The Space Show
The Space Show
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.
Station feed:  Created by: David Livingston |
Created on: 12 May 2005 Language: English |
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Small Sat 2011 Interviews, Monday, 8-15-11 (43.30MB; download) -- Guests: Paul Lithgow & Stanley Kennedy, Jr.; Fred Slane; Pam Esquinca. Topics: These are three separate Small Sat interviews covering aerospace engineering, telecommunications, standards, and the new SMAD text & reference book. 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. There are three separate interviews for this particular program running one right after the other. You will find about a ten second dead air gap between interviews and then the next discussion starts. We start off with Paul Lithgow and Stanley Kennedy, Jr. updating us on the activities of Comtech AeroAstro and as you will hear, much has happened since Paul was a guest from Small Sat last year. New programs have started and we talked extensively about student interns as well as business planning in these uncertain times with diminishing budgets. Following the Comtech AeroAstro segment, we talked with former Space Show guest Fred Slane regarding the adoption of standards for the space industry. Adopting standards can be very important for moving forward with space development so don't miss this discussion. Fred was a guest on the program June 21 of last year. Our final segment was with Pam Esquinca who runs the Microcosm bookstore, www.astrobooks.com. Pam took us through the new book, "Space Mission Engineering: The New SMAD," explained and highlighted the differences in the new version as compared to the older version. We also talked about the educator package for teachers, the authors and reviewers and then as people came up to the counter to look at the book, I asked a few of them to share their impressions of The New SMAD with us. There was some loud background noise due to the fact that there was a break underway so some of the comments by those both buying and interested in the book were hard to hear due to the loud break chatter and noise. That said, you can certainly come up with an understanding of the very strong and positive impression this book has and is making on those that see and check it out. The website for the book is http://astrobooks.com/spacemissionengineeringthenewsmadsme-smadwertzeverettpuschellavailablespring2011softcover.aspx. Post your comments or questions about these discussions on the blog URL above. If you want to email any of those interviewed, send your note to me and I will forward it to the person of your choice. Selected by: David Livingston [ stations ], Mon, 15 Aug 2011 14:49:21 UTC
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Kent Rominger, ATK Liberty Launch Vehicle, Sunday, 8-14-11 (34.68MB; download) -- Guest: Kent Rominger. Topics: The ATK Liberty Launch Vehicle, human spaceflight development and safety issues. 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 Kent Rominger of ATK Aerospace Systems and the Program Manager for the Liberty Launch Vehicle to the program. Co-hosting with me on the technical side of things was Dr. John Jurist. As Dr. Jurist and I were in Logan, Utah for the 25th Annual Small Sat Conference, we arranged to sit down with Mr. Rominger at ATK offices in Promontory, UT to talk about the Liberty Launch Vehicle. We thank Trina Patterson, Director of Media Relations at ATK for her assistance in setting up this interview. During our hour long discussion, Mr. Rominger introduced us to the Liberty Launch Vehicle with the European Astrium second stage. We talked about the ITAR issues working with Astrium and spent some time discussing the pros and cons of using a solid rocket booster (SRB) for human spaceflight (HSF) over a liquid rocket motor. Many people in various segments of the space community believe that SRBs are not safe for HSF so Dr. Jurist and I explored this issue in depth with our guest. Listen carefully, you might be surprised to hear what Kent had to say about this and the data he referenced in support of his statements. We talked about the need for heavy lift, the use of a Space Act Agreement (SAA) rather than the Federal Acquisition Rules (FAR), and commercial as compared to public financing of launch vehicles and space hardware. Kent, having been a Navy fighter pilot, a Space Shuttle commander on several missions, had much to say about flight and vehicle safety. We talked about escape and ejection and why solid rocket motors are the preferred device for ejection seats. Since this interview, I have seen an August 12, 2011 press story reporting that NASA is considering testing a liquid rocket engine for the MPCV escape system (www.examiner.com/dc-in-washington-dc/nasa-considers-liquid-rocket-engine-for-mpcv-escape-system). We also spent considerable time going over the economics and the business case for Liberty, its market and potential customers, comparing its payload of 44,000 lbs. to LEO with competing rockets. If you have comments or questions about this discussion, post them on the blog URL above. If you want to email Mr. Rominger, send it to me and I will forward it to him over at ATK.
