Georgia Aerospace Day: Space Policy Fun Among the Chaos of the Golden Dome

Yesterday was Georgia Aerospace Day, the annual event dedicated to advocating for aerospace activities in Georgia at the state capitol in Atlanta. Given my interest and experience in space policy, I jumped at the chance to be involved.

Prior to the event, I organized our team. At one point we had 16 people committed to representing Georgia Space Alliance – not bad for a first-time involvement of a new group! Thankfully that number dropped down to a more manageable team size. I am hoping to expand the team next year. By then we'll have more experienced people to assist in leading.

I wrote up the talking points for the take-away flyer. We weren't advocating for specific legislation, so we kept it broad. Most of the aerospace activity in Georgia is aviation-related, so I focused on informing readers of the space activities and parties in the state. We exist and we do cool stuff and here's why it matters.

I contacted the offices of around 30 members of the state Senate and House of Representatives on key committees and the elected officials of members of our team – lots of phone calls and emails! By the end I had appointments with 26 legislators, 6 at specific times and the other 20 to be paged from the chambers' floors while the chambers were in session. Little did I know what that meant.

Our first meeting of the morning was in a representative's office. Unfortunately he couldn't make it, though I did chat with his staff while we were waiting. The second meeting had a scheduled time, but unfortunately the meet-up plan was to page him from the House Chamber floor. So that didn't happen as planned.

The Georgia Space Alliance team holding up our take-away flyers

It was such a contrast to be speaking about forward-thinking 21^st century technology relying on 17^th century methods. In order to page a member from the floor, we needed to fill out a slip of paper, wait in a long line for 15 to 45 minutes, hand the slip of paper to a woman who hands it to a teenage page (ages ranging from 12 to 18) who tries to find the legislator at their desk but may or may not know what the legislator looks like, then wait until the page returns or the legislator appears at the ropes. Our group filled out 15 to 20 slips (one per person per turn in line) and had one member successfully paged. It's a ridiculously outdated and inefficient system that wasted our entire morning, time we could have spent visiting legislators' offices and talking to their staff.

Our team standing in line for forever to page legislators from the floor.

We did manage to speak with one additional representative and one senator from the ropes. A member of our group recognized a senator from a previous interaction, and while greeting her, explained why we were there. She was kind to indulge us.

I used modern technology to meet with my state congressman: social media. After unsuccessfully waiting in line for 35 minutes to page my rep and having the page not find him, I tweeted my thanks and tagged him. He responded. A few more back-and-forths on Twitter and he found me on the ropes before I had even gotten through the line for the third time.

I have no idea why pages aren't electronic messages sent to members instantly, or at least sent to an aide to approve and then sent to the members. That would not only be quick and easy, it would be much more productive and reduce wasted time by orders of magnitude. Instead of wasting an hour to page a legislator at a high failure rate, it could be done in a minute! One thing is for sure: I will never page a member of congress from the floor using human pages again. Lesson learned.

Our final meeting with multiple legislators was also canceled as members chose to go directly to lunch instead of meeting with us in their office. All told, we met with one state senator, two state representatives, and a few staff members in various offices. Thank you to those who took the time to speak with our small group on such a busy day! Lesson learned #2: visit congress first thing in the legislative year or after crossover day when they're not so busy.

Heading towards the main Georgia Aerospace Day event.

We regrouped and ate at the nearby cafeteria, then geared up for the second event of the day: the networking event and expo in the capitol rotunda. When we arrived back, several companies and organizations had set up booths and banners to promote their aerospace (mainly aviation) business. There were speeches by the event organizer, the Lt. Governor, and the Governor. Those remaining of our team met with Governor Kemp for a photo after his speech.

Photo op with the Governor

The networking event gave me a chance to have some useful conversations with existing colleagues and meet new ones. I'm particularly excited about a new space education project I learned about. I had fun with 3D printed prototypes at one table and 360 degree augmented virtual reality at another table. Plus these events are great for fun “swag” take-away items. Georgia Space Alliance didn't have a table this year but I'm already thinking of possibilities for next year.

Thank you to our Georgia Space Alliance team!

State Space Advocacy

Next week is Georgia Aerospace Day, “a unique opportunity for the aerospace industry to showcase their technology and highlight this important industry's contributions to Georgia's economy,” describes the event page. This year will be the first time my nonprofit Georgia Space Alliance will participate. The policy wonk in me can’t wait!

I’ve been interested in policy since high school. In 11th grade I participated in a program called Presidential Classroom in Washington, DC. I didn’t know anything back then, but I was excited to learn. My love of space persuaded me to pursue astrophysics in college, but I still held onto that policy interest.

