http://www.thespaceshow.com/ The Space Show focuses on timely and important issues influencing the development of outer-space commerce, space tourism,space exploration and space development. The Space Show is committed to facilitating our becoming a space-faring nation and society with a growing and self-sustaining space-faring economy. The Space Show also focuses on other related subjects of interest to us all. Fri, 03 Jul 2009 13:56:51 MST en Talk Radio Science Technology Business Education News Arts and Entertainment http://archived.thespaceshow.com/shows/1184-BWB-2009-06-30.mp3 Guests: Dr. Paul Mueller, Adam Vore, David Stechmann. Topics: rocket competition, college teams, aerospace engineering, building rockets. Dr. Mueller returned for this Space Show program to update us on the recent intercollegiate rocket engineering competition for the Experimental Sounding Rocket Association (ESRA) recently held in Utah. With him on the show were the first and second place team captains, Adam Vore from Cal State Long Beach and David Stechmann from the University of Washington. Adam was with us for the first half of the show and David was with us for the second half of the show. Both Adam and David told us about their respective entries but more to the point, they discussed how they built and tested their rockets and the components, what it was like getting it all ready to fly in the competition, the problems they encountered and the solutions to those problems. Their stories were compelling, inspiring, and totally fun! To win the competition, the winner had to get the closest to 10,000 feet but also there were oral and written papers involved, not just the flight score. Please check the ESRA website for the papers and videos from the competition. The URL is http://soundingrocket.org. If you have questions or comments for our guests, please email them as follows: Dr. Paul Mueller: paul.mueller.iii@gmail.com; Adam Vore: vegandiver@gmail.com; David Stechmann: dstech@u.washington.edu. http://www.gigadial.net/public/submit/595867 Wed, 01 Jul 2009 07:51:38 MST http://archived.thespaceshow.com/shows/1183-BWB-2009-06-29.mp3 Guests: James Pura and Ryan McLinko. Topics: NewSpace 2009, lunar opportunities, Kool-Aid, NASA Ames. Our guests, James Pura and Ryan McLinko are the co-chairs of the upcoming NewSpace 2009 conference to be held July 17-20 at NASA Ames in Mountain View, Ca. For more information about NewSpace 2009, please visit http://newspace2009.spacefrontier.org. James and Ryan went through some of the featured programming and keynote speakers. We talked about the $5,000 Heinlein Prize that will be given to the winner of the business plan competition. We also talked about the Black Tie Gala Event and Banquet the last night of the conference, July 20, also the 40th anniversary of Apollo 11. Some of the programming that was mentioned in detail during the show addressed the space elevator, space solar power, commercial lunar opportunities, the networking that will be available, point to point suborbital transportation, and Teachers in Space. Both James and Ryan also talked about the online registration, the conference hotel and the special conference rate, the programming with the ISU Summer Session attendees, and more. In the last segment of the show, I asked both guests how they discovered and got interested in the Space Frontier Foundation. This discussion led to asking them if they thought being a member of SFF and space advocacy organization helped them in their space career options, was a negative, or was neutral. This sparked a very interesting and creative discussion, don't miss it. If you have NewSpace 2009 conference questions, you can use the NewSpace 2009 website at http://newspace2009.spacefrontier.org/contacts.php. Not only can you find the email and phone information for our guests James and Ryan, you can contact other key people with SFF. If you have a specific question or comment for James Pura and Ryan McLinko, you can email them at james.pura@spacefrontier.org and ryan.mclinko@spacefrontier.org. http://www.gigadial.net/public/submit/595812 Mon, 29 Jun 2009 19:52:24 MST http://archived.thespaceshow.com/shows/1182-BWB-2009-06-28.mp3 Guest: Mark Canepa. Topics: Modern high-power rocketry, Tripoli, NAR, rocket motors, insurance liability, space & rocketry. Mark Canepa, author of "Modern High-Power Rocketry 2" was the guest today to discuss not only his book but participating in high power rocketry. His book is available through the One Giant Leap Foundation website through the Amazon participation program. For order and book information, please visit www.onegiantleapfoundation.org/books.htm. Scroll down to Mark's book. Mark started our discussion by defining high powered rocketry as anything using an H