march / april 2009space times • march/april 2009 3 president’s message frank a. slazer...

SPACE TIMES • March/April 2009 1

THE MAGAZINE OF THE AMERICANASTRONAUTICAL SOCIETYISSUE 2 VOLUME 48

MARCH / APRIL 2009

2 SPACE TIMES • March/April 2009

T H E M A G A Z I N E O F T H E A M E R I C A N A S T R O N A U T I C A L S O C I E T Y

MARCH / APRIL 2009

ISSUE 2–VOLUME 48

AAS OFFICERSPRESIDENT

Frank A. Slazer, Northrop GrummanEXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT

Lyn D. Wigbels, RWI International Consulting ServicesVICE PRESIDENT–TECHNICAL

Srinivas R. Vadali, Texas A&M UniversityVICE PRESIDENT–PROGRAMS

David W. Brandt, Lockheed MartinVICE PRESIDENT–PUBLICATIONS

David B. Spencer, Penn State UniversityVICE PRESIDENT–STRATEGIC COMMUNICATIONSAND OUTREACH

Mary Lynne Dittmar, Dittmar AssociatesVICE PRESIDENT–MEMBERSHIP

Patrick McKenzie, Ball AerospaceVICE PRESIDENT–EDUCATION

Angela Phillips Diaz, University of California, RiversideVICE PRESIDENT–FINANCE

Carol S. Lane, Ball AerospaceVICE PRESIDENT–INTERNATIONAL

Clayton Mowry, Arianespace, Inc.VICE PRESIDENT–PUBLIC POLICY

Peggy Finarelli, George Mason University/CAPRLEGAL COUNSEL

Franceska O. Schroeder, Fish & Richardson P.C.EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

James R. Kirkpatrick, AAS

AAS BOARD OF DIRECTORSTERM EXPIRES 2009Marc S. AllenA. William Beckman, The Boeing CompanySteven Brody, International Space UniversityAshok R. Deshmukh, Technica, Inc.Graham Gibbs, Canadian Space AgencySteven D. Harrison, BAE SystemsArthur F. ObenschainRonald J. Proulx, Charles Stark Draper LaboratoryIan Pryke, George Mason University/CAPRTrevor C. Sorensen, University of Hawaii

TERM EXPIRES 2010Linda Billings, George Washington UniversityRonald J. Birk, Northrop GrummanRebecca L. Griffin, GriffinSpace LLCHal E. Hagemeier, National Security Space OfficeDennis Lowrey, General DynamicsMolly Kenna Macauley, Resources for the FutureErin Neal, ATKLesa B. RoeRosanna Sattler, Posternak Blankstein & Lund LLPRobert H. Schingler, Jr.Woodrow Whitlow, Jr.TERM EXPIRES 2011Peter M. Bainum, Howard UniversityRobert H. Bishop, University of Texas at AustinMark K. Craig, SAICJ. Walter Faulconer, Applied Physics LaboratoryJonathan T. Malay, Lockheed MartinKathy J. Nado, L-3 CommunicationsChristopher Nelson, Oceaneering Space SystemsSuneel Sheikh, ASTER Labs, Inc.Patricia Grace Smith, Aerospace Consultant, Patti

Grace Smith ConsultingGregg Vane, Jet Propulsion Laboratory

SPACE TIMES EDITORIAL STAFFEDITOR, Jeffrey P. Elbel

PHOTO & GRAPHICS EDITOR, Dustin DoudPRODUCTION MANAGER, Diane L. Thompson

BUSINESS MANAGER, James R. Kirkpatrick

SPACE TIMES is published bimonthly by the AmericanAstronautical Society, a professional non-profit society. SPACETIMES is free to members of the AAS. Individual subscriptionsmay be ordered from the AAS Business Office. © Copyright 2009by the American Astronautical Society, Inc. Printed in the UnitedStates of America. ISSN 1933-2793.

PERIODICALSSPACE TIMES, magazine of the AAS, bimonthly, volume 48,2009—$80 domestic, $95 foreignThe Journal of the Astronautical Sciences, quarterly, volume 56,2008—$170 domestic, $190 foreignTo order these publications, contact the AAS Business Office.

REPRINTSReprints are available for all articles in SPACE TIMES and all pa-pers published in The Journal of the Astronautical Sciences.

PRESIDENT’S MESSAGEAAS 2.0 3

FEATURESServing the World’s Space-Lift Needs with Ariane 5, Soyuz,and Vega 4The lift off of the Ariane 5 in the jungle of French Guiana markedthe start of an historic mission that delivered the first AutomatedTransfer Vehicle for servicing of the International Space Station.by E. Clayton Mowry

Space Exploration – Why?Remarks from the 2008 Von Braun Symposium 6The age long question about space exploration – why? – can beanswered simply yet precisely: “Space Exploration with NASA isperhaps America’s best tool to help create the world we want.”by John M. Horack

Civil Space and the National Agenda:The 2008 Carl Sagan Memorial Lecture 9The origin of civil space – the origin of NASA – was to serve thenational needs of the 1950s and 1960s. Civil space remains criticalto our national agenda today, offering solutions to our nation’sproblems and allowing the pursuit of opportunities that lie before us.by Len A. Fisk

Weightless Flights of Discovery 21On October 21, 2008, fifty-five teachers met at Chicago’s O’Hareairport for the ride of a lifetime.by Jeff Elbel

AAS NEWSSuccessful Goddard Symposium Addresses SustainableSpace Exploration 17

UPCOMING EVENTS 20

AAS CAREER CENTER 22

NOTES ON A NEW BOOKRobots in Space: Technology, Evolution and InterplanetaryTravel 23Reviewed by Mark Williamson

6352 Rolling Mill Place, Suite 102Springfield, VA 22152-2370 USATel: 703-866-0020 Fax: [email protected] www.astronautical.org


PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE

Frank A. [email protected]

FRONT: Evening lift off of the Ariane 5 ECA from the European Spaceport in French Guiana, marking Arianespace’s first mission of the year, witha successful dual payload heavy-lift flight. Arianespace lofted NSS-9 for SES New Skies and HOTBIRD 10 for Eutelsat. (Source: ©2008 ESA-CNES-Arianespace/Photo Optique Vidéo CSG)BACK: A Panchromatic, 50 centimeter (1.6 foot) high-resolution view of the rocket launch from the Musudan Ri launch facility, formerly knownas Taepo-dong, captured by the WorldView-1 satellite. (Source: DigitalGlobe)

ON THE COVER

This month, I’d like to draw your attention to this issue of Space Times and ask you toconsider the question – what do most articles in this issue have in common? The answer isthey are largely based on content presented at recent AAS Conferences and Symposia.There are two reasons for this. First, the content is superb; from Len Fisk’s Carl SaganMemorial Lecture at our 2008 annual meeting in Pasadena to John Horack’s perspectiveson human exploration delivered at the Von Braun Symposium last October, they are insightfuland provocative perspectives that get you thinking. Note that this observation isn’t just myprideful boast – talk to any of the attendees at AAS events, and you will uniformly hearhigh praise for the speakers and the content of their presentations. This is thanks to thehard work of our volunteer planning committees who take the time and make the effort to get it right – all without getting paida cent for all they do for the Society.

The second reason this issue has so much content from our meetings is that it helps to disseminate this excellent content tothe 90 plus percent of members who don’t make it to a particular event. Even our annual meeting only attracts a few hundredpeople, and many of those are affiliated with the NASA center that is sponsoring our event. For some AAS members, there maybe financial or schedule issues, or other reasons which preclude attending in person. Consequently, Space Times is a good wayto share this content.

I would encourage all members who are able to attend at least one of our upcoming events to do so. I think you will bepleased, not just with the content that is being presented but also with the wonderful networking opportunities these eventsprovide. I also encourage you to volunteer to support a planning committee effort if you are near one of our upcoming eventsand have some time you can commit. Please contact AAS Executive Director Jim Kirkpatrick if you would like to help out.

Of course, no matter how many additional members we get to attend through appeals such as this, the reality is that mostmembers will never be able to attend any particular event that we host. Fortunately, new information technologies may makeit more possible to bring our events to our members – and to the space community as a whole. We have dabbled in using newtechnologies to share what is going on at our conferences with a wider audience – twittering or blogging real time conferenceupdates, and a number of sessions at the last few meetings were videotaped and will eventually be posted on our web site. Nowwe are ready to move to the next level of reaching out through information technology. The AAS leadership team is looking tomake this year’s Annual Meeting – currently scheduled to be held in Houston in early December – to potentially be a “virtualconference” with more than one access portal where speakers and audience members can participate and the potential to listenin from anywhere. While this will expose us to the risk that fewer people will attend in person, in the long run, I believe the oddsare that our attendance will increase as some who get virtual snippets of what the event is like decide to attend in the future,when possible, so as to have the opportunity to interact in real time with both presenters and other conference attendees.

If you are interested in the possibilities offered by this new concept in conference hosting and would like to help (especiallyif you are an IT professional), please let Jim Kirkpatrick know, and he will connect you with those involved in planning thisyear’s annual meeting. Thanks in advance for your support to this new approach to member outreach.

