Mark Anderson is the founder and publisher of the Strategic News Service newsletter, long a must-read for industry leaders and venture capitalists, and founder, chair and host of Future in Review, an annual gathering for tech leaders, investors, and policymakers The Economist called “the best technology conference in the world.”

Episode 1: Mark Anderson, founder & publisher of the Strategic News Service newsletter

Ben Balter is the Government Evangelist at GitHub — the world’s largest software development network — where he leads the efforts to encourage adoption of open source philosophies, making all levels of government better, one repository at a time.

Episode 2: Ben Balter, GitHub's government evangelist

Chris Rasmussen drove the initiative that made NGA the first intelligence agency to open source software on GitHub and place apps into iTunes and Google Play. He is also is one of the primary architects behind the Unclassified GEOINT Pathfinder initiative, which aims to transform GEOINT into a mostly open source intelligence discipline.

Episode 3: Chris Rasmussen, NGA's public open source software development lead

Mr. Justin Poole is the Director of NGA’s Xperience Directorate, where he is charged with enhancing the user’s experience through online, on-demand GEOINT services that provide access to content, expertise, and applications. 

Dr. Carter Christopher is currently part of the Core Leadership Team of the GEOINT Services Initiative – responsible for developing and executing the agency’s GEOINT Services Strategy. 

Episode 4: Justin Poole & Carter Christopher on NGA user experience & GEOINT Services

The National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency’s “Geointeresting” podcast welcomed Ms. Cleo Loi and Professor Steven Tingay to discuss the Murchison Widefield Array (MWA) — a radio telescope located in the Western Australian desert — and Loi’s discovery of the existence of tubular plasma structures in the inner layers of the magnetosphere surrounding the Earth.

Professor Tingay is the director of the MWA project and Professor of Radio Astronomy at Curtin University in Australia. Loi is a PhD student in astrophysics at the University of Sydney. Tingay and Loi visted NGA's campus in Springfield, Virginia to speak with employees about the MWA and Loi's discovery. 

To learn more about Loi’s discovery, read the ARC Centre of Excellence for All-Sky Astrophysics press release (http://caastro.org/news/2015-tubes) and Dr. Tara Murphy’s article on The Conversation (http://tinyurl.com/pknq3e2). For more about the MWA, visit http://www.mwatelescope.org/.


Episode 5: Cleo Loi & Steven Tingay on plasma tubes and the Murchison Widefield Array

Geointeresting welcomes Sue Shumate, NGA's talent acquisition lead, to help demystify the intelligence community's recruiting process and talk about some of the open jobs at NGA.

Episode 6: Sue Shumate, NGA talent acquisition lead

Geointeresting talks to Jack O'Connor, author of NPIC: Seeing the Secrets and Growing the Leaders. Listen to learn about the National Photographic Interpretation Center culture, the day-to-day lives of imagery analysts, and about the leaders who helped mold the NGA legacy organization and whose leadership values are still followed, today.

Episode 8: Jack O'Connor, author of "NPIC: Seeing the Secrets and Growing the Leaders"

Geointeresting talks to former director of the Central Intelligence Agency and the National Security Agency, U.S. Air Force Gen. Michael V. Hayden. In this podcast, Gen. Hayden  discusses innovation, leadership and transparency in the intelligence community.

Episode 10: Former director of the CIA and NSA, Michael V. Hayden

Geointeresting talks with Pentagon Press Secretary Peter Cook about his role as the spokesman for the Department of Defense. Cook was previously a correspondent for Bloomberg Television, where he covered Congress, the White House , the U.S. Treasury and the Federal Reserve.  Now for the Department of Defense he conducts daily press conferences and frequently uses information from NGA to keep the public informed.

Episode 9: Pentagon Press Secretary Peter Cook

Former "Navy Times" Managing Editor John Grady visited the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency earlier this year to discuss a 19th-century pioneer in the study of ocean and modern navigational techniques, Matthew Fontaine Maury. In honor of World Maritime Day, Sept. 29, get to know this "pathfinder of the seas."

Episode 14: A historical look at Matthew Maury, pathfinder of the seas

Geointeresting talks to Terry Ford, Office of the Director of National Intelligence, National Intelligence Manager - Africa, and Dr. Odean Serrano, Office of the Director of National Intelligence, intelligence community lead for combating wildlife trafficking. Mr. Ford and Dr. Serrano detail the impact of the IC's role in combating wildlife trafficking and poaching, and the importance of the collaborative, information and data-sharing National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency combating wildlife trafficking portal. 

