NASA
2026 has been a busy year for NASA. Four astronauts flew to the moon for the first trip there by human beings there since Apollo 17 in 1972. The flight of Artemis two also highlights Alabama's role in the US space program. The Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville designed, built, tested, and manages the big Space Launch System rocket that sends Artemis missions to Earth orbit. Huntsville has its claim to fame when it comes to NASA, but Opelika does too. One of its favorite sons is retired astronaut Jim Voss. He flew four times on the space shuttle and served on the second full-time crew aboard the International Space Station. A conversation that's out of this world, is next on APR Notebook.
Art & Voices: The APR Local Artist Collection
News & Commentaries From APR
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2026 has been a busy year for NASA. Four astronauts flew to the moon for the first trip by human beings there since Apollo 17 in 1972 The flight of Artemis two also highlights Alabama's role in the US space program. The Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville designed, built, tested, and manages the big Space Launch System rocket that sends Artemis missions to Earth orbit. Huntsville has its claim to fame when it comes to NASA, but Opelika does too. One of its favorite sons is retired astronaut Jim Voss. He flew four times on the space shuttle and served on the second full-time crew aboard the International Space Station, a conversation that's out of this world, is next on APR Notebook. -
This week, Don reviews Loving My Enemies & Other Outlandish Pursuits by Angie Wright. -
What is your pet's birthday? Most of us don't know because we got our furry friend from a shelter, or maybe from the side of the road, and that information was not available. You can choose to join many of us by celebrating your pet's birthday on DOGust 1st - the first day of August! -
Preliminary testing showed the bullets that killed two bystanders during a shootout at a crowded Seattle food festival last weekend didn’t come from the gun a 15-year-old arrested at the scene was seen firing. That finding was in court documents from police. One of the fatalities was Ashley Whitehead, who had just moved to the Seattle area from Alabama a year ago. -
An upcoming show may be good for bird watchers, but not for neighborhood bugs. The annual black belt birding festival starts tomorrow, and that includes mowing day at the Joe Family Farm. Tractors stir up the hay, and that sends insects into the air. The goal is to attract birds like scissor-tailed flycatchers or Mississippi kites to swoop down for a snack. Here’s more on the annual event and the people who show up with binoculars in hand. -
If you get uncomfortable just thinking about going to the dentist, there's a word for that: dental anxiety. Research published in the Journal of the American Dental Association indicates that about 73% of U.S. adults hold some level of fear about dental work or oral health visits. Some research suggests that up to 15% of U.S. adults avoid the dentist entirely due to being terrified of those needles, drills, and bright lights. I'm a big believer in exposure therapy, though. So if you're one of those that fear the chair, these two episodes may help you feel better. -
Police say the 15-year-old arrested after a shootout at a food festival near Seattle’s Space Needle over the weekend was armed with a ghost gun with an extended magazine. The attack killed Ashley Whitehead, an Alabama woman who moved to the Pacific Northwest a year ago. -
There were at least three suspects involved in a shootout at a crowded food festival near Seattle’s Space Needle over the weekend. One of them was among those killed in the violence. Another fatality had just moved to Washington from Alabama a year ago -
“We will not tolerate the victimization of vulnerable women here in Shelby County,” said Lieutenant Clayton Smith, commander of the Shelby County Drug Task Force to the press. His comments followed the arrest of fifteen men now accused of soliciting sex. The group reportedly includes former sports writer Robert Aaron Suttles, who left journalism to become the content director for “Yea Alabama,” the name, image, and likeness operation for Crimson Tide athletics. The arrests occurred during a human trafficking sting operation. -
This week, Don reviews Sisterhood Above All by Kathleen Barber with Amayah Shaienne. -
The "Dog Days" should remind us to find ways to keep our furry friends comfortable and safe in the hot Summer weather! -
Cam Marston has been digging into what makes retirement happy, and it turns out, part of the answer is that spouses need a break from each other.
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"Simplified" is an interview-style show where Morning Edition host Lacey Alexander takes complex topics and breaks them down so that everyone can better understand them. She enlists a new academic in the state of Alabama every week to simplify a big idea-- whether it's science, economics, media or anything in between.
