On today’s show:
- Seattle weather drives away space engineers
- Rocket Lab still hasn’t launched its commercial Electron rocket.
- Zimbabwe gets into the space business!
You can find the latest podcast in the link below:
https://tmrr.podbean.com/e/episode-14-looking-for-launch-in-all-the-wrong-places/
Rocket Lab is looking for another launch pad in US
Rocket Lab, the company that has a launch pad in New Zealand is looking at Florida, California, Virginia, and Alaska for a launch site
Confusing, since Rocket Lab chose NZ for a few reasons
- Not many schedule conflicts
- Air traffic is paltry (compared with LA or Orlando)
- Primarily launching to polar or sun-synchronous orbit
- Probably….costs
The only one meeting those criteria of the four choices is Alaska
Unless…Rocket Lab is expanding or changing the company’s stated mission
ZiNGSA–ZImbabwe’s new space agency
Development minister has stated technology for space operations (for satellites) is cheaper
- Thinks the country can build using this technology
- Also thinks this kind of activity might attract more educated-but-abroad Zimbabweans
Just shows how cubesats are embraced by poorer nations to help themselves to space
Shocker…some people don’t like weather in the Pacific Northwest
Article about how some engineers who moved to Seattle to work for companies like BO
- Weather not so great
- Traffic not so great (it’s always been fairly bad)
- Cost of living getting too much
I’m surprised that Blue Origin and other space companies seem unable to keep up salary-wise
Space Force!
First, there’s a comic called “Trump’s Space Force”
- It features “The Donald” as a hero, flying around in armor, shooting bad guys
- Also shows some action figures
Next–up: Can anyone really define what a U.S. Space Force is?
Intro background music POD Dreams by Stefan Kartenberg (c) copyright 2017 Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution Noncommercial (3.0) license. dig.ccmixter.org/files/JeffSpeed68/56307 Ft: Debbizo, Michael Bacich.
Show links
Launch schedule: https://spaceflightnow.com/launch-schedule/
Long March 2C launch: https://www.space.com/41125-two-chinese-launches-in-24-hours.html
Long March 3A launch: https://spaceflightnow.com/2018/07/10/chinese-navigation-satellite-deployed-by-long-march-rocket/
Soyuz launch: https://www.energia.ru/ru/iss/iss56/progress_ms-09/photo_07-10.html
Rocket Lab looking for launch: https://www.theverge.com/2018/7/10/17556300/rocket-lab-electron-second-us-launch-site
ZiNGSA: https://allafrica.com/stories/201807110661.html
Seattle space engineers: https://www.geekwire.com/2018/heres-space-engineers-come-seattle-leave/
Trump Space Force: http://boundingintocomics.com/2018/07/12/chuck-dixon-and-timothy-lim-launch-trumps-space-force-indiegogo/
The Mad Spaceball 