AAS 2.0


Serving the World’s Space-Lift Needs withAriane 5, Soyuz, and Vegaby E. Clayton Mowry

When the jungle of French Guiana camealive with an Ariane 5 liftoff in March2008, it marked the start of an historicmission that delivered the first AutomatedTransfer Vehicle for servicing of theInternational Space Station (ISS).

With this launch, Ariane 5 – and itsSpaceport operating base site in SouthAmerica – joined a limited “club” ofworldwide launchers and launch sites thatserve human spaceflight activities. TheAutomated Transfer Vehicle was part ofEurope’s ongoing contributions to theInternational Space Station, and this largespacecraft delivered propellant, oxygen,equipment, systems, food and water for theorbiting facility and its multi-national crew.

It was the latest in a long series ofsuccessful missions performed by theAriane family of launch vehicles in supportof international space explorationprograms.

Previous flights included Ariane’slaunch of the Rosetta space probe for a2014 encounter with Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko; the XMM-Newton observatory’s orbiting fordetection of X-ray sources in space; loftingthe Infrared Space Observatory (ISO) toexplore the cool and hidden corners of theuniverse; and placing the Giotto deep spaceprobe on a multi-year voyage for fly-bysof comets Halley and Grigg-Skjellerup.

The currently-operational Ariane 5 willremain busy with space explorationmissions in the future, beginning with adual-payload flight this year carrying thePlanck observatory (which will measuretemperature variations across the BigBang’s relic radiation) and the Herscheltelescope (designed to yield new data onhow stars and galaxies are formed).

Ariane launchers were born fromEurope’s desire for independent access tospace, and were the result of combining thetechnical strengths of European countriesin propulsion, design, guidance andintegration. This series of launch vehicleswas conceived to serve a full range ofcustomers – from commercialtelecommunications operators to spaceagencies and government organizations.

Ariane’s introduction in the late 1970sand early 1980s at the purpose-builtSpaceport in French Guiana marked aturning point in the international spacesector. Ariane’s operation by acommercially-oriented launch servicescompany – Arianespace – ushered in a newera of providing space lift, while thecapability of these vehicles introduced theconcept of dual-payload launches fortelecommunications satellites, scientificspacecraft and governmental platforms.

The first vehicle was Ariane 1, whichserved as the cornerstone launcher andestablished Ariane as the commercial spaceindustry’s benchmark vehicle. Its first flightwas in December 1979, and Arianespacebegan Ariane 1 commercial operations inMay 1984. During its career, 11 Ariane 1missions were performed, placing a totalof 14 spacecraft into orbit. Payload liftcapability of Ariane 1 was 1,800 kg. intogeostationary transfer orbit (GTO).

With Ariane 1’s success, the increased-lift Ariane 3 was introduced at theSpaceport in 1984, boosting the GTOpayload capacity to 2,700 kg. This vehicleused a stretched third stage and largerpayload fairing, and was equipped with twosolid propellant strap-on boosters. Duringits operating career, a total of 11 Ariane 3swere launched, carrying 19 payloads intospace.

Ariane 2 used the same launcherconfiguration as Ariane 3, but without thestrap-on boosters. Initial launch of theAriane 2 was in May 1986, and this vehicleperformed a total of six flights that orbitedfive payloads. Payload lift capability toGTO was 2,200 kg.

The next step was introduction of theAriane 4 family, which became the

Europe’s Automated TransferVehicle approaches the point ofintegration atop Ariane 5 at theSpaceport, as support personnelmonitor the operation from workplatforms surrounding the launchvehicle. (Source: ©2008 ESA-CNES-Arianespace/Photo OptiqueVidéo CSG)


commercial launch services industry’sworkhorse during its service career from1988 to 2003. Ariane 4 was the result ofEurope’s accurate forecasting of the futuregrowth of satellite payloads in both weightand size.

To meet the predicted market needs, aflexible family concept was adopted. Usinga “building block” approach, six Arianeversions were available – all of which werebased on the same core three-stage vehicle,providing payload lift performance togeostationary transfer orbit that rangedfrom 2,000 kg. to 4,900 kg.

A total of 116 Ariane 4 missions wereperformed, carrying 182telecommunications, scientific,meteorological, Earth observation andauxiliary payloads with a combined liftoffmass of more than 404 metric tons.

The growing trend to larger satellitesspurred the development of Ariane 5 –which has become the new-generationreference for heavy-lift launchers sinceentering service with Arianespace in late1999. The Ariane 5’s first commercialmission carried the European SpaceAgency’s XMM-Newton X-ray telescope,which was the largest science satellite everbuilt in Europe at the time.

Ariane 5 carries payloads weighingnearly 10 metric tons to GTO and over 20metric tons into low-Earth orbit (LEO)with a high degree of accuracy thatcontinues the Ariane family tradition foron-target payload delivery.

The March 2008 mission with Europe’sAutomated Transfer Vehicle demonstratedAriane 5’s heavy-lift capability – as thespacecraft weighed more than 19,000 kg.at liftoff. This flight was the first for anAriane 5 ES version, whose EPS storablepropellant upper stage performed two in-flight burns to deploy the AutomatedTransfer Vehicle into its targeted 260-km.circular orbit.

Following its Ariane 5 launch, theAutomated Transfer Vehicle carried out anexceptionally successful inaugural mission,bringing 6,000 kg. of supplies to theInternational Space Station, performingfour altitude-raising re-boosts for the

orbital facility, and also executing anavoidance maneuver after fragments of anold satellite came within the station’svicinity.

Ariane 5 will continue with its busymission manifest in the years to come,orbiting a diverse mix of scientific,commercial and governmental payloads.This includes the second AutomatedTransfer Vehicle (slated for liftoff in mid-2010), and the NASA James Webb SpaceTelescope in 2013.

Ariane 5 begins its ascent from theSpaceport’s ELA-3 launch zone inFrench Guiana, marking the start ofArianespace’s successful heavy-liftflight with the Automated TransferVehicle. (Source: ©2008 ESA-CNES-Arianespace/Photo OptiqueVidéo CSG)

from the Spaceport is targeted for late 2009– bringing the industry’s longest-operatinglauncher to the world’s most modern launchbase.

The Soyuz vehicles to be operated fromFrench Guiana are evolved versions thatinclude an updated digital flight controlsystem, an increased-performance thirdstage and a larger Soyuz ST payloadfairing. Their payload capacity is 3,150kg. to GTO and 4,900 kg. to Sun-synchronous orbit with a circular altitudeof 820 km.

Vega is an all-new vehicle tailored tocarry the growing number of smallscientific spacecraft and other lighter-weight payloads under development orplanned worldwide. Vega’s target payloadlift capability from the Spaceport is 1,500kg. on missions to a 700-km. circular orbit.

The side-by-side operation of Ariane 5,Soyuz and Vega offer a truly diverse rangeof payload lift capacity from a moderninstallation located close to the equator at5.3 deg. North latitude – making theSpaceport ideally-situated for missions intogeostationary orbit. Another advantage isthe French Guiana coastline’s shape, whichallows for launches into all useful orbits,from northward trajectories to -10.5 deg.through eastward missions to +93.5 deg.

In addition, French Guiana has a lowpopulation density and is protected fromhurricanes and earthquakes, providing itwith unique advantages as a highlyoperational launch site.

With the Ariane 5, Soyuz and Vega infull operation, Arianespace is targeting aflight activity of approximately 10 missionsper year from French Guiana beginning in2010 – composed of an average sevenAriane 5 flights annually, plus two Soyuzmissions and a Vega launch.

E. Clayton Mowry is President ofArianespace, Inc., and Vice President-International of AAS.

The Ariane 5 will soon be joined at theSpaceport in French Guiana by two otherArianespace-operated launch vehicles thatare well suited for scientific and researchpayloads: the medium-lift Soyuz andlightweight Vega.

Soyuz is the Russian-built launcher thatushered in the Space Age, and its first flight


Space Exploration – Why?Remarks from the 2008 Von Braun Symposiumby John M. Horack

Good Afternoon, and thank you to Mr.Hale, to our other speakers, and to ourorganizers. We have heard a great deal –this morning in the Ares Panel, from Dr.Griffin’s excellent talk at lunch, and againthis afternoon – about Exploration,Constellation, the construction of a newtransportation system named Ares, andreturning to the Moon. And as far as thispanel goes, I’m last. So, I want to focus onsomething we’ve all touched on, that’sintegrated to all the topics we’ve seen tothis point, and the one thing that we oftenstruggle mightily to articulate: The answerto the question “WHY?”

I have heard (and given) many answersto this question. They come in a variety offorms. There’s the Marketing Answer: “Toinspire the next generation of explorers,only as NASA can.” There’s thePhilosophical: “Because exploration is inour DNA.” The economic: “Just look atthe spin-offs!” And many times we answer“Why?” with “What.”: “To improve ourTLI injection capacity by 30% and toenable four people to access the surface ofthe Moon, anywhere, and return any time,with a stay of up to six months.” Almostevery answer strikes me as feeble. Yet Ialso believe that if we don’t get this right,and get it right in places far beyond thecommunity gathered here, we may not geta chance to do much of anything you’veseen so far today.

