

Off-Nominal
Jake Robins, Anthony Colangelo
Two friends, two beers, and a casual conversation about space. Landing monthly in your podcast feed.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Aug 22, 2025 • 1h 2min
207 - Replacement Money (with Randy Riddle, LeonRunningMan!)
Jake and Anthony are joined by Randy Riddle, retired small rocket chief engineer and long time anomaly (it’s LeonRunningMan, himself!), to talk about his career in the Air Force, how appropriated money actually works from the government side, and to tell a ton of stories.TopicsOff-Nominal - YouTubeEpisode 207 - Replacement Money (with Randy Riddle, LeonRunningMan!) - YouTubeNational Air and Space Intel CenterAir Force Issues RFP For OSP-3 Launch Services - Defense DailyUSSF awards OSP-4 contract to emerging Small Launch providers > Los Angeles Air Force Base > Article DisplaySpace and Missile Systems Center awards $4.9 million Small Rocket Program-Orbital contract for Agile Small Launch Operational Normalizer (ASLON)-45 mission > Los Angeles Air Force Base > Article DisplayFollow Off-NominalSubscribe to the show! - Off-NominalSupport the show, join the DiscordOff-Nominal (@offnom) / TwitterOff-Nominal (@offnom@spacey.space) - Spacey SpaceFollow JakeWeMartians Podcast - Follow Humanity's Journey to MarsWeMartians Podcast (@We_Martians) | TwitterJake Robins (@JakeOnOrbit) | TwitterJake Robins (@JakeOnOrbit@spacey.space) - Spacey SpaceFollow AnthonyMain Engine Cut OffMain Engine Cut Off (@WeHaveMECO) | TwitterMain Engine Cut Off (@meco@spacey.space) - Spacey SpaceAnthony Colangelo (@acolangelo) | TwitterAnthony Colangelo (@acolangelo@jawns.club) - jawns.club 🐘Off-Nominal MerchandiseOff-Nominal Logo TeeWeMartians Shop | MECO Shop

Aug 14, 2025 • 59min
206 - Coalition for Deep State Exploration
Jake and Anthony kick around the news, from Vulcan and Ariane 6 launches on the same day, Blue Origin’s MTO, and some licensing talk, because that’s super fun.TopicsOff-Nominal - YouTubeEpisode 206 - Coalition for Deep State Exploration - YouTubeAfter first operational launch, here’s the next big test for ULA’s Vulcan rocket - Ars TechnicaESA - MetOp-SG-A1 and Sentinel-5 launch on Ariane 6Op-ed: NASA’s New CLD Strategy Will Lose Mars, LEO to China - PayloadNo Changes Allowed | LinkedInThe Mission: Blue Origin’s Mars Telecommunications Orbiter | Blue OriginTrump Issues Executive Order on Commercial Space – SpacePolicyOnline.comFollow Off-NominalSubscribe to the show! - Off-NominalSupport the show, join the DiscordOff-Nominal (@offnom) / TwitterOff-Nominal (@offnom@spacey.space) - Spacey SpaceFollow JakeWeMartians Podcast - Follow Humanity's Journey to MarsWeMartians Podcast (@We_Martians) | TwitterJake Robins (@JakeOnOrbit) | TwitterJake Robins (@JakeOnOrbit@spacey.space) - Spacey SpaceFollow AnthonyMain Engine Cut OffMain Engine Cut Off (@WeHaveMECO) | TwitterMain Engine Cut Off (@meco@spacey.space) - Spacey SpaceAnthony Colangelo (@acolangelo) | TwitterAnthony Colangelo (@acolangelo@jawns.club) - jawns.club 🐘Off-Nominal MerchandiseOff-Nominal Logo TeeWeMartians Shop | MECO Shop

Aug 8, 2025 • 60min
205 - Knives Out for Kansas
Jake and Anthony decide which spaceship(s) they would like to steal from a museum.TopicsOff-Nominal - YouTubeEpisode 205 - Knives Out for Kansas - YouTubeNASA’s new chief has radically rewritten the rules for private space stations - Ars TechnicaLawmakers writing NASA’s budget want a cheaper upper stage for the SLS rocket - Ars TechnicaIs the Dream Chaser space plane ever going to launch into orbit? - Ars TechnicaHouston, you’ve got a space shuttle… only NASA won’t say which one - Ars TechnicaSpace Shuttle Independence - WikipediaMikoyan-Gurevich MiG-105 - WikipediaLK (spacecraft) - WikipediaFollow Off-NominalSubscribe to the show! - Off-NominalSupport the show, join the DiscordOff-Nominal (@offnom) / TwitterOff-Nominal (@offnom@spacey.space) - Spacey SpaceFollow JakeWeMartians Podcast - Follow Humanity's Journey to MarsWeMartians Podcast (@We_Martians) | TwitterJake Robins (@JakeOnOrbit) | TwitterJake Robins (@JakeOnOrbit@spacey.space) - Spacey SpaceFollow AnthonyMain Engine Cut OffMain Engine Cut Off (@WeHaveMECO) | TwitterMain Engine Cut Off (@meco@spacey.space) - Spacey SpaceAnthony Colangelo (@acolangelo) | TwitterAnthony Colangelo (@acolangelo@jawns.club) - jawns.club 🐘Off-Nominal MerchandiseOff-Nominal Logo TeeWeMartians Shop | MECO Shop

