Rabea boarded a SpaceX Dragon atop a Falcon 9 in the middle of a lightning storm and didn’t believe it was real until the rocket started moving. She reveals what your body actually does when gravity disappears, why the capsule felt like a camper van you can walk on the walls of, and why she thinks the mission that will decide humanity’s future isn’t to Mars. It’s to the ocean floor.

Rabea Rogge is a robotics researcher, mission pilot on FRAM-2 — the first private spaceflight to orbit both poles — and the first German woman in space. Trained at ETH Zurich where she led a student satellite team, she now researches autonomous ocean robots at a Norwegian research institution and has a book on robotic exploration of extreme environments publishing summer 2026.

She explains:◾ What liftoff actually feels like from the Falcon 9 pilot seat, and why her body couldn’t decide if it was falling forever◾ Why private SpaceX Dragon missions are proving that educators, artists and geologists belong in space as much as test pilots◾ The spider web of lights she saw from 430km up, and why you can see humanity from space but only at night◾ The 200-300 person threshold: how many humans it takes to start a functioning isolated society, and what that means for Mars◾ Why she thinks the ocean is more neglected than space, and how autonomous robots are about to change that

00:00 The Journey to Space Begins

00:29 Experiencing Liftoff and Overcoming Fear

00:51 Journey to Space: The FRAM-2 Mission

03:42 Training for the Stars: Preparation and Mindset

06:57 Experiments in Space: Scientific Endeavors

09:32 The Experience of Launch: Emotions and Realizations

12:54 Life in the Capsule: Space and Perspective

15:52 Earth from Above: The Overview Effect

18:48 The Future of Space Exploration: Opportunities and Challenges

21:43 Building a Society in Space: The Next Frontier

35:25 Exploring the Moon: A Launchpad for Mars

40:06 The Quest for Mars: Why Explore?

44:30 Robotics in Space: From Satellites to Autonomous Boats

47:27 The Future of Robotics: Dreaming Big

01:01:11 Environmental Monitoring: The Role of Autonomous Boats

01:08:36 Advice for the Future: Dream Big and Support Others

Follow Rabea:Website:

https://www.rabearogge.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rabearogge

Follow Jacob:YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@watsonhowland Website:

https://www.jacobwatsonhowland.com

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