sign in sign up
<<
Home , Jeffrey Manber, NanoRacks, Soyuz

Interview: Jeffrey NewSpace: Turning Smallsats on Current State of the Manber p.10 the Corner? p.30 the Rise p.60 Satellite Industry p.44

December 2012 SpaceQuarterly.com

EarthEarth Observation:Observation: PresentPresent andand FutureFuture

ISSN 2162-9404 Digital edition $5.95 9772162 940005 December 2012 SPACE QUARTERLY 10

Leaders

NanoRacks Providing a Commercial Pathway for Research in Low Earth Orbit

Eva-Jane Lark interviews of NanoRacks

Leading up to the de-commissioning levels of Space Station (ISS) were not really of the space shuttles, there was gaining traction. Nor at the time did I much talk about the International believe that the station would be de-orbited. Space Station (ISS) being de-orbited When we formed NanoRacks, we really took as early as 2017. That talk has a gamble, because as you said, it was U.S. receded. I wonder if NanoRacks’ role budgetary policy to de-commission Station in increasing the utilization of the in the near term. We went ahead anyway. ISS through your operations in the We put in our own money and went forward National Lab is one of the reasons? with our proposal. Now it has been changed When I le! Mircorp, the industry began to 2020 and beyond. I happen to think that to change and it seemed very exciting with it will be quite some time before we see the the COTS program involving SpaceX and Space Station coming down. Just as I fought Orbital Sciences. It also seemed to me that to keep the in orbit, I will #ght as hard there has been a sea change in how NASA as I can to keep the ISS in orbit. You don’t viewed its place in the international space throw away perfectly good space hardware community. When I began to focus on the or our home in space. Having said that, community again, I heard over and over I don’t think we played a role at all in the that the utilization of the station was not at decision to keep the station going. However the levels that they wanted. "is was really we do expect to play a very positive role as disturbing to me because I had fought very Congress looks at the decision in a couple hard to keep the Mir, the Russian space of years whether to extend Station beyond station, in orbit. It was very upsetting to 2020. "ere I think that through the e$orts me personally to learn that the utilization of NanoRacks and the whole ecosystem that December 2012 SPACE QUARTERLY 11

Jeffrey Manber (right) with NanoRacks CTO Mike Johnson. NANORACKS

is developing on utilization of the platform #nally putting to rest the question “if done became the #rst company to arrange for the that, yes, we will have a voice and a role in correctly, is there a market for Station deployment of a from Station. that. or Low Earth Orbit utilization?” We had You can see that the role of the space station never really proved this yet. We had never and our own strategic needs as a nation Can you tell us a little about proven that you could get a community in the international community just keeps NanoRacks; how and why it was going outside of the NASA contractors to growing. It’s a very exciting time. We are formed and what were the initial goals utilize micro-gravity. So we felt that if NASA very pleased that we have what we consider you wanted to accomplish? permitted us, if we could create low cost, the world’s #rst commercial laboratory in We approached NASA in 2009 with a unique open source, standardized hardware; that space and it is mostly self-funded. It soon proposition and that is: if we were to design we could answer that question. We went will be four platforms. "ree are inside the and develop our own research hardware for operational in August of 2010 and since Station and one external, two microscopes, on the Station, using our own funding—we that time, in two and a half years; we’ve a centrifuge with our partners at Astrium, asked NASA for no funding - and in return %own over seventy-#ve payloads which a plate reader which is a sophisticated for that bargain, that agreement, could we call “NanoLabs”. Everything from the research device and there will be some other we go ahead and market that hardware #rst high school to pay its own way, Valley hardware sent o$ in the coming year. So we commercially? And NASA agreed. It’s Christian in San Jose that is doing a whole have the commercial pathway, commercial an easy date to remember—on 09/09/09, series of interesting experiments, to Fisher laboratory in space, multiple ways to get to September 9, 2009, we signed the Space Act Institute of Israel that did stem cell and that laboratory—we can %y four to six times Agreement with Mr. Gerstenmaier. By April cancer research. We can now say, three years a year on a variety of launch vehicles. All in of 2010, we had our #rst research platform a!er forming the company, “Yes. "ere is all, we think we are in a very good place and ready to go. Everything at NanoRacks a market for low earth orbit utilization, we enjoy where we are at the moment. is about standardization, open source, there is a wonderful service provided by miniaturization, ease of use, low-cost and the Space Station.” Two months ago we December 2012 SPACE QUARTERLY 12

