Brent Sherwood, Tuesday, 7-24-12 July 25, 2012
Posted by The Space Show in Uncategorized.Tags: " SpaceX, Apollo Program, Bigelow Aerospace, Brent Sherwood, Elon Musk, Explore Mars, Global Space Exploration Conference (GLEX), human spaceflight (HSF), insitu resource usage, Jet Propulsion Lab (JPL), life on Mars, lunar settlement, Mars settlement, Mars technology challenges, Martian sample return mission., NASA, NASA budget, NASA goals, Near Earth Objects (NEO), Planetary Defense, rare Earth elements, space habitation, Space Solar Power (SSP), space tourism, space vision, U.S. economy, value proposition
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Brent Sherwood, Tuesday, 7-24-12
http://archived.thespaceshow.com/shows/1821-BWB-2012-07-24.mp3
Guest: Brent Sherwood. Topics: Human spaceflight to Mars: Is it on the path or a distraction? 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 Brent Sherwood back to the show to discuss his GLEX paper and ideas regarding human spaceflight (HSF), Mars, and alternative NASA goals/missions regarding HSF. His GLEX paper, “Mars-On the Path or in the Way” is posted on The Space Show blog following this program summary. Please read & review his paper as it contains far more detail regarding his proposal, analysis and his conclusion than what we were able to discuss during our program. In our first segment, Mr. Sherwood provided us with the background and context for his having written this paper and for his conclusion that HSF to Mars is not the right path. He then outlined alternative paths for HSF missions that he believes can better “regain the cultural centrality of human space flight and grow by attracting private capital.” Our guest talked about the value proposition of a HSF mission to Mars, plus the value proposition of the alternatives he describes in his paper & on this program. The value proposition is understood to refer to the value received by sending humans to Mars (or the alternative HSF missions) as compared to the value of the mission costs, the opportunity costs, risks, etc. Mr. Sherwood assesses the value proposition for all of his alternative HSF proposals which include the Explore Mars mission, lunar settlement, space passenger travel, and SSP. For most of this initial segment, Brent outlined his ideas and explained why he has concluded that HSF to Mars does not measure up as a value promise & why SSP is his first choice. We began taking listener email questions and phone calls after he summarized his position & as you can imagine, most all the listener questions/comments were of the challenging nature to his conclusion that HSF to Mars was not in the best interest of our space program. I urge you read his paper and to pay attention to the technical, cost, time line, and historical information shared with us by our guest.
In the second segment of this nearly two hour program, Brent took questions and expanded more as to why he supports other options than HSF to Mars. He also explained why he is calling for a debate on this issue within the space community. At the start of this segment, I asked him if he thought discovering life on Mars would change his opinion and the value proposition. He said no but did say it would expedite the Martian sample return mission, but would not alter the variables & unknowns involved in the magnitude of technology challenges needing resolution before sending humans safely to and from Mars. Toward the end of our discussion, I asked how he might move forward to implement the industry debate he has called for on this show & in his paper. Suggestions on how to do this are wanted so if you have any, post them on the blog.
Brent would like your feedback so after listening to this program and reading his paper, please post comments/questions on the blog. You can email Brent Sherwood by sending your note to me & I will forward it to him.
Brent Sherwood’s GLEX Paper:
Mars-On the Path or In the Way?