It wasn’t until the summer between my junior and senior year of college that I realized space policy was a field. I was an intern in NASA Academy and heard a lecture by an astrophysicist involved in space policy. I could have listened to him for hours. I was hooked. I had no idea how to get involved, but I felt called to it.

As my astrophysics studies in grad school intensify, I had little time to focus on anything else. I was committed to a science career path and realized I could do space policy on the side. But I didn’t have the opportunity to do so until I switched universities and switched fields to planetary science.

I am forever grateful my PhD advisor was so supportive of my various interests. He and another professor recommended me for the American Astronomical Society’s Division for Planetary Science's Federal Relations Subcommittee. I was so thankful AAS paid my way to Washington, DC for my first congressional visit. It was just me without a group, so I had to figure it out on my own. I created my own leave-behind document and met with my congressman and a few other offices. My visits went so well and I felt so welcomed! I was motivated to do more.

I don’t remember how I heard about Florida Space Day, but I knew I wanted in. It took me a year to gather the courage to ask. I was just a graduate student, not a representative of a space company or anyone important. Florida Space Day required sponsorship to participate. Even so, I asked. And I asked people I knew who were involved to ask on my behalf. To my surprise, they agreed to bring me with them to the state capital Tallahassee!

I was so nervous to be among all these important people, I didn’t know what to expect or what to say. I didn’t realize at the time elected officials enjoy hearing from students who represent both current education and the future workforce. I was even encouraged to sneak into the VIP-only meeting with the lieutenant governor under the philosophy “it’s better to ask forgiveness than permission.” And I was later indirectly scolded for it. But I’m glad I did; I got to meet a strong woman in politics who was passionate about space and who wore purple pumps.

I would go on to participate in Florida Space Day for 4 years serving on both the Implementation Committee and the Steering Committee and leading the Outreach Subcommittee. I became a team leader during the annual congressional visit to the state Capitol in Tallahassee. I had found my space policy community in Florida and thrived in it. I was even asked to serve on Representative Bill Posey’s Space Advisory Council for a year until I moved away.

The space community in Georgia is small but growing. A year ago I formed the nonprofit Georgia Space Alliance to bring all the space players together. Shortly after I moved to Georgia, I met with officials to gauge the status of space activity and space policy in the state. I was advised by four unrelated people to form an organization with members to bring all the voices together in unity to advocate for space in Georgia. So I did.

Georgia Aerospace Day didn’t take place the first year I lived in Georgia. The second year it did, but I had a 19-day-old baby and couldn’t participate. This year, for the first time, Georgia Space Alliance will participate in Georgia Aerospace Day with a team of approximately a dozen people. To my knowledge, this will be the first time a space organization participates in the aviation-dominated Aerospace Day. I look forward to advocating for space with our team!

Traveling to a state or federal capitol is a great way to meet with legislators, but it’s not the only way. I have my elected officials' numbers programmed in my phone and call their offices regularly to discuss legislation and current events. Politicians want to hear about topics most important to their constituents. You can also email or physically write to your elected officials. Use your voice! Tell them why space is so important to you and thank them for their support.

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!

NASA Education: Funding Student Dreams

A week ago, the Trump Administration released a draft of the proposed FY2018 budget. My first instinct was to shrug it off. Congress creates the budget and usually ignores anything in the president's budget it doesn't agree with.

But then I saw a proposed cut within NASA: the entire NASA Education office. And I was up in arms. NASA Education initiatives and funding are what kick-started my career in the space industry. It's the reason I am where I am today. NASA Education, just a measly 0.000225% of the FY2017 budget, has wide-reaching results around the country for countless numbers of students and the general public.

The NASA Space Grant Consortium is under the NASA Education program. In all 50 states plus Puerto Rico, students are given opportunities they wouldn't normally have, especially if they don't live near a NASA center. US taxpayers pay for NASA's $19 billion budget, and NASA gives back to taxpayers in so many ways. NASA Education with its many programs such as Space Grant is a way to reach back to all regions of the country.

For this Philadelphian, NASA Education gave me my first two research opportunities. After my freshman year of college, Delaware Space Grant funded my astronomy research at Villanova University. (I'm not sure why Delaware and not Pennsylvania; I didn't ask.) Pennsylvania Space Grant approved my application for my first internship, NASA Academy at Marshall Space Flight Center, which Florida Space Grant ultimately paid for because I was enrolled in a Florida university. With those two summers of research experience, I was accepted into my top choice graduate school.

NASA Education funds more than just internships. In grad school, I was awarded a NASA Graduate Student Researchers Program (GSRP) fellowship. Being a NASA GSRP fellow meant I could continue my studies in high-energy astrophysics and continue to work with the team at NASA MSFC.

