To quote:
On June 16, he'll use a Russian Dnepr rocket to launch a 1/3-scale Genesis model of his planned commercial orbital space station. That much has been public for a while. What I didn't learn until just now is what will be on that module.
Freefloating inside will be 1,000 photocards and small personal objects contributed by Bigelow employees. If all goes well, those items will be continuously blown throughout the pressurized module in a kind of space collage. Six onboard cameras will stream video to Bigelow's new website, which will launch tomorrow or Friday. Seven external cameras will provide views of the Earth from space and the outside of the module.
If that doesn't get even the most disinterested member of the public at least intrigued about the possibilities of space travel, I don't know what will.
But it gets better. Subject to a successful launch of the first module, Bigelow will launch a second Genesis module in September, and that one will contain photos and other small items contributed by anyone who cares to pony up $295.
Full article here:
http://michaelbelfiore.com/blog/2006/05/bi...s-to-orbit.html
Full Version: Bigelow Aerospace
Given that its an unmanned flight, the idea of sending up something like one of these on behalf of us all has some appeal 
Chris
Chris
QUOTE (chris @ Jun 2 2006, 10:10 AM) 
Given that its an unmanned flight, the idea of sending up something like one of these on behalf of us all has some appeal
And since it's an inflatable module, the button pin has a small chance of making things really exciting... :-)
Presumably these things are designed to be robust to small holes.
Andy
QUOTE (AndyWard @ Jun 2 2006, 12:52 PM)
And since it's an inflatable module, the button pin has a small chance of making things really exciting... :-)
QUOTE (AndyWard @ Jun 2 2006, 12:52 PM)
And since it's an inflatable module, the button pin has a small chance of making things really exciting... :-)
Presumably these things are designed to be robust to small holes.
Andy
Presumably these things are designed to be robust to small holes.
Andy
Andy:
All joking aside, the TransHab technology is in many ways *more* resilient than 'traditional' metal spacecraft pressure vessels - and in any case, both are actually inflated structures. The benefits of the TransHab/Genesis way of doing things are actually numerous - it's very, very attractive as a way to build decent-sized habitable spaces.
Bob Shaw
Test flight for space hotel delayed
Russian launch of Bigelow's inflatable module now set for July
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/13171475/
By James Oberg, NBC News space analyst
Special to MSNBC
The much-anticipated first orbital test of technology that could lead to
a "space hotel" will be delayed, Bigelow Aerospace announced Tuesday. The
blastoff, widely believed to have been planned for June 16, will now not
take place before early July.
"We have just been informed that there will be a three- to four-week
delay of our first launch," Chris Reed, publicist for the Las Vegas-based
company, said in an e-mail advisory. "We are told that if there are no other
delays, our new launch time frame will be between July 4th and July 14th."
The Genesis 1 payload will be a one-third-scale model of an inflatable
habitation module that could form the backbone of an orbital facility for
space tourists and commercial space researchers sometime in the next decade.
NASA experimented with the concept early in the international space station
program, but budget cuts forced them to terminate research. Bigelow
Aerospace has picked up that approach and has perfected the technology,
observers say.
The test flight is expected to subject the flexible exterior wall
material to space conditions for an extended period of time, while interior
instrumentation will monitor pressure and temperature. In theory, a flexible
wall should be even more resistant than a metal wall to penetration by
micrometeorites and space debris.
In addition to the space hotel angle, the mission is of high interest
because it would be the first commercial satellite launch from an active
Russian military missile base, where dozens of SS-18 Satan intercontinental
ballistic missiles remain aimed at the United States, each with 10
thermonuclear warheads.
The launch vehicle, a commercialized version of the SS-18 called the
Dnepr, has already made several successful satellite launches from the
Russian main spaceport at Baikonur in Kazakhstan. Commercialized by the
Kosmotras Corp., it can carry up to 3 tons of cargo into orbit.
Two years of preparation -- For the past two years, officials of the
Russian Defense Ministry have been
preparing to launch the same commercial configuration directly from this
military base. In that way, the operational budget will go to the Strategic
Rocket Forces, the agency that runs the base at Dombarovsky, rather than the
Military Space Forces, which until recently ran most of the Baikonur
operations.
Genesis 1 will be only the first of a long series of commercial satellite
launches that it is hoped will be made from Dombarovsky, a missile base just
east of Orsk in the southwest corner of Siberia.
According to Reed, the reasons for the Genesis 1 delay are "due to
special preparations that the launch provider is continuing to make for our
flight." Bigelow Aerospace only last week unveiled new pages on its Web site
dealing with hitherto-undisclosed features of the payload, involving views
that will be transmitted to Earth.
"This flight contains our Genesis 1 spacecraft with a total of 13 cameras
inside and outside the spacecraft," Reed explained. External cameras will
show scenes of Earth. The interior cameras will show floating personal items
placed aboard the spacecraft by the firm's employees.