Episode 11: How the intelligence community is combating wildlife trafficking

National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency Deputy Director Sue Gordon and NGA’s Director of Operations, U.S. Air Force Maj. Gen. “UV” Linda Urrutia-Varhall, sat down with the agency’s Geointeresting podcast to talk about women's equality, leadership and some of their personal experiences.  

Episode 12: Agency leaders reflect on Women's Equality Day

Geointeresting sits down with two National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency interns from this past summer to discuss their unique experiences as interns in the intelligence community. They are also joined by one of the agency's student programs managers for some helpful tips to becoming an intern at the agency. Interested in learning more about NGA's internship program or applying? Visit: https://www.nga.mil/Careers/StudentOpp 

Episode 13: What is it like to be an intern at NGA?

In need of a little motivation? The latest Geointeresting podcast features U.S. Air Force Gen. Darren W. McDew, commander, U.S. Transportation Command. McDew participated in the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency director's distinguished speaker series Sept. 7. At the event, McDew spoke about leadership and the importance of thanking colleagues for their work.

Episode 15: U.S. Air Force Gen. Darren McDew, commander U.S. Transportation Command

Alex Kent, Ph.D., professor of cartography and geographic information at Canterbury Christ Church University, and John Davies, a lifelong map lover and collector, recently sat down with NGA’s Geointeresting podcast team to talk about Cold War-era Soviet mapmaking and its impact on modern-day cartography.

Episode 16: Mapmaking behind the Iron Curtain

This episode of Geointeresting celebrates the work done by the Defense Mapping Agency, an NGA legacy organization, during the Dayton Peace Accords. On Nov. 1, 1995, President Bill Clinton invited representatives to Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Dayton, Ohio, to negotiate an end to the ethnic discord in the former Yugoslav Republic between Bosnia-Herzegovina, Croatia and Serbia. After 18 weeks of shuttle diplomacy and 21 days of intense negotiations, leaders from the contending parties initialed the Dayton Peace accords agreeing to the end of the war on Nov. 21. The ceremonial signing took place in Paris one month later with Clinton in attendance.

A team of 50 DMA technicians brought portable computer systems, digitizing stations and printers to Ohio, allowing them to quickly produce disputed territory maps and to make complex revisions, sometimes within a matter of 30 minutes.

Geointeresting talked with the current NGA historian and a former DMA mapmaker about the legacy of the Dayton Peace Accords. For even more information: http://go.usa.gov/x86hR

Episode 17: The Dayton Peace Accords legacy feat. NGA's historian & Defense Mapping Agency mapmaker

Paul Morin, director of the Polar Geospatial Center at University of Minnesota, talked with Geointeresting about the advances in mapping the Arctic and Alaska through the creation of digital elevation models, and with the help of NGA and the National Science Foundation. Upon completion, this collaborative mapping effort, established following President Obama's Jan. 2015 Executive Order, "Enhancing Coordination of National Efforts in the Arctic," will encompass all land area north of 60 degrees north latitude.

Episode 18: Mapping the Arctic with the director of the Polar Geospatial Center

Recently, author and journalist Yudhijit Bhattacharjee, visited NGA's Springfield, Virginia, campus and told the story of Brian Regan, a former signals intelligence officer who stole over 20,000 pieces of classified information. Regan's story is anything but typical. He was able to elude and stump and authorities long after he was caught due to nearly unbreakable cryptological code he developed. This is not just a story of code breaking and espionage, but also the human side of Regan.

Episode 19: Journalist, author Yudhijit Bhattacharjee on a little known tale of espionage

Christine Staley, an assistant inspector general for audit at the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, describes her experience as one of the estimated 700,000 'boat people' who escaped Vietnam in the 1970s. 
...
North Vietnamese forces captured South Vietnam's capital city April 30, 1975, and the U.S. formally evacuated all American civilian and military personnel. This is known as The Fall of Saigon. 

Five years later, Christine Staley fled Vietnam with her mother and five siblings, risking everything to escape the country they no longer knew, to start a journey toward the unknown. 

