29 July 2012
Added "Space Debris and Its Mitigation" to the archive.
16 July 2012
Space Future has been on something of a hiatus of late. With the concept of Space Tourism steadily increasing in acceptance, and the advances of commercial space, much of our purpose could be said to be achieved. But this industry is still nascent, and there's much to do. So...watch this space.
9 December 2010
Updated "What the Growth of a Space Tourism Industry Could Contribute to Employment, Economic Growth, Environmental Protection, Education, Culture and World Peace" to the 2009 revision.
7 December 2008
"What the Growth of a Space Tourism Industry Could Contribute to Employment, Economic Growth, Environmental Protection, Education, Culture and World Peace" is now the top entry on Space Future's Key Documents list.
30 November 2008
Added Lynx to the Vehicle Designs page.
More What's New Subscribe Updates by Email
Filter: None | Sam Coniglio | Other - Clear Filters
Opinion / Other (None)
12 February 2004 by Sam Coniglio
Think Long Term as We Explore
Features / Other (None)
2 March 1999 by Sam Coniglio
Winds of Change in Mojave
The winds of change blew into the Mojave Airport in southern California today. Hundreds of invited guests and reporters cheered as the ROTON Atmospheric Test Vehicle rolled out of Rotary Rocket Company’s High Bay. The high winds threatened to put a damper on the rollout, but extra water was put in the fuel tanks to keep the all-composite vehicle from having a premature flight test.
/ Other (None)
27 April 1998 by Sam Coniglio
Peroxide, tethers, and regulations were hot topics

April 17-19, 1998

News / Other (None)
24 April 1998 by Sam Coniglio
Vaughn Cordele Shows He's Got the Right Stuff
Vaughn Cordele, the Civilian Astronaut Corps Pilot, appeared on Thursday's "Late Nite with David Letterman" show. He was dressed in an all black military-style flight suit and was wearing CAC logos. He was slightly nervous, but he confidently talked about himself and the rocket.
Media / Other (None)
9 March 1998 by Sam Coniglio
Georgia pilot determined to rocket into aviation history
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution published an article about the pilot for Advent Launch Services. Vaughn Cordle holds 44 world aviation records, all from passenger planes. He wants to be the first civilian pilot to fly into space. Advent's launch vehicle will be named the Mayflower II.
News / Other (None)
1 March 1998 by Sam Coniglio
Newsweek, Fortune, Popular Science Introduce the Entrepreneurs to the Public
The proverbial cat is out of the bag. After years of struggling to get recognition, the new space entrepreneurs are getting serious coverage in the mainstream press.

The December 29 issue of Newsweek looked at "The New Celestial Capitalists." Focusing on the business side of space, the article discussed the new opportunities that are changing the frontier. Jim Benson's SpaceDev was showcased as a 21st century gold rush: exploring and claiming near Earth asteroids. Low cost satellite launch and fast package delivery were represented by Kistler Aerospace and Rotary Rocket Company. Space Tourism was represented by Interglobal Space Lines, LunaCorp, and Zegrahm Space Voyages. From the article's perspective, all of these new initiatives spring from the assumption that NASA no longer wants to deal with mundane space operations. As an example, the cost savings that SpaceHab gives to the space shuttle program was compared to the old SpaceLab: $185 million per module versus $1.2 billion.

The February 2 issue of Fortune, normally a conservative magazine, discussed how the new space companies are being formed to deal with the glut of data communication satellites that need to be launched. The X-33 and Lockheed Martin's Venture Star vehicles were discussed. The article then pointed out that even with NASA support, no Venture Stars will be ready to fly by 2001, when several of the competitors will already be operational. Kelly Space & Technology, Kistler Aerospace, Pioneer Rocketplane, and Rotary Rocket Company were mentioned in the article.

Finally, the February issue of Popular Science had the most extensive coverage of the three magazines. The article included several excellent computer images of the best known vehicles. Plugging names such as Tom Clancy, Burt Rutan, Buzz Aldrin, and Pete Conrad, the article did its best to show how serious these companies are. As well as the companies mentioned in the other articles, Space Access was also reviewed. The story of Federal Express' founder Fred Smith offer to put money into a hypersonic cargo plane was discussed, as well as the U.S. Air Force's attempts to build a reusable space plane. The X Prize got a good plug as a side bar article.

The secret is out. The general public is beginning to hear stories of these amazing flying machines. Now with Senator John Glenn getting a ride on the space shuttle, it will not be long before people will start demanding a ride into orbit.

Sources:

  • Begley, Sharon, and Weingarten, Tara. "The New Celestial Capitalists." Newsweek. Dec. 29, 1997-Jan. 5, 1998. pp. 70-73.

  • Schonfeld, Erick. "Blasting Off the Cheap Way." Fortune. Feb. 2, 1998. pp. 140-141.

  • Sweetman, Bill. "Rocket Planes." Popular Science. Feb. 1998. pp.40-45.
News / Other (None)
24 February 1998 by Sam Coniglio
Payloads, Launch Capacity Discussed
News / Other (None)
7 November 1997 by Sam Coniglio
Government, Big Contractors, Mingle with Entrepreneurs
The future of mankind's space activities is in business, not government, predict the attendees of this year's conference. Hosted by the Space Frontier Foundation, the sixth annual gathering took place in Los Angeles from November 7-9, 1997.
News / Other (None)
27 September 1997 by Sam Coniglio
DC-X, Clementine Project Leaders Win Awards, Author Tom Clancy donates$100,000 to Foundation
The second annual X Prize Gala showed that more people are taking space tourism seriously. From the extensive media coverage to the famous new sponsors, Peter Diamandis' latest creation is gathering momentum with the public.
News / Other (None)
30 July 1997 by Sam Coniglio
Entrenpreneur Seeks to Fund Private Space Mission
A Colorado entrenpreneur is working with a team of researchers to develop
Please send comments, critiques and queries to feedback@spacefuture.com.
All material copyright Space Future Consulting except as noted.