Ex Terra: The Journal of Space Commerce: Recent Episodes

Tom Patton

This podcast focuses on issues related to the commercial space industry, and the impacts for people on Earth

With so much discussion about the eventual retirement of the International Space Station, a lot of attention is being paid to companies developing private space stations … and there are several. A new entrant in that arena is Joules Space Technology, LLC, an aerospace research and development company focused on making space more human-friendly. They specialize in artificial gravity and are developing a space station called Space Station EO.

On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, Tom Patton talks with Jules Ross, founder and CEO of Joules Space Technology, which is developing the concept of an artificial gravity space station.

The company hopes to be the first aerospace company to conquer NASA's five hazards of human spaceflight - Space Radiation, Isolation, Distance from Earth, Gravity Field, and Hostile/Closed Environment. Space Station EO ... for Earth One ... would solve those problems with private living quarters, an electromagnetic radiation shield, Earth simulation technology to give astronauts more of a feeling of home, and be a self-sustaining dual gravity platform for science and more.

"Our platform has both environments on one platform. It has 1G and 0G. So now we can do our experiments in 1G and then do backup experiments in 0G, or vice versa," Ross said. "So the scientists and the experiment can be on the space station at the same time."

Ross envisions a future where people of ordinary means can experience space in a safe and comfortable environment, and Space Station EO could be the first step in making that vision a reality.

The C-Tech Club is a global community of founders and CEOs of construction technology start-ups. Founded in 2019, it has grown to cover 425 founders in 31 countries, creating a ‘safe space’ for them to collaborate and learn from each other. Now the C-Tech Club is getting involved with the space sector, with a Space Chapter specifically supporting founders focused on design and construction in space.

On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, Tom Patton talks with John Priestland, founder of the C-Tech Club.

The Space Chapter’s mission is to support independent innovators whose technology is suitable for in-orbit or lunar deployment, or extreme environments or space facilities here on Earth. Founders benefit from monthly speaker meetings, a vibrant social media group, conference events (such as ‘C-Tech Club Start-up Village’ at Digital Construction Week, advocacy with Government and construction leadership groups and social events such as dinners. At these events, founders can collaborate, learn from each other and build connections with people facing the same challenges that they face.

"Now we think it's time to take that trusted environment, that 'safe space' where founders can share and work together into the space sector. Because there are really exciting developments in orbit, on the Moon and further afield, and we think it's time to help founders play their part in the space mission," Priestland said.

The Space Chapter focuses on businesses involved in on-orbit, lunar, extreme environment and space facilities opportunities. Relevant technologies are likely to include: 3D printing of structures; new materials; structural design software; robotics; hyper-accurate sensors (to allow remote handling); physical/digital twins; and novel surveying and scanning techniques. There may also be spin-offs from space-related construction technology for conventional Earth-based construction.

If you are interested in joining the C-Tech Club’s Space Chapter (which is open to founders and CEOs of start-ups actively involved in design and construction for space), please email them here.

One of the issues with satellites is that their power can be limited ... whether by the size and weight of batteries or the efficiency of their solar panels. But what if you could "plug" your satellite into a power source like you were plugging it into a wall outlet in your home or business?

That's the concept be Star Catcher, a start-up company that is working to develop a power grid in space.

On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, Tom Patton talks with Andrew Rush, Co-founder, president and CEO of Star Catcher. The company is developing technology that will collect solar power in space and beam it to client satellites on a pay-as-you-go basis.

"In space, everything is a camping trip. You have to take everything with you, and if you didn't bring it with you, you're out of luck. And that is an impediment to the commercialization, industrialization and exploration of any arena, including space. And so that's why we're trying to build this power grid. To have infrastructure so that it's just as easy to build a business in space as it is on the ground."

The Star Catcher orbital infrastructure will transform how satellites are powered, the company says. Spacecraft connect to the network and receive energy via existing solar arrays, which means there is no retrofit required to utilize the service.

The company recently closed a seed round in excess of $12 million, which it will use to grow its staff and develop the necessary technology in hopes of flying a demonstration mission late in 2025.

The U.S. Department of Commerce Bureau of Economic Analysis recently released its most recent statistics concerning the impact of Space Commerce on the country's GDP for the years 2017-2022. The findings show the space economy accounted for $131.8 billion, or 0.5 percent, of total U.S. GDP in 2022.

On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, Tom Patton talks to Dr. Tina Highfill, the lead economist working to develop these statistics for the BEA.

"What we see is, for the first time, this fast growth is being caused by an increase in spending from national defense ... so U.S. Space Force ... but also private R&D. Space Force does mostly R&D at this point, so a lot of R&D both in the private and government sectors is driving growth in the space economy," Highfill said.

The estimates developed by BEA give business leaders, policymakers, and the public a new tool to analyze the space economy and to inform investment decisions.

For the first time, this release of the space economy statistics is presented in the same format as BEA's official industry statistics. This means the industry detail is expanded from just over 30 industries to 75 industries, providing even more information about the industrial composition of the U.S. space economy and its changes over time. Additionally, two new datasets are provided that show price indexes for value added (also known as GDP) and gross output, also published with the same 75-industry detail. Lastly, this report focuses on GDP and chained growth rates, further aligning with BEA's official statistical releases.

New Space companies are constantly looking for alternative revenue streams to fund their projects. While many rely on traditional sources of funding, an emerging trend in the sector is Space Sponsorships.

On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, Tom Patton talks with Stirling Forbes, the founder and CEO of Forbes Space, a dedicated space sponsorship, partnership and growth services agency.

"It's a 1+1=3," Forbes said. "A brand receives the unparalleled product differentiation publicity that comes with associating with a space company, and a space company will receive the crucial financial or technical or global public awareness support for their mission, or innovation or exploration, or really just general progress for humanity."

Forbes has a Master of Science in Space Studies degree from the International Space University in Strasbourg, France, and a First Class honors BSc degree from University College London in the History and Philosophy of Science where his thesis was on the commercialization and militarization of space. Over the last five years, Stirling has established a wide network in the space, commercial and marketing sector, building numerous relationships with influential people in those industries, both in person and through LinkedIn. His network extends to over 140 individual space companies alongside over 1100 connections in a CEO, Founder or president Role.

It's pretty well known that there is a lot of debris in space. What if some of that debris could be recycled in space to create new materials which could be used for other purposes? Cislunar industries is working to create methods to recycle and repurpose metals in space.

On this edition of the Ex Terra Podcast, Tom Patton talks with Joe Pawelski, the co-founder and CTO of Cislunar Industries. In April of last year, the company was awarded a patent for its Space Foundry for in-space metal processing and contactless manipulation. The Modular Space Foundry technology takes recovered space debris and reprocesses it into standardized metal feedstock in the form of rod, wire filament, and other useful geometries, as well as propellant. In May, ThinkOrbital successfully operated an electron-beam welding system in space. CisLunar Industries developed the system that powered the operation, a 20kV power supply that boasts industry-leading size, weight, and power (SWaP).

"In space, the name of the game is we don't want to create more particles, or we don't want to create more debris. I mean that's the whole idea ... we're trying to prevent debris. So manufacturing processes that don't make debris and that aren't very invasive are really interesting to us."

Cislunar Industries believes that a dynamic and robust industrial in-space economy is essential to this future, and envisions a future where humanity is enabled and empowered to expand beyond Earth to permanently and sustainably settle the Solar System.

The Aerospace Corporation is an independent, nonprofit corporation operating the only Federally Funded Research and Development Center (FFRDC) for the space enterprise. They perform objective technical analyses and assessments for a variety of government, civil, and commercial customers.

On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, Tom Patton talks with Sam Wilson, a systems director for the Center for Space Policy and Strategy at The Aerospace Corporation and is known for his work in defense space policy, national security, and space commerce.

Sam recently published a budget brief titled 'FY 2025 Defense Space Budget: Continued Emphasis on Proliferation Under a More Constrained Top-Line'.

"You're seeing a lot of commercial companies now providing some of the same services you used to see reserved for only government missions," Wilson said. "And I think that's interesting, and we'll see what that looks like in the future."

This year’s request includes funding for new proliferated networks of communications satellites and increasing attention on commercial satellite communications. With more limited growth, the presidential budget request reflects trade-offs and priorities for DOD’s space activity.

Lonestar Data Holdings is a pioneering company that offers Disaster Recovery as a Service (DRaaS) from the Moon. On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, Tom Patton talks with Chris Stott, the Founder and CEO of Lonestar Data Holdings.

In February, Lonestar successfully demonstrated the concept of data storage and retrieval from the Moon as part of the Intuitive Machines IM-1 mission. From the surface of the Moon, Lonestar's Independence payload successfully completed the first ever data center test in their proof-of-concept demonstration. This included the transmission of the Declaration of Independence from Earth to the Moon and the receipt back from the Moon of a copy of the US Constitution and Bill of Rights, all while ensuring data storage on the Moon for the State of Florida.

Stott says that his market is terrestrial. Lonestar uses space to serve that market.

"This idea of where to keep your data, data has a passport. Especially if you're regulated data from a country or a company, it's finding the right location that offers you protection under data sovereignty laws, as well as access to your data in a safe and secure manner. For us, space was that solution."

Lonestar recently announced their second lunar data center mission, the Freedom Payload, scheduled to launch with Intuitive Machines on their IM-2 Lander.

Imagine getting critical supplies ... or frankly almost anything ... delivered to nearly any location from space. That is the vision of Inversion Space, a company creating autonomous re-entry vehicles to deliver cargo from space, making space a transportation layer for Earth.

"At Inversion, our goal is to be able to make it so that humanity can deliver cargo to anywhere on Earth in under an hour." Justin Fiaschetti, Inversion Space

On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, Tom Patton talks with Justin Fiaschetti, the CEO of Inversion Space.

The company currently has two capsules under development. Ray is designed for technology maturation, and Arc, which will be a fully autonomous global delivery system. The company was founded in 2021 and went through Y Combinator, securing funding from various partners.

"At Inversion, our goal is to be able to make it so that humanity can deliver cargo to anywhere on Earth in under an hour," Fiaschetti said. "Taking that transportation modality that happens on the ground right now, whether it be through boats or aircraft or rail, and adding a layer on top of that that's faster, has less infrastructure, and can allow for full global reach without any terrestrial infrastructure."

Inversion is creating nearly every component of the Ray and Arc capsules in house, with each being purpose-built for the system. The first test of Ray is planned for later this year.

https://www.inversionspace.com

The Radiation Team is a radiation reliability consulting provider specializing in delivering customized, cost-effective radiation solutions for mission-critical space systems. They focus on accurate analysis, speed, efficiency, and necessary and sufficient engineering to mitigate the impacts and risks of ionizing radiation throughout the development lifecycle of space systems.

Founded in 2022 and headquartered in Reston, WA, The Radiation Team works with clients, often from mission inception, to determine what are the risks of radiation exposure to critical components, and then develop strategies to protect those components.

"The field is so broad, identifying what is the best approach to take for a customer or a mission is part of the challenge," Chertkow said.

Prior to founding The Radiation Team, Chertkow worked at both Blue Origin and SpaceX in lead roles in the radiation field.

Space Florida is the state's aerospace finance and development authority, dedicated to strengthening Florida's position as a global leader in aerospace research, investment, exploration, and commerce. As the state's premier aerospace entity, Space Florida is committed to attracting and expanding the next generation of space industry businesses.

On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, Tom Patton talks with Rob Long, president and CEO of Space Florida. He was named to the position last year following the retirement of Frank DiBello.

Rob has over 25 years of leadership experience in the aerospace industry. His expertise spans launch operations, logistics, and spaceport management. His strategic vision aims to position Florida as a global hub for aerospace commerce.

"We are definitely engaged from the start-up side, we do a lot with capital accelerator programs, we work with Florida Venture Forum and other similar organizations to male sure we're involved in some of those early aerospace companies. Small mid-cap companies to the largest Fortune 500 companies. We have the ability to deal with all of those," Long said.

On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, Tom Patton talks with Kevin Stadnyk, co-founder and CEO of Obruta Space Solutions.

Obruta Space Solutions is a Canadian company specializing in space robotics and technologies. Their mission revolves around enabling satellite servicing and addressing the challenges of space debris removal. The company does not build hardware for those tasks, but rather develops the software that will eventually allow such spacecraft to operate autonomously.

The company is developing a rendezvous, proximity operations, and docking (RPOD) system. With this "RPOD Kit", Obruta enables orbital service providers to perform services such as on-orbit refueling, life-extension, and debris removal—services which exponentially increase a space asset's value. Astronauts aboard the International Space Station are currently conducting ROPD experiments in preparation for free-flying test in the future

"There will be humans in the loop for the initial and foreseeable future in some capacity," Stadnyk said. "Similar to self-driving cars, the end goal is reaching full autonomy, but we know that it's not realistic to start this whole technology by being fully autonomous. It's just won't be safe enough, it won't be reliable enough."

Kevin holds two degrees in aerospace engineering and a background focused on satellite attitude control, orbital mechanics, and space debris removal technologies.

On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, Tom Patton talks with Matt George and Josh Foerschler of Burns & McDonnell, a design/build company with expertise constructing facilities for the space industry.

Josh Foerschler is Business Development Lead for space-related facilities, and Matt George serves as a project manager for space-related facilities at Burns & McDonnell.

The company's portfolio includes a 125,000 sq.ft. facility for Intuitive Machines, which recently landed a spacecraft on the Moon. Incorporated into the design are advanced manufacturing and production spaces, 3D printing areas, machine shops, research and development laboratories, clean rooms, and large-scale spacecraft assembly areas. Unique to the facility are mission control rooms to track and manage lunar missions, and a propulsion test facility to assess lunar lander engine capabilities. The space also includes offices, meeting areas, conference rooms and other amenities for both Intuitive Machines and its partners/tenants.

"We built them basically an engine testing verification facility on Houston spaceport. They call it "The Flame Range" or "The Rocket Petting Zoo"," Foerschler said.

The Innovative Launch, Automation, Novel Materials, Communications, and Hypersonics Hub (iLAuNCH) program is a collaboration of regionally based institutions, led by the University of Southern Queensland with The Australian National University, and the University of South Australia.

On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, Tom Patton talks with Dr. Joni Sytsma, Chief Technology Officer of iLAuNCH.

The effort is part of the Australian Government’s Trailblazer Universities Program delivered by the Department of Education. Through this program, the Australian Government will build new research capabilities, driving commercialization outcomes and investing in new industry engagement opportunities.

"I like to think I'm building the science fiction future," Dr. Sytsma said. "And my science fiction future has space cities, and space travel as an everyday thing."

A total of $370.3 million will be invested from 2022–2026 to build additional capacity to focus on the problems that matter to the nation by driving research excellence and real-world impact.

Six Australian universities will become leaders in research commercialisation, with dedicated investment in priority areas. Each Trailblazer university will receive $50 million, which will be matched by university and industry partner contributions.

On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, Tom Patton talks with James Perry, Executive VP of ASTERRA, a company providing data-driven solutions for water utilities, government agencies, and the broader infrastructure industry. Their expertise lies in leak detection, infrastructure analysis, and soil characteristics monitoring.

Based in Israel with offices in San Diego, CA, ASTERRA develops innovative tools to enhance water management and infrastructure resilience using geospatial data. The company provides a number of industries with intelligence and insights from beneath the surface of their largest installations. Without breaking ground, ASTERRA uses patented algorithms and artificial intelligence to detect leaks, assess pipes, and locate moisture near major installations.

James Perry has spent over thirty years driving disruptive innovation. In both start-ups and Fortune 500 companies, James’ key mission is market adoption and to achieve a deeper foothold into new markets. James currently serves as the VP for Business Development at ASTERRA, based in San Diego, CA. In his free time James likes to sail out of the Mission Bay Yacht Club in San Diego and held the position of Commodore in 2016.

"What we're able to do is break down the ecosystem of maintaining water supply where leakage is causing non-revenue water challenges," Perry said.

GITAI Robotics is a space robotics startup that aims to provide safe and affordable labor in space while reducing operational costs by two orders of magnitude. The company is developing highly capable, safe, and reliable robots for ISAM (In-space Servicing, Assembly, and Manufacturing) services, including building and maintaining satellites, as well as space stations, lunar bases, and cities on Mars.

The GITAI Robotics S-2 robotic arm was recently transported to the International Space Station for a demonstration mission, and the company was also selected for the DARPA 10 program last month.

Nakanose said that the arm can be useful in relieving highly-trained from repetitive chores such as cleaning and routine maintenance. "Of course its important, but we can replace that kind of daily chores ... or dangerous operations ... with robots, robotic technologies," he said.

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Audible, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

Last year saw the largest number of rocket launches, the largest mass to orbit ever achieved, and a wide variety of space missions by a growing number of countries and companies.

In short, it’s getting busy up there. So how can we keep ourselves safe and free from collision and conflict?

Robin Dickey is a space policy and strategy analyst at The Aerospace Corporation’s Center for Space Policy and Strategy. She focuses on national security, space, geopolitics, and international relations. She recently published a paper titled “(Space) Ships Passing in the Night: Translating Maritime Rules of the Road for the Space Domain” which sheds light on this situation.

"Some of these maritime domain principals help make it easier to make the interactions between different satellites and different satellite operators more regular, more predictable, less risky, and all of those things can help ensure in the long term that commerce in space is able to flourish," Dickey said.

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Audible, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

Young entrepreneurs will be the future of space commerce, just as they are in most industries.On this edition of the Ex Terra Podcast, Tom Patton talks with Madison Feehan, who is leading multiple space commerce efforts … one that is involved in looking at ways to build on the Moon, and the other working on advanced space robotics and STEM education.

"In Junior High School I created a 3D CAD model prototype for a Mars habitat that was created using 3D printers. That didn't actually take off." Madison Feehan

At just 20 years old, Madison is the COO of Space Copy, and the co-founder and CFO of Moon Trades.

Space Copy is the first multi-purpose interplanetary manufacturing device that combines lunar regolith sampling, spectral data analysis, and 3D printing into one mechanism. Space Copy works to reduce the costs of frequent payload service missions, and well as reduce the amount of pollution and debris emitted by continuous resupply missions sent to the lunar surface to sustain long-term human presence by providing an in-situ resource utilization technology to be used directly on the Moon and Mars to create supplies needed to sustain human life.

"In Junior High School I created a 3D CAD model prototype for a Mars habitat that was created using 3D printers. I actually submitted it to NASA to see if anyone was intersted in developing the theory into an actual technology. That didn't actually take off," Madison said. "And when I was 16 I was approached by the same NASA office that I had previously sent that project off to, and they offered me a contract position to review some innovations for science instruments that were being developed for terrestrial and Lunar use."

Moon Trades is a global consortium designing lunar robotics for mining and AI space education for STEM enthusiasts.

In her "spare" time, Madison advises young people considering STEM and space careers.

Madison is a graduate of Harvard Business School ('22) - Entrepreneurship Essentials (2021), Negotiation Mastery (2022), Disruptive Strategy (2022); Comprehensive Certificate of Specialization in Entrepreneurship and Innovation from Harvard Business School Online, class of 2022.

The Ex Terra Podcast has been named one of the Internet's top 15 Space Business Podcasts by Feedspot. We hope you'll subscribe to stay up to date on Space Commerce through our interviews with leaders in the industry.

On a programming note, this is our final podcast to 2023. We'll return in January. We wish you all an outstanding holiday season.

Arcfield was launched as a stand-alone company in 2021, but it has a long history in the aerospace industry dating back to 1957. The company was created to serve a single purpose: to solve the most complex and demanding national security and space-related challenges.

"We do an analysis every year of what our mission partners need, both government and commercial." Kevin Kelly, Arcfield

On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, Tom Patton talks with Kevin Kelly, CEO of Arcfield.

Recently, Arcfield announced the acquisition of Orion Space Solutions, a company that applies fundamental space physics knowledge to solve real-world problems encountered in the space environment.

