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Doug Messier, Tuesday, 1-29-13 January 30, 2013

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Doug Messier, Tuesday, 1-29-13

http://archived.thespaceshow.com/shows/1939-BWB-2013-01-29.mp3

Guest:  Doug Messier.  Topics:  Spaceport America and Virgin Galactic informed consent, liability, & contract issues per www.parabolicarc.com & much more.  Please direct all comments and questions regarding Space Show programs/guest(s) to the Space Show blog, http://thespaceshow.wordpress.com. Comments and questions should be relevant to the specific Space Show program. Written Transcripts of Space Show programs are a violation of our copyright and are not permitted without prior written consent, even if for your own use. We do not permit the commercial use of Space Show programs or any part thereof, nor do we permit editing, YouTube clips, or clips placed on other private channels & websites. Space Show programs can be quoted, but the quote must be cited or referenced using the proper citation format. Contact The Space Show for further information.  We welcomed Doug Messier back to the program to discuss his reporting on Spaceport America and Virgin informed consent issues and possible contract issues.  We also talked to him about his management of Parabolic Arc, his possible expansion of the blog and even accepting guest contributors.  Check out his reporting and stories at www.parabolicarc.com. Our first subject was on Spaceport America and Virgin starting with Doug’s most recent post about possible Virgin rent payment disputes followed by the informed consent issues which may now have been resolved through negotiations with Virgin, the NM legislature, and NM trial attorneys.  We took listener calls and emails and as it turned out, the spaceport and Virgin story was controversial with listeners all over the board on these issues ranging from Charles who believes the spaceport and the industry are way ahead of their time to others who believe success will definitely prevail for the spaceport, Virgin and the industry.  Another issue discussed in the first segment was the hybrid rocket engine, possible Virgin problems with it, and related items. Doug shared his information with us on the subject and provided us with a brief history & overview on the hybrid engine.  We talked about powered test flights and the difficulty in doing these ventures given they always seem to be about two years away from operations.

     In the second segment, Doug told us about activities at the Mojave Air and Space Port including the construction for Stratolaunch.  Somehow we ended up again discussing hybrid engines and informed consent.  Doug was asked about Virgin and XCOR differences and he spoke as much as he could about the Lynx but said he was under NDA with XCOR as he is working on an XCOR book.  He seemed to favor the XCOR approach.  We talked about his future plans for Parabolic Arc. He is thinking of broadening it to other areas and accepting guest contributions.  I asked him about his visits to see the ATK five segment SRB tests and his thoughts on solids, ATK, etc.  He had much to say about it and SLS.  He continued talking about Mojave, I asked him if he had ever seen the Orbital L1011 and he told us about his tour of it and hearing Bill Weaver speak about his SR-71 breakup and survival.  A listener asked him about Interorbital out of Mojave, we talked about Dream Chaser, and more.

     If you have comments/questions for Doug, post them on The Space Show blog. You can email him through me at drspace@thespaceshow.com.

Robert (Bob) Zimmerman, Monday, 12-10-12 December 11, 2012

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Robert (Bob) Zimmerman, Monday, 12-10-12