Fees for flying mementos -- Bigelow Aerospace is now seeking private
customers willing to pay modest fees to place their own personal items on
the next payload. "The Genesis 2 spacecraft scheduled to fly this coming
fall will be our first commercial effort," Reed continued, "and it is for
that flight that we are currently taking only reservations.
"If the Genesis 1 spacecraft functions as anticipated," he said, "we
shall then proceed to contact all of the parties who have made Genesis 2
reservations and complete the transactions to 'Fly Your Stuff.'"
Reservations are still being taken, he added.
"Only after we have launched our first spacecraft and obtained
satisfactory results from a variety of information sources onboard the
spacecraft will we then actually convert reservations to purchases," he
explained.
Photo: Eventually, Bigelow Aerospace hopes to dock inflatable space
modules together in orbit to construct a hotel, as shown in this artist's
conception.
Russian launch of Bigelow's inflatable module now set for July
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/13171475/
By James Oberg, NBC News space analyst
Special to MSNBC
The much-anticipated first orbital test of technology that could lead to
a "space hotel" will be delayed, Bigelow Aerospace announced Tuesday. The
blastoff, widely believed to have been planned for June 16, will now not
take place before early July.
"We have just been informed that there will be a three- to four-week
delay of our first launch," Chris Reed, publicist for the Las Vegas-based
company, said in an e-mail advisory. "We are told that if there are no other
delays, our new launch time frame will be between July 4th and July 14th."
The Genesis 1 payload will be a one-third-scale model of an inflatable
habitation module that could form the backbone of an orbital facility for
space tourists and commercial space researchers sometime in the next decade.
NASA experimented with the concept early in the international space station
program, but budget cuts forced them to terminate research. Bigelow
Aerospace has picked up that approach and has perfected the technology,
observers say.
The test flight is expected to subject the flexible exterior wall
material to space conditions for an extended period of time, while interior
instrumentation will monitor pressure and temperature. In theory, a flexible
wall should be even more resistant than a metal wall to penetration by
micrometeorites and space debris.
In addition to the space hotel angle, the mission is of high interest
because it would be the first commercial satellite launch from an active
Russian military missile base, where dozens of SS-18 Satan intercontinental
ballistic missiles remain aimed at the United States, each with 10
thermonuclear warheads.
The launch vehicle, a commercialized version of the SS-18 called the
Dnepr, has already made several successful satellite launches from the
Russian main spaceport at Baikonur in Kazakhstan. Commercialized by the
Kosmotras Corp., it can carry up to 3 tons of cargo into orbit.
Two years of preparation -- For the past two years, officials of the
Russian Defense Ministry have been
preparing to launch the same commercial configuration directly from this
military base. In that way, the operational budget will go to the Strategic
Rocket Forces, the agency that runs the base at Dombarovsky, rather than the
Military Space Forces, which until recently ran most of the Baikonur
operations.
Genesis 1 will be only the first of a long series of commercial satellite
launches that it is hoped will be made from Dombarovsky, a missile base just
east of Orsk in the southwest corner of Siberia.
According to Reed, the reasons for the Genesis 1 delay are "due to
special preparations that the launch provider is continuing to make for our
flight." Bigelow Aerospace only last week unveiled new pages on its Web site
dealing with hitherto-undisclosed features of the payload, involving views
that will be transmitted to Earth.
"This flight contains our Genesis 1 spacecraft with a total of 13 cameras
inside and outside the spacecraft," Reed explained. External cameras will
show scenes of Earth. The interior cameras will show floating personal items
placed aboard the spacecraft by the firm's employees.
Fees for flying mementos -- Bigelow Aerospace is now seeking private
customers willing to pay modest fees to place their own personal items on
the next payload. "The Genesis 2 spacecraft scheduled to fly this coming
fall will be our first commercial effort," Reed continued, "and it is for
that flight that we are currently taking only reservations.
"If the Genesis 1 spacecraft functions as anticipated," he said, "we
shall then proceed to contact all of the parties who have made Genesis 2
reservations and complete the transactions to 'Fly Your Stuff.'"
Reservations are still being taken, he added.
"Only after we have launched our first spacecraft and obtained
satisfactory results from a variety of information sources onboard the
spacecraft will we then actually convert reservations to purchases," he
explained.
Photo: Eventually, Bigelow Aerospace hopes to dock inflatable space
modules together in orbit to construct a hotel, as shown in this artist's
conception.
A new updated news about an inflatable spacecraft. A silly thing! 
An article from newscientist.com
Rodolfo
An article from newscientist.com
Rodolfo
From http://cosmiclog.msnbc.msn.com/archive/2006/07/10/998.aspx
It's taken months longer than he hoped, but real-estate billionaire Robert Bigelow might just see his first orbital spacecraft take flight at last on Wednesday, courtesy of a converted Russian intercontinental ballistic missile.
