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Guests: Emily Rieder, Don Smith

Emily Rieder is a theatre studies lecturer at Guilford College; Don Smith is a physics and astronomy professor. Together they are teaming up for a truly unique production in November..

"Silent Sky" is a Lauren Gunderson play that explores the life of astronomer Henrietta Swan Leavitt (1868–1921), While working as a "computer" at the Harvard College Observatory, she analyzed photographic plates of variable stars without ever using a telescope; Leavitt discovered the luminosiity-period relationship in Cepheid variables, massive stars, with short lifetimes, coining the term standard candles. Her method is now part of the cosmic distance ladder, a compendium of methods now used to measure cosmic distances.

The production is being staged in the campus planetarium, believed to be a unique first for this play. Rieder and Smith discuss the life of Leavitt, the inspiration of the play and the challenges of this production.

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Guest: Jonathan Ward

Jonathan Ward is a NASA/JPL Solar System Ambassador and the author of four books, most recently Bringing Columbia Home: The Untold Story of a Lost Space Shuttle and Her Crew. Currently, Jonathan is the resident astronomer and enrichment speaker for Atlas Ocean Voyages, serving as an expedition guide on many of their voyages.

On his most recent outing, Jonathan journeyed to Iceland, serving as the guide for the 2026 total solar eclipse. Weather is always an unknown when it comes to planning for an eclipse viewing, and this time was no different. Jonathan describes the challenges of the trip, including dark, foreboding skies on the afternoon of the eclipse, and setting out not knowing if the skies would clear.

Did they? Find out ...