. >> author melissa sevigny author of under desert skies. >> mr. piper is an astronomer and a character by book because in 1961 at the time interested in studying the moon and planets with galaxies and nebula of faraway it was close and pouring it wasn't much there but piper with the only one who you wanted to do that in 1961 when the president announced they would send people.

>> why did he come to tucson ? unit that is a great question because we have beautiful dark desert skies it was already a hot bed of astronomy and in my book not only did we have dark skies kore a clear view of the planets were they could set up telescopes dedicated to studying the man and the planets. >> powell is astronomy different from planetary science?. >> things like nebula and galaxies the planetary science west like your own lile sol system and so to understand

those planets with atmospheric sciences is a very different type of field is started to change more recently so you have to know ideology and atmospheric science. >> so who was funding professor paper?. >> when he first came to the university he was very lucky to have many supportive departments so the very original laboratory was set up in the institute of atmospheric physics and this seems strange you would

think you'd go to the astronomy department but they were not interested in studying the move of - - the moon so look at the atmosphere of physics. >> so can you draw a direct line from piper coming from 68 neil armstrong stepping on the moon?. >> i can drive a very direct line. we're all familiar with the famous photograph of the footprint it what people don't know is that is a triumph for american engineering but also the scientist at the time president kennedy made the announcement we're going to demand they did not know what the boom was made out of they thought it was a static clique charged ball

of dust that if they would step onto whathey would sink and never come back we could not disprove that theory so bright period his group of students made maps of the moon to study the composition and they could prove the mood was solid enough so that this very personal because they've proved that was possible. >> host: at what point did nasa picked him up?. >> very early. nassau was working -- nasa was working on the apollo mission that to get that information so they started to sent the spacecraft called arrangers up to the moon meaning that they would

crash land so the idea so that was of failure so they call them up and asked him to leave the team he finally got a successful ranger with the first close-up photograph of the moon. >> host: the other character?. >> whitaker requested an important member of that team and was such a fascinating person he was from england state with a

buddy like to make maps of the moon? sold whitaker cameo america and then he said he would go back to england when it was over but he ended the state making maps for the mood for this endeavor to put astronauts on the moon melissa sevigny sevigny, what happened after ?. >> of course he founded this wonderful laboratory and he do about the time with the '70s would roll around the laboratory would not last gore continue to do research of less they also became a teaching department. he wasn't necessarily interested in teaching but he had the incredible vision to know that so if we wanted to go further out into the

solar system he would need to make sure that i'll laboratory with last so he founded the department of laboratory sciences and passed the baton to the directors after him. >> what type of work is doing today. >> it is doing all kinds of incredible work today is started with the moon but the alumni have been involved in every major space systems sent into the solar system. the first university to have ground control of the mission that was with mars in 2008 now they're working on the second one which is out there right now to bring

back a sample of a vast parade. >> host: when did you get interested in the story?. >> i have always been interestedspace and astronomy and i came here to the university of arizona to steadied rentals finance and i got a job with a director in itasca said to interview the old-timers to capture their stories before they are:someone in the first people i talk to was witter curve who was then still alive it was a yearlong project they said there are so many more just keep working on this. i did this over four years i've got my undergraduate degree by a doing interviews did they do right away it would be a book but not in

tel drake passed away in 2011 that i pulled the ball out of the door that i thought i kid turn this into a story to order his vision. >> that turned into under desert skies. what are you doing now?. >> now i live it flagstaff as a science writer so this project launched me into their career i have a second book out and i am working on the third talking about planetary catastrophes. one is about water issues of the southwest my second book and the vision for that book was a mythical reverb -- river that stayed on maps over 75 years but it did not exist there is no oh river

flowing from the great salt lake to california with this abundant water we use that as of metaphor to think about how we think of water and the ability to assist a nest. >> howdahs tucson get its water?. >> some from the oer but lot comes from the colorado river 300 miles away it is a very long canal and a write extensively about it constantly bringing water from other places or can we live within our means?. >> is the space flight not on the forefront today so what are they doing?. >> it is doing wonderful things they're doing research of aerosolized system will be recently we

got pictures of pluto that was fantastic and then there other things like astrolabes which is so important because we think they ceded the of planet with life so bad is the hypothesis they want to test that would be incredible if the whole planet could be the ingredients for life. >> under desert skies is the name of the book. teeeighteen is the author.

. >> i just finished a double in the grove is the life of thurgood marshall before he was the judge in the south with tremendous risk to himself.

>> there is a daniel book i want to read bringing out the best in people and i think every once in awhile it is good to get a new perspective how you lead a team you lead people and manage assets. >> i am wrapping up a terrific novel moving into the narrow road and the six extinction .