"We do an analysis every year of what our mission partners need, both government and commercial. We identify what those gap areas are. If it has capabilities that we feel we need to make part of Archfield's enterprise, we can either buy it or build it," Kelly said.

Kevin Kelly has been an active leader in the defense and intelligence industry for more than 30 years with proven success leading and managing companies through growth activities. He is passionate about innovation and ensuring that a company leverages its people, processes and technologies to its maximum potential to deliver for its customers.

Prior to Arcfield, Kevin was the CEO of LGS Innovations, a privately held independent technology company that was eventually acquired by CACI International in March of 2019. After its acquisition, Kevin oversaw the company’s integration into CACI through the company’s creation of a new high-tech sector (National Security and Innovation Solutions Sector), where Kevin would ultimately serve as president. In this role, Kevin oversaw the operations of a $2B business consisting of the technology and products portions of several key acquisitions; namely LGS Innovations, SIX3 Systems, TICOM Geomatics, and L3 NSS.

Sateliot is the first satellite operator to offer IoT or Internet of Things connectivity over standard 5G Narrow Band-IoT. Their constellation serves as cell towers in space, expanding mobile operator coverage and providing global connectivity to unmodified commercial terrestrial devices wherever they are.

"Everything is going to take some time to be in the hands of everyone everywhere. But it's going to happen, and that's the revolutionary thing." Gianluca Redolfi, Sateliot

On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, Tom Patton talks With Gianluca Redolfi, Chief Commercial Officer of Barcelona, Spain-based Sateliot.

"What we are providing from the satellites is an extension of the current coverage," Redolfi said. "Because in many ... use cases, they do not have connectivity."

In April of this year, Sateliot launched the first of its planned 250-satellite constellation. "Groundbreaker" is a 22-pound spacecraft that will allow users to seamlessly switch from a terrestrial to a non-terrestrial 5G network, with no need to purchase any extra hardware, such as antennas or modems. Also, they can keep using their current sim cards and mobile operators, thanks to the standard roaming agreements carried out by Sateliot. This eases the way to a massive Internet of Things adoption worldwide.

"Everything is going to take some time to be in the hands of everyone everywhere," Redolfi said. "But it's going to happen, and that's the revolutionary thing."

Space launches have become very common, in fact, multiple times a week is now the norm. Each launch takes a well choreographed set of operations to get payload to space. But what goes on behind the scenes to make this happen?

On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, Tom Patton talks with Laura Crabtree, CEO of Epsilon3.

Current mission tools are neglected in a program lifecycle, creating inefficiency, errors, and added costs over the course of a project. Epsilon3 arms operators with the best possible tools throughout an entire project’s lifecycle, which result in 10X more efficiency and operator-friendliness.

"The operator is not going off to do analysis. They need information in front of them quickly. So, how do we give them information quickly? You want to string together what happened yesterday, what happened two weeks ago, with what's going to happen tomorrow, and if you have everything on one platform, you have the string to do that," Crabtree said.

A graduate of the University of Southern California, Laura worked at both SpaceX and Northrop Grumman Corporation prior to co-founding Epsilon3 with Max Mednik.

On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, Tom Patton talks with Justus Parmar, founder of Fortuna Investments.

Parmar founded the private investment firm in 2015 to develop long-term partnerships with changemaking entrepreneurs in emerging industries.

Fortuna specializes in venture capital investments and has raised over $500 million for more than 125 companies since its founding.

Space is one of the target areas of investment for Parmar, and the company recently invested in Starfighters in Space, which owns and operates a fleet of F-104 aircraft that can launch payloads into space flying at Mach 2.

Still, Parmar is cautious about the current environment when it comes to investing in the commercial space sector. "I think we're in the thick of winter. At some point in time it's going to turn around. It'll be spring. Whether that's late next year or the following year is to be determined, but it will thaw out."

Parmar is an award-winning venture capitalist with over 15 years of public market experience. As the Founder and CEO of Fortuna Investments, he leads a team with offices in Miami, Los Angeles, and Vancouver that focuses on investing and creating the emerging technologies and industries of tomorrow. He has helped to raise more than $500 million for 125 early-stage companies and facilitated the initial public offering (IPO) of 24 companies. Several of his investment companies have reached a market capitalization of $1-billion in value.

Phantom Space Corporation was founded to change the way satellites and other assets are transported into space, through space, and ultimately back to Earth.

The company's approach of offering of launch, propulsion, and satellite solutions enables a widening demographic to access space, space technology, and space data.

This time on The Ex Terra Podcast, Tom Patton talks with Mark Lester, COO of Phantom Space, about how the satellite launch business is evolving, and Phantom's role in that business.

The company is developing two launch vehicles and has a proven track record of successful satellite programs, spacecraft design, and launch missions. The launch vehicles are built around proven components so as to be more cost-effective to launch.

"You see changing expectations. The bar used to be 'get to space and you're one of a few.' Now, it's not only get to space but do it over and over again in a very reliable, dependable way."

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Audible, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

In this third and final installment of our series looking at geopolitics in Asia and Space Commerce, Tom Patton talks with Dr. Namrata Goswami about space commerce in India, and the influence of political and economic factors in the country.

India has been on a roll in space, most recently with the landing of the Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft at the south pole of the Moon. India is also actively supporting the private commercialization of space, with some 140 space startup companies currently helping building the space infrastructure there. Dr. Goswami brings her unique insights into the space programs of her native country developed through extensive study of the topic, including research on the ground in India.

Dr. Goswami goes in-depth into the Modi government, India's historic stance as a non-aligned country, and how India is now gravitating towards the United States in terms of collaboration in space, as well as insights coming out of the G-20 Summit which had space as a topic of discussion.

"The fact that India has taken a decision to move funding to the private sector ... to build rockets and to build satellites and to build propulsion systems ... means that India's future in terms of space startups is pretty exciting," Dr. Goswami said.

Dr. Goswami is an author, professor, strategic analyst and consultant on Great Power Politics, Space Policy, Alternate Futures, and Frameworks of Conflict Negotiation and Resolution. She is currently working on a book project "China's Grand Strategy and The Notion of Territoriality and Resources" and a second project on conceptualizing a space power matrix answering a key question: what makes a country a space power?

A Conversation with Global Security Consultant Dr. Namrata Goswami

In this second in our series of podcasts on international relations and space commerce, Tom Patton talks with Dr. Namrata Goswami about the current state of China's space program.

"Today, China has about 140 space startups. Several of them have already launched to orbit." Dr. Namrata Goswami

China has over the past several years landed multiple spacecraft on the Moon and returned regolith samples back to Earth. Additionally, they have launched, assembled and manned the Tiangong space station. According to CMSA, which operates the space station, the purpose and mission of Tiangong is "to develop and gain experience in spacecraft rendezvous technology, permanent human operations in orbit, long-term autonomous spaceflight of the space station, regenerative life support technology and autonomous cargo and fuel supply technology."

According to the China Aerospace Studies Institute, over the past 20 year the relationship between China and Russia has transitioned from "a relationship of convenience" to what both countries call a “comprehensive strategic partnership.”

What are the ramifications for Space Commerce in the U.S.? According to Dr. Goswami, China is taking a different approach to commercial space activities than Russia. "Today, China has about 140 space startups. Several of them have already launched to orbit. Now, what they are talking about is that they're going to build a commercial spaceport," she said.

Dr. Goswami is an author, professor, strategic analyst and consultant on Great Power Politics, Space Policy, Alternate Futures, and Frameworks of Conflict Negotiation and Resolution. She is currently working on a book project "China's Grand Strategy and The Notion of Territoriality and Resources" and a second project on conceptualizing a space power matrix answering a key question: what makes a country a space power?

On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, Tom Patton talks with Global Security Consultant Namrata Goswami concerning US-Russia policy and how it ties into space commerce. This is the first in a series of three podcasts with Ms. Goswami, looking at our relationships with Russia, China and India related to space commerce.

"I do not see someone like Elon Musk being able to succeed or innovate in that environment." Namrata Goswami

On Sunday, Russia lost its Luna 25 spacecraft when it crashed while attempting to land on the surface of the Moon. The country is consumed with its war in Ukraine, and it has openly stated that it plans to leave the International Space Station partnership in the next few years, and has been collaborating with China on potential joint space exploration. Still, a Russian Cosmonaut will fly to the ISS on the Crew-7 mission scheduled to launch early Friday morning.

Affect of US-Russia Policy on Space Commerce

So how does US-Russia policy affect space commerce, and is there an analog to Elon Musk or Jeff Bezos in Russia that could spur a commercial space industry in Russia? "Given the fact that Roscosmos likes centralization, do not want to give up power, very much dictates the organization of Russian (space) firms, I do not see someone like Elon Musk being able to succeed or innovate in that environment," Goswami said.

According to Goswami, economic pressure including sanctions related to the war are forcing Russia to take more of a supporting role in its relationships with China and India as it relates to space. And India, with its recent signing of The Artemis Accords, which Russia opposed, is seen to be moving closer to the US when it comes to space. All of that and more will be discussed this week, and in the following two podcasts.

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Audible, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

There is a great deal of work being done in the arena of manufacturing in space. Many of the companies working to place private space stations in orbit say that manufacturing is one of the functions that can make them commercially viable. Aboard the ISS, several additive manufacturing … or 3D printing … processes have been studied.

On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, Tom Patton talks with Ryan Elliott, Co-Founder and CEO of In Orbit Aerospace, a company building the orbital infrastructure to create new and improved products in microgravity, and deliver them back to Earth.

Manufacturing in space can be beneficial in many areas, ranging from creating new pharmaceuticals and improved semiconductors to fiber optics and 3D bioprinting. In Orbit Aerospace is taking a new approach to manufacturing in space, acting as an intermediary to transport equipment and materials in space, and returning them to Earth.

"We want to be the third-party logistics provider for manufacturers who want to make these products in orbit," Elliott said. "We provide them the transportation, the power, the data and the return back to the ground."

In Orbit Aerospace plans to be able to take manufacturing equipment and raw materials to both crewed space stations and autonomous facilities.

Manufacturing in space has been going on since the days of Skylab. But it has been mostly government funded. Now, Elliott says, the dynamic is changing, and the private sector is taking a much larger role in the sector.

In Orbit Aerospace has already signed its first customer, which Elliott was not a liberty to divulge now, but he did say that it's a biotech firm. That mission is currently targeted for launch in October 2024 aboard a Falcon 9 rocket.

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Audible, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts, Radio Public, and most other podcasting platforms.

Like all businesses, space companies face challenges in recruitment and professional development. How do companies in the industry address those issues? On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, Tom Patton talks with Christopher Allen, co-founder and COO of Nova Space, which has just introduced a new program to help in that area.

Nova Space Inc. offers organizations placement services from true space professionals, with decades of experience working across government, DoD, and commercial space. And, since space requires a complex and diverse set of skills and experiences for every project and mission, the Nova Space program offers digital learning paths, digital credential programs, and custom learning development to meet those specific needs.

In addition to recruitment and professional development, the program focuses on marketing its clients' organizations to potential customers and employees.

Christopher Allen has more than 15 years of experience in software marketing and engineering management ranging from digital marketing to enterprise grade cloud-based subscription services.

Recruitment and Professional Development Challenges

On the podcast, Christopher discusses some of the unique challenges faced by space companies in recruitment and professional development, such as the value to companies looking for talent and the people hoping to fill those jobs. He also delves into the changing role of universities in preparing the next generation of space entrepreneurs and developing the skillsets of the talent pool needed to make space commerce a reality.

"For space to be sustainable at its current rate of innovation opportunity, we really need to expand who's available to work in that space," Allen said.

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Audible, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

The government and defense sectors are crucial to space commerce. Government and defense contracts are regularly awarded to private space companies to supply technology related to propulsion, communications, Earth observation and a host of other verticals.

"We're put in a point in time where we need to think about non-traditionals that are extremely important. Because non-traditionals are the ones who might have something extremely innovative." Nino Marcantonio

On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, Tom Patton talks with Nino Marcantonio, CEO and Senior DoD Strategic Tech Advisor of Marcantonio Global.

As the pace of change in technology continues to accelerate at a very fast pace, it is important is for individuals, companies and the government to keep pace with this change.

Typhoon, as he was commonly known, recognizes the powerful metaphor of the Roman Centurions, the elite warriors of their time who played a crucial role in expanding and safeguarding the empire. He likenes their unwavering dedication and stoic virtues to the values necessary for the protection and advancement of American and Western culture.

Centurions Program Develops Space Commerce Companies

Marcantonio developed the Centurions Program to identify and train exceptional individuals and help them through the maze of securing defense and government contracts. Many of these individuals are engaged in space commerce, which is critical in this new era of space-based defense and information technology.

"We're put in a point in time where we need to think about non-traditionals that are extremely important. Because non-traditionals are the ones who might have something extremely innovative," Marcantonio said.

Nino Marcantonio has over 15 years of experience in the U.S. Federal, Defense, and Homeland Security mission space. Marcantonio Global co-founded the Defense Technology Innovation Program (DTIP) which aims to address critical shortfalls in the Defense Industrial Base by accessing innovative technologies from non-traditional defense contractors and non-profit research institutions.

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Audible, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

The US Commerce Department’s Bureau of Economic Analysis recently released its revised US Space Economy Statistics for 2012–2021. The new data builds on previous estimates that were released in January 2022 by incorporating new source data and improved methods.

On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, Tom Patton talks with Dr. Tina Highfill, an award-winning research economist with the US Commerce Department’s Bureau of Economic Analysis.

The U.S. space economy statistics are built using BEA’s comprehensive supply and use tables (SUTs) and National Income and Product Accounts (NIPAs), which provide insight into the internal workings of the U.S. economy and detail the contribution of specific industries and products to GDP. The SUTs measure the flows of goods and services purchased by each industry, the incomes earned from production in each industry, and the distribution of sales for each product. The NIPA data present the value and composition of U.S. GDP, the types of incomes generated in its production, and its associated employment. The goal of the space economy statistics is to highlight the space-related production and spending that are already present in the SUTs and NIPAs. In practice, these statistics represent a rearrangement of existing data to isolate spending and production for the space economy.

COVID had Less of an Impact on the US Space Economy than Other Sectors

"Generally speaking, what we found is that the COVID pandemic didn't impact the space economy as much as the overall US economy, but it also didn't see the same rebound," Highfill said.

BEA continues to expand and improve upon the space economy estimates with the intention of developing a time series of estimates with full industry detail aligning with BEA’s other statistical releases. Additionally, research is underway to estimate space economic activity by categories that are more salient to space community users, such as launch and R&D, to provide an additional layer of understanding about the U.S. space economy.

A superconducting magnetorquer is an innovative idea for controlling spacecraft without the use of fuel. On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, Tom Patton talks with Max Arshavsky, CEO of Zenno Astronautics, a New Zealand startup developing just such an attitude control system, and other space applications.

The Zenno system is the first superconducting magnetorquer for spacecraft attitude control that uses no fuel, just a magnetic field to move spacecraft in Earth's orbit. The company successfully raised $6.8 million USD in a seed round in 2022, with double that on reserve ready to draw if they require it - making Zenno the company that has raised the biggest seed in New Zealand history. As of May 2023 has secured around $48 million USD in pre-sales.

Built on technologies with significant heritage, Z01 is a new approach to spacecraft attitude control which bypasses many of the limitations of traditional magnetic attitude control systems. Like a conventional magnetorquer, Z01 interacts with the ambient magnetic field of the Earth to generate a torque on a spacecraft.

Unlike anything that is currently available, Z01 uses high-temperature superconducting coils to eliminate Ohmic losses, allowing for extremely high currents and continuous operation at peak dipole moment.

Initial Superconducting Magnetorquer is for Attitude Control

"We're concentrating on pointing a spacecraft rather than moving a spacecraft with respect to Earth," Arshavsky said. "When we have two magnetic fields interact with each other, you get torque if the magnetic fields are not aligned."

Zenno Astronautics' hardware and software products ensure satellite missions are effectively managed, guaranteeing maximum economic returns and responsible use of space.

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Audible, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

A remarkable technological advancement is revolutionizing the way we maintain and extend the lifespan of satellites in Earth orbit. Welcome to the world of on-orbit satellite servicing, where cutting-edge technology and expertise converge to overcome the challenges of maintaining and upgrading satellites in space."

According to the website Orbiting Now, there are 7,854 satellites currently in Earth Orbit. of those, 7,047 are classified as being in Low Earth Orbit ... with another 211 in Medium Earth Orbit. Most of these satellites were designed for a single mission, and given the constraints of fuel and eventual technical obsolescence, have a limited lifespan. But A growing industry is emerging that would extend the useful lives of satellites, reducing costs and beginning the process of easing the congestion in low- and medium-Earth orbits.

According to MarketsandMarkets, the satellite servicing industry is expected to reach $5.1 billion by 2030; registering a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 11.5 percent during the forecast period. Aging satellite constellations and the need for satellite refueling are driving the growth of the on-orbit satellite servicing market. The Geostationary Orbit (GEO) segment is projected to lead the market during the forecast period. On-orbit servicing allows for repairs and maintenance to be performed on satellites in GEO, which can help address unexpected failures or problems. This can provide greater flexibility and resilience to the satellite operator’s network.

Read More at The Journal of Space Commerce.

One of the challenges for spaceports is attracting new business to be able to sustain operations. At Spaceport America, that is the job of Dr. Francisco Pallares, the newly-appointed Director of Business Development.

Dr. Pallares joined the New Mexico Spaceport Authority from Sul Ross State University and was the former Deputy Director for Economic Development at the City of Las Cruces prior to accepting his new position.

Spaceport America is probably best known as the home of Virgin Galactic, which is poised to resume crewed flights as early as May 25. But the spaceport has other clients and functions as well, and attracting new business is critical to the facility's ongoing operations.

Built for Attracting New Business

Spaceport America was the first commercial spaceport in the world. It is an FAA-licensed launch complex, situated on 18,000 acres adjacent to the U.S. Army White Sands Missile Range in southern New Mexico, has a rocket-friendly environment of 6,000 square miles of restricted airspace, low population density, a 12,000-foot by 200-foot runway, and vertical launch complexes, so there is plenty of room for expansion. On the podcast, Tom Patton talks with Dr. Pallares about how the NMSA goes about marketing the facility to potential clients,what kinds of new business they are looking to secure, and why they are important to the overall success of Spaceport America.

The vision for the NMSA is for Spaceport America to become a premier multi-modal Spaceport for point-to-point space transportation, aerospace operations, research, development, and testing in support of our Nation’s commercial, civil, and national security space sectors. "I would not see it as something far fetched that we can start thinking about Spaceport America as having that value added, that additional production, into how can we deliver things across the world in two hours," Dr. Pallares said.

Veteran space industry insider Jim Cantrell, author of "Breaking All The Rules: The Inside Story of the New Space Race", got into the space business rather by accident.

"I really never wanted to be in the space business when I was young." Jim Cantrell

A flier posted at his college got the self-proclaimed southern California gear head involved in a project to design a Mars rover, which his team won. From there, Jim has been an engineer for NASA and the French Space Agency CNES, traveling the world working on space projects.

Then, he was contacted by Elon Musk about joining a little company called SpaceX. He took the gig.

In "Breaking All the Rules", Cantrell chronicles his career in the space industry through his time with SpaceX, and on the podcast, he tells Ex Terra why he left the world's most recognizable commercial space company to strike out on his own.

Through the lens of a space entrepreneur, Cantrell foresees a "bloodbath" coming in the not-too-distant future leading to the failure of multiple new space companies, citing Virgin Orbit as an example. "The money that comes from investors, particularly these large venture funds, as really the equivalent of government money without the strings attached to it," Cantrell said. "And the fact is there are different strings attached to it, and the expect a profit."

Cantrell still predicts that SpaceX will be successful in establishing a human presence on Mars.

Breaking All The Rules Availability

"Breaking All the Rules" is available on Amazon in both printed and e-book formats, and on jimcantrell.com, where autographed copies are available.

