Space Innovations & Parties in Atlanta

Just before the conference began.

Not many conference attendees understand and appreciate the months of preparation that goes into putting together a successful event. For the second year, a small group of dedicated Atlanta space professionals hosted a space conference, the Symposium on Space Innovations. We had a little more to work with this year after last year's first successful event, but we had ambitious goals: increasing from one day to two days, boosting the number of registrants, securing more sponsors, and booking higher profile speakers. And we did quite well! I'm uncertain what the final count was, but we had close to 200 attendees!

I'm a space loving extrovert. Surrounded by like-minded people doing great things, I feel alive and vibrant. Although most certainly not a morning person, I was happy to be there at Georgia Tech at 7 AM on Tuesday to set up and prepare for the event. My company Astralytical was again a sponsor but I opted not to have a booth, instead dedicating myself to social media, meet & greet, and after-party planning activities.

The top of the morning was a briefing by retired Admiral James Ellis, Chairman of the National Space Council Users' Advisory Group. I've been following the NSpC and UAG activities closely. It was a pleasure to meet Admiral Ellis in person, a great speaker who commanded the attention of the audience. We are all space users and he asked us all for input. The space policy geek that I am, I would love to be part of the NSpC in some capacity in the future.

During the morning parallel sessions, I chose the Space Science & Deep Space Missions track. The Lunar Exploration Advisory Group (LEAG) meeting was going on in Maryland, but we had our own lunar exploration discussions. It was fun to get an update from my graduate school labmate Addie on the latest activities and successes in my former university group. Dropping marbles into sand and floating around in microgravity – for science!

Our lunch speaker was former astronaut and current CEO of Ad Astra Rocket Company, Franklin Chang-Díaz. I had heard interviews with him and had the impression he was a good guy, and I was correct. He gave us an overview of the VASIMR engine and spoke a bit about his experience as a 7-time space flyer. His push is for humanity to become a multi-planet species. He sees the VASIMR engine as the diesel trucking solution of the future.

With astronaut Franklin Chang-Díaz

Following lunch, I was the moderator for the Rise of Commercial Space panel. This was my first time moderating a panel and I was quite excited about it. One of my panelist had fallen ill a couple days before and was unable to attend, but I made sure she was there in spirit. I kicked off the panel with one of my questions, then asked one of her's. The audience took over from there.

It was great fun when the discussion got heated over the debate about the usefulness of NASA's heavy-lift rocket, the Space Launch System (SLS). One of the panelists had quite a strong opinion on the subject, admittedly mirroring my own opinion, though I stayed neutral. I was pleased when an audience member jumped in without raising his hand, passionately expressing the opposing point of view. Our missing panelist would have made the same points, so again I felt she was there in spirit. It was an amicable debate cut too short because of time constraints.

I wrapped up the panel asking a surprise question: what were the panelists most excited about in 2019? Universally, all four of us are excited about human spaceflight, both SpaceX and Boeing's plans to launch astronauts next year through NASA's Commercial Crew Program and the efforts to return humans to the Moon.

Moderating the Rise of Commercial Space panel

I chose the Human Spaceflight track during the afternoon parallel session. I learned about putting humans in hibernation during long space missions and got an update from Northrop Grumman about former Orbital ATK's latest activities.

The talks wrapped up with four-time astronaut and current professor Stephen Robinson who gave an excellent presentation about space shuttle reentry thermodynamics and his role with the space shuttle tile gap filling after the Space Shuttle Columbia accident. I got to chat with him after his talk before he had to catch a flight home. I can't remember how the topic got brought up, but Stephen Robinson has the distinction of being the first person I've spoken with about my second book idea (which intimately involves astronauts). He was also the 50th astronaut I've ever met according to the list I've been keeping since high school.

Astronaut Stephen Robinson

The day was not done. We gathered elsewhere on the Georgia Tech campus to enjoy an evening reception: food and student posters. Mainly I chatted with a couple colleagues about space policy, travel, and science fiction before exhaustion from the day caught up with me.

