Sustaining us is made possible by fire, heart, pictures and viewers like you.

Thank you.

Hello, and thanks for joining us for sustaining us here on KLCS PBS, I'm David Nazar.

You've probably heard the term stem over the years, an education discipline that involves science, technology, engineering and mathematics.

STEM as kind of an overarching word used to group together these fields of study.

And certainly the term STEM is used mostly in the context of education policy and curriculum choice here in the U.S.

In fact, many educators insist that students cannot achieve success without being STEM proficient.

And that is why so many schools, so many non-profits, so many organizations nationwide are trying to help students with STEM academics.

And now even the US Air Force is lending some help to our Marcus with sustaining us as our story.

Edwards Air Force Base is a site of historic firsts.

It was here in 1947 that U.S. Air Force Captain Chuck Yeager first broke the sound barrier in his Bell X-1.

Now, more than 75 years later, it celebrates that history with an air show Open House, and the largest STEM expo ever hosted by the U.S. Air Force.

And we want to inspire the next generation or the one after that.

We also are here to preserve the amazing legacy that is 80 years of flight test research at Edwards Air Force Base and.

Specifically the X-1.

It was magic because it taught us how to go faster than the speed of sound.

We thought it was possible.

Maybe the engineering said it was possible, but we had to figure out how to do it.

Now, breaking the sound barrier is the first step.

All of our rockets that go to space break the sound barrier all the time so that technology is still key.

Today.

There's 12,000 kids here from diverse neighborhoods, diverse school, and we've got some hands on exhibits.

NASA's not going anywhere.

The Air Force isn't going anywhere, and we're all going to age out, quite honestly.

So we have to start teaching STEM to students at a young age to ke We'll have about 12 test pilots in a class, maybe one in 12 are female to get that number to grow, we need those young ladies to get interested in STEM.

Then we need them to want to fly and realize that they can fly and fly whatever they want to fly and know that they can come here and compete at the school.

Most kids make a decision somewhere between fifth grade and junior high what they're going to do as a career.

So that's why we're really here today.

We want to talk to those kids and get them interested and wanting to become an engineer, a scientist.

Engineering starts from an early age.

All of the stuff we teach kids in elementary school, through middle school and high school, that's all building the basics.

That is what you need to know in order to become the engineers that our industries need.

The advantage that we offer over anybody else is the museum can tap into 15,000 people on this base, 15,000 engineers, scientists, mathematicians, test pilots, mechanics, everybody is available to us.

And they have come forward and said, we want to help, we want to be part of this.

They realize like we do, we've got to get out there and get these kids involved.

For the US Air Force Test Pilot School, you have to have a STEM background.

It allows a pilot who's just operating the aircraft to then understand a technical piece.

So when the engineer comes, they can talk on a similar plane to then build that test plan to understand how we're going to go from.

All right, here's the requirement all the way down to this is the data I need to how I'm going to get this data and how I'm going to get the data safely.

In addition to being the only air show in North America where visitors can hear and feel sonic booms beyond Mach one, Edwards Air Force Base showcased its commitment to education by providing aircraft flyovers and corresponding instructional videos to 50 local schools.

At the STEM Expo itself, over 60 exhibitors gave students a rare opportunity to get a behind the scenes look at the world of flight.

Hi, I'm Dr. Jay Kelly.

I work for Air Force Research Laboratories.

And I would like to introduce you to the basic parts of a liquid rocket engine.

So the one that we've got right here is.

Excel or 91.

So this engine was originally developed to go as the top stage, the fourth stage on a Titan launch vehicle.

The heart of the rocket engine is right here.

This is the combustion chamber.

Fuel and oxidizer get burned in here.

They come through the constriction right here.

That is what we call the nozzle throat.

Now, these fuels happen to be hyperbolic, so they will move as soon as.

They get in contact with each.

Other, they will react and create fire.

Flames go that way and the rocket goes that way.

So that's the basics of a liquid rocket engine, right?

So the goals of the Air Force Flight Test Museum is truly to inspire a younger generation.

We do a lot of STEM work, of course, and we have been very successful in bringing kids back as young interns and engineers.

