Space Access Conference 2013

Latest Info – 3/26/13

Our next annual Space Access Conference, April 11-13 at the InnPlace Hotel Phoenix North in Phoenix Arizona, is the place to be for the latest on the technology, business, politics, and opportunities of Radically Cheaper Access To Space. We feature a cross-section of the growing cheap access community, talking about what’s going on now and what we should be doing next, in a fast-paced informal atmosphere. This conference is well-reported, but it is not broadcast on the Web – if you want to be in the middle of these intensive discussions in this exciting time, you need to be there!

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Nyack, NY March 26, 2013 (SFF PR) — The Space Frontier Foundation today opened applications and announced the schedule for 2013 NewSpace Business Plan Competition.

Applications and Executive Summaries can be submitted from now through May 29th.   On June 15th we will be notifying the finalists and they will have until July 12th to submit their full business plans. Boot Camp for finalists begins July 24th, and the competition will be held at the NewSpace Conference July 25-27 in Silicon Valley.

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As Russian and American officials consider if and when to send sopranonaut Sarah Brightman into space, the British singer has hedged her bets by buying a less costly ride there.

Keeping all bases covered Miss Brightman, who has an estimated fortune of £30 million, already has a much cheaper ticket, just £125,000, for Sir Richard Branson’s Virgin Galactic programme, which hopes to begin carrying commercial passengers into space next year. But the singer is said to be frustrated by the lack of any firm date….

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Lynx engine hot fire. (Credit: XCOR Aerospace)

March 26, 2013, Mojave, Calif. (XCOR PR) — XCOR Aerospace today announced a first in aviation and space history, the firing of a full piston pump-powered rocket engine. This breakthrough is the foundation for fully reusable spacecraft that can fly multiple times per day, every day. It is a game changing technology that has the power to fundamentally alter the way we as a society view, visit, and utilize the abundant resources around our planet and in our solar system.

The initial portion of XCOR’s pump test program culminated in a 67-second engine run with the propulsion system mated to the flight weight Lynx fuselage.  After the installation of the flight sized liquid oxygen tank, the next test sequence will extend the engine run duration to the full powered flight duration of the Lynx Mark I suborbital vehicle.

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12:34 p.m. EDT: SpaceX ‏@SpaceX 1m SPLASHDOWN! At 9:34am PT, #Dragon splashed down safely in the Pacific. Welcome home! 12:33 p.m. EDT: Elon Musk ‏@elonmusk 3m Telemetry says main parachutes deployed … now visually confirmed 12:31 p.m. EDT: SpaceX ‏@SpaceX 2m #Dragon‘s three main chutes have deployed! 12:28 p.m. EDT: SpaceX ‏@SpaceX #Dragon’s drogue chutes deployed, slowing spacecraft! 12:22 p.m. EDT: Elon Musk ‏@elonmusk Dragon deorbit burn was good. All […]

NASA CCP Spotlight on Development
Thursday, 21 Mar 2013

Space Exploration Technologies (SpaceX) continues to work with NASA on plans for a Dragon pad abort test at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station’s Space Launch Complex 40.

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Marco Rubio

In an effort apparently aimed at supporting the development of a commercial space facility in Florida, the Senate has approved a budget amendment introduced by Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) that urges NASA to dispose of underutilized property and facilities in order to save money and promote commercial space activities.

“NASA currently has underused facilities and property which are beyond their design life or outdated and costing billions of dollars to keep and maintain,” Rubio said in a press release.

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This week on The Space Show….

1. Monday, March 25, 2013: 2-3:30 PM PDT (5-6:30 PM EDT, 4-5:30 PM CDT): We welcome MICHAEL PAUL of the Penn State Lunar Lion – A Google Lunar X PRIZE Team, to discuss their GLXP entry.

2. Tuesday, March 26, 2013, 7-8:30 PM PDT (10-11:30 PM EDT, 9-10:30 PM CDT): We welcome BOB ZIMMERMAN back to the show for space news updates and more.

3. Friday, March 29, 2013:, 9:30-11 AM PDT (12:30-2 PM EDT, 11;30 AM-1 PM CDT). We welcome DR. BRUCE CORDELL back to the show to discuss the latest regarding his Maslow Window research applicable to our space program now and in the future.

4. Sunday, March 31, 2013, 12-1:30 PM PDT, 3-4:30 PM EDT, 2-3:30 PM CDT. There will be no Space Show today due to Easter Sunday.

Note

I want to take this opportunity to report on the astronaut panels that took place on Friday, March 22, 2013 at Rocky Mountain College in Billings, MT.

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ORLANDO, FLA., March 25, 2013 (ESI PR) — Earthrise Space Inc. (ESI), parent organization of the Omega Envoy team in the Google Lunar X PRIZE, is proud to announce that it has gained a new ‘Suborbital Level’ sponsor, SURFCAM, Inc. and their parent company, Vero Software.

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EVRY, FRANCE (Arianespace PR) — The value, reliability and on-time delivery of Arianespace’s services have resulted in multiple payload launch contracts from all major U.S.-based television broadcast and telecommunications providers – including the latest agreement with Intelsat announced this week.

In addition to Intelsat’s new accord for the orbiting of three satellites on Ariane 5 missions through 2017, three other U.S. operators that have endorsed Arianespace with key agreements are DIRECTV, EchoStar Corp. and O3b Networks Limited.

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