We reconvened Wednesday morning with an opening talk by the Chief Technologist of the National Reconnaissance Office. He read from a script of prepared remarks with no slides, and I was told not to share anything on social media. Given how technical his talk was, slides would have been useful, but I understand his position. He then proceeded to dodge every question asked of him, including my question about collaborating with international allies. He didn't answer the questions but he was so skilled and smooth at not answering them.

The morning panel was about spaceports. Representatives from Georgia and Florida spaceports chatted together on the same panel, which makes sense given we're neighbors. I knew the Kennedy Space Center and Cecil Spaceport representatives from my days working in Florida, and the Camden representative is a colleague and former client of mine. The two emerging spaceports made good arguments about their benefits, including the ease of decision-making and operations. KSC/Cape Canaveral will always have a draw based on the existing infrastructure, expertise, and rich history.

During the morning parallel sessions, I chose the Space Resources & Materials track. My NASA Academy internship colleague Tracie gave an overview on her work about manufacturing in space on the International Space Station. I learned a bit more about the surface-bounded exosphere on the Moon and what it means for future lunar miners.

We ate lunch in the banquet hall and talked amongst ourselves. I sat with some ladies from Atlanta-based space company SpaceWorks and learned a bit more about their company culture. I also spent some time preparing for the next session.

I moderated the Next-Generation Launch & Propulsion Systems track after lunch. A really fun executive vice president from Rocket Lab gave an overview of their successful small launch company. Although I've never been there, I think Rocket Lab's spaceport in New Zealand is the most beautiful in the world. Unusual for a space conference, we had an 8-year-old boy attend and present a poster. This enthusiastic young student joined the speaker on stage and gave thumbs up throughout.

Moderating the Next-Generation Launch & Propulsion Systems track

A speaker from SpaceWorks gave an update about their company Generation Orbit and their suborbital vehicle X-60A. I am looking forward to seeing it fly in the next year or so.

In the final parallel session of the conference, I sat in on the Student Activities & Programs track. I recently attended an event hosted by two of the presenters so I was quite familiar with their work launching small sensors on weather balloons to teach students about building satellite payloads. I learned about the smallsat lab at nearby University of Georgia that I had no idea was so successful.

And finally, the moment I had been most excited about: the Georgia Space Alliance conference after-party Galactic Get-together. GSA began with the conference after-party last year and we're still in the process of building and growing. In the cold and rainy wind, I walked with two boxes to a nearby bar and restaurant that was closed for renovations. The owner was kind enough to open the venue just for us. As I struggled with the large GSA banner, helpers came in early to assist and we finally got it hanging. The personalized take-home GSA rocket name tags were a hit. Both conference attendees and local space enthusiasts mingled and relaxed with finger food, drinks, and space-themed napkins. I have plans to make the party even bigger next year!

We finally got the Georgia Space Alliance banner hung

Enjoying the GSA Galactic Get-together party

I'm so thankful for the efforts of my fellow conference organizing team members, especially Jud and Caleb. I'm looking forward to the third Symposium on Space Innovations next fall!

Sprouting the Seed of Georgia's Space Community

I’ve been very fortunate to spend almost all of my adult life living in space hubs: the Space Coast of Florida, followed by Huntsville, Alabama, then back to Florida. I’ve immersed myself in the space community by choosing to live where space activity happens. (Also, where it’s warm most of the time.) I naturally feel connected to “my people” - fellow upward-looking forward-thinking space enthusiasts.

When my husband’s career took us to Atlanta a year ago, I naturally began to seek a new space community. I didn’t need to look hard in Florida or Huntsville – space is everywhere. But the Atlanta area, and more broadly in the state of Georgia, is not known for space activity. There is no solid space identity here, not yet. I didn’t find the space community I sought.

I did find space activity and groups, pockets of people here and there, all over the state. Groups that didn’t talk to each other, didn’t coordinate, didn’t even know of each other’s existence in most cases. There was little to no collaboration or communication between the academic space pocket, the military space pocket, the satellite broadcasting pocket, the entrepreneurial newspace pocket, the AIAA chapters, the variety of amateur astronomy and rocket clubs, the tiny space law student club, the small space policy pocket responsible for 2017’s Georgia Space Flight Act, and the proposed Camden Spaceport in southeast Georgia.

