SSPI

The greater the value of space, the greater the risks. The rise of the space economy is accelerating the business, operational and human risks. Are we prepared to handle them?

The Safe Space podcast series – part of the Reducing the Risks of Space campaign – explores policy, law, technology and operations in development now to manage the challenging space environment of the future. The fifth episode features a conversation on human sexuality in space, including the inherent risks therein, with Maria Santaguida, PhD Candidate and Researcher at Concordia University and Simon Dubé, PhD, Research Fellow at the Kinsey Institute.

Maria Santaguida is a PhD candidate in the Department of Psychology at Concordia University, where she conducts research on human sexuality, sexual technology and substance-related sexual behavior. Her doctoral work investigates the associations between alcohol consumption on risky sexual decision-making and behavior. She also explores Space Sexology, and how sex research can be integrated into space programs to promote greater diversity, equity, and inclusion. Her doctoral work was funded by the Fonds de Recherche du Québec - Société et Culture (FRQSC).

In late 2021, they collaborated on a position paper titled The Case for Space Sexology which was published in the Journal of Sex Research. Their work represents a crucial step toward a comprehensive scientific study of human sexuality and intimacy in space.

Simon Dubé, PhD, is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow with the Kinsey Institute specializing in human sexuality, sextech, and Erobotics, the study of human-machine erotic interaction and co-evolution. His work also explores Space Sexology, and how we can integrate sex research into space programs. He received his doctorate in Psychology from Concordia University. He is the communication representative of the International Academy of Sex Research and a co-Chair of the International Congress on Love & Sex with Robots. His work is funded by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR).

The greater the value of space, the greater the risks. The rise of the space economy is accelerating the business, operational, and human risks. Are we prepared to handle them?

The Safe Space podcast series – part of the Reducing the Risks of Space campaign – explores policy, law, technology, and operations in development now to manage the challenging space environment of the future. The fourth episode, based on the May edition of the New York Space Business Roundtable, features a conversation with Alex Fielding, Co-Founder and CEO of Privateer, Jack Deasy, VP of Business Development & Advanced Systems at Astroscale and Dr. Chiara Manfletti, Director and COO of Neuraspace.

What services are needed to ensure that we succeed in space once there?  What services and innovations will they bring to market that enables the launch sector to become more specialized and less costly? And how do we achieve a circular economy and a safer one in space? This episode delves into all of these questions and more.

The greater the value of space, the greater the risks. The rise of the space economy is accelerating the business, operational and human risks. Are we prepared to handle them?

The Safe Space podcast series – part of the Reducing the Risks of Space campaign – explores policy, law, technology and operations in development now to manage the challenging space environment of the future. The third episode features a conversation with Rob Schwarz, Chief Technology Officer at Momentus.

Rob Schwarz is the Chief Technology Officer at Momentus and is responsible for the vision and technical direction of the full line of Momentus products. Under his technical leadership, Momentus is commercializing its pioneering and sustainable Microwave Electrothermal Thruster, a new kind of in-space engine that uses water as a propellant.

Rob’s background is in spacecraft systems engineering and management, product management and innovation. Prior to joining Momentus, he spent 20 years at Space Systems Loral (now part of Maxar) and Orbital Sciences (now part of Northrop Grumman) working on various commercial and government space projects. Rob was Executive Director of Systems Engineering at SSL from 2010-2015 and then moved to Product Management before becoming CTO of the Maxar Space Division in 2018. He joined Momentus in early 2020 as CTO.  

Rob has a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering from Rutgers University and a Master of Science in Aeronautics and Astronautics from MIT.

The greater the value of space, the greater the risks. The rise of the space economy is accelerating the business, operational and human risks. Are we prepared to handle them?

The Safe Space podcast series – part of the Reducing the Risks of Space campaign – explores policy, law, technology and operations in development now to manage the challenging space environment of the future. The second episode features a conversation about cyber and nuclear threats to space between Nick Reese, Co-Founder of Frontier Foundry Corporation and former Deputy Director for Emerging Technology Policy at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and Tory Bruno, President & CEO of United Launch Alliance and a member of the Space & Satellite Hall of Fame.