If Bigelow Aerospace's Genesis 1 inflatable space module lifts off successfully, the test mission could mark a significant step toward an era of hotels and even sports complexes in space.
Russia's Federal Space Agency lists Genesis 1 for a Wednesday launch from the Dombarovsky military missile base in southwestern Siberia. This would be the first on-orbit test of Bigelow's inflatable-module concept, which was actually developed at NASA for future space station modules or Mars ships. When NASA canned the concept, which was known as Transhab, Bigelow bought the rights to commercialize the idea - and hired some of the original designers.
The concept calls for sending up a compressed, soft-sided spacecraft that could be inflated once it's in orbit - sort of like one of those blow-up kiddie play chambers you see at carnivals. Only in this case, the walls are made out of graphite-fiber composite materials that would be tough enough to stand up to encounters with micrometeoroids and orbital debris.
It's taken months longer than he hoped, but real-estate billionaire Robert Bigelow might just see his first orbital spacecraft take flight at last on Wednesday, courtesy of a converted Russian intercontinental ballistic missile.
If Bigelow Aerospace's Genesis 1 inflatable space module lifts off successfully, the test mission could mark a significant step toward an era of hotels and even sports complexes in space.
Russia's Federal Space Agency lists Genesis 1 for a Wednesday launch from the Dombarovsky military missile base in southwestern Siberia. This would be the first on-orbit test of Bigelow's inflatable-module concept, which was actually developed at NASA for future space station modules or Mars ships. When NASA canned the concept, which was known as Transhab, Bigelow bought the rights to commercialize the idea - and hired some of the original designers.
The concept calls for sending up a compressed, soft-sided spacecraft that could be inflated once it's in orbit - sort of like one of those blow-up kiddie play chambers you see at carnivals. Only in this case, the walls are made out of graphite-fiber composite materials that would be tough enough to stand up to encounters with micrometeoroids and orbital debris.
space.com reports the thing has been launched into orbit.
Pretty cool, and definitely ambitious. Here's the story link:
http://www.space.com/missionlaunches/06071...s-1_launch.html
You know, one definite advantage of this concept is that there's a LOT less risk of secondary radiation from cosmic ray impacts... pretty hard to blow a carbon nucleus apart!
http://www.space.com/missionlaunches/06071...s-1_launch.html
You know, one definite advantage of this concept is that there's a LOT less risk of secondary radiation from cosmic ray impacts... pretty hard to blow a carbon nucleus apart!
There is a famous architecture book entitled Learning from Las Vegas, often praised for examining the interesting and original designs of its casinos and hotels without condescension. Kind of ironic that a Las Vegas company (Bigelow Aeorspace) is taking this step now.
I'm somewhat skeptical about this particular mission, but I applaud the general idea. If people can find a practical and economically viable reason for people to go into space, it could encourage private sector R&D and provide inncentives for the development of cheaper technology. More and more, I feel that organizations like NASA and ESA are a hinderence, planning the development of space around burocratic, politcial and academic goals that are often very short sighted. I think much more rapid and practical progress will be made if captialism can get a better toe hold in space.
I'm somewhat skeptical about this particular mission, but I applaud the general idea. If people can find a practical and economically viable reason for people to go into space, it could encourage private sector R&D and provide inncentives for the development of cheaper technology. More and more, I feel that organizations like NASA and ESA are a hinderence, planning the development of space around burocratic, politcial and academic goals that are often very short sighted. I think much more rapid and practical progress will be made if captialism can get a better toe hold in space.
the bbc science/technology website has a little more info on the launch now.
There is also a mention on NASAWATCH today July 12
http://nasawatch.com/
and some more info in this AP article
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060712/ap_on_...e_space_station
http://nasawatch.com/
and some more info in this AP article
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060712/ap_on_...e_space_station
This is exciting for the reason that it is something completely different than anything that has been done before. Different because it is a pure research and development payload. Different because it is the first inflatable design tested in orbit. Different because it is actual hardware in space by one of companies that wants to build up private access to orbit. This is, along with Rutan's spaceshipone, one of strongest indications that private manned spaceflight is finally coming of age.
From http://www.livescience.com/blogs/author/leonarddavid
Bigelow Module: Orbital Updates
Posted on July 12, 2006 @ 18:57:51 EDT
Author Leonard David
Robert Bigelow, head of Bigelow Aerospace has confirmed that the Genesis-1 spacecraft has successfully expanded. “We have also confirmed that all of the solar arrays have been deployed,” he noted.
At the firm’s mission control center in Las Vegas, Nevada, information has been acquired from Genesis-1. “The ISC Kosmotras Dnepr rocket has flawlessly delivered the Genesis-1 into the target orbit of 550 kilometers altitude at 64 degrees inclination,” Bigelow said.