I also have Space Grant to thank for giving me the opportunity to take one step closer to my dream of becoming an astronaut. Florida Space Grant funded my scientist astronaut training at the National Aerospace Training and Research (NASTAR) Center where I received my Suborbital Scientist Astronaut Training wings.

Space Grant also sponsored my unofficial internship at NASA Kennedy Space Center's Swamp Works. I conducted work beneficial to NASA's goals and related to my doctoral research with Florida Space Grant's support.

And then there are NASA programs I participated in that NASA Education may have had a hand in, I'm not sure. As a high school sophomore, I job shadowed scientists and engineers at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center and attended a workshop for high schools about women in science, including NASA satellite engineers. I attended Space Camp in Huntsville, Alabama, which is privately funded but also benefits from NASA Education. Astronaut Sally Ride visited my high school when I was a senior to speak about inspiring children to pursue their dreams. Who knows what else NASA Education has touched in my life.

And this is just my experience! So many of my colleagues have similar success stories thanks to NASA Education. Just ask around.

Students younger than college-age also benefit. I participated in FIRST Robotics in high school, which is partly sponsored by NASA Education. Kindergarteners through postdocs and educators benefit from NASA Education programs. A full list is on the NASA Education website.

Is NASA Education important to you? Contact your elected representatives to tell them why. Ask them to fully fund NASA Education.

Thank you to the Washington Post for covering this important issue and including my perspective regarding the importance of the NASA Education office. “A lot of times the only way women or minorities can actually succeed is through these grants. It's the only way they continue getting funding.” Support NASA Education for the next generation.

Selling Cookies & Cupcakes for NASA Planetary Exploration

April 2012, four years ago, a professor of mine approached me with an opportunity: would I be interested in running the Orlando location of the national Planetary Exploration Car Wash and Bake Sale being organized by Alan Stern (of Pluto/New Horizons fame)? I laughed so hard at the concept, I had to say yes. Sounded like a blast!

In January, the presidential administration issued its FY2013 budget request which projected a significant decrease in NASA’s planetary science funding over the course of five years starting in FY2013. The planetary science community was up in arms to organize and combat these cuts in Congress.

It was understood that the car wash and bake sale was a publicity stunt. In no way could anyone make up the cut NASA funds in local community fundraising. The idea was to use the event as a platform to increase attention to the issue and to gather large groups of people to write letters to Congress in support of planetary science.

I coordinated with other locations running similar car washes and bake sales via regular teleconferences. I had met Alan before, but I had never worked directly with him until this point. I remember being very impressed with his organization and leadership style. Most meetings are run inefficiently, but Alan made the planning of the event easy and fun.

Not so easy on my end was bringing in more people to help me. I recruited a fellow student to assist with public relations. A few professors and other students were on board to help with the set-up and staffing of the event. But I carried the torch and it was heavier than I anticipated. It was even difficult to secure a location! Once I realized that local participation was going to be low, I axed the idea of running a car wash powered by volunteers and shifted to hosting a bake sale at a car wash location.

A day before the event, publicity exploded. News organizations from all over were asking for quotes. I got a call from CNN’s sister network Headline News (HLN) to be interviewed. A bakery in New Jersey wanted to donate and overnight us baked goods. My public relations helper was overwhelmed. We were able to get a few articles published with quotes, but it was such a whirlwind I can’t tell you how many or where.

I managed to get in touch Alan to let him know about the HLN interview. He was able to call in audio-only while I went into the studio in Orlando for the interview. I have a recording of the interview on CD but I haven’t watched it since it happened and couldn’t tell you what they asked. My standard line was, “We’re not asking for more of the pie; we’re asking for less of a bite out of the pie.”

HLN interview - June 8, 2012

The Orlando Planetary Exploration Bake Sale occurred on June 9 in conjunction with other such events around the nation. We arranged the baked goods on the tables and gave them themed names. Thanks to NASA KSC’s public affairs office, we had NASA meatball stickers, exploration posters, and pretty images of the planets all over. We had form letters for people to sign that we would send to Congress. Our humble event looked great!

Admiring our display - June 9, 2012

In the end, we collected just enough money in donations to cover the cost of the purchased baked goods and postage. We sent approximately 275 letters to key members of Congress. A couple news camera came to cover the event. Our little publicity stunt was a success!

Can I offer you a cookie? - June 9, 2012

NASA’s planetary science budget has been in great shape ever since. The United States has the most successful planetary exploration track record in the world. With the success of missions such as New Horizons, hopefully our nation will continue to invest in our planetary exploration missions.

A Look at NASA Human Spaceflight Over the Years - My First Report!