Selected by: David Livingston [ stations ], Sun, 14 Aug 2011 15:38:52 UTC
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Dr. James Wertz, Friday, 8-12-11 (43.65MB; download) -- Guest: Dr. Jim Wertz. Topics: We primarily discussed the new text & reference book, "Space Mission Engineering: The New SMAD," plus related space engineering issues. 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. Jim Wertz, President of Microcosm, back to the show. Dr. John Jurist also participated in this program as co-host. Our main topic theme was the newly released and interactive text and reference book, "Space Mission Engineering: The New SMAD." Both Dr. Jurist and I co-authored three chapters on space commerce and financing in the book, Chapters 12.1-12.2. Dr. Wertz started out with an overview of the new books and why he decided to update the previous SMAD text book which was current as of 1999. Lots of things in aerospace engineering and how space business is being done have changed, including the focus on low cost space access, small satellites, cubesats, nanosats, and the micro-miniaturization of electronics. Dr. Wertz talked about the more than 100 co-authors and peer reviewers, how each was selected for their particular & unique expertise and more. Both Dr. Jurist & I talked about the reaction to the book at the Small Sat conference, a reaction I might add that was extremely positive. We talked about copyrights and the Fair Use Doctrine for material in the book & the Microcosm book store, www.astrobooks.com along with the special introductory pricing for this item. As you will hear, Space Show listeners can purchase the paperback edition at the Small Sat introductory price of $60 by mentioning The Space Show on the order form. For more information on this important book, visit http://astrobooks.com/spacemissionanalysisanddesignthirdeditionsoftbackjamesrwertzandwileyjlarsoneds-1999.aspx. The interactive book website, still being finished, is www.sme-smad.com. In later segments of our program, we talked about commercial space, the Small Sat Conference & near the end of the program we talked about the upcoming Reinventing Space Conference to be held May 7-10, 2012 at the Westin Hotel near LAX in Los Angeles. The conference website is www.responsivespace.com. Several listeners wanted to know if the book was too technical for non-engineers. As you will hear, this is an exceptional reference book as well as a text & it is suitable for anyone interested in space development. Listeners also asked Dr. Wertz about the Scorpius Launch Vehicle and the Microcosm NanoEye U.S. Army project. If you have questions for Dr. Wertz, you can post them on the blog URL above. You can also email him at jwetz@smad.com. For information on the book, contact Pam at bookstore@smad.com. Selected by: David Livingston [ stations ], Sat, 13 Aug 2011 16:27:54 UTC
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Dr. David Kaiser, Friday, 8-5-11 (44.47MB; download) -- Guest: Dr. David Kaiser. Topic: This is the fascinating story of "a band of freewheeling physicists who defied the imperative to 'shut up and calculate' and helped to rejuvenate modern physics (quoted from Dr. Kaiser's website)." 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. For more information as well as contacting our guest, visit the book website, www.hippiessavedphysics.com. Dr. Kaiser started us off with an overview of interest in physics and science since his childhood days, his discovery of the book "The Tao of Physics" by Fritjof Capra, then on into college and being excited by quantum theory and Bell's Theorem. At this point in the discussion, Dr. Kaiser provided us with a brief overview of the history of physics from the end of WWII to the 60's and early 70's. As you will hear, the lay of the landscape was changing radically due to the economy, the Vietnam War, DOD basic research funding and other issues. In fact, at one point during the discussion, we were able to extrapolate comparisons to what is happening in the space workforce today though for different reasons. Dr. Kaiser then took us into the world of the Fundamental Fysiks Group centered around Berkeley, CA. Quoting from the book's website, "in the 1970s, amid severe cutbacks in physics funding, a small group of underemployed physicists in Berkeley decided to throw off the constraints of academia and explore the wilder side of science. Dubbing themselves the “Fundamental Fysiks Group,” they pursued an unconventional, speculative approach to physics. They studied quantum theory alongside Eastern mysticism and psychic mind-reading, discussing the latest developments while lounging in hot tubs. Unlikely as it may seem, their work on Bell’s theorem and quantum entanglement helped pave the way for today’s breakthroughs in quantum information science." Our discussion from this point forward talked about the personalities of those making up the Fundamental Fysiks Group, the consciousness and New Age movements in the San Francisco Bay Area and stretching down the coast to the Esalen Institute at Big Sur, CA. In our first segment, Dr. Kaiser talked about this group, their backgrounds, doing the calculations