The Air Up There Podcast
Emily Calandrelli ‘The Space Gal’
Season 7,
Episode 1
Published:
Have you ever felt intimidated by science, technology, engineering, or math concepts? Well, you are not alone. Emily Calandrelli, aka ‘The Space Gal,’ is on a mission to make STEM easier to understand and fun for everyone!
In this episode, Emily shares how she went from shying away from science to excelling in it, the experience of a lifetime that kicked off her love for aerospace, and how she is making science accessible—especially for kids who don’t initially see themselves in STEM. Hear Emily’s personal stories and advice for finding the confidence to take on hard challenges.
Share this episode with friends, family, and colleagues. With the right support, anyone can not only survive in STEM but thrive in STEM!
If your curiosity is ignited, check out all the programs, games, puzzles, and events available to K-12 students through the FAA’s STEM Aviation and Space Education (AVSED) program.
Is there someone in aerospace you would like to hear from or a topic that you would like more information on? Let us know! Send an email to podcast@faa.gov. We would love to hear from you!
Meet Our Guest
Emily Calandrelli is best known as the host and co-executive producer of the hit Netflix series Emily’s Wonder Lab and to her growing army of followers on social media as ‘The Space Gal’. Emily is also a New York Times Bestselling Author, Emmy Nominated Executive Producer and Host of FOX’s Xploration Outer Space and was a correspondent on Netflix’s, Bill Nye Saves The World. Emily has a Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering and Aerospace Engineering from West Virginia University, and two Masters of Science degrees, one in Aeronautics and Astronautics and the other in Technology and Policy, from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. She wants to make science relatable, easy to understand and more exciting today than ever before in history.
Photo credit: Morgan Demeter
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Emily Calandrelli: It is hard, actually, to beat the zero G aircraft, that is sometimes known as the vomit comet, because that was my first entry into my love of aerospace. Floating weightless for an extended period of time feels like you're flying like a superhero.
Kelsey Crimiel: That’s Emily Calandrelli, who you may also know as ‘The Space Gal.’
Lucy Jabbour: Emily’s goal is to make science relatable, easy to understand, and more exciting today than ever before.
Kelsey Crimiel: I’m Kelsey Crimiel.
Lucy Jabbour: And I’m Lucy Jabbour - and this is ‘The Air Up There.’
Various People: This is your captain speaking. The feeling I get when I’m flying is just; you get an adrenaline rush. Seeing something fly is awesome. As soon as I had that flight, I just decided. Flying airplanes is all I’ve ever wanted to do. I get so excited about aviation, aeronautics, space, math, and science and engineering. Like star gazing and just wondering what it would be like to be up there. There is a space for you. There’s a lot of camaraderie. The support from the people. The air traffic controllers. There's so much freedom. I fell in love with it. I developed a passion for it. Just know you can do it. There’s certainly a place for everybody in aerospace.
Lucy Jabbour: Emily, you’re absolutely succeeding at making science relatable, easy to understand for so many people. Why do you think it's important to break down barriers like technical language, to make science more accessible to more people?
Emily Calandrelli: Yeah, well, I think of kids like myself who didn't see themselves in STEM when they were kids, because it felt like this unreachable, untouchable, elite thing for only the super smart cohort of us. People who had PhDs in their genetics. And I just was never one of those kids, and I didn't realize that someone like myself could not only survive in STEM, but thrive in STEM. I just felt like I didn't have a big foundation when I started, but I ended up at the top of my class at West Virginia University with a 4.0 double majoring in mechanical and aerospace engineering, and then I went to MIT to get two master's degrees in engineering. And it's like, I want kids who don't start off with the highest of foundations to know that their ceilings can be even higher if they're willing to put in the work and ask for help and find those resources. And so, I tried to make the language feel more accessible to people who don't have that language built in from their early childhoods.
Kelsey Crimiel: Through your lab experience, you have made science very exciting and approachable to kids and other STEM enthusiasts. What would you say is your favorite lab or experiment and why?
Emily Calandrelli: Oh, gosh. Well, let's see. The one that I do the most is elephant toothpaste, which is this very colorful, frothy, explosive experiment, and it's because it is so reliable. Anytime I do it, it's always going to react in a very similar way. It's going to be explosive and frothy, and it's going to get like that wow reaction. Because, you know, not all experiments have that wow reaction. They're all interesting, and there's always something to learn from it. But not all of them have that, oh my gosh. What just happened? That was so cool. And so that's one that I repeatedly do in front of kids and students and audiences, because it is just like, it's a winner every time. And you kind of have-to-have practice and be a professional, because parts of the experiment are a little bit dangerous. They can cause chemical burns, and so not everybody can do it. But I would say my favorite one to recommend to families, because it's fun for kids and super accessible, is Oobleck. And I love it because it's so easy and cheap to do. All you need is corn starch and water, and most families will have that in their house. And so that's the one that I always recommend, because kids love it. Adults love it. If you've ever played with Oobleck, it just feels so weird. It's a very like stimulating experiment to do. And so that's, that's the one that I recommend for kids and families.
Lucy Jabbour: Like, do you think, like the wow factor is super important for kids to just kind of open their eyes up and get them excited initially for science?
Emily Calandrelli: Yeah, for these science experiments that I do. I have a few parameters that I pick from, because there's so many science experiments to choose from and the ones that I like the most are ones that are reliable. I also like when there's actually a reaction you can see, and if it's a fast reaction, because that's where you get that wow factor, and that's where you get the kids attention. And then if I can, I try to make it colorful and or sparkly, because science is just more fun in color.