An early look at the telemetry indicated that the module’s internal battery is at a full charge of 26 volts – indicating that the solar arrays were deployed.
“The internal temperature of the spacecraft is reported to be 26 degrees Celsius and we have acquired the spacecraft’s Global Positioning System (GPS) signal that will enable us to track the ship in flight,” Bigelow reported. “We have initiated communication with the ship’s onboard computers and expect to download more information over the next few hours.”
Mark Pierson a key Genesis-1 architect told SPACE.com late Wednesday that “Genesis-1 is alive and well…and it’s talking…and we have a valid ground track.”
“The telemetry tells us that we’re inflated and deployed,” Pierson said. The expandable module has reached 8 feet in diameter under an automated sequence.
“It’s going better than we would have anticipated,” added Mike Gold, corporate counsel for Bigelow Aerospace in Washington, D.C. Both he and Pierson, and other Bigelow Aerospace personnel were on hand for the Dnepr liftoff that placed Genesis-1 into Earth orbit.
Bigelow Module: Orbital Updates
Posted on July 12, 2006 @ 18:57:51 EDT
Author Leonard David
Robert Bigelow, head of Bigelow Aerospace has confirmed that the Genesis-1 spacecraft has successfully expanded. “We have also confirmed that all of the solar arrays have been deployed,” he noted.
At the firm’s mission control center in Las Vegas, Nevada, information has been acquired from Genesis-1. “The ISC Kosmotras Dnepr rocket has flawlessly delivered the Genesis-1 into the target orbit of 550 kilometers altitude at 64 degrees inclination,” Bigelow said.
An early look at the telemetry indicated that the module’s internal battery is at a full charge of 26 volts – indicating that the solar arrays were deployed.
“The internal temperature of the spacecraft is reported to be 26 degrees Celsius and we have acquired the spacecraft’s Global Positioning System (GPS) signal that will enable us to track the ship in flight,” Bigelow reported. “We have initiated communication with the ship’s onboard computers and expect to download more information over the next few hours.”
Mark Pierson a key Genesis-1 architect told SPACE.com late Wednesday that “Genesis-1 is alive and well…and it’s talking…and we have a valid ground track.”
“The telemetry tells us that we’re inflated and deployed,” Pierson said. The expandable module has reached 8 feet in diameter under an automated sequence.
“It’s going better than we would have anticipated,” added Mike Gold, corporate counsel for Bigelow Aerospace in Washington, D.C. Both he and Pierson, and other Bigelow Aerospace personnel were on hand for the Dnepr liftoff that placed Genesis-1 into Earth orbit.
...completely nominal, then? I'm surprised that the big media outlets like CNN aren't covering this in depth...there haven't been too many success stories in private spaceflight, you'd think that this launch would receive more media exposure!
QUOTE (nprev @ Jul 13 2006, 01:50 PM)
...completely nominal, then? I'm surprised that the big media outlets like CNN aren't covering this in depth...there haven't been too many success stories in private spaceflight, you'd think that this launch would receive more media exposure!Considering that the idea apparently came from NASA's rejected TransHab concept,
perhaps that's the way they want it.
Plus with the mainstream media, it seems that space events either have to be
either really spectacular successes or failures to merit a report.
BTW, I love their little Mission Control in Las Vegas, complete with really cool
space images. See the Space.com item for the MC photo.
As I understand it, there are few cammeras onboard Genesis-1...but I haven't seen any images yet... 
http://www.livescience.com/blogs/author/leonarddavid
Apparently they're going to download more information soon, perhaps we will see images then.
Apparently they're going to download more information soon, perhaps we will see images then.
QUOTE (Adam @ Jul 13 2006, 08:46 PM)
...going to download more information soon, perhaps we will see images then.
That's what I was talking about...That aricle was posted on July 12, 2006 @ 18:57:51 EDT...no news for more than 24 hours...
One thing about the Bigelow website is the, well, tastelessness of the whole thing! You can barely see the information for the PR bling. Perhaps Elvis is their web designer - or Liberace! And, as for the business of space bingo, and an ant farm...
...I wish them well, but their web presence is far from serious.
Bob Shaw
...I wish them well, but their web presence is far from serious.
Bob Shaw
B)-->
That's what I was talking about...That aricle was posted on July 12, 2006 @ 18:57:51 EDT...no news for more than 24 hours...
[/quote]
July 13, 2006
Genesis I Mission Update
4:30 PDT
All Systems are operating within expected parameters. Temperature, avionics, solar arrays and battery power all remain positive. All of our initial orbits have had direct sunlight, which has helped in charging the main battery to maximum capacity.
Pressure onboard the spacecraft has remained constant at 7.5 pounds per square inch (PSI).