Before co-founding Frontier Foundry Corporation, Nick Reese most recently served as the first ever Director of Emerging Technology Policy at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, where he advised the White House and senior Cabinet officials on national security implications of emerging technologies. He is the author of the DHS AI Strategy, DHS’s Post-Quantum Cryptographic Transition Roadmap, and the 2022 DHS Space Policy. He was also the lead DHS representative for the development of Space Policy Directive-5, National Security Memorandum-10, the National Space Policy, and Executive Order 13960. A noted expert in cybersecurity, quantum computing, artificial intelligence, and outer space, he currently holds faculty positions at New York University and George Washington University teaching graduate courses related to emerging technology and geopolitics. Mr. Reese has a 20+ year career in the US Military, Intelligence Community & Homeland security with a focus on operations and bringing technical solutions to high stakes national security challenges. From the front lines of the War on Terror to building Quantum Computing Policy he has been an instrumental actor in protecting our nation with eye both on today and the future.

Mr. Reese is a graduate of Saint Leo University and Old Dominion University. He lives in the Washington DC area with his wife and their dog.

Tory Bruno came to United Launch Alliance (ULA) in 2014 after a long career managing programs for some of the most advanced and powerful weapons systems in the American arsenal. As general manager of Lockheed Martin Strategic and Missile Defense Systems, he led a team of men and women responsible for the Navy’s Trident II D5 Fleet Ballistic Missile, the Air Force’s ICBM Reentry Systems and the Terminal High Area Altitude Defense System (THAAD). He managed a joint venture responsible for producing and safely maintaining the UK’s nuclear weapons and has engineered control systems for rockets and hypersonic weapons, for which he holds numerous patents. No words describe him better than Tom Wolfe’s famous phrase, “a steely-eyed missile man.”

When he was tapped to lead ULA, the company was at a crossroads. What had been an effective monopoly on national security and NASA missions had turned competitive as new commercial competitors entered the business. The company needed to adapt to survive. This veteran of military space and missile programs might not have seemed the obvious choice of leader, but he was soon to prove doubters wrong. Tory was inducted into the Space & Satellite Hall of Fame in 2020.

The greater the value of space, the greater the risks. The rise of the space economy is accelerating the business, operational and human risks. Are we prepared to handle them?

The Safe Space podcast series – part of the Reducing the Risks of Space campaign – will explore policy, law, technology and operations in development now to manage the challenging space environment of the future. The first episode features a conversation between Elizabeth Evans, Partner at K&L Gates – who joins us to speak about the Space Shuttle Children's Trust Fund – and Kathryn Lueders, Former Associate Administrator for Human Exploration and Operations Mission Directorate at NASA (now retired) and a member of the Space & Satellite Hall of Fame.

Elizabeth Evans is a partner at the New York office of K&L Gates. She is a member of the asset and corporate finance practice group and heads the airfinance practice in the Americas. She concentrates her practice in structured asset-based finance, and focuses on aviation finance (both fixed wing and rotary), satellite finance, transportation finance, and project finance. She also engages in related transactional, regulatory and policy work for aviation, aerospace and space industries. Her practice includes private placements of debt and equity, leveraged equipment leasing and all aspects of the law relating to outer space (both domestic and international).

Prior to joining the firm, Elizabeth served as a partner in the financial institutions group at an international law firm, where she focused her practice on aviation and other asset-based finance, (including satellite, railcars, trucks and heavy equipment finance transactions), as well as space law policy work. Elizabeth has represented banks, financial institutions, credit capital corporations, private equity investors, governmental agencies, export credit agencies and leasing companies in complex structured financings, including air traffic control system financings, airport and terminal development projects and aviation, rail car and truck financings. She has spent many years working on restructurings (both in court and out-of-court) during economic downturns. She has done both debtor side and lender/lessor side work in numerous aviation restructurings, and has represented private equity funds in the purchase of distressed equity positions in equipment finance. She helped arrange and conduct unique foreclosures and auctions of satellites orbiting in space. She has also played an instrumental role in drafting legislation relating to the laws of outer space.

For nearly thirty years, Kathryn Lueders has played an indispensable role in bringing the capabilities of the commercial space and satellite industry to NASA; serving human space exploration missions though new technology, practices of cost savings, and opening valuable opportunities for the industry. Kathryn began her career at NASA in 1992 as the Shuttle Orbital Maneuvering System and Reaction Control Systems Depot Manager for the White Sands Test Facility in New Mexico, after completing two Bachelor’s degrees in Science and Business Administration and a Masters of Science degree. Kathy moved to the International Space Station (ISS) Program next and served in a variety of managerial roles covering space station Logistics and Maintenance, Vehicle Systems Integration and Commercial Orbital Transportation Services Integration.