rocket motor or higher. A-G motors are considered the smaller, entry level rocket motors. Mark went through some of the rules for both Tripoli and NAR, the two organizations that supervise and certify people who want to fly high powered rockets. I'm sure you will find this to be an interesting discussion. We also talked about the foreign participants that fly their rockets in the these large national and regional rocket events and how they get their rockets, engines and fuels to the United States. Listen to how its done as it might surprise you. In talking about his book, Mark explained that it takes a reader through Level One Certification to Level Three and much more regarding building rocket engines and the entire rocket, altimeters, and fuel. A listener brought the NAR TEAM America Rocket Challenge Program (TARC), a program which may interest you and your high school of choice. The TARC website is www.rocketcontest.org/index.cfm. You can contact our guest Mark Canepa and learn more about his rocket photography, his rocketry books and high-powered rocketry by visiting his website at www.modernhpr.com. You can also email your comments and questions to him at moparmbc@aol.com. http://www.gigadial.net/public/submit/595784 Sun, 28 Jun 2009 19:13:40 MST http://archived.thespaceshow.com/shows/1181-BWB-2009-06-26.mp3 Guest: Gary Hudson: Topics: Risk taking, launch vehicles, flight safety test program, space tourism. We started our discussion with guest Gary Hudson regarding the COTS program, the Augustine Panel, and Unfunded Space Act Agreements. Gary described why he believes that COTS should be a more competitive and open process. You definitely want to hear what he has to say. This discussion led to an exchange with listeners as well as the host regarding the way in which bad engineering projects continue to grow, get funding, and be implemented. His target in this discussion was Ares 1 which he characterized as one of the worst launch vehicles made. We talked about the existing billions already invested in Ares 1 and the fallacy of the sunk cost theory. Listeners asked about walking away from sunk costs and one listener asked Gary if he would have been able to walk away from Rotary Rocket and its corresponding sunk costs. You do not want to miss this important discussion. Gary cited a book, "The Tender Ship" by Arthur Squires as an example of how a bad engineering project continues on to fruition. I'm sure you will find this story applicable and very interesting. Gary also brought us current on the status of both T/Space and Air LaunchLLC. Gary Hudson brings great experience to the discussion in running and managing a space business and working with the government and we all need to listen and learn from him. Toward the end of the show, I asked Gary what he thought the ideal flight safety program for a suborbital space vehicle should consist of in terms of flight tests, etc. Its a detailed discussion but he suggested the company have three vehicles and make from 50-150 flights testing different aspects of the flight profile. Later in this discussion he called for dozens of powered flights. See what you think of his comments about flight safety and spaceflight participant risk taking. Many additional topics were addressed on this program so listen carefully. If you want to send a comment or question to Gary Hudson, please do so through me at drspace@thespaceshow.com and I will forward it to him. http://www.gigadial.net/public/submit/595716 Fri, 26 Jun 2009 16:24:53 MST http://archived.thespaceshow.com/shows/1180-BWB-2009-06-23.mp3 Guest: Robert Zimmerman. Topics: space policy, NASA, human spaceflight, Hubble, SpaceX, LRO. Bob Zimmerman returned to The Space Show for this news update. He started the discussion with an evaluation of current space policy based on his perception of Obama's interest in space and the delay in appointing a new NASA Administrator. We talked about the human spaceflight program, science missions, engineering research and planetary research and returning to the Moon as a priority. Bob told us about his limited but positive personal experience with the designated NASA Administrator, Charles Bolden, Jr. He also gave us his impression of the current Augustine Panel hearings and what he expects from them when the panel concludes its work and issues its report by the end of August 2009. Bottom line to Bob, he expects more and more delays in deciding what our space program will be and what it will look like. We also talked about various space telescopes being planned and in operation, not just from the U.S. but form Europe as well. He went into some detail about the recent Hubble repair mission. Bob brought us current with the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) and as a