Quote from: AncientU on 10/04/2017 07:18 pmHere's the roster:QuoteFull list of participants in Thursday's National Space Council meeting.https://twitter.com/SciGuySpace/status/915654776402178048Only 45 minutes for civil space, 30 minutes each for commercial and military!!!Seems a total waste of time for such high level participants... What of substance can you do with three panelists (assuming each makes a statement) and then discussions/Q&A with council?(Bad omen for style over substance.)Yes, certainly. Did you expect anything different?
Here's the roster:QuoteFull list of participants in Thursday's National Space Council meeting.https://twitter.com/SciGuySpace/status/915654776402178048Only 45 minutes for civil space, 30 minutes each for commercial and military!!!Seems a total waste of time for such high level participants... What of substance can you do with three panelists (assuming each makes a statement) and then discussions/Q&A with council?(Bad omen for style over substance.)
Full list of participants in Thursday's National Space Council meeting.
QuoteIn the years to come, American industry must be the first to maintain a constant commercial human presence in low-Earth orbit, to expand the sphere of the economy beyond this blue marble.To achieve these goals, the National Space Council will look beyond the halls of government for insight and expertise. In the coming weeks, President Trump and I will assemble a Users’ Advisory Group partly composed of leaders from America’s burgeoning commercial space industry. Business is leading the way on space technology, and we intend to draw from the bottomless well of innovation to solve the challenges ahead.This is the most interesting part in my mind.
In the years to come, American industry must be the first to maintain a constant commercial human presence in low-Earth orbit, to expand the sphere of the economy beyond this blue marble.To achieve these goals, the National Space Council will look beyond the halls of government for insight and expertise. In the coming weeks, President Trump and I will assemble a Users’ Advisory Group partly composed of leaders from America’s burgeoning commercial space industry. Business is leading the way on space technology, and we intend to draw from the bottomless well of innovation to solve the challenges ahead.
Jeff Foust @jeff_foust At the Udvar-Hazy Center for today’s National Space Council meeting. A not-unexpected backdrop:
It’s official: Trump administration turns NASA back toward the Moon
Left unsaid is how NASA will get humans to the Moon and (eventually, probably decades from now) Mars. He does not mention NASA's Space Launch System rocket nor the Orion spacecraft in his op-ed, both of which are the agency's flagship programs for sending humans into deep space.Rather, Pence cites the need to "look beyond the halls of government for insight and expertise." He mentions an advisory group composed of commercial space leaders and says, "business is leading the way on space technology, and we intend to draw from the bottomless well of innovation to solve the challenges ahead."
Quote from: Lars-J on 10/05/2017 12:05 amQuote from: AncientU on 10/04/2017 07:18 pmHere's the roster:QuoteFull list of participants in Thursday's National Space Council meeting.https://twitter.com/SciGuySpace/status/915654776402178048Only 45 minutes for civil space, 30 minutes each for commercial and military!!!Seems a total waste of time for such high level participants... What of substance can you do with three panelists (assuming each makes a statement) and then discussions/Q&A with council?(Bad omen for style over substance.)Yes, certainly. Did you expect anything different?Hoping more than expecting...
"We will refocus America's space program toward human exploration and discovery," Pence wrote. "That means launching American astronauts beyond low-Earth orbit for the first time since 1972. It means establishing a renewed American presence on the Moon, a vital strategic goal. And from the foundation of the Moon, America will be the first nation to bring mankind to Mars."There are several notable phrases in there. The first, "on the Moon," is fairly obvious. In recent years NASA has talked about sending humans to a space station near the Moon but not landing astronauts there. Second, Pence identifies America as the "first nation" to send humans to Mars. This raises questions about the extent to which such a venture, which almost certainly must ultimately have international support to succeed across multiple administrations, will be cast as an international venture.Finally, Pence refers to bringing "mankind" to Mars, rather than the more inclusive "humankind." This is curious, because when Pence visited Houston to introduce the 2017 astronaut class, five of the 12 candidates were women, as was half of the 2013 class.
All I can say to this is good, shame it’s about a decade late.