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Audible, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

For the longest time, space launch systems were single use. Now, the focus is shifting towards fully resuable rockets such as those in development by Stoke Space.

"We're really looking to try to maintain as much of the historical look that it had before." Kelly Henning.

On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, Tom Patton talks with Kelly Henning, COO of Stoke Space. The company is working to develop fully reusable rockets designed to be flown daily.

Allied Market Research released a report last year indicating that the reusable launch vehicle market is estimated to be worth $1.38 billion in 2025, and grow to $3.56 billion by 2035.

A unique feature of the second stage of the Stoke Space rocket is an actively (regeneratively) cooled metallic re-entry heat shield with an integrated modular LH2/LOX rocket engine that is robust, resilient to damage, and operates with passive failure modes. Designed for minimal refurbishment between flights and unlocking the potential for rapid turnaround.

The first stage of the fully reusable rockets will be powered by 7x LNG/LOX engines, and are designed for return to launch site (RTLS) or downrange landing.

Stoke Space Fully Reusable Rockets will Launch from an Historic Site

Stoke space has also secured exclusive access to the historic Launch Complex 14, where John Glenn began his orbital mission in 1962. There is a monument commemorating Glenn's flight, and the blockhouse has been maintained. However, the site will need some extensive refurbishment, and preserving the history of the site is important to the company. "The large structures, the ramps and some other features have been just, essentially abandoned and left to the elements," Henning said. "We're really looking to try to maintain as much of the historical look that it had before."

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Audible, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

Digital engineering is a relatively new field that is having a big impact on space commerce. On this edition of the Ex Terra Podcast, Tom Patton talks with Greg Porter, Senior Systems Architect at Sev1Tech, which provides IT modernization, cloud, cybersecurity, engineering, training and program support services to U.S. government agencies and major commercial organizations. Headquartered in the Washington D.C. metro area, Sev1Tech is a trusted contractor supporting critical missions across the defense, intelligence, homeland security, space, and health markets.

"The worker out on the floor can actually put on the hololens and they can see virtual items overlaid into their real space." Greg Porter

Sev1Tech offers extensive digital engineering solutions such as model-based engineering, digital thread design, development and implementation, and digital twin design. These allow the company to create artificial and augmented reality environments for remote training and problem solving.

"The worker out on the floor can actually put on the hololens and they can see virtual items overlaid into their real space," Porter said, "which is super helpful when they're working on tasks and they can see work instructions right in front of them. And it even interacts with the person using the desktop model remotely."

Porter has been with the company since October 2021, leading the Artificial Intelligence team as well as the company's Digital Twin and Digital Thread efforts.

For over 12 years, Greg Porter has been a noteworthy leader in the IT industry. Prior to Sev1Tech, he was a Senior Systems Architect at Geocent, leading data analytics for logistics and Hadoop cluster projects, and Senior Big Data Administrator at Honeywell FM&T, where he was responsible for Big Data infrastructure design, configuration, installation, and security.

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Audible, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

It's no secret that space companies need to think about patents. But how important is patent planning? On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, Tom Patton talks with Patent Attorney Steve Sponseller, the author of "Cracking the Patent Code".

"The worst thing you can do is just not have a plan, and kind of randomly file a few patent applications on mediocre inventions." Patent Attorney Steve Sponseller.

Space technology companies invest considerable time and resources creating new systems. Those new systems often include valuable inventions that solve new problems faced by devices that are launching and operating in space. It’s important for your company to protect its investment of time and resources by considering patent protection for your most valuable inventions.

Obtaining patent protection can be a unique challenge for space companies given the pace at which the technology changes. Sponseller says that proper patent planning can give companies a clear roadmap to which inventions most need the protection of a patent.

Sponseller has boiled down the process into three steps:

Identify all inventions developed by your team.
Evaluate the identified inventions based on criteria that’s unique to your company.
Protect the highest value inventions to build a strong portfolio of patents.

"The worst thing you can do is just not have a plan, and kind of randomly file a few patent applications on mediocre inventions." Sponseller said.

"Cracking the Patent Code" is available from Sponseller's website or from Amazon or as a free PDF download here. He is also the host of the podcast "Tech Leader Talk", which is available on most popular podcasting platforms, and hosts the Space Tech Innovation interview series.

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Audible, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, we welcome back Izzy House to talk about her new book "Space Marketing: Spaceports", the second book in her Space Marketing series.

"Most people misunderstand what 'marketing' is. They think it's just advertising." Izzy House

Space Marketing: Spaceports introduces marketing principles and tactics to the spaceport industry. This book is the second title in the Space Marketing Series. It provides insights from successful spaceport leaders and ideas on how to initiate a spaceport or other big initiatives.

Working on the book also led Izzy to launch her Space Marketing podcast, in which she talks to industry leaders about getting their messages out to the broader space commerce community.

"Most people misunderstand what 'marketing' is. They think it's just advertising," House said. "There are so many different facets to marketing. Advertising is one of them, but you also have education. You also have public affairs, you have outreach, and there are so many facets that go into marketing that if you don't market, people don't know you exist."

Izzy says she had an epiphany about how to combine her passions for space and marketing when she first saw the Space Shuttle Atlantis exhibit at the Kennedy Space Center Visitors' complex. Since then, she has focused her efforts on helping space companies tell their stories not only to the space industry, but to the general public. She will be one of the speakers at the upcoming Space Tourism Conference April 28th in Los Angeles.

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Audible, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

Earth Observation is one of the fastest-growing sectors of the emerging space economy. But the time and manpower needed to analyze all the data can be a drain on company resources.

"Our focus is on the end-to-end system and producing quality data." Don Osborne

On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, Tom Patton talks with Don Osborne, CEO of EarthDaily Analytics, which is working to streamline the process of analyzing Earth Observation data.

According to the company website, the insights provided by EarthDaily Analytics allow customers in multiple industries to track long-term trends, monitor change, and take guided, strategic actions to better serve their customers and fulfill their missions.

In 2024, EarthDaily Analytics will launch EarthDaily, the world’s first earth observation system designed from the ground-up to produce scientific-quality imagery of the entire earth every day. The nine-satellite constellation of next generation satellites will collect scientific-grade imagery of the planet in a unique combination of 21 spectral bands, many of which will be 5-meter resolution. The constellation will have an expected lifespan of over 10 years.

Don Osborne has spent his entire career in the satellite and aerospace industry. Prior to joining EarthDaily, from 2009 to 2017 he was a senior executive at MDA, a Maxar Company, including as President of the MDA Information Systems Group where he was responsible for MDA’s Canadian businesses. Previously, he served as the President of Advantech Satellite Networks Inc. from 2006 to 2009. Don has also served as Vice President of EMS Technologies Inc. and Senior Vice President and General Manager for the EMS Satellite Networks group, a part of the Space & Technology/Montreal operations from 1999 to 2006. He joined EMS Technologies Inc. in January 1999, when it acquired the Spar Satellite Products business, where Don had served as Vice President of Marketing and other positions commencing in 1983 as a Mechanical Engineer. Don holds Bachelor's Degree in Mechanical Engineering and an MBA from McGill University in Montreal, Quebec.

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Audible, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

The upcoming movie Helios will depict a very real scenario. A massive solar flare threatens the Earth, and the heroes of the film must save the planet.

"One of the key things that the movie really tries to portray is what it's going to be like in space for REAL." Patti Beninati.

On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, Tom Patton talks with Patti Beninati of Centerboro Productions, which is producing the film.

Set in 2030, the upcoming movie Helios will tell the story of a spaceship, the Helios, and its crew during their urgent mission to the International Space Station (ISS). When a massive solar flare hits the station, it is up to astronomer and former NASA astronaut Jess Denver and Air Force Colonel Sam Adler to team up and save humanity.

"One of the key things that the movie really tries to portray is what it's going to be like in space for REAL," Beninati says.

Centerboro Productions has already announced that the Orbital Reef private space station will provide one of the backdrops for the movie, and ULA will be depicted as the company that sends Helios on its mission atop a Vulcan rocket. More announcements will be made in the near future, Beninati says.

Helios is written by Patti Beninati (Hubble: 20 Years of Discovery), who is also Centerboro's president and the movie's producer, Michael K. Anderson (The Wonder Show), and Bernard Moore (Helios). Along with Beninati, Helios is produced by John Lewis (Lullaby), Todd Slater (King of Killers), Michael K. Anderson (The Wonder Show), Marilyn G. Haft (Grace is Gone). Space entrepreneur Robert Feierbach will serve as an executive producer.

Beninati, who says she was inspired to get involved in the space industry after seeing the first Star Trek movie as a child, hopes that Helios will serve as a similar inspiration for young people who see the film, as well as be a very entertaining film for moviegoers of all ages.

Next month, the Space Tourism Society will hold its annual Space Tourism Conference, held each year on April 28th on the anniversary of the date that Dennis Tito launched to the International Space Station in 2001.

"The investment community has absolutely woken up into the idea that ... space tourism is an industry that will have almost limitless growth, high profitability and also it's just a very sexy, exciting industry to be in." John Spencer.

On this edition of The Ex Tera Podcast, Tom Patton talks with John Spencer, CEO of the Space Tourism Society, which holds the annual event in Los Angeles, CA. The conference presents the cross-section of industries comprising space tourism: aerospace, media, entertainment, architecture, design, advertising, marketing, finance, high tech, science, manufacturing, futurism and the arts.

While most people still associate space tourism with very wealthy people buying tickets on commercial spacecraft for suborbital and orbital flights as well as visits to the ISS, there is much more to the industry, and there is much more to come. "The investment community has absolutely woken up into the idea that ... space tourism is an industry that will have almost limitless growth, high profitability and also it's just a very sexy, exciting industry to be in," Spencer said.

If you've ever traveled to witness a launch or visited a space museum, you've participated in space tourism. In the future, there will be many more such possibilities, according to Spencer, which will lead to the creation of thousands of jobs ... from rocket scientists to welders and hospitality personnel aboard orbital hotels ... and generate potentially billions of dollars in revenue.

This year's Space Tourism Conference will be held at the Renaissance Los Angeles Airport hotel. The conference will look ahead to the very near future and beyond. Private space travel has arrived. The countdown is done. It’s now time to fly many more private citizens—vacationers, contest winners, athletes, actors, artists, and all seeking incomparable life-altering experiences.

Satellites have vastly improved weather forecasting, but what are the practical applications for that information for businesses? On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, Tom Patton talks with Thomas Cavett, VP of Strategy and Operations at Tomorrow.io.

"Weather is the manifestation of climate." Thomas Cavett, Tomorrow.io

The mission of Tomorrow.io is to help countries, businesses, and individuals better manage their weather related challenges with the best information and insights. The company offers proprietary data and models, along with proprietary radar-equipped satellites designed by the company. Dozens of these satellites will begin launching dozens into space over the coming years.

Practical Applications for Weather Data Cuts Across All Industries

The practical applications for the data provided by Tomorrow.io runs the gamut from aviation and other modes of transportation to construction, mining and retail. For example, Seasonal buying cycles are ingrained in almost every retail business’ preparations each year. Companies plan inventory accordingly for spikes in demand for commodities like snow blowers in the winter, gardening tools in the spring, in-season fruit in the summer and Halloween decorations in the fall.

But while retailers are well accustomed to these predictable yearly trends, unexpected weather events such as winter storms or hurricanes can catch them flat-footed as these setbacks disrupt their business. Without proactive preparation, retailers run the risk of significant profit losses over time, missed revenue optimization and lack of long-term resilience as climate change causes increasingly frequent and destructive weather events.

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Audible, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

To be competitive in the commercial space industry, companies need to focus on training and professional development for both new hires and existing employees.

"For about 90 percent of the jobs out in the space industry, you don't need advanced, or even necessarily basic college-level space education." Joseph Horvath

On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, Tom Patton talks with Joseph Horvath, the CEO of Nova Space, a company focused on providing online training and professional development for the new space industry.

Nova Space has developed an innovative approach to online training and professional development for commercial space companies. Rather than the more traditional slide deck or talking-head webinar presentations, the Nova Space courses are interactive, giving the person taking the course an opportunity to have a more "hands-on" experience.

Training and Professional Development Offered Across Multiple Disciplines

From an initial professional training course, the Nova Space offerings drill down into specific topics such as orbital mechanics, rocket science, space systems engineering, satellite communications and service, space tourism and others. Subscriptions to the course material are available from the company.

Joseph Horvath has two decades of experience in space and astronautics with an extensive network across industry and DoD. While serving as a Marine Corps officer, he was the Service’s Senior Space Operations Officer, leading professional development, training, education, policy and exercise design. His educational background includes a BS in Astrophysics and MS in Space Systems Operations, as well as being a former DARPA Fellow. His work has been published in multiple journals including “A Hybrid Routing Protocol for Space Based Networks”, “Space Operations for the Warfighter” and “The Marine Space Support Team Concept”. Joseph brings to his role extensive leadership and management experience with a focus on agile practices and developing successful teams.

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Audible, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

Supporting national security and intelligence missions is critical to the security of the United States. On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, Tom Patton talks with Kevin Kelly, CEO of Arcfield, a company created to solve the most complex and demanding national security and space-related challenges.

According to the company website, Arcfield was purpose-built to solve the most complex and demanding national security and space-related challenges. With core capabilities in systems engineering and integration, mission assurance and C5ISR, we’re setting the trajectory for space and hypersonic mission success.

Arcfield offers its customers a commitment to innovation and excellence in technology that puts solving its customers’ complex challenges today while anticipating the mission needs of the future at the forefront of everything it does. The work is performed by a highly technical team that serves as a trusted partner to its customers, with a proven track record of exemplary performance.

National Security is Closely Tied to Space Commerce

Arcfield focuses on data management and information largely in the national security arena, though they do have close ties to the commercial space industry. National security is depending more and more on COTS components, and information that is relayed by and housed on commercial satellites can be a matter of national security. Additionally, national security missions often rely on commercial companies for launch services.

On the podcast, Tom and Kevin discuss topics ranging from data collection and management, and the exploitation of that data, to the talent pool for data management and the role of space technology in the intelligence arena.

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Audible, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

Several private companies are developing commercial space stations. Many are inflatable structures, but Think Orbital is taking a different approach with its ThinkPlatform.

On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, Tom Patton talks with Sebastian Asprella, the CEO of Think Orbital, about the ThinkPlatform and the exciting future for private space stations.

What's different about ThinkPlatform? Rather than an inflatable structure, Asprella describes the assembly method of the space station as being like getting a box from Ikea. Flat-packed for launch into space and then assembled robotically. Asprella envisions the ThinkPlatform as being a place for working in space, but not necessarily a place to live, at least at first. More like a warehouse or storage unit than a luxury hotel.

ThinkPlatform Assembly Relies on Robotics

Walking robotic arms, e.g. Canadarm2 or ERA, have been used in space for decades to move itself and the heavy modules around the International Space Station. That is the technology Asprella envisions for assembly of the ThinkPlatform. The engineering requirements of the arm are lower than those for ISS arms because there is no need to catch free flying 10 ton vehicles. The arm can be weaker, slower, lighter, but has to incorporate an electron beam welding gun.

The combination of the robotic arm and an electron beam welding gun creates a "Swiss Army Knife" of universal space assembly.

Sebastian brings more than 25 years of leadership & entrepreneurship experience across business management, IT, pharma & aerospace sectors, in complex, multinational, transformation & digitalization programs to Think Orbital. Over the course of his career, he has delivered 18 products, led more than 25 teams, managing budgets in excess of $500 million.

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Audible, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

NASA is working towards a sustained lunar habitation, which is presenting some interesting engineering challenges. One of the people working on the concepts and solutions for making that human presence a reality is Goncalo Esteves, Founder and CTO, Argo Space Technologies.

Argo Space Technologies is focused on systems engineering, process implementation, product management, and engineering support for Lunar habitation. The company supported Planetoid Mines in its submission for the NASA Break the Ice Challenge. The goal of the challenge is to further the development of technologies that can excavate and transport large quantities of icy lunar regolith and can continuously operate for 15 days.

The teams will move on to build and test full-size prototypes in Level 2. The 13 U.S. teams will receive equal shares of NASA’s $500,000 prize purse for Level 1.

In Level 3, qualifying teams will put their prototypes to the test in a head-to-head onsite competition for a shot at $1.5 million in prizes.

But Lunar habitation is not the only aspect of space exploration in which Argo Space Technologies is involved. Goncalo and his team are also involved in the International Space Station (ISS) and World Design Organization – Business and Process Team

The team is working to design the new business processes for manufacturing in space and new business model as NASA works towards commercialization of the station. The team worked with ISS personnel to propose cycle time reduction from three years down to six months on projects for cost savings of some $500 million.

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

Since the launch of the first weather satellite in 1960, these spacecraft have vastly improved weather forecasting around the world. Weather satellites now provide incredibly detailed images of weather systems as well as a wealth of data that make make those forecasts extremely accurate

They've also gotten much smaller. On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, Tom Patton talks with Dan Harkins, Chief Operating Officer of Tropical Weather Analytics, which is developing a constellation of weather forecasting nanosatellites.

Current weather forecasting models cannot keep up with the pace of climate change and extreme events. The NanoSats being developed by Tropical Weather Analytics will deliver the missing data set forecasters need to make more accurate and reliable weather predictions, the company says.

The polar winds interact with the jet streams and drive the majority of weather patterns across the globe. But existing satellites only provide a 2D solution to a 4D problem, measuring winds in just the horizontal axes while vertical winds are sparsely, and poorly, measured by weather balloons and stations. These new nanosatellites will leverage the company's 4D (XYZ + Time) measuring technique to collect wind measurements across all altitudes with greater frequency and higher resolution. This gives forecasters a more accurate starting point to derive their forecasts from.

Weather Forecasting Nanosatellites will Supplement Hurricane Hunters

Rising temperatures are potentially making hurricanes more powerful and more frequent. The US is the only country with Hurricane Hunter Aircraft. At a cost of $250M per year to maintain those aircraft, Tropical Weather Analytics believes it can deliver similar observational capability with its satellites to the 20 vulnerable countries at 4% of the costs ($10M per year). The company will also aid the US when multiple hurricanes form simultaneously or the aircraft experience mechanical problems which could prevent timely observations.

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

With the announcement last month of the Impulse Space LEO Express-1 orbital mission, we thought it would be a good time to find out more about the company. On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, Tom Patton talks with Bary Matsumori, the Chief Operating Officer of Impulse Space.

We hear a lot these days about rideshare missions. The recent SpaceX Transporter 6 mission carried 114 payloads into orbit. But each of those payloads needed a way to reach its assigned orbit. Impulse Space Propulsion is a Space 2.0 company providing those last-mile space payload delivery capabilities.

For LEO Express-1, Impulse has procured a launch slot for this mission on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket as part of SpaceX’s Transporter-9 mission and is committed to meeting the current launch timeline of Q4 2023. Impulse will be among the first companies to demonstrate rapid in-space transportation services through high-thrust chemical propulsion.

Space Remains Available on LEO Express-1

While the primary payload of LEO Express-1 is currently undisclosed, there is additional payload space available for secondary customers to join the mission. A Mars mission is also in the planning stages.

Barry Matsumori was named COO of Impulse Space in March, 2022. He has an extensive background in the mobile wireless and Space 2.0 sectors spanning numerous leadership roles, among them serving as senior vice president of business development and advanced concepts at Virgin Galactic, senior vice president of sales and business development at SpaceX and nearly two decades at Qualcomm, where he was vice president of wireless connectivity. He has also worked with several early-stage technology companies in development and management capacities.

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

Marketing for Space Commerce is one of the aspects of our business that sometimes seems to fall through the cracks, but no matter what your business, companies need to find ways to reach their customers. It's just fundamental. If you want to sell something, you have to find a buyer.

On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, Tom Patton talks with Michael Daily, CEO of Communications Metrics, a PR and Communications firm focused in part on helping space companies find their audience.

Communication Metrics provides commercial and civil space and defense businesses, organizations, and agencies with enterprise-wide public relations and strategic communications solutions.