http://archived.thespaceshow.com/shows/1911-BWB-2012-12-10.mp3

Guest:  Robert (Bob) Zimmerman.  Topics:  Apollo 8, launch industry, HSF, SLS, Mars missions, NASA budget, & more.  Please direct all comments and questions regarding Space Show programs/guest(s) to the Space Show blog, http://thespaceshow.wordpress.com. Comments and questions should be relevant to the specific Space Show program. Written Transcripts of Space Show programs are a violation of our copyright and are not permitted without prior written consent, even if for your own use. We do not permit the commercial use of Space Show programs or any part thereof, nor do we permit editing, YouTube clips, or clips placed on other private channels & websites. Space Show programs can be quoted, but the quote must be cited or referenced using the proper citation format. Contact The Space Show for further information. We welcomed Bob Zimmerman back to the program to summarize space for 2012, to look forward to space activities in 2013, and as you will hear, to talk about some specific issues such as SLS and the need for heavy lift.  Bob started the discussion talking about Apollo 8 as we approach Christmas 2012.  He told us his famous book, “Genesis: The Story of Apollo 8: The First Manned Mission to Another World” has been released in ebook format. If you buy it on Amazon using the URL provided, Amazon will make a donation to The Space Show/OGL: www.amazon.com/Genesis-Apollo-Mission-Another-ebook/dp/B00A1EZJ6U/ref=onegiantlea20. Bob outlined two tracks for discussion, the launch industry and manned spaceflight exploration.  For the launch industry, he talked about the influence of SpaceX in lowering launch costs & what it means for other launchers in competing in pricing & market share.  He also talked about negotiation issues over the continued use of the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. We discussed secondary payloads, Stratolaunch, & more.  The second track involving manned space exploration, Bob talked about it from the government perspective & that of the private sector.  He also brought up the recent news regarding the new Golden Spike venture on which he had much to say.  Our first caller was from Terry asking about the NASA Mars program, James Webb & SLS.  Bob had much to say about the JWST as well as SLS, NASA astrophysics, & SLS costs.  Terry wanted to know when Bob thought SLS would be cancelled. This discussion prompted more than a passionate exchange by Bob and me regarding heavy lift, rocket mission analysis, & more.  We then paused for our overdue break.
     Leading off the second segment, we took a call from Doug in S. California but had audio issues on his phone line. We then talked about the SpaceX mission delay to March 2013.  Tim called to talk about launch rate regardless of the size of the vehicle.  He also talked about Golden Spike & a potential space tug.  He asked Bob about Skylon.  We switched topics to get updates from Bob regarding the suborbital companies. Bob talked about Virgin Galactic & powered flight tests.  He also had some things to say about Dream Chaser and XCOR.  I asked Bob about using drones on Mars based on comments I’ve received from listeners.  Near the end, I brought up a special film showing & lecture on the 1956 classic “Forbidden Planet” that I saw this past Saturday. We talked about the significance of this movie & Bob brought in the concept of human spirit, vision, & the desire for interplanetary travel even before the days of NASA or Sputnik.  I talked about the two award winning speakers from Lucas Film regarding the movie & then the surprise visit after the film by Robby the Robot, the original Robby from the film. To end our program, Bob gave us an outline of what to look for in the first quarter of 2013 for space events.
     Please post your comments/questions on The Space Show blog.  Check out Bob’s blog, http://behindtheblack.com.

Dr. George Sowers, Monday, 11-12-12 November 13, 2012

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Dr. George Sowers, Monday, 11-12-12

http://archived.thespaceshow.com/shows/1892-BWB-2012-11-12.mp3

Guest:  Dr. George Sowers.  Topics:  United Launch Alliance, Atlas 5, Delta IV, human rating Atlas and Delta.  Please direct all comments and questions regarding Space Show programs/guest(s) to the Space Show blog, http://thespaceshow.wordpress.com. Comments and questions should be relevant to the specific Space Show program. Written Transcripts of Space Show programs are a violation of our copyright and are not permitted without prior written consent, even if for your own use. We do not permit the commercial use of Space Show programs or any part thereof, nor do we permit editing, YouTube clips, or clips placed on other private channels & websites. Space Show programs can be quoted, but the quote must be cited or referenced using the proper citation format. Contact The Space Show for further information. We welcomed Dr. George Sowers, VP of Human Launch Services at ULA back to the show for a special one hour report on Atlas, Delta, human rating rockets, and much more.  Dr. Sowers started off by letting us know that ULA recently created the Human Launch Services Division with Dr. Sowers as the Vice-President.  Dr. Sowers then updated us on some of their more visible ULA activities since his last visit to The Space Show in January 2011, including probable SLS and Dream Chaser time lines, commercial crew participation and Orion tests in 2014.  We talked about the ULA role in commercial crew and what was needed to human rate the Atlas as well as the Delta IV.  I also asked about needed pad modifications for HSF with an Atlas and Dr. Sowers told us about modifications to Launch Complex 41 at the Cape for the upcoming crewed flights.  Listeners asked our guest lots of questions about safety, pad modifications, range safety issues, and the difference in human rating the Atlas as compared to a Delta.  Another question asked of our guest was to understand the contributing factors to the impressive launch success and safety rate for the Atlas rocket.  Dr. Sowers answered this in some detail with attention being paid to what is known at the 3 P’s.  Charles wanted to know about the Russian RD-180 engines & another listener wanted to know if ULA was feeling competitive “heat” from SpaceX. Yves in Montreal asked about the dual centaur having uses other than for commercial crew and Barbara wanted to know about the role of an Atlas for possible orbital tourism with a Bigelow space station module.  We talked about ULA’s potential interest in new spaceports which seem to be developing around the country, then I asked Dr. Sowers about what constituted a commercial space project. Here, we learned that commercial implies largely financed by private funds, not government money.  He said that EELV was developed by 80% private sector funding.  We also talked about the Arianne family of rockets and their pricing which is subsidized by European governments.  Dr. Sowers explained why it was so hard to compete against government subsidized pricing.  Another topic of interest in our discussion was launch vehicle market and pricing elasticity and how to drive up launch rates and lower launch costs.  We also talked about human spaceflight having the government as the primary leader for the market and cargo as having only an ISS market at this time.  On orbit propellant depots were discussed as was SLS and heavy lift.  As we neared the end of the hour, we talked about SRBs for the human rated Atlas.
     In our brief second segment, I went over the near term Space Show schedule and our last caller John from Florida called in to wonder if a real emergency came up if we would launch a crewed rocket/vehicle to try to save the ISS for example or would we be unwilling to take the risk and let the ISS deorbit in the example given.  Hopefully such a predicament does not arise.
     If you have comments/questions about our discussion with Dr. Sowers, please post them on The Space Show blog.