It’s hard to pinpoint when Georgia Space Alliance was conceived in my mind. It could have been as early as last December at a holiday party when I learned the local National Space Society chapter was inactive. It could have been in January when I toured one of Atlanta’s space companies and was encouraged by the CEO to take the reigns in leading an organization. It could have been in February when I began attending meetings with state elected officials and realized the need for a unified space organization. And, most importantly, that no one else was motivated enough to start one. Later in February, a colleague and I met with two state economic development employees about promoting space and was told, “You’re just two voices. You need an association behind you.” At that point, Georgia Space Alliance was an inevitability. And I was the one get it off the ground.

The name was carefully chosen. Georgia Space Alliance is state-wide, not just focused on Atlanta. It’s an alliance of the existing groups, companies, organizations, and individuals. It’s not meant to replace or compete with any existing space-related effort. Its goal is to unify, to bring people together, to encourage communication and collaboration, to promote what is already happening and what is to come. Even the word “space” is meaningful. Georgia already has a very strong aerospace industry and aerospace community, aerospace primarily meaning aviation. The focus of Georgia Space Alliance is not aerospace – it’s space –the much smaller but growing branch of aerospace in the state.

Georgia Space Alliance is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit. This, too, was carefully chosen. The organization’s focus isn’t economic development, political lobbying, or providing an income for its leadership. In fact, the organization is entirely volunteer-based at this time. There may be GSA activities that promote economic development and advocate for space within local and national governments, but GSA is so much more.

GSA is first and foremost educational: educating its membership, educating students of all levels, and educating the wider community. It is community development. It is social and professional networking. It is multidisciplinary; it’s an alliance of Georgia’s existing strengths, space-related and otherwise.

In the months from March to now, I’ve worked in the background building an organization and a team. Having to balance this effort with my existing work meant that I worked slowly, working toward an October public kick-off. I’m very grateful for the great leadership team who stepped forward to work toward this common goal! I could not have put this all together in time without their efforts.

We still have much work to do spreading the word, registering members, gaining corporate sponsors and partner organizations, and planning future activities. We have many ideas! How much we’re able to do depends on the number of people who volunteer to assist and the number of sponsors who can chip in funds.

An October kick-off is also meaningful. This evening (Oct. 18) starts the first Symposium on Space Innovations, a new space conference hosted by Georgia Tech and Georgia’s Center of Innovation for Aerospace. The state hosts a Space Working Group which I joined at the start of the year, which quickly morphed into the organizing committee for this conference. We of the organizing committee are all very excited to put together and share it with you all! We wanted to showcase Georgia’s space achievements and bring to the state some excellent space speakers and topics, and we’ve succeeded in both goals.

The Georgia Space Alliance’s kick-off Space Party is the conference after-party on Thursday evening, open to the public. It’s a way for everyone to get together to network, socialize, and relax, the busyness of the conference behind them. There will be space art on display. There will be an optional costume contest with space prizes. I’m looking forward to connecting with existing friends and colleagues and meeting online space friends in person for the first time.

Georgia Space Alliance will take the momentum and energy of the conference and the networking and community-forming of the kick-off party and carry that into the new year. GSA will participate in February’s Georgia Aerospace Day and encourage our members to engage with our elected officials. Yuri’s Night will come to Georgia in April (for the first time?), potentially with a professional development event for students and young professionals. GSA’s Education Committee will plan a charity activity for Georgia STEM education. We may start a lecture series meant for the general public, illuminating connections between space and other fields. We may host an amateur rocket launch activity. We may restart the tradition of hosting an annual SpaceUp unconference. We will organize launch parties for Camden Spaceport’s first public rocket launches. As Georgia’s space community needs evolve, so will GSA.

I’m looking forward to seeing the seed of Georgia’s space community form, a seed that will grow into something much larger. I don’t yet know what that will look like, but I’m excited to find out!

Georgia Space Alliance: georgiaspacealliance.org

Symposium on Space Innovations: spaceinnovations.org