Lucy Jabbour: So, Emily, when did your passion for aerospace first start? Was there a specific event that lit that fire or a person? How did that kind of kick off?
Emily Calandrelli: I'm a little bit different than some of my peers. I grew up in a college town, and so our high school was always stacked with these like math clubs and robotics clubs, and all of the opportunities were there. I just wasn't a kid who necessarily wanted to pursue science and engineering as a child. Going to grad school at MIT I remember hearing a lot of stories of kids who grew up with parents who were engineers, who worked at NASA, people who went to space camp as a kid and I never had that. I didn't know any scientists or engineers as a child. My dad, who grew up in poverty and brought my family, to middle class, he instilled in me the importance of financial security. And I picked engineering because it was the best money after a four-year degree. When I got to college, I had to decide which engineering to pursue, and I saw that there was a class that you could take where you designed an experiment to fly on NASA's Vomit Comet. Where you could float weightless on the vomit comet, which is that parabolic aircraft that flies up and down and up and down, and the people and the science experiments inside float weightless. And that is where my spark began, because I saw that and I was like, that looks like so much fun. And so, I selected aerospace engineering and the rest is history. I just fell in love with everything related to space ever since.
Lucy Jabbour: That's pretty cool that you went into it with that kind of that kind of confidence.
Emily Calandrelli: I kind of took a leap of faith when I chose that major in college, and just thought I will figure it out along the way. And one of the benefits of not really having a blueprint for success by knowing people in those fields means that you also don't have a blueprint for failure. So, I felt very bold to do these big, ambitious things. And I'll say, one of the things that filled the opportunity gap was my NASA Space Grant. Every state in the country has one. They showed me all of the internships and research and fellowships that I could do, that NASA would pay for me to do stuff. They would pay for me to do internships. They'd pay for me to have research, to do research, and I certainly wouldn't be where I am today without them. If I could give any advice to students out there who aren't really sure what they need to be doing, go to your NASA Space Grant. They will hook you up.
Kelsey Crimiel: You've had some pretty wild experiences, like flying with the Blue Angels. What would you say has been your most memorable adventure so far?
Emily Calandrelli: It is hard, actually, to beat the zero G aircraft, that is sometimes known as the vomit comet. It was the most unique physical experience I have ever had. Floating weightless for an extended period of time feels like you're flying. If you've ever had a dream where you're flying and you don't want to wake up because it just feels so cool in your mind. That is exactly what it feels like. I could fly from one end of the plane to the other like a superhero. And what a crazy human experience that is. And so, to this day, I've flown on it three times now, and it's just it's the most magical thing I've ever physically experienced. It’s incredible.
Lucy Jabbour: You recently found out that you're going to be going to be going to space. Do you have any plans to do, like a lab or an experiment while you're up in space?
Emily Calandrelli: I do. There's a couple I am considering. Right now, I have two science experiments lined up that I would really love to do, perhaps three, perhaps four. But the trick is finding funding to cover it so that you can actually be able to cover the trip, to be able to do it. I am still actively working very hard to try to find sponsors to cover my flight to space. So, if there's any benevolent millionaire billionaires out there who would like to participate, please let me know. I'm so honored to be able to fly to space and help represent West Virginians. Just to represent that that region of the country, which is often overlooked or perhaps misconstrued in the media. And to be able to shine a positive light on the region is something I take very seriously, and I'm very honored to be able to do.
Kelsey Crimiel: We can't wait to see what those experiments are going to be once you finally get up there. But what advice do you have for the next generation of science and space enthusiasts?
Emily Calandrelli: I think for me, I would have liked to have known earlier on that failure is a good thing, that failure is an opportunity to learn and to just get a better relationship with failure. Because to first be able to succeed, you need to learn how to fail well. A lot of little girls, especially don't have a healthy relationship with failure. With little girls, we often praise the output. We praise the results, and say things like, well, you're so smart. And it's this binary thing is, what it teaches us. Is that when we do well, we get the answer right. We are smart, but what does that mean when we get the answer wrong? When you praise the process and not the result, you can replicate the process when you meet another challenge. But for girls and kids who are taught that succeeding means smart, then they may be less likely to choose hard things that they're not sure if they will succeed at. And so, I would teach kids to have a healthy relationship with failure, because that means that you're learning, and it means that you're feeling filling all the gaps in your knowledge, and it means that you're growing. And I think that every one of us, even adults, could benefit from learning that.
STEM AVSED PSA: Did you know that the FAA has K-12 STEM programs for students that can help you learn all about aviation and space? Ever wondered why airports look the way they do? Check out the Airport Design Challenge where you get to create a virtual airport in Minecraft. Or for a summer adventure see if there is an ACE Academy near you for a wide range of aerospace experiences. There are lots of ways you can start exploring the opportunities available to you in the aviation and space community. Go to faa.gov/education.
Lucy Jabbour: Thanks for listening! Coming up, in the next episode of The Air Up There, we’re talking with Captain Theresa Claiborne; the first African-American female pilot in the U.S. Air Force and President of Sisters of the Skies.
Terria Garner: Did you know that you were going to be the first for the US Air Force? Did you know any of that?
Theresa Claiborne: I did not. I look back on that time now and I'm very, very happy I did not know throughout the entire pilot training. It would have just been too much pressure. I was just 21 years old.
Lucy Jabbour: For more information check out faa.gov/podcasts.