Robert (Bob) Zimmerman, Tuesday, 9-18-12 September 19, 2012

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Robert (Bob) Zimmerman, Tuesday, 9-18-12

http://archived.thespaceshow.com/shows/1856-BWB-2012-09-18.mp3

Guest:  Robert (Bob) Zimmerman.  Topics:  Commercial crew, space policy, commercial space and more.  You are invited to comment, ask questions, and discuss the Space Show program/guest(s) on the Space Show blog, http://thespaceshow.wordpress.com. Comments, questions, and any discussion must be relevant and applicable to Space Show programming. Transcripts of Space Show programs are not permitted without prior written consent from The Space Show (even if for personal use) & are a violation of the Space Show copyright. We welcomed Bob Zimmerman back to the program to discuss a variety of space news topics and issues including commercial crew, commercial space, space politics, SLS, and more.  For those of you familiar with Bob Zimmerman on The Space Show, you will not be disappointed by this vintage-like Zimmerman discussion.  In our first segment of this slightly more than 2 hour program, we talked about the recent congressional hearings on commercial crew safety.  Bob’s response to these hearings and the commercial crew safety issues won’t surprise those of you familiar with Bob on these subjects.  Bob then talked about SLS and I mentioned the NASA pamphlet/booklet they gave out at the AIAA Space 2012 showing missions and objectives for SLS and more.  You can download this report at www.nasa.gov/exploration/whyweexplore/voyages-report.html. Bob also talked about NASA budgets from his perspective of needing budget cuts for the country as a whole given our $16 trillion debt. Later in the segment, we talked about some of the developing & emerging companies & their vehicles, Sierra Nevada, XCOR, Virgin, and then we talked about possible new spaceports under consideration/development.  Bob then took us to the subject of sequestration which is set for Jan. 1, 2013 unless the law is reversed.  Bob spent considerable time telling us why these cuts are not as bad as the media and the agencies make them out to be.  See if you agree with his analysis.  As the segment ended, we talked about planetary science missions with NASA in the budget context along with the budget consequences of continuing SLS.
        In our second segment, Bob continued talking about SLS along with heavy lift, including the proposed Falcon Heavy.  Listeners began emailing and calling with comments about space politics, policy, and heavy lift as compared to smaller rockets doing the same mission.  I then provided everyone with a glimpse of our planned rocket building webinar set for Oct. 28 and talked about how one costs out and plans a rocket for the mission at hand as you cannot just say heavy lift bad, smaller rockets good or something similar.  I provided a quick and very simple overview of the process used in doing this type of analysis and trade study (running the numbers).  If this interests you, don’t miss our Oct. 28th webinar on this entire process. We are using an interactive spreadsheet so you can design your own rocket and mission and compare it to any other rocket with known parameters.  I suspect I was not completely convincing regarding heavy lift as compared to smaller lift rockets and the mission planning process but listen and see what you think about the discussion. As the discussion continued, one of the points I was making about matching the rocket to the mission seemed to get attention.  Also, I made it clear this was not about bad and good.  Let us know your thoughts by posting them on the blog.  Later in the segment, Bob talked extensively about the private sector being preferable to the government doing things related to space.  We also talked about space telescopes, Cis-lunar development and more.  We concluded with Bob pointing out what is still ahead for space during the balance of the year and with the developing companies.
         Please post your comments/questions on The Space Show blog.  If you want to email Bob, you can do so through me or through his excellent blog, Behind The Black (http://behindtheblack.com).

