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LiftPort Blog

6 Videos

31/8/2020

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This week we posted 6 videos. 3 Related to the New Era Policy and 3 for the Book Clubs. And by the way, for the people asking what software we use for our content, I have used both Kdenlive and Adobe Premiere Pro to edit all the videos. The first runs on Linux and the second runs on Windows, and it would be nice if you have a high-end processor and even better if you add a nice graphics card to that setup. All these in order to optimize the overall usability and rendering times. They are not very difficult to work on, but you probably might want to watch a Tutorial before jumping into any of them.

Very very few people are watching our videos. It is pretty much safe to say we will NOT be able to monetize from YouTube in the short term. But that’s ok. Some good results happened because of all those videos, so it may not be a wasted effort at the end. New connections, more visibility, and a clearer plan for LiftPort future. And personally, I have learned a new skill that may useful, as I said before.

Michael has been very busy dealing with both personal and business stuff to the point that some documents and tasks he is supposed to do are long overdue, but to be fair he has worked a lot with no rest and still wasn’t able to complete the 100% of the workload. I don’t blame him because there are things that are out of control that can affect us deeply. Just like the pandemic we are trying to survive. But he is trying hard to overcome the difficulties and somehow remains optimistic. It looks to me that no matter what, he thinks there is no other option but to lead LiftPort to success. I really wish I can find a project that motivates me to that extent, just like him.

We have very important events and business proposals coming the next weeks. We will be very busy but I’m glad we’re actively working to improve our situation sooner rather than later.

​Fabio
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A New Era: A New Vision - #4.4

18/8/2020

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Three weeks ago, (23 July 2020), the National Space Council – at the White House – issued a fascinating document.  “A New Era for Space Exploration and Development.”
 
https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/A-New-Era-for-Space-Exploration-and-Development-07-23-2020.pdf
 
In this final video regarding the Vision of the New Era document, we chat about:
  • Antarctica-like research center on the Moon… 4000 people stationed on the Moon will change civilization!
  • My commentary on VP Pence’s announcement that the US would put a woman on the Moon by 2024. 
  • “Cargo” versus “Payloads”; semantics matter.
  • This document as political cover for the bureaucrats who work on the results of this national policy. 
  • 21 Missions to the Moon, soon!
 
For background context, here’s what’s going to the Moon, soon!
  • A Busy Moon! - ESA Chart Explained
  • https://youtu.be/MtZwZDSfvVg
 
And here’s President Trump’s Executive Order:
  • “Encouraging International Support for the Recovery and Use of Space Resources”
    • https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/executive-order-encouraging-international-support-recovery-use-space-resources/
  • Fact Sheet
    • https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Fact-Sheet-on-EO-Encouraging-International-Support-for-the-Recovery-and-Use-of-Space-Resources.pdf
 
 
If you haven’t watched them, already, the six prior Space Policy videos in this series are:
  • A New Era: The New White House Space Policy - #1                   https://youtu.be/fjROHnaTtgc
  • A New Era: Introduction - National Space Council Policy - #2            https://youtu.be/YiPqL9qluEA 
  • A New Era: Background & Easter Eggs - #3                                 https://youtu.be/bMX7WXu_ABQ
  • A New Era: A New Vision - #4.1                                                  https://youtu.be/hD6EibGlvVY
  • A New Era: A New Vision - #4.2                                                  https://youtu.be/_CY7AJ7vbng
  • A New Era: A New Vision - #4.3                                                  https://youtu.be/-hDiWTe_7kA
 
​
Michael Laine
President, LiftPort Group
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A New Era: A New Vision - #4.3

17/8/2020

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Three weeks ago, (23 July 2020), the National Space Council – at the White House – issued a fascinating document.  “A New Era for Space Exploration and Development.”
 
https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/A-New-Era-for-Space-Exploration-and-Development-07-23-2020.pdf
 
In this video discussion on the new White House policy, we talk about:
  • Space as a “normal part of the human experience.”
  • “Sustainable” is a word they use a lot.  Here’s our link (time and video) to what they mean by this:
    • (3:00) A New Era: Background & Easter Eggs - #3
    • https://youtu.be/bMX7WXu_ABQ
  • The Vision of a “permanent human presence” in space!
  • 75 mentions of “commercial” in the document.  I wanted a visual way to ‘look’ at this document, and scan for big ideas.  I created a word-cloud of all ~8600 words.  Some cool stuff popped out!  But then, I realized other things.  I’ll review those other things in next week’s video.  But it was because of that minor epiphany, that I revised my number upward from 64 to 75 uses of ‘commercial.’  Details on that revelation, and what I think it means next week. 
  • The old argument that this new program (Artemis) is “Apollo on steroids.”  I think it is vastly different, both in scope, potential outcomes and ambition, and origination motivations.  I’m a big fan of Artemis!
  • For background context, here’s what’s going to the Moon, soon! 
    • A Busy Moon! - ESA Chart Explained
    • https://youtu.be/MtZwZDSfvVg
 