but also caring about the philosophy & the understanding of the science. In the second segment, John from Atlanta called to talk about Einstein & others and their relationship to quantum physics. John & our guest talked about the EPR Experiment, Bell's Theorem, & the concept that nothing moves faster than light. Our guest went into more detail regarding the counterculture physicists & a listener asked how this early unorthodox work contributed to the science of physics today. Don't miss what Dr. Kaiser said about this. As our discussion was coming to an end, Dr. Kaiser was asked if it was possible to bend the laws of physics or if other laws of physics might exist elsewhere in the universe. Again, don't miss his response to this listener question. Post your comments & questions on the blog URL above. You can email Dr. Kaiser through the book webpage provided above. Above all, you will really enjoy this book & you will likely learn a history that is not that all familiar to most of us. Selected by: David Livingston [ stations ], Fri, 05 Aug 2011 21:09:09 UTC
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Robert Pearlman, Tuesday, 8-2-11 (61.14MB; download) -- GuestSearch: Robert Pearlman. Topics: Collecting space memorabilia, art, and pop culture items. 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 Robert Pearlman of collectSPACE.com back to the show to discuss collecting space memorabilia both as an investment and a hobby. We started our discussion talking about Space Shuttle memorabilia. Our guest talked about flags flown on each shuttle mission, autographs, and other collectable items from each mission. We also talked about collectables from Soyuz missions, rockets (even the V2) and related space items. In responding to listener questions on how best to start collecting space items, Robert said to discover what you like and specialize. Several listeners asked about hardware and propulsion collecting and he said there were lots of people specializing in these areas. He talked about having a Gemini Thruster in his own collection, plus rocket parts. As to be expected, the cost is based on the supply of any given item. Space Shuttle tiles were discussed in detail and a listener asked him about NASA diapers based on the Lisa Nowak incident. Don't miss what Robert had to say about this. We also talked about Buzz & other astronauts signing baseballs & sports items. Robert suggested ways to tell if something is authentic or not but strongly advocated getting expert opinions regarding authenticity. The Texas drought came up because of the recent discovery of Columbia debris made visible by low lake levels. This prompted a discussion about NASA property, Moon rocks, and the new book, "Sex On The Moon." Robert had much to say about collecting items with Moon dust, Russian tiny Moon rock samples and more. In the second long segment, we talked about space tourism and what it might take to saturate a collectable market and lower prices of collectable items. We also talked about various space artifact auctions, the difference in collecting space memorabilia, pop culture items, Americana items, and fine art. As you will hear, art is a crossover item. We had quite the discussion on comparing the collecting of fine space art by Bean or Bonestell compared to art by Pablo Picasso. I know you will find most interesting what Robert had to say about space art collecting. One thing that was most interesting was his comment about paintings by Alan Bean. He told us how the artist has ground up his mission patches and placed tiny specs of lunar dust into his paints so each of his paintings carries with it some lunar dust in the paint. Lunar retrieval for collection purposes was talked about and at the end, we talked about "safeing" the shuttles, shuttle parts as memorabilia, and then the shocker, what was being done with shuttle launch pads A&B. Post comments & questions on the blog URL above. You can contact Robert through www.collectSPACE.com. Selected by: David Livingston [ stations ], Wed, 03 Aug 2011 16:28:56 UTC
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Dr. Haym Benaroya, Monday, 8-1-11 (52.57MB; download) --
Guest: Dr. Haym Benaroya. Topics: Aerospace & Mechanical engineering studies, lunar bases, parallel R&D needed along with lunar/Mars engineering. 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 Dr. Haym Benaroya to discuss the latest with lunar habitat engineering, mechanical & aerospace engineering students, the new civil & commercial space policy, and much more. I stared the interview by asking Dr. Benaroya if he had seen any changes in his students or enrollments given the confusion in our civil space policy. It was great and surprising to hear the positive information Dr. Benaroya shared with us during this part of the discussion. Later in this segment, I pushed our guest for best case scenarios for the timeline to be able to do human spaceflight to the Moon or Mars. As you will hear, Haym prefers the Moon first. In any event, best case all perfect scenario would be about ten years once we seriously start the program before we are ready to return to the Moon with a lunar