In November 2007, Kathryn became responsible for expanding the range of launch vehicles providing access to the International Space Station. She established the Program's Transportation Integration where she oversaw international partner vehicles, including the European Space Agency's Automated Transfer Vehicle (ATV), the Japanese Space Agency's H-II Transfer Vehicle (HTV), and the Russian Soyuz and Progress spacecraft. In that role, she also managed the development and execution of the Commercial Resupply services contracts which began delivery of cargo to the ISS in 2012 and now have now delivered over 100,000 lbs of cargo to the International Space Station. She was inducted into the Space & Satellite Hall of Fame in 2021.

In this Better Satellite World podcast, originally aired as part of the Making Space for New Space series, we hear from Alex Fielding, co-founder and CEO of Privateer. Alex joins SSPI's Lou Zacharilla to talk about Privateer's goals and strategies, particularly concerning the enormous and vital task of removing already existing space debris and preventing more. Space debris will be a major topic in the coming weeks as well, as we begin the Reducing the Risks of Space Campaign, so stay tuned!

Alex Fielding is the co-founder and CEO of Privateer. Privateer is a data and intelligence platform empowering the future of space sustainability. As CEO and chairman of Privateer, Alex is responsible for supporting the leadership, vision and execution of Privateer. With decades of experience in innovation and growth in the tech sector, he is poised to lead the team in its launch of the first highly accurate space traffic map that aggregates multi-source data on Earth orbiting space objects, as a means to power the new space economy and make space exploration safe and sustainable.

Alex started his career as an engineer at Cisco Systems and Apple, where he worked on multiple generations of MacOS, PowerBook, and network servers and was part of the first iMac team. After departing Apple, he joined Exodus Communications under the leadership of Ellen Hancock, a former Apple CTO who served as Exodus’ CEO. Alex went on to co-found GPS company Wheels of Zeus with Apple’s co-founder Steve Wozniak in 2001 (sold in 2006), marking the beginning of a fruitful friendship and partnership that brings us Privateer today.

Alex has also worked as CTO at Power Assure and then Vice President at Vigilent before starting Ripcord while a contractor at NASA. Alex served as CEO at Ripcord from 2014-21 and remains on the Board of Directors. Alex is also on the Board of Directors of The Institute for the Study of Knowledge Management in Education (ISKME). He is on the mentor board of Orange Fab and is an adviser to Astra Space. He is an active contributor to the IETF. He is a founding member of Singularity University at NASA Ames Research Center and co-author on several patent applications.

In this Better Satellite World podcast, SSPI's Lou Zacharilla speaks with Marc Serres, CEO of the Luxembourg Space Agency. Mr. Serres joins Lou to speak about Luxembourg's remarkable space innovation and investment ecosystem, from how it came to be to where the nation sees its programs headed next. Part of this interview was originally aired during the March 2023 edition of the New York Space Business Roundtable.

Marc Serres became a director on June 13, 2019. He is currently the CEO of the Luxembourg Space Agency. Previously, he served as Director of Space Affairs at the Ministry of the Economy and as coordinator of the relations with the European Space Agency at the Ministry of Higher Education and Research. Prior to working for the Luxembourg Government, Mr. Serres held several engineering positions at Hitec SA. He is an electrical engineer and holds a PhD in optoelectronics from the Université Catholique de Louvain. Mr. Serres is also Vice-Chairman of the Council of the European Space Agency and a Member of the International Academy of Astronautics. Mr. Serres is a Luxembourg national. He is not an independent director because he represents an important shareholder.

In this Better Satellite World podcast, SSPI’s Lou Zacharilla speaks with Kevin Cohen, General Manager for Global Prepaid Internet & LATAM Fixed Broadband at Viasat, which won a Better Satellite World Award in 2022 for providing satellite broadband connectivity to Ukranian refugees.

Kevin Cohen is General Manager for Global Prepaid Internet & LATAM Fixed Broadband at Viasat, a position he has held for nearly 1 year. He has served in a variety of management positions at Viasat during his nearly 15 years with the company. Kevin previously held the positions of Managing Director for Global Community Internet, General Manager for Community WiFi, Americas, Managing Director and General Manager for Global Community WiFi, General Manager for LATAM Consumer Broadband and Director of Emerging Markets, Space Technologies, among others. He received his Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Michigan and his Master of Business Administration from San Diego University.