We have had multiple contacts with the ship, and received several data streams. While most of these current communication streams are dedicated to command and control of the spacecraft, we have downloaded several small images from the onboard cameras and hope to get more as more bandwidth in the data stream becomes available.
- Robert T. Bigelow
Now we are waiting for him to SHARE the pictures.
QUOTE(Toma B @ Jul 13 2006, 12:59 PM)
That's what I was talking about...That aricle was posted on July 12, 2006 @ 18:57:51 EDT...no news for more than 24 hours...
[/quote]
July 13, 2006
Genesis I Mission Update
4:30 PDT
All Systems are operating within expected parameters. Temperature, avionics, solar arrays and battery power all remain positive. All of our initial orbits have had direct sunlight, which has helped in charging the main battery to maximum capacity.
Pressure onboard the spacecraft has remained constant at 7.5 pounds per square inch (PSI).
We have had multiple contacts with the ship, and received several data streams. While most of these current communication streams are dedicated to command and control of the spacecraft, we have downloaded several small images from the onboard cameras and hope to get more as more bandwidth in the data stream becomes available.
- Robert T. Bigelow
Now we are waiting for him to SHARE the pictures.
B)-->
That's what I was talking about...That aricle was posted on July 12, 2006 @ 18:57:51 EDT...no news for more than 24 hours...
[/quote]
This isn't NASA or MER or even ESA. This is a corporate exercise and they don't owe anyone anything ( except investors and shareholders) , and wont release anything unless it's got a nice spin in it and a positive reflection on B.A. - that's just the way corporate stuff is. If you're looking for regular updates...prepare to be disapointed, they're not going to come. What will come is general back slapping and lots of pomp, circumstance and self promotion and 'we told you it would work'. Someone will probably be on the TV saying "NASA should be flying these for the ISS but they didn't choose to do so" making it appear as if they actually had a choice when financially, it was never an option.
Doug
QUOTE(Toma B @ Jul 13 2006, 07:59 PM)
That's what I was talking about...That aricle was posted on July 12, 2006 @ 18:57:51 EDT...no news for more than 24 hours...
[/quote]
This isn't NASA or MER or even ESA. This is a corporate exercise and they don't owe anyone anything ( except investors and shareholders) , and wont release anything unless it's got a nice spin in it and a positive reflection on B.A. - that's just the way corporate stuff is. If you're looking for regular updates...prepare to be disapointed, they're not going to come. What will come is general back slapping and lots of pomp, circumstance and self promotion and 'we told you it would work'. Someone will probably be on the TV saying "NASA should be flying these for the ISS but they didn't choose to do so" making it appear as if they actually had a choice when financially, it was never an option.
Doug
So many pro-space folks want the space industry to go private - well, now you
have a taste of what it is probably going to be like.
And if you think the government is bad about not supporting projects, just wait
until private industry finds that their lunar colony isn't making the money their
stockholders thought it should.
Science? Exploration? Colonization to spread humanity to the stars? It's the
bottom line that counts.
The predicted words of the first human on Mars:
"That's one small investment gain for the stockholders, one giant potential profit
margin for Wal-Mart!"
have a taste of what it is probably going to be like.
And if you think the government is bad about not supporting projects, just wait
until private industry finds that their lunar colony isn't making the money their
stockholders thought it should.
Science? Exploration? Colonization to spread humanity to the stars? It's the
bottom line that counts.
The predicted words of the first human on Mars:
"That's one small investment gain for the stockholders, one giant potential profit
margin for Wal-Mart!"
From Wikipedia:
'Nuff said?
--Bill
QUOTE
Robert T. Bigelow is a hotel entrepreneur with a keen interest in space flight. He made his fortune through the hotel chain Budget Suites of America and is the founder of Bigelow Aerospace. He has used some of his millions to found the National Institute for Discovery Science as a means to bring proper funding and serious scientific research to bear on the study of paranormal phenomena.
'Nuff said?
--Bill
I disagree. Real advancement in space exploration requries a radical paradigm shift.
NASA and the ESA have limited budgets and limited agendas. On a few billion a year, space exploration wil never go beyond sending a small probe to a planet every few years. From Sputnik to Apollo to Venus Express, space exploration has only been viewed by politicians as an exercise in boosting nationalistic pride. Some scientists have a greater vision, but many of them just see it as an exercise in promoting their academic careers. And tax payers are only willing to spend so much for this sort of exotic entertainment.
If you look at the history of automobiles, airplanes, computers, telephones, etc.; there is no case where major innovation and expansion has occured as a burocratically supervised government program. Furthermore, when a technology does expand and become economically viable, there is inevitably a flurry of new invention. This is already true about many aspects of space. A university scientist might be able to build a camera or a radiation detector, but big engineering efforts like rocket engines and spacecrafts are the exclusive domain of industries like Lockheed and Boeing and TRW.