habitat. His own personal assessment of how long it might take us to go back to the Moon and on to Mars was much longer. HE3 and fusion were briefly discussed along with ISRU. In the second segment, we talked about student projects both at the advanced graduate level as well as the undergraduate level. Our guest received several questions about the cost awareness of engineers. Dr. Benaroya talked quite a bit about engineers being required to study engineering economics and their design projects must have economic parameters in them that must be adhered to for the project. Our discussion then switched to space policy, commercial and private enterprise, the best role for NASA and our civil space policy. Among the many things our guest suggested was consistent and steady NASA funding and longer term NASA project approvals. Switching NASA projects every time a new president or congress comes in is destructive as is changing the NASA budget from year to year. Later, Haym was asked if in his opinion having time lines and destinations was important. He said that for students, they must know what the project is for, the constraints, and the deadline. He extrapolated from that to NASA supporting goals with timelines and destinations. As the show was nearing its end, Dr. Benaroya talked about the need for visionary leadership and the disconnect within our government & population regarding our assessment of the space value & worth compared to that outside our community. In talking about his book at the end of the show, he gave credit for the cover picture/design to Gary Kitmacher, a NASA engineer and artist. Don't miss this story. If you have a comment or question, post it on the blog URL. You can email Dr. Benaroya at benaroya@rci.rutgers.edu.
Selected by: David Livingston [ stations ], Tue, 02 Aug 2011 15:02:54 UTC
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Open Lines, Sunday, 7-31-11 (71.27MB; download) -- Guest: Open Lines with Dr. David Livingston. Topics: A variety of topics suggested by the host and driven by listener phone calls. 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. Welcome to our July Open Lines program. I suggested numerous discussion topics including at the start including the New Space 2011 conference, ATK and the Liberty rocket, business plans, plus topics related to CCDEV, the Space Act Agreement (SAA), the Federal Acquisition Rules (FAR), and more. Our first call was from Marshall in Dallas who wanted to talk about the recent NEO discovered at L4 and his idea to attach an ion engine on it to move it away from an Earth trajectory. We also talked about ramping up interest in planetary defense and related topics. In addition, I asked him for his opinion on the ethanol subsidies which are a discussion point in tax loop hole reform with our government as Marshall has been in the ethanol business and I wanted to hear his thoughts on the subject. His phone line was breaking up so we did miss some of what he had to say, but we were able to hear most of his comments. After returning from our break, Charles in Las Vegas was back on the phone to tell us that Microlaunchers now had an interplanetary plan. Like so many others, I told Charles to start building something rather than talking about it all the time. He got a few emails from listeners telling him similar things. Charles talked about Meetups in Las Vegas & promoted his as the only rocket science meetups in the area. Later in the segment, I talked about the uniqueness of Silicon Valley. I was hoping a few listeners would call to tell us why Silicon Valley is so special and unique. The idea that Marshall presented on diverting an asteroid took hold and we had other callers talking about it & a few listener emails. I believe this subject ended up being #1 for the day as there was little interested in my list of suggested topics. Later, Tim in Huntsville called in to continue expressing his opinion on radiation which is more or less akin to the Zubrin statements. This despite his being given solid space radiation info from multiple sources. In fact when he was winding up his comments, he said we should be able to go one way to Mars or do it despite the radiation if we are fully disclosed. I actually agree with that part of the statement but said it would never happen in the modern world of today. We then talked about why space appears to be the only arena where people cannot exercise free will re risk taking ventures. Tim also talked about space property rights, saying we need them to have real commercial space. I challenged him on that as there is definitely another perspective on the issue. There are hours of Space Show programming available in the archives on space property rights. One could easily do a global search using GuestSearch for those programs. Our calls lasted a long time so I am thinking of making them shorter to have more diversity on the calls. Also, as much as I try to get new callers and broaden the appeal on Open Lines, it seems that the we attract the usual callers. I am open to your suggestions on how to broaden the calling base for Open Lines shows as well as topics discussed. If I do anymore Open Lines programs, I will not throw out discussion topics. Again, I welcome your suggestions on broadening the appeal of calling during Open Lines, especially for new callers. If you have comments or questions based on any of the discussion topics or caller topics, post them on the blog URL above. Selected by: David Livingston [ stations ], Mon, 01 Aug 2011 15:47:30 UTC
