Upcoming International Space Development Conference

Posted on by onespaceman2000

You may not like the idea of spending any part of the summer in hot and humid Florida, but the National Space Society has a good reason for you to go anyway. It is holding its 43rd annual International Space Development Conference from June 19 to 22 in Orlando, Florida.

Some of the guests during the week include Jared Isaacman, the future Administrator of NASA, as well as space experts and numerous current, former, and retired astronauts.

The various sessions, panels, and workshops will cover topics such as:

  • Moon and Mars exploration and settlement,
  • Deep space exploration,
  • Innovative technology,
  • Science fiction’s influence on the technology and commercialization of space,
  • Planetary defense,
  • Living in space,
  • Space solar power,
  • Space debris, and
  • Space law and policy.

For instance, on Thursday you can attend four related lectures in a session titled “Interplanetary Infrastructure“. Here is what the session will cover:

Infrastructure is the backbone of civilization. A multi-planetary civilization needs interplanetary infrastructure to support its expansion, facilitate trade, and keep its citizens and their societies connected. The Interplanetary Infrastructure session considers whether investments in infrastructure, especially two-way transportation infrastructure, can address some of the most pressing problems associated with humanity’s initial efforts to expand into the solar system. Historically, infrastructure has facilitated human expansion. It increased accessibility and reduced the personal sacrifices that adventurous settlers and their families had to make. Infrastructure projects tend to be somewhat conservative in nature. They generally use technologies and materials that have been applied in other industries and that are already well-understood and well-characterized by engineers. Successful infrastructure projects are economically viable because their long-term benefit to society exceeds their upfront cost, even when the upfront cost is significant. The speakers presenting concepts in this session adhere to these fundamental principles and can demonstrate that their proposals do indeed pencil out.

Take a look at the program and decide for yourself if you can handle the heat while learning more about future space adventures.

Pic of the Week: Flower Moon from the ISS

Posted on by onespaceman2000
Image (Credit): The Flower Moon captured this month by NASA astronaut Nichole Ayers aboard the International Space Station (ISS) . (NASA/Nichole Ayers)

While it almost looks like the Death Star on the horizon, you are looking at this month’s Flower Moon, as captured by NASA astronaut Nichole Ayers from the ISS.

This month’s Moon was called the “Three-Milkings Month” back in 703 AD, but now it has a Native American name, either the Flower Moon, the Corn Moon, or even the Corn Planting Moon.

You can read more than you would ever want to know about this Moon via this NASA page.

Ed Helms and Lunar Nukes

Posted on by onespaceman2000
Credit: Grand Central Publishing.

Actor Ed Helms is making his rounds to sell his book Snafu: The Definitive Guide to History’s Greatest Screwups.

One of the stories he tells is about the US “planting nukes on the moon.” Is this true?

Yes, it was a top secret effort called Project A119, with the goal of exploding a hydrogen bomb on the Moon. And believe it or not, Carl Sagan was involved in the calculations related to this zany idea.

This was in the late 1950s during the Cold War when the US and Soviet Union were doing everything they could to trump one another. It also was right after Sputnik, when the US felt it was losing the space race. In this case, the US would make a clear demonstration of its power through this distant explosion.

Fortunately, the US decided to take a better route by going into orbit and eventually to the Moon. If we had blown up the Moon, Carl Sagan would have been remembered in a very different way today – less as the educator, and more as Dr. Strangelove.

Just never underestimate the ability of the government to go down some dark roads. We needed guardrails then like we need them now.

You can read more about it in this History.com story.

NASA Advisory Groups Share Concerns About Budget Cuts

Posted on by onespaceman2000

NASA Watch published a letter from representatives of the agency’s advisory groups, including:

The letter highlights the importance of science initiatives at NASA at a time when drastic budget cuts are being considered, and quotes Carl Sagan:

Cutting off fundamental, curiosity-driven science is like eating the seed corn. We may have a little more to eat next winter but what will we plant so we and our children will have enough to get through the winters to come?

It’s a much needed yet bold approach at this time when the White House is eliminating all opposition to its wild cuts and erratic attack on diversity. The White House is actively shutting down advisory committees through the federal government, including NASA.

We can only hope the public listens to the wiser voices from these advisory committees. Someday all of this will need to be rebuilt, including our space program, but for now we need to save as much as we can from random cuts from parties that do not seem to understand the important role of science in our economy and our future.

Space Quote: Lunar Sample Sharing

Posted on by onespaceman2000
Image (Credit): China’s Chang’e-5 lunar lander. (China National Space Administration)

“I wish that every country would follow in the footsteps of the U.S. and now China.”

–Statement by Frédéric Moynier, a cosmochemist at the Paris Institute of Planetary Physics, regarding China’s sharing of lunar samples from its 2020 Chang’e-5 mission. Seven institutions in six countries now have access to these samples, including two institutions in the United States. Unfortunately, the sample sharing goes only one way because the US Congress bans the sharing of space samples and technology with China.