Open Lines, Tuesday, 9-4-12 September 5, 2012

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Open Lines, Tuesday, 9-4-12

http://archived.thespaceshow.com/shows/1848-BWB-2012-09-04.mp3

Guest:  Open Lines with Dr. David Livingston.  Topics:  Life outside the solar system, Philadelphia light pollution, ion propulsion, U.S. economy, NASA, space program funding.  You are invited to comment, ask questions, & discuss the Space Show program/guest(s) on the Space Show blog, http://thespaceshow.wordpress.com. Comments, questions, & any discussion must be relevant & applicable to Space Show programming. Transcripts of Space Show programs are not permitted without prior written consent from The Space Show (even if for personal use) & are a violation of the Space Show copyright.  As Open Lines started, I put two discussion topics on the table.  These two topics focused on the Republican party platform & its space policy plus the reaction to it by various sectors of the space community, specifically NewSpace.  The second topic I mentioned was the state of the U.S. economy & how it impacts NASA & space funding.  My theory was & is that it does impact the state of NASA funding & what happens in the private sector but I asked others who have economic experience & knowledge to tell me why so many talk space policy without factoring in our domestic as well as economic condition.  When I opened up the phone line, the first caller was Wade Hobbs who talked about life having developed elsewhere in the solar system, mainly in the oceans of Europa.  He said his theory offered statistical proof of life in Jupiter’s moon Europa & he pointed us toward his Kindle book, “Question Answered.”  If you purchase his book using this URL, Amazon will donate to The Space Show/OGLF:  www.amazon.com/Question-Answered-ebook/dp/B008ZFZ05W/ref=onegiantlea20.  He explained his theory & invited comments & questions.  His email address is w_hobbs@mail.com.  Our second caller was Ed Murray who called our attention to a light pollution public art project scheduled soon for Philadelphia.  The project, Open Air” by artist Rafael Lozano-Hemmer of Canada & approved by the Art Association of Philadelphia is described here:  www.knightarts.org/community/philadelphia/preparing-for-open-air-in-philadelphia.  Many in the astronomy & Dark Skies fields are objecting to the project which will last nearly two months & probably blot out most of the Philadelphia night sky.  Ed & others are seeking ideas & help to minimize the project or cancel it.  They have sought help from the International Dark Skies organization & others.  If this project interests you, follow up on the suggestions offered on the blog by Ed & others which detail their concerns about the project.

In our second segment, John from Atlanta called in to discuss ion propulsion & fuel plus he wanted to address the economic issues I raised in the introduction to tonight’s program.  Regarding the economic issues, John suggested we were still not so bad where the economy would start to impact NASA funding but if thing worsen, it is likely that NASA & all space funding will be impacted.  John & I went back & forth for several minutes discussing the economic situation, the national debt, space & more, both from the U.S. domestic perspective as well as the global perspective. We talked about the total budget going to NASA being so small as a factor.  John & I talked about the Republican platform suggestion that despite the language, commercial crew to the ISS would continue.  John suggested an early down select to SpaceX but I advocated for at least another round of competition with Sierra Nevada & Boeing, possibly others too.  Our final call was from Tim who talked about ion propulsion & space nuclear propulsion.  He introduced the idea of carbon nano tubes for use in rocket materials & I suggested that was way out in the future.  Tim also suggested the private sector bypass NASA & do its “own thing.”

Please post your comments/questions on The Space Show blog above.  If you want to email any of the callers, send your note to me & I will forward it.