Dr. Jeff Bell, Tuesday, 7-10-12 July 11, 2012
Posted by The Space Show in Uncategorized.Tags: " Cold War Space Programs, " SpaceX, "Halfway To Anywhere, aerospace engineering, air breathing motors for space vehicles, asteroid mining, B612 Foundation, Constellation, DCX, domestic economy, Dr. Jeff Bell, Dragon, Falcon 9. , fuel/weight ratios, human spaceflight destinations, human spaceflight rational, Mariner 4, Mars, nuclear propulsion, Pan Starrs Panoramic Survey Telescope, PhD programs & oversupply, Planetary Resources, Project Speed, ramjets, rocket engines, science fiction, scramjets, SLS, Space Shuttle, space shuttle conspiracy & the USSR, space telescopes, space vision, Sputnik Panic, V2, Venus, X30 National Aerospace Plane, X33
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Dr. Jeff Bell, Tuesday, 7-10-12
http://archived.thespaceshow.com/shows/1811-BWB-2012-07-10.mp3
Guest: Dr. Jeff Bell. Topics: Vintage Jeff Bell. We discussed a wide range of space history and current space projects from Dr. Bell’s perspective. 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 the return of Dr. Jeff Bell to The Space Show. This 2.5 hour marathon discussion with Dr. Bell was classic Jeff Bell with space history, his analysis of current projects, new space ideas, NASA, Congress and well, you name it. Dr. Bell had lots to say about many topics and for those of you familiar with Dr. Bell & his analysis, I promise you, you will not be disappointed with this discussion. Those of you new to Dr. Bell, hold onto your seat! Jeff started off with the cold war space history, X-33, and DCX. In doing so, he offered up his critique of the classic space book by G. Harry Stine, “Halfway To Anywhere: Achieving America’s Destiny In Space.” As to be expected, Dr. Bell provided a very hard hitting, factual, and critical analysis of these topics & the book. We also talked about the new company in Florida, Project Speed, and air breathing engines for space vehicles. Dr. Bell spent some time on this analysis including scramjets, ramjets and the National Aerospace Plane. When asked to confirm that little progress was being made from his perspective re space vehicles & even aviation, he cited the current military games going on in Hawaii, referencing the planes being used by the Air Force, Navy, & other military services, all to illustrate by example the points he was making. He put out the fire on nuclear propulsion based on economics & costs, & then in discussing human spaceflight (HSF), like so many others, he said the rational for it was difficult justify to Congress & the taxpayers. A listener asked Jeff he was biased in his analysis. Jeff said he was unbiased in his examination of the facts. This issue surfaced again later during our program. We then talked about a Washington Post article saying that our science field was over populated by excessive PhDs that cannot find work in their discipline (www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/us-pushes-for-more-scientists-but-the-jobs-arent-there/2012/07/07/gJQAZJpQUW_story.html?hpid=z1). This prompted listeners to reply and John made some excellent points about science PhDs that Jeff missed.
In our second segment, we started off with space visions, including the one from this program, followed by a discussion of the “Sputnik Panic” following theUSSR launch of Sputnik. We both had much to say about this event & its aftermath. Returning to the HSF rational, Jeff said there were two main problems with it. First, the very high cost. Second, the is no place to go that does not require massive technology & support to sustain life. He spent some time elaborating on this & responding to listener comments. Next up, Planetary Resources, asteroid mining, space telescopes, & Earth imaging. Dr. Bell took no prisoners in sharing his analysis with us. He did talk about several serious projects including the B612 project & Pan Starrs. As the program was ending, Dr. Bell had many positive things to say about the recently completed SpaceX Dragon & Falcon 9 flight, & the pork as he called it, SLS. Dr. Bell was very strong & clear in his support for SpaceX and their accomplishments.
Please post your comments/questions on The Space Show blog URL above.
Ed Buckbee, Friday, 4-20-12 April 20, 2012
Posted by The Space Show in Uncategorized.Tags: "The Real Space Cowboys, Chinese Space Program, Commercial Crew, Ed Buckbee, human spaceflight, ISS, lunar commercialization, lunar settlement, Mars, NASA, SLS, Space Shuttle, space vision, U.S. Space Camp, Wernher Von Braun
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Ed Buckbee, Friday, 4-20-12
http://archived.thespaceshow.com/shows/1756-BWB-2012-04-20.mp3
Guest: Ed Buckbee. Topics: Wernher Von Braun, NASA, Space Policy, SLS, commercial crew, HSF. 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 Ed Buckbee back to the show to discuss NASA, Wernher Von Braun’s influence on our space program, and the future of human spaceflight. To learn more about Mr. Buckbee’s activities, visit his website, www.air-space.com. Ed started us off with a brief history of human spaceflight going back to the flight of Alan Shephard. He had much to say about the early period of NASA’s history being fertile grounds for young people, inspiration, and motivation. I asked him about his recent award received in Munich, Germany, the Wernher Von Braun Gold Medal for Promotion and Support of Human Spaceflight. Ed had much to say about receiving this award and its significance. As a key player in the U.S. Space Camp program, I asked him many questions about space camp and as you will hear, we strongly recommend it if you have or know kids of the appropriate age for attending it in Huntsville. Listeners asked many questions about the influence of Von Braun on our space program as well as his part in the SS in Nazi Germany. Ed talked about this throughout our program. Another issue that was heavily discussed was the Chinese space program. Listeners had many questions for him about the Chinese program, how it was viewed by NASA, Congress, DOD, as well as their costs for space access & program development. Another listener asked him about space tourism, both orbital and suborbital tourism. Ed thought it would prove interesting but did not think we should depend on it as a killer app for economic or industrial development. Terry called and asked Ed the interesting question of how the younger Germans viewed Von Braun given his being part of the SS and then coming here to lead the development of our space program. Ed said the older Germans definitely see him as being part of the Third Reich. The younger Germans see him as part of technology and in past history. Don’t miss the full discussion with Mr. Buckbee regarding this question. Toward the end of our first segment, we talked about Von Braun and going to the Moon with Ed suggesting today he would be promoting it as an international mission with 5-7 countries taking part in it.