Several tiny satellites are featured in this image photographed by an Satellite Orbital Deployer attached to the Japanese module’s robotic Expedition 33 crew member on the International Space Station. The arm on Oct. 4, 2012. Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency astronaut satellites were released outside the Kibo laboratory using a Small Aki Hoshide, flight engineer, set up the satellite deployment gear inside

What can you tell us about the make- up of your customers? You mentioned high school and universities… What is the make-up in terms of type of organization, industry and geographical location? And do you have any Canadian customers yet? Yes, we do have our !rst Canadian customer—it is a school in Manitoba. We’ve been surprised that the !rst group that really jumped at the NanoRacks opportunity was education. "e last, and I think that is indicative of how long it takes them to move to take action, is government research programs. We are extremely proud that the !rst NASA NRA (NASA Research Announcement) has come out that includes the NanoRacks facility. "ere will be a dedicated announcement in a couple of months just for NanoRacks facilities for use by government researchers. We’re thrilled by that. We are also grati!ed that we have #own through our educational partners over thirty-nine school districts in the States. We’ve #own about twelve individual schools. We have #own three Israeli schools. We have a multi-year agreement with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. We’ve #own a Vietnamese university and also one from Romania. We are delighted that in this di$cult time in America, where we have to rely on for transporting our astronauts to and from the station, that we can show leadership in another critical area such as utilization of that station. We are very grateful to NASA because we have NASA as a landlord, we have NASA as a service provider in transportation (they arrange for our #ights to and from the station) and also as a customer! But they are not a competitor. "ey don’t seek, as in the old days, to design hardware just like us. "ey understand that they may not be the best at marketing to the overall marketplace. So Congress and NASA have created the non-governmental organization (NGO) CASIS—the Center for the Advancement of Science in Space, and we work very closely with CASIS to increase utilization and we think that having a NGO/not for pro!t pathway and having a commercial pathway like NanoRacks is really a good model for moving forward beyond low earth orbit. December 2012 SPACE QUARTERLY 13 the lab and placed it in the Kibo airlock. The Japanese robotic arm then deployment. A portion of the station’s solar array panels and a blue grappled the deployment system and its satellites from the airlock for and white part of Earth provide the backdrop for the scene. NASA December 2012 SPACE QUARTERLY 14

