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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David Hoerr, Friday, 6-27-08 (69.50MB; download) -- Guest: David Hoerr, co-author of "The Rocket Company," was the guest for this Space Show program. We started our discussion on the topic of Point A to Point B suborbital transportation as David had written a thoughtful piece on the subject in The Space Review on May 5, 2008. Please see: www.thespacereview.com/article/1118/1. David received lots of listener questions about the military version of Point A to Point B suborbital transportation, commercial versions, the market for such versions, and the advances needed in technology. At one point, Mr. Hoerr made it clear that it might be easier to scale down an orbital RLV for this Point A to Point B hypothetical mission rather than trying to build a suborbital vehicle to do it. This was because the vehicle has to reach about 80 or 85% orbital velocity to do the mission so given thermal and other needs, it might be easier to simply scale back from the orbital vehicle. This prompted a discussion on RLV economics which you won't want to miss. Other topics were discussed including inspiring and motivating students, the ESAS architecture for returning to the Moon, and what Mr. Hoerr would do were he the U.S. Government space guru in charge of everything. If you have comments or questions for David Hoerr, please send to me at drspace@thespaceshow.com and I will promptly forward them to him.
Selected by: David Livingston [ stations ], Sat, 28 Jun 2008 14:36:32 UTC
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Brian Mosdell; Bill Dowdell; Jon Cowart, Thursday, 6-26-08 (80.91MB; download) -- Guests: Brian Mosdell, followed by Bill Dowdell and Jon Cowart.
Brian Mosdell is the Director of Florida Launch Operations for SpaceX. We started this discussion with a brief overview and history of SpaceX, its objectives, launch vehicles, and their launch services/market that they will likely provide. We also talked about the upcoming Falcon 1 and Falcon 9 launches scheduled for this year. In response to my question having visited Space X in California, Mr. Mosdell explained "friction welding" to us, told us more about the manufacturing process being used for the Falcon 9, what it takes to "man rate" a rocket, and he provided a comparison between the Falcon 9 and the Delta heavy EELV. You don't want to miss this discussion! Brian digressed a bit and told us a little about his personal history and how he became involved in this field and what he likes best about working in the space industry. Don't miss this discussion! Getting back to SpaceX, Brian told us about the upcoming demolition of a launch tower and a listener asked about selling the debris on EBay or in some other forum as a souvenir. Don't miss Brian's reply as it may surprise you. Regarding the upcoming debut of the Falcon 9, we discussed how many launches would be required before the Falcon 9 would be a success and deemed commercially available to the market. Here, Brian talked about the Merlin 1c rocket engine, the impact of a successful launch on the market, the volume of the Falcon 9 launches, the difficulties of getting the launches approved, and much more. We extensively discussed the current launch costs and the market drivers which would bring the launch cost down to a reasonable level. If you have questions or comments for Mr. Mosdell, please email me at drspace@thespaceshow.com and I will forward them to him. Please be patient for your reply, as he is presently in Kwajalein working to ready the Falcon 1 for its upcoming launch.
Bill Dowdell and Jon Cowart, both of NASA, were our guests for the second hour of this Space Show TV program. In the first half of the show, we spoke to Bill Dowdell, the Deputy Director of ISS and Spacecraft Processing, while the second half hour was spent with Jon Cowart, the Ares I-X Ground Systems Senior Project Manager. Mr. Dowdell started our discussion by telling us how he transitioned from working with the Shuttle to working with the ISS. Because the question of "Why Space?" is always asked, Bill told us why specifically the ISS was relevant to today's world. You will want to hear what he has to say regarding this issue as it's important. Mr. Dowdell gave us his best estimate for the ISS's physical state and if it can survive past its projected retirement date. This question led us an interesting discussion about what wears out in space, how NASA prepares for a launch to the ISS, how the Shuttle retirement will impact the completion of the ISS, and what type of training one needs to work for NASA on these projects. We also talked about the environmental impact of a Shuttle launch, and much more. One question led Bill to tell us about removing alligators from the hardware. Don't miss this true story. We ended our segment with Bill Dowdell telling us what he would like the American people to know about the ISS and its potential.