In the second segment, we received a listener email asking what President Eisenhower said if anything in private about Von Braun. Ed seemed to think Ike was OK with Von Braun given his appointments and positions once NASA was created. About this time during the show, I received the Cosmic Log email notice which was about the retirement of the shuttle so I asked Ed about shuttle’s retirement. You will want to hear what he had to say about it. The issue of the NASA budget came up and I brought up the subcommittee hearings from earlier in the week with recommendations to reduce commercial crew funding in favor of the Mars exploration program, SLS, and JWST. We talked about the importance of commercial crew and the need to keep it on track to restore U.S. HSF capability. Both of us plus several listeners expressed the opinion that it would be the private sector taking us back to the Moon and for commercial reasons. Near the end of the program, a listener asked about the Von Braun family and their interest in today’s NASA and space program. I think you will find what Ed had to say to be most interesting regarding Von Braun’s children and his wife and how they view space.
If you have any questions or comments for Mr. Buckbee, please post them on The Space Show blog.
Dr. John Jurist, Dr. Haym Benaroya, & DrSpace, Monday, 4-9-12 April 9, 2012
Posted by The Space Show in Uncategorized.Tags: civil space., commercial space, Dr. Haym Benaroya, Dr. John Jurist, economic growth, government investment, government spending, NASA, NASA budget, space benefits, space community civility, space entrepreneurs, space inspiration, space medicine, space policy, space technology, space vision, STEM, U.S. congress, zero sum game
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Dr. John Jurist, Dr. Haym Benaroya, & DrSpace, Monday, 4-9-12
http://archived.thespaceshow.com/shows/1748-BWB-2012-04-09.mp3
Guests: Dr. John Jurist, Dr. Haym Benaroya. Topics: Space policy ideas as presented in our Op-Ed & Open Letter which you can read on The Space Show blog. 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 Drs. Jurist and Benaroya to discuss our two articles to be published regarding U.S. space policy. You can read the drafts of these two articles on The Space Show blog per the URL above for this particular program and date. We are asking for your constructive feedback, comments, and questions as our intention is to refine both letters and submit them for publication. All comments and feedback are welcome but the most useful feedback will offer suggestions for how to make our letters more effective in fostering space policy that supports economic, STEM, and space program growth on the civil side as well as on the private, entrepreneurial, & commercial side. In addition, The Space Show suggests that listeners write their own 1,000 word Op-Ed and submit it to The Space Show. I will put it up on the blog, plus offer you time on The Space Show to articulate your perspective and views. We know that some of you will disagree with what we have said and we do want your contribution to the discussion as you will hear during this program. So do join in on the overall space policy debate. Don’t just sit on the sidelines, get your ideas out there to advance the discussion. During our discussion which was 90 minutes without a break, the three of us explained why we decided to write and publish our thoughts on space policy and our future in space, plus we went into some detail as to the content of leach letter. We fielded several listener questions which offered suggestions as well as critiques of both our approach and our content. Several of the listener comments offered no suggestions for making the letters more effective, opting instead to tell us where we were going wrong. Please post your comments, suggestions, and feedback on the blog. Any emails sent directly to me regarding our letters and this discussion will be posted on the blog in your name without any editing on my part. If you want to send an email to Dr. Jurist or Dr. Benaroya, please send it to me at drspace@thespaceshow.com and I will gladly forward it for you.
