Thought Leader Series

Galactic Herald: How NASA Communicates Space

Jan. 27 | 6 p.m. CT

Right now, NASA is doing amazing things. They are exploring our solar system, looking deeper into the universe with a new, more powerful space telescope, and have had people living in orbit continuously for more than 20 years.

How do we know all this? The tireless communicators at NASA are telling these stories, helping us marvel at the technologic feats of achievement going on every day.

Learn more about how NASA creates and communicates space news with the public in our January Thought Leader Series, presented by UTMB.

To continue our commitment to bring dynamic science learning experiences to the public, please join the Thought Leader Series virtually at 6 p.m. CT Jan. 27. The presentation will be available on this webpage and our YouTube channel.

About the panel

Panelists for this event include NASA Goddard Space Flight Center producer Michael Starobin, NASA Johnson Space Center Public Affairs Officer Gary Jordan, NASA Jet Propulsion Lab Public Outreach Lead Kaitlyn Soares, and NASA Exoplanet Exploration Program Office Public Outreach Lead Thalia Khan.

Starobin is senior producer for television and multimedia at the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center. For the past year, he has focused exclusively on work as the producer and director for live events pertaining to The James Webb Space Telescope. Starobin has reported on- and off -camera for NASA on a wide range of missions from locations including Greenland, Japan, Canada, Chile and Antarctica. He’s developed speeches and presentations for NASA administrators and center directors, as well as led numerous high level media initiatives at the mission level and the directorate level.

Jordan is a Public Affairs Officer at NASA Johnson Space Center. His responsibilities include managing public messaging and media relations for Commercial Low-Earth Orbit Development, Commercial Crew, and the International Space Station (ISS); leading the digital multimedia content team; hosting live television commentary of dynamic spaceflight in Mission Control Houston; and producing and hosting “Houston We Have a Podcast.”

Soares is passionate about exploring the convergence of art and science and how the relationship between those subjects can serve the public. In her current role as Public Outreach lead for astrophysics at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), she translates data through a creative lens that improves access and perception of complex scientific information. Before joining NASA, Soares managed digital strategy for art and cultural institutions in New York and Boston. Soares has a Master of Science in Communication from Boston University and is currently earning her Master of Business Administration at Boston University Questrom School of Business.

Khan is the Public Outreach lead for NASA’s Exoplanet Exploration Program Office. She works in engaging the public with exoplanet science through producing engaging products, organizing public and science events, and coordinating communications activities across the theme of exoplanet science, missions, and technology development. In addition to her communications role with ExEP, Khan provides support to NASA’s Universe of Learning education cooperative agreement, where she enables informal science institutions with resources to educate the public on general topics of astrophysics. Khan has a Bachelor of Arts in Communication and is currently finishing her Master of Arts in Communication at the Johns Hopkins University.