August 1, 2002: Rockets - Ky Michaelson
August 1, 2002: Rockets - Ky Michaelson  
Podcast: The Art Bell Archive
Published On: Sun May 04 2025
Description: Art Bell returns after time off due to recurring back spasms and catches up on major news stories, including the FBI's search of a person of interest in the anthrax mailings, a UFO chase by F-16s over Maryland, Boeing's classified anti-gravity program called GRASP reported by Jane's Defence Weekly, and four Fort Bragg soldiers killing their wives after returning from Afghanistan. He also reads an email from a woman who claims a stranger levitated pens, rose off the ground, and identified himself as a time traveler.Rocket enthusiast and stunt coordinator Ky Michaelson, known as "Rocket Man," joins to discuss his decades of building rockets and rigging Hollywood stunts. He describes constructing rockets for the film October Sky, designing the highest stunt ever performed off Toronto's CN Tower with daredevil Dar Robinson, and putting rocket engines on everything from wheelchairs to Harley-Davidsons. Michaelson details his Civilian Space Exploration Team's attempt to launch an amateur rocket 62 miles into space from the Black Rock Desert.The conversation covers the bureaucratic obstacles of obtaining FAA and Space Transportation Department approval, the challenges of amateur rocketry at extreme speeds, and Michaelson's skepticism that an Oregon man will successfully launch himself in a homemade rocket.