Chasing Orion!

Hey Chasers,

Just a quick update to let you know that we’re in Florida for the Orion Test Flight! The launch is set for 7AM EST today and we have press passes. We’ll be about 10KM from the launch site. This is even way closer than we were for the Atlantis lift off 3 years ago.

Orion Capsule

Orion Capsule

Orion’s flight is exciting for a few reasons both historical and personal. Historically, this launch represents the next steps on the path to bringing humanity further into the Solar system, perhaps even to Mars which is the current plan. But personally, it is huge that we were able to get press credentials for this launch. 3 years ago, when we started this journey, we had made little inroads yet with the space community here in Florida. We were just a group of travelers on a road trip to see a space shuttle. So much has happened since then and we’ve met so many people who have opened so many doors for us. And now, here we are on the eve/morning of this historic event with front row seats. One historic launch to another.

Be sure to tune in to the launch live! You can watch it here on NASA TV In fact, there is a live view of Orion on the launch pad right now. We’ll be there as well so if you’re around at the cape, be sure to Tweet me @chasingatlantis or @nobordfromorbit

Keep Chasing and Go Orion!!

-Matthew

We’re On a Comet!!

 

Rosetta Twitter Greeting

Rosetta Twitter Greeting

Hey Chasers! In case you hadn’t already heard the news, we’ve landed on a comet!

This morning the Rosetta mission landed on comet 67P/Churyumov–Gerasimenko. Huzzah for space! You can check out the story on CBC here and be sure to follow the Rosetta mission twitter thread @ESA_Rosetta for more updates including images from the comet’s surface!

Keep Chasing!

Matthew

Rod Roddenberry: New Worlds, New Families, New Homes

As Eugene “Rod” Roddenberry and I talked about Star Trek in the living room of his home, both a sense of excitement and a question were on my mind. I was excited as it was difficult to believe I was sitting in the house of the caretaker of the Star Trek legacy. Like space itself, a fictional universe, such as Star Trek, can seem unreachable. And yet, while speaking with Rod, I felt like I reached out to that universe and this time it reached back. With Star Trek having the impact on my life that it has, talking to Rod about the philosophies of Star Trek, and the legacy left by his father, Gene Roddenberry, was an opportunity to better understand myself and what Rod called the “family” of fans created by Trek and sci-fi kind. This brought me to my question: Why does space create a home for this family?

Rod Roddenberry (left)  During Interview with Matt  Cimone (right) on Chasing Atlantis

Rod Roddenberry (left) During Interview with Matt Cimone (right) on Chasing Atlantis

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In LA! Roddenberry, SpaceX, Virgin Galactic, Hollywood Sci-Fi Museum

Hey Chasers!

We’re back in Los Angeles. Last time that we were in the City of Angels we had an awesome adventure hanging out with the team from SpaceVidCast (now TMRO), Kevin Grazier, and Bill Nye the Science Guy.

This time we have another exciting line-up of interviews and adventures. Tomorrow, Benjamin Higginbotham of the TMRO team has setup a tour at SpaceX. Not sure exactly what’s in store for us yet, but hoping to get a glimpse of all the space revolutionizing awesomeness that Elon Musk is giving to the world. Likely we will not be able to take any footage at SpaceX, but we might be able to take some stills. We will post them if we can.

The Dragon Captuse Has Seatbelts!! Why didn't  they think of that on the Enterprise!?

The Dragon Captuse Has Seatbelts!! Why didn’t they think of that on the Enterprise!?

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Catch us at the Canadian National Exhibition

Hey Chasers!

If you are in the Toronto area, you can check out the last weekend of the Canadian National Exhibition where Chasing Atlantis has its own display.

CNE Logo

The CNE is an annual fair leading up the Canadian Labour day weekend that hosts about 1.5 million people each year at Toronto’s Exhibition Place. It is Canada’s largest annual fair which began in 1879 largely to promote agriculture and technology in Canada. The exhibits are accompanied by amusement park attractions, a band shell concert space with big name tickets and an air show.

Last year, we were contacted by the CNE’s Candice McCavitt to host a display as part of the CNE’s theme of looking toward the future. This year, one of the exhibits is centered on pop culture. We are featuring footage with Bill Nye the Science Guy, Ann Lemay of the video game series Mass Effect, and Canadian Astronaut Chris Hadfield. If you’re passing through, be sure to check out the Pop Culture display. If you find us, post a photo of the display on our Facebook Page or send us a tweet to @chasingatlantis

Thanks once again to Candice McCavitt for inviting us to be a part of the CNE two years running!