 
If you haven’t watched them, already, the five prior videos in this series are:
  • A New Era: The New White House Space Policy - #1                   https://youtu.be/fjROHnaTtgc
  • A New Era: Introduction - National Space Council Policy - #2            https://youtu.be/YiPqL9qluEA 
  • A New Era: Background & Easter Eggs - #3                                 https://youtu.be/bMX7WXu_ABQ
  • A New Era: A New Vision - #4.1                                                  https://youtu.be/hD6EibGlvVY
  • A New Era: A New Vision - #4.2                                                  https://youtu.be/_CY7AJ7vbng
​
Michael Laine
President, LiftPort Group
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A New Era: A New Vision - #4.2

14/8/2020

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Three weeks ago, (23 July 2020), the National Space Council – at the White House – issued a fascinating document.  “A New Era for Space Exploration and Development.”
 
https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/A-New-Era-for-Space-Exploration-and-Development-07-23-2020.pdf
 
As we get deeper into the details and the VISION of this policy document from the National Space Council – we’re on page 6 of a 23-page document – we explore the following topics:
  • Geopolitics as a forming role in Human Space activities
  • Public-Private Partnerships
  • Commercial Systems that have spinoffs
  • Nukes in space! (One of my favorite ideas!)
  • Space Literacy
  • Values ...
  • “…not cede leadership.”
 
And here’s one of the books I referenced about geopolitics and human space flight:
“Kennedy and the Race for the Moon” – by Dr. John Logsdon
https://www.amazon.com/Kennedy-Palgrave-Studies-History-Technology/dp/1137346493
 
 
The four, preamble, videos in this series are:
A New Era: The New White House Space Policy - #1                   https://youtu.be/fjROHnaTtgc
A New Era: Introduction - National Space Council Policy - #2            https://youtu.be/YiPqL9qluEA 
A New Era: Background & Easter Eggs - #3                                 https://youtu.be/bMX7WXu_ABQ
A New Era: A New Vision - #4.1                                                  https://youtu.be/hD6EibGlvVY
​
Michael Laine
President, LiftPort Group
0 Comments

A New Era: A New Vision - #4.1

13/8/2020

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Three weeks ago, (23 July 2020), the National Space Council – at the White House – issued a fascinating document.  “A New Era for Space Exploration and Development.”
 
https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/A-New-Era-for-Space-Exploration-and-Development-07-23-2020.pdf
 
It will influence the commercial, civil, academic, and defense space sectors – for years to come.
 
At LiftPort, we are creating a series of videos focused on ‘space policy.’  We are working through this document – page-at-a-time, a paragraph-at-a-time, and sometimes – word-at-a-time.  This detailed analysis matters.  The language of this document allows other government officials to adapt programs – for and against – big space concepts.  So, the wording matters. 
 
Honestly, some folks find this stuff exhausting.  It’s not the ‘cool & sexy’ parts of space development.  This is the ‘sausage-making’ part of doing the cool stuff.  There’s a saying in the space-biz that goes: “You gotta have ‘bucks’ to get to ‘buck rogers.’”  Well, to get those ‘bucks,’ you’ve got to have an overarching policy document that rationalizes WHY Congress should authorize the bucks…  THIS is that kind of policy document. 
 
Money will flow from this policy, money from Defense, and Civil space, money from Research and Development.  And money from private investors in Silicon Valley.  And, importantly, capital from other regions of the world who are looking for the US to provide leadership and ‘political cover’ for their own efforts and initiatives.
 
And that’s why we’re spending so much time and effort examining the nuance of this policy doc.  Because it matters to our long-term program of building the Elevator on the Moon.  It matters to everyone else, hoping to move humans to another world.
 
This deep dive into national policy is a regular feature of our Channel and has a dedicated playlist.  This stuff matters: all the decisions we make, internally, must be anchored in the reality of Washington DC’s priority matrix.
 
The three, preamble, videos in this series are:
A New Era: The New White House Space Policy - #1                   https://youtu.be/fjROHnaTtgc
A New Era: Introduction - National Space Council Policy - #2            https://youtu.be/YiPqL9qluEA 
A New Era: Background & Easter Eggs - #3                                 https://youtu.be/bMX7WXu_ABQ


Michael Laine
President, LiftPort Group​
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​A little bit sick

7/8/2020

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Last weekend I got a little sick. I had some weird symptoms I never had before. It started with what I thought was a severe allergic reaction when I was having a beer after eating some fish that my roommate cooked. He mentioned that my face was a bit flushed, following that I felt rashes and swelling to the point where I started having trouble breathing. Especially since I already knew that in China there is a big problem with counterfeit things; including food and beverages (Just like the imported Chinese beer I had). But since my roommate was just fine after drinking the other bottle, maybe I had food poisoning caused by the fish? I don’t know but, I had food poisoning before (I’m from Peru), and unlike those times, I didn’t feel any nausea or stomach ache.

I drank lots of water after that and was getting ready to go to a hospital just in case. But after 30 min I started feeling a little better. And since I didn’t want to go to a COVID-19 hotspot, I just stayed in my house and rested. The next 2 days I had some headaches but nothing worse than that.
By the time I wrote this blog, I felt totally healthy.