Jon Cowart is the man in charge for the Ares I-X launch test. Since Jon had a strong background and work experience with spacesuits, we started our discussion with a comparison of on-orbit spacesuits and launch suits. I relayed an experience of mine being in a spacesuit helmet and how claustrophobic it was. Jon suggested that perhaps claustrophobic individuals may not want to join the astronaut corps and even cited other experiences, which could be much more stressing than claustrophobia. We then moved on to the Ares I-X launch test, the difference between the I-X and the actual Ares 1, including the current upper "dummy" stage, the importance of the tumble motion for parach Selected by: David Livingston [ stations ], Thu, 26 Jun 2008 14:14:52 UTC
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Greg Meholic, Tuesday, 6-24-08 (52.48MB; download) -- Guest : Greg Meholic was the guest for this Space Show program. Greg specializes in advanced space propulsion concepts for interstellar travel. As a member of the AIAA Nuclear and Future Flight Propulsion Technical Committee and as the chair of the Future Flight sessions at the Joint Propulsion Conferences, Mr. Meholic was especially qualified to guide us through some very out-of-the-box and quite advanced propulsion possibilities. This was an in-depth discussion, but Greg was quite successful in breaking down complex theories and relationships so it was relatively easy to follow and understand all parts of the discussion. During the program, he referred to a set of presentation slides which he used for a recent AIAA Los Angeles luncheon. These slides can be found at www.aiaa-la.org/flyers/Adv%20Space%20Propulsion%20for%20Interstellar%20Travel%20-%20GMeholic%20042408.pdf. In addition, he has other presentation slides that he can send to you if you are interested. Contact him at his email address at the end of this write-up or you can request them from me. In total, these slide presentations are about 10 MB so make sure your email program will allow you to receive these files. When sending your request to Mr. Meholic, make sure you reference The Space Show in your subject line. During our discussion, Greg was asked why the large aerospace companies do not substantially engage in this type of R&D. You will find his response to be important as it also applies to space tourism and other issues that are much closer to reality at this time than the advanced propulsion theories. Another listener asked about a start-up rocket company today, and if it should be built upon the advanced theories or traditional chemical rockets. As you will hear from Greg, the advanced theories are still theories and not commercial at this time. We also talked about the global effort for R&D in this area. In this context, Greg mentioned researchers in Austria, Portugal, and other nations as well as in this country. His comments about ITAR restrictions were very interesting because, as it turns out, this work is mostly public domain and falls outside ITAR, so international collaboration is frequent and important. As for the advanced propulsion theories we discussed, you must listen to this program. Greg spoke a lot about the Tri-Space Model which is gaining some support. We also talked about other models being studied for advanced propulsion, how they work, what they mean for space traveling passengers, and much more. If you want to send a question or comment to Greg Meholic or request his slide presentations, contact him at orionstar2209@yahoo.com. Greg Meholic will be returning to The Space Show to continue this advanced discussion on advanced propulsion concepts, theories, and practicalities. Selected by: David Livingston [ stations ], Wed, 25 Jun 2008 18:39:47 UTC
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Dr. Gordon Shepherd, Monday, 6-23-08 (38.71MB; download) -- Guest: Dr. Gordon Shepherd, co-author of "Canada's Fifty Years in Space: The COSPAR Anniversary," was the guest for this Space Show program. We talked about the start of the Canadian space program dating back to Canadian space science in 1925. The story is fascinating and, as you will hear throughout this program, the Canadian space program has been an important contributor regarding how space benefits us in our lives and by making us all safer. We also talked some space science with Professor Shepherd, specifically with auroral physics, solar storms in Canada, SOHO, and the Red Line Photometer on the ISIS-II satellite. Listeners asked lots of questions, including one at the end of the show which asked Dr. Shepherd to compare and contrast the Canadian program to similar programs in other countries. You will want to hear the programs used to compare and contrast with the Canadian program. Other listener questions inquired about the Canadian space budget as compared to the NASA budget. Yet another question dealt with the Canadian astronaut program and still another listener asked about Canadian rockets. A question on the possible militarization of space came in as well. This is an outstanding book that I strongly recommend for those of you interested in space science and history. If you have comments or questions for Dr. Shepherd, please direct them to me at drspace@thespaceshow.com and I will forward them to him.