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Dr. Douglas Vakoch, Tuesday, 7-27-11 (46.57MB; download) -- Guest: Dr. Douglas Vakoch. Topics: SETI, "Communication With Extraterrestrial Intelligence," interstellar communication efforts. 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 to The Space Show by the SETI Director of Interstellar Message Composition, Dr. Douglas Vakoch, to talk about his new book "Communication With Extraterrestrial Intelligence." Dr. Vakoch started our discussion by referencing the NASA Astrobiology Science Conference and the 50th anniversary of the first SETI search. Dr. Vakoch then explained that his new book is divided into three parts. Part I focuses on a review of the progress made with SETI and describes new advances in the field. Part 2 carefully examines Active SETI and the issues related to our actively transmitting signals rather than just searching for signals from ET. Part 3 focuses on the issues surrounding Interstellar Message Construction and making sure that we can be understood. This section also looks at ethical issues as well as who would be speaking for us here on Earth. Our guest was asked about the differences in the first searches in 1960 compared to those today. As you will hear, much of the difference lies in computer processing power and the ability to search millions of frequencies instead of one or two. We also talked about searching using radio waves as compared to optical or other methods. Listener Paul asked our guest how SETI would determine that they had reached the point in searches where they could conclude there were no ET signals. Don't miss the answer to this question. When asked about the next search technology beyond optical, Doug suggested it would probably be related to more powerful computer algorithms to process more complicated data. The subject of the WOW signal came up as did SETI@home and locating search antennas on the back side of the Moon or in orbit. Charles was our first caller at the start of the second segment, inquiring about searching among near-earth Asteroids. Randy asked if anything could be inferred by SETI given that while there is much talk about ET having visited Earth, there is no concrete evidence for it. Doug talked about exoplanets and the Kepler Mission and the time it takes for round trip communication at light speed even for a close star system. This brought up the life space of human researchers as compared to what might be a totally different life span situation for ET, especially if ET were computer based or at least very different from humans. John called in wondering if ET could detect a signal from Earth. Doug discussed Earth signal leakage and the one intentional transmission in 1974. You might be surprised by what he said the range of our signals might be plus his noting of the fact that the Earth is actually becoming quieter. We then discussed the issue of Active SETI transmission from Earth. I'm sure you will find our discussion interesting and this part of his book is superb. In the third part of his book, I asked about the Rosetta Stone chapters and understanding ET as well as ET understanding us. We also talked about the possible differences in mathematics between ET and our systems. Toward the end of the program, Doug provided us with an update on SETI, the Allen Telescope Array, the SETI budget situation, their new program SETIstars and more. If you have a comment or question for Dr. Vakoch, please post it on the URL above. You can learn more about SETI at www.seti.org. His book is available now at your favorite bookstore or online book seller and it is in all available formats. Selected by: David Livingston [ stations ], Wed, 27 Jul 2011 17:00:15 UTC
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Franz Gayl, Monday, 7-25-11 (50.22MB; download) -- Guest: Franz Gayl. Topics: SUSTAIN Workshop Final Draft Space Transportation Technology Roadmap, separating Space Command from Air Force, space debris. 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 Franz Gayl back to the program for the to for the first time publicly discuss details of the SUSTAIN Workshop Final Draft Space Transportation Technology Roadmap. You can download this 200 page Roadmap document at www.spacedebrisresearch.com/Space_Debris_Research/Roadmap_files/10.10.21%20%20%20Final%20Draft%20Space%20Transportation%20Technology%20Roadmap%20%28Archive%29-2.pdf. During our first segment, Franz talked about his being a student at the Singularity University (SU) this week, his space track at SU, space debris, and space solar power (SSP). He then described the problems and delays in getting the Roadmap released, including issues that arose within the NSSO as it was disbanded during this time period. The Air Force never released the Roadmap so Franz has done so on