result of a listener question, explained the orbital dynamics of its planned four orbital loops to finally impact the Moon. Bob fielded many questions about NASA, the budget process, Congress and its funding of NASA. Bob also gave his view of what would be unfolding in space for the rest of the year and the near future. For example, he thinks Shuttle will be extended and all manufacturing lines that have been cancelled will be started up again. This is in response to the gap that exists and the need to rely on space transportation to Station from other nations. Listen to his comments and see what you think. If you have questions or comments for Bob Zimmerman, you can find his email address through his website, http://members.bellatlantic.net/~vze3cxxp/zimbib.htm or you can forward it to me at drspace@thespaceshow.com. http://www.gigadial.net/public/submit/595618 Wed, 24 Jun 2009 12:58:09 MST http://archived.thespaceshow.com/shows/1179-BWB-2009-06-22.mp3 Guests: Chris Carberry; Kevin Sloan. Topics: The Mars Society upcoming 12th annual conference, University Rover Challenge, humans to Mars, heavy lift vehicle. Chris Carberry, Executive Director of the Mars Society was our guest for the first hour to discuss the upcoming 12th Annual International Mars Society Convention. To learn more about the convention and The Mars Society, visit www.marssociety.org/portal/c/Conventions/2009/convention-2009-event. Chris not only went through the list of keynote speakers but we talked about the Mars Blitz to lobby members of Congress, taking a tour of Goddard Spaceflight Center, and more. We also talked about FMARS at Devon Island and the MDRS program. Some of the highlights for the convention include programs on the space telescopes, Saturn, radiation and more. The list of keynote speakers and topics can be found at www.marssociety.org/portal/c/Conventions/2009. During the last segment of the program, Kevin Sloan returned as our guest to give us the results of the University Rover Challenge (URC). The team that won the Challenge was York University in Canada and they won $1,000. York University team members and their rover will be at the Mars Society Convention so those attending can see it in operation. Visit www.marssociety.org/portal/c/urc for more information on the URC and the other universities that placed in the contest. Videos and pictures of the teams and robots are on the website so check them out. To win, a rover team had to successfully undertake four missions and score the most points: 1)Extremophile Search Task - Search for signs of life in the remote, barren terrain of MDRS; 2) Construction Task - Rover must venture out to a loose equipment panel, and secure it to its structure by tightening several loose bolts; 3) Site Survey Task - Rover to spot several distant markers and provide their exact coordinates; 4) Emergency Navigation Task - A distressed astronaut has gone down while walking back to the Hab so the rover must find your colleague and deliver emergency supplies before it's too late. Listen to Kevin explain how the rovers carried out these tasks. Also, a listener asked about a JPL rover doing these challenges. You do not want to miss Kevin's comments about the JPL rover and this challenge. If you have questions or comments for Chris Carberry about the Mars Society, the convention or any of his comments, please email him at carberry@marssociety.org. If you have questions or comments about the URC or for Kevin Sloan, please contact him at kevin@marssociety.org. http://www.gigadial.net/public/submit/595538 Tue, 23 Jun 2009 07:49:28 MST http://archived.thespaceshow.com/shows/1178-BWB-2009-06-21.mp3 Guests: Julie Jiru and Vicki Ann Belleau. Topics: space and telecom law, University of Nebraska Space & Telecom Law LL.M program, commercial and civil space. Julie Jiru and Vicki Ann Belleau were with us on today's Space Show program as they were part of the first ever class for the newly formed Space & Telecom Law Center with the University of Nebraska Law School in Lincoln, NE. Julie and Vicki talked about the program, its focus, classes offered, leading professors and guest speakers, plus conferences that they attended as part of their program. Both guests also received questions about space law ranging from being able to find a career in a space law field to how its being applied in cutting edge fields such a space debris mitigation, planetary defense, space tourism, informed consent and more. You can learn more about the University of Nebraska graduate law program by visiting the website at http://spaceandtelecomlaw.unl.edu/home. One very interesting thing we learned came about as a result of a listener question about how space law might end up treating personal spaceflight participants. Our guests brought