Space social media was buzzing about NASA Administrator Charles Bolden's State of NASA address on February 9, shortly after President Obama released his administration's FY2017 budget request. Curious before the release, I read up on the 2015 State of NASA speech. I was curious as to how NASA's priorities had shifted over the years through the annual speeches. However, the speeches were a fairly recent idea. In years before, NASA administrators were called into congressional hearings to answer questions about the proposed NASA budget.

The more I looked, the more I curious I got about how priories had shifted over the years. I knew that humans to Mars had been a goal since the Apollo days, but I hadn't realized that humans to an asteroid wasn't a new idea either. It was interesting to see how what NASA planned and valued through the speeches and congressional hearings. NASA Administrator Sean O'Keefe had a totally different focus than his successor Michael Griffin. Charlie Bolden's focus hasn't turned out to be all that different from Mike Griffin's. It makes me wonder what the next presidential administration and NASA administration will focus on.

Also catching my interest were the reactions in Congress. Certain members of Congress championed certain programs and criticized others. Some even changed their minds over the years. Although I had been under the assumption that opinions would coincide with party lines, the data showed a much more bipartisan approach to NASA program funding. Not surprisingly, location had more to do with how a member of Congress supported or opposed a program or budget that would benefit or hurt their constituents.

All in all, I looked at nearly 80 documents over the past 15 years, focusing on human spaceflight. The scope of my attention was limited because I had to call the report done at some point. But I believe my choices were comprehensive and offer a lot of detail. I'm proud of my work and excited to release my first report on Astralytical: NASA HumanSpaceflight Evolution 2001 – 2016.

Check out this graphic and explanation in the report!

My Personal Journey into Space Policy Geekery

Politics – a topic everyone loves to argue about. However, space is generally a universally loved subject. We can disagree about how much money is spent on it, who pays, and what actions are taken toward what objectives, but we all love that work is being done in space. This is seen when we achieve big discoveries: gravitational wave detection, Pluto fly-by, humans landing on another world. Here in Florida, space is especially beloved.

Earlier this month, I participated in my fourth Florida Space Day. Yesterday, we held the wrap-up meeting. Our goal is to effectively communicate with state legislators to promote space. After each annual event, we go over our lessons learned to improve the process for the next year. We try to make each year better and more impactful than the previous.

To understand why Space Day is so important to me, I need to go back in time four years. I was a doctoral student, enjoying my studies but wanting very much to get involved in space policy. I was President of the Florida Space Development Council, a National Space Society chapter, and was able to participate in Space Day thanks to FSDC sponsorship. I was thrilled to take part. When up in Tallahassee for the event, I was sitting on a job offer from CASIS, contemplating taking it (I did), but also wondering what a career in space policy would look like. As a student, the legislators loved meeting me. I felt like a sponge, absorbing everything.

The following years, I became a team lead and a subcommittee head, and I left my studies to enter the professional world. It really wasn't until this year that I felt that I could hold my own among the seasoned professionals advocating with me. Spreading the love of space is easy. Giving specific examples and answering the questions of busy and over-scheduled part-time state legislators is complex. This year, my fourth, I feel that I finally have the process down.

Building that confidence and expertise prepared me for my second space policy meeting yesterday: Congressman Bill Posey's Space Advisory Council. Twelve of us gathered with the Congressman to discuss relevant space topics of interest. In no particular order, this included: Orion and the Space Launch System, NASA commercial cargo and crew, education and public outreach, asteroid mining, launching from the United States versus elsewhere, certifications, the FAA's role in spaceflight, federal research grants, the presidential candidate's opinions on space, Air Force range, gravitational waves, the Chinese space agency, RD-180 Russian rockets, and NASA's budget planning.

I'm the only woman on the council and was the youngest by far. It was an honor to serve on the council with such a distinguished crowd. I proudly contributed to the conversation with my informed and sometimes unpopular opinions that I hope challenged some of the perceptions in the room. I've been doing quite a bit of research and self-study lately, and I'm hoping that my fresh look at the issues can be of use to the Congressman and even others on the council. It was a fun afternoon!

It amazes me to see how much I've learned in four years. And this is just the start of my space policy journey. What comes next, I can't wait to see!

Congressman Bill Posey's Space Advisory Council - February 18, 2016

Adventures in Tallahassee with Florida Space Day

For the fourth year, I drove up to Florida's capital, Tallahassee, on Tuesday for Florida Space Day. During this day, our group of space industry representatives meets with as many legislators as we can schedule in order to thank them for their support and to ask for their continued support. For the third year, I was a team lead for a small team of four people schedule to meet with six legislators and drop off information at a handful of other offices. Although I'm not part of a sponsoring entity this year, I drove up on my own dime because I believe in the cause – and it's fun!