Why are we doing this? What is thepoint? To those who ask this, I offer thissimple rejoinder: “Space Exploration withNASA is perhaps America’s best tool tohelp create the world we want.”

And usually, the immediate rejoinder is,“We cannot afford it, especially now.” Tothis, I say there is only one thing we

A Schlieren image of a 0.34% scale model of the Ares V heavy cargo launch vehicle inside a windtunnel. Schlieren imaging allows engineers to visualize air flows with varying densities. (Source:NASA/MSFC)

“cannot afford,” and that is to stopinvesting in our future. The investmentmight not be immense. It might not beeverything we want. But it must be there.And to me, it must include – we have nochoice but to include – a robust spaceprogram, infused and enriched with humanand scientific exploration.

So, why invest? For me, the answer isactually straightforward. To abandoninvestment in the future of the country isto simply give up. Are we really ready toaccept the premise that America willsimply “go away”? Do we really believethat there is “no tomorrow”? Would youtell your children that? Are we going toadmit that somehow the Nation has zerohope for a brighter future? Unless theanswer to any of these is “yes,” Americamust continue to find ways to invest,because there will be a tomorrow.

Our own history shows why we need toinvest – to maintain our sense of purposeabout the future – especially in the face ofhardship.

The Civil War was arguably the mostdifficult time this Nation has ever seen. Inthe midst of a terrible four-year war, foughton our own soil, where every single

casualty was an American, and everythingbeing destroyed belonged to America,Lincoln had choices. He could havefocused everything — every dollar, everyperson, every piece of capital — onwinning the war, ending the war, or simplypreserving some kind of Nation. He nearlydid. He even said “My goal is to save theUnion.” But this was not his goalexclusively; the Union also had to be worthsaving.

In that most challenging time, he founda way, in 1863, to start the construction of


“If you don’t believe that exploration –and space exploration in particular – hasbeen one of the most important driversof the very fabric of the world we havetoday in America, I invite you simply totake the change out of your pocket.”

a transcontinental railroad, completed in1869. This was an enormous financial andlogistical infrastructure investment in thefuture of a Nation he was trying topreserve, with no guarantee that he wouldactually prevail.

For Lincoln, trying to simply preservethe Nation in the face of the greatest threatto its existence before or since was notenough. Contrary to any admission of “nohope” or “no future” for the Nation,Lincoln’s careful investment made in hardtimes – his sense of purpose about thefuture in the face of huge adversity –actually made that future all the more worthpreserving.

Our situation today is no different. Theinvestments we make now, especially in theface of the present challenges, can actuallymake the future of our Nation even moreworthwhile than would otherwise havebeen the case.

So why Space Exploration at NASA?In areas of public policy — especially

the Federal Government — when asked thequestion “Why anything?” the answer isalmost invariably, “to prevent ‘X’” where“X” is some kind of negative outcome. Icampaign for “Joe” because “Fred” is ajerk, and I want to keep “Fred” from gettingelected. We are bailing out the banks toprevent a recession. Preventing negativeoutcomes is fine, and often quiteimportant. I am all for keeping terroristsout of the country, for example. But noteverything we do can be steeped in theavoidance of negative outcome. We mustalso actively pursue positive outcomes. A“deficit approach” cannot be our onlystrategy. Said another way, we cannot saveour way to prosperity. A world we settlefor is not the world we want.

I played competitive soccer for over 20years. And I played on many a team thatwas extremely good defensively, and hada heck of a time scoring goals. We playedwell. We played hard. We played primarilyto prevent the negative outcome of havingthe other team score on us. And it seems inretrospect that we lost every game 1-0. Itis very tiring to play defense for 90

minutes; no matter how hard you play, youwill not win, best you can do is tie.

NASA is one of the few places wherethe Nation can truly play “offense” andscore some goals for ourselves in the mostpositive sense of the word. It is a placewhere we can create upside, not justeliminate downside. And it is a place wherewe can talk about – and more importantly,act upon – the world we want to build.

NASA is not in the business of*preventing* anything. The purpose of ourwork is not about eliminating anyparticular negative. NASA is *entirely*upside. We exist to create, to build, to plant,to invest. Dr. Griffin recently describedspace exploration as the act of “buyingoptions for our children.”

Space Exploration in NASA is amongthe best means we can use to buy thoseoptions, to actively create the world wewant for them.

If you don’t believe that exploration –and space exploration in particular – hasbeen one of the most important drivers ofthe very fabric of the world we have todayin America, I invite you simply to take thechange out of your pocket.

My kids collect state quarters. The 50th,from Hawaii will be issued this year, the50th Anniversary of NASA. These quartersare interesting, because in many ways, theyillustrate the narrative of our Nation. Inaggregating these 50 snapshots, we have avery complete, if not detailed, picture ofwhat the Nation has become since our

founding. Each of these 50 quarters arevignettes of things *that actuallyhappened* as a result of the formation ofthis Nation.

This narrative of our Nation, the storyof ‘who we have become’ and the futurethat was created to be our present,expressed 25 cents at a time, hasexploration as a prominent theme.

The space shuttle is on the back of theFlorida quarter. In addition to Florida,Maine, Virginia, and Rhode Island alldepict sailing ships. The word “Discovery”appears twice. Wisconsin’s says“FORWARD” in big block letters.Nebraska features a covered wagon. Myhome state, Missouri, depicts the Lewisand Clark Corps of Discovery paddling upthe Missouri River. And the only man-madeobject to appear twice – the WrightBrothers’ Flyer – graces the back of NorthCarolina and Ohio (where you’ll also finda moon-walking astronaut).

As an ensemble, I find it very hard toargue against the fact that those 50 snap-shots are a view of what this Nationhas become in 225 years. They offer us atangible view of the things that becamereality because of our history, the risks wetook, the investments we made, and thesacrifices that many have endured. A viewwe carry around in our pockets every day,mostly without thinking. Yet that view isvery, very compelling.

Helen Keller is on our Alabama quartertoday. My question to you is what will be


Dr. John M. Horack, Vice President forResearch at the University of Alabamain Huntsville and a former Director ofthe Science and Mission Systems Officeat NASA’s Marshall Space FlightCenter, delivered these comments at theVon Braun Symposium in Huntsville onOctober 21, 2008.

The International Space Station seen from Space Shuttle Discovery asthe two spacecraft begin their relative separation. During the STS-119mission the Space Shuttle delivered he final set of solar panels to theISS, and completed its electricity generating system. (Source: NASA)

the back of Alabama’s quarter next time?Or what will be on the back of *any*quarter for that matter?

I may be wrong, but I cannot see howjust about anything we hold “important”today – none of these things – will make itto the back of the next set of state quarters.Not Hannah Montana, not PeytonManning, not Bill Gates, not WarrenBuffett, not Tommy Tuberville (especiallythis year), and not even Nick Saban.

But I could see the Ares-V…or animprint of a human outpost on the Moon.

Whatever winds up on the back of thenext set will be a product of the Nationalnarrative that we are charged here, today,to write and to bring into being. Amongthe best tools at our disposal to write thatNational Narrative, is through investmentin space exploration at NASA to create thefuture world we want.

Clearly, our Nation has had plenty ofthings in the past National Narrative thatdo not go on the back of quarters – “major”things – like Human Slavery or the plightof this Continent’s indigenous people; andlesser things like Tea-Pot Dome,Watergate, the “rationale” behind startingthe Mexican-American War, or the stockmarket crash of 1929.

These other things – the parts of thenarrative that are not positive – are notunique to the past. We have plenty today –the home mortgage crisis, the scourge of

drugs and drug abuse, poor science/math/education test scores, a lower-lifeexpectancy than most of Western Europe,and gasoline that’s recently reached $4 pergallon.

The lesson for our time in looking at theback of the state quarter series is not thatthe Nation did not have problems, or thingsabout which not to be proud, but that whileworking on these problems, the Nation alsofound a way to invest for the future,committed itself to a bold, positive, andsweeping set of outcomes – many of whichwere nearly unimaginable – and actuallymade them happen, to improve thecondition of life on Earth for our peopleand those who will follow us.

Space Exploration in NASA is amongthe best tools we have at our disposal foractively creating the future our Nationwants for itself.

Investment in a National program ofSpace Exploration is an unambiguous wayto show not only ourselves, but the entireworld that we maintain a serious sense ofpurpose about our Nation’s future,especially in times of hardship. Spaceexploration is something that the entireworld understands, no matter your nativetongue. It demonstrates conclusively yourNation’s attitude, posture, andpreparedness for tomorrow. To be a space-faring Nation says “We plan to be heretomorrow, and we plan to be here in ways

that are better than today, for our peopleand those who will come after us.”

Finish the Shuttle. Build Ares-I. FlyOrion. Finish the ISS. Better understandour place in the Cosmos through Science.Build Ares-V. Return to the Moon. TakeHuman presence beyond low-Earth orbit.These desired outcomes were notestablished because the Dow was at14,000, but because they are worthwhilecreative acts to help secure a better futurefor ourselves and those who will inherit theNation. They are the act of creating fortomorrow a world we want, not a worldwe settle for.