And once they're working at Edwards, you're talking about good jobs, you're talking about good incomes, but you're also talking about better communities.

What inspires me.

Is how many people are coming here to see the stem and how exciting it is.

Civil engineering is not a cookie cutter process.

The best engineers are the ones that can imagine.

The next thing grasping kids when that imagination is really fresh and strong and get them into imagining engineering solutions is spectacular.

It's a pretty powerful mission for somebody who wants to contribute because you never.

Know who you're going to reach.

You never know what it's going to take to reach them.

We'll be at every air show because we really value kids in STEM.

That's an amazing moment when the young person walks into your office and says, Hey, remember me?

I work here now and you're the reason I'm here.

Thank you, Marcus And the good folks with Edwards Air Force Base for that report now from Kern County in Southern California to the Pacific Northwest and the central Oregon desert for some aerospace testing to find out if there's life on Mars.

That's where an Oregon space balloon could be.

A test pattern of sorts for future Mars landings.

This story is part of our continuing content sharing partnership with public media and PBS stations throughout the U.S. Our public media partner, OPB, Oregon Public Broadcasting, has this report.

You need another hand up there.

It's 4 a.m. and 28 degrees in the high desert.

So we started around 11 p.m. and it'll take us all the way up to about 6 a.m..

Dawn is the target launch time the moment this crew from near Space Corporation has been working towards for months.

Now.

We need to get the balloon out.

In this flat form.

The balloon doesn't look like much, but once inflated it'll be more than 50 storeys high, six times larger than the average hot air balloon.

That I'm asking you to keep an eye on.

That inflation to your mark.

It will carry precious cargo from the European Space Agency or ISA into the stratosphere to test the parachute system of a new Mars rover that is, if the weather holds.

It's the little things you have to be very careful about is this envelope comes up, it'll be over 600 feet off the ground, but still anchored to the ground.

So we can't have any winds crossing or sudden gusts.

The force will be extreme and it could cost us the whole balloon envelope.

But in.

This case, in this business, there's not much room for error.

Poor weather has already scrubbed the balloon launch two different nights and the pressure to get the important payload into the air is building.

We're going to clear the hose.

Yes, hold the hose away from that.

Right.

The ISA module being tested over Madras is much smaller than the one that'll go to Mars, but it's weighted to produce the same extreme force on the parachute when it's deployed in Mars.

There's not nearly as much atmosphere as there is here on Earth.

Therefore, for parachutes, there's less atmosphere to go out on earth.

We have to go to much, much higher altitudes where the densities are the same.

Balloons are an elegant way to get to the altitudes.

We need.

The balloon will carry the module nearly 20 miles up before releasing it over Oregon's high desert.

Make sure it's on it.

Make sure we've got our safety on it.

Our whip right now, we're checking things again and again, making sure everything's all set.

And then we just need the weather to hold.

Has there ever been life on Mars?

It's a question we've pondered for a long time.

I remember I was a kid and I was watching the Viking mission and waiting to hear about the Martians, the yellow green characters that never came.

Any life on Mars will likely be more microbe than Martian, and ESA's Mars rover will use a drill to look for evidence of that life below ground.

When looking at the evolution of the planets, looking at Mars will probably tell us quite some interesting things about the possible evolution even of the Earth.

But before the rover can go to work, the module must first land safely on the surface of the planet.

It will do this using a series of braking maneuvers that include one of the largest parachutes ever deployed.

So this big parachute is the one that we are testing here in Madras, Oregon.

The predictable high altitude winds around Madras mean the parachute will fall in the vast sagebrush sea far from any communities Don.

And the crew is in position for inflation.

The weather is looking pretty good.

They will start running helium and then it runs up these inflation tubes and we'll start inflating the main bubble of the balloon.

The balloon will only be partially filled because the gas inside will expand as it rises.

Every 10,000 feet, the volume doubles.

So the balloon that started looking kind of like a somewhat not very full bag once it's up at 100,000 feet, looks like a stretched out balloon.

The quiet descends as the flow of gas stops.

The moment the crew has been working towards has finally come.

Well.

This is easy.

Can you tell me what your position rate is?

The current ascent rate is.