up the possibility that the Rescue Treaty may not apply because its for government astronauts, not civilian tourists. Common sense and humanity would likely cause a nation to do all that was possible to rescue a downed personal spaceflight participant but unlike rescuing a government astronaut covered by the treaty, the civilian spaceflight participant or family might end up getting billed for the rescue services. This is all very new legal theory but civilians are not covered by the treaty so its unknown just how this treaty would be applied to an emergency situation by the country doing the rescue. Listen to this discussion and see what you think. I cannot imagine a country not helping to rescue a downed spacecraft and its occupants, government or private, but charging private sector occupants for the rescue is something I never thought about. Questions were asked about charging people who are rescued by the Coast Guard, CAP, and state and federal agencies but we did not come to a conclusion on this issue on the show. Other topics of discussion dealt with ITAR and even the amateur space cadet being subject to ITAR rules and regulations. Listen to Andrew's question on this subject. We also talked about the allocation of both frequencies and space for geo orbits to all nations, not just the main space fairing nations. Another listener asked if a country was able to extend sovereignty to a geo orbit overhead. The answer was no but the country is responsible for its space assets in GEO. We talked about space debris, mitigation and responsibility and learned that the topic along with planetary defense is now part of space law curriculum. We also learned that there are job opportunities for the specialty in space law and in fact the specialty helps one getting a job with an aerospace company though the legal work may all be terrestrial. This is an interesting glimpse of space law through the eyes of present day space law graduates and practicing attorneys. If you have comments or questions for our guests Julie Jiru or Vicki Ann Belleau, please send them to me at drspace@thespaceshow.com and I will forward them to both attorneys. http://www.gigadial.net/public/submit/595460 Sun, 21 Jun 2009 22:16:46 MST http://archived.thespaceshow.com/shows/1177-BWB-2009-06-19.mp3 Guests: Dr. Roger Launius, Andrew Johnston. Topics: space exploration, geography, Hubble, human spaceflight. Dr. Roger Launius and Andrew Johnston were the guests for this Space Show program to discuss their excellent new book, "Atlas of Space Exploration." You can find out more about this book from the One Giant Leap Foundation book website, www.onegiantleapfoundation.org/books.htm. We started our discussion by talking about ancient observatories and then observation versus exploration. This produced a lively exchange with several listener generated questions. Our author guests took us through the book which as you will hear is an outstanding reference and informational book with amazing pictures or graphs on every single pages. As you will throughout this show, the graphs and pictures are unique and very important. Pay particular attention to some of the geopolitical and historical graphs and charts as well as photos that were signaled out. At times during this program we went off on tangents to discuss our current space program. We wondered out loud if the U.S. would go back to the Moon and when, and we talked about human lunar programs for other nations. I think you will find the comments about the Chinese space program to be most interesting. Another part of our discussion focused on NASA programs that sparked inspiration and motivation. Here, we talked about the Apollo era programs, Hubble, Shuttle, and the ISS. One listener thought Hubble might reign supreme but both the guests and I centered on Apollo. I referenced several informal Space Show surveys pointing to our earlier lunar efforts. What do you think were or are the most inspirational of NASA programs? When discussing human space flight and the need for a killer application to make it worth the cost and risk, Dr. Launius said there were five reasons for going into space in this order: 1) scientific purposes; 2) national security; 3) economic purposes; 4) national prestige; 5) to get off this planet to become a multi-planet species. Do you agree or disagree with these five reasons? If you want to contact either Dr. Launius or Andrew Johnston, do so as follows: LauniusR@si.edu; johnstona@si.edu. As always, you can send your question or comment to both or either guest through me at drspace@thespaceshow.com. http://www.gigadial.net/public/submit/595356 Fri, 19 Jun 2009 19:36:57 MST http://archived.thespaceshow.com/shows/1176-BWB-2009-06-18.mp3 Guest: Tim Pickens. Topics: Orion