This is part one of Staley's personal story.

Episode 20:  One NGA employee's journey from political refugee to U.S. civil servant

Part 2 of 2

After escaping Vietnam, and surviving six days and six nights on a tiny boat, Christine Staley and her family arrive in the Philippines. 

Her five siblings and mother were placed in a refugee camp where they lived, worked and waited ... waited for the day they'd hear their names called over the loud speaker. 

On that day, whenever it would come, the family would walk to the refugee camp office and receive their airline tickets to America. It was the last step to confirm an official start to a new life as an American immigrant.

Hear the conclusion of Christine Staley's journey from Vietnam to America.

Episode 21: One NGA employee's journey from political refugee to U.S. civil servant (Part Two)

June is Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Pride Month. At NGA, team members constantly intersect - comparing work notes across the team, relaying information across the agency and discussing what they did over the weekend. A successful workplace relies on multiple identities interconnecting positively and productively to ensure mission success.

NGA is a community leader and advocate for diversity and inclusion initiatives. Dave, Katherine and Jo, three NGA employees, share their personal stories of intersectionality, within and outside their workspace walls.

Episode 22: NGA LGBT members talk intersectionality across communities

In the latest Geointeresting podcast we sat down with Dr. Stacey Dixon, deputy director of the Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Activity.  She talks to us about her efforts to advance women in science, technology, mathematics and engineering; the future of technology in the intelligence community; and what she believes are characteristics of a great leader. 

Bonus! By listening to this podcast you will also learn why many IARPA research projects reference Tolkien!

Episode 24: Dr. Stacey Dixon, IARPA deputy director

The National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency's 2nd Street campus in St. Louis is headquarters to the majority of NGA West employees. And some say there are other ... inhabitants roaming the halls.

Sandy, an NGA cartographer, has been giving tours to new employees of NGA's West Campus for several years. She details some of the rich history of the 2nd Street campus, dating back to the time before it was the St. Louis Arsenal, most notably used during the Civil War. Learn more about the St. Louis Arsenal at NGA West here: http://www.ngaalumni.org/resources/ArsenalPDFsmall.pdf

Through her tours, Sandy has heard employee stories of things going bump on the night shift. She shares these stories on tours to raise money for the Combined Federal Campaign. Today, Sandy takes us on our own NCW ghost tour. Join us, won't you? There's always room for one more.

Episode 25: Ghost Stories at the St. Louis Arsenal

The 2018 Winter Olympics are nearly here - and we couldn't be more excited to cheer on Team USA. Even before the Opening Ceremony kicks off the Games, Team NGA works behind the scenes to provide GEOINT to the host country, helping ensure the safety of the global athletes and spectators. 
	
Learn more about NGA's support to the Olympics and other special events - and make sure to stay tuned in after our analysts talk - you'll want to hear the inspiring story of NGA's own Helen Stephens - Olympic athlete and then, librarian at NGA predecessor organization, the Aeronautical Chart and Information Center in St. Louis.

Episode 27: NGA's Olympic Legacy

Following the end of World War II, the United States was in the midst of an intense Space Race with the Soviet Union. 

The American people were inspired to support the Apollo mission - to be the first to land a man on the moon. This goal to reach uncharted territory required Americans to push the boundaries of scientific knowledge and live up to their pioneering heritage.

Many of those pushing the scientific envelope worked for the Air Force’s Aeronautical Chart and Information Center and the Army Map Service, both NGA predecessor organizations.
 
Today, lunar exploration is still going strong at NASA. 

Listen up as NGA Historian Gary Weir, Ph.D., NGA alumnus Al Anderson and NASA lunar geologist Noah Petro, Ph.D. talk about the nation's journey to land a man on the moon, and how far lunar reconnaissance has come since then.

Episode 28: NGA & NASA Map the Moon

Space-based GEOINT capabilities help provide U.S. defense officials and policymakers understanding of adversaries and world events. But the user base for these capabilities goes far beyond the military and intelligence community.

Through the Civil Applications Committee, federal agencies and entities can leverage these capabilities for many different domestic and international applications.

Listen up to learn about NGA's role in the CAC and how the CAC is providing some much needed support to the State of Hawaii, in the wake of the Kilauea volcano eruption.