Aug 1, 2025 • 1h 2min
204 - It’s Not Delivery, It’s Deorbit (with Joe Barnard)
Jake and Anthony are joined by Joe Barnard to catch up and finally discuss High Steaks!TopicsOff-Nominal - YouTubeEpisode 204 - It’s Not Delivery, It’s Deorbit (with Joe Barnard) - YouTubeCan Supersonic Heating Cook Steak? - YouTubeHigh Steaks Flight 1 - Onboard Footage 50% Speed with Data Overlay - YouTubeSmallest 4K 120fps Camera Possible - YouTubeUsing Condoms to Make a Rocket Nosecone - YouTubeBuilding a Supersonic Rocket Guidance System - YouTubeThe #1 Reason Rocket Parachutes Fail - YouTubeHalf Cat RocketryAustralia’s first orbital-class rocket didn’t make it far off the launch pad - Ars TechnicaGilmour Space on X: “Liftoff completed, launch tower cleared, stage 1 tested. Awesome result for a first test launch.”Follow JoeBPS.space - YouTubeJoe Barnard (@joebarnard) / TwitterBPS.SpaceFollow Off-NominalSubscribe to the show! - Off-NominalSupport the show, join the DiscordOff-Nominal (@offnom) / TwitterOff-Nominal (@offnom@spacey.space) - Spacey SpaceFollow JakeWeMartians Podcast - Follow Humanity's Journey to MarsWeMartians Podcast (@We_Martians) | TwitterJake Robins (@JakeOnOrbit) | TwitterJake Robins (@JakeOnOrbit@spacey.space) - Spacey SpaceFollow AnthonyMain Engine Cut OffMain Engine Cut Off (@WeHaveMECO) | TwitterMain Engine Cut Off (@meco@spacey.space) - Spacey SpaceAnthony Colangelo (@acolangelo) | TwitterAnthony Colangelo (@acolangelo@jawns.club) - jawns.club 🐘Off-Nominal MerchandiseOff-Nominal Logo TeeWeMartians Shop | MECO Shop

Jul 18, 2025 • 55min
203 - 20 Tree and Me
Jake and Anthony return from their travels with stories, and a ton of news to catch each other up on. And we’ll find out if Jake was the person who bought NWA 16799.TopicsOff-Nominal - YouTubeEpisode 203 - 20 Tree and Me - YouTubeThe largest Mars meteorite on Earth has sold for $4.3 million | SpaceCongress passes budget reconciliation bill with $10 billion for NASA - SpaceNewsSenate Appropriators Poised to Reject Proposed NASA Budget Cuts, But… – SpacePolicyOnline.comHouse Appropriators Also Reject Trump-Proposed NASA Cuts, Fund National Space Council – SpacePolicyOnline.comCongress moves to reject bulk of White House’s proposed NASA cuts - Ars TechnicaHere’s why Trump appointed the secretary of transportation to lead NASA - Ars TechnicaNASA Research Shows Path Toward Protocells on Titan - NASA ScienceBuilding the future of SpaceNews - SpaceNewsFollow Off-NominalSubscribe to the show! - Off-NominalSupport the show, join the DiscordOff-Nominal (@offnom) / TwitterOff-Nominal (@offnom@spacey.space) - Spacey SpaceFollow JakeWeMartians Podcast - Follow Humanity's Journey to MarsWeMartians Podcast (@We_Martians) | TwitterJake Robins (@JakeOnOrbit) | TwitterJake Robins (@JakeOnOrbit@spacey.space) - Spacey SpaceFollow AnthonyMain Engine Cut OffMain Engine Cut Off (@WeHaveMECO) | TwitterMain Engine Cut Off (@meco@spacey.space) - Spacey SpaceAnthony Colangelo (@acolangelo) | TwitterAnthony Colangelo (@acolangelo@jawns.club) - jawns.club 🐘Off-Nominal MerchandiseOff-Nominal Logo TeeWeMartians Shop | MECO Shop