The bulk of work and innovation in space is dictated by the market for commercial and military satellites. It's like the days of the $100,000 UNIX workstation and 10,000 sites on the internet in the 1980s. It is commercial, but nothing like the subsequent era of personal computers and 100,000,000 sites on the net. If you want that kind of revolutionary change in space exploration and cost reduction, you must open up a real market and engage professional labor on a larger scale.
Bigelow Aerospace is kind of a joke, like a lot of the small private space efforts now. But it is still remarkable that a private company has put such an object in orbit. And what if a serious player like Boeing or Lockheed decided this was economically viable? Then it would be a whole different game, and a vast pool of inventive and experienced people would begin to turn their attention to the task.
NASA and the ESA have limited budgets and limited agendas. On a few billion a year, space exploration wil never go beyond sending a small probe to a planet every few years. From Sputnik to Apollo to Venus Express, space exploration has only been viewed by politicians as an exercise in boosting nationalistic pride. Some scientists have a greater vision, but many of them just see it as an exercise in promoting their academic careers. And tax payers are only willing to spend so much for this sort of exotic entertainment.
If you look at the history of automobiles, airplanes, computers, telephones, etc.; there is no case where major innovation and expansion has occured as a burocratically supervised government program. Furthermore, when a technology does expand and become economically viable, there is inevitably a flurry of new invention. This is already true about many aspects of space. A university scientist might be able to build a camera or a radiation detector, but big engineering efforts like rocket engines and spacecrafts are the exclusive domain of industries like Lockheed and Boeing and TRW.
The bulk of work and innovation in space is dictated by the market for commercial and military satellites. It's like the days of the $100,000 UNIX workstation and 10,000 sites on the internet in the 1980s. It is commercial, but nothing like the subsequent era of personal computers and 100,000,000 sites on the net. If you want that kind of revolutionary change in space exploration and cost reduction, you must open up a real market and engage professional labor on a larger scale.
Bigelow Aerospace is kind of a joke, like a lot of the small private space efforts now. But it is still remarkable that a private company has put such an object in orbit. And what if a serious player like Boeing or Lockheed decided this was economically viable? Then it would be a whole different game, and a vast pool of inventive and experienced people would begin to turn their attention to the task.
Bigelow has posted a first picture from the orbiter:
Not very pretty, but at least its something...
Not very pretty, but at least its something...
I don't think I've seen a link here yet, but this is the Bigelow Aerospace website.
>Real advancement in space exploration requries a radical paradigm shift.
True. "Bigelow Aerospace" is a parallel to "Hughes Aircraft": "got money, got enthusiasm, let's conquer the world (universe)". But can that approach be transferred from the air to space? I'm conservative and am not sure.
--Bill
True. "Bigelow Aerospace" is a parallel to "Hughes Aircraft": "got money, got enthusiasm, let's conquer the world (universe)". But can that approach be transferred from the air to space? I'm conservative and am not sure.
--Bill
QUOTE (DonPMitchell @ Jul 14 2006, 03:13 PM)
If you look at the history of automobiles, airplanes, computers, telephones, etc.; there is no case where major innovation and expansion has occured as a burocratically supervised government program.
???
- Rural Electrification, and virtually all research into plant, irrigation and dairy science was paid for by government programs for decades - At least in the US.
- Tennessee Valley authority - and most hydroelectric programs.
- The development of the modern airplane (Mostly in France).
- All fighter jet and military aircraft development, Hughes debunkles not withstanding.
- Most rocket developments
- Nuclear submarines, and the nuclear industry in general.
- Miniturization of SS circuits (originally funded by NASA for space applications in the 60's)
- The internet, airbag research, broadband- the list is endless
In many cases, the efforts have been a combination of private researchers and government funding, but even in 'truly independent' research, tax breaks for R&D have been an important incentive. Ronald Reagen banned private satellite launches from shuttle missions in an effort to help develope a private sector rocket industry, but the principle result is that many other governments are now launching many private satellites. The ugly fact is, the truly private sector does not risk capital on truly innovative approaches.
Let's face up to it -- the days in which a lone inventor could cobble together innovative uses of materials, electricity or applications of basic Newtonian physics, without far more capitalization than an individual is generally capable of generating, are pretty much over. We've simply plumbed the depths of technologies available to those who cannot apply truly expensive technologies in their assistance.
Until and unless a vast paradigm shift makes possible the creation of spacecraft and motive forces capable of delivering them into space using only those odds and ends found around the home, we are limited in terms of new technologies and innovations to what can be created by well-funded corporations and governments.
Well-funded corporations and governments have a remarkably strong antipathy towards innovation.
