Comments for The British Interplanetary Society http://www.bis-space.com From imagination to reality Tue, 01 May 2012 15:31:46 +0100 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.1 Comment on SKYLON – The Materials Challenge by TimothyMurphy http://www.bis-space.com/2012/02/28/3902/skylon-the-materials-challenge#comment-144 TimothyMurphy Tue, 01 May 2012 15:31:46 +0000 http://www.bis-space.com/?p=3902#comment-144 Is there a video of this event? Is there a video of this event?

]]> Comment on Mothballing the Future by StephenAshworth http://www.bis-space.com/2012/04/19/4435/mothballing-the-future#comment-142 StephenAshworth Sat, 21 Apr 2012 12:47:23 +0000 http://www.bis-space.com/?p=4435#comment-142 The Shuttle has been a dead man walking since 28 January 1986. In this sense, I would suggest that Discovery's retirement is not at all premature, but is rather two decades late. With the Challenger disaster, the Shuttle programme lost momentum. Its goals of lowering the cost of access to orbit, opening up new industries and "routinizing" spaceflight with weekly launches were put on ice, and finally formally abandoned in 2004. Since 1986 the Shuttle was just marking time. NASA could only pursue the goals of the programme with a radical rethink of the design. Since it was not willing to do this, but rather drifted back into an elitist, government-only Apollo approach, we are fortunate indeed that Obama has cancelled both Shuttle and Constellation, allowing American industry in the form of SpaceX, Sierra Nevada, Boeing and Lockheed a real chance to get some new vehicles into operation. The Shuttle is dead: long live Dragon and Dreamchaser -- at any rate, just long enough to get a mass market for passenger transport into space established -- and then long live the real successor to Shuttle: Skylon! Only with a commercial passenger market of thousands of space travellers per year can we develop the safe, reliable, affordable system to take Heywood Floyd to the Moon. The Shuttle could never have done that. Stephen Ashworth Oxford, UK The Shuttle has been a dead man walking since 28 January 1986. In this sense, I would suggest that Discovery’s retirement is not at all premature, but is rather two decades late.

With the Challenger disaster, the Shuttle programme lost momentum. Its goals of lowering the cost of access to orbit, opening up new industries and “routinizing” spaceflight with weekly launches were put on ice, and finally formally abandoned in 2004. Since 1986 the Shuttle was just marking time. NASA could only pursue the goals of the programme with a radical rethink of the design. Since it was not willing to do this, but rather drifted back into an elitist, government-only Apollo approach, we are fortunate indeed that Obama has cancelled both Shuttle and Constellation, allowing American industry in the form of SpaceX, Sierra Nevada, Boeing and Lockheed a real chance to get some new vehicles into operation.

The Shuttle is dead: long live Dragon and Dreamchaser — at any rate, just long enough to get a mass market for passenger transport into space established — and then long live the real successor to Shuttle: Skylon!

Only with a commercial passenger market of thousands of space travellers per year can we develop the safe, reliable, affordable system to take Heywood Floyd to the Moon. The Shuttle could never have done that.

Stephen Ashworth
Oxford, UK

]]> Comment on The Ultimate Migration by Mark Stewart http://www.bis-space.com/2012/03/23/4110/the-ultimate-migration#comment-133 Mark Stewart Sat, 24 Mar 2012 09:23:36 +0000 http://www.bis-space.com/?p=4110#comment-133 Like von Braun, Goddard viewed the future through the lens of rocketry and much of his thinking presaged trends in modern science fiction. There are shades of Clarke and Stapledon in his speculations on human evolution and interstellar travel, and even a hint of Star Trek’s transporter beam casting human particles across the cosmos. And he was right when he said: “The only barrier to human development, or advancement, is ignorance.” A statement perhaps truer now than it has ever been. An evening lecture on Goddard would be most welcome. Any takers to present? Mark Stewart Like von Braun, Goddard viewed the future through the lens of rocketry and much of his thinking presaged trends in modern science fiction. There are shades of Clarke and Stapledon in his speculations on human evolution and interstellar travel, and even a hint of Star Trek’s transporter beam casting human particles across the cosmos.
And he was right when he said: “The only barrier to human development, or advancement, is ignorance.” A statement perhaps truer now than it has ever been.
An evening lecture on Goddard would be most welcome. Any takers to present?
Mark Stewart

]]> Comment on BIS Fellow is Brain of Britain by PhilipCorneille http://www.bis-space.com/2012/03/21/4074/bis-fellow-is-brain-of-britain#comment-132 PhilipCorneille Sat, 24 Mar 2012 08:50:26 +0000 http://www.bis-space.com/?p=4074#comment-132 Congrats to BIS Fellow Ray Ward! A great way to promote the British Interplanetary Society... Philip Corneille FBIS Congrats to BIS Fellow Ray Ward!
A great way to promote the British Interplanetary Society…