Episode 29: Civil applications of intelligence data - How NGA supports disaster relief and more

NGA explores the cartographic legacy of president, general and surveyor George Washington through an interview with Joseph Stoltz, Ph.D., digital historian at the Fred W. Smith National Library for the Study of George Washington at Mount Vernon.

According to Stoltz, as the third-born son, Washington knew he would need to find a practical career for himself and an encounter with the book “Art of Surveying and Measuring Land” helped solidify his future career path -- first as a surveyor, then as a military officer.

Geointeresting 

Episode 30: President, general, surveyor & NGA employee #1 - George Washington

Today on the podcast you will hear from two women in NGA’s Research directorate — one running the research and development portfolio for NGA and a scientist discovering the latest in hyperspectral signatures. NGA’s Director of Research Cindy Daniell and research scientist Jennifer Durdall might be at different stages of their career but are strong advocates for women in the STEM field.

Geointeresting Podcast

Episode 31: A conversation with NGA Research Director and NGA research scientist

We're talking tech in St. Louis with T-REX Executive Director Patty Hagen. Tune in for a look (or listen) at the exciting geospatial transformation happening in St. Louis. We're also answering one of our most burning questions -- just how did T-REX get its name? Spoiler alert: It's not what you think!

Episode 32: Perspectives on the St. Louis geospatial ecosystem with T-REX's executive director

It's no secret that the Intelligence Community has long reflected a single demographic. And, while change doesn't happen overnight - especially in government - diversity and inclusion has moved to the forefront within the community and is viewed as a mission critical priority for the IC, even finding its way into the National Intelligence Strategy of the United States, released earlier this year. 

Who better to talk about one facet of that diversity conversation - women leading in the IC - than former NGA Director Letitia Long? 

On this episode of the Geointeresting Podcast, we're talking about the current state of women in the IC, taking mentorship to the next level and what is most exciting about where the geospatial industry is heading.

Episode 33: A conversation with former NGA Director Letitia A. Long

It’s not often that you get to celebrate a sesquicentennial, but that’s just what the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency did this fall at its Springfield, Virginia, campus. For 150 years, the Notice to Mariners has kept navigators and shipmasters informed with the most current navigational information. The average observer would be forgiven for not knowing the notice even exists. Vessels navigating safely rarely make headlines. Notice to Mariners have neither dramatic moments nor hair-raising adventures. Yet for 150 years, every American ship officer, reflecting on a safely completed voyage, owes a piece of that to the men and women behind the Notice to Mariners. Today, NGA’s Maritime Safety Office has the responsibility to provide accurate charts and publications, including the Notice to Mariners, to support safety of navigation.

Episode 34: A maritime achievement 150 years in the making

Bundle up. We’re heading back to the Cold War to reflect on the Cuban Missile Crisis — a pivotal moment for an NGA heritage organization, the National Photographic Interpretation Center, or NPIC. We’ll also be tuning into some remarks given by NGA historian Dr. Gary Weir at an agency commemoration event this past October at NGA’s Springfield, Virginia, campus.

Episode 35: Perspectives on the Cuban Missile Crisis from NGA's historian

Today, we’re talking about something that’s kind of a big deal, but most people have never heard of it. Here’s a few hints. It’s embedded in thousands of systems, including more than a billion smartphones for mobile navigation apps. It’s critical for the military and commercial uses around the world and is the standard for the U.S. Department of Defense, the U.K. Ministry of Defense, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and the International Hydrographic Organization. It supports navigation for submarines, satellites and aircraft, while also informing operational logistics, like the numbering of runways. And, beyond navigation, it ensures precise orientation that supports applications and industries as diverse of energy and telecommunications. If you haven’t guessed what it is yet -- we don’t blame you. We’re talking about the world magnetic model.

Episode 36: Get to know the world magnetic model

Geointeresting is the official podcast of the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency. Geointeresting features conversations with innovators, explorers and pathfinders. 

The National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency delivers world-class geospatial intelligence, or GEOINT, that provides a decisive advantage to warfighters, policymakers, warfighters, intelligence professionals and first responders. Both an intelligence agency and combat support agency, NGA fulfills the president’s national security priorities in partnership with the intelligence community and the Department of Defense.

Transcriptions of Geointeresting can be found at https://www.nga.mil/MediaRoom/Pages/Geointeresting-Podcast.aspx.

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