The event begins with a light reception at the Challenger Learning Center the evening before so that teams can becoming acquainted with one another. This also means catching up with colleagues and meeting new people. This year, AIAA Executive Director and former astronaut Sandy Magnus joined us; she's astronaut #47 I've had the pleasure to meet. Typically, a large number of us go out to dinner after, usually to Harry's across the street.

Hello pre-reception, happy to be here! - February 2, 2016

My morning started early on Wednesday with a 7:30 breakfast at the Challenger Center to meet up with my team. Cissy Proctor, the new director of the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity spoke to us at 8:00. She quoted from their new marketing campaign: "Some states promise you the moon. Florida delivers it."

Florida's Capitol in Tallahassee. The dolphins are fitting. - February 2, 2016

A view of Tallahassee from the top 23rd floor of the Capitol - February 2, 2016

Our team's first meeting with Space Coast area Senator Thad Altman was scheduled to be at 8:30 but had to be rescheduled. I took the opportunity to admire a beautiful painting in his office of a rocket launch and my undergraduate university's campus. Our team then had lots of time to kill, so we hung out in the Florida Space Day exhibit hall in the 3^rd floor of the Capitol building. It was then that I really got a chance to speak with astronaut Sandy Magnus. We spoke about travel, blogging, and why she loves Florida.

My alma mater Florida Tech in this painting with a space shuttle launch - February 2, 2016

Florida Space Day exhibits line the 3rd floor rotunda of the Capitol - February 3,2016

Meeting astronaut Sandy Magnus - February 3, 2016

I've never had a negative meeting during Florida Space Day. Generally speaking, Florida lawmakers are very supportive of the space industry. Most are very enthusiastic, even going as far as to say they wanted to be astronauts or they wanted to take a special trip from wherever their home is to see a rocket launch. One year I met a House Representative whose uncle was a private astronaut who flew to the International Space Station. You never know how the conversations will go.

Our team meeting with Rep. "Coach P" Rene Plasencia of Orlando - February 3, 2016

This year I had the most challenging meeting yet. This Tea Party-leaning Republican representative did not believe that any government spending should go to the space program at all, including grants and incentives to private industry. It is difficult to convince someone dead against all spending that some spending is not only beneficial, but necessary. The country's space industry wouldn't exist without government investment and infrastructure. Thankfully, he was very supportive of the commercial space industry and innovation.

Our meeting with Senator Altman was rescheduled to the late afternoon, so what was to be our first meeting became our last. The senator is one of our biggest supporters in the Florida senate and it's always a pleasure to speak with him. He took our team to see the Senate Chambers, empty at the moment. I hadn't been down to the floor before. It's such a grand room!

Senator Thad Altman kindly showed us the Senate Chambers - February 3, 2016

Florida Space Days always ends with a party, this time held at the Challenger Center. NASA's Spaceman was still around, so I got a picture. I swapped stories with my colleagues and met a few more people. Then, I was off again for a 4 hour drive back home. And thus concluded another great Space Day!

Hurrah for another successful Florida Space Day! - February 3,2016

Relativity, Engaging Scientists in Policy, and the US Commercial Space Industry

I've fallen behind in writing about the awesome space and science talks that I've attended in the past week! Now seems like a good time to catch up and let you all know about some cool happenings.

Relativity

Drs. Jeffrey Bennett and Dan Batcheldor - September 25, 2015 

On Friday evening, unrelated to but coinciding perfectly with a student career preparation conference that I helped with, I attended Florida Institute of Technology's monthly public science lecture series with Dr. Jeffrey Bennett who last year published the book What Is Relativity? I enjoyed conversing with my former professors prior to the talk and ended up unexpectedly taking a front row seat. I'm glad that I did!

Overall, I found the couch-sitting interview-style talk to be informative, entertaining, and even humorous, not what one would expect for a physics talk! I have the advantage of a doctoral-level education in physics and an interest in relativity since high school, so the concepts discussed were well known to me. I could focus instead on the presentation style and perspectives. I was surprised and even amused by the analogous scenarios presented to explain some of the mind-bending curiosities of relativity.

I did not previously know that 2015 is the International Year of Light. It has been approximately 100 years since Einstein's publications on relativity. One of Jeff Bennett's goals is to address the misconceptions about space and relativity. One misconception, a personal pet peeve of mine that my own employer is guilty of, is being too casual with wording by stating or implying that there is no gravity in space. There is always gravity in space, anywhere in space, though gravitational pulls may cancel to a net gravity of zero.