Keep Chasing!

Matthew

 

 

 

 

45 Years Later, The Cosmos Makes a Giant Leap Toward Us…

45 Years ago today we landed on the Moon for the very first time. The Apollo 11 team of Michael Collins, Neil Armstrong, and Buzz Aldrin took the first “Giant Leap for Mankind” (humankind) putting the first steps of humanity on a world beyond our own; a world characterized in the words of Buzz Aldrin by “Magnificent Desolation.”

There has been a lot of buzz (pun intended) about the 45th anniversary from screenings of the original landing to renewed debates about the moon landing hoax to an AMA by Buzz Aldrin on Reddit which you should check out.  There has also been questions about why we have yet to return.

Get this on an Awesome T-Shirt from I F$%#ing Love Science

Click to Get this on an Awesome T-Shirt from I F$%#ing Love Science

 

That is a good question. At the same time, we need to remember that since the late 60’s we have learned an incredible deal about space as we currently find ourselves in a Golden Age of Astronomy. We launched the Voyager Probes in the late 70’s which have just recently reached the edge of our solar system and crossed into inter-stellar space. The 80’s saw the dawn of the space shuttle program leaving the legacies of the International Space Station and Hubble Space Telescope. We got MIND BLOWING images in the 90’s from the Sojourner probe, part of the Mars Pathfinder Program when the Internet was first becoming ubiquitous. As a kid growing up in the 90’s where you could actually download images from Mars…amazing. I believe we actually crashed the NASA servers. We have since returned to Mars recently with Curiosity.

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We’re At Polar Chill and the Constellation Awards This Weekend!

Hey Chasers!

We’re heading to Polar Chill in Toronto this weekend and will be presenting at this year’s Constellation Awards

Polar Chill Logo

We have had an awesome time with the TCON Promotional Society, a non-profit group in Toronto that organizes a host of conventions and acts as a rally point for the Toronto Sci-Fi/Fantasy Community. We first connected with them in July of 2012 for Polaris 26. Polaris was the first event we ever screened any of Chasing Atlantis’ footage, interviewed a dalek, and learned how to sing Klingon Opera. TCON also helped us out by introducing us to Wil Wheaton which is where we secured our interview with him.

Last year, in June of 2013, TCON invited us back as presenters for the Constellation Awards, Canada’s awards for science fiction film and television. I believe that last year I said it was like the Oscars, but with pointed ears. We met some awesome people, including Trenna Keating of Defiance and Judith and Garfield Reeve-Stevens who have written several Trek novels and worked on Star Trek Enterprise. (They are also rebooting Captain Power…I wonder if my XT-7 jet will still work with this series. It’s totally still in my parents’ basement somewhere)

Chasing Team with Trenna Keating and Alden Adair 2013 Constellation Awards

Chasing Team with Trenna Keating and Alden Adair 2013 Constellation Awards

This past October of 2013, we were back in Toronto for TCON’s “Reversed Polarity”, a Doctor Who convention. Paul and I had a booth setup and ran a session that was basically “Everything I Need to Know I Learned from the Doctor” It was awesome.

Paul Attacked by Cyberman at Reversed Polarity 2013

Paul Attacked by Cyberman at Reversed Polarity 2013

This Summer, we are not only back to present at Constellations, but to hang out for the whole weekend of TCON’s “Polar Chill.” Polar Chill is a thoughtful diversion from the typical con. Chill is completely community based. Rather than a focus on big name actors and autograph lines, Polar Chill is rather about connecting with other fans. It is awesome to have an interaction with a favourite actor, writer or artist. But what really makes a convention memorable are the fans and community members in attendance. The fans are what creates the community that is like no other; accepting, open to an array of political ideas, views on technology, wildly creative, artistic, and who can turn a powered wheelchair into a dalek costume. That community motivates me when it comes to Chasing Atlantis as so many of you have inspired us so much and we want to be able to do the same for you; make something that you are all proud of.

