Orion Boone

Tell stories. Spark curiosity.

To be a journalist is to be curious.

I've been obsessed with the questions "how?" and "why?" from the very beginning. After taking a journalism class in middle school, I was finally able to utilize that curiosity. I've pursued journalism ever since.

Some Favorites

Recent Work

Central Florida Public Media •

Women in space and meal planning for space travel

During the Artemis II mission, Christina Koch became the first woman to travel to the moon. Before Artemis, she was a flight engineer on the International Space Station for Expedition 59, 60 and 61 back in 2019. During her time on the space station, Koch participated in the first all-female spacewalk. She has spent 338 days in space across during her time as a NASA astronaut.Koch’s role in the Artemis II mission follows in the footsteps of other women in space exploration firsts like Eileen Coll...
The Charge •

WATCH: How a UCF student began his draglesque journey, made debut at Extravaganza Knight

With the song "Made You Look" by Meghan Trainor blaring on the speakers, Jay Ayuk made his draglesque debut, blending the art of drag and burlesque.On Jan. 15 at Extravaganza Knight, a collaboration between Color Me Queer and Lavender Council celebrating the LGBTQ+ community through performance, Jay Ayuk, junior event management major, had spent months helping plan the event. Somewhere along the way, his plans shifted. 
"Something within me was telling me I want to perform," Ayuk said. "...
The Charge •

UCF student faces 20 charges, up to 280 years on child pornography charges

A UCF student faces 20 felony child pornography-related charges after being arrested by the UCF Police Department, according to the Florida Attorney General’s office. Among the files recovered from 21-year-old Joshua James Smith's phone during forensic investigation were graphic images and videos of child sexual abuse material, including that of infants. Smith also used Kik, a messaging app, to solicit sexual favors and images from minors, according to a press release from the Florida Attorney G...
Central Florida Public Media •

Asteroid mining and space hospitality

Mining asteroids could shift from science fiction to reality, driven by the need for off-Earth resources.Phillip Metzger, a planetary scientist at the University of CentralFlorida, said the reasons to mine in space are many – sci-fi fantasies, AI and geopolitical boasting to name a few -- but the real hold up has been economic need.“For decades now, it has not been a technological barrier,” Metzger said. “We've had the ability to do it. It's always been an economic barrier and a political barrie...
Central Florida Public Media •

Key piece of Artemis III mission arrives at Kennedy Space Center

A key piece of NASA’s next Artemis moon mission has arrived at the Kennedy Space Center ahead of a potential launch next year.The majority of the core stage of NASA’s SLS rocket – which holds liquid fuel and flight control systems – departed its assembly facility in New Orleans last week. It arrived at KSC by barge on Monday. It was offloaded and transferred to the Vehicle Assembly Building.There, it will join other pieces of the Artemis III launch vehicle, like the two solid rocket boosters and...
Central Florida Public Media •

Could there be life on other worlds? Scientists look to Mars and the asteroid Bennu for that answer

For centuries, scientists have asked whether life is unique to just our planet.In a new study the Mars rover, Curiosity, found elements that here on Earth are the building blocks of life. However, even if it links to life, it may have been created abiotically, or without lifeforms.Amy Williams, an astrobiologist at the University of Florida and a scientist on the NASA Curiosity and Perseverance rovers, said Curiosity was able to discover this using a new technique called thermochemolysis.“It's j...
The Charge •

Color Me Queer Rest as Resistance VO

Anchors: Austin Lamanna
Producer: Sabrina Hansen

The Charge On Air is a product of the Nicholson School of Communication's Film and Mass Media Department's Journalism Program. The show is a student-produced, faculty-advised, venture.