-the other Doug
Until and unless a vast paradigm shift makes possible the creation of spacecraft and motive forces capable of delivering them into space using only those odds and ends found around the home, we are limited in terms of new technologies and innovations to what can be created by well-funded corporations and governments.
Well-funded corporations and governments have a remarkably strong antipathy towards innovation.
-the other Doug
I think for plant irrigation and dairy farming, I would have to give credit to the ancient Sumerians. And let us not forget that thanks to NASA, my CorningWare casserole could probably survive atmospheric reentry. You can argue about the causal relationships here, but I would argue that consumer electronics drove technology far more than NASA contracts.
Certainly the military drives the market, but the R&D gets done by corporations like Electric Boat Company or Boeing or Hugues or Lockheed. Very little gets done in the style of the Manhatten Project, with direct government control. France invented the modern airplane? When?
I grew up in the rural midwest, and the electrification was a co-op enterprise owned by the farmers. The technololgy of power distribution was largely made by Westinghouse and General Electric.
The original internet was developed under a DARPA grant, but at that time, there were extensive private computer networks owned and built by IBM and Control Data. I used the CDC PLATO system during the late 1970s, and it was damn impressive technology. The internet as it exsists today, with 100,000,000 sites is made possible by drastic redesign of routing and link-level protocols by Cisco and many others. And it has always run on top of privately built lines like AT&T's photonic trunk lines.
Government plays a role, but without professional commerical engineering and market incentive, these big projects would not exist.
So getting back to space exploration, I still believe that the current programs by NASA and ESA are short sighted and in a steady state. Commercial and military satellites create the market and technology now.
Certainly the military drives the market, but the R&D gets done by corporations like Electric Boat Company or Boeing or Hugues or Lockheed. Very little gets done in the style of the Manhatten Project, with direct government control. France invented the modern airplane? When?
I grew up in the rural midwest, and the electrification was a co-op enterprise owned by the farmers. The technololgy of power distribution was largely made by Westinghouse and General Electric.
The original internet was developed under a DARPA grant, but at that time, there were extensive private computer networks owned and built by IBM and Control Data. I used the CDC PLATO system during the late 1970s, and it was damn impressive technology. The internet as it exsists today, with 100,000,000 sites is made possible by drastic redesign of routing and link-level protocols by Cisco and many others. And it has always run on top of privately built lines like AT&T's photonic trunk lines.
Government plays a role, but without professional commerical engineering and market incentive, these big projects would not exist.
So getting back to space exploration, I still believe that the current programs by NASA and ESA are short sighted and in a steady state. Commercial and military satellites create the market and technology now.
Fair assessment, Don.
I am anticipating new, fundamental breakthroughs, that are the result of planetary probes and deep space imaging. So I don't see a lot of value-added in launching a new generation of space bouncy room and sight- seeing craft, like the shuttle.
That said, if Bigalow is willing to fund high risk technologies and fringe science...where do I sign up:)
I am anticipating new, fundamental breakthroughs, that are the result of planetary probes and deep space imaging. So I don't see a lot of value-added in launching a new generation of space bouncy room and sight- seeing craft, like the shuttle.
That said, if Bigalow is willing to fund high risk technologies and fringe science...where do I sign up:)
There are fundamentally different types of breakthroughs: scientific, engineering, and economic. The NASA and ESA of today are capable of the first, fumble the second increasingly badly with time (Aerospace plane, X-33, etc.. Hermes...), and are transcendentally incapable of the third.
We can have a space "program" with more of the same only better, but we can also have a "breakout" program that will give true access to space, and the ability to make a space-based industrial civilization a real possiblity. Elon Mus, Bigelow, Paul Allen, Jef Bezos and the space activists like Rick Tumlinson, Peter Diamandis, and the Ansaris the names our descendents will learn the way they learn of Heinrik Hudson, Vasco da Gama, Francis Drake and James Cook.
We can have a space "program" with more of the same only better, but we can also have a "breakout" program that will give true access to space, and the ability to make a space-based industrial civilization a real possiblity. Elon Mus, Bigelow, Paul Allen, Jef Bezos and the space activists like Rick Tumlinson, Peter Diamandis, and the Ansaris the names our descendents will learn the way they learn of Heinrik Hudson, Vasco da Gama, Francis Drake and James Cook.
New images up for 7/17/06:
Reminds me of the emails I get from Uni of Tokyo's Cubesats
http://www.space.t.u-tokyo.ac.jp/cubesat/index-e.html
Doug
http://www.space.t.u-tokyo.ac.jp/cubesat/index-e.html
Doug
QUOTE (edstrick @ Jul 17 2006, 04:07 AM)
There are fundamentally different types of breakthroughs: scientific, engineering, and economic. The NASA and ESA of today are capable of the first, fumble the second increasingly badly with time (Aerospace plane, X-33, etc.. Hermes...), and are transcendentally incapable of the third.