Philip Corneille FBIS

]]> Comment on Coming soon…Odyssey 13 by PhilipCorneille http://www.bis-space.com/2012/02/03/3594/coming-soon-odyssey-13#comment-121 PhilipCorneille Tue, 07 Feb 2012 16:44:35 +0000 http://www.bis-space.com/?p=3594#comment-121 Great to see Sir Patrick Moore in Winchester, once more in action for the British Interplanetary Society! The Odyssey newsletter is a superb initiative... Thank You Mark Stewart! Great to see Sir Patrick Moore in Winchester, once more in action for the British Interplanetary Society! The Odyssey newsletter is a superb initiative…
Thank You Mark Stewart!

]]> Comment on Funding America’s next human space flight programme by PhilipCorneille http://www.bis-space.com/2012/01/31/3576/funding-americas-next-human-space-flight-programme#comment-120 PhilipCorneille Thu, 02 Feb 2012 08:07:21 +0000 http://www.bis-space.com/?p=3576#comment-120 Certainly an important subject from an executive point-of-vue but I don't know if younger BIS-members would find this an exciting read. On the other hand, if BIS Spaceflight magazine wants to keep it's high profile, it's a subject the editor can't ignore... Certainly an important subject from an executive point-of-vue but I don’t know if younger BIS-members would find this an exciting read. On the other hand, if BIS Spaceflight magazine wants to keep it’s high profile, it’s a subject the editor can’t ignore…

]]> Comment on Space day by PhilipCorneille http://www.bis-space.com/2012/01/25/3537/space-day#comment-119 PhilipCorneille Thu, 02 Feb 2012 08:04:14 +0000 http://www.bis-space.com/?p=3537#comment-119 Since the Sir Patrick Moore BBQ, the BIS has been organizing some great events and the BIS council made good use of social media such as Twitter and FaceBook. Seeing the large number of new BIS-members listed in the Feb 2012 issue of Spaceflight, I believe the campaign was successful ! Congrats to all volunteers involved ! Since the Sir Patrick Moore BBQ, the BIS has been organizing some great events and the BIS council made good use of social media such as Twitter and FaceBook. Seeing the large number of new BIS-members listed in the Feb 2012 issue of Spaceflight, I believe the campaign was successful !
Congrats to all volunteers involved !

]]> Comment on Project Daedalus – Interstellar Mission by Exoplanets - Page 34 - Stormfront http://www.bis-space.com/what-we-do/projects/project-daedalus#comment-116 Exoplanets - Page 34 - Stormfront Sun, 15 Jan 2012 13:55:56 +0000 http://www.space2033.com/?page_id=197#comment-116 [...] is the sort of thing (deuterium and helium-3 pellet fusion) the British Interplanetary Society (Project Daedelus) planned on, except that they were going to use electron beams rather than lasers. However, if they [...] [...] is the sort of thing (deuterium and helium-3 pellet fusion) the British Interplanetary Society (Project Daedelus) planned on, except that they were going to use electron beams rather than lasers. However, if they [...]

]]> Comment on Arthur’s Vision for Homo Sapiens in Space by January 16-22, 2012 / Vol 31, No 3 / Hawai`i Island, USA http://www.bis-space.com/2011/10/26/2981/clarke-odyssey-lecture-arthurs-vision-for-man-in-space#comment-114 January 16-22, 2012 / Vol 31, No 3 / Hawai`i Island, USA Fri, 13 Jan 2012 19:43:52 +0000 http://www.bis-space.com/?p=2981#comment-114 [...] 18 — British Interplanetary Society, London, United Kingdom: ‘Arthur’s Vision for Homo Sapiens in Space,’ Kelvin [...] [...] 18 — British Interplanetary Society, London, United Kingdom: ‘Arthur’s Vision for Homo Sapiens in Space,’ Kelvin [...]

]]> Comment on Publications by X-37B spaceplane ‘spying on China’ | Philosophers stone http://www.bis-space.com/what-we-do/publications#comment-110 X-37B spaceplane ‘spying on China’ | Philosophers stone Fri, 06 Jan 2012 14:12:26 +0000 http://www.bis-space.com#comment-110 [...] X-37B may be using to maintain a close watch on China’s nascent space station,” said Spaceflight editor Dr David [...] [...] X-37B may be using to maintain a close watch on China’s nascent space station,” said Spaceflight editor Dr David [...]

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