The financial realities of our time willlikely change the path we may haveenvisioned to realize these outcomes. Butthese realities do not change the value orimportance of our goals. They do noteliminate a future for our Nation.

These hardships can instead hone andrefine our sense of purpose. They can forcea rededication to investments that are notsimply aimed at avoiding negativeoutcomes, but are acts of value creation.

And, as in Lincoln’s example, we shouldrecognize that these acts, when coupled toa strong sense of purpose in the future, canmake the future we wish to bring abouteven more worthwhile.

I see no better place to do this thanwithin the context of this Nation’s spaceprogram, because I see the space programas the best tool we have in America tocreate the future world we want.

This is how I answer the question“Why?” Thank you for the kind gift ofyour attention, and the opportunity to sharemy thoughts.


Civil Space and the National Agenda:The 2008 Carl Sagan Memorial Lectureby Len A. Fisk

I would like to thank you for theopportunity to deliver the Carl SaganMemorial Lecture. For the subject that Iwant to deal with today, and indeed themain subject of this meeting, the timingcould not be more appropriate. We havejust elected a new President, BarrackObama, on an agenda of change – and thus,as is normally the case, and certainly thecase today, we can expect major changesin the nation’s space policy, and indeed inmany other policies. This is of course anopportunity for developing a more vigorouscivil space program, and as an essentialcomponent of civil space, a more vigorousNASA. It is, however, an opportunity thatis strongly tempered by the fiscal realityin which we live, with the world’seconomies in serious peril.

The theme that I would like to developtoday, and would hope that our nation’sleadership will come to appreciate andsupport, is that civil space is important toour national agenda. It offers solutions tomany of the nation’s problems and allowspursuit of many of the opportunities thatlie before us. And that a vibrant NASA isthe essential underpinning to the successof civil space.

As we develop this theme of the properrole of civil space in the national agenda,let us remind ourselves that the origin ofcivil space, the origin of NASA, was toserve the national needs of the 1950s and‘60s.

A Brief HistoryWe all know the history. To get to space

you need a rocket, and the basic rockettechnology, on which we still rely today,was developed by the Germans in thecauldrons of World War II. In the spoils of

A view of the Voyager 1 and 2 spacecraft as they observed Jupiter and Saturn, leftthe outer planets, crossed the Termination Shock, and continue onwards as the mostdistant human-made artifacts in space. (Source: NASA/JPL)

that war, the Americans did well, acquiringthe leader of the German rocket program,Wernher von Braun, and 525 of his leadingengineers and technicians, and hundreds ofV2 rockets to play with.

In the U.S., after the war, relatively littlerocket development took place. Rocketswere viewed as military weapons, and fromour location and with the Soviets as theenemy the U.S. needed an intercontinentalballistic missile that could carry an atomicwarhead. However, atomic warheads wereheavy, and U.S. senior advisors concludedthat an ICBM would never be possible.That situation changed in the early 1950swith the development of the hydrogenbomb, which required much smallerwarheads. Thus in 1954, the United States

Air Force declared the Atlas program todevelop an ICBM its highest priority.

In the late 1950s the U.S. was interestedin satellites, not for science, but asreconnaissance satellites for observing theSoviet Union. This was a time in the U.S.of much fear of the Soviets, and muchignorance of what they were capable of. Itwas a time when the U.S. flew U-2 planesover the Soviet Union, one of which wasshot down causing an international incidentfor the Eisenhower administration.Satellites would not have the problem ofbeing shot down. However, it was unclearhow the Soviets would react to over-flightsof satellites. Would it be considered adestabilizing threat?


In 1950, in the living room of James vanAllen, in Silver Spring, Maryland, theInternational Geophysical Year wasconceived, and then carried out in 1957-58. As part of this worldwide effort tounderstand Earth, the founders of the IGYthought that launching a satellite would bea good contribution. The U.S. governmentwas supportive, not because of the scienceit would do, but because a scientificsatellite would legitimize over-flights ofsatellites in general.

The U.S. assigned the development ofits rocket and satellite to the NavalResearch Laboratory – the Vanguardprogram – because NRL was consideredto be essentially a civilian organization,and the U.S. wanted only indirect ties tothe military. Unfortunately, NRL haddifficulty in developing the Vanguardrocket and the Soviets launched first, withSputnik on October 4, 1957. Vanguardblew up in December, and the U.S. turned

Mariner 2 was the world’s first successful interplanetary spacecraft. The spacecraft passed withinabout 34,000 kilometers of Venus, and recorded the planet’s temperature for the first time, revealingthe very hot atmosphere of about 500 degrees Celsius. The spacecraft’s solar wind experiment wasthe first to measure the density, velocity, composition and variation over time of the solar wind.(Source: NASA/JPL)

to Wernher von Braun, now with the Armyin Huntsville, for the rocket and to JPL forthe satellite, and the first Americansatellite, Explorer 1, was launched onJanuary 31, 1958.

There is probably no single event inAmerican history that has had morepositive impact on American society thanSputnik. We had our Pearl Harbor. We hada Civil War. The final outcome of PearlHarbor and our Civil War was a stronger,more advanced America. However, theinitial consequences were death anddestruction. The American response toSputnik, and the Soviet launches ofsatellites and humans that followed, wasall positive, and has transformed oursociety.

Our response came quickly. Shortlyafter the launch of Explorer 1, Congresspassed the Space Act, the bill authorizingthe establishment of NASA, and impartingto it high-minded purposes and a mostcomprehensive mission.

And there was more. In 1958, theNational Defense Education Act waspassed, which altered forever scientificeducation in the United States. Theresearch universities came into theirprominence, in recognition that the pursuitof technology in defense of the nationrequires that the vast science andengineering resources available inAmerican universities needed to be fullydeployed.

The transformation of American societycontinued with President John Kennedy’sremarkable pledge in 1961 committing theUnited States to place a man on the Moonand return him safely to Earth before thedecade was out. Perhaps the most revealingstatements of Kennedy’s intentionsappeared later in the speech when he said“a Moon landing would demand sacrifice,discipline, and organization: the nationcould no longer afford work stoppages,inflated costs, wasteful interagencyrivalries, or high turnover of keypersonnel.” He stated also “every scientist,every engineer, every technician,contractor and civil servant must give hispersonal pledge that this nation will moveforward, with the full speed of freedom, inthe exciting adventure of space.”

Kennedy viewed the Apollo program asan event that would transform the nation.And transform us it did. At the peak of theApollo program, NASA consumed 4% ofthe Federal budget; some 400,000Americans worked on Apollo; some 20,000American industrial firms of all sizes.From Apollo, and the all the other aspectsof space that developed concurrently, wevastly improved the American technicalworkforce, and our sense of whattechnology can accomplish for us.

Perhaps the most remarkable aspect ofthis brief recital of space history is how aprogram that had its origins strictly in themilitary – the German rocket program ofWorld War II, ICBMs, the need for militaryreconnaissance satellites – evolved into ahighly visible, aggressive, andcomprehensive civil space program ofhuman exploration, of science, and of the


“There is probably no single event in American history that hashad more positive impact on American society than Sputnik.”

utilization of space for society. To be sure,throughout the history of the spaceprogram, the development of military spacehas continued unabated – better ICBMs,more capable military reconnaissancesatellites – to now where a modern militaryis completely dependent on the space assetsit can deploy. However, most of the military

work has been classified, invisible to thepublic. The public side of space, whichsociety is most aware of and which it mostbenefits from, is the part of space that wepursue for strictly peaceful purposes.

The reason this evolution occurred isstraightforward. In the Cold War betweentwo superpowers that were capable ofdestroying each other, real war was notpossible. And so civil space became aproxy for war. An opportunity todemonstrate your nation’s technologicalprowess, and no one needed to be hurt inthe demonstration.

Space as a demonstration for a nation’stechnological capabilities was in factwonderful cover for developing all possiblespace capabilities. The more you could do,the more you demonstrated your nation’stechnological prowess. In addition toSputnik 1 and 2 in 1957, the Soviets orbitedthe Moon and took pictures of the far sidein 1959, a testimony to the precision ofSoviet rockets. They launched the firsthuman into space in 1961. On theAmerican side, in addition to pursuingMercury, Gemini, and Apollo, the firstweather satellite, TIROS 1, was launchedin 1961. Also in the early 1960s, the firstactive communication satellites werelaunched, in time to provide televisioncoverage of the Tokyo Olympics in 1964.The first mission to another planet, Mariner2 to Venus, was launched in 1962. Thehuman space flight program may havedominated the American budget in the

1960s, but the idea was to be very goodabout all aspects of space, and to do it inthe most visible way possible.

Other nations, beside the Americans andSoviets, soon joined the Space Age. TheEuropeans, through ESRO, the predecessorto the European Space Agency, ESA,launched its first satellite in 1968. The first

Japanese and the first Chinese satelliteswere launched in 1970. The Indian spaceprogram launched its first satellite in 1975.

