Looking up at the International Space Station

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Pat Hynes

Soon we may be able to get student experiments manifest onto station through the CASIS lab. In October, William Gerstenmeir, associate administrator for Human Exploration and Operations, the CASIS lab director, Jim Royston, and even the president of SpaceX, Gwynne Shotwell will be coming to Las Cruces to talk about this facility. It is the beginning for taxpayers to participate in a great leap for human knowledge, started in 1984. In his State of the Union address, President Reagan stated, "A space station will permit quantum leaps in our research in science, communications NASA will invite other countries to participate so we can strengthen peace,

The shuttle and the Russian Soyuz, both government developed and operated launch vehicles, ferried the construction materials and "construction worker" astronauts to space to build the ISS. In 2012, with significant private investment after nearly a billion-dollar NASA investment, the privately built Falcon 9 docked its Dragon capsule with the ISS. SpaceX is the first private American launch company to dock with ISS. President Reagan predicted this day would come. And hopefully, we will manifest a New Mexico experiment on ISS.

President Reagan, and all succeeding presidents, supported the public-private partnership for the future of space faring nations. The free world will work in space together. We are still on course. The importance of maturity is that we learn as we age. Visionaries who are builders and partners look to benefit mankind. They understand it takes partners and peace to build. We can't grow and take giant leaps in knowledge if we are at war.

The space station was a post Cold War science and engineering super project. It was a political decision. It was made, in part, to keep the Russian scientists occupied on something as prestigious as being the major builder, along with the United States, in a project of stunning magnitude. Big enough even for the Russians to agree, cooperating was better than competing with the winners of the Cold War. How did we beat the Russians? Not militarily, we beat them with capitalism. The consumer beat the Kremlin. And here is where we, the American public, the mighty consumer have a role to play - we have great power.

Did anyone notice how quickly Congress leapt into action after the air-traffic controller furloughs started on Monday. The FAA says it can shave off $200 million through the furloughs of 47,000 employees, including about 13,000 air-traffic controllers, and that it has few other places where savings can be achieved. The American consumer, the taxpayers, got furious with Congress and it took five working days to fix the problem with the air traffic controller furloughs.

I'd like the consumer - doing business as the American taxpayer, to look at building our nation through positive action. The ISS will create giant leaps in human knowledge. In 2005, Congress designated the U.S. portion of the ISS as a national laboratory. It is finally becoming possible for our students and faculty to use this laboratory facility called the Center for Science in Space - CASIS. We will take the first steps this week in discussing this option with the Las Cruces Public School leadership. Keep looking up.

Pat Hynes works at New Mexico State University for NASA directing the New Mexico Space Grant Consortium. She can be reached at 575-646-6414 or at pahynes@nmsu.edu.

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Looking up at the International Space Station