Jun 27, 2025 • 1h 4min
202 - Rapidly Adjusting (with Adrian Beil)
Anthony is joined by Adrian Beil of NASASpaceflight to talk about the recent mayhem at Starbase, and to kick around European space policy topics in the run up to the ESA Ministerial later this year.TopicsOff-Nominal - YouTubeEpisode 202 - Rapidly Adjusting (with Adrian Beil) - YouTubeFollowing the Loss of Ship 36, SpaceX now Focuses on Rebuilding Masseys - NASASpaceFlight.comJack Beyer on X: “Close up slow motion footage of the unexpected event(s) during Northrop Grumman’s BOLE DM-1 stb test today.”Northrop Grumman tests SLS Block 2 BOLE booster in Utah; nozzle issue seen - NASASpaceFlight.comESA studying impacts of proposed NASA budget cuts - SpaceNewsESA moving ahead with ‘resilience from space’ satellite imaging program - SpaceNewsFollow AdrianAdrian Beil (@BCCarCounters) / TwitterAdrian Beil, Author at NASASpaceFlight.comFollow Off-NominalSubscribe to the show! - Off-NominalSupport the show, join the DiscordOff-Nominal (@offnom) / TwitterOff-Nominal (@offnom@spacey.space) - Spacey SpaceFollow JakeWeMartians Podcast - Follow Humanity's Journey to MarsWeMartians Podcast (@We_Martians) | TwitterJake Robins (@JakeOnOrbit) | TwitterJake Robins (@JakeOnOrbit@spacey.space) - Spacey SpaceFollow AnthonyMain Engine Cut OffMain Engine Cut Off (@WeHaveMECO) | TwitterMain Engine Cut Off (@meco@spacey.space) - Spacey SpaceAnthony Colangelo (@acolangelo) | TwitterAnthony Colangelo (@acolangelo@jawns.club) - jawns.club 🐘Off-Nominal MerchandiseOff-Nominal Logo TeeWeMartians Shop | MECO Shop

Jun 20, 2025 • 1h 5min
201 - Bad Ass, But Also Bad (with Casey Dreier and Eric Berger)
Anthony is joined by Casey Dreier, Chief of Space Policy at The Planetary Society, and Eric Berger, Senior Space Editor at Ars Technica, to talk about the NASA 2026 budget proposal, the Jared Isaacman saga, and all the space policy storylines you could imagine.TopicsOff-Nominal - YouTubeEpisode 201 - Bad Ass, But Also Bad (with Casey Dreier and Eric Berger) (with Casey Dreier and Eric Berger) - YouTubeNASA's disastrous 2026 budget proposal in… | The Planetary SocietyThe Space Review: How NASA’s proposed budget cuts are felt across the AtlanticThe Space Review: NASA’s 2026 budget in brief: Unprecedented, unstrategic, and wastefulThe Planetary Society’s NASA Data DashboardsIsaacman’s bold plan for NASA: Nuclear ships, seven-crew Dragons, accelerated Artemis - Ars TechnicaThe administration’s anti-consensus Mars plan will fail - SpaceNewsSpaceX’s next Starship just blew up on its test stand in South Texas - Ars TechnicaShe was a Disney star with platinum records, but Bridgit Mendler gave it up to change the world - Ars TechnicaFollow CaseyCasey Dreier | The Planetary SocietyThe Planetary SocietyFollow EricEric Berger | Ars TechnicaEric Berger (@SciGuySpace) / XFollow Off-NominalSubscribe to the show! - Off-NominalSupport the show, join the DiscordOff-Nominal (@offnom) / TwitterOff-Nominal (@offnom@spacey.space) - Spacey SpaceFollow JakeWeMartians Podcast - Follow Humanity's Journey to MarsWeMartians Podcast (@We_Martians) | TwitterJake Robins (@JakeOnOrbit) | TwitterJake Robins (@JakeOnOrbit@spacey.space) - Spacey SpaceFollow AnthonyMain Engine Cut OffMain Engine Cut Off (@WeHaveMECO) | TwitterMain Engine Cut Off (@meco@spacey.space) - Spacey SpaceAnthony Colangelo (@acolangelo) | TwitterAnthony Colangelo (@acolangelo@jawns.club) - jawns.club 🐘Off-Nominal MerchandiseOff-Nominal Logo TeeWeMartians Shop | MECO Shop