Communication Metrics Incorporated (CMI) is a firm specializing in NewSpace public relations, strategic communications, and stakeholder relations. CMI contributes to the improvement of its clients’ conditions, helps to enhance the productivity and quality of its people, and assists in increasing the success and profitability of its operations. The company's all-inclusive approach leverages integrated marketing channels with a common message to ignite growth. According to Daily, they analyze your business model and create campaigns orchestrated to meet your goals. The team implements traditional and digital strategies that account for the entire consumer journey. Our approach has a significant focus on delivering measurable results.

Daily brings 26+ years of organizational communications experience with significant accomplishments to his marketing for space commerce efforts. Among those accomplishments is the development of an online course “NewSpace Business and Industry Ecosystem.” The course is designed to introduce multiple audiences, with interest in the commercial, civil, and defense space industry, to stakeholder engagement theory, planning, tools, techniques, and processes.

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

European startup Space Cargo Unlimited is developing REV1, the first orbital manufacturing facility, targeting launch in 2025. On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, Tom Patton talks with Nicolas Gaume, the co-founder and CEO of the company.

Space Cargo Unlimited plans to commercially operate a fleet of autonomous (i.e. unmanned) cargo vehicles capable of returning to Earth in order to exploit the potential of microgravity for commercial applications on Earth. The REV1 pressurized vehicle -a real floating space factory- will be used for specific missions, especially in the fields of biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, agriculture, and new materials. REV1 will be able to create unique laboratory conditions and real clean rooms essential for this type of research and manufacturing.

The first REV1 vehicle, scheduled for launch in late 2025, will need to be able to adapt to any available and compatible launcher system. This last feature will make it unique to carry out new missions, especially in an equatorial orbit. Designed to be reusable for a total of 20 missions, the REV1 will carry payloads for 2-3 months in space.

REV1 is Being Built in Partnership with Thales Alenia Space

This partnership agreement fully reflects Thales Alenia Space’s ‘New Space’ approach, which includes creating more and more synergies with start-ups and offering disruptive solutions, such as REV1, the first Space Factory, to evolve existing models. In the field of space exploration, Thales Alenia Space has already signed partnerships with emblematic start-ups. Moreover, the goal of the project initiated with Space Cargo Unlimited is perfectly in line with Thales Alenia Space’s ‘Space for life’ vision, by helping to make life better and more sustainable on Earth thanks to space.

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

It’s like 1492 all over again, but this time with rockets. Yes, the age of commercial space exploration is upon us—so what does that mean? That's the theme of "Stellar Singularity: Navigating the Space Economy" by bestselling author Elizebeth Varghese. She's our guest on this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast

A futurist and the bestselling author of "[Block]Chain Reaction: The Future of How We Live and Work", Elizebeth invites us to view the dawn of the spacefaring economy with optimism. She outlines how every organization will need to understand, leverage, and operate in space, and how every company is becoming a space company.

In Stellar Singularity, Elizebeth discusses how space exploration improves life on Earth, and how our definition of life and sentience needs to expand, making the case for an “Interstellar Magna Carta” to act as the framework for collaboration across countries and companies. She articulates “Principles to Navigate Space as Global Commons” and outlines the four leadership qualities needed during the space age…and much more.

Praise for Stellar Singularity

“A Grand Tour of the issues, options, promises, and challenges! Elizebeth touches every side of the multifaceted, and daunting, notion of a spacefaring economy. A fascinating read!” Dan Geraci, President, Voyager Space Services, Chairman, The Planetary Society.

“A thoughtful, personal, well-researched, and timely piece of our human space exploration efforts… Read more about the space industry’s history, cultural connections, influential socioeconomic factors, key technological drivers, and how space exploration benefits all.., directly and indirectly, in from Elizebeth’s must-read latest work.” Dr. S. Anand Narayanan, Research Professor, Florida State University, Expert in Space and Medical Physiology, Global Health, Interdisciplinary STEAM Research and Education, NASA Fellow

“Elizebeth Varghese may not be the first space philosopher, but she certainly deserves the title. Stellar Singularity integrates the technological aspects of our expansion into space with imperatives for human behavior—particularly economic, diplomatic and ethical behavior. Knowledgeable people outside of the traditional space enterprise can and must contribute to this next phase of human development. Stellar Singularity is the work they should begin with to appreciate its challenges and opportunities.” Gordon Roesler, Ph.D., President, Robots in Space LLC, and former DARPA space robotics program manager

“This book is a must-read..it provides a great summary of historical and technological developments through to shifts in democratization, policy and value chain realization.” Steve Ramage, Chief Engagement Officer - Group on Earth Observations (GEO), Governing Board - Digital Earth Africa, Earth Observation Advisory Committee - UK Space Agency

Elizebeth Varghese is a futurist, people & technology strategist, senior executive, and bestselling author. She is a Board member and Co-Chair of the Entrepreneurship and Innovation Committee at Columbia Business School, Women’s Circle. She is also on the Council of Advisors at the SETI Institute. Elizebeth was recognized as among the top experts and inspirational leaders of 2022 per The HR Gazette and she has also been recognized as among The Outstanding Asian Americans in Business in 2021. She lives in New York City with her husband and two daughters.

On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, Tom Patton talks with Beau Jarvis, CEO of Phase Four, the developer of the Maxwell line of RF Thrusters.

It seems like there are satellites being launched weekly, from large communications satellites to clusters of smaller spacecraft like Starlink and OneWeb, CubeSats and even micro-satellites. One of the things that nearly all of these and other spacecraft have in common is a need for propulsion stabilization and station-keeping once they are in orbit. And that means thrusters.

Phase Four is developing a new paradigm of in-space propulsion for the rapidly expanding space economy. From large constellations in LEO to new missions and cutting edge capabilities, the Phase Four team is the key to mission success. They are focused, innovative and passionate about space.

Phase Four’s Maxwell RF thrusters do not implement cathodes anywhere in the system. This eliminates the choke point slowing down manufacturing of traditional plasma propulsion systems.

Phase Four RF Thrusters are Built on a Schedule

Phase Four builds its RF Thrusters in runs on a planned production schedule. This allows customers to sign up for units as long as the production run has not commenced, reducing lead times to as short as 3-4 months. The company aims for 3-4 production runs per year and each run is comprised of assembly, checkout, and acceptance testing.

Beau Jarvis has extensive commercial experience in Japan, SE Asia, Latin America, Europe, Middle East & Africa. Building Phase Four's global business and enabling customers to operate spacecraft more efficiently and in new orbits. He has held leadership roles at Hawkeye 360, Planet, and Trimble navigation.

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

The United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs and the UK Government are launching a new project to enhance international expertise in the registration of space objects. The multi-year project strengthens an already solid foundation of joint efforts between the partners covering topics such as space sustainability and climate action.

The United Nations Register of Objects Launched into Outer Space is a treaty-based mechanism which promotes transparency in outer space activities. Since the beginning of the space age, more than 14,000 satellites have been launched, and 85 percent of them have been registered with the UN. UNOOSA has received over 2,000 satellite registrations in 2022 alone and potentially 100,000 satellites could be launched over the next decade.

NASA has selected Rocket Lab to provide the launch service for the agency’s TROPICS mission.

TROPICS is the Time-Resolved Observations of Precipitation Structure and Storm Intensity with a Constellation of Smallsats. It is part of the NASA's Venture-class Acquisition of Dedicated and Rideshare ... or VADR ... launch services contract.

Rocket Lab is one of 13 companies NASA selected for VADR contracts in 2022, which are managed by NASA’s Launch Services Program based at Kennedy Space Center in Florida. As part of VADR, the fixed-price indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contracts have a five-year ordering period with a maximum total value of $300 million across all contracts.

The TROPICS mission consists of four CubeSats intended for two low-Earth orbital planes and is part of NASA’s Earth System Science Pathfinder Program. Rocket Lab will launch the TROPICS satellites into their operational orbits during a 60-day period no earlier than May 1 of next year, enabling NASA to provide observations during the 2023 Atlantic hurricane season.

According to Frost & Sullivan‘s recent report, Global Satellite Propulsion Solutions Market, commercial and private end-user satellite constellations generate a steady demand for propulsion systems because they provide communications and satellite imaging. The global market is expected to reach $216.32 billion by 2031, up from $93.33 billion in 2021, representing a compound annual growth rate of 8.7 percent.

Retired US Air Force Colonel Lee Rosen is the newest member of the founding team of ThinkOrbital, a start-up scalable space infrastructure company. The former SpaceX VP of Mission and Launch Operations, and Customer Operations and Integration, Rosen spent over a decade involved in more than 150 successful missions at SpaceX.

On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, Tom Patton talks with Stefan Powell, CEO of Dawn Aerospace, a company developing an innovative spaceplane as well as satellite thrusters fueled by "green" propellant.

Dawn Aerospace is based in Christchurch, New Zealand, with offices in Delft, The Netherlands and New York City. The company builds thrusters for both small satellites and CubeSats, and is flight testing a spaceplane that can operate from standard airports to deliver satellites to orbit.

Dawn’s B20 thruster achieves performance equal to that of those using hydrazine propellants by using a unique, green-propellant combination; nitrous oxide and propylene. Having delivered this technology to both CubeSats and Small Satellites, Dawn is demonstrating this technology can be applied to satellites of all sizes.

Using nontoxic propellants is naturally far less risky than using something like hydrazine, which is toxic at extremely low concentrations - 40 parts per million. Dawn’s green propellants are great for the environment, but can also save the satellite operator about $500,000 per satellite by eliminating the safety precautions required to store and handle hydrazine.

The Dawn Mk-II Aurora is designed for multiple flights per day to 100 km (66 mile) and above. Taking off and landing from standard airports, alongside normal aircraft, this vehicle merges the world of rockets and aviation. The Aurora, a sub-scale suborbital vehicle, has been built to demonstrate Dawn’s core technology for daily access to space. It is the latest vehicle of a series that will one day deliver satellites and assets to, and return them from, space. The vehicle’s 3U payload is capable of hosting scientific experiments. The next vehicle in Dawn’s series, the Mk-III, will be based on this design, but much larger and capable of delivering 250 kg (≈550 pound) satellites to orbit.

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, Tom Patton talks with Eric Spittle, Chief Technology and Innovation Officer of LinQuest Corporation.

The LinQuest mission is to be a national security space leader that enables defense and intelligence missions through advanced digital solutions and the development, integration, and operation of mission critical systems. But they don't focus solely on defense. Their model-based systems engineering (MBSE) approach also applies to commercial space companies looking to utilize their digital engineering capabilities to solve complex problems.

LinQuest’s unique MBSE methodology is at the forefront of OSD’s Digital Engineering Strategy and provides solutions across the entire program lifecycle, going beyond "traditional" MBSE capabilities by incorporating powerful tools in a seamless MBSE framework.

Digital Engineering Applies to Multiple Disciplines

LinQuest leads military SATCOM development through architecture design, engineering, prototyping, integration, testing, and operations for current and next generation space-based communications systems. The company also enables planning, architecture, development, operation, logistics, and sustainment of Space Force and Air Force systems through deep subject matter expertise, advanced analytic solutions, and the development and deployment of tactical space superiority systems.

In its integration laboratory in Chantilly, VA, LinQuest creates digital threads of 5G User Equipment (UE) to RAN and Cell Base Station (gNodeB) access through terrestrial and NTN (satellite and UAV) emulation and over-the-air testing with a full suite of network and cybersecurity emulation, analysis, and test equipment. These tests are all remotely accessible through a web-based portal for Lab-as-a-Service (LaaS).

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

The recent DART mission brought planetary defense into the public consciousness. DART was successful in that early data appears to show that the orbit of the Didymos asteroid that was hit by the DART spacecraft changed enough that it would have prevented an impact on Earth ... though that was never a concern with this particular space rock.

This time on The Ex Terra Podcast, Tom Patton talks with Dan Hawk of the United First Nations Planetary Defense.

Dan was born and raised on the Oneida Indian Reservation. On March 30, 2022, he addressed the United Nations Legal Subcommittee of the Committee On the Peaceful Uses of Outer space by providing the history-making General Exchange of Views.

Dan has been appointed to lead the Lunar Surface Innovation Consortium Lunar Dust Interoperability and Standards Focus Group. He discovered how lightning strikes and is currently working with the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration to prevent dust explosions in mines and factories.

What Does Planetary Defense Look Like?

The United First Nations Planetary Defense posits that we should stand ready to launch an asteroid intercept mission at any time, utilizing a ready rocket and an appropriate defensive payload. While it sounds like science fiction, the concept is certainly feasible

United First Nations Planetary Defense is also dedicated to saving Earth's oceans, forests and farmlands. In the interview, he discusses an alternate method for decommissioning the International Space Station that does not involve dropping it into the ocean.

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

There has been a recent explosion of space companies, and all of them are looking for funding. That means there is also a lot of opportunity for venture capital firms looking to invest in space companies, and our guest on this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast has a good deal of experience in that realm.

Jeff Crusey has been a Product Manager, a Senior Analyst at a VC, a company Co-Founder, a Strategy Manager at ViaSat, a VC with Sepharim Space, as well as an Angel investor for Space/Military Manufacturing Startups Epsilon3 and True Anomaly. He knows his way around

Venture capital ... often abbreviated as VC ... is a form of private equity financing that is provided by venture capital firms or funds. They generally invest in startups, early-stage, and emerging companies that have been deemed to have high growth potential, or which have demonstrated high growth in terms of number of employees, annual revenue, scale of operations, and other factors. Venture capital firms or funds invest in these early-stage companies in exchange for equity, or an ownership stake. Venture capitalists take on the risk of financing risky start-ups in the hopes that some of the firms they support will become successful.

On the podcast, Jeff talks with host Tom Patton about the state of the commercial space industry in comparison to Silicon Valley in the late '70s and early '80s; how current events affect how companies invest; the perception that there is are many opportunities for venture capital investing in space, and; what market niches exist that an entrepreneur might look to fill.

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

Space Law: Beyond the Basics - The Ex Terra Podcast

On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, host Tom Patton talks with Michael Listner, founder of Space Law and Policy Solutions in Rochester, NH.

The field of space law is still very much in its nascent stages, despite the 60+ years man has been putting satellites and people in orbit. According to the Space Law and Policy Solutions website, as outer space development becomes more prolific so do the legal and policy issues that surround its use and exploitation. National security space, governmental (civil) space and non-governmental space create their own legal and policy issues in particular when they intersect the geopolitical and geolegal environment.

Issues relating to outer space security, space debris, non-governmental space activities, property rights, space resource rights and other emerging issues require operational thinking to identify the present and emerging issues and the complexities they create and create solutions to address them.

Space Law Topics Discussed on the Podcast

Some of the topics discussed in this edition of the podcast include:

What is the basis of Space Law

Has the law kept up with technological advances in space

Can space law be upheld among nations

The validity of contract law related to space activities

What must governments do to create a legal framework that will allow space commerce to flourish

Michael also hosts the YouTube channel "Space Thoughts" on which he discusses space as it relates to the law, policy, and geopolitics.

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

Power demands for small satellites can not be met by solar panels alone. They require micro-power sources to ensure they will be can function for the life of their missions. And according to MarketsandResearch, the space power electronics market is projected to grow from $205 million in 2021 to $435 million by 2026.

On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, Tom Patton talks with Morgan Boardman, CEO of Arkenlight, a UK-based developer and manufacturer of such micro-power sources, including nuclear batteries.

Arkenlight is the natural progression of the ASPIRE diamond group housed at the University of Bristol in the U.K. The company's radiovoltaic technology was developed by Professors Tom Scott and Neil Fox and their team of energy and diamond material scientists.

The company's mission is to recycle wastes from the nuclear power industry such as Tritium and Carbon-14 and safely convert them into useful products that benefit the technological advancement of humanity.

Morgan is a committed technologist whose knowledge spans from the deeply technical & scientific to the commercialization of high technology concepts. He joined the ASPIRE group in 2019, prior to the formation of the Arkenlight, to focus on commercializing a full range of radiovoltaics.

Arkenlight has one patent with more coming, covering the process of incorporating radioisotopes into diamond material and manufacturing.

Among the products in development is the betalight voltaic battery, a type of nuclear battery which generates electrical current from a gaseous tritium light source (GTLS) or betalight vial and a scintillator sandwiched between two photovoltaic cells.

The GTLS gives a steady glow, while the tritium undergoes beta particle decay, and these particles excite the phosphor. The optical photons from the betalight are collected in a standard photo-voltaic (PV) cell, creating electrical current at the voltage of the PV cell. It will power devices for decades, according to the company.

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

The Satellite Industry Association: The Ex Terra Podcast

The Satellite Industry Association is a United States-based trade association providing representation of the leading domestic satellite operators, service providers, manufacturers, launch services providers, and ground equipment suppliers.

Since 1995, SIA has advocated on behalf of the commercial U.S. satellite industry on policy, regulatory, and legislative issues affecting the satellite business. SIA is a recognized focal point for the U.S. satellite industry in Washington, DC, representing and advocating industry positions with key policy makers on Capitol Hill and with the White House, Federal Communications Commission and key Executive Branch departments and agencies.

The SIA recently released its 25th annual State of the Satellite Industry Report (SSIR), a global summary of the commercial satellite industry, and our guest on this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast is Tom Stroup, president of the organization. As President of SIA, Tom is the trade association’s lead advocate for regulatory and policy issues of critical importance to SIA’s membership, including spectrum and licensing issues, defense and public safety matters, and export control and international trade issues. He also manages the day-to-day operations of SIA, including member communications, staff leadership and organization of SIA sponsored events. Tom became the president of SIA in December of 2014.

Prior to joining the Satellite Industry Association, Tom was with Shared Spectrum Company (SSC), a leading developer of spectrum intelligence technologies, where he served as CEO. For more than a decade, he served as the President of the Personal Communications Industry Association (PCIA). Previous to his position at SSC, he founded and ran several companies in the technology industry, including Columbia Spectrum Management, P-Com Network Services, CSM Wireless, and SquareLoop.

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

What is the value of space? That was the question posed by Inmarsat that resulted in a 51 page report that explores the value of space across a wide range of business leaders and citizens from 11 countries around the world.

On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, host Tom Patton talks with Edwina Paisley, senior director of spacecraft programs for Inmarsat, which commissioned the survey. The company received some 20,000 responses to the survey, and some of the results are not only interesting, but surprising.

For instance, the "What on Earth is the Value of Space" report found that 21% of people associate space with ‘aliens’, 14% with ‘science fiction’ and 10% with ‘Star Wars’ – compared with just 8% for ‘communications & connectivity’ and 3% for ‘broadcasting & television’. As memories of the first Space Age recede, maybe perceptions are being shaped more by popular culture – and less by the true role of space in everyday life.

Younger people who have grown up with cell phones and the Internet tend to be among those who most closely associate space with aliens and UFOs, and also with billionaires like Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos. By contrast, older people who grew up during the first space race see space as being more about exploration and research, as well as radio and television communications.

That's just a tiny sampling of the results of the report. Clearly, there is a lot of diversity of opinion concerning the value of space, and the industry has a lot of work to do ... and a lot of opportunity ... when it comes to changing those perceptions.

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, Tom Patton talks with Dr. Brian Kaplinger, the lead on the Jupiter Project for KSF Space Foundation.

Dr. Kaplinger is an Assistant Professor of Aerospace Engineering at Kansas University with a focus on orbital mechanics, and previously served as Deputy Director of the Aldrin Space Institute at the Florida Institute of Technology.

He is the co-author of multiple peer-reviewed journal articles and conference papers, and is working on a textbook on the Fundamentals of Spaceflight Mechanics.

The Jupiter Project was officially unveiled by the KSF Space Foundation last week. Jupiter is a two-stage reusable suborbital rocket capable of delivering a payload consisting of three cubesats to an apogee of 102,000 feet. The purpose of the Jupiter Project is to test cubesats for flight certification.

