tom Wolfe’s iconic book The Right Stuff.
Responsible for Space.com’s editorial vision, Tariq Malik has been the Editor-in-Chief of Space.com since 2019 and has covered space news and science for 18 years. He joined the Space.com team in 2001, first as an intern and soon after as a full-time spaceflight reporter covering human spaceflight, exploration, astronomy and the night sky. He became Space.com’s managing editor in 2009. As on-air talent has presented space stories on CNN, Fox News, NPR and others.
Tariq is an Eagle Scout (yes, he earned the Space Exploration merit badge), a Space Camp veteran (4 times as a kid, once as an adult), and has taken the ultimate “vomit comet” ride while reporting on zero-gravity fires. Before joining Space.com, he served as a staff reporter for The Los Angeles Times covering city and education beats. He has journalism degrees from the University of Southern California and New York University.