Robert (Bob) Zimmerman, Tuesday, 7-3-12 July 4, 2012

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Robert (Bob) Zimmerman, Tuesday, 7-3-12

http://archived.thespaceshow.com/shows/1807-BWB-2012-07-03.mp3

Guest:  Robert (Bob) Zimmerman.   Topics:  Recent space news and announced projects.  You are invited to comment, ask questions, and discuss the Space Show program/guest(s) on the Space Show blog, http://thespaceshow.wordpress.com. Comments, questions, and any discussion must be relevant and applicable to Space Show programming. Transcripts of Space Show programs are not permitted without prior written consent from The Space Show (even if for personal use) & are a violation of the Space Show copyright.  We welcomed Bob Zimmerman back to the show.  Check out his blog at www.behindtheblack.com.  We started off our first long segment (90 minutes) by mentioning the 50th anniversary of Telstar 1, the death of our friend, Al Zaehringer, AT&T and our early space program, plus the word coming from CERN that they may have found the Higgs-Boson particle.  I then asked Bob to comment on the global warming statements being made about the current East Coast heat wave, followed by comments by Newt about the power grid outages and a taste of what an EMP would be like.  We then turned to space and Bob talked about the recent success with Dragon and Falcon 9.  He then talked about government space programs as compared to private programs.  Throughout our 135 minute discussion, he reiterated his opposition to space programs, making it clear that he does not want a “program” and why.  Let us know on the blog if you agree with him.  Bob suggested we were in a period of space revolution and that it would be very exciting over the next five years.  He talked about SpaceX compared to the Russians and the Chinese.  He did say we were in competition with them for control of space and this led us to a discussion about culture and the space frontier.  We talked about recently announced projects, Planetary Resources, Mars One, and one by the B612 Foundation.  He thought B612 was the only real one of the three.  Terry called from Texas to discuss using an Orion for a LEO mission, the Falcon Heavy for a Moon mission, Delta IV heavy and SLS.  Jerry called in from Florida and among our topics were frontier development, the Oregon Trail, the CERN reactor in Switzerland rather than in Texas, and more.  No space programs per Bob’s preferences again came up.  Let us know your thoughts about these issues on the blog.  As the segment ended, Bob was asked about Skylon which was the subject of yesterday’s program.

Tim’s call started our second segment & he asked about a lox paraffin hybrid rocket motor. We also talked about the space shuttle & its capabilities.  While Bob praised aspects of shuttle, he said the program was a failure.  I did not agree with him but listen and let us know what you think regarding this issue. Note that as the program ended, Martin sent us info on the hybrid motor mentioned earlier by Tim so check out  www.youtube.com/watch?v=o9erCLJ5KVg as Brian Cantwell delivered a presentation at Stanford on the state of the art of hybrid rockets.  Bob then updated us on the bat situation with the white nose fungus. As our program ended, Bob talked about upcoming events starting with Orbital’s Cygnus/Antares debut, Dream Chaser and other competitors.  He had some brief comments about the suborbital industry and citizen science projects and concluded by saying we were no longer in a holding pattern re commercial space.

If you have comments/questions, please post them on our blog.

 

Reinventing Space Conference 2012, Tuesday, 5-8-12 May 9, 2012

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Reinventing Space Conference 2012, Tuesday, 5-8-12

