Amy Shira Teitel
Amy Shira Teitel | |
|---|---|
Teitel in a video from her YouTube channel, The Vintage Space, in 2020 | |
| Born | |
| Education | BA History of Science and Technology and Classics, University of King's College, Nova Scotia MA Science and Technology Studies, York University, Ontario |
| Occupations | Popular science writer, journalist |
| YouTube information | |
| Channel | |
| Subscribers | 455 thousand |
| Views | 71.1 million |
| Last updated: 2 February 2026 | |
| Website | amyshirateitel |
Amy Shira Teitel is a Canadian-American[1][2] author, popular science writer, historian,[3] and YouTuber.
Career
Writer
Amy Shira Teitel is a native of Toronto.[4] She has written for The Daily Beast, National Geographic, Discovery News, Scientific American, Ars Technica, and Al Jazeera English.[5][6]
Teitel's first book was based on research for her master's degree thesis. Breaking the Chains of Gravity (2015) tells the story of America's nascent space program.[7][8] The book describes the early pioneers of rockets in the late 1920s, up to the formation of NASA.[9]
Teitel's Fighting for Space (2020) is a dual biography of female pilots Jacqueline Cochran and Jerrie Cobb.[10][11]
In August 2025, Teitel announced she was working on a book about the history of the atomic bomb, with an expected publication of 2027.[12]
Video and other media
In 2012, Teitel created the YouTube channel, The Vintage Space,[13] in which she delves into the early history of space flight. The channel took a hiatus from 2021-2024, with Teitel taking time away after the publication of her second book, alongside challenges with YouTube comments and copyright-related demonetization.[14] Upon returning in July 2024, she stating that the channel's focus would expand to the space age rather than strictly spaceflight.
Teitel was a co-host for the Discovery Channel's online DNews channel, which later became Seeker.[15] She has also appeared on Ancient Aliens, NASA's Unexplained Files, and other cable documentary shows.[16]
References
- ^ Masterson, Andrew (July 7, 2016). "History is rocket science to Amy Shira Teitel". Cosmos.
- ^ Amy Shira Teitel [@astVintageSpace] (February 12, 2017). "Confirmation of citizenship" (Tweet). Retrieved January 21, 2019 – via Twitter.
- ^ Scoles, Sarah (July 15, 2016). "The first female space shuttle commander will speak at the GOP convention. Huh?". The Washington Post.
- ^ Zivkovic, Bora (June 4, 2012). "Introducing: Amy Shira Teitel". Scientific American.
- ^ "Amy Shira Teitel". Al Jazeera English, Author Biography.
- ^ "AMY SHIRA TEITEL". Popular Science, Author Biography. Archived from the original on July 14, 2017.
- ^ forward.com, The True Story of How Nazis Invented the Space Program, Ezra Glinter, January 25, 2016, The Forward
- ^ bloomsbury.com, Breaking the Chains of Gravity
- ^ Lee, Robert A. (2016). "Book Review: Breaking the Chains of Gravity". National Space Society. Archived from the original on June 2, 2017. Retrieved December 19, 2016.
- ^ "The Space Review". February 17, 2020. Retrieved April 14, 2020.
- ^ "Kirkus Reviews". February 18, 2020. Retrieved April 14, 2020.
- ^ "Our Insane Atomic Journey: How Did We Get Here?". YouTube. Retrieved February 1, 2026.
- ^ 'The Vintage Space' YouTube channel
- ^ "Vintage Space is Coming Back (Where I've Been)". YouTube. Retrieved February 1, 2026.
- ^ Amy Shira Teitel page at Seeker
- ^ Amy Shira Teitel at IMDb
Bibliography
- Teitel, Amy Shira (2015). Breaking the Chains of Gravity: The Story of Spaceflight before NASA. London: Bloomsbury Sigma. ISBN 978-1-4729-1119-3. OCLC 926935409.
- Teitel, Amy Shira (2020). Fighting for Space: Two Pilots and Their Historic Battle for Female Spaceflight. New York: Grand Central Publishing. ISBN 978-1-5387-1603-8. OCLC 1141078934.