The 4 meter (≈13-foot) rocket is being built at Kansas University. The first test flight of the Jupiter rocket is planned for October, with the first commercial launch slated for November of this year.

The KSF Space Foundation is a not-for-profit foundation dedicated to R&D missions to LEO, targeting worldwide universities & institutions. Its mission is to develop technologies that permit cost- effective entry to low earth orbit as well as zero-environmental effect flying solutions.

KSF Space currently offering access to near-space and LEO for research and scientific experiments in the fields of:

Earth or Space observation
Biological testing
Satellite positioning detection
Earth magnetic field measurement
Radio transmissions
Full of atmosphere science
Technology experiment
Ecosystem measurements with radiation
Orbit Micro-technology & Nano-technology hardware & software examination

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

As the space commerce sector continues to grow and expand, there is an increasing demand for computing in space. But what are the advantages and challenges to having your processing power in orbit rather than on the ground?

Our guest on this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast is Lisa Kuo, vice president of Strategic Sales for Ramon.Space, a leader in Space-resilient computing infrastructure with an impressive in-orbit success track record to date. As part of her current role in a dynamically growing new market of space computing infrastructure, she is channeling her energy and creativity into building an ecosystem to enable further utilization of computing resources in space.

Ramon.Space is a leader in space-resilient computing infrastructure. Powered by its unique AI/ML processors, Ramon.Space’s software-empowered systems enable the realization of earth-like computing capabilities in space. The company’s proven technology is already deployed in space, spanning more than 50 space missions across the solar system with zero failures. Ramon.Space has offices in the United States and Israel.

Lisa's extensive background in various spectrum of the space industry – anywhere from troubleshooting a satellite, evaluating cutting-edge propulsion technologies, designing a future military communication architecture, to helping customers implement a success-oriented business model.

Prior to joining Ramon.Space, Lisa held senior roles at Panasonic Avionics Corp.,The Aerospace Corp, The Boeing Company and Northrop Grumman. She also holds two masters degrees, Electrical Engineering / Mechanical Engineering from University of Southern California and University of California, Irvine.

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, host Tom Patton talks with Dr. Kayyali Mohamed, Founder and CEO of the KSF Space Foundation. The foundation is a non-profit organization working with universities to build and launch small satellites without sacrificing a significant portion of their budget.

KSF Space Foundation offers CubeSat kits and consults with universities to help them develop missions for those spacecraft. They have developed the ’Experimentation Opportunity Program’ which is dedicated to enabling institutions in developing countries realize their own space mission aspirations. The scope of the program allows institutions from developing countries to collaborate and participate with other institutions that are currently working and developing their own missions.

The KSF CubeSat kit is designed to facilitate the creation of low-cost CubeSat-class satellites. Reducing the cost of spacecraft development in this way allows spacecraft development efforts to be funded from teaching funds, instead of requiring faculty to seek research funds to conduct this activity. Using teaching funds (instead of research funds) facilitates greater student leadership and involvement, as it reduces the risk of mission failure to the responsible faculty member. Additionally, as teaching funds are generally recurring, this approach facilitates incorporation of the small satellite program in curriculum on a year-upon-year basis.

The KSF Space Foundation is further supporting small satellite missions by sourcing and managing rideshare opportunities with a network of international launch providers. They can help institutions launch their own experiments with affordable pricing below normal market rates.

The foundation is also in the process of working with the Kansas University to develop Jupiter 1, dedicated to Cubesat/Nanosatellites and hardware flight testing to ensure the satellite would pass all major necessary tests such as vibration, thermal and telecommunication before its orbital flight. The vehicle is a 2 stage reusable rocket which makes it cost effective, supported with excellent recovery systems carrying three Cubesat payloads.

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

With the explosion of the commercial space industry, there is an increasing interest in investing in space companies. One of the options is a form of crowd funding offered by a company called Space Ventures, and our guest on this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast is Aaron Burnett, its founder and CEO.

Spaced Ventures bills itself as the planet's first public space investment portal. By building in access to industry experts and a growing network of space enthusiasts, raising your funding with Spaced Ventures could set your company up for long term success, according to the company.

On the podcast, Aaron talks about how crowdfunding works for individuals interested in investing in space companies. Spaced Ventures works with a select group of heavily vetted companies that have a high probability of success. But while investing in space companies has often been limited to a small number of people, Spaced Ventures allows smaller investors to have access to those opportunities.

Space is a dynamic, capital intensive industry but its current capital formation is nascent. 98% of space investment has gone to companies in Series A and beyond, while the vast majority of space startups have little or no options for seed funding.

The company believes that it is "time to innovate out of the current government and billionaire-only space funding model. We’re proud to provide a platform that allows regular people to invest as little as $100 to show their support for space entrepreneurs all around the world."

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

InvestinginSpaceCompanies #CrowdfundingforSpaceCompanies #SmallInvestors #SeedCapital #SpacedVentures #ExTerraJSC

NASA recently awarded two contracts for the development of new spacesuits for a new era of exploration.On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, Tom Patton talks with Dan Klopp, Director of Marketing & Business Development for Space Systems at ILC Dover, which is part of the Collins Aerospace team which wan one of those contracts.

According to NASA, the companies selected were chosen from the Exploration Extravehicular Activity Services (xEVAS) contract solicitation. The contract enables selected vendors to compete for task orders for missions that will provide a full suite of capabilities for NASA’s spacewalking needs during the period of performance through 2034. The indefinite delivery and indefinite quantity, milestone-based xEVAS contract has a combined maximum potential value of $3.5 billion for all task order awards. The first task orders to be completed under the contract will include the development and services for the first demonstration outside the space station in low-Earth orbit and for the Artemis III lunar landing.

On the podcast, Klopp goes in-depth about some of the design changes for these new spacesuits from the Apollo-era suits made by ILC Dover for the Moon landings in the 1960s and 1970s.

ILC Dover will provide the pressure garment, while Collins Aerospace, the prime contractor, will supply the portable life support system (PLSS) and Oceaneering will supply the tools. ILC Dover tailored their Astro spacesuit for NASA to provide a unique pressure garment that offers improved comfort and mobility, fewer components while accommodating a broader range of astronaut sizes, and reduced mass.

ILC Dover has also been named by Boeing as one of two providers for their Ascent/Entry Suit (AES) for the company’s Commercial Crew Program developing an AES suit for CST-100 Starliner crews.

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

Space may be the "Next Big Thing" in business ... but just because you built it, the world may not beat a path to your door. Every company needs to tell its story, and marketing for space companies is an important key to success.

Our guest on this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast is Izzy House, author of the book “Space Marketing: Competing in the New Commercial Space Industry”.

Space Marketing introduces marketing principles, strategies, and tactics through the lens of space. The space industry is changing and the competition is exploding as countries from all over the world enter the space race. According to House, marketing is crucial to differentiate your brand and launch ahead of the pack. Space companies will have to understand marketing principles if they hope to compete for customers, investors, and contract bidding wars in the new commercial space industry.

Growing up in the Space Shuttle era, Space Marketing is at the heart of Izzy's career. She combined both of her passions of marketing and space into one expertise. With an extensive marketing background, she turns the lens of marketing onto the space industry. Armed with 20+ years of experience in public affairs, outreach, and marketing, Izzy aims to empower space companies and further their dreams of space exploration.

The new space game has new rules and new players. As commercial space explodes into a trillion-dollar industry, marketing for space companies will become more important. Many companies will need to embrace the idea of marketing if they hope to survive.

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

Note: The Ex Terra Podcast will take a one-week hiatus for the Memorial Day Weekend. We'll be back with a new edition of the podcast on Thursday, June 2nd.

While Spaceport America is best known for its high-profile tenant Virgin Galactic, there's a lot more going on at the world's first purpose-built spaceport.

Our guest on this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, host Tom Patton talks with Alice Carruth, public relations coordinator for Spaceport America in New Mexico. According to the spaceport website, the FAA-licensed launch complex is situated on 18,000 acres adjacent to the U.S. Army White Sands Missile Range in southern New Mexico, has a rocket friendly environment of 6,000 square miles of restricted airspace, low population density, a 12,000-foot by 200-foot runway, vertical launch complexes, and about 340 days of sunshine and low humidity.

Some of the most respected companies in the commercial space industry are tenants at Spaceport America: Virgin Galactic, HAPS Mobile/ AeroVironment, UP Aerospace, and SpinLaunch. With customers EXOS Aerospace and Swift Engineering regularly using the complex for testing and launches.

The New Mexico Spaceport Authority was created by the Spaceport Development Act (New Mexico Statutes Annotated 1978 §58-31-1 et seq., Laws of 2005) for the purpose of developing the spaceport.

NMSA is an autonomous state-established authority, administratively attached to the Economic Development Department (EDD), and governed by a Board of Directors consisting of six members appointed by the Governor and the Cabinet Secretary of Economic Development (or the Secretary’s designee) who serves as chair of the board. The Lieutenant Governor and the Executive Director of NMSA serve in the board as nonvoting members.

Ms. Carruth talks about the many tenants at the spaceport, as well as the STEM education programs offered at the facility and much more on this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast.

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

Any long-term space mission will require growing food in space. Making that possible, as well as improving agricultural production in harsh climates on Earth, is the mission of Interstellar Lab, which is developing environment-controlled modules equipped with an automated aeroponics system.

Our guest on this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast is Barbara Belvisi, founder and CEO of Interstellar Lab. The company is developing durable and deployable modules combine inflatable technology, 3D-printed high-performance materials, advanced food production & water and waste systems to support human life in any environment.

According to the company website, each module can grow 3OO+ species in a controlled-environment, monitored by our proprietary AI. All modules work stand-alone or plugged together, forming a station.

Barbara Belvisi is an entrepreneur passionate about space, biology, and AI. She started her career in finance at 22 investing in tech companies worldwide and launched several global initiatives to foster scientific innovation and entrepreneurship.

The youngest woman founder of a venture capital fund at 26, she is in the top 1O women in Tech in France and Forbes Top 1OO in Europe in 2O18. Self-taught in engineering and architecture, she spent a year with NASA engineers before launching Interstellar Lab to develop food production and habitation modules for sustainable living on Earth and space.

Growing food in space is certainly of interest to NASA, which led to Interstellar Lab winning a phase 1 award in NASA’s Deep Space Food Challenge for its NUtritional Closed-Loop Eco-Unit System, or NUCLEUS. The competition rewarded the best ideas for feeding astronauts on long-term space missions. It was organized in partnership with the Canadian Space Agency.

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

Geostationary orbit is not a "set it and forget it" proposition. Satellites can move, making satellite servicing on orbit essential for the customers who depend on those spacecraft being where they are supposed to be.

On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, Tom Patton talks with Robert Hauge, president of Space Logistics, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Northrop Grumman. Space Logistics provides cooperative space logistics and on-orbit satellite servicing to geosynchronous satellite operators using its fleet of commercial servicing vehicles.

As Hauge explains, this is not an orbital "gas station" for refueling satellites. The Mission Extension Vehicle docks with an existing satellite and provides propulsion and attitude control to extend the life of that satellite.

Mission Extension Vehicle-1 (MEV-1) completed its first docking to a client satellite, Intelsat IS-901 on February 25, 2020. MEV is designed to dock to geostationary satellites whose fuel is nearly depleted. Once connected to its client satellite, MEV uses its own thrusters and fuel supply to extend the satellite’s lifetime. When the customer no longer desires MEV’s service, the spacecraft will undock and move on to the next client satellite. The second Mission Extension Vehicle (MEV-2) launched August 15, 2020 with the Northrop Grumman-built Galaxy 30 satellite. MEV-2 docked with the Intelsat IS-1002 satellite on April 12, 2021.

The company's satellite servicing on orbit will expand with the launch of the Mission Robotic Vehicle (MRV), planned for 2024, and Mission Extension Pods, which will be installed by the MRV.

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

As recovery and use of the Moon's resources comes closer to reality, companies with plans to go to the Moon need lunar environmental intelligence. Enter Lunar Station Corporation.

On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast is Blair DeWitt, CEO of Lunar Station. Blair is part of a growing group of ‘Astropreneurs’ who are experienced entrepreneurs creating new opportunities for commercial space-based operations. Lunar Station Corp (LSC) is positioning to be integral to the Lunar economy. Their space analytics and communications infrastructure will deliver new insights and learnings vital to the continued success of our customer’s Lunar strategies. The 2016 MIT Sloan School of Management Graduate and software engineer founded the company to provide lunar environmental intelligence. Their flagship product, called MoonHacker, is an analytical engine that uses data provided by NASA and other sources to help companies make decisions about their Moon missions.

What kind of decisions? Everything from landing zones to the location of minerals and other resources that will be utilized in a variety of ways. Communications with Earth, length of sunlight and details on terrain are other data points available to Lunar Station clients. According to the company,

MoonHacker provides complete orbital and surface intelligence addressing multiple challenges to help clients improve their navigation and decision making while they focus on building their lunar landers and rovers.

MoonHacker's reports detail all the important aspects of the environment including

Area Detail
Altitude and Slope analysis
Landing Zone determinations
Weather and Mineralogy
Custom reports are also available

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public

There has been a lot of discussion about the supply chain recently, but do the supply chain issues extend into the realm of space commerce?

On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, we talk with Michael Mantzke, president and CEO of Global Data Sciences, a company helping manufacturers and distributors with the supply chain, predictive analytics, shop floor visualization, inventory reduction and EDI.

Mantzke discusses the supply chain issues related to both terrestrial and off-planet applications. The company identifies and resolves known and unknown inventory problems that eliminate operational inefficiencies and increase profits for customers. To accomplish these goals, they use scientific, data-focused approaches and proven techniques to develop and execute sound strategies that increase company value and uncover hidden opportunities, producing tangible and measurable results.

Global Data Sciences identifies and resolves known and unknown inventory problems that eliminate operational inefficiencies and increase profits for customers.

Services include predictive analytics, supply chain optimization, shop floor visualization, inventory prediction and electronic data interchange. Global Data Sciences uses a balanced approach applying a rich understanding of the data that drives your business and the true relationship between correlation and causation to help create the new reality required to achieve true success. The result is the ability to accurately forecast growth in the form of sales, inventory, personnel requirements, logistics and other critical areas.

Global Data Sciences solves real-world manufacturing and distribution challenges through deep industry knowledge, rich technological insight and broad-based business capabilities.

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

Sports are universal. No matter what is going on in the world, it seems that sports can unite us. Now, the Space Games Federation is taking sports to space ... and that's the subject of this installment of The Ex Terra Podcast.

Host Tom Patton talks with Linda Rheinstein, founder of The Space Games Federation, the first governing and sanctioning body for competitive sports played in zero or micro-gravity.

The Space Games Federation offers the human race the unprecedented opportunity to engage in a unique fusion of Space and Athletics. By providing structure and regulation, resources to test and explore, and access to world-class experts, SGF seeks to bridge the gap between earth and space in the spirit of competition, fun, and community.

SGF is composed of experts in the space, sports and entertainment industry, featuring influential leaders and thinkers that are driving the growing mainstream popularity of space. The team collectively envisions the past, present, and future of the space industry as invaluable to the human experience, and aims to marry entertainment and education — e.g, edutainment — to make this experience accessible to the world.

But taking sports to space is not as easy as playing football or basketball in a low or microgravity environment. To come up with new concepts for sports in space, The Space Games Federation created the Equal Space Challenge, inviting the global public to design and develop original games exclusively for zero or micro-gravity playing fields.

The challenge was open to competitors of all ages, genders, levels of ability or disability, and nationalities. The new sports ideas were evaluated based on four key factors, each weighted at 25%: Concept & Feasibility, Game Strategy, Community Engagement and Submission Execution. In 2018, the initial submissions were reviewed, and a “Sweet 16” of new sports ideas were chosen, and that field has been narrowed down to five finalists.

Linda will be a presenter at the upcoming Space Tourism Conference later this month. Registration for the conference is now open, and the organizers are offering a 20 percent discount on registration with the code PRTorg22.

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

** Roman will be one of the featured speakers at the upcoming Space Tourism Conference (https://lnkd.in/gQ5VSrnZ) in Los Angeles, CA on April 28th.

** Get 20% registration at the Space Tourism Conference with the code: PRTorg22

With space tourism so much in the news over the past year, millions of people are looking for the space experience. And while many of us may never make it off planet, there are still ways that non-astronauts can at least get a taste of what space is like.

On this edition of The Ex Terra podcast, Tom Patton talks with Roman Chiporukha, the co-founder and CEO of Space VIP, a company that helps arrange spaceflights and the space experience through a variety of vendors.

The stated mission of Space VIP is "To enable future generations of private astronauts, aggregate the incessant flow of information, and embolden the citizens of Earth to participate in New Space."

Those opportunities include ground-based "Earthanaut" experiences such as astronaut training, simulation experiences, simulated suborbital and orbital training, spacesuit operations training and an aerobatic flight test course.

Aquanaut experiences include multi-day stays aboard the Aquarius Reef Base in Florida, a Titanic Survey Expedition and a robotic journey to the bottom of the Mariana Trench.

Trips to the edge of space and beyond include a high-altitude balloon flight aboard Spaceship Neptune, Suborbital flights offered by Virgin Galactic and Blue Origin, as well as orbital flights with SpaceX, and eventually excursions to the ISS and private space stations in Earth Orbit.

Roman will be one of the featured speakers at the upcoming Space Tourism Conference on April 28th, Registration for the conference is open now, and the organizers are offering a 20 percent discount on registration using the code PRTorg22.

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

** Frank White will be one of the featured speakers at the upcoming Space Tourism Conference (https://lnkd.in/gQ5VSrnZ) in Los Angeles, CA on April 28th.

** Get 20% registration at the Space Tourism Conference with the code: PRTorg22

People see the planet differently after they've been to space. It's a phenomenon called "The Overview Effect", and it's a term first coined by author Frank White in 1987.

But interestingly, the concept of The Overview Effect did not come to Mr. White from a trip to space.

On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, host Tom Patton talks with Author Frank White about his book "The Overview Effect: Space Exploration and Human Evolution" and his follow-up book "The Cosma Hypothesis: Implications of the Overview Effect".

Tom talks with Mr. White about how he conceived of The Overview Effect, how that perception has changed over the intervening years, and how the growth of space tourism could alter, however slowly, the course of world events as more people experience the view of Earth from space. He has interviewed dozens of astronauts and now space tourists who have traveled into space, both for long-duration flights and suborbital hops. All talk about how seeing the planet from a different perspective changes them, some subtly, but others fundamentally.

White sees humankind as eventually migrating off our home planet, whether to orbital habitats or other planets.

He also believes that all potential world leaders should be required to experience The Overview Effect, whether through actual space travel or in virtual reality. Not a world without borders, but one in which the borders are seen for what they are ... artificial lines drawn by people.

Mr. White will be a featured speaker at the Space Tourism Conference in Los Angeles on April 28th.

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, Tom Patton is joined by Grant Blaisdell, co-founder of Copernic Space, the space asset marketplace.

The Copernic Space Platform is the foundation by which users can buy, sell, and manage their space assets, whether that be ownership of real assets in space or their direct stake in financing space ventures. Each user has their own Space Vault where owned space assets can be accessed or sold commercially through the marketplace we call SpaceMart, where companies can register and place offers for their space assets.

Registered assets in a user's Space Vault are represented by an NFT (non-fungible token) containing linked public metadata, with optional private data and API access points. User's registered assets can represent payload space, licensable assets (such as satellite data), or API's.

The commercial space industry is far more than megalithic companies with very deep pockets. It's actually a $500 billion industry full of many small and medium-sized players helping to develop new ways to generate value out of the vast potential of space.

On the podcast, Blaisdell talks about the launch of the Private Sale portion of the first-ever tokenized space payload sale. Hosted on the Copernic Space platform, the private sale enables companies and individuals to purchase space in Lunar Outpost's M1 MAPP Rover and send their cargo on it to the Moon in late 2022 by acquiring a tradable NFT(Non-Fungible Token).

