Today In Space

In this episode, we had an interview with Brian Stofiel of Stofiel Aerospace - an aerospace company looking to revolutionize how business can enter the space industry with their 3D printed rocket technology.

In part 1 we learn about what Stofiel Aerospace is up to right now, what they goals are for the next 2 years, as well as a deeper look into why and how Stofiel Aerospace can change the space industry very quickly. These 'People of Science' episodes will be interviews with the human beings who are involved in all walks of science. We're looking to connect the logic of science with the passion of the people doing it, in the hopes it may influence the next great scientist. If you have a suggestion for our next guest please email us at [email protected] Get your first free audiobook and month trial from Audible! Head over to audibletrial.com/todayinspace to get started today

The Parker Solar Probe launched aboard a ULA Delta IV Heavy rocket to 'touch' the Sun on August 12th, 2018. During it's mission (until 2025) the solar probe will orbit closer to the Sun than any other spacecraft. In this episode of Orbital News, Alex breaks down the launch, mission details, and share his take on why this mission is important, and what mysteries it may unlock about our Sun, solar wind, and space weather. Get your first free audiobook and free trial of audible by going to audibletrial.com/todayinspace

RESOURCES:

• http://parkersolarprobe.jhuapl.edu/Multimedia/Videos.php#Mission-Videos
• https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/12992
• https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/4671
• https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/4672
• https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/4673
• https://astro.uchicago.edu/people/eugene-n-parker.php
• https://www.nasa.gov/content/goddard/parker-solar-probe
• https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/4653

Tori Bruno Tweet Infographic

• https://twitter.com/torybruno/status/1026951855086039040

In this episode, Alex shares his thoughts on whether or not the creation of a 'Space Force' is necessary. Alex also challenges the idea that space should be looked at as only a war-fighting domain. He also shares his thoughts on the evolution and changes in his personal life, with the podcast, and more!

Get your first free audiobook and free trial of audible by going to audibletrial.com/todayinspace RESOURCE LINKS:

• (VIDEO) Vice President Pence's speech on 'space force' plans https://www.cnbc.com/video/2018/08/09/vp-mike-pence-white-house-space-force-military-national-security-defense.html
• (TRANSCRIPT) Vice President Pence's speech on 'space force' plans https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefings-statements/remarks-vice-president-pence-future-u-s-military-space/
• (DoD) Space Force to become 6th branch of the military https://www.defense.gov/News/Article/Article/1598071/space-force-to-become-sixth-branch-of-armed-forces/
• (DoD) Final Report on Organizational and Management Structure for the National Security Space Components of the Department of Defense https://media.defense.gov/2018/Aug/09/2001952764/-1/-1/1/ORGANIZATIONAL-MANAGEMENT-STRUCTURE-DOD-NATIONAL-SECURITY-SPACE-COMPONENTS.PDF

The European Space Agency has found evidence of liquid water in a lake underneath the surface near the southern pole of Mars. But what does that mean for future spaceflight? Why does it matter and why should we care about it? Alex does his best to answer these questions and discuss this historic discovery. You can get your free audiobook and free trial of Audible by going to audibletrial.com/todayinspace

Spread love, and spread science!

Source Links: https://www.cnn.com/2018/07/25/world/mars-subsurface-water-lake-evidence/index.html?no-st=1532823786

http://www.sciencemag.org/news/2018/07/liquid-water-spied-deep-below-polar-ice-cap-mars

https://www.esa.int/Our_Activities/Space_Science/Mars_Express/Mars_Express_detects_liquid_water_hidden_under_planet_s_south_pole

http://sci.esa.int/mars-express/51824-4-probing-the-polar-regions/

Alex covers the latest discoveries in our solar system during the hunt for Planet 9. The latest discoveries include:

'A new Kuiper Belt object found who's strange inclined orbit can only be explained by the existence of Planet 9' and '12 New Moons found orbiting one of the largest planets in our Solar System'

Get refreshed and learn more about Planet 9, the Kuiper Belt, Pluto and more!

Subscribe to the podcast on Youtube, ApplePodcasts, or your favorite podcast player to help us grow and so you know when a new episode comes out. We'd also appreciate any constructive feedback! Always looking to improve so please let us know.

TODAYINSPACE.NET You can listen to our science song "Pluto, the Misunderstood." here:

iTunes(Buy): https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/pluto-the-misunderstood/1018933124?i=1018933132

Spotify(Stream):https://open.spotify.com/album/6oidU1jnYiwJCP4sN27gwg

Soundcloud(Stream): https://soundcloud.com/3lgr3co/pluto-the-misunderstood-two-year-flyby-anniversary-remix

SOURCE LINKS:A New World's Extraordinary orbit points to Planet Ninehttps://www.quantamagazine.org/a-new-worlds-extraordinary-orbit-points-to-planet-nine-20180515/

Planet Nine makes some KBO's go wild!http://www.findplanetnine.com/2018/05/planet-nine-makes-some-kbos-go-wild.html

Looking for Planet Nine, Astronomers Gaze into the Abysshttps://www.scientificamerican.com/article/looking-for-planet-nine-astronomers-gaze-into-the-abyss/

Jupiter Officially has 12 New Moonshttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/jupiter-officially-has-12-new-moons-180969684/

Kuiper Belt - Wikipediahttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kuiper_belt

Facts about the Kuiper Belt https://www.space.com/16144-kuiper-belt-objects.html

Jupiter's Got Twelve New Moons, and One of them is a trouble makerhttp://www.astronomy.com/news/2018/07/jupiters-twelve-new-moons

Evidence for a Giant Planet in the Solar System http://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.3847/0004-6256/151/2/22 Hypothetical Planet Xhttps://solarsystem.nasa.gov/planets/hypothetical-planet-x/in-depth/

Kuiper Belt - NASAhttps://solarsystem.nasa.gov/solar-system/kuiper-belt/overview/

In this episode, Alex shares his thoughts (as an engineer) on the daring rescue in Thailand of the Wild Boar soccer team and their coach. He also shares some info on how Elon Musk developed two backup solutions for the Thai Navy Seals in the event that it was not possible to save the kids and their coach.

