Bates, Jason (Ed.)
“2009 Satellite Industry Directory”
Access Intelligence LLC
2009
Publisher’s Web Site
Librarian’s Note: At a hefty 616 pages this is a nice directory for those interested in the satellite side of things. You know, the whole using space to benefit the Earth by entertaining and educating its peoples stuff. Extensive footprint maps show you where each satellite is targeted, with various specs, including expected lifetime. The main thing is the round-up of companies, from those who operate satellites in space, to those who broker the services, to those who provide the hardware and services. I may have to sic Eva on some of these folks for future EVA Interviews. If you’re more interested in who’s broadcasting what, there’s always the Satellite Transponder Guide.
Greenberg, Richard
“Unmasking Europa: The Search for Life on Jupiter’s Ocean Moon”
Copernicus Books/Praxis
2008
ISBN: 978-0-387-47936-1
Publisher’s Web Site
nature Review
Librarian’s Note: While the main focus of the Lunar Library is of course our Moon, there are many moons in our Solar System of interest, and beyond the Asteroid Belt the moons of Jupiter offer the grandest adventure yet. Mars? Pfft. Give me pocked Callisto, mysterious Ganymede, the tempestuous Io, and the veiled waters of Europa as adventures worthy of the human spirit.
Back in the good ol’ days when I went to ISU, it was just the year-long Master of Space Studies and 10-week Summer Session Program. Now they’ve got an Executive MBA (pdf), and it’s the kind of program that only ISU can put together.
It’s divided into six modules over an 18 month period. Over the first year, three modules are covered, each of which requires a two-week period in-residence at several interesting locations:
1) Core Lectures module at ISU at the Strasbourg campus.
2) Space Commerce & Economics module at International Business School in the Isle of Man
3) International Policy & Law at GWU Space Policy Institute in the US
The next six months cover the last three modules:
4) Project Management module with varying sites depending on the class. As an example, during my MSS program, we visited ESOC in Darmstadt, Astrium & CNES in Toulouse, and Snecma Moteurs, Arianespace and the Paris Air Show near Paris over the course of the year.
5) Thesis Project module (wherever)
6) Project Sales Presentation at SES and Thesis presentation at ISU
ISU is really a unique institution, and its huge network of graduates spans the globe. My classmates were from China, Israel, Libya, Nigeria, Ireland, the Netherlands, France, Canada, Japan, Brazil, and more countries. We’re everywhere, and always popping up in unusual places. The teaching program draws on a global network of instructors. When it was time to talk about the Hubble, it was Dr. Jeff Hoffman who was doing the lecturing. When it was time to talk about space medicine, it was Dr. Oleg Atkov who did the lecturing. When it was time to talk about pulsars, well, it was Dame Jocelyn Bell Burnell who was twirling a kitchen timer at the end of a long string over our heads. Who will be lecturing at the ISU EMBA? Who knows - but you can be sure it’ll be the top folks in the field.
It’s an investment, as much for business people to learn about space as for space people to learn about business. The two fields have long been interwoven, as the recent EVA Interview with James Dunstan here at OotC amply demonstrates, but now more than ever the bonds need to be strengthened to ensure that more realms of space endeavour enter the private sector to the benefit of everyone as we venture Out of the Cradle.
adAstra: The Magazine of the National Space Society
Special Report: “The Threat of Impact”
MM Publishing
Winter 2008
Publisher’s Web Site
National Space Society
Space Lifestyle Magazine #6
New Forks LLC
Winter 2009
ISSN: 1939-411X
Publisher’s Web Site
On-Line Text
This one for 5-8th graders, and there’s still time to register!
The NASA Quest Challenge: Charting a Course to the Moon engages students in charting a course from Cape Canaveral to one of the Lunar poles, using techniques appropriate for space. The previous part of this challenge, last Fall, was to map a course from Hawai’i to Rapa Nui using the techniques that would have been available to Polynesian explorers, i.e. celestial navigation. This part calls for a different kind of navigation involving orbital mechanics, the kind of stuff our future explorers will be using.