Propulsion, Inc, rockets, commercial space, NewSpace, business models and risks. Tim Pickens, President of Orion Propulsion, Inc. in Huntsville, AL was the guest for today's Space Show program. Tim started the discussion by updating us on some of the Orion project which can be found on their website at www.orionpropulsion.com. Of the projects discussed, we spent most of our time on the Bigelow Aerospace Sundancer program and the Boeing Ares 1 first and second stage RCS. Tim was asked to discuss his business model and to what he attributes his success given so many other NewSpace companies have more difficulty with their challenges than does Orion. Listen to what Tim has to say about Orion's business goals and action plan. This led to a discussion about a possible small rocket manufacturing consortium plan but getting the various companies to talk with each other and participate has been and remains a challenge. In response to listener questions about our going to the Moon and the technology being designed by NASA as a repeat from the Apollo era, he pointed out many technology advances that make the design and hardware needed nothing like what was used when we went to the Moon the first time. Listen to his descriptions of the hardware, fuel, and technology needed for our current lunar visitation plans. Tim was asked several questions about NASA but eventually it came down to the ultimate issue which revolves around congressional support and funding. Make sure you hear what Tim said about this. Do you concur? Since NASA is funded by congress and the programs need congressional support, I agree with this being the ultimate issue. The only thing I might add and maybe it should share the title with the ultimate issue is we need to be as certain as possible that what NASA designs and builds is cost-effective, works, viable, quality, etc. Later in the show a listener asked Tim about his ISDC 2009 green comments for the aerospace industry. Tim elaborated on this issue and I chimed in as well. For the most part, because of what is happening in the country politically, environmentally, trend-wise, etc, for any business to ignore environmental and green concerns, even the space and launch industries, they do so at their own peril. As I said during the show, for a start up to not plan for environmental costs, regulations, etc, then perhaps they don't deserve to be in business. It is not an issue of what the businessman or woman believes, its an issue of the reality of doing business in modern times. Environmental concerns are legitimate and here to stay, the impute costs to businesses of all kinds, and we need to guard as much as possible against that which is unfounded and rediculous. But it would be stupid of businessmen and women to not be concerned about the complete environment that they choose to operate and work in as they develop their business. At the end of the program, Tim was asked for his "Pearls of Wisdom" comment or concluding remark. He said "not having funding is no excuse for not doing something!" How true that is and that is why I am repeating it here in this program description. How often do we allow a problem, even a significant one like not having funding, to just stop us cold in our tracks. As Tim said, do something, build something, but there is no excuse for doing nothing. Many other topics were discussed including high powered amateur rocketry, the Huntsville business climate and more. If you have a question or comment for Tim Pickens, you can email him at tpickens@orionpropulsion.com. http://www.gigadial.net/public/submit/595325 Thu, 18 Jun 2009 20:12:44 MST http://archived.thespaceshow.com/shows/1175-BWB-2009-06-16.mp3 Guest: Open Lines. Topics: North Korea, Iran & SCUD Missiles, private space contractors, Flagships, return to the Moon, Kool Aid. Tonight was an Open Lines discussion covering several topics with listeners both through email and phone calls. I outlined some topics for possible discussion including what constitutes Kool Aid in the space world (based on an experience I had via email with a friend earlier in the day), the Augustine Panel presentations coming up, Direct 3.0, a possible new focus for NASA which included developing low cost space access for civil use, and more. Our first caller, Charles from Mojave addressed both the possible change in focus for NASA and the Kool Aid issue. I also got him to comment on the future for Ares 1, Ares V and Direct 3.0. I'm sure this discussion will be interesting for all of you. After the first break, Andrew from Tucson called as he had done an analysis of the missile and rocket systems for both North Korea and Iran since this had been a subject of several recent Space Show programs. Andrew provided us with a comprehensive overview of the missile