Blue Dot

Series produced by North State Public Radio

Series image

Conversations exploring where science and pop culture collide. Hosted by Dave Schlom with audio production by Matt Fidler.

Blue Dot, named after Carl Sagan's famous speech about our place in the universe, features interviews with guests from all over the regional, national and worldwide scientific communities. Host Dave Schlom leads discussions about the issues science is helping us address with experts who shed light on climate change, space exploration, astronomy, technology and much more. Dave asks us to remember: from deep space, we all live on a pale, blue dot.


202 Pieces

Order by: Newest First | Oldest First
Intertwined Legends: The Passing of Chris Kraft and the Restoration of Mission Control
From: North State Public Radio
Series: Blue Dot
Caption: The newly restored Mission Operations Control Room 2 and the view from where Dr. Kraft would sit.
In this very special episode, we pay tribute to two legends: Dr. Christopher Columbus Kraft Jr. and NASA's historic Mission Operations Control Room...

  • Added: Jul 31, 2019
  • Length: 59:00
A Cinematic Tour de Force of the Solar System on NOVA
From: North State Public Radio
Series: Blue Dot
Piece image
Dave talks to Gideon Bradshaw and Andrew Cohen, the BBC filmmakers behind the new NOVA series The Planets on PBS. Part of the "Summer of Space" on ...

  • Added: Jul 25, 2019
  • Length: 59:00
Apollo 11 at 50: a conversation with Apollo 11 backup astronaut Fred Haise and space historian John Logsdon
From: North State Public Radio
Series: Blue Dot
Caption: Apollo 11 back up crew members Fred Haise (left) and Jim Lovell prepare for an altitude test in the lunar module preparing for Apollo 11.
Fred Haise was made famous by the movie Apollo 13, in which he was portrayed by Bill Paxton in the story of the most famous Apollo mission other th...

Bought by Boise State Public Radio and KSPB Pebble Beach


  • Added: Jul 17, 2019
  • Length: 59:00
  • Purchases: 2
Apollo 11 at The Movies: A conversation with Rob Sitch Director of The Dish Plus: Experiencing Apollo 11 Virtually on YouTube
From: North State Public Radio
Series: Blue Dot
Caption: Theatrical Poster for The Dish
The Summer of Apollo 11 continues! Find out what Dave's first and second favorite movies of all time are, spoiler alert, one of them is the topic o...

  • Added: Jul 10, 2019
  • Length: 59:00
Inside The Making of an Epic Documentary: A Conversation with Robert Stone
From: North State Public Radio
Series: Blue Dot
Caption: Chasing The Moon
Robert Stone's three part documetary, Chasing The Moon, airs July 8-10 on the PBS history series The American Experience. After previewing the epic...

Bought by WLPR , KWMR, and Boise State Public Radio


  • Added: Jul 05, 2019
  • Length: 59:00
  • Purchases: 3
Fighting Fire with Fire: Pyro-Geographer Dr. Don Hankins (rerun)
From: North State Public Radio
Series: Blue Dot
Caption: Don Hankins explores landscapes and the communities that inhabit them., Credit: Don Hankins
Dave learns about fighting fire with fire in this episode as he talks to CSU Chico Professor of Geography Don Hankins. Dr. Hankins teaches a course...

Bought by KWMR


  • Added: Jun 27, 2019
  • Length: 59:00
  • Purchases: 1
Deep Time: Earth History and How We Are Shaping Its Future...
From: North State Public Radio
Series: Blue Dot
Caption: Marcia Bjornerud
Dave visits with Lawrence University Geology Professor Marcia Bjornerud, author of the new book: Timefulness: How Thinking Like A Geologist Can Hel...

Bought by KWMR


  • Added: Jun 19, 2019
  • Length: 59:00
  • Purchases: 1
Father’s Day Episode (Interviews with Bill and Dianna Cowern, Alan and Leonard Stern, David and Lester Grinspoon)
From: North State Public Radio
Series: Blue Dot
Caption: Dave and his son Taylor at Pebble Beach
It's our Father's Day episode! Interviews with scientists and their Dads as Dave talks to planetary scientist David Grinspoon and his father Lester...

Bought by KUHF


  • Added: Jun 13, 2019
  • Length: 59:00
  • Purchases: 1
The Archaeology of the Space Age: A conversation with Lisa Westwood
From: North State Public Radio
Series: Blue Dot
Caption: Movie Poster for The Final Mission - Preserving NASA's Apollo Sites
Dave meets with a kindred soul as Archaeologist and California State University Chico Anthropology Department Professor Lisa Westwood joins him in ...

