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Rationale and Goals of the U.S. Civil Space Program

January 12th, 2009   By _randall   Filed Under Babble Space, Big Idea Space, Industry Space, Political Space, Student Space  

The Presidents of the National Academy of Science and the
<http://www.nationalacademies.org/>  National Academy of Engineering have
commissioned a study
<http://www7.nationalacademies.org/ssb/rationale_goals_civil_space.html>  on
the Rationale and Goals of the U.S. Civil Space Program.

In short, the Academies are asking why the nation has a civil space program
(including human, robotic, commercial, and personal spaceflight). 

The study is intended to provide a strategic framework for the nation's
activities in space that can provide consistent guidance in an increasingly
interconnected world. The members of the study committee are interested in
the views (positive or negative) of the general public, particularly those
people with a scientific and/or technological interest.

Please provide input by January 30, 2009!

<post originated from Slashdot>

Who Owns the Moon?

August 7th, 2008   By _randall   Filed Under Babble Space, Meeting Space  

*WHAT:* The eleventh Luna Philosophie will feature Steve Durst from the Board
of Directors of the International Lunar Observatory Association and Dr.
William Marshal of NASA Ames.  The two will share various views on Space
Property Rights from industry, United Nations, and the US Government.

*WHO OWNS THE MOON?*
With a boom of countries and commercial entities looking to go to the moon,
who can claim land on it?  There are websites one can go to and purchase
land on the moon, but if someone lands their spacecraft here, do they owe
rent?  Come hear the various points of view including the several UN
resolutions on the topic, why they might not be binding, and suggest a new
plan to move forward.

Some topics to discuss include:
- Can someone own land on the moon?
- Do non-government groups have to respect the resolutions of the United
Nations on this topic?
- Can one sell the resources gathered from the moon in a mining operation?

*WHEN:* Tuesday, August 5, 2008 from 6:00 PM – 8:00 PM
6:00 – 6:30 PM Socializing
6:30 – 7:00 PM Presentation by Steve Durst and William Marshal
7:00 – 7:30 PM Discussion
7:30 – 8:00 PM Socializing

*WHERE:* Yahoo! Brickhouse, 500 3rd St, in San Francisco
([http://upcoming.yahoo.com/venue/59350/])
WHO: All are welcome!

For more information on Luna Philosophie, visit:
[http://colab.arc.nasa.gov/luna]

Partnering with NASA

July 30th, 2008   By _randall   Filed Under Babble Space, Meeting Space  

August 5, 2008

WHAT: The tenth Luna Philosophie will feature Doug Comstock, who directs NASA’s
Innovative Partnerships Program (IPP).  He will speak on some of the
technological breakthroughs that have come through partnering with NASA.

PARTNERING WITH NASA:  INNOVATION THROUGH COLLABORATION
Come learn about how NASA works with external organizations to bring space
technology down toEarth, and bring new technologies from outside of NASA into
the organization.  Part of the talk will focus on IPP’s Centennial Challenges
Program, NASA’s ‘citizen inventor’ program, with an upcoming event in Santa Rosa
for a “Green Prize” for aviation transportation.

Some topics to discuss include:
*  How do you successfully foster innovation in large organizations?
*  How do partnerships factor into the future of NASA?
*  What are some of the most surprising benefits of space technology to the
general public?

WHEN:  Tuesday, August 5, 2008 from 6:00 PM – 8:00 PM
6:00 – 6:30 PM Socializing
6:30 – 7:00 PM Presentation by Doug Comstock
7:00 – 7:30 PM Discussion
7:30 – 8:00 PM Socializing

WHERE: Yahoo! Brickhouse, 500 3rd St, in San Francisco
([http://upcoming.yahoo.com/venue/59350/])

WHO: All are welcome!

RSVP: at upcoming.org

For more information on Luna Philosophie, visit:
[http://colab.arc.nasa.gov/luna]

NASA to the Rescue!

July 9th, 2008   By _randall   Filed Under Babble Space, Big Idea Space, Factoid Space  

NASA is providing the Ikhana Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) in support of the California fires. Ikhana is a Predator B modified to perform multiple civil research roles and capable of collecting data for up to 30 hours. The Ikhana aircraft position as well as all the geo- and terrain-registered data from the AMS-Wildfire instrument can be observed using the CDE linkages. On July 8, 2008 the Ikhana flew on a 10-hour mission over the most active California wildfires to collect data in both northern and southern California.

Home sweet Phobos

April 10th, 2008   By Matt   Filed Under Babble Space, Factoid Space  

NASA released an amazing image of Phobos taken by the MRO. For some reason or other, the first thing I thought of when I saw this was Doom. Interestingly enough, the real Phobos doesn’t have strong enough gravity for the types of activities depicted in the game. What are your favorite games that take place in space? The Dig is my personal favorite…

Strange fads in the tech community

March 24th, 2008   By Matt   Filed Under Babble Space  

Here is a strange thing happening in the tech community right now. People are forming into random teams to compete in made up games for fun. Its happening via twitter. Is this something that could ever happen in the aerospace community? Is this sort of distraction even appealing to people in the aerospace community? What do you think?

Warning Signs of Tomorrow

March 6th, 2008   By Matt   Filed Under Babble Space  

Somebody twittered about this, and I decided it was something that should go here. Hopefully we actually need some of these some day, some of them hopefully not.

It seems like something that could be the result of Bruce Sterlings Internet of Things.

Babble Space

February 11th, 2008   By _randall   Filed Under Babble Space  

Its 4 o’clock in the afternoon and you’re bored, but you should be working.  All you really want to do is get home and veg out on last night’s pizza.  Well, sorry buddy, you’ll be stuck at your desk for another hour.  Until then, sit back and give US some food for thought.  Share your nonsensical stories no one else wants to hear or link us to your own personal blog and twitter posts!  I’ll tell you one if you tell me one first.