This challenge is closely tied to the Education & Public Outreach (EPO) component of NASA’s upcoming LCROSS mission to study the contents of one of the everdark craters at a Lunar pole. Complementing the theme of the first round, the Teacher’s Guide (pdf) asks the Ho’olohe (Why?), Ho’opili (What?), Ho’ohana (How?) and Ho’opuka (If?) questions of charting a course to our Moon.
There are loads of internet references in the Teacher’s Guide that point to all kinds of things, including some great videos, like the one I’ve embedded in the Lunar Library entry for the Guide that touches on gravity wells. Many of the links are mirrored at the link page for easier access, and they were kind enough to add a link to the recent OotC article “Teacher Tools for the High Frontier: Space Navigation”.
If you want to try your hand at an earlier NASA Quest Challenge, there’s always the Lunar Research Station Design Challenge from back in 2006.
Launch Magazine Vol 4 # 6
MM Publishing
12/2008
ISSN 1933-4087
Publisher’s Web Site
Librarian’s Note: This is a good sign. I’m looking forward to Launch coming off of hiatus. This issue features some of the folks of the Dallas Area Rocket Society and a Saturn 1B project they did for a local Apollo event (pdf) also featured in this issue. A lot of folks at ConDFW this weekend were asking about Spaceport America, and I was able to show them the illustrations in the article (pdf) by Jim Oberg.
MacLeod, Ken & Dr. Duncan Steel
“Space Odyssey”
BBC Focus Magazine #198
01/2009
pp.30-38
Publisher’s Web Site
Whittaker, Lawrence
“Traveller: Beltstrike”
Mongoose Traveller
2008
ISBN: 978-1-906-10368-2
Publisher’s Web Site
Librarian’s Note: While not set in our Solar system, any Game Master worth their salt should be easily able to adapt the scenario to do some RPG adventuring in our own Asteroid Belt searching for riches and glory.
“Space Shot”
Badwinna Apparel
2008
SKU T-111
Publisher’s Web Site
Librarian’s Note: I was staffing the NSS-NT display at a sci-fi con this weekend, saw these at the t-shirt table, and knew that I had to have Space Shot for the Lunar Library. That’s what I want painted on the nose of my rocket. I also picked up a Cosmonaughty to use as a raffle prize for Yuri’s Night
rolls into town at Next Big Future. This week’s Carnival of Space features over two dozen articles on a universe of topics, from nuclear spacecraft to variable stars, and everything in between. Go check it out!
Coe, Liza, Linda Conrad et al (eds)
“NASA Quest Challenge: Charting a Course to the Moon”
Exploration through Navigation Challenge Educator’s Guide
NASA Ames
2009
Publisher’s Web Site
On-Line Text
Librarian’s Note: You know, I was just talking orbital mechanics at an NSS-NT outreach display at UTA with youngsters who were being encouraged by their parents to do well in math. One of the displays we have is a map of cislunar space, and I’ve created a tool to help illustrate the Lagrange points associated with the warps created by the interaction of the Earth and Moon’s gravity. This Educator Guide pointed to an absolutely brilliant video which illustrates the point quite well.
READ MORE…
Welcome to the first edition of EVA Interviews: The Business of the new Space Age!
I’m delighted to welcome our first guest, James E. Dunstan, partner and lawyer with Garvey, Schubert and Barer in Washington D.C. who focuses on Space, business and the technologies of the future.
Great businesses start with ideas, especially ideas that can solve problems for potential customers. They next build the structure necessary to take those ideas from concept to reality and then (hopefully) on to prosperous endeavour. The first outside professional advisor that a new business hires, to formally get the business off the ground, is a lawyer. It is therefore fitting that this is where we will start. Jim Dunstan has been actively involved in the formation of many new Space ventures as well as those involving other exciting new technologies.
EVA: Jim, thank you very much for joining us at EVA Interviews and Out of the Cradle! Welcome! I look very forward to our conversation!
Since these interviews are about Space as well as the economic aspects of our exodus Out of the Cradle, I like to start by asking you about Space. I know you do have a personal interest in Space. Can you tell us how your interest started and how it has evolved?
