Are we ready for space tourism? – POLITICO – Politico

Why billionaires going to space is a big deal, and not just costly joy rides.

A leading aerospace association has opted to register a lobbyist for the first time.

The last three Apollo missions to the moon were more revolutionary than you might think.

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A NEW TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM: The long and at-times bumpy journey of the space tourism industry is poised to reach a major milestone beginning Sunday when the first of two space flights are set to carry Virgin Galactic founder Richard Branson and Blue Origin founder Jeff Bezos above the Earth.

Branson will be aboard VSS Unity when the crew takes off for the edge of space from New Mexico on Sunday. Bezos is set to be among the crew of the New Shepard on its maiden flight carrying humans into space from West Texas on July 20. They are the culmination of the 17-year odyssey of private space travel that began with the first flight of Virgins SpaceShipOne in 2004.

The flights will mark a major achievement for the expanding private space industry. But Karina Drees, president of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation, a leading industry association in Washington, maintains they are about far more than joy rides for the rich and famous.

The push to take private citizens to orbit is to really perfect the technology, perfect vehicles and then be able to manufacture those vehicles en masse as a new transportation system, which will be significant to people around the world, she told us Thursday. When we think about transporting not only people in an emergency situation, or organs, things that dont have the luxury of time when it comes to transporting around the world.

But is Washington ready to regulate this industry? As a comparison to commercial aviation, I think theres a pretty significant difference, Drees said, pointing out that fewer than 10 commercial space flights in the past 17 years have carried people. I feel like as a comparison we are at a faster pace than commercial aviation because it took decades to iron out a lot of those regulations back then.

The biggest concern: Yet one fear is that the government will adopt regulations based on old data on earlier spaceflight. The fear is if we are writing regulations based on old vehicles that werent very safe, then theres a potential implication here that these vehicles will also not be safe because the regulations are also not safe. We are still very much in data collection mode.

The industry is not concerned about regulation, she added. We want regulation. We just want safe regulation. The vehicles are just now coming online. How does anyone in government know how to regulate those vehicles when they are brand new?

Drees, the former CEO and general manager of Mojave Air & Space Port in California, believes better regulation also means enlisting more knowledgeable government personnel, particularly in the FAAs Office of Commercial Space Transportation, to design and execute those regulations.

Only 100 people: Theres so much talk about how we need more regulation, but our regulator is a team of 100 people, Drees said. They have not grown, they have not been able to keep up with industry, they do not have the expertise in-house to be able to regulate what the industry is doing, let alone keep up with the amount of launches they need to license.

Theyve got folks that are doing a lot of different things, she added. They are doing environmental reviews to process applications for spaceports and launch companies. Theyve got a pretty heavy workload in addition to being under pressure to write regulations.

I see that as by far the biggest concern we have and one of the key things we want from Congress, Drees said of the FAAs space work force.

Nevertheless, there is also a simmering backlash over what many see as not-so-simple publicity stunts, given the litany of Earth-bound problems to be tackled. Could there be a worse time for two ber-rich rocket owners to take a quick jaunt toward the dark? asked one commentator this week in The Atlantic.

We will be tuning in at 6 a.m. on Sunday when the Virgin Galactic launch window opens.

Related: The future of space exploration depends on the private sector, via National Review.

And: Mercury 13 legend Wally Funk will ride with Jeff Bezos to the edge of space, via The Verge

GETTING AROUND ON THE MOON: Apollo 11 gets most of the limelight when it comes to Americas Cold War race to the moon. But in his new book, Across the Airless Wilds: The Lunar Rover and the Triumph of the Final Moon Landings, Earl Swift rediscovers the final three moon landings, focusing on the revolutionary vehicles used to roam around the lunar surface (once again relevant as NASA plans to return to the moon to maintain a long-term presence).

Some fun facts: The footprints left by Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin after the Apollo 11 moon landing would fit inside the area of a football field. By contrast, the Apollo 15 astronauts, Dave Scott and Jim Irwin, covered 6.3 miles on just their first excursion in the lunar rover more than all the travel achieved by the first three Apollo landing crews combined. All told, astronauts on the last three lunar visits drove more than 56 miles.

Also: Examining the life of John Glenn, via The Space Review.

EXPANDING OUR EFFORTS: The Air Force Association, which describes itself as a nonprofit, independent, professional military and aerospace education association, is diving into the lobbying game.

William Castle, a former Pentagon and Senate Armed Services Committee lawyer who was named AFAs director of legislative affairs last month, officially registered as a lobbyist last week, according to a new disclosure.

The association, which is supported by leading defense and space contractors, has a broad lobbying agenda, in ensuring a dominant U.S. Air and Space Force, as the disclosure notes. Specific legislation includes the yearly National Defense Authorization Act and the Defense Appropriations Act.

Bridget Dongu, a spokesperson for AFA, said it marks the first time the organization has registered to lobby and comes as AFA seeks to raise its profile. We are expanding our efforts, not necessarily becoming a lobbying organization, she said. We want to invigorate our efforts on Capitol Hill.

Dongu also pointed out that AFA is just following the lead of similar organizations such the Association of the United States Army, which has been lobbying for years.

But it will have to tread carefully to keep its tax-exempt status as a 501 (c)(3). In general, no organization may qualify for section 501(c)(3) status if a substantial part of its activities is attempting to influence legislation (commonly known as lobbying), according to the IRS. A 501(c)(3) organization may engage in some lobbying, but too much lobbying activity risks loss of tax-exempt status.

Congrats to David Kettelhut at the FAA for correctly answering that Jupiters moon Ganymede is named for the Trojan prince in Greek mythology regarded for his beauty and made immortal by Zeus and the cupbearer of the gods.

This weeks question: What space mission took humans the farthest distance from Earth?

The first person to email [emailprotected] with the correct answer gets bragging rights and a shoutout in the next newsletter!

NOAA to take first step toward a small satellite constellation: Space News

Satellite imagery provider Planet to go public: C4ISRNet

Radio telescope faces extremely concerning threat from satellite constellations: Space News

Huge leap for NASAs Mars helicopter ushers new mission support role: The Verge

China's Chang'e 6 mission will collect lunar samples from the far side of the moon by 2024: Space.com

Chinas moon samples could revise lunar chronology: Scientific American

MONDAY: The House Appropriations Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science and Related Agencies will mark up a bill to fund NASA and NOAA at 3 p.m.

MONDAY: A House Appropriations Subcommittee also marks up the transportation bill at 5 p.m.

TUESDAY: The Astronautical Society convenes its John Glenn Memorial Symposium.

THURSDAY: The Washington Space Business Roundtable holds a webinar with Sen. John Hickenlooper of Colorado at noon.

THURSDAY: The Aerospace Corp.s Space Policy Show podcast tackles norms of behavior in space at 1 p.m.

THURSDAY: The Space Force Association holds a discussion with Brian "Beam" Maue, a member of the Air Force chief of staffs Strategic Studies Group, at 2 p.m.

THURSDAY: Spacefest kicks off in Tucson, Ariz.

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Are we ready for space tourism? - POLITICO - Politico