Episode
Director Kevin Curran on Brian Binnie's UAP encounter, birth of private spaceflight | Reality Check
- Published
- May 19, 2026
- Duration seconds
- 3914
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Summary
In this episode of "Reality Check," Ross Coulthart sits down with Kevin Curran, the cinematographer and director behind "Beyond Blue Sky: The Untold Story of the First Private Astronauts." It's a documentary about the small Mojave Desert team that built SpaceShipOne and won the $10 million Ansari X Prize in 2004. Curran takes us inside the trials and tribulations of that race, the engineering long shots, the near-fatal test flights and the redemption arc of pilot Brian Binnie after a hard-landing crash that nearly ended the program. The conversation then turns to the encounter that may have changed history, Binnie's account of seeing roughly a dozen unidentified objects in his backyard six days after SpaceShipOne's first powered flight test in December 2003. Curran tells Ross why he found Binnie credible, how the encounter fits inside the larger arc of one of the most consequential pilots in private spaceflight history, and what he hopes audiences take from a story that begins with rocket science and ends somewhere stranger. Go to http://vanman.shop/ross and use code ROSS for 15% off your first order. #BeyondBlueSky #AnsariX #SpaceShipOne CREDITS Host: Ross Coulthart Executive Producer: Andy Gipson Editorial Producer: Meagan Medick Segment Producer: Christine Jenkinson Associate Producer: Will Tomasi Research Producer: Rob Jones Editor: Anthony Diasio On "Reality Check," NewsNation Special Correspondent Ross Coulthart takes a fact-based approach to tackle everything from unidentified aerial phenomena (UAPs) to mysteries often missing from the headlines. More Reality Check: https://www.newsnationnow.com/podcasts-newsnation/reality-check-with-ross-coulthart/ Email your questions to [email protected] NewsNation is your source for…