![Small Steps, Giant Leaps Logo](https://appel.nasa.gov/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/Small_Steps_Giant_Leaps_Podcast_Cover_V2_300x300-300x300.jpg)
Small Steps, Giant Leaps
Tap into the experiences of NASA’s technical workforce as they develop missions to explore distant worlds—from the Moon to Mars, from Titan to Psyche. Learn how they advance technology to make aviation on Earth faster, quieter and more fuel efficient. Each biweekly episode celebrates program and project managers, engineers, scientists and thought leaders working on multiple fronts to advance aeronautics and space exploration in a bold new era of discovery. New episodes are released bi-weekly on Wednesdays.
![A worker at the sheet metal shop. Photo Credit: NASA/Tom Tschida](https://appel.nasa.gov/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/SSGL-114-Trade-Tech-Professionals-Part1-square-300x300.jpg)
EPISODE 115: NASA TRADE AND TECHNICAL PROFESSIONALS, PART 1
NASA Armstrong Flight Research Center Engineering Technicians Jason Nelson, Kyle Whitfield, and Alex Zamora discuss their essential contributions to NASA missions. Read More
![LaRC Aircraft in front of Hangar, Building 1244 in 1994. Photo Credit: NASA Langley Research Center](https://appel.nasa.gov/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/SSGL-114-Retirement-Dennis-Bushnell-300x300.jpg)
EPISODE 114: LAST STOP BEFORE RETIREMENT
NASA Langley Research Center Retired Chief Scientist Dennis Bushnell discusses highlights of his 60-year NASA career and the future of the agency. Read More
![Captured on Oct. 20, 2020 during the OSIRIS-REx mission’s Touch-And-Go (TAG) sample collection event, this image shows the SamCam imager’s field of view as the NASA spacecraft approaches and touches down on asteroid Bennu’s surface. Photo Credit: NASA](https://appel.nasa.gov/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/SSGL-113-OSIRIS-REx-Sample-Return-Preparation-square-300x300.png)
EPISODE 113: OSIRIS-REX SAMPLE RETURN PREPARATION
OSIRIS-REx Mission Systems Engineer Ron Mink discusses preparation for the return of the United States' first asteroid sample from space to Earth. Read More
![A high-resolution free-air gravity map based on GRAIL data, overlaid on terrain based on LRO altimeter (LOLA) and camera (LROC) data. The view is south-up, with the south pole near the horizon in the upper left and the crescent Earth in the distance. The terminator crosses the eastern rim of the Schrödinger basin. Gravity is painted onto the areas that are in or near the night side. Red corresponds to mass excesses and blue to mass deficits. Credit: NASA](https://appel.nasa.gov/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/SSGL-112-TechLeap-Nighttime-Precision-Landing-Challenge-square-300x300.jpg)
EPISODE 112: TECHLEAP NIGHTTIME PRECISION LANDING CHALLENGE
NASA TechLeap Nighttime Precision Landing Challenge Manager Greg Peters discusses the lunar landing challenge. Read More
![An image of Raven Zero Pressure Balloon being inflated.The Exo-Atmospheric Aerobrake was tested during the August 2019 flight campaign. Photo Credit: NASA](https://appel.nasa.gov/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/SSGL-111-flight-opportunities-square-300x300.jpg)
EPISODE 111: FLIGHT OPPORTUNITIES
NASA Flight Opportunities Program Manager Danielle McCulloch discusses rapid demonstration of technologies and capabilities for NASA missions and commercial spaceflight. Read More
![Test of Unmanned Aircraft Systems Traffic Management (UTM) technical capability Level 2 (TCL2) at Reno-Stead Airport, Nevada. During the test, five drones simultaneously crossed paths, separated by altitude. Two drones flew beyond visual line-of-sight and three flew within line-of-sight of their operators. Engineers Priya Venkatesan and Joey Mercer review flight paths using the UAS traffic management research platform at flight operations mission control at NASA’s UTM TCL2 test. Credit: NASA](https://appel.nasa.gov/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/SSGL-110-APPEL-JUN-2023-square-300x300.jpg)
EPISODE 110: APPEL KNOWLEDGE SERVICES
NASA Chief Knowledge Officer and APPEL Knowledge Services Director Tiffany Smith discusses knowledge sharing and learning and development. Read More
![](https://appel.nasa.gov/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/SSGL-109-NESC-MAY-2023-300x300.jpg)
EPISODE 109: NASA ENGINEERING AND SAFETY CENTER
NASA Engineering and Safety Center Director Tim Wilson discusses the NESC's contributions to NASA mission success. Read More
![Jim Sarafin is diving with an astronaut. The astronaut is in their spacesuit. Credit: NASA](https://appel.nasa.gov/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/SSGL-Jim-Sarafin-Diver-Training-square-300x300.jpg)
EPISODE 108: UNDERWATER TRAINING FOR ASTRONAUTS
NASA Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory Critical Systems Engineer Jim Sarafin discusses training astronauts for spacewalks. Read More
![NASA Glenn researcher Tim Peshek shows off a new type of ultrathin solar cell, known as a ‘perovskite’ because of its structure. These solar cells show promise for space applications because of their high efficiency and radiation tolerance and open the door to extremely low cost and large solar arrays for spacecraft or lunar surface habitats.](https://appel.nasa.gov/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/podcast-107-square-perovskite-300x300.jpg)
EPISODE 107: PEROVSKITE SOLAR CELLS
NASA Research Electrical Engineer Lyndsey McMillon-Brown discusses development of perovskite solar cell technology for Moon and Mars exploration. Read More