Grant is located in Poland, and he and Tom also talk about the current situation in Ukraine, and some of the ways it is affecting space commerce in the region.

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

Though it may not seem like there is a direct correlation, the Ukraine invasion by Russia does potentially have far-reaching consequences for space commerce. On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, host Tom Patton talks with Dr. Namrata Goswami about the implications presented to the industry by the Ukraine invasion.

Dr. Goswami is a strategic analyst and consultant on Great Power Politics, Space Policy, Alternate Futures, and Frameworks of Conflict Negotiation and Resolution. She grew up in Northeast India, and completed her Ph.D. in international relations in 2005. In 2006, she launched her professional career in academic research, studying Great Power Politics, International relations, and ethnic conflicts.

She is also the co-author with Peter Garretson of the book “Scramble for the Skies: The Great Power Competition to Control the Resources of Outer Space"

On the podcast, Dr. Goswami discusses the relationship between China and Russia in the area of space exploration. The two countries have agreed to cooperate on the establishment of a permanent lunar base with a goal of being operational before the end of this decade, as well as potential tensions between the U.S. and Russia related to operation of the International Space Station. Other topics include the use of commercial satellite imagery during such a conflict, and the possibility that Russia might view the deployment of Starlink technology in Ukraine as a hostile act.

Dr. Goswami also looks at the relationships between India, Russia and China, and how the Ukraine invasion might change that dynamic.

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, we talk with Josh Carlson, author of the new book “Space Power Ascendant: Space Development Theory and a New Space Strategy”

According to Carlson, Space Development Theory is the attempt to grasp the purposes of going to space and systematize them in such a way that they can both assess current status and provide assistance in planning strategy, and predicting hostile intentions.

Space Development Theory is based on two assumptions: That actions done in any domain have a purpose, and the most benefit possible to gain is from economic advantage that benefits national power. This is accomplished through the systematized phases of Exploration, Expansion, Exploitation, and Exclusion; and that there is a delineation in mature domains between civilian and military in a domain. In the naval domain, this is seapower and maritime. In the aerial domain, airpower and aviation. Because space is still in its nascent stages of industrialization, this has not been recognized yet.

"Space Power Ascendant" focuses on the space rivalry between the U.S. and China. Host Tom Patton talks with Josh about the differences in the two country's approaches to their space programs, and the Chinese plans to establish a permanent colony on the Moon by 2028.

Tom and Josh also discuss the Russian invasion on Ukraine, and how that conflict might affect the somewhat tenuous cooperation between Russia and China on future space missions, such as the permanent lunar colony.

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

On this edition of the Ex Terra Podcast, we welcome back John Spencer, founder of the Space Tourism Society, to discuss the state of the Space Tourism Economy.

The Space Tourism Society is preparing for its annual Space Tourism Conference being held in Los Angeles on April 28th. That date is significant, as it is the date Dennis Tito ... the first space tourist ... lifted off for his visit to the International Space Station in 2001. Tito’s flight jump-started the space tourism industry, generating massive consumer awareness of the possibilities of private space travel and consumer outer space experiences.

With decades of development behind it, the space tourism industry has entered its exciting next generation with private enterprise flights and many other consumer offerings in the market and generating revenue.

The world's leading space tourism advocacy organization for 20+ years, the Space Tourism Society (STS) A hallmark of the STC is a dynamic mix of executives representing the breadth and depth of the space experience economy. Attendees can expect concrete, actionable information, real-world use cases, and stellar deal-making. PLUS it offers an inside track to the growth areas in space tourism, including earth-based outer space-themed experiences.

On the podcast, John talks about the three mediums with which people can experience space, and the opportunities the space tourism economy presents for entrepreneurs. He also provides an update on his plan to bring a spacefaring superyacht into reality, and has exciting news regarding the project.

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

The U.S. Government's Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) has released its Space Economy Update building on the preliminary estimates published in December 2020.

On this installment of The Ex Terra Podcast, we welcome back Dr. Tina Highfill to talk us through the space economy update and what has changed since the release of that initial report.

The revised figures show that, in 2019, the U.S. space economy accounted for $194.4 billion of real gross output, $125.9 billion of real GDP (translating to 0.6 percent of U.S. GDP), $42.4 billion of private industry compensation, and 354,000 private sector jobs.

Average annual growth of real value added over the 2012–2019 period was 2.7 percent, higher than the 2.3 percent growth in the overall U.S. economy.

This was driven by strong growth in space-related manufacturing value added, which grew by an average of 7.8 percent annually, offsetting declines seen in the direct-to-home satellite TV market.

For all but one year (2017), manufacturing growth in the space economy was faster than the overall U.S. economy – driven by production of satellite equipment and GPS receivers.

The goal of the space economy statistics is to highlight the space-related production and spending that is already present in the supply-use tables. In practice, these data represent a rearrangement of the current supply-use data to isolate space economy spending and production. A detailed description of the basic methodology, including background information on BEA concepts and general national accounting methods, is available in the December 2020 Survey of Current Business.

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

The SBIR (Small Business Innovation Research) and STTR (Small Business Technology Transfer) programs are highly competitive programs that encourage domestic small businesses to engage in Federal Research/Research and Development (R/R&D) with the potential for commercialization. Through a competitive awards-based program, SBIR and STTR enable small businesses to explore their technological potential and provide the incentive to profit from its commercialization. By including qualified small businesses in the nation's R&D arena, high-tech innovation is stimulated, and the United States gains entrepreneurial spirit as it meets its specific research and development needs.

But how does a company attain one of those awards?

SBIR Advisors is a company dedicated to helping companies work through the process of making an SBIR grant application. While the company focuses primarily on businesses interested in working on DOD projects, they are open to helping any company navigate the process.

Brent Nichols is vice president of client strategy and relations for SBIR advisors. On this edition of the podcast. Brent defines the government programs and the process they use to help their clients make their best presentations to attain the grants.

Other topics covered include:

How a small business is defined for the program
Why the program is important to space startup companies
What the program looks for when evaluating companies for grants
The differences between a "Phase 1" and "Phase 2" award
What government agencies utilize the SBIR program

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

Avoiding Collisions in Space: The Ex Terra Podcast

Space is getting crowded. And with the increase of satellite constellations, smallsats and debris, avoiding collisions in space is becoming a growing concern.

What if satellites could take evasive action on their own, without input from a "human in the loop". Our guest on this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast is Eric Ingram, co-founder and CEO of Scout, a startup company working on just such a solution.

Eric is a commercial spaceflight regulatory expert with a tremendous reach in the space industry and a history of building diverse, interdisciplinary teams. Eric has spent years in space exploration and disability advocacy, and has worked tirelessly to give back to the community. Eric is on the board of the Space Frontier Foundation and is part of Mission:AstroAccess.

Scout recognizes that in situ space support services will enable humanity to become a spacefaring civilization. However, these services will be reliant on a space environment that is approaching its breaking point. Scout was created to tackle fundamental challenges in spaceflight which are often considered “acceptable risks.” The company is committed to changing that mindset to build a safer and more transparent space.

For its work in avoiding collisions in space, Scout has been awarded a Phase 1 SBIR grant to develop their proprietary system. The company was also selected by Momentus to support upcoming proximity operations missions, and was named "Startup of the Year" at the 9th annual Startup of the Year summit.

SCOUT was founded in 2019 by two individuals with a diverse background in start-ups and innovation research and development. They have built space programs and impressive teams across academia, government, and industry.

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, Tom Patton talks with Moriba Jah about the challenges of orbital debris as more and more satellites are launched into space.

Moriba Jah is an associate professor of Aerospace Engineering and Engineering Mechanics at The University of Texas at Austin where he is the holder of the Mrs. Pearlie Dashiell Henderson Centennial Fellowship in Engineering. He recently joined Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak's startup venture Privateer as Chief Scientific Advisor.

The challenges of orbital debris can be daunting. According to an ESA document dated January 5th of this year, there are some 36,500 objects of 10 cm or larger currently in Earth orbit. And while the threat of collisions is real, Professor Jah says that is not the root of the problem. "We don't even have a census of this human-made or anthropogenic space object population. We can't measure the whole thing. There's a bunch of stuff that is untrackable ... there's like random bullets up there."

Professor Jah says that the biggest challenge in understanding the population of orbital debris is a lack of shared data. To combat that problem, Professor Jah developed "Astriagraph", which is meant to be a multi-source, crowdsource database of space objects. Before we can address the problem, we have to know what's there.

Professor Jah also talks about Privateer and its efforts to address the challenges of orbital debris. It's all on this edition of the Ex Terra Podcast.

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, Tom Patton talks with Cynthia Bouthot, president of Space Commerce Matters, a pioneer in Low Earth Orbit Demand Creation.

Space Commerce Matters provides a number of services for space agencies and governments, non-traditional commercial customers, aerospace companies, and satellite service providers. Offerings include building demand with end-user customers for LEO activity; studies highlighting gap technologies related to LEO phenomena for R&D and marketing applications; market analyses indicating most promising current and future markets; commercialization roadmaps tied to end-user customers and markets; and generation of funding and investment via strategic partnerships.

SCM also serves as implementation partner for customers using NASA’s new commercial allocation. Cynthia and her SCM team have been working with end users in the life science, manufacturing, satellite applications, advanced material and technology development sectors and they truly understand market demand as well as end-user requirements.

Prior to founding SCM, Cynthia Bouthot was a founding member of CASIS, the manager of the International Space Station National Lab (ISSNL). While there, she established and developed the demand model for private sector entities, focused on utilization and value creation, which ultimately led to more than half of the research on board the ISSNL being conducted by commercial businesses. Cynthia spent nine years working in innovation and new market creation throughout Europe. Cynthia was the Consul, and head of Trade and Investment for the British Consulate in Boston and Head of Innovation and R&D for the whole of the UK and US, with a special focus on space and life sciences.

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, Tom Patton talks with Rabi Boundi, co-founder and CEO of Space Impulse, described as a "LinkedIn" for space.

Space Impulse was founded with a mission to connect the global space community, lower space industry costs, and accelerate times to orbit on a dedicated social network.

Co-founder and CEO Rabi Boundi says the site provides an industry-tailored space for all participants in the greater space industry ecosystem to share industry news, develop relationships, find jobs, manage procurement, and work together.

By fulfilling this mission, Space Impulse is helping to clear and widen the pathway linking Earth and space.

Space Impulse is free to join, and premium levels of membership are available. By joining, you can be a part of the largest online community with thousands of verified space companies, organizations, professionals, and students.

In 2017, Rabi attended the International Space University, which provides graduate-level training to the future leaders of the emerging global space community at its Central Campus in Strasbourg, France, and at locations around the world.

Along with leading Space Impulse, Rabi is a technical advisor for Waryer, a bounty and payment platform for social impact leveraging satellite imagery and blockchain technologies, and a contributor to NewSpace Hub, a destination to discover new and lesser-known space companies, events, products, programs, organizations, services, and tools helping shape and grow the industry worldwide.

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, Tom Patton talks with Nino Marcantonio, co-founder and Deputy Director of the Defense Technology Innovation Program, or DTIP.

DTIP is a private entity that was established to scout globally for innovative, revolutionary technologies that have direct or indirect military application for the United States of America. The DTIP was established as a public-private partnership program with the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense. We work with the US Department of Defense in promoting the advancement of US national security and defense acquisition strategies.

Since 2017, the DTIP has presented dozens of technologies from around the world to senior decision makers in the pentagon, DHS, the White House, the Intelligence Community and strategic U.S. allies. The DTIP has worked with more than 95 Defense Department and Intelligence community programs, and the number is growing.

To learn more about how to submit a technology to the DTIP, click here. https://defensetechinnovations.com/application-for-review

Nino Marcantonio earned a Bachelor's Degree in criminology and Business from the University of Maryland, as well as a Bachelor's Degree in International Business and a Bachelor of Business Administration from American University.

The DTIP falls under the umbrella of the Defense Technology Innovation Association, which works with and/or is in ongoing contact with many associations and related organizations that share the same wider vision and goals for fostering a robust, committed innovation community supporting the defense enterprise.

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, Tom Patton talks with Divya Panchanathan, Business Development Manager for Material Science Research and Manufacturing in Space for Axiom Space, about the AX-1 mission and other projects.

Axiom Space is planning to launch the first fully private mission to the International Space Station next February as they prepare to build a private space station over the next 4 to 5 years. Divya gives us an insider's view of the upcoming Ax-1 mission, as well as progress on the Axiom station.

Divya's background includes experimental work in interfacial engineering, surface science, filtration, aerosol science, catalytic materials, micro/nanofabrication, nanoparticle/polymer coatings, and test system development, and interdisciplinary projects including air filtration for weld fumes, produced water treatment for oil recovery, and drag reduction coatings for marine vessels.

At Axiom Space, she is seeking to create new pathways for innovation in material science by enabling discovery and commercialization of novel products in microgravity.

NASA and Axiom Space just announced that the Ax-2 mission to the ISS has been authorized. Ax-2 will launch from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida for a mission of no more than 14 days docked to the space station. NASA and Axiom will negotiate in-orbit activities for the private astronauts to conduct in coordination with space station crew members and flight controllers on the ground. The Ax-2 mission concept includes scientific research and outreach activities.

In a programming note, this will be Ex Terra's final podcast for 2021. We hope you all enjoy the rest of the holiday season, and we will return on January 6th to talk with Nino Marcantoio, founder and Deputy Director of the Defense Technology Innovation Program.

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

On a recent episode of The Ex Terra Podcast, we talked with Adrian Nixon of Nixene Publishing, and that interview left us wanting to learn more about the potential of graphene in Space Commerce applications.

This time, we're digging deeper to find out how companies can commercialize the research that has been taking place in the industry.

Ray Gibbs is Director of Commercialization in Graphene/2-D Materials for the University of Manchester|Graphene Engineering Innovation Center. Ray goes in-depth with us on the four primary areas of near term commercialization of graphene in space commerce: Energy, Structures, filtration and Sensors.

The University of Manchester is the home of graphene – it is where the one-atom thick material was first isolated.

Today, the University has a broad range of academic expertise and work in collaboration with dozens of partners. By leveraging the research power along with the vast infrastructure we have put in place we can leverage the investment in fundamental science and facilities to collaboratively generate value, IP and skills needed for the development of products and applications.

The National Graphene Institute brings together the leading edge of fundamental science in 2D materials with the latest equipment and engineering expertise in an unparalleled offer to industry partners.

The Graphene Engineering Innovation Centre (GEIC) helps companies develop and launch new technologies, products and processes that exploit the remarkable properties of graphene and other 2D materials.

The GEIC’s facilities and resources are supported by experienced and knowledgeable applications engineers and internationally renowned academics, working across a very broad range of novel technologies and applications. The GEIC can help companies design, develop, scale and ‘de-risk’ the next generation of innovative products and processes.

You can email Ray to find out more at raymond.gibbs@manchester.ac.uk

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast ... a little "inside baseball" with Bill Klanke, co-founder and CEO of Space Intel Report

Space Intel Report is a subscription-based online publication focused on the Commercial Space industry. According to Bill Klanke, SIR focuses primarily on the business aspects of commercial space, targeted towards C-Suite executives and other top decision-makers in the industry.

Bill works with well-known space journalist Peter de Selding, who leads the editorial side of Space Intel Report.

The Space Intel Report editorial approach is to cover the people and forces shaping a new business era in the existing and emerging space industry. The company provides space industry executives, professionals, stakeholders, investors and government officials what they need to know, from senior leaders at satellite companies to end-users, on a global basis.

Content is divided into categories such as:

Mobility

Ground

Broadband

Satellite

Launch

Along with straight news, the site offers analysis of developments and trends in the realm of space commerce.

Bill Klanke has been around the publishing industry for several years. His previous stops include president of Space News, vice president and General Manager for AOL, and VP/Publisher at Space News. He also held a leadership role at Career Builder, helping to take that company public in the 1990s.

Ex Terra JSC is collaborating with Space Intel Report. You can look for links to selected articles on our website on a weekly basis.

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, we return to the topic of Graphene with Adrian Nixon, Editor in Chief of Nixene Publishing.

The Nixene Journal is a publishing company specializing in Graphene and other 2D materials based in Manchester, United Kingdom. We publish the Nixene Journal, a monthly analysis of developments in the fast-moving business and technology world of graphene in "plain English" for global decision makers and investors.

Adrian Nixon began his career as a chemist, and took a somewhat circuitous path to publishing. As a scientist, his knowledge of graphene is extensive, and he is well versed in the potential applications for the material in space commerce, as well as here on Earth.

Nixene Publishing produces the monthly Nixene Journal, which provides busy decision makers with up-to-date knowledge and information, as well as Special Editions tailored to a specific topic. They are ideal as corporate reports or industry events. Both print and digital versions are available, and a subscription is not required. The company also produces a video series focused on graphene, holds webinars and workshops, and provides consulting services.

Adrian is a member of the International Space Elevator Consortium Board, and a Strategic Advisory Board member of StellarModal, the space transportation association.

On this edition of the podcast, Adrian and host Tom Patton talk about the many uses of graphene, how it came to be discovered, it's chemical makeup (Adrian is a chemist, after all), and a couple of the more Earthly uses for the substance.

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

Our guest on this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast is Laura Forczyk, the owner of Astralytical, a research, consulting, and publishing firm founded in 2016 and located outside of Atlanta. The company's focus is high-quality big-picture outlooks and multidisciplinary space trends in the aerospace sector, particularly the emerging space economy. They explore the intersections of disciplines and bridge industries, and see the entire space sector, which can help you put your company or project into context.

Astralytical's clients have included government agencies, startups and small businesses, established corporations, market research companies, educational institutes and nonprofits, and investment firms. The company keeps its clients and their projects in confidence. They do not reveal the names of our clients or the details of their projects unless the deliverable is public by nature.

Laura Forczyk serves as an advisor for Cislunar Space Development Company and For All Moonkind. She is the VP of Research and Analytics for the Beyond Earth Institute. She serves as a mentor for the Brooke Owens Fellowship program. She is the author of Rise of the Space Age Millennials and is finalizing her second book on space tourism and private spaceflight.

Prior to forming her own company, she ran the Florida office of an international startup, working to establish parabolic and suborbital flight at Kennedy Space Center and globally. She has also worked as a scientific analyst for a nonprofit facilitating over 50 experiments on the International Space Station for the benefit of life on Earth. She has served as a NASA Subject Matter Expert for Planetary Science Missions.

She has researched astrophysics and planetary science at three NASA centers, flown two parabolic “Zero G” campaigns, conducted geological research in a meteor crater, and earned National Aerospace Training and Research (NASTAR) suborbital astronaut wings in ground training. She is a six-time U.S. Space Camp alumna, a NASA Academy alumna, a former NASA Student Ambassador, and a previous NASA Graduate Student Researchers Program fellow.

She earned a bachelor of science in astrophysics from Florida Institute of Technology. She earned a master of science in astrophysics from the University of Alabama in Huntsville researching high-energy emission from gamma-ray bursts. She conducted doctoral studies in planetary science at the University of Central Florida researching low-energy impacts and regolith (dust) dynamics on the Moon, Mars, and asteroids.

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

Public-Private strategies are becoming increasingly important in the arena of space commerce. Governments are relying on private entities for services ranging all the way to astronaut transportation to the International Space Station and beyond, while those private companies often rely on government contracts to innovate and expand the horizons of space commerce.

Our guest on this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast is Courtney Stadd, founder and president of Capitol Alliance Solutions. Founded in 2005, sets itself apart from other firms by putting the emphasis on “solutions” to its clients’ needs – including both policy and business development challenges. Stadd believes that today’s economic challenges demand that government consultants need to be way more than “time and cost sinks” associated with networking among the key officials, drafting white papers, and related activities.

Capitol Alliance Solutions works with companies ranging from aerospace giants to small startups to formulate the public-private strategies that will lead to positive outcomes. On this podcast, Mr. Stadd discusses the differences between working with large and small companies, the effects of the continually-swinging political pendulum in Washington, D.C., the geopolitical and commercial space races, and how the potential sunset of the congressionally-mandated moratorium on extensive space regulations will change the space commerce landscape.

