This episode takes off with the successful launch of a United Launch Alliance
Delta IV rocket carrying the second pair of satellites for the U.S. Air
Force’s Geosynchronous Space Situational Awareness Program (GSSAP). Looking
ahead to the company’s next launch for the NASA mission OSIRIS-REX and even
further to the test flight of Boeing’s CST-100 Starliner, we also discuss
their not-quite-as-high-tech but welcome efforts to upgrade the company’s
launch stream for the public. Continuing with the return of crewed spaceflight
to American shores, we take a look at the results of the RS-25 engine firing
test for NASA’s Space Launch System and upcoming tests for the program
intended to take us to Mars. SpaceX’ launch of the JCSAT satellites rounds out
a very busy August for the space industry before the month has even concluded.
At the other end of the launch process, spacewalkers Jeff Williams and Kate
Rubins successfully installed the first International Docking Adapter on the
ISS to enable docking of a variety of spacecraft, including the upcoming
commercial crew vehicles.
As commercial access to the ISS increases there is an idea of extending the
life of the station by selling it off when the space agencies involved end
their cooperative agreements to keep the orbiting lab afloat. Is this
feasible? Are there other options for using the station beyond the current
plans and what would it take to make them happen? What is the future of not
just the ISS but laboratories in orbit?
In the even nearer future, Russia has announced their plans to reduce the
amount of cosmonauts on station just after news broke of plans to invest in
researching a trip to the moon. Again, is this feasible? We discuss the
relationship between dreaming and pragmatism when it comes to space
exploration, particularly in the two premier spacefaring nations.
After all this speculation on the future of space exploration, we take a look
back at the days when America was dreaming and preparing for all of this with
the X-15. Mark brings our attention to the White Eagle Aerospace
blog with just a little sample
of the fascinating histories they are preserving over there. We highly
recommend visiting the site, with a warning that you might not be able to pull
yourself away for a few hours.
Show Recorded 08-22-2016
Host: Sawyer Rosenstein
Panelists: Gene Mikulka, Mark Ratterman, Kat Robison, and Kassy Tamanini
