Space policy roundup – Apr.12.2021

A sampling of links to recent space policy, politics, and government (US and international) related space news and resource items that I found of interest (find previous space policy roundups here):

International space

Webcasts:

** NSS Space Forum – A Conversation with Scott PaceNational Space Society

On April 8, 2021, NSS conducted a space forum with Scott Pace, hosted by Greg Autry.

As the Executive Secretary of the National Space Council, Scott Pace provided the day-to-day leadership and coordinated issues across the many departments and agencies that were involved in space to ensure the president’s agenda was enacted. With experience at NASA, the U.S. Department of Commerce and the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, Dr. Pace has been involved in the decisions that have shaped the US space program. Along with his professional experience, Dr. Pace’s early membership in the L5 Society and the OASIS chapter of NSS in Los Angeles, plus chairing the NSS policy committee after the L5/NSI merger helped shape and inform his time on the National Space Council.

Host Greg Autry, NSS Board of Directors, engaged in a dialog with Dr. Pace on a range of topics including his experiences on the Council, at NASA, space activism, the current state of the space program and his role as the Director of the Space Policy Institute. …

** Chinese Space from a US Perspective (feat. Ian Christensen & Rob Ronci) – – Dongfang Hour – YouTube

1) Information asymmetry….
2) Competition is not the same in all sectors. …
3) There is willingness, and indeed encouragement, by US companies to compete with Chinese companies, but under well-defined terms.  …

For a separate summary, see #SpaceWatchGL Column: Dongfang Hour Episode 8 – Chinese Space from a US Perspective – SpaceWatch.Global

** Moon Dialogs #11: Peaceful Moon Salon: International Collaboration for Lunar Bases — MoonDialogs.org ☾

“How can the space community learn from important precedents such as the ISS, support continued collaboration and development of shared norms, and ensure that “diversity” results in a rich plurality of flourishing lunar activities. This salon will inform and be informed by our 2021 themes “Peaceful Moon” and “Access.”

** Andrew Aldrin – What Direction Does The Space Economy Need To Move In? – Cold Star Project S03E16Cold Star Technologies – YouTube

Dr. Andrew Aldrin is back on the Cold Star Project and this time we’re diving into the funding sources and direction for the space economy. What needs to happen and what should we be looking at? Does the Silicon Valley investment model fail in the space industry? Are there obvious next steps, or do we need to continue to guess what’s on the horizon? Andy shares his valuable experience and perspective in this open discussion with Cold Star Project host Jason Kanigan. We also touch on the ISU Center for Space Entrepreneurship’s Graduate Certificate Commercial Space Program. Info on the program: https://www.fit.edu/isucse/

** Space Café WebTalk REGIONAL RUSSIA – Olga Volynskaya – 5. March 2021spacewatch. global – News Room – YouTube

Elina Morozova in conversation with Dr Olga Volynskaya, an independent Russian space law and policy expert with a very unique background, holder of industry awards and commendations, corresponding member of the Russian Tsiolkovsky Academy of Cosmonautics, an individual member of the International Institute of Space Law.

Olga Volynskaya has spent the last 15 years working in the field of international and Russian space law and the development of space policy and legislation. Having gained practical experience and industry knowledge in Roscosmos and its subordinate organizations, she subsequently moved to the Legal Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation. Olga’s track record includes a few successfully prepared sessions of the COPUOS Legal Subcommittee, at which she participated as part of the Russian delegation and coordinated the most topical issues on the agenda. Since the end of 2020, Olga has been engaged in academic research and international projects on a freelance expert basis. …

** Webinar Replay | SPACs in Space: A New Frontier for Investment – SpaceNews

Advances in space technologies were largely invisible to the public equity markets until July 2019, when Virgin Galactic announced its intent to go public through a merger with Social Capital Hedosophia, a Special Purpose Acquisition Company (SPAC). Since then, seven space-related technology companies have announced SPAC transactions to take them public in 2021 (with more on the way). Does this represent a tipping point for the new space economy, or is this trend a flash in the pan?

In “SPACs in Space: A New Frontier for Investment,” thought-leading analysts, investors, and space companies will provide a unique perspective. Rather than focusing on the SPAC vehicle itself, this event will explore the trends and developments in the space technology ecosystem that have “suddenly” made space an investable ecosystem — and the longer-term implications for a range of interested stakeholders.

Expert Insights:
Chris Quilty, Partner, Quilty Analytics
Guillermo Söhnlein, Advisor, New Vista Acquisition Corp.

Host and Moderator:
Jeff Foust, Senior Staff Writer, SpaceNews
Jason Rainbow, Senior Staff Writer, SpaceNews

Speakers:
Abel Avellan, Chairman and CEO, AST & Science
Chris Kemp, CEO, Astra
Brian O’Toole, CEO, BlackSky
Peter Beck, CEO, Rocket Lab
Peter Platzer, CEO, Spire
Tess Hatch, Partner, Bessemer Venture Partners

** Tear Down the Wall | SCFVideo7Space Court Foundation – YouTube

Breaking the silos that divide the global space community Today, there are numerous emerging challenges in space that raise a wide spectrum of threats, from undermining the long-term sustainability of human space activities to causing an escalation among nuclear powers. As such, world leaders, industry experts, academia and even celebrities are all adding their voices to the discussions on space safety and security. However, many of the different space communities do not often speak beyond their own niches. Indeed, even at the UN, safety and security issues are clearly demarcated, with unique competencies assigned to specific bodies. Yet as the world has seen over the last few years, space activities and the challenges they cut across many boundaries. Solving them will require cooperation and coordination among all the different space communities and beyond.

Join the Space Court Foundation for a detailed discussion on the impact of silos among the space community and how the disparate communities might come together to develop a responsive governance framework for space.

Moderator:
Theresa Hitchens | Breaking Defense
Experts:
Andre Rypl | Brazilian Mission to the UN Organizations in Vienna
Dr. Rajeswari Pillai Rajagopalan | Observer Research Foundation
Dr. Peter Martinez | Secure World Foundation
Mari Eldholm | Norsk Industriforum for Romvirksomhet (Norwegian Industrial Forum for Space Activities, NIFRO)
Daniel Porras | Secure World Foundation – UNIDIR

** Space Policy Edition: Biden Names His NASA Administrator – The Planetary Society

** April 6, 2021 Zimmerman/Batchelor podcast

** April 9, 2021 Zimmerman/Batchelor podcast

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This image shows an artist’s impression of winds in Jupiter’s stratosphere near the planet’s south pole, with the blue lines representing wind speeds. These lines are superimposed on a real image of Jupiter, taken by the JunoCam imager aboard NASA’s Juno spacecraft. Jupiter’s famous bands of clouds are located in the lower atmosphere, where winds have previously been measured. But tracking winds right above this atmospheric layer, in the stratosphere, is much harder since no clouds exist there. By analysing the aftermath of a comet collision from the 1990s and using the ALMA telescope, in which ESO is a partner, researchers have been able to reveal incredibly powerful stratospheric winds, with speeds of up to 1450 kilometres an hour, near Jupiter’s poles.

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Liftoff: Elon Musk and the Desperate Early Days
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