Sports Minded podcast with host Brittany Young features interviews with coaches, athletes and sports personnel. Insight, commentary and analysis on professional, collegiate and high school sports can be heard here.
Speaking of Pets with host Mindy Norton is a commentary for people who care about pets and want to celebrate that special relationship between humans and animal companions.
Quick-Fire Quips is centered around people who stand out in Alabama. Host Baillee Majors presents guests with a questionnaire of playful personal questions and questions about the Yellowhammer State.
Alabama is known for football and white barbecue sauce. But we’re also making our mark in science, literature and the arts—and we helped put astronauts on the moon! Join APR news director Pat Duggins as he takes up topics like this with interviews on APR Notebook.
Dr. Don Noble, specializing in Southern and American literature, gives his weekly review on the work of Alabama’s finest authors.
StoryCorps episodes show a candid, unscripted conversation between two people about love, loss, family, friendship and everything else in between. These stories are from Selma, where APR recently hosted the Airstream portable studio.
Host Cam Marston brings fun weekly commentaries on generational and demographic trends to provide new ways to interpret the changing world around us.
Coffee & History brings you weekly conversations with fascinating figures in the historical community. Each Sunday morning, Rebecca Todd Minder, Susan E. Reynolds and Caroline Gazzara-McKenzie, explore and share the stories that shape Alabama.
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The family of Nolan Wells is still searching for answers about what exactly led to the 18-year-old athlete's death during a July 4 boat trip with friends off Mississippi's Gulf Coast, near the border with Alabama. Though Wells traveled by boat with his friends to Horn Island, he didn't return with the group that afternoon as planned. His body was found two days later off the island's coast. -
Tropical Storm Bertha made landfall in Louisiana and was southwest of New Orleans while moving west toward Texas early Thursday morning, after closing beaches on the Gulf Coast from the Florida Panhandle to Mississippi. -
The Fourth of July has come and gone. But, events for America’s two hundred and fiftieth are still going on. Earlier this month on APR, our special correspondent James Niiler brought us the story of the annual Rebild Festival in Denmark. It’s an event that celebrates the democratic connection between the Danish and the United States. Political tensions between the two nations helped make this year’s celebration a little tricky. James’ original story was the lead up to this year’s Rebild Festival. He attended this year’s event to see how it would go. -
Before Arnold Schwarzenegger was “The Terminator,” and before Lou Ferrigno was the “Incredible Hulk,” there was Charles Gaines. The Alabama native and author whose book and documentary “Pumping Iron” helped bring professional bodybuilding into the mainstream and introduce Schwarzenegger to the world, has died. He was 84. -
Communities on the U.S. Gulf Coast distributed sandbags and closed beaches as Tropical Storm Bertha threatened to bring flooding and strong winds Wednesday from the Florida Panhandle to Louisiana. -
The Trump administration may approve a controversial plan to allow state oversight of coal ash ponds throughout Alabama. The website of Inside Climate News reports the proposal would allow millions of tons of toxic coal ash to remain buried in place alongside the state’s rivers. Critics say much of that material is sitting in groundwater where it can leach into the environment. -
Defaults on student loans have surged across the United States, reaching record levels as borrowers struggle to keep up with payments. Many of the states with the highest concentrations of defaulted borrowers are in the South, an AP analysis found. Mississippi has the nation’s highest default rate at 28.3%, and others near the top include Louisiana, Alabama, West Virginia, Oklahoma, Georgia, South Carolina and Texas. -
This week, Warren Billy Young joins StoryCorps and shares what it was like to grow up in Selma during a time of flourishing and integration. -
Tropical Storm Bertha strengthened in the Gulf of Mexico and was moving slowly toward the Florida Panhandle, causing a tropical storm warning and storm surge watches around the state line between Florida and Alabama, forecasters said. The storm was about 125 miles south of Panama City, Florida, and 200 miles southeast of Mobile. -
This week, Don reviews "The Apprehension of Splendor" by Shawn Sudia-Skehan.