Selected by: David Livingston [ stations ], Tue, 24 Jun 2008 03:19:46 UTC
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Gene Meyers of The Space Island Group, Sunday, 6-22-08 (53.04MB; download) -- Guest : Gene Meyers, CEO of the Space Island Group (www.spaceislandgroup.com), was the guest for this Space Show program. We started our interview with Gene providing us with background and updates for both a historical overview of Space Island, plus an update with its current activities. Most of the overview addressed the Space Island Group's plan to use shuttle external tanks for a space station or other commercial purposes. The current project for the company involves space solar power, building the satellites, beaming the power back to Earth to the grid, and delivering power over the entire planet, especially to nations that do not have electrical power readily available. There were many listener questions about using external tanks, wet versus dry launch, SSP and its economics, the hardware needed, the required launches, and more. Gene discussed financing obstacles and issues, congressional policy, public support and the interest for SSP in Asia, specifically India and China. One listener brought up the idea of using inflatable structures rather than aluminium external tanks. Listen to how Gene plans the use of both in his mission. Commercial markets and industries were also discussed and, as you will hear, Gene has been and is in contact with many on the commercial side space development for potential support in Space Island Group projects. You can learn more about the Space Island Group and its projects by visiting its website above. You might also consider sharing this interview and Gene's Space Island Group project with people you know in the energy and environmental fields, related blogs or websites as the energy and environmental components of SSP is very promising, reusable and certainly green. Remember also that there is a Discussion Board for your use at the Space Show FaceBook site. If you have a follow up comment or question for Gene Meyers, please send it to me at drspace@thespaceshow.com and I will forward it to him.
Selected by: David Livingston [ stations ], Mon, 23 Jun 2008 01:24:02 UTC
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Greg Zsidisin, Friday, 6-20-08 (55.70MB; download) -- Guest: Greg Zsidisin returned for this Space Show program to discuss the SpaceContest.org site and the program for winning $1,000 with the best 3 minute YouTube space video of why support the human space program. You can get the rules and all the needed information for entering this contest at the website, www.spacecontest.org. Greg responded to several listener questions about the contest rules and format, so if you are thinking of entering, make sure you listen to the added information provided by Greg. We also talked about why return to the Moon, the cost/benefit ratio, and more. You certainly will want to hear this discussion. Later in the program, we discussed communicating our message to people through audio as well as TV/video. This came up when a listener, along with Greg, asked about The Space Show TV shows recently concluded in Cape Canaveral. This is a conversation worth hearing, for sure. Greg also brought us current with what we know about the presidential candidates' space policy and the presentation each candidate made through their representatives at the recently held ISDC conference in Washington, DC. If you have questions or comments for Greg about this show or the contest, please contact him at www.spacecontest.org and gregnjny@yahoo.com. Selected by: David Livingston [ stations ], Fri, 20 Jun 2008 22:17:06 UTC
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William Watson, Tuesday, 6-17-08 (39.14MB; download) -- Guest: William Watson, Executive Director of the Space Frontier Foundation (SFF), was the guest for this show to discuss the upcoming NewSpace 2008 conference, July 17-19, 2008 in Washington, DC. Will went over the list of speakers and panels, noted that the conference is single track unlike many other conferences, and responded to listener questions about students, NASA participation, side trips to possibly Goddard or Wallops, and much more. We talked about space education and career opportunities, specifically with the International Space University in Strasbourg, France. You can find out more about the conference and SFF by visiting www.space-frontier.org. For those of you intending to register for the conference, you should do so prior to July 1 in order to avoid a price increase. The same holds true for the online hotel reservation. If you visit www.space-frontier.org/Events/NewSpace2008/ you can check out the preliminary agenda, which is action-packed with important programming and topics. We also talked about networking at the conference and its added value to conference attendees. We also talked about the Space Contest which you can find on their website at www.space-frontier.org/Projects/SpaceContest/. There were listener questions about the SFF membership and the e-newsletter. Both are free and as Will explained, SFF is not a membership organization. If you want to subscribe to the newsletter, visit http://visitor.constantcontact.com/email.jsp?m=1101309911800&p=oi. If you have questions or comments about the conference, SFF, or anything related to this show, please contact Will at wwatson@spacefrontierfoundation.org.
