Sol Speaker Series
Welcome to the Sol Speaker Series sponsored by STARFLEET Sciences, a monthly online event free to SFI members! We provide interesting and inspiring presentations on a variety of science topics and you have an opportunity to ask questions of our guests at the end of their talks. All events are posted on SFI’s YouTube Channel.
Everyone can join us regardless of your language with the Zoom Translation captions!
Next Event
April 18, 2026, 11am EDT / 3pm UTC
“From Analogs to Artemis: Preparing for Space by Understanding Ourselves”
Speaker: Sharife Gacel, Analog Astronaut and Founder of the Blue Marble Project
From Analogs to Artemis: Preparing for Space by Understanding Ourselves explores how Earth-based simulations shape the future of human spaceflight. The talk recaps life inside HI-SEAS, highlights the global collaboration of the World’s Biggest Analog, and concludes with Artemis II updates, showing how lessons from analog missions inform the human challenges of returning to the Moon.
Sharife Gacel is based in Central Florida near Kennedy Space Center, where space exploration is part of the local landscape. Sharife is an analog astronaut and has completed two missions. The first was at HI-SEAS in Hawai‘i as the Medical Officer, and the most recent was in Mission Control during the World’s Biggest Analog in Vienna, where she served as the Operations Task Manager and now contributes to the Human Factors team for the Austrian Space Forum.
Sharife is the founder of the Blue Marble Project, a multidisciplinary initiative that integrates psychology, space science, art, and public outreach with the mission of Exploring Space, Inspiring Earth. She has participated in 8 NASA Social events, has received NASA Media accreditation for several launches, and manages social media for her adopted greyhounds, reaching over 25,000 people worldwide. She is also a psychotherapist, specializing in awe-inspired therapy, anxiety, life transitions, and multicultural mental health. Her academic background includes Molecular Biology and Microbiology, Veterinary Medicine, Psychology, and Clinical Mental Health Counseling. Sharife is currently pursuing a second Master of Science from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Human Factors. For fun, she enjoys kayaking, watching rocket launches, spending time with her family and greyhound Cosmos, and is a NAUI Divemaster.
Upcoming Events
April 25, 2026, 2pm EDT / 6pm UTC
“Preserving the Final Frontier: The Need for Darkness and a Natural Night”
Speaker: Patrick Sommer, DarkSky International
Artificial light at night is one of the newest and fastest growing forms of human created environmental pollution. Deployment of lighting without care or responsible planning has created an environment where, in some locations, more than 90% of the people living on the ground can no longer see the full glory of the night sky. This robs us of desperately needed sources of awe, wonder and inspiration, and even more worrisome has serious negative impacts on human physical, mental, and economic health. And while bad for us, the effects on the rest of nature are considerably worse. We will raise shields as we explore the causes and impacts of light pollution from artificial light at night, discuss with engineering the numerous solutions already available, and even conduct sensor sweeps as we learn about the critical role citizen science plays in helping restore a natural night.
Patrick Sommer has been a lifelong enthusiast for the night sky, space exploration, and science fiction. He represents DarkSky International as a delegate in the Fargo, North Dakota area. Patrick currently works full-time for the North Dakota Air National Guard as a Command Post, Command and Control supervisor and training manager.
May 16, 2026, 11am EDT / 3pm UTC
“Artificial Intelligence and leadership”
Speaker: Major Sam McEvoy, Royal Corps of Signals
Picard had Data; today’s leaders have AI. This talk explores how artificial intelligence is reshaping leadership through the lens of leadership theory and real‑world practice and how AI can help us make better decisions, lead more effectively, and think more critically. We’ll look at whether we want to see an AI sitting in the captain’s chair, or whether that remains a human-only endeavour…at least for the moment.
Major Sam McEvoy is a serving UK Army officer and lifelong Trekkie – and a member of STARFLEET – who is currently working in Europe. A devout technophile, his career has included such areas as Space, Artificial Intelligence, and Quantum Computing for UK Defence.