AIAA Space Policy Program, Wednesday, 3-15-12 March 15, 2012
Posted by The Space Show in Uncategorized.Tags: AIAA, AIAA Congressional Visits Day, AIAA Space Policy, AIAA technology committees, biofuels, California Space Day, California space policy, civil space., Commercial Crew, commercial space, Defense Intelligence Space, DOD space, green rocket technology, John Rose, NASA, NASA human spaceflight safety standards, public space policy, R&D space programs, Silver Tsunami, SLS, space transportation, space vision, space workforce issues, Steven Howell
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AIAA Space Policy Program, Wednesday, 3-15-12
http://archived.thespaceshow.com/shows/1736-BWB-2012-03-15.mp3
Guests: Steven Howell; John Rose. Topics: AIAA Space Policy Activities. 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 Steve Howell and John Rose to this special hour long American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) program on key issues of space policy for the U.S. Please note that about 17 minutes into the discussion, our conversation was interrupted by music from an unknown source. I had to remove about a three minute section from our discussion due to the unwanted music which is why you will hear a rough edit in the recording. We started the discussion with Steve giving us an overview of AIAA and its role in both aviation and space policy. We talked about public space policy, Congress, and the role of industry. In response to my asking him for the main areas of AIAA policy focus, he listed for us the key issues that have the attention of AIAA. Don’t miss what he listed and said about each one. We also talked about the fact that most of the key issues were long term issues. I focused in on human spaceflight and our guests said we needed a sustainable human space transportation system that was safe and cost effective. Also such a system should be a high priority. Our guests were asked if they addressed specific projects such CCDEV or SLS. As you will hear, the AIAA focuses more on the policy, it does not attempt to pick the winners or specific programs relating to a policy. One of the main discussion points from our guests dealt with workforce issues and making sure we do not lose vital skill sets for both the industry and our nation. In response to other questions, our guests said that there was a “perfect storm” in Washington, DC regarding space policy, research programs, & civil space. The lack of a vision was mentioned along with there being no defined mission, goals, or timelines. Our guests then told us about the AIAA Congressional Visits Day which is open for your participation. Find out more about it and their plans to personally lobby members of congress by visiting www.aiaa.org/cvd2012. Listener Mike Snead asked our guests about AIAA policy regarding NASA human spaceflight standards & the NASA level of acceptable risk. Both our guests had much to say in response to Mike regarding this issue, but for the most part they said AIAA provides technical support and analysis for the policy makers to use in making policy. This is an important discussion you do not want to miss. Space workforce issues came up again in our conversation. Both John and Steve pointed out the key issues, including how the market has changed over the years. Also, how we now compete with countries that used to provide us with much of our special workforce labor. We also talked about other fields of engineering being more popular with students than space. Near the end, Dale called in on a bad phone line but he was able to ask about using modern green rocket technology, engines, and fuel rather than old technology and outdated chemical rocket propulsion. I’m sure you will find the response to be interesting.
If you have questions/comments, post them on The Space Show blog URL above. If you want to email either of our guests, send your note to me and I will forward it.
Dennis Wingo, Friday, 2-3-12 February 3, 2012
Posted by The Space Show in Uncategorized.Tags: " space politics, "Moonrush, Cislunar economic development, climate issues, commercial space, Dennis Wingo, Dr. Paul Spudis, Dystopia, Geo orbits, heavy lift, human spaceflight, in-space activities, low cost space launch, Lunar colonies, lunar economic development, lunar robotic village, Mars, money for space businesses, NASA, nuclear thermal rockets, open cockpit lunar lander. And the Lunar Robotic Village, Pacific International Space Center for Exploration Systems (PISCES)., prizes for space development, scientific analysis, Silicon Valley, space advocacy, space applications, space robotics, space solar power, space vision, STEM education, UN Panel on Global Economic Sustainability, Zero G Zero Tax
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Dennis Wingo, Friday, 2-3-12
http://archived.thespaceshow.com/shows/1704-BWB-2012-02-03.mp3