Jun 13, 2025 • 60min
200 - On the Interstages of Giants (with Matt Gjertsen)
Jake and Anthony are joined by Matt Gjertsen, founder of Better Every Day Studios, to talk about leadership and management development in the space industry (and elsewhere!).TopicsOff-Nominal - YouTubeEpisode 200 - On the Interstages of Giants (with Matt Gjertsen) - YouTubeBetter Every Day StudiosFollow MattEasily listen to Leadership Launchpad – Team Development, & Performance Improvement for Aerospace & Technology Managers in your podcast app of choiceEasily listen to A VC, a Headhunter, and a Trainer Walk into a Bar in your podcast app of choiceFollow Off-NominalSubscribe to the show! - Off-NominalSupport the show, join the DiscordOff-Nominal (@offnom) / TwitterOff-Nominal (@offnom@spacey.space) - Spacey SpaceFollow JakeWeMartians Podcast - Follow Humanity's Journey to MarsWeMartians Podcast (@We_Martians) | TwitterJake Robins (@JakeOnOrbit) | TwitterJake Robins (@JakeOnOrbit@spacey.space) - Spacey SpaceFollow AnthonyMain Engine Cut OffMain Engine Cut Off (@WeHaveMECO) | TwitterMain Engine Cut Off (@meco@spacey.space) - Spacey SpaceAnthony Colangelo (@acolangelo) | TwitterAnthony Colangelo (@acolangelo@jawns.club) - jawns.club 🐘Off-Nominal MerchandiseOff-Nominal Logo TeeWeMartians Shop | MECO Shop

Jun 5, 2025 • 58min
199 - The Thing That We Grow Plants
It returns. Hot drama. Also a moon lander is happening right now. Also Twitter fights break out. Also a moon lander doesn’t happen.TopicsOff-Nominal - YouTubeEpisode 199 - The Thing That We Grow Plants - YouTubeIsaacman: people with ‘axes to grind’ about Musk caused withdrawn NASA nomination - SpaceNewsWhite House to withdraw Isaacman nomination to lead NASA - SpaceNewsNASA Copes with Details of $6 Billion Budget Cut, Leadership Uncertainty – SpacePolicyOnline.comNASA withdraws support for conferences - SpaceNewsCommercial space companies to fund launch range upgrades under $4 billion contract - SpaceNewsChinese launch startup conducts vertical takeoff and splashdown test - SpaceNewsKaitlan Collins on X: “As their blowup escalates, Trump suggests terminating Musk’s federal contracts.”Eric Berger on X: “This would both end the International Space Station and simultaneously provide no way to safely deorbit it.”Elon Musk on X: “This just gets better and better 🤣🤣 Go ahead, make my day …”Elon Musk on X: “Time to drop the really big bomb: @realDonaldTrump is in the Epstein files. That is the real reason they have not been made public. Have a nice day, DJT!”Follow Off-NominalSubscribe to the show! - Off-NominalSupport the show, join the DiscordOff-Nominal (@offnom) / TwitterOff-Nominal (@offnom@spacey.space) - Spacey SpaceFollow JakeWeMartians Podcast - Follow Humanity's Journey to MarsWeMartians Podcast (@We_Martians) | TwitterJake Robins (@JakeOnOrbit) | TwitterJake Robins (@JakeOnOrbit@spacey.space) - Spacey SpaceFollow AnthonyMain Engine Cut OffMain Engine Cut Off (@WeHaveMECO) | TwitterMain Engine Cut Off (@meco@spacey.space) - Spacey SpaceAnthony Colangelo (@acolangelo) | TwitterAnthony Colangelo (@acolangelo@jawns.club) - jawns.club 🐘Off-Nominal MerchandiseOff-Nominal Logo TeeWeMartians Shop | MECO Shop

May 30, 2025 • 1h 1min
198 - Gotahm
Jake and Anthony figure out if we should panic about Starship, or just Starship Block 2, or not.TopicsOff-Nominal - YouTubeEpisode 198 - Gotahm - YouTubeStarship’s Ninth Flight Test - SpaceX - LaunchesNorthrop Grumman Invests $50 Million in Firefly Aerospace to Advance Medium Launch Vehicle Named Eclipse™Introducing the new Northrop Grumman logo. | Northrop GrummanRocket Lab's Neutron tapped for U.S. military cargo test - SpaceNewsFollow Off-NominalSubscribe to the show! - Off-NominalSupport the show, join the DiscordOff-Nominal (@offnom) / TwitterOff-Nominal (@offnom@spacey.space) - Spacey SpaceFollow JakeWeMartians Podcast - Follow Humanity's Journey to MarsWeMartians Podcast (@We_Martians) | TwitterJake Robins (@JakeOnOrbit) | TwitterJake Robins (@JakeOnOrbit@spacey.space) - Spacey SpaceFollow AnthonyMain Engine Cut OffMain Engine Cut Off (@WeHaveMECO) | TwitterMain Engine Cut Off (@meco@spacey.space) - Spacey SpaceAnthony Colangelo (@acolangelo) | TwitterAnthony Colangelo (@acolangelo@jawns.club) - jawns.club 🐘Off-Nominal MerchandiseOff-Nominal Logo TeeWeMartians Shop | MECO Shop