For the latest news our students are reporting on visit: http://www.nicholsonstudentmedia.com/
For additional information about the school visit: https://communication.ucf.edu/

_____________

Video Location: UCF Nicholson School of Communication and Media (NSC)
Central Florida Public Media •

Artemis Two is back on Earth and a new moonshot is underway

Hundreds of thousands of people lined the streets and beaches near the Kennedy Space Center, hoping to catch a glimpse of the Orion spacecraft and Space Launch Systems rocket take off from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center April 1.Our host, Brendan Byrne, was there through it all. From launch to splash down, he reported on the crew’s journey.Hear more about Byrne’s coverage of Artemis II and more about the mission in the newest transparency corner.Along with captivating the public, Artemis II is inspi...
Central Florida Public Media •

Prep for next Artemis mission begins with launch pad’s Crawler-Transport

NASA is already preparing for Artemis III after the success of Artemis II, the mission that returned humans to the moon for the first time in half a century.The Crawler-Transporter – the massive vehicle that moves the mobile launch pad and the SLS rocket that launches Orion from the hangar to the launch site – will start its trek at Kennedy Space Center later this week. It will return the launch platform to the Vehicle Assembly Building, where the assembly of Artemis III’s rocket will begin.John...
The Charge •

Artemis II mission to moon, return to Earth inspires SpaceU community

The Artemis II astronauts completed the first human voyage to the moon in over 50 years, exciting UCF students and faculty alike.Artemis II launched on April 1 at 6:35 p.m. from Kennedy Space Center, around 30 miles away from UCF. The crew splashed down off the coast of San Diego Friday night, arriving safely from their almost 10-day voyage around the far side of the moon.
During the summer of 2024, senior computer engineering major Megan Danh worked on the Graphical User Interface of an...
Central Florida Public Media •

Artemis II flies by the moon and a look at NASA’s budget proposal

During the Artemis II lunar flyby on Monday, the astronauts onboard took thousands of photos and made geological observations of around 35 targets on the far side of the moon. The astronauts were the first to see the far side of the moon from that perspective, and the data they collected will help planetary scientists here on Earth.SEE PHOTOS: NASA releases first images from moon flybyAt the University of Central Florida, planetary scientist Addie Dove is preparing to send an instrument to the l...
Central Florida Public Media •

Artemis II images prepare UCF researchers for their own lunar mission

During the Artemis II lunar flyby on Monday, the astronauts onboard took thousands of photos and made geological observations of around 35 targets on the far side of the moon. The astronauts were the first to see the far side of the moon from that perspective, and the data they collected will help planetary scientists here on Earth.At the University of Central Florida, planetary scientist Addie Dove is preparing to send an instrument to the lunar surface as early as 2028. Lunar-VISE aims to unde...
Central Florida Public Media •

Artemis II is a go for launch plus, how NASA is helping tortoises

NASA’s Artemis II moon mission could launch on a flyby mission around the moon from Florida’s Kennedy Space Center this week.It’s the first crewed mission to visit the moon since the final lunar Apollo mission in 1972. And this crew is taking with them some of the most advanced observational instruments – their eyes.We’ll speak with Artemis II mission scientist Barbara Cohen about how the crew trains to make scientific observations with their eyes and how that will help future mission land on th...
Central Florida Public Media •

Moon science and Curious Space

This is the first episode of Space on Tap, a special "Are We There Yet?" event series. It's a live, semi-scripted space-science show. This episode was held at Judson's Live in Orlando on March 23. NASA’s Artemis program could hit a big milestone as soon as April 1 with the launch of the Artemis II mission. It will be the first human mission to the moon since Apollo 17 in 1972.There’s fresh excitement about a new human moon mission, but for Kerri Donaldson Hanna and Addie Dove from the University...
Central Florida Public Media •

Scientists at UCF are making moon dirt for lunar chickpeas

NASA is getting closer to sending humans back to the moon through its Artemis program, and understanding the environment and the dirt on the moon is crucial. Humans will be spending time there, living and working on the lunar surface.However, access to dirt from the moon is extremely limited. Since people can’t grab moon dirt and come back to Earth, lunar regolith is made synthetically in labs.At the University of Central Florida’s Exolith Lab, managed by the Florida Space Institute, technicians...

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