  • Added: Jun 06, 2019
  • Length: 59:00
Farming in Harmony With Nature: John Chester and The Biggest Little Farm
From: North State Public Radio
Series: Blue Dot
Caption: John and Molly Chester's Farm
The award winning documentary The Biggest Little Farm is the focus of Dave's conversation with film maker turned farmer John Chester. He and his wi...

Bought by KWMR


  • Added: May 30, 2019
  • Length: 59:00
  • Purchases: 1
Sea Star's Alarming Decline
From: North State Public Radio
Series: Blue Dot
Piece image
We go under the sea, literally, to investigate the alarming decline of sea star populations of the Pacific Coast of North America from Mexico to Al...

Bought by KSPB Pebble Beach and KSKA


  • Added: May 23, 2019
  • Length: 59:00
  • Purchases: 2
Apollo 10: Charlie Brown And Snoopy Go To The Moon
From: North State Public Radio
Series: Blue Dot
Caption: Astronaut Tom Stafford touches Snoopy for good luck., Credit: NASA
In our ongoing series of looks back at Project Apollo 50 years later, we examine the Apollo 10 mission. Dave talks to two of his childhood heroes -...

  • Added: May 17, 2019
  • Length: 01:58:00
Innovation Hub's Kara Miller, Poets Laureate Create Magic With Revered Songwriter
From: North State Public Radio
Series: Blue Dot
Caption: Kara Miller from Innovation Hub on WGBH, Credit: MEREDITH NIERMAN / WGBH NEWS
Dave talks to kindred spirits on this episode of the Dot. First up is fellow broad/podcaster Kara Miller. Her Boston based show Innovation Hub from...

  • Added: May 10, 2019
  • Length: 59:00
Picturing Apollo 11- John Bisney & JL Pickering Create A Photographers Dream Book
From: North State Public Radio
Series: Blue Dot
Caption: Image from Picturing Apollo 11, Credit: JOHN BISNEY & JL PICKERING
Dave talks to John Bisney and JL Pickering as we ramp up our coverage of the 50th anniversary of the Moon Landing this summer. Bisney and Pickering...

Bought by KSPB Pebble Beach


  • Added: May 03, 2019
  • Length: 59:00
  • Purchases: 1
The Aftermath Of An Epic Disaster
From: North State Public Radio
Series: Blue Dot
Piece image
On this episode, Dave interviews Hayley Dieckmann, one of the team of veterinarians from the University of California at Davis Emergency Veterinary...

  • Added: Apr 26, 2019
  • Length: 59:00
Saving the Dead Sea
From: North State Public Radio
Series: Blue Dot
Piece image
In this episode, Dave visits with Terri Randall and Avner Tavori, the two filmmakers responsible for the new PBS/NOVA documentary, Saving The Dead ...

  • Added: Apr 20, 2019
  • Length: 59:00
Dr. Mann
From: North State Public Radio
Series: Blue Dot
Piece image
Dave is joined by longtime friend of Blue Dot, TV meteorologist Rob Elvington as they talk to one of the world's leading climate scientists, Michae...

  • Added: Apr 02, 2019
  • Length: 59:00
Blue Dot 137: Sea Star's Alarming Decline
From: North State Public Radio
Series: Blue Dot
Caption: Before and after image of sea stars in the Pacific Ocean decimated by wasting disease., Credit: DIEGO MONTECINO / UC DAVIS
We go under the sea, literally, to investigate the alarming decline of sea star populations of the Pacific Coast of North America from Mexico to Al...

  • Added: Mar 15, 2019
  • Length: 59:00
Opportunity Rover Mission
From: North State Public Radio
Series: Blue Dot
Piece image
We pay tribute to the Opportunity Rover mission, which was supposed to last for three months but wound up tooling around Meridiani Planum on Mars f...

  • Added: Mar 08, 2019
  • Length: 59:00
Apollo 9
From: North State Public Radio
Series: Blue Dot
Piece image
In our third installment of Blue Dot's look back at Project Apollo for the 50th anniversaries of the missions, we examine perhaps the most overlook...

  • Added: Mar 01, 2019
  • Length: 59:00

Playlists That Feature This Series: