Category Archives: Space Travel

Sending back humans to the lunar surface via rockets does not come cheap. That is why scientists are looking for alternative ways of traveling 'to the moon and back,' which led them to the idea of building a lunar elevator. With a few billion dollars, they see it as a cost-effective and, probably, environment-friendly way for space travel.

However, could this idea be possible and feasible for future Moon travel? What is a lunar elevator, and how will scientists make this idea possible?

(Photo: Wikimedia Commons)A conceptual drawing of a space elevator lifting off.

A 2019 study titled "The Spaceline: a Practical Space Elevator Alternative Achievable With Current Technology," published in Semantic Scholar, suggests that a lunar elevator could be the answer to future Moon travel.

It describes a cable anchored to the lunar surface that stretchers 250,000 miles (400,000 kilometers), although it will not be directly attached to Earth because of the relative motions of both the planet and the Moon. Researchers of the study said that this project is doable with a few billion U.S. dollars.

AsScience Focusreported, the cable will be thinner than a pencil and weighs about 40 tons. The lunar elevator would not have to be connected to Earth, stopping shyly at the surface, unlike the space elevator.

Additionally, the cable could be made from existing materials, such as Kevlar, since the Moon has no atmosphere. That means there is no need for super-strong materials for the space elevator.

Moreover, China is also planning to build a Sky Ladderthat will send a spacecraft up on an elevator from the Earth's surface to a space station before flying off towards the Moon, where it will meet another elevator that will bring it down to the lunar surface.

ALSO READ: Disney's Space 220 Restaurant Set To Open in September: Take Space Elevator to Out-of-This-World Diner!

The idea of building space elevators has been around for more than a century, and it might be possible in the future to keep costs down and sky-high profits.

A NASA fact sheetsays that the high cost of space transportation coupled with unreliability limits the dreams of venturing space to realize a promise of a better life on Earth.

A paper titled "The Cost of Reaching Orbit: Ground-Based Launch Systems," published in Space Policy, estimates that getting materials or supplies from Earth's surface to the International Space Station would cost about $10,000 per pound ($20,000 per kilogram).

However, Business Insiderreported that experts estimated that a well-designed elevator would cut that cost to as low as $100 per kilogram. They calculated that even if it would cost around $1,000 per kilogram, that would only be roughly 5% of the current cost of sending supplies to space.

Furthermore, experts say that the space elevator can be built with existing technology and would considerably costs from $1 billion to almost $90 billion. More so, an analysis of three different designs showed that the lunar elevator could also be designed to make it environment-friendly.

RELATED ARTICLE:Company Gets Patent For Space Elevator

Check out more news and information on Space Elevatorin Science Times.

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To the Moon and Back: Lunar Elevator Possible With Only a Few Billion Dollars; Experts Deem It Cheaper Than Rockets for Space Travel - Science Times

Leave Earth and its protective atmosphere along with its magnetic field and you will get bombarded with all sorts of cosmic raditions. These radiations are deadly and high exposure may even cause death. These radiations are a big factor that needs to be considered while designing spacecraft fit for human travel.

Mars is widely considered to be the next frontier after Moon as far as human space travel is concerned. But Martian surface is bombarded by cosmic and solar radiation as well. An astronaut may have to face these deadly rays while on the red planet.

But now we may have found a way to protect the astronauts by making use of geology of the Martian surface.

A new study has shed light on this. The study makes use of data from Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) Curiosity. When MSL Curiosity landed on the surface of the Mars. It had an instrument called Radiation Assessment Detector (RAD) on board.

MSL studied the Murray Buttes region on Mars. Curiosity was to study the geology of Mars there. However, there was another observation that was important. A drop in the amount of radiation was seen. The drop was about by 5 per cent.

Though the drop in radiation is not absolutely significant, this has opened the possibility of exploring geological features on the surface of Mars that possibly may shelter astronauts.

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There may be a way to protect astronauts from radiation on Martian surface - WION

Two years after being recognized by NASA for their conceptual design, the team reflects on how this project influenced where they are today

In 2019, a team of eight UC Davis undergraduate students developed a concept for the Martian Agriculture and Plant Science (MAPS) Greenhouse that was selected as a Top 5 Finalist in the 2019 NASA BIG Idea Challenge. Two years later, their ideas continue to circulate as their paper was presented in April 2021 at the American Society of Civil Engineering (ASCE) Earth and Space Conference, while the team members continue to pursue new and varied opportunities.

The conference, which according to their website, aims to bring the experience and knowledge of experts in the aerospace industry together to share and discuss the latest research and engineering techniques that affect the exploration and settlement of space, was originally set to take place in 2020 before being delayed a year by the pandemic.

Fifth-year aerospace science and mechanical engineering double major and MAPS team lead Duha Bader represented the team by presenting the paper at the conference, and she commemorated the opportunity with a recent LinkedIn post where she thanked project mentor and former NASA astronaut Professor Stephen Robinson, as well as her teammates.

Last week, I had the honor of speaking at the annual ASCE Earth and Space Conference 2021 as an Author for the Martian Agriculture and Plant Science (MAPS): A Food Production Solution for Sustainable Human Presence on Mars paper, read Baders post. MAPS introduces a unique method of transforming Martian regolith into arable soil as well as the implementation of a smart irrigation system.

Journey Byland, a UC Davis alumni and soils lead for MAPS, elaborated via email on the content of the technical report originally written to address the challenge of designing a Martian Surface Greenhouse capable of providing enough calories and nutrition for a crew of four astronauts.

While the popular solution was to integrate hydroponics, which according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture is a method of growing plants in a soilless setting by using a nutrient solution root medium, Byland said that their team chose to instead utilize the martian regolith, or soil, to plant the crops.

Lucas Brown, a fourth-year physics major at UC Davis and irrigation lead for MAPS, explained why the team made this decision.

While employing hydroponics is the first and most obvious choice for designing a greenhouse on Mars, I think theres a real benefit in the long term to exploring the use of martian regolith, Brown said via email. One such benefit being that it would allow for a direct utilization of resources present on Mars rather than relying on entirely synthetic systems that have to be brought along with each launch, another such benefit being that it could contribute to soil research that might benefit us here on Earth as we adapt to a changing climate.

Byland explained how they were able to design this concept.

[We] designed a system that would intake Martian regolith, rinse it in water to dissolve out the [toxic] perchlorate salts, and use an electron beam decontamination system to kill any bacteria, Byland said.

As well as having a unique design, another factor that set the team apart was their interdisciplinary approach, as they drew from a wide variety of fields such as agriculture, structural engineering, thermodynamics and more.

We pulled from a huge variety of resources when producing our design: professors with a variety of specialties, friends who grew plants indoors, fellow students majoring in engineering and one majoring in nutrition, online databases about Martian soil composition, textbooks, research articles, etc., said fourth-year aerospace science and engineering major Isabella Elliot via email. I believe that collaboration and consultation are part of the foundation for productive research and design: science is not a solitary discipline, and working alone without input from other specialties can be detrimental to a project.

Elliot offered one example of how collaboration played a part in their project.

One person suggested having the LEDs in our greenhouse turn on and off in succession so as to mimic the movement of the sun across the sky on earth to help plants grow more evenly and produce a more uniform harvest, a concept that never would have crossed my mind but made absolute sense, Elliot said. Working with persons from other fields as an engineer is enormously enlightening, and fundamentally helped our design take shape and thrive.

Brown had a similar appreciation for the role of interdisciplinary science in their project.

Engineering and design projects like this are inherently interdisciplinary, as there are just so many different problems to solve and constraints to work with, Brown said. Not only did we have to think up ways to sustain a crews food supply for multiple years in a small and isolated environment, but we had to consider the many limitations on that design that come with launching hardware on top of a rocket, through interplanetary space, and later deploying it remotely on the surface of a hostile planet where temperatures reach far below anything seen on Earth.

However, he also emphasized the importance of niche research and specialists, explaining that throughout the project their team both consulted specialists in specific areas and delegated research responsibilities to different individuals on the team.

It helps to have a wide array of people working on that problem and communicating about it, all employing different areas of expertise, Brown said. I know personally Im a huge advocate for breaking down barriers between disciplines for this very reason. One of the things Ive been thinking a lot about these days is trying to increase open collaboration between the sciences and non-STEM disciplines like philosophy or sociology to ensure the scientific community continues to make progress and employ creativity while also being self-reflective about things like methodology and social responsibility.

Both Elliot and Brown considered what theyve learned since the MAPS project that would influence them to approach the problem differently if they were working on it today.

Now that some time has passed and I have more technical experience, my repertoire for problem solving has expanded greatly and I imagine that my approach to problems would be more methodical and less sporadic, Elliot said. More than anything, I would know where to start looking for answers when difficult questions come up.

Brown talked about what perspective the past two years have given him as far as overlooked but essential aspects of space travel design.

I [] wouldve spent some more time thinking about the role of our greenhouses interior design as being a psychological aid to the astronaut crew, Brown said. While this was definitely given some thought in our design, I am coming to increasingly realize that a Martian voyage is likely to be extremely taxing on a human level, and a lot of focus needs to be given to how living spaces like our greenhouse are designed to maximize crew comfort if such a mission is to be successful. We are really only beginning to understand the psychological effects of a human transition into long-term space travel ventures.

Several members of the team also described where they are now, how the early years of their college experience got them to where they are today and what their plans are looking forward.

Byland graduated with a Bachelors of Science in physics this June, and is starting graduate school this fall at the UC Davis Physics Department as a PhD student, currently studying experimental condensed matter physics.

Elliot, an English major upon starting college, solidified her interest in aerospace through working on the MAPS project and is currently working with a professor on hybrid electric aircraft power generation, hoping to work in the future toward designing sustainable air and space craft.

Its always nice to look back on that project, Elliot said. It was one of the most influential parts of my college career so far and Im proud of the work my team and I produced.

Jackson Liao, a fourth-year aerospace engineering major on the team who was always passionate about space exploration, similarly had his interests solidified through the experiences and the connections that the NASA BIG Idea Challenge offered him.

Being able to be at the forefront of new ideas for the purpose of space exploration gave me an even deeper appreciation of the technicality, challenges, and creativeness that comes with developing new technology for space, Liao said.

As for Brown, he came to the realization after the competition was over that he wanted to pursue physics rather than aerospace engineering; he found himself gravitating toward abstract problems, especially as they are related to space and the universe. He now aims to attend graduate school for physics in the future and has aspirations for research in one of several space-based fields.

I think in part due to this project, Im also increasingly interested in the intersection of physics and engineering with other disciplines from philosophy to sociology and politics, Brown said. When working on projects like this that require you to think about the future of technology and humanitys presence in space, I think its important to really think big, making sure youre questioning foundational assumptions along the way, so you can make sure that future youre helping to shape is truly a better world for everyone in it. So these are all definitely ideas that Ill be taking with me as I go forward in my career.

Written by: Sonora Slater science@theaggie.org

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Conceptual Martian greenhouse created by team of UC Davis undergraduates in 2019 presented at this year's ASCE conference - The Aggie - The Aggie

The Soyuz MS-04 spacecraft touched down in Kazakhstan on Sept. 3, 2017, with NASA astronaut Jack Fischer on board.

Four years ago, Jack Fischer -- a now-retired NASA astronaut -- came back to Earth from the International Space Station with a ride in a Russian Soyuz spacecraft. Fischer is reliving his experiences on Twitter, and the posts show just how rough it is to get home from space.

The video shows Fischer, NASA astronaut Peggy Whitson and Roscosmos cosmonaut Fyodor Yurchikhin tucked into their Soyuz seats in 2017. It's three minutes of shakes, rattles and bumps with time-lapse sections of the reentry and landing.

Unlock the biggest mysteries of our planet and beyond with the CNET Science newsletter. Delivered Mondays.

"Some astronauts compare it to a series of car crashes... and I wouldn't disagree," Fischer tweeted.

We're used to seeing images of astronauts on the ISS floating calmly around in microgravity. Fischer's inside-the-capsule video gives us a very different view of the astronaut experience. It's not all pizza parties and space-gardening.

Fischer also shared a stunning short video with a window view of reentry. "I came home from space four years ago this week, and if you've ever wondered what it looks like when you travel through this atmosphere -- here you go," Fischer said.

Fischer spent over nine years with NASA before returning to the US Air Force in 2018. While the ride from space to might have been on the bumpy side, he seems to be looking back fondly on his time traveling between orbit and Earth.

Continued here:

Return trip to Earth is like 'a series of car crashes,' says astronaut - CNET

What do you see when you look at the Moon? Beauty? Craters? Some people see dollar signs. Youll occasionally see our only natural satellite billed as Earths eighth continent because its full of resources that are hard to ignore. A rare form of helium, helium-3, could be used in fusion power stations here on Earth. Rare elements, such as neodymium, could be extracted and returned home for use in smartphones and other electronics.

But how do we get them here without blowing all the profits on rockets? According to a study published in 2019, a lunar elevator could be the answer. A cable anchored to the lunar surface would stretch most of the 400,000km (250,000 miles) home. It couldnt be directly attached to the Earth, due to the relative motions of the two objects, but it could terminate high in Earth orbit.

That would have the added benefit of placing it above the bulk of our space junk, a growing problem as we launch ever more satellites. Solar-powered robotic shuttles could move up and down the cable, acting as a conveyor belt to ferry precious resources our way.

It may sound like an outlandish prospect, but Zephyr Penoyre and Emily Sandford the two University of Columbia astronomy PhD candidates behind the study believe we could pull it off for a few billion US dollars.

To put that into context, Jeff Bezos liquidates $1bn (over 700m) of his Amazon stock every year to fund his Blue Origin space tourism company. NASAs Artemis programme, which is sending the first female astronaut and first astronaut of colour to the Moon later this decade, is costing $86bn (60bn). Such is the value of the Moons resources, a separate study estimated that a lunar elevator would pay for itself within just 53 trips.

The cable, which would be no thicker than a pencil, would weigh 40 tonnes well within the remit of modern rockets, such as SpaceXs Starship. Unlike a space elevator that would travel from Earths surface into space, a lunar elevator stopping slightly shy of our planet wouldnt have to contend with huge gravitational forces.

The Moon has no atmosphere either, which simplifies matters. That means the cable could be made from existing materials, such as Kevlar, instead of the yet-to-be-invented super-strong materials needed for an Earth-to-space elevator.

We could also combine the two. In April 2021, Chinese state-run media presented the countrys idea for a Sky Ladder. This would see a spacecraft winched up an elevator from Earths surface to a waiting space station, before being flung towards the Moon where it would meet another elevator that would lower it down to the lunar surface.

The idea of space elevators has been around for over a century without much progress. But if enough people or, more likely, corporations become enamoured with the chance of making big bucks, we could see the lunar equivalent of a gold rush in the decades ahead. Elevators could well turn out to be a way to keep costs down and profits literally sky-high.

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Forget rockets a lunar elevator is the future of Moon travel - BBC Science Focus Magazine

Shareholders ofAstra Space (NASDAQ:ASTR) got a reminder last week that space is hard.

The company, which went public earlier this year via a merger with a special purpose acquisition company, orSPAC, saw a test launch of its new rocket fall short of expectations after one of the five main engines powering the rocket failed. The stock fell more than 20% on the first day of trading after the incident.

Space has been a hot sector among investors, thanks in part to analyst estimates that it could represent a $1 trillion opportunity by 2040. But as Astra's experience shows, few rocket companies go straight up. There are substantial risks that come with space operations, and it is possible that not all of the public companies dabbling in space today will reach their destination.

For investors willing to brave the unknown and explore this new frontier, here's why three Motley Fool contributors believe L3 Harris (NYSE:LHX),Virgin GalacticHoldings (NYSE:SPCE), andRocket Labs USA (NASDAQ:RKLB) stand to benefit from the modern-day space race.

Image source: Getty Images.

Lou Whiteman(L3 Harris): L3 Harris isn't as glamorous a choice as some of the newer companies focused on space. But it does offer strong exposure to the cosmos with a lot less risk of losing everything.

L3 Harris is the nation's newest defense prime contractor, formed by the 2019 merger of Harris and L3 Technologies. Both of those companies had a focus on electronics and communications, and together they have a formidable portfolio of space offerings.The company doesn't make the powerful rockets needed to leave Earth's atmosphere, but it does make a range of antennas, transmitters, power modules, and other electronics that go into satellites.

The company's space and airborne division, which includes not just extraterrestrial work but also components for warplanes, accounted for about 27% of total revenue in the first half of 2021. In the most recent quarter, L3 Harris space grew revenue by 10%, capturing classified awards totaling more than $300 million. CEO Chris Kubasik said on the company's second-quarter earnings call that the company has a three-year space pipeline of "nearly $20 billion."

In L3 Harris, investors get a growing space business supported by a wide range of defense electronics, communications, and avionics assets. The company pays a 1.75% dividend yield, and management is planning to spend more than $3 billion on share buybacks in the quarters to come.

L3 Harris appears well positioned to gain altitude from here.

Rich Duprey (Virgin Galactic): Going into space is for risk-takers and the adventurous, and though investors need to be much more circumspect with the businesses they put their money in, I still like Virgin Galactic precisely for its derring-do.

I'll say up front that if the allegations of Virgin purposefully sweeping aside safety considerations simply to beat some arbitrary deadline are true, then that's unacceptable. Particularly when you're going into space, the risks are already great, and ignoring safety protocols can only exacerbate them with potentially devastating impact

With that said, I think the doubts expressed about Virgin are weighing on its stock, and that gives investors an opportunity to buy in just as it is poised to begin commercial operations.

Later this month, Virgin's VSS Unity will undertake its first commercial, human-tended research mission by carrying three paying crew members from the Italian Air Force and the National Research Council to evaluate the effects of the transition from gravity to microgravity on the human body.

Virgin Galactic's Unity spacecraft. Image source: Virgin Galactic.

After the mission, Virgin will upgrade the Eve mothership and then begin commercial service late next year. It has already signed up 600 people paying $250,000 or more apiece for the opportunity to participate in the launch of the space tourism industry.

While missions for NASA and other commercial enterprises have been the base motivation behind private space travel, it is the tourism aspect of it that sparks the imagination and brings rocketry down to the human level. Virgin Galactic is the vehicle through which investors can participate in that.

Analysts eye some $120 billion in potential future demand for the rocketeer that could turn into some $1.7 billion in revenue by 2030 for Virgin, though it admittedly has to get over some high hurdles to reach altitude. Some analysts worry about the Federal Aviation Administration impeding its flight path, and my colleague Rich Smith, who is pitching a different space stock today, has doubts Virgin can actually realize such sky-high estimates.

It's that risk-taking and adventurous nature of founder Richard Branson that suggests to me this is more than possible. And while it might require a bit of a leap of faith to believe he can see it through, I believe Virgin has the potential to grow into its valuation.

Rich Smith (Rocket Lab): My favorite "new space" stock is Rocket lab, a tiny rocket company and recent SPAC IPO.

"New" or not, Rocket Lab has been putting satellites into orbit for quite a while now. In fact, since May 2017, it has launched 21 separate, successful missions, and put more than 100 satellites into orbit for commercial customers and U.S. government agencies including NASA and the U.S. Space Force.

And tiny or not, Rocket Lab is big enough that it recently won a NASA contract to send two spacecraft not just into Earth orbit, but all the way to Mars. In 2024, two Rocket Lab Photon spacecraft will travel to the Red Planet to conduct environmental surveys into the effects of solar wind on the Martian atmosphere. The company even has plans to send a spacecraft to Venus on its own dime.

I admit, flight manifests and future plans notwithstanding, the stock remains something of an unknown quantity. Most financial data providers don't even have an accurate read on the company's market capitalization, much less estimates for future sales and profits.

But with a strong record of success, an established customer base for its Electron rocket, and plans underway to build an even bigger rocket (the Neutron, expected to have 27 times the payload capacity of the Electron), at the very least, I can say that Rocket Lab looks to be moving in the right direction: pointy end up.

This article represents the opinion of the writer, who may disagree with the official recommendation position of a Motley Fool premium advisory service. Were motley! Questioning an investing thesis -- even one of our own -- helps us all think critically about investing and make decisions that help us become smarter, happier, and richer.

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Space Is Hard, but These 3 Space Stocks Can Reach Orbit - The Motley Fool

(Adds details on mission plan, background)

Sept 2 (Reuters) - Virgin Galactic Holdings Inc is launching its first commercial research mission named "Unity 23" along with the Italian Air Force to the edge of space, it said on Thursday.

The space travel company has set late September or early October as the time for the mission that will carry three paying crew members from the Air Force and the Rome-based government agency National Research Council.

The crew will study the effect on the human body as they move from gravity to a low-gravity atmosphere and provide insights for future spaceflight systems and technologies.

The mission follows a successful first crewed test flight to space by Virgin Galactic's passenger rocket in July.

The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration is investigating a deviation in the descent of the flight that took billionaire Richard Branson to space.

The company had said in July that it plans at least two more test flights of the spaceplane before beginning regular commercial operation in 2022.

One of those flights will carry four Italian astronauts-in-training, according to Chief Executive Michael Colglazier. (Reporting by Tiyashi Datta in Bengaluru; Editing by Arun Koyyur)

Continued here:

UPDATE 1-Virgin Galactic to fly Italian Air Force on research mission to space - Yahoo Finance

The pioneering event on space and underwater tourism, which brings together the main international space agencies and private ventures, will celebrate its second edition at Les Roches from September 22nd to 24th, coinciding with the autumn equinox and in hybrid format, with one full day of face-to-face presentations and two additional days of virtual sessions.

SUTUS 2021, under the title "Tourism Beyond Natural Borders", is a unique event, organized by Les Roches, one of the most important in the world together with Medina Media Events.

This edition will feature renowned international and national professionals from the aerospace industry together with officials from NASA, ESA, and JAXA. During the three-day conference speakers and panels will discuss, among other current issues, private travel to space and the private capital ventures working to make the dream reality alongside more scientific research into areas like agriculture on other planets. Upon returning to Earth, participants at SUTUS will dive into the world of subaquatic tourism, where marine archaeologists, diving experts and intrepid explorers will show them this unexplored world.

In addition, the Les Roches campus will also host a demo area where innovative projects related to tourism from different national and international companies will be exhibited, such as the emergency shelter designed by ESA, a zeppelin floating over the campus, an educational project by The City of the Stars which consists of a 4x6 meter portable planetarium that forms part of a virtual reality walk through the solar system.

Carlos Dez de la Lastra, Managing Director of Les Roches Marbella, said SUTUS was born to become a benchmark for luxury tourism. For this new edition of SUTUS, theres no better place than Les Roches, a hotel management training school and benchmark of quality education both inside and outside our borders, to collaborate with this exciting project.

In this second edition, and through the platform by Medina Media Events that has been used in the 4K-HDR Summit, the 5GForum and Extenda Global, virtual assistants and registered companies will be able to follow all the sessions via live streaming and have B2B meetings between them and the speakers.

In-person participation, due to anti-Covid measures, will be restricted to speakers, institutions, sponsors, VIP attendees and the media.

Through the website http://www.sutusummit.com you can register and access the official program. SUTUS is an opportunity to listen to keynote speakers talk about the most ambitious challenges of the emerging space and underwater tourism sectors and to share knowledge and business opportunities.

FOR MEDIA ASSISTANCE AND INTERVIEW REQUESTS, PLEASE CONTACT:[emailprotected]

MORE INFORMATION:https://www.sommet-education.com/

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Les Roches brings together the world's leading experts in space and underwater tourism to analyze the challenges this emerging sector will face in the...

With about 20 active spacefaring nations, 90-plus space agencies around the globe, commercial space flights, and thousands of satellites in Earth orbit, its time for international space-traffic control.

Nobody wants a couple of multi-million-dollar satellites crashing into one another, and the economic loss isnt the only concern. A smash-up could raise questions of whether it was a hostile attack, and it would create hundreds of small pieces of space debris.

So far, the tracking that started at the dawn of the space age has become increasingly sophisticated and has been able to keep things orderly. But close calls and alerts to satellite operators about potential dangers are increasing.

This weeks grounding of Virgin Galactica because it strayed from its flight path on the July 11 flight that carried founder Richard Branson, two pilots, and three other passengers briefly outside the Earths atmosphere is a case in point, although its flight was regulated through airspace by the Federal Aviation Administration.

As more spacecraft travel to and from space through FAA-regulated airspace, it only increases the need for a formalized space-traffic control system was mentioned frequently at the recent 36th Space Symposium in Colorado Springs, along with updating the rules for responsible behavior in space.

But it was clear that nationalism and the quest for military superiority in space could get in the way.

Space traffic management and rules are topics that have bubbled through the military, civilian and commercial space communities for years, but theres a sense of urgency as we have entered what Gen. Jay Raymond, chief of space operations for the U.S. Space Force, called the second golden age of space.

Consider just a few statistics: The number of satellites in low-earth orbit rose from 2,100 in 2019 to 4,900 today; the cost of getting a payload into space has dropped from the Space Shuttle rate of $25,000 a pound to $1,250 a pound on a commercial rocket; more than 32,000 objects, including the International Space Station and small pieces of debris, are being tracked by the Space Force (an estimated 250,000 smaller pieces of debris untracked by the military are in low-Earth orbit), and the global space economy was estimated at $447 billion in 2020 with few impacts from the pandemic.

In Colorado, there are more than 500 aerospace companies and suppliers, including operations for nine of the top 10 in the country. Those companies employ more than 33,000 people for an annual payroll of $4.3 billion, according to the Colorado Space Coalitions 2021 report.

Even as symposiums speakers talked about the need to maintain a safe and stable space domain, satellite data was being relayed to assist rescue workers in Haiti, wildland firefighters in California, water managers working to allocate a shrinking resource in the parched West, and those involved with the frenzied evacuation of Afghanistan.

Indeed, the world relies heavily on space systems in many aspects of daily life.

The idea of controlling activity on a global scale for the good of all isnt a new concept. We do it in the air, on the sea, and with the telecommunication airwaves. The time has come, and were perhaps already late, to do it in outer space.

I detected some dissonance, though, in the remarks on this topic at the symposium.

Uniformed and civilian speakers connected to the Department of Defense or U.S. national security interests were nearly half of the general symposium program (16 of 35 presentations), so the drumbeat to maintain U.S. prominence in space was loud. And the drumbeat of China is a threat (and to a lesser extent, Russia) was louder.

Heres a sample of those voices:

Even NASA Administrator Bill Nelson, who participated in several forums and generally spoke about civil space endeavors and international and commercial partnerships, said: Were in a space race with China.

Speakers on international panels and the director of the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA) were more likely to talk about the importance of space systems in combating climate change and for disaster mitigation. They clearly favor a United Nations approach to space traffic control.

The United States has started this work and, you might be surprised to learn, so has New Zealand, whose space agency was created just five years ago.

In 2018, President Trump directed the Commerce Department to develop a space traffic management system and to mitigate the effects of space debris for commercial providers. The job falls to the Office of Space Commerce.

It makes sense thats where the Federal Aviation Administration started after fledgling efforts by the airlines to institute air traffic controls.

The Space Force will continue to maintain its catalog of objects in space.

Pelzer said hes glad that work is underway as it can serve as a draft for a UN solution.

Of course, China and Russia werent at the symposium to weigh in on the subject.

Neither was the New Zealand Space Agency, which is rapidly developing a regulatory regime to support the growth of a safe, responsible and secure space industry, which meets our international obligations and manages any liability arising from our obligations as a launching state.

Its working with LeoLabs, a California-based company that is building a network of ground-based radars to track even the tiniest piece of debris in low-Earth orbit and provide real-time data to satellite operators.

New Zealand is using that tracking data to ensure everything it licenses for launch about 100 satellites so far is where its supposed to be and doing what its supposed to do.

For us its a template of how to do operational space-traffic safety management, which has not been done anywhere, said Dan Ceperley, CEO and co-founder LeoLabs.

Ceperley has been talking with the Commerce Department, too.

We need a regulatory body defining the rules of the road and actually monitoring whats going on in space, he said.

He didnt want to weigh in on who should be the regulator but noted that space is an international arena and there is collaboration that crosses many borders. He believes the thing that contributes the most to good behavior in space is transparency.

The new space race is primarily commercial, and we want to make that successful, he said. We really dont want a conflict in space and transparency can drive deterrence.

With tracking, aggressive behavior or irresponsible behavior will be spotted and discussed, and that encourages good behavior, he said.

UNOOSA has played a significant role in shaping good behavior with the formation of international space law since its creation in 1959. The cornerstone is the Outer Space Treaty of 1967, which allows for freedom of exploration and the non-appropriation of outer space, including the moon and other celestial bodies.