The Aerospace Plane was DOD not NASA
QUOTE (edstrick @ Jul 17 2006, 04:07 AM)
Heinrik Hudson, Vasco da Gama, Francis Drake and James Cook.
Those are explorers. We are ready have them: Shepard, Armstrong. The new people are not the others ones you listed.
They will be the "exploiters" and will run companies like the Dutch East Indies Company. Who learned who ran that company?
short videos up at
http://www.bigelowaerospace.com/out_there/video.php
i can see how they need to fix that circulation issue before they start charging 300 bucks a picture to go whizzing by....
http://www.bigelowaerospace.com/out_there/video.php
i can see how they need to fix that circulation issue before they start charging 300 bucks a picture to go whizzing by....
QUOTE (lyford @ Jul 18 2006, 05:49 AM)
short videos up at
http://www.bigelowaerospace.com/out_there/video.php
i can see how they need to fix that circulation issue before they start charging 300 bucks a picture to go whizzing by....
http://www.bigelowaerospace.com/out_there/video.php
i can see how they need to fix that circulation issue before they start charging 300 bucks a picture to go whizzing by....
...presumably "mission end" is when all the pictures flock to one spot on the wall and disappear one-by-one?
Andy G
"Where American entrepreneurs go, European bureaucrats are sure to follow..." A typically irreverent but interesting article today in the The Register.
The Register
The Register
QUOTE (AndyG @ Jul 18 2006, 05:05 AM)
...presumably "mission end" is when all the pictures flock to one spot on the wall and disappear one-by-one?
Now that would be a video feed I would pay to see... rocket cam on the way back down!
Hmm -- in all three of the interior shots they have up, many, many details in the interior (which appear to be signs for businesses and things) are intentionally blurred out. Must be eight or ten places where the image has been rather crudely blurred. In all three images.
Anyone have a clue as to why?
-the other Doug
Anyone have a clue as to why?
-the other Doug
new pictures:
http://www.bigelowaerospace.com/out_there/index.php
http://www.bigelowaerospace.com/out_there/index.php
My take on the flight of Genesis 1 is this - we are seeing the first
flight of a type of craft that will one day be flown to Mars. In fact,
this TransHab-type craft will be used for crew quarters on the way
to Mars, and as modules for a base on the surface of Mars.
I applaud Bigelow in his efforts. He gets to pursue his business
of orbital hotels, while at the same time, proving out the technology
that NASA will need for advanced manned planetary missions.
I see this as a Win-Win situation.
Another Phil
A few more thoughts on Genesis 1/Transhab.
First, check out this excellent article on the history and
important advances of Transhab (from Hobby Space).
It features a detailed interview with Constance Adams,
one of the key contributors to the Transhab project.
http://www.hobbyspace.com/AAdmin/archive/I...tanceAdams.html
Second, here is the link to an article from Popular Science that
highlights Transhab, but also gets into the challenge of "Knowledge
Capture" at a place like NASA.
http://www.popsci.com/popsci/aviationspace...ecbccdrcrd.html
And for your viewing pleasure, here is an image from the NASA History
book, "Spaceflight Revolution." It shows a 24-foot inflatable toroidal-shape
structure on display during a visit to Langley by Jim Webb in December 1961!
Everything old is new again.
Click to view attachment
One more thought concerning inflatables. As I recall, Mike Griffin made
mention, about a year or so ago, of an Earth orbital fuel depot that might be used
in future manned Mars expeditions. He was pointing out that one way that Commercial
space companies could make "easy" money was by hauling fuel to Earth orbit.
It is now extremely expensive to launch anything into orbit, but if it could be done
cheaply, then the start-up space companies could earn a niche in the space
exploration architecture.
I mention this because Griffin went on to say that this fuel depot could be
man-tended, i.e., not permanently manned. This may then lead one to imagine
that these temporary quarters could be inflatable modules bought from
that pioneer of orbital motels, Bigelow Aerospace.
Another Phil
I wonder if Bigelows "hotel" or some other version will ever be attached to the ISS for crew quarters.
Be a cheap addition to the ISS and give Bigelow lots of credibility. Since it was to be installed initially, I wonder if the idea was/will be ever approached.
Be a cheap addition to the ISS and give Bigelow lots of credibility. Since it was to be installed initially, I wonder if the idea was/will be ever approached.
QUOTE (jabe @ Sep 13 2006, 10:51 AM)
I wonder if Bigelows "hotel" or some other version will ever be attached to the ISS for crew quarters.
Be a cheap addition to the ISS and give Bigelow lots of credibility. Since it was to be installed initially, I wonder if the idea was/will be ever approached.
Be a cheap addition to the ISS and give Bigelow lots of credibility. Since it was to be installed initially, I wonder if the idea was/will be ever approached.
No, Bigelow never was or will be part of the ISS plans
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