Other misconceptions stem from the fact that when it comes to relativity, we don't have any common sense. We have never traveled at relativistic speeds. Similar to quantum mechanics, it's hard to wrap our minds around something that we don't have any direct experience with. Yet relativity does affect us every day. For example, navigational satellites such as GPS use relativity in their calculations. We've been testing relativity since the Michelson–Morley experiment in 1887. I and countless other physics students have replicated this experiment in physics labs.

One interesting point was that humans don't like being told what we can and cannot do. Relativity tells us that we can't go faster than the speed of light c. We immediately try to figure a way around this. Science fiction writers usually don't even try to break c; instead they speculate about loopholes such as inter-dimensional travel.

The conversation covered gravitational lensing, black holes, determinism, multiverses, and the “theory of everything.” One funny moment came when the speaker stated, “I don't like determinism and I don't know why,” and the moderator responded, “You have no choice.” Ah, geek humor.

I was the first in line to ask a question clarifying Stephen Hawking's latest black hole theory. I was also the only female to ask a question in a long line of curious males. I did see a few female students approach the speaker after the talk, as if they were interested but didn't want to stand up to be heard. Come on ladies, let's show the world that we have brains and mouths!

Engaging Scientists and Engineers in Policy

On Tuesday I attended an American Association for the Advancement of Science webinar on Engaging Scientists and Engineers in Policy by Dr. Rush Holt, a physicist, the CEO of AAAS, and former New Jersey Congressman. The title of this talk was mislabeled, or otherwise their wasn't much meat in the talk about the topic at hand.

The majority of the presentation was lamenting the lack of science understanding in the general public, which I can totally get behind. The speaker was preaching to the choir, in my opinion. He would often slip economics understanding into the discussion, which seemed out of place, but was obviously on his mind. One of my PhD economist husband's biggest pet peeves is when non-economists act like authorities on economics while ignoring or dismissing actual experts. It is the same in science.

Two of the speaker's biggest concerns were students and news media. Both are not taught well how to ask for evidence but instead take what is presented to them at face value, blindly believing it. I see this all the time in the general public, even among my friends. A celebrity, a trend-setter, or a seeming authority makes a statement or writes an article (or blog post!) about a scientific topic and, without doing any research of their own, people blindly believe it. It's no wonder that scientific understanding in our culture is so poor when even our own journalists don't investigate to make their own conclusions. This is the information age and the world is at our fingertips – use it!

Approximately five minutes of the 45 minute talk was actually dedicated to what scientists/engineers can do in policy. The advice: take on a fellowship to work a temporary position in Capitol Hill. I've been hearing this advice since graduate school and it's so disconnected from reality. Science-trained politicians and staffers are a fantastic asset to our government and policy-makers, but the vast majority of scientists are not able to pause their lives, disrupt their families, and move to Washington, D.C. for a year (the term period for most of these fellowships). This just isn't feasible for 99.99% of scientists, so what is the advice for the rest of us?

The biggest take-away from the talk was that we as scientists can help others learn to question. Science is within everyone's grasp and isn't just for experts. Anyone can ask Why? How? What is the evidence? If someone has a misconception about science, ask them probing questions about what evidence was used to come to that conclusion. Make them think. This advice wasn't really relevant to the talk's topic, but still very good advice.

US Commercial Space Industry

Dr. Roger Handberg - September 30, 2015

Yesterday, coinciding well with a university mentorship program that I participated in on campus later that day, I hung out with some of my former professors and colleagues at the University of Central Florida for the Florida Space Institute's lecture series. The talk was by Dr. Roger Handberg, a political science professor. The topic: US commercial space industry.

Overall, the speaker gave a good historical overview of the public-private partnerships in the US space industry. More recent happenings and analysis is where the speaker got a little stuck with lack of knowledge and mixed up a few things. His assessments were very pessimistic, which is actually a refreshing counter to the rah-rah advocacy so prevalent in the space industry. I don't agree with all of his negative outlooks, especially in the areas where his information is lacking, but my skeptical scientist side did appreciate the alternative perspective.

He began by speaking about the decline in government funding in the space program and how that decline is stressing private industry, generally speaking and not mentioning any particular government cuts. He didn't give figures, but I'm curious to know what they are. If a reader could point me in the right direction, I'd appreciate it.

He went over some recent difficulties in the industry, such as the Virgin Galactic, Orbital Sciences, and SpaceX accidents. He also discussed the current challenges with politics forcing ULA to replace its Russian RD-180 engine. With ULA phasing out Atlas V and most of Delta IV, and with the Blue Origin BE-4 engine replacement still in development, he worried that SpaceX may become a national monopoly for government launches. I think that this is highly unlikely, but time will tell.