1800.

I mean.

The balloon picks up speed as it rises into the winter blue sky as the communications crew at the airport tracks the balloons flight, Another team on the ground about 2 hours downwind picks up the trail.

It's coming this way.

Yeah, I've got it here on a map.

You can see right now it's east of Prineville, not too far from the coast.

Jake Young is leading the team that will track down and recover the parachute in module in the desert.

When we terminate the flight, the pieces will come apart, and we'll be able to track each each piece as they separate.

But we're hoping to go out and find his nice, pristine parachute and test vehicle that's intact.

And some good data.

Near has also brought in a few local sportsmen to lend their expertise to the topic.

We've been all over this area.

We kind of speak language so being able to talk to landowners and things like that kind of comes in handy when you know something lands in their backyard and they don't know what it is.

Central Oregon is a near perfect place for this kind of aerospace testing because of its remoteness and relatively consistent weather.

But the flight crew still doesn't want anything they send up to come down on private property.

If the balloon rises too fast or too slow, it could drastically change where the pieces land, meaning Jake's crew has to stay nimble.

That's right.

Fluid.

I guess that's the next level up from nimble.

Sam, we've got a visual.

It it's quite a ways away, but we've got it right here.

We have FAA.

well, they're going to release that.

941.

Really?

All right.

Sending payload fire now.

I see payload release.

Affirmative.

Everything is falling away.

There goes the ISA module comes down five miles from the closest road.

The only way to get there is ATV.

A spotter plane overhead is directing Jake to the module right over.

That's.

But it's the fun part.

So I'll leave because I've got comms with the airplane.

He's walking us on.

But it's.

It's a mile straight from here.

A lot of it is between us and those trees.

We've got eyes on it right?

It's good in a sense that you've got low scrub.

It's not the trees.

So that's a plus.

But in a perfect world, it would have been closer to a paved road.

Now, this is.

The European team wastes no time documenting the condition of the parachute.

I have to say in one piece, very gently, because this is the part that the about.

Yeah, this parachutes what this whole flight was about.

Yeah.

When they get home, the team will go over every inch of the massive parachute looking for damage.

It's the best part of two days as it's a lot of fabric to inspect.

Go.

So perfect.

All right.

Thank you very much, sir.

If you try, all.

That's left is to call for a lift.

The results of this test will have major implications for the ESA mission.

And at the end of a long day, as the module fades into the distance, the team knows the parachute model that will make Mars exploration possible.

Had to land in Oregon first.

Thank you, Oregon Public Broadcasting for that report.

Now from central Oregon to northeast Oregon, the majestic bison that great American symbol of the US prairie, it's being brought to life, so to speak.

Two sisters are now running a Bison Ranch family business in the hopes of bringing back the bison population, which many say is good for both the land and the economy.

So we rejoin our public media partner, OPB, Oregon Public Broadcasting, for this report.

Bison are an iconic symbol of the West.

They're America's national mammal.

They have a reputation to live up to, and they don't disappoint.

It's almost kind of like thunder a little bit.

You can feel the bison running the ground.

We sort of think of them as domesticated, but basically they're almost wild animals.

We've worked with them a lot and kind of know their habits or what what they might do, but they can always surprise you a little bit.

Now you may be saying to yourself, bison, Bison are just like cattle, but there are important differences between the two.

And it's not a big deal if a cow gets out.

But like if the bison get out, you know, it's a little bit more of a catastrophe.

Wolves herd certainly.

In their race.

Now.

The bison were just escaping from one pasture to another, so no one was in danger.

But still, this wasn't the plan for the day.

I'll chase him up the fence line back up to that gate.

They're pretty cool looking when they're little, but they grow up to be menaces.

Just don't give them any other option but to do what you want them to do.

But sometimes they still figure out a way to get around that.

Wayward bison like these are a problem.

Martin's father, Bob Stengel, has been dealing with for decades by observing them for 40 years.

Why?

I've picked up on a few things about the time you think you've got them figured out.

They'll prove you wrong.

It's not quite a train wreck, but they put a pretty big hole on the gate.

They always make it exciting.

Seems like.

Now, how do you normally do that?

Wrap.