http://archived.thespaceshow.com/shows/1770-BWB-2012-05-08.mp3

Guests:  Open Mic at the Reinventing Space Conference 2012.  Topics:  Responsive space, low cost space access, Army satellite program, university projects, students & education, Dream Chaser, Women in Aerospace Southern California Chapter.  You are invited to comment, ask questions, and discuss the Space Show program/guest(s) on the Space Show blog, http://thespaceshow.wordpress.com. Comments, questions, and any discussion must be relevant and applicable to Space Show programming. Transcripts of Space Show programs are not permitted without prior written consent from The Space Show (even if for personal use) & are a violation of the Space Show copyright.  This Space Show program was an “open mic” discussion for those attending the Reinventing Space Conference 2012.  The Space Show made its microphones available to those in attendance to speak on any topic of interest to them.  Our discussion topics included responsive space, low cost space access, pushing technology, the U.S. Army satellite program and the launch of the Army’s SMDC-One satellite, the first Army satellite launch in 50 years.  Others spoke about university projects, STEM education, the lack of interest in space /STEM subjects by among the younger population, challenges in the field of education, and the Women In Aerospace Southern California Chapter.  We started out with Dr. Jim Wertz providing us with an overview of the responsive space issues and what we can expect in the coming years.  George Vamos, Dr. Wertz & as Dr. Van Allen discussed offsets and technology trades in lowering launch costs.  Other participants talked about progress they have seen and experienced over their many years of working in the aerospace field.  We heard from Charles Kilmer on this subject.  He was followed by John London of the Army SMDC/ARSTRAT.  He talked about the first Army satellite launch in 50 years, the SMDC-One.  We also learned about future plans for Army satellites in support of the warfighter.  He  talked about the Army launching satellites the size of a loaf of bread and a bread box at 1/2000th the cost of a more traditional satellite.  Rachel and Krystal from Sierra Nevada spoke about Dream Chaser.  We learned more about their upcoming vehicle testing schedule as well as new agreements with Florida.  I also inquired about Dream Chaser for space tourism which as you will hear will follow their priority which is commercial crew to the ISS.  Larry Martin talked about his University of Hawaii project but we also had a participant from the University of N. Dakota and a recent graduate from Georgia Tech. I apologize for not getting their names for this program summary.  These students talked about the challenges in getting younger students interested and aware of space.  Our final participants represented Women In Aerospace and the Southern California Chapter.  Jeanne Innis Olson and Nicole Johnson spoke about the organization & their California chapter.  Those interested in learning more about the organization should contact Wendy Williams at wendy.williams@atk.com.

Please post your comments/questions regarding this program Space Show blog.  I have listed participant bios for those that have a bio on file with The Space Show.

Doug Messier, Tuesday, 4-12-12 April 18, 2012

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Doug Messier, Tuesday, 4-12-12

http://archived.thespaceshow.com/shows/1754-BWB-2012-04-17.mp3

Guest:  DouglasMessier.  Topics:  Parabolic Arc & space news, SAS conference, suborbitals, and more.  You are invited to comment, ask questions, and discuss the Space Show program/guest(s) on the Space Show blog, http://thespaceshow.wordpress.com. Comments, questions, and any discussion must be relevant and applicable to Space Show programming. Transcripts of Space Show programs are not permitted without prior written consent from The Space Show (even if for personal use) & are a violation of the Space Show copyright.  We welcomed back Doug Messier who is the Managing Editor of www.parabolicarc.com which is an excellent space news and information blog.  We started our discussion with Doug seeking his thoughts on the recently held Space Access Society Conference in Phoenix, AZ last weekend.  Doug told us what he thought were the highlights of the conference and referenced comments made by Jim Muncy several times during our discussion.  We talked about the coming Space X launch at the end of this month, some about SSP satellites, and other company plans discussed at the conference.  Doug fielded a few listener questions about interviewing people in the space industry, especially NewSpace, wanting to know what he does when he is given obvious spin by the person being interviewed.

In the second 45 minute segment, Doug took questions about Shuttle Discovery flying one more time around the Cape on the 747 on its way to Dulles Airport and the Smithsonian Museum. Also mentioned were the reported comments of former Discovery astronaut Dr. Anna Fisher to a boy watching the shuttle on the 747 advising him to “Study Russian.”  He talked about the transition from shuttle to whatever comes next and both of us commented that the transition seemed mismanaged.  Another listener asked him about human rating the Atlas and Delta and he said it was underway.  A listener wanted to know if the 2012 first quarter had presented him with any surprises regarding space.  John in Atlanta called in for a comprehensive discussion from SRB usage to a mini shuttle, Dream Chaser, separate vehicles for cargo and crew, first stage recovery for reusability, and more.  Doug talked some more about the XCOR Lynx, possible Russian plans to enlarge the Soyuz, and he took a question on possible Chinese ISS missions.  Ron from Queens called in with Dream Chaser and Stratolaunch questions.  Doug talked about the Mojave Air and Spaceport and we learned that the Mojave group had offered some consulting to Spaceport America in New Mexico but it had been rejected.  This brought up a discussion about crosswinds and other runway issues at Spaceport America.  I repeated some of the news I talked about last year which was published in both the print and online edition of the Albuquerque Journal. One of the articles on this from 1/16/11 is at www.abqjournal.com/news/state/1623176state01-16-11.htm but you may need to be a subscriber to view this article.  Terry inquired about CCDEV3 (we know it has a new name) and was hoping at least 2-3 companies would be selected. Doug, Terry, and I agreed that competition was important.  Tim called from Huntsville & we got distracted by his questions about the 50 NASA astronauts writing a letter challenging NASA science on global warming & the NASA response.  This discussion was more about civility rather than global warming. Also, there were some garbled words in the recording in this segment so I had to delete what could not be understood.  You will find three such edits in this particular discussion & I do apologize for this.  There is about 2 seconds of silence with each edit.  Near the end, Terry sent us the link to a SpacePolicyOnline.com article about the Senate subcommittee adding more money to the Mars program and cutting about $305 million from commercial crew. See www.spacepolicyonline.com/news/senate-subcommittee-adds-100-million-for-mars-missions for details.