Prior to founding Capitol Alliance Solutions, Stadd served as NASA Chief of Staff and White House Liaison and Deputy Associate Administrator, Office of Advanced Concepts & Technology & Special Assistant to Administrator. He also served on the White House National Space Council from 1989 - 1992, along with a wealth of other experience in the public and private sectors.

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

What will be the transportation systems that will support space-based commerce as the new space economy grows? That was the fundamental question asked by John Weathersby, the founder of StellarModal. John is our guest on this edition of the Ex Terra Podcast.

StellarModal is an international trade association whose mission is to promote the advancement of transportation systems which will support the field of space-based commerce.

To accomplish this mission, the StellarModal Transportation Association serves as an advocate for the development of Earth-to-Apex (A/E) infrastructure and transportation systems; a research, development and education facilitator; and a strategic consortium for public and private sector interests who seek to participate in the advancement of space-based commercial activities.

The association advocates for technologies, products, services and objectives that advance the field of orbital and space-based commerce. They are also a Strategic Consortium to serve as a forum for commercial, independent, governmental and academic entities.

StellarModal is a membership-based, non-profit, trade association open to anyone in the supply chain of transportation systems that support the business and operation of space commerce, including:

Material
Product and service providers
Logistics
Operators
Workforce
Financial
Support and maintenance providers

The goals of the association are to:

Promote development and growth of space commerce industry
Facilitate business opportunities
Advance the Business of Space Commerce

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

(Disclosure: Ex Terra JSC is partnered with StellarModal and is a member of the StellarModal advisory board.)

Gig work has become a growing segment of the workforce. More and more people are taking assignments from multiple companies rather than spend 20 or 30 years working for a single company. In fact, statistics show that the average millennial worker will change jobs every 18 months.

But can the concept of gig work be applied to the aerospace industry? Tom Cooke, the CEO of Spacely.work and his partners think that it can, and Tom is our guest on this edition of the Ex Terra Podcast.

The Spacely community is a digital place to visit every day where you can pursue your passion without distraction.

Designed for both companies that need workers and people seeking jobs, Spacely is a social networking platform and opportunity marketplace for those passionate about space. The Spacely mission is to connect those passionate about space regionally and globally while enabling them to be more productive and successful. To achieve that mission, Spacely provides services to help communities find and connect with other like-minded communities and/or affiliated businesses, promote community interaction by allowing users to release news, exchange ideas, identify opportunities, maintain photo galleries, calendars, events and invitations using public or private settings.

The Spacely platform allows members to discover and connect with one another through a shared interest in space and our vertical communities enable further engagement around specific subjects or activities. They provide an interest-based platform that encourages meaningful new relationships, relevant conversations and promotes opportunities for its members and partners to be successful in these endeavors.

Spacely is intersecting the future of work and the aerospace industry. They invite you to visit their landing page and sign up to stay up-to-date with aerospace specific information and opportunities as they become available.

Spacely believes that space work is not just for scientists and astronauts. Find out how your skills could be applied to the new space economy through gig work on this edition of the Ex Terra podcast.

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Music, Google Podcasts, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

The Inspiration4 flight ushered in a new era in commercial spaceflight ... one where private citizens can become astronauts. But what is involved in training private astronauts to travel into space? How can a person prepare for space travel without going through the years of training that NASA astronauts must complete?

Providing that training is the mission of Orbite, a space training company for the ultimate adventurers.

On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, we talk with Nicolas Gaume and Jason Andrews, the founders of Orbite. Nicolas and Jason explain the concept behind training for the next generation of commercial space explorers – people leaving this planet for pleasure or profession.

Orbite is building a commercial spaceflight gateway complex with modern astronaut training facilities that will reimagine the human spaceflight experience. The company's programs blend specialized equipment and personal instruction to achieve confidence, skill, and team safety.

Potential astronauts will learn what it's like to live in space from VIP guest speakers and enjoy an unforgettable 'Michelin star' culinary space food lab and dining event. The entire program is hosted in elegant, luxury accommodations.

The first orientation program took place in France in August. Three additional orientation sessions will take place in November and December at the Four Seasons Resort in Orlando, FL. Each Astronaut Orientation will be limited to 10 guests to ensure personalized service. Astronaut Orientation is the first training offering of several planned from Orbite. This program focuses on putting guests through a series of activities that enlighten them about the different suborbital and orbital spaceflight offerings. Astronaut Orientation will expose trainees to different mission profiles through microgravity and high-G flight training, up-close tours of space facilities, and immersive virtual reality experiences of actual commercial space missions. Attendees will also have access to exclusive experiences, including a memorable ‘Michelin star’ space food lab tasting.

Training private astronauts ... on this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast.

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Music, Google Podcasts, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

For about 20 years, companies have been exploring uses for graphene, an allotrope of carbon made up of a single layer of atoms arranged in a two-dimensional honeycomb lattice nanostructure. Its isolation an and subsequent study of the material led to a Nobel Prize in Physics for Andre Geim and Konstantin Novoselov at the University of Manchester. graphene is notable for its high tensile strength, electrical conductivity, transparency, and being the thinnest two-dimensional material on Earth.

Now, companies are finding more and more commercial uses for graphene, many of which are in the new space sector.

Our guest on this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast is Debbie Nelson, an Integrated Marketing Communications professional with over 20 years experience in research, networking, publications, communications and events management. Graphene and 2D materials research and commercialization news are topics in her focus at Nixene Publishing, particularly when applied to Space Transportation and Infrastructure.

The applications for graphene in space commerce are many. Its high tensile strength makes it very attractive as an additive to construction materials, and could eventually be the solution to the development of the long-discussed space elevator. And that is just the tip of the iceberg. Debbie discusses these and many of the other potential uses for graphene on the podcast.

She is also involved in the development of StellarModal, which envisions a standardized platform for commercial transport and support of space commercial activity. StellarModal is an international trade association whose mission is to promote and advocate for the advancement of transportation systems which will support the field of space-based commerce.

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Music, Google Podcasts, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

On this edition of the Ex Terra Podcast, we talk with retired NASA engineer Edgar Zapata about his views of space commerce.

Zapata spent 32 years as a NASA engineer before retiring in March of 2021. Currently, he works with the NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts (NIAC) Program, which nurtures visionary ideas that could transform future NASA missions with the creation of breakthroughs — radically better or entirely new aerospace concepts — while engaging America's innovators and entrepreneurs as partners in the journey.

Zapata has an engineering degree from the University of Puerto Rico, and interviewed with NASA his last summer in college. He spent 12 years working on the space shuttle program before shifting to systems engineering and a full-time focus on future missions. He also worked with DARPA on the Experimental Spaceplane in his final years at the agency.

Now, the retired NASA engineer is a freelance consultant and spends a good deal of his time writing, including his blog Zapata Talks NASA. In the blog, Edgar shares his experience, thoughts and occasional analysis and numbers about NASA, space exploration and development, for the kind of growth that always seems just around the corner. There are stories about where we have been, where we might head, and what must change to go anywhere. Building on his prior (public) work, he leans toward the numbers, but also works to add the context that is necessary for insight about what it all means.

How does what happens in space affect your everyday life? The Ex Terra podcast is dedicated to introducing you to many of the interesting people involved in the commercial space industry, and taking you behind the scenes with many of the companies making significant contributions to the new space economy. The podcast is available on Anchor, Spotify, Apple Music, Google Podcasts, Breaker, Overcast, Pocketcasts and Radio Public.

Small weather satellites are having an increasing impact on the delivery of weather data to government, military and commercial users. One of the companies on the forefront of this new wave of weather data delivery is Brandywine Photonics. On this edition of the Ex Terra Podcast, we talk with John Fisher, the CEO of this startup company.

Brandywine Photonics is a member of The MetNet Alliance, which uses small weather satellite technology to measure all things weather, all the time. From power grids, radio communications, and military theater, weather systems influence life on Earth. With MetNet data in their models, Brandywine Photonics customers gain new insight into the inner workings of global weather and climate with much lower latency than the current operational satellites such as POES, JPSS, and DMSP.

Fisher has 31-years’ experience in designing optical systems. He has designed the gratings and spectrographs for eight organizations (GSFC, ARC, NRL, and Commercial), of which more than 40 have flown or are currently flying in commercial and tactical platforms. He designed and built the spectrometer for the Hyperspectral Imaging and Coastal Observer mission, which was operational on the ISS from 2010-2015. His latest projects have included optical design for the payloads for MetNet Small Weather Satellites, including the Theater Weather Imager & Cloud Characterization Sensor, and the Compact Hyperspectral Infrared Sounding Interferometer. His primary duties at Brandywine are landing contracts with Air Force and NOAA, and teaming on NASA Planetary Science and Earth Science proposals.

Low-cost launch enables the Space 2.0 mantra “fly fast and fly often.” Brandywine Photonics scrutinizes every component to create the lightest payload for cost-effective spaceflight. The full constellation costs less than a single legacy satellite.

Working with its MetNet Alliance Partners, the small weather satellite constellations will be fully loaded with the best in space-based environmental monitoring:

Theater Weather Imaging and Cloud Characterization
Day-Night Imaging
Infrared Sounding
Microwave Sounding and Imaging
GPS-Radio Occultation
EO/IR Limb Viewing for Atmospheric Chemistry
Space Weather, both in situ and remote sensing

(Source: Brandywine Photonics)

When you hear the phrase "Space Tourism", you probably think about buying a very expensive ride on a spaceship ... maybe a visit to the International Space Station. But there is far more to Space Tourism than actually traveling to space.

Our guest on this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast is John Spencer, Founder of The Space Tourism Society. Spencer is also an "Outer Space Architect, Author and Space/Future Themed Experience Designer and Developer".

Spencer founded the Space Tourism Society (STS) in 1996. With Karen L. Rugg he wrote the first book on space tourism published (2004) in the United States called Space Tourism—Do You Want to Go? He coined the term Space Experience Economy (SEE) in 2005 and has been quoted in over 200 TV and radio shows, newspaper and magazine articles on space tourism.

Over $300 million has been invested in building his space/future/Sci-Fi themed concepts to date. He is currently designing and developing a proposed $2B Mars World attraction/resort for Las Vegas, and has a concept for a spacefaring yacht.

Almost as many people a year visit space themed facilities (19.2M) as visit the two Universal Studio movie/theme parks (19.9M)

Space Themed Facilities:

National Air and Space Museum 8,000,000
Disney’s EPCOT’s “Mission Space” 3,900,000
California Science Center 2,400,000
Kennedy Space Center 1,500,000
Intrepid Sea & Space Museum 1,100,000
Johnson Space Center 1,000,000
Space Camp 850,000
Evergreen Aviation and Space Museum 300,000
Pima Air and Space Museum 170,000
Total 19,200,000

Proposals for over $2 billion in space and Mars themed attractions are currently in the works just in the United States. More on international ventures. Since 2011 over $300 million has been spent for new facilities to display the 4 retired NASA Space Shuttles. The California Science Center in Los Angeles will spend an additional $270M in building a space pavilion to house the Endeavour Space Shuttle stack vertical with all real component. Opening around 2024. And $190 million has been invested in the U.S. to build space simulation attractions since 2003. This includes $120M for the Disney EPCOT Center “Mission Space” attraction and the new Kennedy Space Center’s $70M “Shuttle Launch Experience” attraction.

The Space Tourism Society recently completed a virtual Space Tourism Conference, and plans to hold an in-person event in, likely in southern California, in 2022.

On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, we talk with Guy de Carufel, the founder and CTO of Cognitive Space, a company developing automated satellite management systems using Artificial Intelligence (AI).

Currently, satellites are managed by micro-managing each individual spacecraft. But with the number of active satellites forecast to increase by a factor of 20 in just the next 10 years, handling these orbital assets will become a major challenge. Automated satellite management will provide more than piece of mind, it will enable the satellite industry to reach its fullest potential.

Guy de Carufel has over 13 years experience in the aerospace field, and has started two previous companies: RavenCity - a web and mobile app, and Earnest Space Consulting, a consulting firm supporting NASA. Guy founded Cognitive Space after being frustrated with the very painful process of planning and commanding spacecraft. His technical expertise is in simulation development, flight software, Command and Data handling and machine learning.

Prior to his forays into entrepreneurship, Guy worked in the GN&C team at the first iteration of Firefly. The team developed guidance algorithms, airdrop sequence, parachute design, and simulation (slosh, thruster models, contact models). He also led the verification and validation effort and flight software architecture.

Cognitive Space is a Houston-based company performing research and development of technology in the field of aerospace engineering. The company is currently offering a service called CNTIENT ... is a tailored automated satellite management solution designed to achieve ultimate responsiveness and optimized dynamic satellite scheduling and commanding. This product answers the rapidly growing challenge of effectively operating constellations of complex heterogeneous satellites to meet the need of near real-time remote sensing data collection and low latency global data transfer. Their "FlowVault" product is a next generation cyber-security data management system uniquely suited for the space industry.

On this edition of the Ex Terra Podcast, we talk with Ben Haldeman, the founder of LifeShip, which wants to send your DNA to the Moon.

You've likely wondered if there's any way to be part of a bigger expedition for humanity and leave your legacy for future generations. LifeShip is a mission-driven space and genomics startup based out of San Francisco, California. LifeShip a remote-first team of spacecraft architects, product designers, and creatives committed to connecting people with the cosmos while doing good for our Earth.

The LifeShip mission is to preserve Earth's life for eternity and spread humanity to the stars. Their focus is to have an impact on humanity, the Earth, and the Universe, both today and for the billion-year future.

Ben Haldeman is driven to make space accessible to people while also doing good for our Earth. Over the past 15 years, he's created powerful telescopes to find new planets, instruments to look for life on Mars, and satellite networks to help Earth and advance space exploration. He's worked on hundreds of satellites that have gone to space and been involved in dozens of rocket launches.

LifeShip's first mission is already closed, with some 1,000 DNA samples set to travel to Lacus Mortis on the Moon in late 2021. Launch will be on a ULA Vulcan rocket and land with the Astrobotic Peregrine lunar lander.

But you can still send your DNA to the Moon. The second LifeShip mission is planed for 2022. Your DNA will be loaded aboard a payload assembled by LifeShip's partners at Galactic Legacy Labs and Arch Mission Foundation.

Ben Haldeman spoke to us from his remote work location in Guatemala. He is on a mission to spread life from Earth to the stars. Ben is a space entrepreneur, futurist, rocket scientist, and product designer. He founded LifeShip with a vision to save copies of Earth’s genetic code in space. LifeShip’s first mission is a DNA time capsule to the Moon. People can add their DNA and affordably be part of a space mission.

(Source: LifeShip website)

Our guest on this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast is Kevin O'Connell, who has founded Space Economy Rising following a stint as the Director of the Office of Space Commerce within the U.S. Department of Commerce.

The Office of Space Commerce is the principal organization for space commerce policy activities within the U.S. Department of Commerce. Its mission is to foster the conditions for the economic growth and technological advancement of the U.S. commercial space industry.

His new venture, Space Economy Rising, works with clients and partners worldwide on all aspects of the growing space economy. As space technology advances, we need an equal emphasis on the economic inputs -- entrepreneurship, talent, the impact of regulation, and private investment -- and the growing contribution of space to economic growth.

According to Mr. O'Connell, private investment is diversifying and accelerating space activities, whether for exploration or the creation of new services on Earth. We are working with entrepreneurs across the space industry while also working to deepen our understanding of the key economic inputs to and benefits from space activities.

Topics covered in this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast include:

The accomplishments of the Office of Space Commerce under O'Connell's leadership, and what remains to be done following the change in administration.
An update on the BEA's Space Satellite Account which we discussed with Dr. Tina Highfill on our first podcast.
The status of the Artemis Program under the Biden administration.
The state of Space Commerce in the U.S. and around the world.
The wide variety of opportunities for potential investors in the space economy
The potential growth of the space commerce sector of the economy, and what that might include.
Mr. O'Connell's view of where the space economy may be looking out 10-15 years.

The Ex Terra Podcast features interesting individuals and spotlights companies in the emerging space commerce sector. You can contact us at info@exterrajsc.com.

What are the economics of space? Our guest on this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast is George Pullen, Chief economist and Co-Founder of the MilkyWay Economy. George is also the author of "Blockchain and the Space Economy" with co-author Samson Williams. George also teaches in the Columbia University summer program a series on the space industry and space economy.

George began his career in banking and alternative markets, but not in the commercial space sector In this interview, host Tom Patton talks with George about topics ranging from how the economics of space began … in his view, with Claudius Ptolemy some 2,000 years ago … to where we might see the space economy in the next 15-20 years.

Ptolemy, Pullen explains, developed a theory that the sun, other planets and stars revolved around the Earth. And while we all know NOW that is not true, it did transform chaotic celestial bodies into an ordered system. "And a belief in order is fundamental for humans who want to then go out and pursue economic efforts to manipulate it." It's a much better origin story, he says.

George is a free-market economist, teacher, and advisor with twenty years of experience as a strategic, analytical, problem solver. Prior to founding Milky Way Economy, a think tank focused on writing and advising the businesses, technologists and financiers of the Space Economy, he learned his craft serving as an executive, banker, broker, hedge fund trader, economist and lecturer. His areas of market expertise, research, and publishing cover a range of alternative markets and include: healthcare, energy, blockchain, rare earths, derivatives, ESG, trading, defense innovation, AI/ML, crowdfunding and Space Economics.

George is driven by a curiosity and passion for convergence, connecting people and ideas across diverse disciplines and finding new questions that need answers. He is a a frequent guest lecturer at colleges and conferences, and a risk advisor for the Global Association of Risk Professionals. He holds adjunct appointments and guest lectures at a number of institutions to include: Columbia University, University of New Hampshire Law, Eisenhower War College, and Johns Hopkins. He is also the Author of the book Blockchain and the Space Economy and host of The Space Economy.

On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, George offers his insights about whether the money flowing into the space economy has the potential to be a "bubble"; the possible effects of a proposed $4 trillion US Government investment in infrastructure on the economics of space, how rapidly-advancing technology and falling launch costs are moving the market, and; some of the different paths startup and established companies can attract capital investments in their products and ideas.

You can find George on LinkedIn, Twitter/Instagram @Pullen4Maine, @MilkyWayEconomy, or @TheSpaceEconomy. His book "Blockchain and the Space Economy" is available from the MilkyWay Economy website.

Edge computing brings computation and data storage closer to the location where it is needed, to improve response times and save bandwidth. Satellites create an enormous amount of data which needs to be transmitted to Earth. Our guest on this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast has founded a company which looks to solve the problems inherent is that transaction.

Rick Ward, the founder of Space Edge Computing company OrbitsEdge. The company intends to deliver high-performance computing datacenters in orbit, above the clouds, which can process and analyze the vast amounts of data being created in space.

The OrbitsEdge core mission is to provide an in-orbit virtualized data infrastructure at the edge of space that's agile and adapts to new demands turning data into actionable insights.

The OrbitsEdge cornerstone infrastructure solution will substantially increase computing power in space and reduce the bottlenecks of analyzing space data on Earth, according to Ward.

To keep up with the rate of change and the number of satellites being launched into Low Earth Orbit, new services have to be made available. Shipping data back to terrestrial clouds is impractical, however today it is the only choice. Placing industry standard high performance Edge technology at the edge of space can help us keep up with the rate of change.

Ward says their advantage is the delivery of resources where needed for space-based IoT. OrbitsEdge will provide a faster, more competitive option for processing data.

NASA selected OrbitsEdge to participate as finalists in the 2020 NASA iTech Cycle II forum. The NASA iTech initiative seeks trailblazing technologies that could enhance NASA’s missions while also improving life on Earth. This current cycle specifically called for innovative technologies in the areas of power generation and energy, integrated photonics, advanced engineered materials, and miniaturized systems. NASA also left open a category for “X-factor innovations,” technologies and concepts that may not fit the other prescribed categories but still sparked the agency's curiosity.