He spoke about some of the more successful space applications, such as communication, navigation, and remote sensing satellites. Historically, I did not realize that denial of satellite imagry to adversaries during wartime was an actually strategy that the US military used. He said that it's harder to do now with so much Earth observation competition. He also touched upon some of the challenges in the satellite industry that I'm less familiar with such as the limited number of receivers and spectrum interference.

The bottom line is that the cost to orbit is still the number one problem in the space industry. Spacecraft reusibility may lower cost significantly but is very difficult to achieve. High cost holds back tourism, as well as safety concerns and the lack of reliable transportation. State spaceports have popped up all over due to increased popularity and enthusiasm after the 2004 SpaceShipOne X-Prize win, but lack of progress and high cost hinders the industry. Space manufacturing and space mining isn't economically feasible due to high launch costs. The economics doesn't work unless the industry is government subsidized, he said. It wasn't a positive outlook on the industry, but probably more realistic than many would admit.

Advocating for Planetary Science Plutonium in 2012 and Now - Fuel NASA's Discoveries!

At the start of 2012, I was just beginning to develop my love for space policy. I had joined the American Astronomical Society's Division for Planetary Sciences' Federal Relations Subcommittee two years prior, but I had played a background role. I was thrilled when I was selected by AAS to participate in their Communicating with Washington program. My focus: restarting production of plutonium-238 for planetary science missions and addressing the proposed planetary science budget cuts within NASA.

Using a combination of AAS and DPS literature, I pieced together a flyer to give to those I met with in our nation's capital. I thought it a shame that the DPS FRS was dysfunctional at the time and therefore did not provide me with any assistance or advice regarding the advocacy visit, looking back, it may have been a good thing. I was forced to learn on my own how to schedule and prepare for congressional visits and how to interact with legislators and staffers. This experience helped me tremendously with my future Tallahassee visits with Florida Space Day, which I joined in 2013.

The leave-behind flyer I made for my Washington, D.C. visit

Pu-238, a radioactive isotope of the chemical element plutonium, is not a product for or from weapons. It is made from an entirely separate process for a separate purpose, a peaceful purpose of scientific exploration. It is used as the heat source in radioisotope thermoelectric generators which power space missions such as Voyager 1 and 2, Cassini–Huygens to Saturn, New Horizons to Pluto, and the Mars Science Laboratory/Curiosity. Pu-238 will also fuel Curiosity's twin, Mars 2020.

However, Pu-238 stockpiles are very low, so low that the scarcity risks future planetary missions. After the United States stopped making Pu-238 in 1988, we had to rely on the Russian supply, which was also running out. In 2012, there was widespread agreement that Pu-238 production should restart in the U.S. but there was disagreement about which government agency should pay for it and how the supply would be allocated.

Playing tourist at the White House - March 2012

Cherry blossom season at the tidal basin - March 2012

My first meeting in Washington, D.C. was with a recent physics PhD who worked in the Office of Management and Budget. He helped to craft the proposed FY2013 NASA budget and thought it firm and decided. He was most interested in budget allocation within NASA: which programs should be funded and which should be cut. He was very interested in my graduate research and my future goals as well.

I then met with two members of the House of Representatives Committee on Science, Space, and Technology, Subcommittee on Space & Aeronautics. From the House side, the FY13 budget was very fluid compared to the OMB point of view. Their largest priority from what I could tell was maintaining U.S. leadership in space exploration.

Fun times at the House of Representatives - March 2012

My meetings the following day were Florida-specific. I met with a NASA fellow from Senator Bill Nelson's office on loan from Kennedy Space Center. He was very concerned about the proposed planetary science budget cuts and was curious to learn of their extent. He seemed to want to take immediate action to reverse the negative effects of the budget cuts.

Unfortunately, my very brief meeting with Senator Marco Rubio's office was unproductive and the staffer I met with gave me no indication that he or the senator cared about the issue or about NASA. Whether his stance has changed since launching his presidential campaign, I don't know.

My favorite meeting was with Congressman Bill Posey and his staff. Our meeting was extensive and productive. The congressman is undoubtedly very pro-space. Although my conversation with the congressman was NASA-broad and we didn't delve much into specifics, my post-meeting with a staffer in the hallway was very interesting. It was the first of many interactions I'd have with my congressman and his office.

Meeting Congressman Bill Posey - March 2012

My final meeting was with Congresswoman Sandy Adams' office, whose district at the time included Kennedy Space Center. The staffer who I met with was a recent graduate of my university and was even aware of my specific planetary science lab. The office was very pro-space and assured me that the FY13 budget was being massaged.

