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Google Lunar X PRIZE Roundup #42 March 12, 2011

Posted by Nick Azer in : Google Lunar X Prize, Google Lunar X Prize Roundup, Virgin Galactic , add a comment

The Google Lunar X PRIZE is a $30 million competition challenging private space enterprises to land a rover on the Moon. Every two weeks, I round up the latest developments as the teams rocket forwards and upwards…

Late February was a huge time for the Google Lunar X PRIZE—EIGHT new teams became official! Holy Tchaikovsky! Without further ado, here’s all the highlights for Feburary 15th-March 1st:

Keep an eye out for my profiles on the 8 new teams over the next few weeks, and I’ll have Roundup #43 (for Mar 1st-15th) up soon as well! :)

 

Virgin Galactic Unveils SpaceShipTwo! December 7, 2009

Posted by Nick Azer in : space tourism, spaceplane, Virgin Galactic , add a comment

Today, Virgin Galactic and unveiled the craft that will be carrying hundreds of its customers to space over the next few years—the SpaceShipTwo:

The successor to the Ansari X PRIZE-winning SpaceShipOne (which helped usher in this new era of space tourism and private space efforts), the Scaled Composites-developed SpaceShipTwo rocketplane is expected to begin daily flights by 2011-2012 from Spaceport America in New Mexico.

With space tourism hitting the mainstream, more and more companies and spaceports will form—many with their eyes eventually turning to the Moon, and helping to spur infrastucture and private space’s role in general :)

President-Elect Obama names Bill Richardson (Space Commerce Supporter) U.S. Secretary of Commerce (News) December 4, 2008

Posted by Nick Azer in : Bill Richardson, Current News, Obama, private sector, Spaceport, Virgin Galactic , 1 comment so far

One small step by Barack Obama; one giant leap for the private space boom?

Today, President-Elect Barack Obama officially announced Gov. Bill Richardson of New Mexico as his choice for Secretary of Commerce; Richardson is an outspoken supporter of the idea of private space commerce.

Here’s a few telling quotes from Richardson on space, this first one being from a 2006 USA Today article about the spaceport he initiated construction of in New Mexico during his terms as governor (Spaceport America):

“”Richardson says he told his aides: “Go after the big one. Go after 5,000 jobs and something to be remembered for. Go after [Sir Richard] Branson and the spaceport. Politicians are known for talking about 9/11 and gloom and doom, and I like to infuse people with visions of the future and space. It’s bold and risky, but people turn on to that.”‘”
-”New Mexico goes a little pie in the sky with spaceport idea“, by Kevin Maney, USA Today

‘Infusing people with hopeful visions’ is definitely in the Obama style, and in his case, Richardson was using the private space industry’s possibilties to do that. A preview of future Obama policy, perhaps?

Next is a quote from a Space.com article by Leonard David from late November 2008 about Richardson’s space enthusiasm, as it relates to his then-rumored candidacy for the Commerce post:

“Richardson was asked about any possible post he might play in an Obama White House. The New Mexico governor played it a little coy, but said:

“Here’s what I want to be sure of … that the Obama administration is pro-commercial space … that the administration is pro-space, pro-government space, pro-commercial space,” Richardson observed.

Richardson said that “it’s in the interest of our national space industry that commercial space could properly develop … so I will be an advocate wherever I am … hopefully here, still as governor of New Mexico … you never know.”"
-”Obama Vetting Bill Richardson, Space Enthusiast” by Leonard David, Space.com

So the man who stated he will be a commercial space advocate ‘wherever he is’ and that believes in ‘infusing people with visions of future and space’ is now the U.S. Secretary of Commerce, being essentially in charge of guiding the administration’s economic policy.

For anyone interested in the development of a private space boom, this is a dream scenario, and a strong indicator that Obama is very serious about some of the things that he stated in his detailed campaign space plan:

“In achieving this vision, Obama will reach out to include international partners and to engage the private sector to amplify NASA’s reach. Obama believes that a revitalized NASA can help America maintain its innovation edge and contribute to American economic growth.”
-Barack Obama’s space plan

Just how much could the private space boom “contribute to the American economic growth”? Here’s another quote from the USA Today spaceport article which gives you an idea:

“[New Mexico] should understand this is a long-haul investment,” says space business analyst Charles Lurio. “Spaceflight is poised for explosive market growth — analogous to PCs (in the 1970s). But exactly how that growth occurs, and in what form, is as uncertain as it was for PCs in the ’70s.”

“Explosive market growth”, analogous to the now-ubiquitous PCs? That sounds like something America could use right now, and with Obama’s appointment of dedicated industry supporter Richardson, it sounds like it’s something we could be starting to see in the very near future. :)

Space Knights? Virgin Territory for the Pentagon October 19, 2008

Posted by Nick Azer in : NASA, private sector, space conflict, space tourism, spaceplane, Virgin Galactic , add a comment

The Times Online has a story today about the Pentagon planning a “spaceplane” that could deliver troops (or supplies) to an emergency zone within four hours.

Codenamed “Hot Eagle”, the craft is designed closely off of Virgin Galactic and Scaled Composites’ WhiteKnight craft, which Burt Rutan carried to a collection of the $10 million Ansari X Prize in 2004.

A government picking up on a private spacefaring design is an interesting precedent. Barack Obama, in his space plan, talked of using the private sector to “amplify NASA’s reach“; but this is a whole another level of interaction between government and private enterprise (and it’s happening already!).

The Pentagon hopes to have these craft in use within 11 years (2019). Check out the article for a lot more of the details and background.

One interesting angle (excuse the pun): these same craft could fly someone commercially from London to Sydney in four hours. Now that’s executive class.

SpaceX Becomes First Private Company to Launch Rocket Into Orbit (News) September 30, 2008

Posted by Nick Azer in : Current News, Google Lunar X Prize, Integration, private sector, space tourism, SpaceX, Virgin Galactic, Youtube , add a comment

This past Sunday (September 28th), the private company Space Exploration Technologies (widely known as SpaceX, and based out of Hawthorne, CA) became the first private effort to ever launch a liquid-propelled rocket into orbit.

Their Falcon 1 craft successfully made it into orbit on what is actually the fourth attempt by SpaceX (kudos to their perserverance and pioneering spirit). Here’s a video (with raw sound, but incredible visuals) of the launch, including images from the Falcon 1 itself:

Falcon 1 was launched from Omelek Island, a U.S. territory in the Marshall Islands.

With SpaceX’s goal to “reduce the cost and increase the reliability of space access by a factor of ten”, this (combined with other recent efforts) is a huge sign that a private space boom really is coming, and coming fast. This is a historic step, amazingly coming right on the heels of events like the Chinese spacewalk. It’s been an incredible couple of weeks.

Of course, orbit is just the beginning. Once we’ve got a private space boom in full swing (or even before), there’ll be more than just a few private efforts with their eyes fixed on the Moon.