READ MORE…
is a special Valentine’s Day Edition over at 21st Century Waves. It takes the first letters in keywords from this week’s submissions to spell out a
H A P P Y V A L E N T I N E S D A Y.
To honor lovers everywhere, and hopefully soon also out in space, here’s one of my favorite cartoons - ‘Dancing on the Moon’
READ MORE…
What about the format? Why do you ask some of the same questions each time?
In all cases, we are very interested in the answers and opinions that our guest provides and hope you, the reader, are too. In the future, we plan to examine some of these regularly asked questions and discuss the answers – the commonalities, the differences and especially the implications. These interviews are in-depth. They are not the usual short blog post. Some answers are entertaining and/or enlightening and all are informative. We plan to add a PDF version of each interview at its end, in case you’d prefer to print it and read it offline. Stay tuned - the first interview will be posted with a few days!
What are the links in the interviews for?
When there is additional information that we believe you might find interesting or useful, we will provide an appropriate link. Visit it if you are curious, ignore them otherwise.
We understand there is some controversy about how links should open - redirect from the current page or open a new browser window. We prefer to have a new browser window opened when we click on a link. That is what we will try to offer - but EVA is new at writing code so you may be redirected until she figures it all out.
All jargon, acronyms, terms and their definitions will not be linked to in the interviews but will be defined, sometimes using links, on the special JAT&D page.
(Some links may take you to Amazon or other sites which have products for sale. In the vein of full disclosure, some of these may pay us a very small commission or fee should you choose to buy something while you are there.)
What’s with all the jargon?
Just as the Space industry uses acronyms and jargon with high frequency, so does the financial sector. To bridge this language gap, when EVA or her guests introduce terms in the interviews that readers might be unfamiliar with (and even some most ARE familiar with), we will add these terms to the JAT&D (Jargon, Acronyms, Terms and their Definitions) page or provide a direct link to the definition. We hope this will help clarify financial acronyms for Space people and Space jargon for financial types. Please let us know if we miss something and there is a term you would like explained!
JARGON, ACRONYMS, TERMS and their DEFINITIONS
As EVA or her guests use these in our conversations, we will add them to our list here:
FINANCIAL:
EVA = Economic Value Added = After-tax profit that exceeds the required minimum return on capital. Computed by deducting the cost of capital (both debt and equity) from the after-tax profit, it is said to be the best measure of the true profitability of an enterprise, and is tied to cash flow and not to earnings per share (EPS). EVA is a registered trademark of the US firm, Stern Stewart & Company.
Angel or Angel Investor = An individual who provides capital to one or more startup companies. The individual is usually affluent or has a personal stake in the success of the venture. Such investments are characterized by high levels of risk and a potentially large return on investment.
VC = Venture Capital - Venture Capital. Funds made available for startup firms and small businesses with exceptional growth potential. Managerial and technical expertise are often also provided.
IPO = Initial Public Offering - The first sale of stock by a company to the public.
Pro Forma (statement) = Description of financial statements that have one or more assumptions or hypothetical conditions built into the data. Often used with balance sheets and income statements.
Accredited Investors - Refers to an individual whose net worth, or joint net worth with a spouse, exceeds $1,000,000; or whose individual income exceeded $200,000 or whose joint income with a spouse exceeded $300,000 in each of the 2 most recent years and can be expected to meet that income in the current year. More details of the definitions for investors other than individuals are found in Regulation D of the Securities and Exchange Commission.
LP = Limited Partner - is a member of a partnership whose only financial risk is the amount he or she has invested. In contrast, all the assets of the general partner or partners, including those held outside the partnership, could be vulnerable to claims brought by the partnership’s creditors.
SEC = Securities and Exchange Commission - The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is an independent federal agency that oversees and regulates the securities industry in the United States and enforces securities laws.
ROI = return on investment - a measure of the net income a firm’s management is able to earn with its total assets. Return on investment is calculated by dividing net profits after taxes by total assets. Also called rate of return, return on assets.