Although NASA received a budget cut that year in relation to the president's FY13 request, planetary science did receive a tiny budget bump up from the initial request. Planetary science receive even more of an increase in the following year. Although NASA's budget dropped in 2013, it's been on a slight rise since then, though most expect the numbers to continue to fluctuate.

Pu-238 production was restarted to a small degree in 2013, but not nearly enough. A series of articles have been published in the last few weeks about the need for more for the future of NASA's planetary exploration future. New product is expected to be available in 2019, but not as much as the projected demand. The budgets aren't high enough for faster or increased production.

Future planetary missions that can't rely on solar power may be delayed, descoped, or doomed. Otherwise great science missions may be otherwise stuck in limbo without a fuel source. I can only hope that our current legislators take a long view on the need for the Pu-238 program so that we can continue our very successful planetary science missions well into the future. Bring on more Mars rovers, Pluto probes, and other planetary achievements!

Celebrating past space achievements and working toward future ones at the Smithsonian Air & Space Museum - March 2012

Swiss Space Adventures in Washington, D.C.

Proud to represent Swiss Space Systems at the Swiss Embassy in Washington, D.C. on September 16, 2015.

On Wednesday, I was privileged to be a guest at the Embassy of Switzerland in Washington, D.C. with my boss Robert Feierbach as representatives of Swiss Space Systems (S3 USA). The only other time I had been in an embassy was very briefly during my Presidential Classroom program in high school and, to my embarrassment, I can't even remember which embassy it was. I was looking forward to immersing myself in Swiss culture.

Thank you to the Swiss Embassy for welcoming us!

The morning meeting was interesting. It was a small gathering of Swiss-related aerospace companies and aerospace/aviation-related Swiss government officials such as the Swiss department of defense. Aside from my current company being Swiss headquartered, I have no connection to Switzerland and therefore don’t know much about the country and its defenses. Switzerland is a famously neutral country surrounded by European allies; I don’t typically think of the Swiss military at all. I learned quite a bit!

After the mid-morning break, five companies gave short presentations. Swiss technology company RUAG went first, followed by my boss presenting on our company, followed by an American UAV insurance company that works mainly with Swiss clients. Silly me, I didn’t know that Swedish company SAAB doesn’t make cars anymore; mostly they’re into defense-related products now. Finally, Swiss transportation company Panalpina wrapped up the meeting, focusing on their remote shipping services for emergency disaster relief.

Robert presenting S3 to the Swiss representatives at the embassy.

Meeting breakfast spreads in the United States are pretty standard pastries, coffee, and sometimes fruit. The breakfast spread at the Swiss Embassy (legally Swiss soil) had lots and lots of chocolate! Lunch was just as yummy with amazingly delicious chocolate pastries from a local Swiss bakery. My baby gave me the perfect excuse to go back to the table for second and third helpings.

Present was Swiss astronaut Claude Nicollier who flew in space four times. He also has an astrophysics background as I do. He is also the chairman of the expert team for our company. He is astronaut #44 that I've been honored to meet. He talked to me for a few minutes about suborbital spaceflight dynamics and the challenges of human spaceflight.

Robert and me with Swiss/ESA astronaut Claude Nicollier.

We returned later in the day for the evening activities. I had never been to an embassy party before. I had no idea that it would be so extravagant and huge! The embassy was full of Swiss-related space displays, including our own lined up outside along the red carpet leading to the party.

Next to our display out front was a model of the Mars InSight rover which will launch next year. There was a large printout of the Lagoon Nebula as observed by a telescope in Chile for a European Space Agency project. There were mock-ups of Switzerland’s first cubesat, a larger small satellite, and the Rosetta observatory. They had a rotating exoplanet detection model which showed a large planet transversing a star. There was a photo booth with a green screen to display spacy backgrounds.

A huge printout of the Lagoon Nebula greeted us and beckoned the astronomy geek in me to pose.

Posing with the alphorn players and flag waver.

Check out the Mars InSight lander model! Insight will launch in 2016 to study seismology on Mars.

Hello Rosetta! A model of the comet explorer.

Robert and me posing with the photo booth astronaut.

Dinner was well worth the wait. I don’t know what I ate but it was all delicious and I later went back for seconds. Swiss chocolate was aplenty, especially near the Swiss travel and tourism displays. Amongst the crowd of 1,200 people, I ran into astronaut Michael Lopez-Alegria who I knew from previous interactions. You never know who you'll meet at a Washington gathering!

Six months of pregnancy has taken its toll on my feet and I discovered the hard way that my pumps no longer fit me as they did. As we exited for the evening, I walked the red carpet barefoot. I'm classy like that. Thank you to the Swiss Embassy and Ambassador for being such gracious hosts and showing us a time to remember!