Rewriting the Mission for Space Exploration Breakthrough Labs

In the first episode of the podcast, Bill Ford sits down with Tom Vice, CEO of Sierra Space, a leading commercial space company at the forefront of creating and building the future of space transportation and infrastructure for low-Earth orbit commercialization. They discuss Tom’s early fascination with aerospace engineering, including stealthy afternoon trips to walk through out-of-commission planes parked at an Air Force Base near his childhood home; Tom’s journey through the aerospace industry, from Northrop Grumman to Aerion to Sierra Space; the next-generation technology that the Sierra Space team is building, including the DreamChaser, the world’s only runway-landing spaceplane for civil & commercial use, and the Orbital Reef, the first commercially owned and operated space station; a partnership with Blue Origin to chart a new future for the International Space Station in a project for NASA; why the environmental conditions in space allow for pioneering scientific and medical research as well as disruptive innovations in telecoms, energy and other industries; lessons in leadership, such as the vital role of empathy in fostering successful collaboration; the mission-driven mindset that distinguishes the next generation of employees; and other topics.