systems of these countries. It appears that their respective baselines were that of the Soviet SCUD missile but then expanded and modified. Andrew told us that N. Korea originally sold this technology to many countries but that Iran seems to have a higher and better manufacturing process so has developed the technology much more than N. Korea. Andrew provided us with some interesting information about this subject so I urge you listen to this segment. One website that Andrew found very useful in his research was www.armscontrolwonk.com which he said was the best open source of technical information and insight into Iranian and DPRK systems he was able to find. Andrew sent me an email with several other links in it on this subject so if any of you would like me to forward that email and set of links, please send me a note and I will do so. We had another caller from Tucson, Jeff, who talked about the progress made by the private sector in that private investment was now starting to go from the government to private space companies. He referenced two examples, the NASA contract with Zero G Corporation for zero gravity flights and the COTS program. This proved to be a very interesting discussion with Jeff that covered traditional members of congress such as Alabama Senator Shelby, NewSpace and political as well as commercial victories, paradigm shifts, and more. Jeff was correct, we have a put a big foot in the door to start the process and hopefully widen it to facilitate more direct private space business rather than the contracting as usual. Listener Marshall from Dallas sent in a note about his idea of Flagships, wondering what would be the next U.S. Flagship since we are about to retire the Space Shuttle which he said was the current Flagship and that the U.S. needed a new flagship. This prompted several e-mail comments including a suggestion that the astronauts on the Moon showing the U.S. flag could be a flagship. I disputed this idea as I did not think that picture represented what Marshall described as a flagship. Listen to what Marshall wrote me and see what you think. If you have any comments or questions about this Open Lines show, I want to hear from you. If you have a question for any of our callers, Charles, Andrew, or Jeff, please send your comments to me and I will forward them to the person of your request. I can be reached at drspace@thespaceshow.com. http://www.gigadial.net/public/submit/595251 Wed, 17 Jun 2009 10:31:03 MST http://archived.thespaceshow.com/shows/1174-BWB-2009-06-15.mp3 Guest: Dr. Richard Kirby. Topics: space education, space comedy, UNICEF, space history, science fiction. Dr. Richard Kirby returned to the Space Show to discuss New Horizons In Space Science Education. In the process of discussing this topic, we covered many subjects and issues ranging from starting at a very early age, even birth, and making sure people know that they are citizens of the cosmos and without limitation on their imagination and abilities to adult education focusing on math, science, history, and more. Dr. Kirby even suggested giving every newborn a telescope or a certificate of citizenship of the cosmos. You will hear several listener questions about this idea so see what you think about it. Richard spoke about science fiction and real science as pointed out by listeners. He also spoke about the role of UNICEF in education and specifically space education regarding children. The role of free education was discussed and some listeners asked questions about limitations and the economics of paying for education. You will certainly want to hear this discussion. We also talked about math literacy and the Hippocratic Oath for Teachers which can be found at www.newgenius.com/education/hot.html. This was a diverse program covering a wide swatch of how to achieve global space education and more. I am sure you will have many questions and comments so please send them to me at drspace@thespaceshow.com and I will forward them to Dr. Kirby. For more information about the Kepler Space University, please visit www.keplerspaceuniversity.com/. http://www.gigadial.net/public/submit/594480 Tue, 16 Jun 2009 09:48:39 MST http://archived.thespaceshow.com/shows/1173-BWB-2009-06-14.mp3 Guest: Tom Olson. Topics: ISDC 2009, Space Investment Summit 6 (SIS 6), Space Solar Power, problem solving, NewSpace economics. Tom Olson was the guest today to summarize both the ISDC 2009 Conference and the SIS 6. We started our discussion by focusing on the last day of ISDC with the space solar panel discussions. Despite some poking fun and jabbing at what we called the Church of Space Solar Power, Tom summarized the sessions on both Saturday and Sunday with a focus on the need to close the business case for SSP. Not only did we talk