Now many nations have highlydeveloped space capabilities. Indeed, thedevelopment just since the turn of the 21stcentury has been dramatic. Chineseastronauts. Europe with the ability toautonomously dock with the InternationalSpace Station. India with a highlydeveloped launch capability. Israel withsophisticated reconnaissance satellites. Tocite just a few examples.

Part of the Underlying Infrastructure ofOur Civilization

Over the years since the beginning ofthe Space Age, we have seen space becomepart of the underlying infrastructure of ourcivilization. We have weather satellites thatprovide the data to sophisticated weatherforecasting models, to predict the weatherthroughout the world. We communicatethrough satellites, particularly the visibleimages of television that bring to each ofus an awareness, unprecedented in humanhistory, of what is happening everywherein the world at all times. We have directbroadcasting that brings the televisionsignals directly into our homes. We haveglobal positioning satellites, which help usfly our airplanes, let us find our ways inautomobiles. We have remote sensingsatellites that provide high-resolutionimages from around the world, availablenow on Google-Earth for all to see.

All this is now part of our basicinfrastructure as a civilization. We don’tparticularly marvel that is available, weassume it will be and think no further aboutit.

When considering the impact of civilspace, we have to look no further the globalinterconnections that have flourished in the

last few decades. We live in a globaleconomy. Corporations are multinational.Manufacturing and trade are worldwide.Countries who in previous generationsmight have been suspicious enemies noware dependent upon each other forresources and as marketplaces for theirmanufactured goods. It has had astabilizing effect on world peace. And ithas been greatly facilitated by satelliteobservations and communications.Detailed knowledge of what is happeningeverywhere in the world, and the ability toshare that knowledge. It reduces fear, andmakes the full engagement among societiespossible and routine.

The Subtler but More Profound ImpactThere is, however, a subtler but far more

profound impact of the Space Age. And thatis how we view ourselves as humans, howwe relate to each other, what is our placein the cosmos. For most people I suspectthe change in attitude, the penetrating newinsight, followed from the historical pictureof Earth taken by the crew of Apollo 8 enroute for the first time to the Moon. TheEarth is beautiful, isolated in the colddarkness of space. We look fragile. Whowould not conclude that we have aresponsibility to protect our home, toensure that it remains a safe haven for usin the inhospitable cosmos?

For others there was a profoundawakening when Voyager, leaving the solarsystem, turned its cameras to look back and


“In the U.S., and perhaps elsewhere in the world, we arewitnessing a fascinating difference among the generationsas to what is impressive.”

see the planets, including Earth, as meredots of light. How vast space is; how alonewe are at least in our local neighborhood.

And then there has been the steadydrumbeat of astronomical discoveries.Space is the ideal location from which toobserve the universe. Our atmosphereshields us from many forms of radiationand even in visible light, which doespenetrate through the atmosphere, it canbe distorting. So from virtually thebeginning of the space program, the spacefaring nations of the world have launchedever more sophisticated astronomicalobservatories, and greatly expanded ourknowledge of the universe, and greatlyexpanded the questions we can ask, andcan expect eventually to answer.

We have observed the remnant radiationfrom the Big Bang that began our universe.We have found that the expansion of theuniverse continues to accelerate, driven by

difficulty in marveling in the beauty andthe majesty of the universe, and in itsunfathomable vastness.

The Copernicus revolution of the early16th century displaced Earth and thushumans from the center of universe,showing that we are just another planetorbiting the Sun. I doubt the public of thattime paid a great deal of attention, but theCopernicus revolution ultimately affectedsociety and its attitudes, even religion.

We are in the midst of another suchrevolution, which in time will have equallyprofound consequences. As the vastness ofthe universe becomes known andappreciated by all, and how common areour planetary circumstances, we becomeever more insignificant. But perhaps wewill view that insignificance in the mostpositive light – that our tensions andconflicts, which are our constant, everydayconcern, are truly insignificant in the grandscheme of the cosmos.

The epic journey of exploration of theSpace Age has been the Voyagerspacecraft, which visited Jupiter, Saturn,Uranus, and Neptune, and now the twoVoyagers are en route out of the solarsystem, both having crossed thetermination shock of the solar wind, wherethe supersonic expansion of the solaratmosphere, the solar wind, goes subsonicand begins the process of merging into thelocal interstellar medium.

There has been unprecedentedexcitement in the discoveries of eachplanetary mission. The flybys were eventsfor which the public stayed up and watched.The rovers on Mars have been adopted bythe public and followed on the Internet witheach new canyon and rock formation thatis explored.

In the U.S., and perhaps elsewhere inthe world, we are witnessing a fascinatingdifference among the generations as to

a force that we don’t yet understand. Wehave discovered that there is matter in theuniverse, a lot of it, which we can’t yetobserve. We have seen galaxies formingat the beginning of the universe, and starsforming in our own galaxy. We havediscovered planets around other stars,many of them, so many that it is ever morelikely that there are other Earth’s andperhaps other civilizations comparable toour own.

We have generated marvelous imagesfrom our great observatories peering intothe universe in all the different wavelengthsof light. The public, in many cases, cannotfully understand the scientific discoveriesenabled by these images. But they have no

The Exploration of the Solar SystemWe have also explored our own solar

system, revealing the wonders and theopportunities it contains. Prior to the SpaceAge, the planets were observed with onlyvery limited resolution, by telescopes. Nowwe have been to them all. Depending whereyou stand on whether Pluto is a planet, wewill be there shortly also.

It has been a systematic process. First,flybys that produced many surprises. Thenorbiters about many of the planets –Venus,Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn, with a Mercuryorbiter currently underway. And in the caseof Mars, there have been landers with theirrovers that roam the surface and look forwater and maybe life.

what is impressive. To the oldergenerations who witnessed Apollo, humanspace flight is impressive. The astronautsare true heroes. However, to the youngergenerations who are steeped in technology,who vicariously participate in all sorts ofadventures through their computers, roverson Mars are more impressive. Indeed, theyounger generation would say what is soimpressive about sending people intospace? The technology, much of which isnot new, is primarily to keep the astronautalive. The rovers, however, are based onthe latest technology. They are doingsomething we have never done before. Andwouldn’t it be better still if the youngergeneration could drive them themselves?


The crew of Apollo 8 was the first to witness the Earth rising over theMoon’s horizon. (Source: NASA)

Indeed, if one of the purposes of thespace program is to demonstrate yournation’s technological prowess, which ismore impressive? Human space flight,which uses the technology of the ‘60s andmay in time take us back to the Moon, orto invoke the full power of the revolutionin technology that has occurred over thepast few decades – in materials, inelectronics – and robotically colonize oursolar system?

The Sun and the Space Environment ItCreates

Consider also how much we havelearned during the Space Age about our Sunand the space environment it creates andin which we live. This year is the 50thanniversary of Gene Parker’s seminalpaper, which predicted that the outeratmosphere of the Sun, a million degreeplasma, would expand supersonically intospace creating a solar wind. Parker’s paperwas highly controversial at the time, nearlyrejected by the journal. It took the firstinterplanetary mission, Mariner 2 in 1962,to settle definitively that indeed Parker was

correct. The atmosphere of the Sun extendsto fill a large region of space, to carve outa heliosphere from the local interstellarmedium. And we now know from Voyagerthat the supersonic flow continues toaround 100 times the distance from the Sunto Earth.

The engine of the space environment ofthe solar system is of course the Sun itself.Prior to the Space Age, the Sun was viewedas a relatively benign object, a constantsource of light and energy, on which wedepend for life. With the advent of spaceobservations in many different wavelengthsof light, the true character of the Sun hasbeen revealed. Its surface and loweratmosphere are a cauldron of dynamicprocesses, driven by strong magneticforces, that can eject large amounts of high-energy particles, and at times large amountsof matter, which can impact Earth and otherplanets.

This is the space environment throughwhich we fly our satellites, and hope someday to fly humans. It is not a friendly place.It is a place where damage can be inflictedon our technologies, and if we are not

careful, death inflicted on our humanexplorers.

We have made much progress indocumenting the range of conditions thatcan occur in our immediate spaceenvironment. We have made only limitedprogress in predicting the conditions inspace. Yet if our societies wish to makemaximum use to the opportunities thatspace provides, we will indeed need areliable predicative capability.

The Sun is a cyclic object. It has an 11-year cycle in its activity. Its magneticpolarity flips every 11 years, for a 22-yearmagnetic cycle. The causes of the cycles,their length, the strength of the activity, allthese are only primitively understood, andnot reliably predicted. Yet there is evidenceof the imprint of these cycles on life onEarth, through means we do notunderstand. As we sort through theundeniable impact of humans on theclimate of Earth, we need to make sure thatwe understand all the natural forcingfunctions, and can predict their occurrenceand their impact.

Taking the First Feeble Steps in Learningto Live and Work in Space

During the first 50 years of the SpaceAge, we have also taken the first feeblesteps in learning to live and work in space.The efforts to use the space environment,particularly the microgravity environment,to do research which has application onEarth, has for the most part been an unfilledpromise. It can be argued that theunfulfilled promise results from the lackof flight opportunities. Missions have beenfew and of relatively short duration. TheInternational Space Station, which isdesigned to provide the opportunities topursue this research, is just now beingcompleted.