Please post your comments/questions on The Space Show blog URL above.

Mark Whittington, Sunday, 2-26-12 February 26, 2012

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Mark Whittington, Sunday, 2-26-12

http://archived.thespaceshow.com/shows/1721-BWB-2012-02-26.mp3

Guest: Mark Whittington.  Topics: Space Budgets, policy, & politics.  You are invited to comment, ask questions, and discuss the Space Show program/guest(s) on the Space Show blog, http://thespaceshow.wordpress.com. Comments, questions, and any discussion must be relevant and applicable to Space Show programming. Transcripts of Space Show programs are not permitted without prior written consent from The Space Show (even if for personal use) & are a violation of the Space Show copyright. We welcomed Mark Whittington back to the show for this 2.5 hour wide ranging discussion on space budgets, the economy, space policy and space politics, plus economic issues facing the nation and others around the world.  We also talked about space perspectives of all those running for president including President Obama and the Republican party challengers.  Mark talked about two article he wrote that were pertinent to our discussion.  These articles are (1) “Moon Base Supporters Struggle to Justify the Project:”

www.examiner.com/space-news-in-houston/moon-base-supporters-struggle-to-justify-the-project; and (2) “A Lunar Exploration Reading List for Mitt Romney:”

www.examiner.com/space-news-in-houston/a-lunar-exploration-reading-list-for-mitt-romney.  In our first segment of 45 minutes, we talked about Texas space politics & redistricting, the Johnson Space Center, & the proposed FY 13 budget.  Mark suggested Congress would rewrite most of the budget but that the Senate would likely not pass a budget so we would end up on CR.  I asked Mark how that would lead to programs being cancelled such as ExoMars if we are still on CR as those programs are embedded in the CR from year to year.  Mark described the process through administrative acts by NASA, Congress, or the President re cancellation, and what the Appropriations Committee would have to do to avoid them. For the most part, more money would need to be found for NASA but that was not likely. Mark talked about what constitutes commercial saying that for something to be really commercial, it has to be able to fail. We compared today’s commercial space programs to gov. programs in terms of Mark’s criteria.  Listeners asked about SLS & Orion, wondering if it & when SLS would be cancelled. The idea of a lunar base was discussed in light of the comments made a few weeks ago in the Florida debate by Newt.  Mark also talked about what he thought might be the space policy of the other candidates though not that much is known other than for Newt, Mitt, and President Obama.  Mark talked about cutting out other budgetary items to make room for a quality space program & he highlighted the high speed rail program.

In our long second segment, Marshall called with a question about the original Mercury astronauts still alive.  We  talked some about human factors, microgravity, and life support issues.  Listeners asked about the Chinese space program & their military buildup.  Here, I referenced the recent congressional testimony of Ronald Burgess, Director of the Defense Intelligence Agency.  The article I referenced is at http://bigthink.com/ideas/42630.  Mark spoke at length about exploration, citing his favorite history story involving Prince Henry The Navigator of Portugal. Jim asked Mark that if he believed commercial space was the best path forward & that SLS was a bad idea, how would he go about getting more support for commercial space even at the expense of SLS.  Mark offered some concrete ideas in response to Jim’s question. John from Billings sent in a few notes & then later called to talk about why there is such an argument about SRBs as compared to liquid rocket motors.  Challenger was mentioned along with Constellation but mainly Mark said that people’s behavior tends to find ways to support their beliefs. Terry, another Texan like Mark, called to ask why Sen. Hutchinson so strongly opposes commercial space.  Mark offered a pretty good answer.  Risk taking, more on SLS, Dream Chaser & the CST 100 were discussed along with the new project, Stratolaunch. As our program drew to a close, I asked Mark to summarize space policy for 2012 which he did do but then more questions came in.  Becky wanted Mark to connect the dots vis a vis our economy & how this might impact NASA & all space development.  This led to quite a little economic discussion with Mark, myself, and Dr. Jurist who called in about that time.  As usual, I went off on my rant about space as an investment, not an expense.  Jack got in the last word asking for three key events impacting space for 2012 other than the election.  Mark said the upcoming Space X flight, what Congress does with the budget, and the planned Chinese mission later this year.  In his concluding remarks, Mark talked about the economic options facing the country & he left us with a few points to consider.  He urged us to participate in Town Hall meetings and ask the candidates space questions.