Is space "The Next Big Thing" for investors? One thing is certain, investing in space companies has been on the upswing as more and more such companies come on line.

On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, Simon Drake, the founder of Space Ventures Investors, talks with host Tom Patton about how small investors are getting involved in space companies.

For innovative entrepreneurs and passionate investors, Space Venture Investors says it is building the bridge between private capital and the emerging space companies. They have a deep network of private investors that trust the management team’s allocation of capital into strategically important space companies.

Space Ventures Investors is also an advocate for lobbying governments to increase their budget allocation into the space resources sector.

Space Ventures Investors Ltd (SVI) was established in 2014 by Simon Drake and Kevin Mac Gowan. They identified the potential of the next space race and how it will re-shape the global economy. Thanks to their experience from working in many global companies, including in the investment banking industry and marketing, combined with their sense of entrepreneurship and a passion for space, they started to work on the concept of making space a tangible investment for everyone. Thomas Lazaridis joined the team in 2015 prior to leading the investment arm of SVI.

The core vision of SVI is to allow both sophisticated and non-sophisticated investors to invest in the Strategic Space Value Chain; a combination of emerging companies that are integral to space commerce and space resources. By identifying each layer of the value chain, SVI has been able to target upcoming start-ups by categorizing them by sub-sector and identifying key industrial partners that would provide the support, and even exit solutions, bringing value and financial returns to SVI’s investors.

The objective is to invest in start-ups, strengthen businesses, support visionary projects and create the leaders of tomorrow. SVI’s own investors and entrepreneurs need each other, and SVI is the ideal vehicle: A shareholder driven company that follows a simple road map; the Strategic Space Value Chain, comprised of space start-ups and established companies. SVI is part of the value chain, also offering services such as management, capital raising, marketing, business development and project management.

(Source: Space Ventures Investors)

On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, Tom Patton talks with Katherine Gizinski, Chief Executive Officer for ManSat, a company specializing in obtaining international recognition for frequency assignments at the International Telecommunication Union.

Based on The Isle of Man, ManSat was established in 1998 with a goal of enabling commercial space activities to the greatest possible extent by leveraging the many benefits of the Isle of Man as a filing jurisdiction.

Gizinski says that to do this, ManSat provides comprehensive support for all aspects of the ITU satellite spectrum filing process in the Isle of Man, London, Geneva, and around the world in support of its customers.

ManSat carries out satellite filings for the Isle of Man under a contract with the Isle of Man Government’s Communications Commission. Isle of Man’s satellite spectrum filings are made to the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) in Geneva via the administration of the United Kingdom (Ofcom).

On this edition of the Ex Terra Podcast, Tom Patton talks with Christopher Stott, a founder of the Institute of Space Commerce and founder, chairman and former CEO of ManSat.

There is not one U.N. Sustainable Development Goal that cannot be met without space. Indeed, many if not all of the issues we face in the world today can be addressed through space. So why aren’t they? That’s also a topic of discussion at the Institute of Space Commerce

The ISC seeks to tackle major issues: from climate change to the e-economy; deep space exploration; space habitats and settlement of the Moon; space resources; space based solar power; space tourism; launch systems and satellite operations; the growing Low Earth Orbit Economy; the use of space in agriculture; medical research, and more. To date, the Institute of Space Commerce has over open source 150 papers on many topics of space commerce and we need more.

No topic is off limits in a debate on the future well-being of the entire human race. Space commerce impacts every industry and every issue in the world today.

The Institute of Space Commerce strives to make business in space more manageable for youth. They are and will always be a forum for communication, businesses, and education, and they welcome enthusiasts, doers and thinkers from all sides of the global economy to take part in our forums and web platforms. And as a North American affiliate of the International Space University, the ISC's work is based upon its foundational ‘3 Is’ of International, Intercultural, and Interdisciplinary.

With a focus on publishing and translating the message between space and youth, the ISC is well aware that space commerce is not for the faint of heart. Nonetheless, they firmly believe that only youth has the strength, creativity and skills to concurrently leverage the spin-ins and spin-offs amongst almost all industries in the world which are now space correlated.

Do you have a story to contribute? Contact the Institute of Space Commerce and pitch your ideas.

Mining in Space: The Ex Terra Podcast

There is a wealth of resources available in space, from precious and rare metals to water, which can produce hydrogen that can be used for fuel. But how practical is mining in space? On this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast, host Tom Patton talks with Simon Drake, founder and CEO of The Space Commodities Exchange, about the practicality and challenges of mining in space.

Asteroids present multiple logistical problems. They are far away and the time required to mine asteroid resources raises questions about the practicality of making use of those resources in the near term. But the Moon offers resources that are more easily extracted and refined. Drake says that resources on the Moon can be used for a variety of purposes, from production of rocket fuel to construction materials that can lead to the construction of habitats for lunar explorers.

Mining in space, particularly on the Moon, offers the opportunity to acquire resources without having to lift them off Earth. The amount of energy needed to take resources needed for long-term habitation in space extracted on the Moon is far less than what would be required to launch them into Earth orbit, or all the way to the Moon. They can also be transported to a commodities exchange where they can be traded and sold.

For future missions to Mars, the commodities extracted by mining in space and transported to such an exchange gives spacecraft the ability to rendezvous with the exchange and take on fuel and other supplies already in orbit, again rather than having them lifted off Earth.

The US-based Space Commodities Exchange Inc (SCX) has already started designing the first products to facilitate the trading of commodities in space. The SCX expects to sell the first units of propellant in Q4 of 2021 usable by a variety of satellites to extend their useful lives.

On this edition of the Ex Terra Podcast, we talk with Simon Drake, president and CEO of The Space Commodities Exchange, which will facilitate trading commodities in space through a regulated exchange for transactions and orbiting facilities for deliveries to take place.

From re-fuelling and extending the life of satellites with earth-based deliveries, to supplying moon bases with the commodities vital for life, and out to forward-ordering the extraction of minerals from asteroids to manufacture-in-space the structures and space craft which will make our species truly interplanetary – these and many more technological advances will be enabled by the Space Commodities Exchange.

Space is filled with the resources that we will need to sustain a growing, spacefaring civilization. Water, minerals, and other valuable commodities found on earth, are also found and in space; far exceeding those available on Earth.

The developing economy of space resources will be driven by the extraction, processing, transportation and utilization of these commodities.

A robust space economy will require a regulated public market for trading commodities in space where buyers and sellers can meet and transact business for space commodities and services using standardized commercial contracts.

Lunar water miners and asteroid prospectors will need to sell their raw materials to space manufacturers and other consumers.

The Space Commodities Exchange (SCX) is a space infrastructure business split into two parts:

Commodities, such as water, oxygen, propellant, and metals, that are in various strategic orbits
The Exchange, which will offer the forward purchase and delivery of commodities such as water, oxygen, hydrogen, in multiple orbits, to service commercial ventures and space agency missions.

As CEO and President of the SCX, Mr. Drake is focused on project planning, developing business models (including the potential of trading commodities in space in the near and long-term based on extracting space resources), and focussing on capital-raising and management.

This is one of four podcasts we have planned with Simon Drake.

Blockchain is one of those high-tech buzzwords that we're hearing more and more often, but what is the Blockchain and how does it impact space commerce?

Our guest on this edition of the Ex Terra Podcast, host Tom Patton talks with Grant Blaisdell, Co-Founder of the Blockchain Analytics and AML company Coinfirm, and Copernic Space, the marketplace for digital Space assets.

Copernic Space uses innovative technology and models to scale up the commercialization and financing of the space economy, so millions will better benefit from these digital space assets. On this podcast, Mr. Blaisdell discusses how Blockchain technology will lead to the "democratization" of space in terms of who can invest in commercial space companies.

Copernic Space provides democratized access to the space economy and open marketplace to manage and commercialize downstream applications and finance space projects globally.

With millions of companies able to benefit from these digital space assets and millions more individuals wanting to financially contribute to space projects, Copernic Space uses innovative technology and models to scale up the commercialization and financing of the space economy.

Since being founded in early 2016 by experienced compliance, technology and finance professionals, Coinfirm has grown to become a globally recognized RegTech firm. Coinfirm has offices in the UK, Poland, US, Canada and Japan which are supporting financial inclusion projects, combatting human trafficking and safeguarding the world’s digital economy.

Grant has been creating ventures at the intersection of new technologies and media between the US and Central Europe since his late teens. He is an early innovator in applying blockchain technology to various industries. As a lifelong musician and hip hop artist known as GB Savant, Grant also applies his technological work to his music with upcoming projects such as Mr. Crypto.

The ExTerra mission is to explore and discuss the business of space, and its effect on the national and global economy as well as life on Earth. The Ex Terra website and the Ex Terra Podcast explore how what happens in space affects your life every day.

Our guest on this edition of The Ex Terra Podcast is Jason Kanigan, the founder of Cold Star Technologies and host of the Cold Star Project and Make Space Boring podcasts.

Cold Star Technologies is an "installer of systems for other companies with a focus on operational excellence and systems processes," according to Jason Kanigan. The company works closely with a variety of businesses in various stages of development including those engaged in the small satellite industry.

Host Tom Patton talks with Kanigan about many of the challenges faced by start-up companies in the smallsat industry, ranging from development of the processes that will lead to successful missions to legal and regulatory roadblocks that may pop up along the way.

Cold Star Technologies offers courses for start-up and developing businesses that give them insight into smallsat mission success and a sales training program for space founders and business development executives.

Kanigan is also the host of The Cold Star Project, a podcast series for tech and manufacturing founders who want help scaling their business fast. Season One of the Cold Star Project was centered on the unexpected challenges of scaling businesses, particularly those concerned with compliance cultures and time-based critical missions.

Season Two is focused on smallsat and other space startups specifically. A major shift is occurring in Space, from a “job shop” production mentality to a mass production automotive style. And Cold Star has much experience with that style, plus the change management skills needed to successfully transition to it.

The podcast is available on Anchor.fm, as well as most of the popular podcast platforms. And there is a YouTube version of the podcast as well.

The goal, Jason Kanigan says, is to "Make Space Boring" to both the public and investors. Listen to the podcast to discover what that means ...

On this edition of the Ex Terra podcast, we talk with Dr. Mir Sadat, one of the co-authors of a recently published report "U.S. Space Policies for the New Space Age: Competing on the Final Economic Frontier”.

Dr. Sadat is a former Policy Director on the U.S. National Security Council in the Executive Office of the President at the White House, and he is a career government official in the Department of Defense.

In the report, Dr. Sadat and his co-author Bruce Cahan, a Lecturer at Stanford University’s Department of Management Science and Engineering and the CEO/Co-Founder of Urban Logic, describe how to transform existing and emerging U.S. space policies, legislation, and strategies into action plans that will ensure U.S. strategic leadership in space for the 2040-2060 timeframe.

Dr. Sadat discusses space policies for the new space age that are bringing space to the forefront of economic activity; what is undermining long-term U.S. planning and commitment to space; how the space dynamic is changing as more commercial interests become engaged in space activities; the role of the Chinese command economy in making them a competitor to the U.S. in space, and; potential shifts in the U.S. direction in space under an incoming Biden administration, among others.

According to Sadat and Cahan, the United States can only become a space power with a diverse, robust, and innovative space industrial base that expands human and commercial activity and is a source of US national power.

As a policymaker, Dr. Sadat holds that U.S. regulations must ensure that U.S. companies lead in commercial space. In specific, technological advances that lower access costs and expand space mission capabilities, content, continuity, and redundancies must be fully supported by or incorporated into U.S. government programs, budgets, requirements, and acquisition processes.

On this edition of the Ex Terra podcast, we talk with Jacek Strzelczyk, CEO of SATIM, a Polish company that provides insights based on day and night satellite radar imagery that is acquired in all types of weather.

More and more, companies and individuals rely on satellite images of Earth. If you’ve ever used Google Earth, you are a consumer of such technology. Demand for such imagery, and a growing number of radar-equipped microsatellites, is driving an increasing demand for ways to use such imagery by governments and industry.

The SATIM mission is to support business decisions by transforming satellite-based radar imagery of Earth into actionable knowledge. And for that the company is building unique software that allow automatization of extraction of information on objects and changes from complex radar images.

The company works with a variety of commercial and governmental entities providing data relevant to such industries as mining and shipping to agriculture and the environment.

SATIM has been commercially delivering SAR-based results using different SAR sensors ... mainly Sentinel-1, but also TSX, Radarsat-2, ALOS. Members of the team earned their PhDs at the AGH University of Science in the field of remote sensing, computer science, geology and geodesy. The team has completed several ESA courses on interferometry and polarimetry.

Their practical experience is based both on execution on several ESA-funded R&D projects, as well as on provision of commercial services. SATIM has already served dozens of different customers, ranging from small business, local authorities, up to large businesses. Many lessons have been learned.

SATIM is affiliated with Techstars Starbust Space Accelerator program. This year, in a group of 9 other companies, they worked closely together within the Techstar network. Mentor and sponsors are institutions and companies such as NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Lockheed martin, Maxar Technologies, SAIC, Israel Aerospace Industries North America and the U.S. Air Force, with support from The Aerospace Corporation.

On this edition of the Ex Terra Podcast, we talk with Matt Kozlov, Managing Director of Techstars, a technology accelerator located in Los Angeles, CA.

China's Space Ambitions: Dr. Namrata Goswami

On this edition of The Ex Terra podcast, Dr. Namrata Goswami discusses the Chinese space program and China's space ambitions, which are extensive.

Dr. Goswami is a strategic analyst and consultant on Great Power Politics, Space Policy, Alternate Futures, and Frameworks of Conflict Negotiation and Resolution.

Dr. Goswami grew up in Northeast India. She completed her Ph.D. in international relations in 2005. In 2006, she launched her professional career in academic research, studying Great Power Politics, International relations, and ethnic conflicts.

She has served as Senior Fellow at the United States Institute of Peace, and as a Fellow at the Institute for Defense Studies and Analyses. She continues her research on Great Power Politics in the realm of Grand Strategy as well as ethnic conflicts.

She recently co-authored a new book with Peter Garretson titled "Scramble for the Skies: The Great Power Competition to Control the Resources of Outer Space". The book examines the economic ambitions of the second space race with a focus on China, the United States, and India. The authors argue that space ambitions are informed by a combination of factors, including available resources, capability, elite preferences, and talent pool.

She is currently working on a book project on "China's Grand Strategy and The Notion of Territoriality and Resources" and a second project on conceptualizing a space power matrix answering a key question: what makes a country a space power?

She was one of the presenters at the recent virtual AFWERX conference.

In part two of a two-part series, Dr. Goswami talks with Ex Terra's Tom Patton about China's space program and ambitions. China plans to launch an indigenous space station in the coming years with an eye towards landing humans on the moon in the next two decades. We discuss those plans, and get an insider's assessment of their chances for success.

The ExTerra mission is to explore and discuss the business of space, and its effect on the national and global economy as well as life on Earth.

Dr. Namrata Goswami Discusses International Space Commerce

On this edition of The Ex Terra podcast, Dr. Namrata Goswami discusses some of the international aspects of space commerce.

Dr. Goswami is a strategic analyst and consultant on Great Power Politics, Space Policy, Alternate Futures, and Frameworks of Conflict Negotiation and Resolution.

Dr. Goswami grew up in Northeast India. She completed her Ph.D. in international relations in 2005. In 2006, she launched her professional career in academic research, studying Great Power Politics, International relations, and ethnic conflicts.

She has served as Senior Fellow at the United States Institute of Peace, and as a Fellow at the Institute for Defense Studies and Analyses. She continues her research on Great Power Politics in the realm of Grand Strategy as well as ethnic conflicts.

She recently co-authored a new book with Peter Garretson titled "Scramble for the Skies: The Great Power Competition to Control the Resources of Outer Space".

She was one of the presenters at the recent virtual AFWERX conference.

In part one of a two-part series, Dr. Goswami talks with Ex Terra's Tom Patton about the relationships between spacefaring nations, how the U.S. should prepare for competition in space commerce, the implications of the establishment of the U.S. Space Force and other topics.

The ExTerra mission is to explore and discuss the business of space, and its effect on the national and global economy as well as life on Earth.

This week on the Ex Terra podcast, we talk with Chris Johnson about some of the legal aspects of space commerce.

Chris Johnson is the Space Law Advisor for the Secure World Foundation, and a Professor of Law (Adjunct) at the Georgetown University Law Center where he co-teaches the Space Law Seminar. He is also a Faculty Member at the International Space University, and a member of the International Institute of Space Law (IISL). Mr. Johnson has written widely on space law and policy issues, and represents the Secure World Foundation at the Legal Subcommittee of the United Nations Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (COPUOS).

Mr. Johnson holds a Bachelor's of Art degree from Michigan State University, a Juris Doctor from New York Law School, and an Advanced Masters in Law (LLM) in Air and Space Law from Leiden University’s International Institute of Air and Space Law. He also has professional certificates from New York University’s School of Continuing and Professional Studies, the Oxford Institute of Legal Practice, the European Centre for Space Law, the Hague Academy of International Law, and the International Institute of Humanitarian Law.

Prior to joining SWF, Mr. Johnson worked as an attorney in New York City and entered the space field in 2010 as an intern at the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs in Vienna, Austria during the 53rd Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space. He has also served as an intern in the Office of International and Interagency Relations (OIIR) at NASA Headquarters in Washington, DC, and as a legal stagiaire in the International Law and EU Legal Affairs division at the European Space Agency’s (ESA) Legal Department at ESA Headquarters in Paris, France.

On the podcast, we cover topics ranging from the Artemis Accords to how space law might be made in the future.

On this edition of the Ex Terra podcast, we talk with Nicolas Gaume, Co-founder and CEO of Space Cargo Unlimited.

Space Cargo Limited, and its sister company Space Biology Unlimited, are engaged in a project studying the impact of radiation and microgravity on wine components.

According to Nicolas Gaume, changes in the climate on Earth are affecting many aspects of agriculture. For instance, certain wine grapes are producing more sugars as they ripen, changing the alcohol content of the end product. For the study, several bottles of French wine and vine canes have been sent to ISS to see how they are affected in the absence of Earth's gravity. The canes will be studied to explore new defense strategies, particularly to endemic diseases such as mildew.

In the future, the research will look at the space environment's effects on yeasts and bacteria, focusing on metabolites including resveratrol, with the aim of changing their antioxidant property to prevent neurodegenerative and cardiovascular diseases such as cancer.

Gaume says the research has wide-ranging implications for agriculture and other biosciences on Earth as our climate changes.

On this installment of the Ex Terra podcast, we talk with independant space analyst Brian Harvey, based in Carmel, Indiana.

Brian is an authority on the integration of existing space technologies into new markets and applications. He is a GW Space Policy Institute graduate with more than 25 years experience in technology transfer.

We talk with Brian about the basics of technology transfer, which makes technology developed by NASA and other government agencies available to universities, private companies and others for further research and integration into products for use in space and on Earth.

Technology transfer works both ways, with universities and private industry licensing hardware, patents and intellectual property back to the government.

In this episode, Mike Turner and Tom Patton look at some of the top stories from the previous week, and discuss future plans for Ex Terra.

On this edition of the Ex Terra podcast, we talk with Bill Kemp, CEO of United Space Structures. USS is planning to build a large self-sustaining facility on the Moon that will house hundreds of people and to start construction by 2026.

CEO Mike Turner and CCO Tom Patton discuss the origins of this new effort to "Chronicle, Cajole and Critique the Conquest of Commercial Space."

On this edition of the Ex Terra podcast, Tom Patton talks with Dr. Tina Highfill of the Bureau of Economic Analysis.

The BEA is working to establish a "Satellite Account" to measure the economic contributions of both commercial and government ventures in space. This new set of statistics will measure the contributions of space-related industries (and possibly activities) to the overall U.S. economy, giving business leaders and policymakers a new tool to analyze the space economy and inform investment decisions.