What we have done, however, overthese 50 years, is learned to live in spaceand to construct things there, which hasestablished the usefulness of humans inspace. We have demonstrated that humanscan remain in weightlessness for extendedperiods. Since this experience has been


Scientific observation of the Sun has allowed for a better understanding of how the star works.Here, a large, eruptive prominence, with an image of the Earth added for size comparison, extendsover 35 Earths out from the Sun. Erupting prominences (when Earthward directed) can affectcommunications, navigation systems, even power grids, while also producing auroras visible in thenight skies. (Source: ESA/NASA)

within the protective shielding of theEarth’s magnetic field, and thus relativelyfree of radiation, the radiation hazard ofspace and its consequence for humans, andwhether weightlessness and radiationtogether is a serious complication, this stillremains to be determined.

Perhaps the most impressive feature todate of the International Space Station isthat it has been built. A cooperation amongmany spacefaring nations. Anextraordinary construction project, inwhich many different pieces of hardwarehad to come together and be assembled onorbit. We have certainly proven that wecan work together as spacefaring nationsto achieve an impressive accomplishment.

We are racing to retire the Shuttle,which has become a much-malignedvehicle. Its safety is a concern. Its cost far

exceeds what was expected by itsdesigners. But what a marvelous vehiclefor learning to live and work in space –maneuverable, a large payload capacity,large down mass. It made the assembly andutilization of the International SpaceStation possible.

Earth ScienceFinally, there is Earth science. No other

science discipline has had more directimpact on society than Earth science. Andspace has made that impact possible. Wehave passed through a tipping point in thelast 50 years to where now our everydayactivities, our use of natural resources, arehaving a global impact on the future of theplanet. The sustainability of Earth tosupport human life is in question. This is aglobal problem. And the global perspective

of observations from space is required tounderstand what is happening to Earth,what our future holds.

We have also learned, stronglyinfluenced by the global perspectiveprovided by space observations, that Earthis a highly coupled system. Theatmosphere, the oceans, the cryosphere, theland surfaces, the biosphere are all coupled,in an intertwined system, in which complexfeedback mechanisms are possible.Understanding Earth, and what we ashumans are doing to it, is not an easyproblem. It does not do any good simply tosay that Earth is warming due to fossil fuelemissions. That is certainly so. But theknowledge that is required is what are theregional consequences. How willprecipitation patterns change, or growingseasons? Exactly how much will sea levelsrise; a foot makes a big difference.

It will take many observations fromspace, and much of the world’s scientifictalent, to understand exactly how Earthworks, and to predict exactly what we ashumans are doing to it; and to monitor andevaluate our efforts to protect the future ofthe planet, should we ever be so wise as toengage in a serious effort to avoid thepending catastrophe.

In the late 1980s NASA made a seriouseffort to embark on a major program tomake comprehensive observations ofEarth, and to support the science neededto understand the observations, with itsmultibillion dollar Mission to Planet Earth.That program has to date been largelyabandoned under the same governmentpolicies that have treated the humaninfluence on the climate as an uncertainty.The perceived economic consequences ofany meaningful response were consideredto be so overwhelmingly negative thatignorance of what our future holds is apreferred state. Generations to come willnot be kind to us that we treated the futuresustainability of the planet so cavalierly.

At least we can say that one of the mostimportant impacts of civil space is that ithas provided the basis for our growinghuman awareness that our societies,


collectively, will determine the future ofthe planet. Most of us know this. Most ofus came to this realization because of theglobal perspective of Earth that has beenprovided by space observations. Most ofus would like to see wise decisions beingmade to protect that fragile globe that wesaw from Apollo 8 and be sure that itremains our hospitable home in the hostileand lonely environment of space.

Civil Space and the National AgendaThe civil space program was formed to

serve clear national needs – to fight theCold War by proxy; to help transform thenation into a more technologicallyadvanced society. We did that job well. Andmoreover, society realized many additionalbenefits. We vastly increased ourknowledge of Earth, the Sun, our solarsystem, and the universe beyond. Wealtered forever our understanding of ourplace in the cosmos. And, perhaps, mostimportant, we made possible a world thatis highly interconnected andinterdependent, and thus more secure.

The question of course is, then, whatrole should civil space have, and what roleshould NASA have, in the national agendaof today and tomorrow.

Global climate change. Thegovernments and the societies of the worldneed facts on which to base sound policydecisions to ensure the sustainability ofEarth. We have an energy crisis, and in timewe will find new sources of energy, andthese new sources must be consistent withthe necessity to maintain a planet on whichwe can live. The information on thesustainability of Earth will come fromspace observations and the interpretationand analysis of data that space observationsprovide. NASA and NOAA need to providethe most comprehensive and complete

information possible on how Earth works,what we as humans are doing to it, and todo so as soon as possible before irrevocabledamage has occurred.

Economic growth. We have sent themodern day version of the fur trappers orthe Lewis & Clark expedition to determinewhat it is like to live and work in our nearspace environment. Is it not now time forthe settlers to follow? Humans and roboticsworking synergistically to expand oureconomic sphere to include the near spaceenvironment, the Moon, and the asteroids.If so, NASA, together with other nations,needs to extend the human presencethroughout these regions.

National security. We live in a moresecure world because the nations of theworld are reliant upon each other. Will wenot also be more secure in space if spacebecomes a routine place to conduct scienceand for commerce? Where the spacefaringnations cooperate, as we do in science andin commerce on Earth today.

The image of the United States. Weshould be concerned with the image of theUnited States in the world and find waysto portray ourselves as a forward thinking,cooperative society with concerns for allthe world’s peoples. Our civil spaceactivities in all their dimensions, from ourcooperative programs to how we treat andinvolve the citizens of other nations,provide us with the opportunity to be ashining example of the image we wish toproject.

Science. There are compelling tasks thatneed to be undertaken in specific scientificdisciplines. If we extend the humanpresence into space, we no longer have theluxury of treating the conditions and thehazards of space as an interesting scientificproblem to be solved at our leisure. Weneed instead to develop a true predictive

capability of the space environmentthrough which humans will fly. And weshould do so as soon as possible.

Perhaps we will decide that the futureof fundamental physics is in understandingdark energy, which is not understood butappears to be powering the expansion ofthe universe. We need to mount aworldwide effort to use our capabilities inspace to understand this fundamental forceof nature. With anticipation, as with allprevious discoveries in fundamentalphysics, that future societies will dependon and profit from the discoveries we make.

Culture. It cannot be that we occupy thisvast universe alone. Where does everybodyelse live? What are they like? We need todetermine how common life is, even withinour own solar system. And search for lifeelsewhere in the universe and, if possible,to communicate with it. Such an eventwould alter the course of human historylike no other.

Planetary protection. Asteroids can hitEarth and destroy us. An unlikely event,but not an impossible one. We need to fullyunderstand our risks and to be prepared todefend ourselves.

Technology. We need to ever improvethe technology we depend on to exploreand to utilize space, and to make thesetechnological advances available to thebroader economy. To do so, NASA has toensure that its people have imagination, awillingness to take reasonable risks,searching for advances and improvements,not ever being satisfied with the way wehave always done it. And to do so, not inisolation, but rather on behalf of allendeavors in space.

Education. We have a need for atechnically competent workforce, to solvethe many problems facing our nation, andto ensure our economic future. Space has

“No other science discipline has had more direct impact on societythan Earth science. And space has made that impact possible.”


Len A. Fisk is the Thomas M. DonahueCollegiate Professor of Space Science inthe Department of Atmospheric, Oceanic,and Space Sciences at the University ofMichigan. This lecture, based in part onthe paper “The impact of space on society:Past, present and future” by Len A. Fisk,which appeared in Space Policy, 24, 175,2008, was delivered on November 18,2008, as the Carl Sagan MemorialLecture at the 2008 AAS NationalConference and 55th Annual Meeting inPasadena, California.

Observations of Earth from space have recently shown that the decade-long trend of shrinking sea ice cover is continuing. New evidence from satelliteobservations also shows that the ice cap is thinning as well. This data visualization from the AMSR-E instrument aboard Aqua shows the maximum seaice extent for 2008-9, which occurred in late February 2009. (Source: NASA/NSID, Goddard SVS)

a proven record of creating technicallycompetent workforces. The Apolloprogram inspired a generation to pursuecareers in math, science, and engineering.We can do it again.

Hope. Perhaps most of all, particularlythese days, there is a worldwide need tobelieve that the future can be better thanthe present, and to collectively work tosecure that brighter future. Space is allabout the future. We envision a time whenour planet is safe from ourselves. Whenour economies grow without bound. Whenour knowledge of the wonders of theuniverse has become true understanding.When we are a true spacefaringcivilization. We need to pursue thatbrighter future.