You want to tighten that some?

Yeah, it's pretty loose.

The Apprentice is becoming the master says I won't do it anymore.

Trying to get it turned over to next generation in a little bit.

So yeah, I'm glad they took an interest.

You know, I wonder sometimes whether they should have gone down for something else, but they wanted to do this and so they're trying to make that opportunity work for them.

A lot easier to close than it used to be.

My parents bought this property in 1958 and it was a grain and cattle operation.

I always worked on the farm and then when I got out of college, I came back home and I'd read some articles about people raising bisons.

And so in 1979, my older brother Joe and I went back to northeast Colorado and bought six heifers and two bulls just to sort of try it out.

By 1987, we switched solely to bison for our livestock operation.

The Stengel's have more than 500 head of bison on almost 7000 acres of land at the base of the Wallowa mountains.

Bob is starting to take more of a back seat as his daughters Marta and Theresa learn the ins and outs of running the ranch.

If you're going to make it real simple, Marta does a lot of the land and animal management, and then I do more of like the people office, meat sales management.

Come on.

It works really well because Marta and my dad really enjoy being outside.

And if they don't have to talk to people, that's great for them.

Where I really enjoy getting to do the marketing or customer service.

Hey, Morgan, this is Teresa Stangl.

Stangl Bison Ranch is now a good time.

Yeah.

So as far as round steaks, we can do cubed plain.

Keep them as roasts.

Yup.

Perfect.

We live in a society where if you're going to do business with somebody or you find something like you Google it, it is definitely not Dad's thing.

So that was really helpful to have like both Martin and I and then me being able to focus and learn about it.

Teresa taught herself marketing while Marta got a degree in crop and soil science.

They're taking what they learned from their father and his brothers, Hermann and building on it.

A lot of the stuff I learned in college was how the grass grows and the different stages and then the different soil types and what they're best for.

So I brought a lot of that back.

We didn't really try to do like a three year rotation with our grazing, so we're not coming into the same pasture at the same time every year.

And so we're trying to revitalize the soil and the grasses with the bison.

Bison use to be here naturally and due to people being horrible, decided to go on a track to where we are at like 500,000 bison in the United States.

They are such amazing animals.

And to think of a world where they might not be there is a pretty depressing one, though.

A lot of them are on farms and ranches, but it is great to be a part of trying to rectify that history where the bison should get to be back to where they were.

Ready for breakfast.

Here on.

A bummer calf is one that isn't going to be raised by his mother for one reason or another, and we end up feeding that artificially.

We call them the bottle baby or the Barmer calf.

If we hadn't stepped in and caught Wanda and started feeding her, she would have probably died out there.

That's all you go.

Milk's all gone.

She's not done.

Maintaining the bison population in America isn't just about the past.

Hi.

How are you?

Good.

How are you doing?

Good.

It has a direct impact on the local community.

In the present, we look like.

Well, good.

I'm glad you like it.

Thank you.

They know exactly what the meat is.

They know where it came from.

They might even tell you the name of the animal.

You know, that's like they say, farm to table.

This is it.

The wine.

Locals.

That's how we survive.

Story.

We go like you don't support each other.

And what's a community.

So well.

When we were younger, during different seasons, you know, we didn't see Dad as much because he was extremely busy doing a lot of things.

Like most things, once you get a little bit older, you really appreciate some of those things that you didn't when you were younger.

That's what I love about what I do is being able to work with my family.

I have that interaction with them every day.

Running the ranch has given us the opportunity to do that.

As far as my relationship with my dad and being able to take over the work that he does.

They usually take off.

He just has so much knowledge.

I just feel like I would never be at that level, You know, maybe when I'm as old as he is now, I hope to be there one day, but get in there.

Thank you so much, Oregon Public Broadcasting, for that report.

Now for more information about our program, just click on KLCS.org and then click Contact us.

Send us your questions, your comments, your story ideas so we can hear from you or contact me @DavidNazarNews on X or just go to my YouTube channel, DavidNazarNews.

Contact me there and be sure to catch our program here on KLCS PBS or catch us on the PBS app.

Thanks so much for joining us.

I'm David Nazar.