Guest: Dennis Wingo. Topics: Space commerce, a new space vision and plan, space applications. 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 Dennis Wingo who outline for us a new and inspiring commercial space policy and implementation program. To make his points, Dennis started out by discussing the news stories this week about the UN plan for a panel to control economic growth around the world for sustainability. You can read about it at http://news.yahoo.com/un-panel-says-retool-world-economy-sustainability-164515165.html as well as a host of other sites and articles on the internet. Also, check out the planned UN Rio Conference on this program at www.un.org/esa/dsd/index.shtml?utm_source=OldRedirect&utm_medium=redirect&utm_content=dsd&utm_campaign=OldRedirect. Dennis spent considerable time during our 90 minute discussion dismissing the dystopian view/policy per this UN panel while advocating why space development offered a viable alternative to this limiting policy and way of seeing our world. During our one hour first segment and in fact the entire show, Dennis championed science and fact over dystopian policy. He also talked about geo orbits and said there was a newly found orbit requiring much less energy that could be used for going to the Moon so pay attention to what he said about this orbit. He offered up some new/unusual ideas such as an open cockpit lunar lander. Dennis put forth a basic strategic plan for staying positive and using our time and energy to do something to prove we advocates are right rather than getting involved in the negative process which we have very little influence over. Several listeners commented on this strategy, bringing to bear some differences over what Dennis suggested. That said, the message Dennis presented us was to stay focused on the positive. Later, he said that the advocacy community’s focus on low cost launch was misdirected. He talked about this a lot during this segment and the next so don’t miss what he had to say about this important issue. Dennis did advocate Zero G Zero Tax which he said was good for space applications. Also in this segment he talked about the advances we have made in robotic technology and the Pisces Project in Hawaii, http://pisces.uhh.hawaii.edu. As this segment ended, he talked about the “Church of SSP,” updating his book “Moonrush,” & the need for unity in the advocacy community.
In the second segment, a listener asked about the Dr. Spudis cislunar economic development plan and Dennis talked about the need to lower total capital costs. He also talked about prizes such as the Mars prize recently suggested by Dr. Zubrin. Dennis repeated that the way to counter the bad press & media was to do something, a space application, to prove that we are right and those ridiculing space investment are wrong. Near the end, he said “the future will right itself….Don’t focus on the negative.”
Please post your comments/questions for Dennis Wingo on The Space Show blog URL above.
Rick Tumlinson, Friday, 1-20-12 January 21, 2012
Posted by The Space Show in Uncategorized.Tags: asteroids, Chinese Space Program, Congress, Deimos., EarthLight Institute, frontier development, Gerard K. O'Neill, HE3, human spaceflight (HSF), LEO transportation, Mars, Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle, NASA, New World Conference, NewSpace, Obamaspace, old space, Orion, Phobos, political leadership, Return to the Moon, Rick Tumlinson, Russian space program, Soyuz, Space Frontier Foundation, Space Launch System (SLS)., space leadership, space settlement, space to space transportation, space vision, Space X, SSP, STEM, Texas Space Alliance, traditional aerospace, Why Space?
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Rick Tumlinson, Friday, 1-20-12
http://archived.thespaceshow.com/shows/1694-BWB-2012-01-20.mp3
Guest: Rick Tumlinson. Topics: Why Space, space vision, NewSpace, SLS, opening the space frontier. 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 Rick Tumlinson back to the program for this nearly two hour discussion of space vision, leadership, programming, SLS, advocacy and more. In hour first 70 minute segment, Rick opened by talking about his ongoing op-ed series in the Huffington Post titled “Why Space?” So far he has two issues uploaded to the Huffington Post & I urge you to read them. You can see all of Rick’s articles on the Huffington Post at www.huffingtonpost.com/rick-tumlinson. During our discussion, Rick stressed the need for space settlement and talked about this during the entire program. Additionally, Rick focused on the big picture space vision throughout our entire discussion. In the first segment, SLS came up but it was also talked about later in the show. Rick explained why he thought it was the wrong project for this point in time and had much to say about private industry launch & space transportation systems as compared to government programs. When asked if he thought SLS could be appropriate as a placeholder, he said no but listen to what he had to say about this idea. He talked about not picking winners and advocating a common sense space plan. I asked him for his plan and how to implement it. He then outlined a plan in several steps during the balance of the segment. Don’t miss it. Listeners called & asked questions about the Chinese space program and cooperation and the same with the Russians.