And none of these activities, or anyother national agenda item to which civilspace and NASA could contribute, aremutually exclusive. There should be no

single, dominant goal for NASA. Ournation faces, and indeed the world faces,so many problems, and civil space has theability to contribute solutions to many ofthem. And we are blest with so manyopportunities that civil space can help uspursue.

We can ask of course whether what Iam advocating is affordable in ourfinancially imperiled world today. Perhapsthe likelihood is similar to the probabilityof being hit by an asteroid. An unlikelyevent, but not impossible.

NASA is funded at less than 1% of theFederal budget. Why this amount? It ishistorical. The funding level for NASA wasestablished by Richard Nixon in the early1970s, and it has changed little since.

It is also a budget level that is whollyincompatible with how pervasive civilspace has become in our society, and howimportant it is to our nation’s future.

At some point the immediacy of thecurrent financial crisis will abate, and wewill turn our attention again to our nation’sfuture. And when that discussion occurs,civil space needs to take its rightful placein the national agenda.

Thank you very much.


AAS NEWS

The 47th Robert H. Goddard MemorialSymposium drew a large and enthusiasticaudience March 10-12 in Greenbelt,Maryland. This annual symposium is theAAS’ premier event in the Washington, DCarea and is supported by the NASAGoddard Space Flight Center.

On the eve of the Center’s 50thAnniversary, this year ’s theme,“Sustainable Space Exploration,” provideda forum to reflect on the full range of spaceexploration topics: human and robotic,science and technology, policy, humancapital and education, outreach,commercial and international.

Successful Goddard Symposium AddressesSustainable Space Exploration

pipeline, and sustaining the aerospaceindustry. In recognition of Goddard’s 50thAnniversary, panel members from thecenter presented, ‘Five Decades of GSFC:Sustaining Goddard Past, Present andFuture’. Led by Dr. Laurie Leshin, deputydirector for Science and Technology, thefive-member panel reflected on many ofGoddard’s unique missions of the past andpresented overviews of Goddard missionsto come.

Rob Strain opened the second day byaddressing both past accomplishments andthe challenges in sustaining Goddard foranother 50 years. He was followed byupdates and perspectives from each NASAcenter, represented by their directors ordeputies in special panel sessions. Commonthemes included the challenges of an agingworkforce, facilities, and equipment withlimited budgets and technology support.The consensus included a greater need forpartnership to sustain NASA Field Centers.

AAS Vice President-International Clay Mowry,Dick Kline, and AAS President Frank Slazer

Closing speakers discussed the servicingof the Hubble, global change monitoring,NASA’s science program, and an economicview of global space.

Guest luncheon speakers Alan Ladwig,Special Advisor at NASA, and WayneHale, NASA’s Deputy AssociateAdministrator of Strategic Partnerships,enlightened all with their candidperspectives of NASA leadership andprograms. At the Awards Luncheon, AASPresident Frank Slazer presented DickKline with the 2009 Award forInternational Cooperation and MichaelNeufeld with the Eugene EmmeAstronautical Literature Award.

Center Director Rob Strain began thesymposium by introducing keynote speakerGeneral Lester Lyles, who emphasized theimportance of a sustainable, affordable,credible, and relevant space program. Hewas followed by Scott Pace, who discussedchallenges to sustainability, and TomCremins, who focused on sustaining humanexploration.

The first day of the symposium alsoincluded panel sessions covering Earthscience, the education and human resources

Videos of the speakers and presentationswill be available on the AAS websitewww.astronautical.org.

Michael Neufeld and Frank Slazer

Rob Strain

General Lester Lyles


Membership ApplicationMembership Type

Member .............................. $85Affiliate ........................... $85Senior Member ............ $100Retired ............................. $35Teacher (K-12) .............. $35Student (full-time) ....... $35

Payment Method❒ Check Enclosed❒ Credit Card

❒ Visa ❒ Amex ❒ MasterCard________________________________________Credit Card Number

________________________________________Expiration Date

________________________________________Signature

___________________________________________________________________________________Mr./Ms./Dr. Last Name First Name

___________________________________________________________________________________Title Company

___________________________________________________________________________________Address

___________________________________________________________________________________City State Zip Code

___________________________________________________________________________________Phone E-mail

○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○

○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○

703-866-0020www.astronautical.org

Mail to: AAS6352 Rolling Mill Place, Suite 102Springfield, VA 22152-2370

Fax to: 703-866-3526

Membership Benefits Include: Subscriptions to the quarterly The Journal of the Astronautical Sci-ences and the bi-monthly Space Times magazine, as well as reduced rates at all AAS conferences.Visit the AAS website for additional information about benefits.

Feature articles (1,500-3,000 words), op-eds (500-1,500 words), and book reviews (600 words or less) are accepted.Exceptions will be handled on a case-by-case basis.

Articles should be written for a well-educated audience that has a great interest in space topics but may not necessarily befamiliar with your specific topic. Articles may cover virtually any topic involving space science, technology, exploration, law,or policy. Articles that touch on issues relevant to the civil, commercial, and military and intelligence space sectors alike arealso welcomed.

Space Times is a magazine, as opposed to a technical journal. Articles should therefore be written in active voice, with aclear explanation of technical concepts provided, and the tone should lean more toward conversational rather than formal.

The submission deadline is the 15th of the month prior to the issue date (i.e., June 15 for the July/August issue).Articles must be submitted in Microsoft Word format, Times New Roman font, 10.5 pt. Other formatting will be handled by

us during the editing process.Please provide with your article:· a title;· a subtitle or one to two sentence summary of the subject matter;· subheadings to provide separation between major sections of the article, if applicable;· a one to two sentence author biography (byline) which will appear at the end of the article; and· the current mailing address of the author(s) (five complimentary copies of the issue in which the article appears will be

mailed to each author).Submission of photos or other visual support is encouraged, but not required, but if submitted must be provided in high

resolution (at least 300 dpi) JPG or TIF format (CMYK for color and grayscale for black and white). Visuals must not beimbedded in an article but must be provided separately. Please provide proof of permission from the owner of any photos orvisuals, or contact information of the owner if permission has not already been obtained prior to submission of an article.

Please submit articles to [email protected] or contact the AAS Business Office at 703-866-0020.

Space Times Article Submission Guidelines


AAS Events ScheduleMay 26-29, 2009*12th International Space Conferenceof Pacific-basin Societies (ISCOPS)Holiday Inn SelectMontreal, Canada703-866-0020

June 12-14, 2009*5th Student CanSat CompetitionAmarillo, Texaswww.cansatcompetition.com

August 9-13, 2009*AAS/AIAA Astrodynamics SpecialistConferenceRenaissance Pittsburgh HotelPittsburgh, Pennsylvaniawww.space-flight.org

October 12-16, 2009International Astronautical Congress (IAC)“Space for Sustainable Peace and Progress”Daejeon, Koreawww.iac2009.kr

October 20-21, 2009*Von Braun SymposiumVon Braun CenterHuntsville, Alabana703-866-0020

The Aerospace CorporationAir Force Institute of Technologya.i. solutions, inc.Analytical Graphics, Inc.Applied Defense Solutions, Inc.Applied Physics Laboratory / JHUArianespaceAuburn UniversityBall Aerospace & Technologies Corp.The Boeing CompanyBraxton Technologies, Inc.Computer Sciences CorporationDittmar Associates, Inc.Edge Space Systems, Inc.Embry-Riddle Aeronautical UniversityGeneral Dynamics AISGeorge Mason University/CAPRHoneywell Technology Solutions, Inc.International Space UniversityJet Propulsion LaboratoryKinetX, Inc.Lockheed Martin CorporationLunar Transportation Systems, Inc.National Institute of AerospaceN. Hahn & Co., Inc.NoblisNorthrop Grumman Space TechnologyOrbital Sciences CorporationThe Pennsylvania State UniversityRaytheonRWI International Consulting ServicesSAICThe Tauri GroupTechnica, Inc.Texas A&M UniversityUnited Launch AllianceUnivelt, Inc.Universal Space NetworkUniversities Space Research AssociationUniversity of FloridaUtah State University / Space Dynamics LabVirginia TechWomen in Aerospace

AAS Corporate Members

*AAS Cosponsored Meetings

Thank you for your continued support!

UPCOMING EVENTS

Welcome New Corporate Members

RWI International Consulting Services


Weightless Flights of Discoveryby Jeff Elbel

The Northrop Grumman Foundationcontinues its program to provide teacherswith a remarkable experience to helpinspire students in the field of science.

On October 21, 2008, fifty-five teachersmet at Chicago’s O’Hare airport for theride of a lifetime. The guests of honorrepresented schools from a dozen states.All had been selected to participate in theNorthrop Grumman Foundation’sWeightless Flights of Discovery program,which allows middle school instructors totest Newton’s Laws of Motion in zerogravity and micro-gravity aboard achartered Zero-G Corporation flight. TheFoundation’s goal is to energize studentstoward math and science during criticalyears or learning.

During the weeks prior to the flight,teachers worked with their students todevelop experiments to be conducted in theweightless environment. Patricia Greenfrom Orchard View Middle School inMuskeegan, Michigan wore a cape,because her students wanted to know howSuperman’s cape would behave in space.One student signed his name to the capewith the encouraging note, “Don’t die,come back.”

