He’s launched into orbit, flown high-speed fighter jets, and worked on some of the toughest problems in aerospace engineering. Now, Lehigh University professor and alumnus Terry J. Hart has a new mission: to connect with everyday people who are just as curious about outer space as he is.
Launching on National Space Day, May 2, @iHartAerospace is a new video series where Hart, a former NASA astronaut, US Air Force fighter pilot, and industry executive, breaks down the science and engineering behind space travel—and shares what it’s really like to work in one of the most complex and captivating fields out there.
Part storytelling, part science lesson, the videos are aimed at a growing community of space enthusiasts who want more than just headlines and hype.
Hart is drawing from his interdisciplinary experience both in the field and the classroom, where he’s a member of the mechanical engineering teaching faculty in the P.C. Rossin College of Engineering and Applied Science. Professor Hart is a favorite among engineering students, who are drawn by his energy, humor, and passion for aerospace. He’s respected not just for what he knows, but how he shares his unique knowledge.
The series will have Hart fielding questions about everything from how rockets work to why space missions are so hard to plan—and why that makes them so worth doing.
“There’s a lot of interest in space right now, which is great,” he says. “But I think there’s also a need for more voices that come from the science and engineering side of things—people who’ve actually done the work and can explain the ‘why’ behind it all.”
With each episode, Hart hopes to make aerospace a little less mysterious—and a lot more fascinating—for viewers of all backgrounds by sharing his deep knowledge and lived experience to help us better understand the final frontier.
Credentials? Check.
Hart built a career that most can only dream about. A 1968 mechanical engineering graduate of Lehigh, he joined NASA as part of its elite “Group 8” astronaut class and flew aboard the space shuttle Challenger in 1984. During that mission, Hart helped orchestrate the first satellite repair in orbit and operated the shuttle’s robotic arm to retrieve and service the Solar Max satellite. He also served as CAPCOM—the voice of Mission Control—for NASA’s first three shuttle launches.
Hart’s path to space was grounded in deep technical training and hands-on experience. After earning two master’s degrees—one from MIT and another from Rutgers—he held engineering and leadership roles at Bell Labs and AT&T, working on advanced communications and satellite systems. Following his NASA service, he continued to shape the future of aerospace from the private sector, eventually leading a global satellite operations firm before turning his attention back to education.
Since joining Lehigh’s faculty in 2006, Hart has brought real-world insight to the classroom, designing new courses in aircraft and spacecraft engineering and mentoring student teams on NASA-related research.
With the innovative @iHartAerospace series, he is reaching new audiences and sharing the depth of aerospace with the next generation.