In the second segment, Rick started us off with a discussion about the Frontier approach for space development. He also talked about going to the Moon and why, but also about asteroids & Mars. He said we need to develop the skills and the insitu experience for living & working in space. Several times he mentioned that on the Moon and Mars we would be living underground due to the radiation. Rick then talked about space habitats including O’Neil like space stations/habitats. Several listeners asked about the role of HSF in developing our understanding of the universe, specifically for 2012 and beyond. John from Atlanta called in to talk about the lack of civility coming from the NewSpace community toward old space. This produced a spirited give & take with Rick which in a way focused on “guarantees” for the commercial company success as compared to government rocket programs. John suggested it was a bit risky putting all the “eggs” in unproven commercial company baskets when we know the government launch vehicle will work as long as the program is not cancelled. Don’t miss what John and Rick had to say.. Toward the end, Rick talked about the Texas Space Alliance & his new organization, EarthLight Institute. He provided us with substantial detail about the EarthLight Institute plans, their website which is under construction, plus the book on asteroids that he is working on and will be out around the end of the year. He was asked about his continuing role with the Space Frontier Foundation & the activities of SFF.
Please post comments/questions on The Space Show blog URL above. Rick’s email address is rick@earthlightinstitute.org.
Dr. Roger Handberg, Monday, 1-16-12 January 17, 2012
Posted by The Space Show in Uncategorized.Tags: Apollo, Beyond Earth Orbit (BEO), budget priorities, Chinese Space Program, Congress, Constellation, DOD space, Dr. Roger Handberg, European Code of Conduct for Outer Space, human spaceflight (HSF), Indian space program, ISS, key government space positions, LEO, NASA, National Space Council., OMB, Outer Space Treaty, Presidential Science Advisor, property rights, science missions, SLS, space advocacy, space budgets, space policy, Space Shuttle, space vision, Space X, STEM, U.S. presidents and space policy
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Dr. Roger Handberg, Monday, 1-16-12
http://archived.thespaceshow.com/shows/1691-BWB-2012-01-16.mp3
Guest: Dr. Roger Handberg. Topics: Space policy, leadership, Asia space, ISS, & 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 Dr. Roger Handberg to the program for a comprehensive space policy discussion. During this program, several of his recent Space Review articles were referenced and I urge you to read them. See Dec. 19, 2011 “ISS Next: chasing humanity’s future in space and the ‘next logical step” (www.thespacereview.com/article/1993/1). Also Nov. 21, 2011, “American human spaceflight and future options, short-and long-term” (www.thespacereview.com/article/1974/1. Our discussion started with a brief overview of U.S. space policy for the new year 2012. Dr. Handberg said our policy was in a state of confusion and described the situation around the Kennedy Space Center as practically in shutdown mode. We talked history and what it was like in 1970 before shuttle. Dr. Handberg then talked about our robust science missions and projects but they don’t get the attention like HSF & it is the HSF missions that are the problem. Dr. Handberg referenced the Augustine report and SLS. He also said the Chinese were moving ahead though they were still several decades behind the U.S. We then talked about the need to think beyond the SLS & beyond the existing ISS which has a limited remaining lifespan. In fact, thinking big and beyond the ISS is a major theme in his Dec. 19, 2011 Space Review article. We spent considerable time discussing what was next for the U.S. after the ISS. Our guest said we were at risk of repeating one of the major failures of Apollo, that is, what to do after the program ends. In this case, what does the U.S. do after the ISS ends? His analysis of the problem pointed to our having no clear vision and a strong need to reorganize the political system because NASA budgets are done yearly so no budget is ever finalized. He confirmed what many others have said and that was that president’s don’t care about space. We addressed commercial and private space, both for space stations and launch vehicles. Anthony in the UK asked him what he thought the single event might be for people to say we’ve now been overtaken. Dr. Handberg suggested that point might come when the ISS ends its life and there is nothing else while the Chinese have their own space station and are still going forward.
In the second segment, I asked our guest for his thoughts on how college students have changed over his long teaching career. Don’t miss this discussion. You might be surprised by what he had to say. Listeners asked him if and when he thought SLS would be cancelled for budgetary reasons. His response was most interesting. Other listeners asked more questions about SLS, the shut down of Constellation, the private HSF effort, and space markets. Near the end of the program, Maria asked him how to get Congress to consider space as an investment, not an expense. He said that today, all government spending is considered an expense and while space is an investment, thinking it will be treated that way by congress is to be in political denial. As the program was ending, I asked our guest how to make space advocacy more effective. He said we needed to get space conscious (not necessarily advocates) in key positions within government & the administration. He named a few positions as examples. Finally, we talked about the Outer Space Treaty, the EU Code of Conduct, & bringing back the National Space Council.
Post your comments/questions on The Space Show blog URL above.