When the war in Ukraine began and the immediate resulting refugee crisis occurred, Viasat partnered with the regional government of Košice, Slovakia to provide free high-speed internet access to Ukrainian refugee sites across Eastern Slovakia. Viasat utilized its satellite-enabled Community Wi-Fi system to connect the areas most in need of connectivity. Once these areas of need were identified by the Košice regional government, Viasat’s Community Wi-Fi systems were installed in a matter of days to provide critical connectivity available to thousands of refugees. Viasat focuses on unlocking the opportunities provided by internet connectivity for everyone, wherever they are, through its network.

In this Better Satellite World podcast, SSPI’s Lou Zacharilla speaks with Jeff Rex, Vice President of Business Development, Earth Intelligence at Spire Global, which won a Better Satellite World Award in 2022 for its usage of satellite-based data and analytics to combat climate change.

Jeff Rex is Vice President of Business Development, Earth Intelligence at Spire Global, a position he has held for 1.5 years. He previously served as Vice President of Engineering, Weather. Before joining Spire, he held a variety of management positions in the industry, including serving as Vice President of Sales & Marketing, Business Development at FLYHT, Director of Engineering & Business Development at Panasonic, Vice President of Engineering & Product Integration at AirDat and Vice President of Integration & Operations at L2 Consulting/L2 Aviation. Jeff began his career as a Federal Account Manager for Dell.

Climate change continues to be a major and developing threat around the world. Spire Global has responded by using space-based data and analytics, provided by its constellation of over 100 multipurpose satellites, to help governments and the private sector monitor, adapt to and reverse the effects of climate change in several ways. Spire’s Earth Intelligence data provides crucial information on environmental factors, including sea ice levels and soil moisture, which can be used in climate change research and development of solutions. For example, the company’s data is currently being used to monitor soil moisture in Scotland’s peatlands. The peatlands cover 20% of the country and are one of the most efficient carbon stores in the world; they currently contain roughly 140 years of the nation’s total current greenhouse gas emissions. When the bogs are damaged, however, they become carbon emitters instead. Restoring the peatlands is crucial to prevent such emissions, and Scotland’s Rural College (SRUC) is using Spire’s data to map wetlands and monitor their dynamics, providing necessary information on which areas most require restoration and protection.

In this Better Satellite World podcast, SSPI’s Lou Zacharilla speaks with Elly Perets, CEO of ASTERRA, which won a Better Satellite World Award in 2022 for its Recover satellite-based leak detection system.

Elly Perets is CEO of ASTERRA (formerly Utilis), a position he has held for 8 years. ASTERRA provides utilities around the world with cutting-edge satellite scanning technology to detect leaks in their infrastructure. Before joining ASTERRA, he founded and served as CEO of Progressive Labs, Ltd. Elly’s other experience includes serving as Vice President of Sales and Marketing for Pageflex and Press-sense, as Viable Vision Expert for Goldratt Consulting and as Sales Director for SA International. He has a M.S.E. in Management of Technology from the University of Pennsylvania and a L.L.B. in Information Technology from Reichman University.

Potable water systems around the world suffer an average of 15-20% leakage rate, resulting in wasted energy usage, contamination or, in the worst cases, critically low availability of drinking water in already stressed areas. ASTERRA (formerly Utilis) developed and patented a new technology that uses reflected signals from L-Band polarimetric synthetic aperture radar (PolSAR) to detect potable water underground up to 2 meters. Using ASTERRA’s proprietary algorithm, potable water can be distinguished from naturally occurring or salt/brackish water. The technology can penetrate foliage and asphalt roadways, allowing detection of water leakage from utility pipes. Once the leaks are identified, field leak inspectors can pinpoint where to search for the source of the problem to repair the damage quickly and with the least possible waste. ASTERRA’s new technology, called Recover, is a low-cost alternative for finding potable water leaks that is available even to small and rural water agencies, where they frequently had few options. The company works with small and rural utilities to provide custom packages to meet their needs, as these organizations often do not have GIS programs or a formal leak detection program. ASTERRA received a Better Satellite World Award from SSPI in 2022.