This week I worked on the Website. There were many things that need to be fixed. I can say that despite the simple interface and easy CMS, Weebly has a lot of limitations. I wonder if migrating to a similar system is really beneficial or not. Anyway, I took a lot of time updating the Blogs’ part, I hope it’s useful for something in the end. Even after that, there are many things we need to work on.
​
The temperature in Tacoma was a little lower this week, and it even rained once. On the hot days, air-conditioning is a nice thing to have. In my house, my landlord sets it for a long time, and it actually makes me feel cold. So, you would see me wearing a sweater if you come to my house this summer.

​Fabio
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A Busy Moon! ESA Chart Explained

5/8/2020

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About a week ago, I was talking to a friend from LiftPort’s Technical Advisory Council about the commercialization of the Moon.  We chatted about how the Moon was about to become ‘busy’ with a lot of activity.  But it was during that conversation that I realized that I really didn’t have a number; it wasn’t quantified… How busy?  What does ‘busy’ mean?  Who is going…?
 
You’d think that with all the time and attention I give this sector of commercial Lunar space development, I’d know that answer off the top of my head.  I don’t.  I can name several (but not all) of the CLPS mission providers, https://www.nasa.gov/content/commercial-lunar-payload-services
 and I can name each of the big Artemis contractors. https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nasa-names-companies-to-develop-human-landers-for-artemis-moon-missions
 
I realized – as close as I am to this field – that I still didn’t have a complete picture of what’s happening, by whom, or when.
 
So, I went looking for it. 
 
Fortunately, the European Space Agency has done some of this work.  It’s a little dated; about a year old.  But it’s the most accurate data set that I could find.  There may be some updates, but I’m taking the chart at face value.  The link to the article and the infographic is here: https://www.esa.int/Applications/Telecommunications_Integrated_Applications/Who_s_ready_to_serve_the_lunar_missions  The graphic expands to a more readable version. 
 
I’ve got (a LiftPort-modified version of) this image as the background to my laptop. 
Picture
I want to point out some important distinctions between the original ESA image, and the updated and edited version that LiftPort created.  All we did, was to expand the information provided by ESA on “CPLS Mission 2021” above and added the completed information that was left off the image.  It suddenly shows a Moon dominated by American activity… in a way that – even as close as I am to this stuff – I was not aware of. 
 
There are 21 US-led missions. The US has sixteen(!) commercial-focused efforts and five NASA-led programs.  Of the whole rest of the world, there are “only” five other commercial missions.  (That there are ANY commercial missions still seems a bit of a dream come true!)   Institutionally, there are 18 missions disbursed between 11 national space agencies.  I find that to be a little staggering!
 
And the last aspect that really excites me about the future of Lunar development is those sub-contractor organizations that will ‘hitch a ride’ with all those Lunar missions.  I know that Masten, Intuitive Machines, and Astrobotic are actively pursuing commercial contracts for each of their mission.  Of these 21 American missions, each has some sort of capacity for additional commercial, academic, Defense, or civilian cargo.  If you just assume 5 organizations – I think it’s MUCH higher than that – per trip, that means over 100 organizations will have assets on the Moon! 
 
So, what’s going there?  I don’t have data.  But I can make a good guess of science packages, sensors for testing Lunar regolith, communications, cameras, and other infrastructure.  That initial infrastructure will be the ‘Lego’ bricks to build the future with!
 
For background context, here’s 2 more of our LiftPort videos about “The Future” of commercial space development between 2020-2035: https://youtu.be/0W42h_JUtlU  and https://youtu.be/u9qiQfwX4dU   
 
#SpaceElevator #ExploreFarther #BusyMoon

Michael Laine
​President, LiftPort Group
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  • Home
  • About
    • Press
  • EVENTS
    • Dec 7-9 - Blue Marble Week
    • Oct 15-16 – Space Education and Strategic Applications Conference
    • Sept 19 – Adam Crigler IRL Video Show: Space Elevators, Energy, & Space Force
    • Sept 23 – Adam Crigler IRL Video Show: Space Commercialization, China, & Space Force
    • Sep 26 - Better Futures: The Future of Space
    • Sept 26 – Adam Crigler IRL Video Show: “The Future of Space” Afterparty
  • Projects
    • The Earth Elevator
    • Lunar Elevator
    • LiftPort Museum >
      • Art and Images
    • Tethered Towers
  • Store
  • YouTube
    • LiftPort Videos >
      • A Busy Moon! - ESA Chart Explained
    • Space Policy >
      • Better Futures Event
      • To the Moon to stay
      • Extending Humans to Mars
      • Commercialization of LEO
      • Ambitious Strategy - Part 3
      • Ambitious Strategy - Part 2
      • Ambitious Strategy - Part 1
      • A New Vision - Part 4
      • A New Vision - Part 3
      • A New Vision - Part 2
      • A New Vision - Part 1
      • Background & Easter Eggs - Part 3
      • Introduction - National Space Council Policy
      • A New Era: The New White House Space Policy
  • Technical Advisory Council
  • Blog
  • Get Involved
    • FAQ
    • Contact
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    • Book Club