about SSP, but we talked about terrestrial alternative energy, the bad state of affairs for our power grid, and the lack of a business case for SSP. In the context of this discussion, we went over terrestrial alternatives and future uses and how they probably detract even further from the SSP business case. Tom said nobody closed the business case for SSP at ISDC. We then went to the SIS 6 and here Tom was quite impressed with the programming which focused on space simulation, hospitality, and more. Listen to this segment and see what you think. The next SIS is in Boston in September and returns to the traditional business plan and investment format. Tom went over many other ISDC sessions and some of the keynote speakers and you will want to hear his comments. At one point during the show, Tom mentioned an ISDC program about relearning how to engineer our return to the Moon by back engineering parts from the Saturn V and other lunar space vehicles. He said this was also a Wired video. The URL to the program in question is www.pbs.org/kcet/wiredscience/video/282-space_junkyard.html. This is a great program, I've seen it so make sure you watch it as well. Listen to what Tom said were his favorites at ISDC and what impressed him the most. If you have questions or comments, you can email Tom through me at drspace@thespaceshow.com. http://www.gigadial.net/public/submit/594371 Sun, 14 Jun 2009 18:10:42 MST http://archived.thespaceshow.com/shows/1172-BWB-2009-06-12.mp3 Guest: Rusty Schweickart. Topics: Planetary defense, Near Earth Objects (NEO). Former astronaut Rusty Schweickart returned to The Space Show today to update us on what is happening with efforts to develop and deploy a planetary protection policy for NEOs. Two websites you should visit for more information on this subject and to follow along with Mr. Schweickart are the Association of Space Explorers (http://www.space-explorers.org/ ) and the B612 Foundation (http://www.b612foundation.org/). As we began our discussion, Rusty updated us on what has been happening within the field of planetary defense, the most recent UN COPOUS meetings, and international efforts on behalf of planetary protection. We spoke about the technical and engineering part of deflecting an incoming object but we soon understood that the most difficult part was the geopolitical process involved in creating policy and taking action. As for the costs, Rusty explained that this was a very low cost program and you will want to hear his explanation of this which came up several times during the program. At one point, he referred to the costs as "chump change." We also talked about planetary protection being made a priority of NASA and its new NASA administration as well as the administration in Washington, DC. We all remain optimistic that this will be the case. Questions came up about the 12,600 year period that is often used so note the discussion on this issue. We also talked at length about orbital and space debris as part of the problem. While the two issues are related, Rusty made a very good point in that space/orbital debris is about man made objects orbiting Earth that can endanger man made assets in space. As important and serious as this is, planetary protection is about naturally occurring events that have the potential to seriously impact Earth and our civilization. In response to a listener question, we learned that the Europeans and others are more serious and involved with planetary protection than the United States has been in the past. Later in the program we talked about the Tunguska event and Rusty pointed out the search for objects was the key issue. We then talked about the size of objects and what size meant for planetary protection issues. A listener asked about the NEOSAT Canadian project. You will want to hear what Rusty had to say about this excellent but small program and programs like it. Over and over during the program, Rusty stressed two points: (1) The search and early warning for potentially dangerous objects; (2) Deflection. If you have questions or comments for Rusty Schweickart about this program or any of the issues or topics discussed, please send them to him through me at drspace@thespaceshow.com http://www.gigadial.net/public/submit/594283 Sat, 13 Jun 2009 11:59:14 MST http://archived.thespaceshow.com/shows/1171-BWB-2009-06-09.mp3 Guest: Dr. Jim Dator. Topics: Mars, U.S. Constitution, space governance systems, religion, space entrepreneurs. Dr. Jim Dator was our guest for this Space Show program. We started our discussion with a glance to the future for the human space program. As you will hear, the human spaceflight program has some formidable challenges ahead for it and the future may appear murky at this time in terms of near term potential. Listen