Bootstrapping = building a business out of nothing or with minimal outside capital. The term derives its meaning from the expression “lifting oneself up by one’s own bootstraps”, referring to raising oneself up by one’s own means.
M&A = Merger and Acquisitions
More financial definitions can also be found at :
www.investorwords.com
www.businessdictionary.com
http://financial-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com
SPACE:
EVA = Extra Vehicular Activity = is work done by an astronaut away from the Earth, and outside of a spacecraft. The term most commonly applies to an EVA made outside a craft orbiting Earth (a spacewalk), but also applies to an EVA made on the surface of the Moon (a moonwalk).
NASA = National Aeronautics and Space Administration = the national Space agency of the United States
ISS = International Space Station - International Space Station
Mir = Russian Space station - Mir
OST = Outer Space Treaty
ITAR = International Traffic in Arms Regulations
SBIR = Small Business Innovation Research
ISRU = In-Situ Resource Utilization
FSS = Fixed Satellite Services
More Space acronyms are expanded at http://tla.surly.org/
OTHER:
EULA = End User Licensing Agreements
IP = Intellectual Property - Intellectual Property
FCC = Federal Communications Commission (USA)
FAA = Federal Aviation Administration (USA)
DoD = Department Of Defense (USA)
FTP = File Transfer Protocol - A communications protocol used to transmit files without loss of data. A file transfer protocol can handle all types of files including binary files and ASCII text files.
IGO = Inter Governmental Organization
M2M = Machine to Machine
UAV = Unmanned Aerial Vehicle
IR&D = Internal Research and Development
Please contact EVA at evainterviews (at) gmail (dot) com if there are terms you would like added to this list. Thanks!
Mitton, Jacqueline
“DK Eyewitness Books: Moon”
DK Publishing
2009
ISBN: 978-0-756-64542-7
Publisher’s Web Site
Hoffman, David
“Sputnik Mania”
History Films
2008
Librarian’s Note: This is quite a powerful film. It’s the first time I’d seen footage of Laika’s excited yipping whilst in space, but that chapter also carries the same pathos and tragedy of the recent historical graphic novel “Laika“, and helps give its elements fuller meaning. Later chapters in the movie are even grimmer as the nuclear cold war settled over the rival superpowers. Portions took me back to my teenage years in the early 80s, when ‘Ronnie Ray-Gun’ was pushing the Soviets and we had movies like ‘The Day After’ and ‘Threads’ and that TV one set in Charleston Harbor and ‘Red Dawn’. Some of the language carries a timeless and more recent vintage flavor, where ‘those who wish to destroy our way of life’ have changed from the now gone(?) Soviets to the new ‘terrorists’. Nevertheless, it does end on a note of hope, and one comes away with the feeling of seeing a truer documentary and less of a feel-good historical re-telling.
is hosted this week at the new Moon Society Blog. Darnell Clayton (of Colony Worlds fame) is the Ringmaster this week and brings us an exciting round-up of space news for the week. Don’t miss the latest Carnival of Space!
Not only may you be thinking of asking this next question, you might also be interested in responding to it!
Can I suggest someone for you to interview?
Of course! We welcome suggestions! We’re very interested in who you would like our guests to be. Our own list is long but is far from complete.
Please comment below or you’d prefer you can email EVA at evainterviews (at) gmail (dot) com. Also if you have a suggestion, please let us know if you can provide an introduction if needed.
Thanks, in advance, for your comments!
The Lunar & Planetary Institute just announced this year’s Barringer Family Fund for Meteorite Impact Research scholarships. Only a few (3-5) students will be recipients of scholarships up to $5,000 in support of meteoritic studies. I’ve met a few cute meteoriticiennes in my time, so it’s definitely a field to consider.
There’s more info on rocks from space over in the Big Rocks from Space - Fact and High Frontier Resources sections of the Lunar Library. It’s a fascinating field of study, and it does behoove us as a monoplanetary species to understand these strange visitors from beyond. It’s a profound feeling holding a piece of pallasite and trying to comprehend the cosmic forces that would have shaped such a marvelous thing. The one in the Lunar Library looks like the Finmarken sample at the link.