Youthful sarcasm notwithstanding, Ms.Green’s students needn’t have worried.Before the first parabola, Flight SpecialistChace Johnson announced, “You’ll see allof us become five year olds in about tenminutes.” Throughout the flight, the soundsof laughter drowned out the noise of themodified Boeing 727’s engines.

During the first several parabolasproviding zero gravity, Johnson’sprediction proved wholly true. Theexcitement in the cabin exceeded that ofmost kindergarten recess periods, as upbecame down, and bodies drifted into eachother. When the flight directors called,“Feet down, coming out,” participants weretrained to reorient and prepare for the next

pass. When traversing the bottom of theparabola, the sensation of nearly doubleearth’s gravity could be felt as participants’bodies were pressed into the padded cabinfloor.

The flight spent about an hour overWisconsin and Lake Superior, makingfifteen parabolic maneuvers. Each passprovided roughly thirty seconds of reducedgravity at the top of the parabolic arc.Participants were eased into the experienceby being first introduced to Martiangravity. The teachers were encouraged todo push-ups in order to experience thedifference at one third of Earth’s gravity.Next were two parabolas simulating lunargravity at a sixth of Earth’s gravity. Theteachers relished this experience,imagining themselves as Neil Armstrongor Buzz Aldrin, bounding over a barrenmoonscape.

After several parabolas focused on thethrill of the weightless experience, theteachers conducted experimentsdemonstrating concepts of weight versusmass, or studying blood pressure underweightless conditions. Teachers tossedeach other through hula hoops. Chicagoteacher Michael Johnson brought a smallbasketball and hoop to demonstrate the

difficulty of arching a ball into the netwithout the pull of gravity. Fortunately,zero gravity allowed him to more easilydemonstrate the Michael Jordan-styledslam dunk.

Another teacher brought a Newton’sCradle. The popular executive toy has beenused to debunk conspiracy theorists whoclaim that the lunar landing was staged.Before flying, the teacher had filmedherself at regular Earth gravity whileexplaining Newton’s third law, with thecradle clacking beside her. She repeatedthe exercise during a parabola simulatinglunar gravity, with the cradle movingdramatically slower as she spoke. “Thereare plenty of kids today who believe wedidn’t go to the moon,” Flight SpecialistJohnson said. “They think that images ofastronauts bounding across the moon inslow motion could have been easily faked.[This] simple experiment goes a long waytoward demonstrating the physicsinvolved.”

Although a couple of participantsstruggled with motion sickness (they don’tcall it the “Vomit Comet” for nothing),almost everyone who participated agreedthat the only thing that could top the Zero-G experience would be to do it twice.

The Northrop Grumman Foundation hasscheduled four new opportunities forteachers to experience weightlessness,beginning with a flight from Albuquerque,New Mexico, on September 22nd. Formore information, visit http://tinyurl.com/cprh3u online. Non-teaching civilians canbook their own weightless flights with theZero-G Corporation for a ticket price ofroughly $5,200. Visit http://www.gozerog.com for further information.

Jeff Elbel is a senior aerospace engineerat SAIC-Chicago and is the editor ofSpace Times magazine.

Up, up, and away! Math and science teacherstake off for flight while experiencing weightless-ness. Space Times’ Jeff Elbel gives the salute.(Source: Northrop Grumman Foundation)


AAS CAREER CENTER

Searching for Stars?

Discover the vastnetwork of spaceprofessionals righthere on the ground.

The AAS Career CenterMany job seekers and employers are discovering the advantages of searching online for jobsand for qualified candidates to fill them. But when it comes to making career connections in thefield of space science and exploration, the one-size-fits-all approach of the mass-market jobboards may not be the best way to find what you’re looking for. The AAS Career Center offersemployers and job seeking professionals a better way to find one another and make that perfectcareer fit.

Employers: You can target your recruiting to reach qualified professionals quickly and easily.Search the database of resumes to contact candidates proactively, and get automatic emailnotification whenever a candidate matches your criteria.

Job Seekers: The AAS Career Center offers enhanced searchability of job listings, as well asautomated “job agents” that send relevant listings to your email based on your specific criteria.Whether you’re looking for a new job, or ready to take the nextstep in your career, the AAS Career Center will help you findthe opportunity that suits you.

Visit us at http://careers.astronautical.org today to post yourjob or search job listings in your field.


NOTES ON A NEW BOOK

Robots in Space: Technology,Evolution and Interplanetary TravelReviewed by Mark Williamson

Robots in Space: Technology Evolutionand Interplanetary Travel by Roger D.Launius and Howard E McCurdy. JohnsHopkins University Press, 2008. 313pages. ISBN: 978-0-8018-8708-6. $35.00(hardback).

The debate over whether manned orunmanned spacecraft are more effective(particularly cost-effective!) in the realmof space exploration has been runningalmost as long as the Space Age itself. Ithas led to heated arguments and sometimes,to a lack of willingness to communicate.In a field where communication isessential, such circumstances are at bestinadvisable.

This book on unmanned spaceexploration takes the debate by the hornsand labels it “a false dichotomy.” “Theissue is multi-sided,” say the authors, “withapproaches like ‘manned’ and ‘unmanned’giving way to less conventional conceptsas exploration activities mature.” Quitewhat these “concepts” are is notimmediately apparent, mainly because theauthors practice a verbosity one usuallyassociates with the social sciences. It lateremerges that it has much to do with“geopolitical prestige, and survival of thespecies.” The other three objectives ofspace exploration presented by the authors– scientific discovery, commercialapplications and national security – “canbe achieved by robots alone,” they say,while some things can only be done byhumans. No news there.

The titles of the book’s chapters –“Human Spaceflight as Utopia,” “HomoSapiens, Transhumanism, and thePostbiological Universe,” “An Alternativeparadigm?” – indicate the level of

discourse readers should expect. This is noSpace-101. This is not to say that the bookisn’t well written. It’s simply not asaccessible as some readers may wish. Aspart of the publisher’s “New Series inNASA History,” it is aimed more atacademics than lay readers (as confirmedby the 45 pages of references and a totallack of illustrations).

Luckily, though, it’s an academic bookwithout the academic ($100) price tag, andone of those volumes space aficionadosshould consider as part of the ‘next level.’It’s the sort of book you yearn for whenyou’re finished with the coffee tableglossies, graduated through the pottedhistories and the future technology tomes,and feel you’re ready for a bit of socio-political analysis and cross-culturalspeculation (referring to the “cultures” ofscience fiction and engineering fact).

The book contains plenty of referencesto science fiction, particularly the role ofrobots, such as “Gort” in the SF classicfilm The Day the Earth Stood Still andwhat the authors dismiss as “the silly robotin the 1960s television series Lost inSpace.” And of course, you’d be surprisedif they failed to mention HAL from 2001,C3PO from Star Wars, and Asimov’s Lawsof Robotics. It is these parts of the bookwith which most space-aware readers willassociate, as they help to place the real-world robotics of space exploration (so faras it exists) in a cultural context.

The difficulty comes when the authorsworry themselves about terminology,seemingly uncertain whether to refer tospacecraft as robotic, automated, or – inthe classical sense – unmanned. They evendedicate an appendix to the subject, titled“Inadequate Words: A Note on

Terminology,” which examines thehistorical development of spacecraftdefinition. The thing is, they wouldn’t havea problem if they weren’t so bound up inwhat they call “an obvious genderimpropriety” and recognised that“manned” needn’t mean “populated bymen.” Modern, intelligent men are wellaware of the equality of women, andmodern intelligent women don’t feelthreatened by labels. But this is not theplace for discussions of “politicalcorrectness.” Neither is a book on robotsin space.

Ignoring irrelevancies, this book shouldinterest any intelligent reader with aninterest in the history and future of spaceexploration, whatever technology isapplied. Its mix of historical backgroundand social context, entirely due to theauthors’ long experience, takes the readerwell beyond the usual issues of technicalchallenge and budget limitations, whilenumerous selected quotations accentuatethe human element (albeit sometimes byvirtue of the technology they produce). Forexample, former presidential assistant forscience and technology, John H. Gibbons,compares “the von Braun paradigm – thathumans were destined to physically explorethe solar system” with “technologies thatwill fundamentally redefine the explorationparadigm.” “We have the ability to put ourminds where our feet can never go,” hesaid. Or as the introduction to The SixMillion Dollar Man put it so succinctly,“We have the technology.”

Mark Williamson is an independentspace technology consultant and author.


6352 Rolling Mill Place6352 Rolling Mill Place6352 Rolling Mill Place6352 Rolling Mill Place6352 Rolling Mill PlaceSuite 102Suite 102Suite 102Suite 102Suite 102Springfield, VA 22152-2370Springfield, VA 22152-2370Springfield, VA 22152-2370Springfield, VA 22152-2370Springfield, VA 22152-2370

Address Service Requested

Non Profit Org.U.S. Postage

PAIDPermit #161

Lancaster, PA

march / april 2009space times • march/april 2009 3 president’s message frank a. slazer...

Documents