Houston, we have a podcast.

Welcome to the official podcast of the NASA Johnson Space Center,

episode 115, Air to Space.

I'm Gary Jordan.

I'll be your host today.

If you're new to the show,

we bring in the experts to talk about all different parts of human spaceflight.

Long-time listeners of this show know that human spaceflight takes a lot of collaboration.

Collaboration within NASA, with other space agencies, with commercial businesses, and even other parts of the U.S.

government for day-to-day space operations.

In the case of the International Space Station, NASA works with a Department of Defense

Space Surveillance Network to track objects larger than 10 centimeters in low-Earth orbit,

many of which is orbital debris.

Knowing where these objects are part of keeping the space station in a safe

orbit as well as the global positioning system, the GPS satellites that actually

help to navigate the space station. This is just one or a few elements of what the Department of Defense does in space and how the relationship

works with NASA.

Today we have very special guests to hone in on this one branch of the military, the Air Force. The Air Force and

NASA have a very special relationship. A lot of astronauts come from the Air Force,

among other things, so we're going to break that down. Today we sit down with General Stephen W Wilson and Colonel Nick Heg.

General Wilson is the Vice Chief of Staff for the U.S. Air Force.

If you're unfamiliar with the hierarchy of military branches, that's really far up there.

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