Selected by: David Livingston [ stations ], Wed, 18 Jun 2008 15:01:24 UTC
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Homer Hickam, Tuesday, 6-17-08 (37.95MB; download) -- Guest: Homer Hickam was the guest for this special Space Show program. Mr. Hickam, author of "Rocket Boys," which was made into the acclaimed movie "October Sky," spoke with us about many topics and all of us had lots of fun while learning from someone who is, in my opinion, a true American hero. We started the discussion by asking him about his discovering two Tyrannosaurs in Montana. This took us directly to his early rocket launching days in Montana and putting Barbie dolls into space or near space. You have to hear this discussion to believe it. Barbie possibly should have be designated a spaceflight participant or something close to it , maybe even a skydiver since Barbie came back to Earth in a parachute. By the way, no even-handedness here as Ken was never launched on a Homer Hickam rocket. Leaving Barbie, we got down to serious rocket launching history with Homer in his days growing up in Coalwood, West Virginia. We talked about the different conditions then and now. Listeners asked him questions about school programs, how to inspire the youth, and much more. Homer was quick to point out that, while the conditions that he experienced as a kid do not exist anymore, there are lots of rocket clubs around the country for kids and adults to join and use to learn and launch rockets. Visit his website, www.homerhickam.com, as he has a link on the site for the rocket clubs across the country. We discussed the role of the NASA Administrator in the context of Homer taking on the job. Interestingly, he said if he took on the job, he would go to the American people to engage us all much more in space. Barbara from LA emailed in that first, she was not Barbie and was not riding on one of his rockets, and second what Homer was saying reminded her of the days of Von Braun when he did take space to the people. You should hear this exchange, it's terrific! Homer is putting together a Broadway play titled Rocket Boys The Musical and you can find out about it www.rocketboysthemusical.com. We played a few of the cuts (songs) from the play on the show. From rockets to moonshine, you have to listen. It's grand fun and the music is excellent. Pick up all the cuts at www.rocketboysthemusical.com/audio as we only had time to play parts of two of the play's songs. During another part of the discussion, I asked Homer about dreams and fantasies. He had much to say on this so again, you will want to hear this show. For example, he says he does not talk to students and parents about dreams. Instead, he uses the 3 P's: Passion, Planning, and Perseverance. Homer also introduced us to a special guest, Max the Cat. This is the first time a cat has spoken on The Space Show! If you want to see when Homer Hickham might be speaking in your area or on a book tour, check out his website. You can also email him from his site at H3Hickam@homerhickam.com. The contact page on his website is www.homerhickam.com/contact. Please put The Space Show in the subject line. Selected by: David Livingston [ stations ], Wed, 18 Jun 2008 03:52:38 UTC
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Barbara Sprungman David, Monday, 6-16-08 (40.13MB; download) -- Guest: Barbara Sprungman David was the guest for this Space Show program to discuss her new book, "Kids To Space: Mission Plans, An Educator's Guide." Barbara co-authored this book with Lonnie Schorer and this book is a follow-on to Lonnie's earlier book "Kids To Space: A Space Traveler's Guide." Please listen to the earlier Space Show with Lonnie from May 19, 2006 located at: http://archived.thespaceshow.com/shows/496-BWB-2006-05-19.mp3 . During this discussion with Barbara David, we covered many aspects of space education, teachers, the curriculum, finding time to teach space in the classroom, inspiring both kids and teachers, and even addressing the strange problem of finding the subject of space to be used as a "dumbbell course" for low achieving students. We talked about ways to make space education interesting and fun and how to communicate to teachers and school boards that space should be an important part of the curriculum. Drawing on the earlier book authored by Lonnie Schorer, we mentioned some of the most frequently asked questions by kids regarding space. We also talked about getting the books and the issue of teaching space before the NEA and even at the two political conventions coming up this August. If you are a teacher or educator or have a friend who is, this is a must hear show because it is important to have the space properly taught in the schools, starting as early as grade school. You can find out more about "Kids To Space Mission Plans: An Educator's Guide" at www.apogeebooks.com/Books/For%20Kids/KidstoSpaceSE.html. If you want to get in touch with Barbara David about this subject, the books, or teaching space in the school system, please do so at BarbaraDavid321@aol.com.
Selected by: David Livingston [ stations ], Tue, 17 Jun 2008 04:36:35 UTC
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Andrew Thorpe, Sunday, 6-15-08 (44.93MB; download) -- Guest : Andrew Thorpe, author of "The Commercial Space Station: Methods and Markets" was the guest for this Space Show program. To learn more about Andrew's books and work, please visit his website: www.maxastro.com. We began our discussion with Andrew explaining why the current ISS is not the commercial space station he talks about in his book. You will want to hear this distinction. We then discussed a series of potential markets in space including microgravity, protein crystal growth, space tourism, and more. Our discussion then shifted to some of the human factors issues involved in keeping humans in space for a period of time. Two of the major issues that came up due to listener questions were bone loss and radiation. You will not want to hear this discussion as some of the listeners steeped in human factors expertise took Andrew and some of the other listeners to task with very challenging and direct questions. The same was true regarding some of the comments made about space tourism, especially those suggesting it might be the killer commercial space application. Listen and you decide. Andrew Thorpe's book provides important reasons and an understanding of the value of having a good commercial space station available for businesses to use. All of us profit with such a station. His book is widely available and I suggest you read it. If you have further questions or comments for Andrew Thorpe, you can reach him through the email address on his website, maxastro21@hotmail.com. Selected by: David Livingston [ stations ], Sun, 15 Jun 2008 23:54:02 UTC
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