Before the Moon Blog
Exploring the past, present, and future of space.
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From Typist to Trailblazer: Estella Gillette and the Women Behind NASA’s Early Missions In 1964, Estella Hernandez Gillette was just out of high school, newly naturalized as a U.S. citizen, and walking through the doors of NASA’s Manned Spacecraft Center in Houston — the beating heart of the Gemini program. What she found was a…
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When you walk through the Mercer Museum in Doylestown, you’re not just looking at objects, you’re peering into the DNA of American invention. That’s where Clint Flack works as an Exhibit Specialist and Curator, installing exhibits, researching local history, and safeguarding the stories of Bucks County’s innovators. His perspective reveals how a quiet farming county…
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When State Representative Brian Munroe talks about Warminster, it’s not just as a legislator – it’s as someone who feels deeply connected to the community’s past, present, and future. Representing Pennsylvania’s 144th District, which includes Warminster, Warrington, Ivyland, and parts of New Britain Township, Munroe has seen firsthand how small towns can leave an outsized…
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Walking through the old Rockwell plant in Downey, California—home of the Apollo capsules, Space Shuttle orbiters, and parts of the International Space Station—was like stepping into a living museum. For Kirsten Armstrong, it was also the launchpad of a career that would put her at the forefront of space policy and strategy. Today, as President…
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When people think of the Apollo era, one name rises above the rest: Gene Kranz. As NASA’s legendary flight director, he guided America through its greatest triumphs and darkest hours—from Apollo 11’s first lunar landing to the near-disaster of Apollo 13. Recently, I had the honor of sitting down with Kranz, and what he shared…
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It started with a countdown. Ten, nine, eight… a group of kids huddled behind a yellow safety line, eyes locked on the slender rocket balanced on its red launcher. The button was pressed, and in a burst of smoke and speed, the rocket shot into the blue August sky. Cheers erupted. For a moment, every…
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What does it feel like to watch a man willingly black out in the name of science? Frank Kurdziel still remembers. In the mid-1980s, Frank was a young environmental engineer at the Naval Air Development Center (NADC) in Warminster, Pennsylvania. He didn’t design rockets or pilot jets, but he was part of the backbone that…
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This post is from an informal pre-interview done with filmmaker Jason Sherman in preparation for an in person formal interview with NASA Astronaut Terry J. Hart for his upcoming film Before the Moon. When Terry Hart appears on screen, he doesn’t command attention with volume – but with clarity. Calm, precise, and humble to a…
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The Moment I Got My Boarding Pass to Space It was a quiet Monday when I clicked “Register.” No fanfare, no boarding tunnel, no NASA badge around my neck. Just a digital RSVP to witness history: the NASA SpaceX Crew-11 mission launch, happening July 31st at precisely 12:09 p.m. EDT. For most of my life,…
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Wait… What Does Butter Have to Do With Space? Let’s rewind. Before centrifuges spun astronauts and local factories built NASA hardware, Bucks County was already quietly solving problems—with steam, steel, and, yes… butter. The region’s inventors weren’t aiming for the stars. They were aiming to improve life on Earth. But their curiosity, craftsmanship, and willingness…