Four subsequent treaties have reinforced and updated the original treaty, but the last of those was the 1979 Moon Agreement.

UNOOSA also issued guidelines on debris mitigation and sustainability. Those are guidelines still, they encourage good behavior.

Updating those agreements and expanding them to include space traffic control is badly needed, and some speakers spoke to that.

It might have been easier before the United States and other nations realized that lunar resources could likely be used to create a space outpost and to get humans to Mars and beyond. Thats why everyone is rushing to get back on the moon and to be first.

We need to be there first and greet others, said U.S. Sen. Jerry Moran (R-Kansas), who serves in the Senate aerospace caucus and the Space Force caucus. We are behind in this new space race.

Dominance in space will be a key factor in ensuring our security in years to come.

Others leaned in more toward international cooperation.

Aschbacher noted that Russia and China have invited ESA to participate in lunar missions, and the agency provided tracking for Chinas lunar probes, the latest of which was launched last year. ESA also has what he termed valuable partnerships with NASA, including for the Artemis lunar mission.

Thats the general backdrop for figuring out international space traffic control and debris mitigation.

Meanwhile, Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin in July issued a memorandum on five Tenets of Responsible Behavior in Space.

They are: operate in, from, to and through space with due regard to others and in a professional manner; limit the generation of long-lived debris; avoid the creation of harmful interference; maintain safe separation and safe trajectory, and communicate and make notifications to enhance the safety and stability of the domain.

Thats a lot like what the UNOOSA promotes in its treaties and guidelines.

And a lot like what Ceperley means when he talks about good behavior.

So maybe theres hope for more international agreement especially if the United States tones down its dominance in space rhetoric.

Sue McMillin is a long-time Colorado reporter and editor who worked for The Gazette and Durango Herald. Now a regular columnist for The Denver Post and a freelance writer, she lives in Caon City. Email her at suemcmillin20@gmail.com.

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McMillin: Virgin Galactica grounding shows need for international space-traffic control - The Denver Post

Virgin Galactic could be setting up for a sustained move higher.

Jefferies initiated coverage of the space travel stock with a buy rating on Tuesday, sending shares nearly 9% higher in the day's trading. On average, analysts covering the stock see roughly 28% upside for the name, with the highest price target sitting 87% above Wednesday's levels.

With the company solidifying its position in space tourism having sent its founder, Richard Branson, on a historic space flight in July its stock is becoming more attractive for longer-term buyers, Simpler Trading director of options Danielle Shay told CNBC's "Trading Nation" on Tuesday.

"We can look at it as an investment, although risky, of course," Shay said.

"With this company in particular, I'm looking at this five to 10 years down the line," she said. "They're the first in this space, they're the first people that are actually offering space flights to consumers, and I do believe in the long term [the stock is] going to blow up."

Shay's first target was $35, roughly 28% above where Virgin Galactic was trading midday Wednesday.

"If you could get through 35, then I would look to a return to previous highs," she said. "But once you really start seeing more reservations and actually more flights come through, that is when the stock could really take off."

Virgin Galactic's all-time high was $62.80. The stock was trading just above $27 on Wednesday.

Another trader wasn't so eager to jump in.

"The long-term narrative is certainly interesting. I would be wary here," Nancy Tengler of Laffer Tengler Investments said in the same interview.

Not only would all of Jefferies' assumptions 660 flights per year and $1.7 billion in revenue by 2030 need to come to fruition for Virgin Galactic stock to really take off, but some of the "smart money" has also moved elsewhere, said Tengler, her firm's chief investment officer.

She pointed to chairman Chamath Palihapitiya selling his entire personal stake in the company in March and Branson's sale of a large chunk of his stake in August.

"I'm a little suspicious because there's a lot of enthusiasm, but when it comes time for people to put money down for their reservation right now they can just make a reservation I think we'll get a better sense of whether or not the estimates that Jefferies has come up with are in fact realistic," Tengler said.

Virgin Galactic announced plans to reopen ticket sales in its August earnings report. Prices begin at $450,000 per seat.

Disclosure: Danielle Shay owns shares of Virgin Galactic.

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Virgin Galactic 'could really take off' if it breaks above this level, trader says as space stock gets analyst love - CNBC