this show. It might be possible with some editorial changes that another organization releases it but as you will hear, it is too early to know that for sure. In discussing the project and the Air Force, Franz began made the case that the space segment in the Air Force needed to be separated from the Air Force into its own space service. Dr. Jurist was our first caller and the conversation focused on a separate space force and why it was needed. This is a comprehensive discussion so don't miss it. Let us know what you think of the idea by posting on The Space Show blog URL above. Later in the segment, Franz continued talking about the Roadmap contents. Dave Hook called in to talk about changes being made based on threats and needs with the SUSTAIN concept. Bill of Virginia sent in a note wondering about the feedback Franz had received from the SUSTAIN participants regarding the delays in releasing the Roadmap. We closed out this segment by returning to idea of separating space from the Air Force. Franz said we needed a two part leadership to do it, including a Billy Mitchell type of leader advocating for the space service. In our second segment, Franz spoke about his SU proposed project on orbital debris and the need for ITAR reform. He also went into more detail about his ten week program at SU. If you have a comment or question for Franz, post it on the blog URL above. Franz can be reached by email at franz.gayl@gmail.com.
Selected by: David Livingston [ stations ], Tue, 26 Jul 2011 17:15:08 UTC
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Dr. Bryan Laubscher On The Space Elevator, Sunday, 7-24-11 (52.31MB; download) -- GuestSearch: Dr. Bryan Laubscher. Topics: Space Elevator updates and conference details. 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. For further information and details about the upcoming Space Elevator Conference from Friday, August 12 through Sunday, August 14, 2011 at the Microsoft Conference Center, Redmond, Washington, visit http://spaceelevatorconference.org. You should also visit www.isec.org. Conference registration information is available at the Space Elevator Conference website. As you will hear from Dr. Laubscher, the current focus has been and is on the materials needed for the elevator. We spent much of the first segment talking about carbon nanotubes, the R&D needed for them, the funding, and more. I asked what the primary challenge was and our guest said the fact that the carbon nanotubes are so very small is a primary challenge as we have not worked with things this small before. I asked several questions about the economics and the elevator being so far off into the future and listeners asked several questions of this type as well. Bryan talked about innovation and what is going on in various Asian countries and markets. He talked about the wealth creating potential of developing the elevator as well as the jobs it would create and mentioned several times that to remain a leading country and economy in the world, we must invest in innovative futuristic projects like the elevator. Dr. Swan called in to talk about the efforts underway by 29 global experts around the world to examine the feasibility of elevator rich and related projects. Dr. Swan stressed the need for a real vision and suggested that space elevator should be part of that vision. In fact, throughout this discussion, both Bryan and I talked about the need for visionary leadership in our country, not just for space but across the board. Dr. Laubscher went on to say that the elevator was a paradigm shift and enabled many things including space solar power (SSP). In the second segment, Andrew from Tucson called to discuss the availability of materials for researchers to buy. His call was most interesting so make sure you listen to what he was asking of our guest. Glen sent in an interesting question by email regarding assembling carbon nanotruses assembled into chain maille. Dr. Laubscher then again talked about the extremely small size of the carbon nanotubes and said we had never handled anything this small. In our final segment, Bryan talked about the upcoming Space Elevator conference. He mentioned that it was a three day technical meeting but it also addressed policy issues such as talk in the international law community that the elevator might be illegal. Later in this final segment, I asked Bryan for the main competitive projects the elevator faced. Ted called in to talk about the efforts of the International Space Elevator Consortium focusing on getting the elevator built. Tim sent in the final email and referenced the NASA JSC and Rice University efforts for structurally reinforcing materials and wanted to know if carbon nanotubes had a use in this arena. In his closing comments, Bryan appealed for us all to get involved and he made suggestions on how best to do that. If you have a comment or question, post it on the blog URL above. If you want to get in touch with Dr. Laubscher, send your note to me at drspace@thespaceshow.com and I will forward it to him. Selected by: David Livingston [ stations ], Mon, 25 Jul 2011 16:55:04 UTC
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