to what Dr. Dator had to say about this and see what you think. He suggested that the private sector and emerging entrepreneurs might well be the hope for the human spaceflight program. He also mentioned the interest in human spaceflight from religious groups and he mentioned several different religions. One group that he specifically addressed was in Japan, Tenrikyo, which holds space conferences and demonstrates a space awareness and interest. In response to a question about the potential impact of a U.S. without a human space program should that happen in the future, Dr. Dator stressed that human spaceflight was now a global activity and he said if the United States faltered, nations such as China, India and others would certainly pick up the slack. Another area of discussion was the U.S. Constitution which he suggested was not suited for forward thinking and future governance. He talked about our constitution needing changes or modifications for the modern period and we later talked about a governance structure for Mars possibly leading the way to structural changes not just in the United States but in other nations as well. I'm sure many of you will find this discussion controversial and in fact Andrew from Tucson did write in to challenge the comments about modification of the U.S. Constitution. This discussion provided an opportunity for Dr. Dator to clarify and elaborate more about what he was saying and recommending so make sure you don't miss this very important discussion. From my perspective, its clear that many of our structural systems no longer work and in fact cause the very problems we are asking these systems to correct and that seems foolish to me. As to changing the U.S. Constitution, as I said, were we to hold a Constitutional Convention, I'm not sure any of us would like the results. Another important part of this discussion addressed how we market and talk about space. What Dr. Dator had to say was very important because we need to stop making space special and different. Listen to his example of a kid starting to grow up, explore the neighborhood and extend out further with Mom's permission. He wants to see the corner drug store, what is on the other side of the street, etc. Its a natural extension of our development. Space should be described the same way rather than trying to make it special. Thus we see that the very space enthusiasts and advocates carry with them the potentially damaging perceptions by holding space out to be unique, special, hard, costly, etc. See what you think of this discussion and the suggestions offered by Dr. Dator. We also talked about the role of futurists, policy makers, and planners. The futurist looks at longer range issues but listen to the entire discussion. When listener Ben asked Dr. Dator for an action plan for what the space advocate community could do, Dr. Dator said we needed to support and focus on the space entrepreneurs over NASA. We need to start putting our awareness on the space governance issues discussed earlier. If you have comments or questions for Dr. Dator, you can email him at dator@hawaii.edu. http://www.gigadial.net/public/submit/594038 Wed, 10 Jun 2009 10:57:54 MST http://archived.thespaceshow.com/shows/1170-BWB-2009-06-08.mp3 Guest: Ben Shelef. Topics: space elevator, power beaming, tether, CNTs. Ben Shelef was our guest today to discuss the upcoming 2009 Space Elevator Challenge with upwards of two million dollars in prize money to be given away by NASA Centennial Challenges. You can follow this discussion and learn more about the games by visiting www.spaceelevatorgames.org/. Information about the Spaceward Foundation can be found at www.spaceward.org/. Ben explained the power beaming contest, how the criteria had changed from last year and what happens in the future if all the money is won this year. He also briefed us on the six teams in the contest. We talked about how the press/media could be at the event but for everyone else they can see it on NASA TV or the website above. Ben also told us about monuments and historical sites at Dryden and Edwards for those that were able to come to the event. In later show segments, we talked about the space elevator presence at NewSpace 2009 at NASA Ames on July 17 and the tether challenge set for Seattle area on August 13 during the Space Elevator Conference in Redmond which runs from August 13-17th. Listeners asked Ben lots of questions about the space elevator, the CNT cable, LEO access, its proposed equatorial location. If you have questions or comments for Ben Shelef or want to know more about the upcoming Power Beaming Challenge July 14-16 at Dryden, please contact Ben at ben.shelef@spaceward.org. http://www.gigadial.net/public/submit/591799 Tue, 09 Jun 2009 11:19:36 MST