I should probably also note that Barringer Crater is a really, really impressive hole in the ground. I highly recommend a visit if you find yourself on Highway 40 in northern Arizona.
And if you end up collecting meteorites down in Antarctica, be sure to get yourself one of those aerogel jackets they’ve come up with. That stuff is just amazing.
Prior announcements of scholarship opportunities and prize monies can be found here.
EVA Interviews: The Business of the new Space Age will be officially launched soon. Until then, we thought we’d answer a few questions you might have about these interviews. Here is the next question we’ve been asked:
Who will you be interviewing?
We will primarily be interviewing* people involved with the various business aspects of Space. This will include entrepreneurs, lawyers, investors, financiers (at all levels of the financing pyramid), insurers and others working on enabling and building up the successful and growing commercial Space industry in its many facets. Some will be famous. Most may not be known to you, yet. All are working hard, taking actions to create, directly or indirectly, a permanently Spacefaring humanity.
* While the main focus will be economic, we reserve the right to present the occasional fictitious, frivolous or marginally related interview.
Why are you conducting these interviews?
In early December 2008, Eva-Jane Lark was the guest host, on The Space Show interviewing the Space Show’s own David Livingston. Ken Murphy, of Out of the Cradle, heard the interview and invited EVA to create and conduct in-depth interviews, with an emphasis and focus on discussing the Business of the new Space Age, here on www.outofthecradle.net. With her strong interest in and knowledge about these areas, and her habit of walking through opening doors, EVA accepted (after asking Ken so many questions he felt he was the first interviewee)! Both of us look forward to these conversations!
This is what David Livingston had to say about his interview with EVA:
| Broadcast 1066 (Special Edition) |
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| Aired on December 5th, 2008 |
| Guest: Eva-Jane Lark |
| Guest: Eva-Jane Lark was the guest host for this special Space Show and I was the guest that Ms. Lark interviewed. Eva-Jane started out asking me about my initial interest in space. Listen to what I said about my interest starting at a very early age. Eva-Jane did a stellar job in drawing me out in detailed responses to very good questions on many subjects ranging from business planning and development issues, to some personal issues and financial issues regarding The Space Show, and my goals and objectives with The Space Show. Many listeners participated and all questions went through Eva-Jane. One series of questions asked to me by the guest host Eva-Jane and a listener dealt with what annoyed me and boy, did I get on a soap box! Listen to what gets under the skin of DrSpace! On the flip side, she asked me what gave me the most pleasure and you will hear that as well. Based on one set of comments, an idea for a new Space Show program was developed, a Space Show program devoted to comedy. Suggestions and ideas for the guest(s) and how that show might develop are welcome. Eva-Jane drew me out on some of my favorite topics, education, students, reality versus that which is not real, selling or promising that which does not exist, expectations, science fiction and space enthusiasm and much more. She also inquired about my interactions with both the listeners and guests, remarkable people I’ve met, show setbacks and accomplishments, and people who work behind the scenes to make The Space Show happen, including board members of One Giant Leap and my editor. Space infrastructure was discussed as was space solar power which is presently the most popular subject talked about on the program. Eva-Jane was a terrific guest host and she is welcome back to this again anytime! If you have questions or comments for either the guest host, the host, or both of us, let us hear from you. My address is drspace@thespaceshow.com and you can reach Eva-Jane Lark at ejlark1 at gmail dot com. |
Why are you calling them this?
These interviews will be conducted by Eva-Jane Lark who, for as long as she can remember, has signed her name EVA, except on legal documents or when writing to her mother. EVA is also an acronym for the financial term Economic Value Added and we aim to add value by discussing the economic, business, investment, entrepreneurial and legal aspects of our exodus Out of the Cradle, with interesting and knowledgeable people* who are active in these areas. In the space industry EVA usually stands for Extra Vehicular Activity and we like to think of these conversations as ones we might have floating in Space after we have said “WOW!!!!” and “How cool is this!!” several hundred times.
* While the main focus will be economic, we reserve the right to present the occasional fictitious, frivolous or marginally related interview.
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