The big question for this week was: "Why are people hating on Elon Musk, a wealthy and influential person, who is doing what he can with what he has?" Please let us know what you think by leaving your thoughts in the comments below, or by emailing us at [email protected] TODAYINSPACE.NET

SPACE LINKS:

https://gizmodo.com/elon-musks-mini-sub-not-practical-for-thai-cave-accordi-1827471958

http://www.businessinsider.com/elon-musk-said-hell-pay-to-fix-the-water-in-flint-homes-2018-7

https://www.wired.com/story/elon-musk-thailand-cave-boys-rescue-engineering/

https://www.inverse.com/article/45511-tesla-solar-elon-musk-reveals-the-staggering-scale-of-puerto-rico-projects

https://www.google.com/amp/s/amp.cnn.com/cnn/2018/07/09/asia/thai-cave-rescue-mission-intl/index.html

In this episode of Orbital News, Alex shares the story of the Opportunity rover that is attempting to survive yet another massive dust storm in it's 15 years on the Red Planet. We cover info on the storm itself and the concerns for Opportunity as it waits in low power until the storm subsides to charge it's batteries and survive the cold temperatures that probably put it's twin, Spirit, offline. Learn about the amazing martian versatile rover and the most severe optical dust storm ever observed on the planet by robotic human emissaries. Subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts or here on Youtube to help us grow so you know when a new episode comes out! We'd also appreciate any constructive feedback! Always looking to improve so please let us know.

TODAYINSPACE.NET

Links to sources:

- https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.php?feature=7155

- http://www.spaceflightinsider.com/spa...

- https://mars.nasa.gov/multimedia/imag...

- https://mars.nasa.gov/weather/storm-w...

- https://www.nasa.gov/feature/goddard/...

- https://bgr.com/2018/07/02/nasa-oppor...

- https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/MR...

- http://www.spaceflightinsider.com/mis...

- http://www.spaceflightinsider.com/mis...

- http://www.spaceflightinsider.com/mis...

Recently, there has been a lot of talk about a 'Space Force'. But there are also new Space Policy Directives for NASA moving forward. In order to talk about these issues, given the state of US politics and news, we turned to science for a way to share the facts and help you come to your own conclusion.

We set up a thought experiment where we asked what effect a Space Force and the new Space Policy Directives for NASA would have on the space industry? To be scientific, first Alex shares his biases, then goes over the facts (links below), a brief history of NASA politics for context, and then we lay out some possible pros and cons. Then, the thought experiment begins - what do you think about the new NASA Space Policy Directives? What do you honestly think about a Space Force? With some facts, some history, and some pros and cons - you'll be equipped to have your own opinion, and we hope you do in the comments! By using a thought experiment, we're trying to discuss politics and science in a smarter way. We'll see what happens! Let us know what you think.

Source Links:

https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/presidential-memorandum-reinvigorating-americas-human-space-exploration-program/

https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/space-policy-directive-2-streamlining-regulations-commercial-use-space/

https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/space-policy-directive-3-national-space-traffic-management-policy/

https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefings-statements/remarks-president-trump-meeting-national-space-council-signing-space-policy-directive-3/

https://history.nasa.gov/stsnixon.htm

http://www.planetary.org/blogs/casey-dreier/2017/1228-what-changed-in-space-directive-1.html

https://www.military.com/daily-news/2018/06/20/air-force-issues-first-guidance-troops-about-space-force.html

https://history.nasa.gov/factsheet.htm

We had the opportunity to interview Brian Stofiel of Stofiel Aerospace who with his daughter are launching 3D printed rockets and making space more accessible to everyone. Brian stated that with their launch system, if you came to them wanting to launch on Monday, then they could have your payload in orbit by Friday. We touched on so many different topics, including industry bias, the need and challenges of rapid launching giving everyone access to space, creating a generational program to help future asteroid mining, starting and running a business with your daughter, and the possibilities of what's to come when we expand into the infinite expanse of the universe. Buckle up, and get ready to, as Stofiel Aerospace says, fly high and burn hard! For more information on Stofiel Aerospace go to: https://stofiel.space/ You can start your free trial and get your first audiobook for free by going to: audibletrial.com/todayinspace This week's recommendation is "Failure is not an Option" by Gene Kranz Don't forget to subscribe to the podcast here on Youtube and Apple Podcasts

Alex shares his thoughts on the effects the Sun has on the Earth, as well as any Star. What kind of effects, other than temperature can a star have on it's orbiting bodies? He also discusses that even in science, there can be resistance to change by some. This week's influence came from listening to episode #1124 of the Joe Rogan Experience with special guest Robert Schoch. A great listen and a recommended listen or watch. You can find Robert Schoch's work at www.robertschoch.com