If you have comments/questions please post them The Space Show blog.  Marks blog, Curmudgeons Corner, is at http://curmudgeons.blogspot.com.

Mark Sirangelo, Wednesday, 1-4-12 January 5, 2012

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Mark Sirangelo, Wednesday, 1-4-12

http://archived.thespaceshow.com/shows/1682-BWB-2012-01-04.mp3

Guest: Mark Sirangelo.  Topics:  Dream Chaser, hybrid rocket motors, human spaceflight & more.

You are invited to comment, ask questions, and discuss the Space Show program/guest(s) on the Space Show blog, http://thespaceshow.wordpress.com.  Comments, questions, and any discussion must be relevant and applicable to Space Show programming. Transcripts of Space Show programs are not permitted without prior written consent from The Space Show (even if for personal use) & are a violation of the Space Show copyright.  We welcomes Mark Sirangelo of Sierra Nevada Corp Space Systems to the program to discuss Dream Chaser, hybrid rocket motors, human spaceflight, space policy, budgets and more.  You can learn more about Dream Chaser at http://sncspace.com/space_exploration.php.  For those of you interested in learning more on the previous NASA HL-20 concept vehicle, visit www.nasa.gov/centers/langley/news/factsheets/HL-20.html.  We started our discussion by asking Mr. Sirangelo for a brief history and overview of Dream Chaser.  He talked about the lifting body design and the capabilities of a lifting body, including costs and reusability.  In response to questions he did say it was meant for LEO though later in the program he discussed the potential to scale Dream Chaser up if markets warranted it.  He was also asked to compare the Dream Chaser style of vehicle to a capsule.  Mark was asked about the choice of rocket, the Atlas V.  While he explained that choice, he also said Dream Chaser was rocket agnostic. Don’t miss his comments on the rocket question.  A listener asked him to clarify the current status with the SAA, the FAR, and a possible CCDEV 3 round of NASA support.  Mark said there would be a round three with a call for awards in February with winners announced later in the summer.  He talked about the companies going to the next level, the Critical Design Review (CDR) and what this means for NASA as well as the companies.  Mark talked about the switch back to the SAA but said at some point down the road, the FAR will likely be used, probably in the acquisition stage.  Again, you do not want to miss what he had to say on this important issue.  Yves from Canada asked about the launch abort system for Dream Chaser and its ability to land in places and the ocean instead of a designated runway.  We talked about test flights, the number of needed flights, and the view that testing is not based on the number of flights but on successfully completing the essential and needed testing/flight protocols.  In our second segment, Trent called from Australia and wanted to know more about the full history and struggles for Dream Chaser up to now.  This time around Mark provided us with a more comprehensive vehicle history.  We also talked quite a bit about the hybrid rocket motor so you will for sure want to hear this segment.  Mark was asked if the Dream Chaser hybrid was the same being used for the Virgin SS2 and he said essentially yes other than for size.  He was asked some more questions about his work on SS2 for Virgin but deferred those questions to Virgin .  Our guest received a few questions about the GAP, buying rides on the Soyuz, recent Soyuz issues, and speeding up the development of Dream Chaser.  Harry wanted to know about using Dream Chaser for various types of orbital space tourism, and much was said about certifying Dream Chaser as safe for human spaceflight.  Near the end, Robert wanted to know if Dream Chaser might be used for Point to Point travel.  John from Jersey City called to ask about multiple markets for Dream Chaser.  As our discussion was drawing to a close, our guest was asked about hypergolic fuels and reaction control systems and again about the thermal protection system.  Please post your comments/questions for Mark Sirangelo on The Space Show blog at the above URL.

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