President's Report
How time fly's when you are having fun! Here at the NSSA, we were so busy with activities that we completely missed our February news. This update shows just how busy we have been and what an action packed year it will be! Last year we celebrated a milestone - 50 years in space. So what does the next 50 hold for us? Arthur C. Clarke was one person who opened our imagination to possibilities and he will be remembered for his ability to inspire. Planning is at warp speed for two of our signature conferences: Australian Space Development Conference (Adelaide, July 08) and the Australian Space Science Conference (Canberra, Sept 08). I suggest regular visits to our website to keep up to date with the program development. Special mention to three NSSA members who are volunteering considerable time to these conferences: Anthony Wicht, Wayne Short and Iver Cairns. Recently, a Senate Inquiry has been launched into Australian space issues. The NSSA will be providing a submission and we really need input from members. Further information is discussed within this update. Please bookmark the very cool website of the National Space Society of Australia: www.nssa.com.au We are updating it regularly and it is your portal to knowing what is going on in space in Australia with connections to the world platform. The NSSA also extends a very big wave to one of our NSSA members now working in the London. Michelle Butters is working with the Air Force at the Australian High Commission (Harry Potter fans - its also known as Gringotts Bank!) Get involved, let us know what you are doing and importantly, take action. Now, more than ever is the best time. Ad Astra! Anny Joseph
In this months issue:
If there is a topic that you'd like to read about in the next issue of eSFN or your chapter would like to be featured just let us know. Email your Readers Requests to: esfn@nssa.com.au
If you would like to have your profile featured please answer the 5 profile questions and email them to us at: esfn@nssa.com.au21-23 July 2008 Adelaide Hilton Every two years the ASDC brings together businesses with an interest in the Australian space industry to share ideas, renew relationships and forge new links for the future. The landmark 10th ASDC will be an opportunity to evaluate the last twenty years and plan for the next twenty. The National Space Society of Australia (NSSA) is working closely with the Australian Space Industry Chamber of Commerce and Asia-Pacific Aerospace Consultants to develop the tenth ASDC as a conference which is practical, relevant and inspirational for the Australian space sector. Currently, the ASDC committee is inviting speakers and assembling the program. Registration to attend the conference will be open from March 2007. You can register your interest now by emailing asdcsecretariat@nssa.com.au to be the first to know when registrations open.
The members and board of the National Space Society of Australia are saddened by the passing of Sir Arthur Clarke, a longtime member of the society's international arm, The National Space Society (NSS) Board of Governors.
Clarke's legacy will live on in the decades to come, as humanity continues the great adventure of space travel and exploration. "Sir Arthur's positive vision of the future excited generations about space exploration, and inspired millions to pursue scientific careers," said Buzz Aldrin, Apollo astronaut and fellow member of the NSS Board of Governors. George Whitesides, NSS Executive Director, stated: "Arthur C. Clarke invented the concept of geostationary satellites in 1945, and the orbit of such satellites is named in his honour. It is highly fitting that future space explorers setting out for distant moons and planets will forever pass Clarke's Orbit on their way." Fred Ordway, a member of the original board of the National Space Institute, worked closely with Clarke on the film, '2001 - A Space Odyssey': "I met Clarke in 1950 at the first International Congress on Astronautics in Paris. His passing represents the loss of a distinguished friend and one of the most important figures in space history." The members and board of NSS express their appreciation to Clarke's staff in Sri Lanka, where he has lived since 1956, and recognize the efforts of the Arthur C. Clarke Foundation, founded to promote the work, life, and legacy of Sir Arthur.
http://www.seti.org/news/features/new-discoveries-on-mars.php
After decades of studying the climate conditions of Mars, scientists have recently made a breakthrough observation: water on Mars. Dr. Adrian Brown (an ex-graduate of the Australian School for Astrobiology in Sydney), currently a research scientist at the SETI Institute who studies climate similarities between Mars and Earth, says that finding water on Mars makes the potential for past or even future life on Mars much better. Brown's team found a substantial amount of ephemeral (short lived) water ice in the polar regions of Mars and indeed, we now know that Mars' seasonal polar caps are 99% CO2 ice. The Compact Reconnaissance Imaging Spectrometer for Mars, or CRISM, is the instrument that made possible the recent discovery of Brown's team. The results of the CRISM observations identify some striking similarities between the Earth and Mars. The south polar cap of Mars grows and retracts seasonally, similar to the polar caps on Earth. As CRISM and Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter carry out their continuing mission, the Mars community is gaining a greater understanding of what is happening in the most dynamic parts of the red planet.