We are really looking forward to connecting with you at Polar Chill and Constellations this weekend in Toronto. We’ll also have a camera out so be sure to come find us and tell us why you’re into what you’re into. ALSO, this year the Constellation Awards are going to be hosted by Rick Green (Commander Rick) from TVOntario’s classic science fiction news series “Prisoners of Gravity.” I LOVED Prisoners of Gravity when I was a kid. AND, I had always kinda hoped we would bump into Rick when making Chasing Atlantis. In fact, on several occasions, we streamed episodes of Prisoners from the TVO archive while on the road doing film shoots. Unfortunately, Prisoners of Gravity is no longer available to stream from TVO but you can find the odd episode online on YouTube. Prisoners of Gravity ran 5 seasons from 1989 to 1994. Arguably it was the precursor to any sci-fi blog/webcast/tv show you now watch.

I'm Coming With You!

I’m Coming With You!

If you’re in the area or coming into T-Dot for the event, here are all the deets!

 

Keep Chasing,

Matthew

Neil deGrasse Tyson vs Bill Nye: Celebrating Cosmos

Hey Chasers!

Tonight is the last episode of Cosmos: A Space Time Odyssey.

Over the last 14 weeks, with host Neil deGrasse Tyson at the helm, we have been treated to a journey that has spanned the formation of the Universe itself, the heroes of the great scientific discoveries of our civilization, an understanding of the eons of Earth’s history spanning generations of extinction and rebirth, and wrestled with important issues facing us in the present such as climate change.

Rebooted by producer Seth MacFarlane, and Carl Sagan’s wife Ann Druyan, the series revisited themes of the original Cosmos, hosted by Sagan, for a new generation of viewers. I’ve been watching the series from week to week with the staff here at Simon Fraser University in Vancouver. The show has been truly inspiring; leaping beyond the scientific fact to studying the personal motivations and passions of the scientists who literally changed our lives, the dangers we face as a society belching carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, and the wonders of discovery that could still await us. Tyson hosts the show from the Starship Imagination that can travel through both time and space effectively making Tyson a kindof Doctor Who but hosting a science show and without a British accent. Point is that the show is amazing and if you haven’t watched the series you should definitely pick it up on Blu-Ray! Be sure to tune in to tonight’s episode at 9pm EST/PST

As a light-hearted send off to Cosmos, we are posting this clip from our interview with Bill Nye who fondly talks about his friend Neil deGrasse Tyson and a “fight to control the universe.” This is the first footage we’ve released of our interview with Bill.

Enjoy Cosmos and Keep Chasing!

-Matthew

 

 

Vote in this Year’s Constellation Awards!!

Hey Chasers!

This coming July 5th, the annual Constellation Awards: Canada’s Awards for Excellence in Science Fiction Film and Television will be hosted at the Holiday Inn: Toronto International Airport.

TCON Banner

TCON Banner

Not in the Toronto area? That’s okay because you can still participate by going online and voting for this year’s awards in categories such as Best Performances in a 2013 Science Fiction Television Episode, technical accomplishments in science fiction or film, best scripts, and overall outstanding Canadian contribution to science fiction. Were you amazed by Billie Piper’s portrayal of the “Bad Wolf” in Day of the Doctor? Were you in awe as Sandra Bullock plummeted to Earth in Gravity? Were you shocked when Trenna Keating “protected the greater good” in “The Bride Wore Black” in Defiance? If so, have your say by voting online

You can participate in the Constellation Award’s online voting system here: Part of the voting includes a $5 fee which helps to support the awards ceremony run by the TCON promotional society, a not-for-profit organization dedicated to celebrating Science Fiction and Fantasy.

In addition to voting, you can attend the award ceremony in person. We had an absolute blast at the the constellation awards last year…like literally some of the most fun we’ve ever had on our Chasing Atlantis adventure with the opportunity to meet up with like-minded fans and meet some of our heroes of Sci-Fi (Like Judy and Garfield Reeve-Stevens below)

Paul (right) and Matt (left) with Judy and Garfield Reeve-Stevens (Center) at the 2013 Constellation Awards

Paul (right) and Matt (left) with Judy and Garfield Reeve-Stevens (Center) at the 2013 Constellation Awards

I highly recommend that you go…and bring your awesome, geeky, nerdy, LARPY, Whoovian, Elvish, Trekkie, Cylon, friends too! Registration can be found here. 

Keep Chasing!

Matthew