http://www.space.com/missionlaunches/080321-sts123-fourth-spacewalk-wrap.html
Two spacewalking astronauts test fired a high-tech caulk gun filled with goo outside the International Space Station (ISS) to determine whether it's a viable repair tool for dinged shuttle heat shields. Shuttle astronauts Mike Foreman and Robert Behnken squirted a pink, putty-like substance into intentionally damaged shuttle tiles. NASA engineers developed the shuttle tile repair tool, known as the Tile Repair Ablator Dispenser (T-RAD), in the wake of the 2003 Columbia disaster to fix minor panel damage, with the caulk gun and goo, small patches and a gray primer wash reserved for dinged tiles. During the test, Foreman squeezed the trigger of his gun-like T-RAD device, which then mixed two different compounds into an ablative material as it squirted out into the damaged shuttle tile samples. NASA engineers hoped to learn how the T-RAD material behaved in space, and whether bubbles would rise to the surface or cause the goo to swell like rising bread. This spacewalk marked the 108th spacewalk outside the ISS and the second career excursion for Behnken and Foreman, both of whom are making their first spaceflight.
http://www.eturbonews.com/1090/thrillionaire-signs-backup-space-tourist
An Australian entrepreneur and self-described "thrillionaire" has signed on as the backup space tourist for the next paid flight to the International Space Station (ISS). The Virginia-based firm Space Adventures officially named financial strategist Nik Halik as the backup crewmate to American space tourist Richard Garriott, who is training for a planned October launch to the ISS aboard a Russian-built Soyuz spacecraft. Halik, 38, is paying $3 million to train alongside Garriott as a backup spaceflyer. As Garriott's backup, Halik will participate in traditional spaceflight training activities and will also be featured in a documentary television series, Space Adventures officials have said. "Through his participation as a backup crew member, Nik will experience firsthand how our clients train for spaceflight and he, himself, will be certified as a 'fully-trained cosmonaut' and will be named to an official space mission crew, a distinction that less than 1,000 people have ever had," said Space Adventures president and CEO Eric Anderson. Halik's $3 million payment to serve as Garriott's backup can also be used as a credit for a future orbital or lunar spaceflight, Anderson has said.
Inquiry into the Current State of Australia's Space Science & Industry Sector
On 19 March 2008 the senate requested a report no later than October about:
The current state of Australia's space science and industry sector, examining options to strengthen and expand Australia's position in fields that strongly align with space science and industry, giving consideration to any national strategic coordination requirements and taking into account findings and policy options of the National Innovation System Review. More details can be found at: http://www.aph.gov.au/senate/committee/economics_ctte/space_08/index.htm Submissions can be sent to economics.sen@aph.gov.au or Committee Secretary
NSSA on Facebook
If you are on Facebook you can join the NSSA group:http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=2960810088
If not then you can join facebook and then join the NSSA group: http://www.facebook.com/
How to start an NSSA Chapter
Have you got a group of friends that enjoy discussing space? Would you like to do it regularly and get recognised for your efforts? Well here is your chance! Start a new NSSA Chapter today, it's this easy:
1. Identify which of your friends enjoy chatting about space issues
2. Suggest that a group of you get together one time to talk about space eg. at a cafe
3. If it goes well then suggest you do it regularly eg. once a month
4. Once you have 5 people who are NSSA members let NSSA know and request recognition as a chapter.
5. Ask NSSA for the contact details of other members in your area.
6. Find a regular venue to meet eg. Uni tutorial room or a community centre
7. Appoint a President, a Secretary and a Treasurer (although these do not need to be three separate people).
8. Each chapter receives a share of the membership fees paid by their members who join or renew each year.
9. Arrange a guest speaker eg. A local university lecturer
10. Organise a public outreach event eg. Have a stand at a public event such as National Science Week
11. NSSA can tell you when people of note will be in your area and help you invite them to your meeting as a speaker eg. Andy Thomas is occasionally in Adelaide.
12. Inform the Board of your activities if you are doing something exciting.
13. Have the chance to stand for election to the Board as your Chapters representative.
Tips on how you can be more involved with the NSSA