Are you aware of the content of all of also had the iPhone as a research test bed and either make individual donations of a the experiments? And of the goals the to see if o"-the-shelf smartphones could little money or use their American Express experimenters have for them and of really be used as research tools. $ey have points to lower the cost to get to space. So the results that they achieve? accelerometers and gyroscopes inside of we are reaching out to educational partners Our agreement with NASA basically says them. It really !t in with everything we’re throughout North America to lower the cost that we can market to whomever we wish about at NanoRacks which is: don’t reinvent and make it as easy as possible for students as long as it upholds the honor and the the wheel. $e consumer marketplace is to #y. We believe that in North America that integrity of the U.S. National Lab and we growing very quickly and we don’t think by 2020, every school district will have had take that very seriously. We’re very proud we need always to have space speci!c a chance to participate in a Space Station to be representing the U.S. National Lab hardware on the Space Station. $at was fun project, hopefully via NanoRacks. and the !rst U.S. National Lab in space. to do and I think there’s a future for using So that means we don’t do co"ee mugs or smartphones and tablets in very interesting Have you had many repeat customers that type of thing. Everything - where they have had we do #y has to pass the NASA interesting results from safety. We’re very intimately one experiment and involved in the development Everything at NanoRacks is wanted to fly more to tweak of the payloads, making sure the experiment and run that they are NASA and Space about standardization, open multiple variations? Station compliant. Yes, we know We had a meeting at Johnson what their objectives are—to a source, miniaturization, Space Center about two years degree. We sign con!dentiality ago and a woman from NASA clauses and the IP of our ease of use, low-cost stood up and said “You know, I customers is protected. We work have a hard time understanding with our customers to release and finally putting to your business model. I can’t information accordingly, as really track you. I don’t really appropriate. $at’s sometimes rest the question “if get it. What I’m going to frustrating for NASA. $ey are look for is: if you have repeat very eager of course, to get out done correctly, is there a business. If you have repeat good results. We’ve had two business, I’ll know you’re doing examples already where our market for Station or Low something right.” So every customers don’t wish those time we have repeat business, results to go out. And that Earth Orbit utilization?” we send her an email. Valley what’s called “commercial”. Our Christian has #own with us customers in some cases are three times now and their investing a lot of money. $ey own program has grown from want a competitive advantage themselves to twelve schools. etc. We have an agreement with NCESSE has been on every NASA where we do have to publish some research ways in the U.S. National Lab. mission we’ve done. We keep #ying twice results, we do have to share but it is at a Also the schools have got some very a year and growing, and growing. Fisher level that is appropriate and does not impact interesting results #ying electroplating in Institute has #own with us twice. So yes, on the con!dentiality of our commercial space. $e Valley Christian program has we have repeat business and I am sure I am customers. grown from one high school to, I think, missing other examples. It is a wonderful twelve schools now. And they are really time. With the comparative low cost, there Are there any particularly innovative doing very innovative work. NanoRacks is ample opportunity to get to the station. and exciting ones that you can tell us is not an education company—we’re a You don’t have to spend years now trying about? space company, we really like to say that to develop the perfect space project. You We had a customer that has #own we are really a concierge to help people get can send something up, see if it works, test what seems to be one of the largest to space. We have educational partners, something, push the envelope, and if it pharmaceutical crystals in space and that we have the National Center for Earth doesn’t work or you get unexpected results, was one of our !rst customers to go to and Space Science Education (NCESSE) tinker with it and play with it, and next the Space Station. Our !rst two missions which has now #own over 30 school year send it up again. During the shuttle were on the last two shuttles. We had to districts in the States. NASA has said it program, you’d be lucky to send something convince him to #y to Station rather than to is the !rst time there has been a national once every two years, once every !ve years, just do his work on the shuttle. So he went space science, technology, engineering and once every seven years. And now we have up on 134, the second to last shuttle, and mathematics (STEM) program with no schools #ying once a year and paying for it his project stayed on the station and came NASA funding! We also have a program themselves. back on 135. He got fantastic results and with the Conrad Foundation where you we are all very excited about that but he is can use your American Express points. not prepared to go public with it yet. We’ve Parents and school districts can get together December 2012 SPACE QUARTERLY 15

This is a medium close-up view of a gravitational research centrifuge which ST and NanoRacks are working in cooperation with NASA to deliver the Astrium Space Transportation handed over to NanoRacks LLC, during a commercial centrifuge facility to the International Space Station. ceremony on Feb. 14 at Astrium North America’s facility. Astrium NASA / COURTESY ASTRIUM NORTH AMERICA

Do you have the ability to scale up will come that we have a customer who has back down to see results before you commit the experiments? As I understand #own with us ten or $%een times and is to an operational program. Prices start it they are fairly small at this stage. ready to go far bigger and we can deal with about two million dollars for a 4U, so we Assuming for instance someone that when that moment happens. are getting into an entirely di"erent aspect had excellent results with crystal of space utilization. !at is going to be formation and wanted to start Are all launches full occupied? Do you deployed in 2014. manufacturing, could you scale to do have a backlog? that? We have in queue eighty-two payloads; Do you have any competitors, Jeff? Yes we can. But we think that is years away. inside, outside and satellite deployment. Yes. We have people who do payload We think that what is possible today in We’ve just signed three more satellites integration on the Station, we have people miniaturization means that you can do for deployment from the Station in 2013. who build hardware who are competing very, very good science in a 4U, a four unit So—yes, we have a multi-year customer against NanoRacks, but on the concept of a NanoLab or even in an express locker. You pipeline. It’s growing in sophistication. commercial company that is not looking to can do very serious science today in a small NASA gave us permission $ve months ago NASA for funding of hardware and is freely format. !e U.S. Department of Defense to develop a platform outside the station. marketing its own hardware on the Station, is looking at 3U satellites, 4U satellites. A !is is our external platform program we are the $rst. smaller size also has advantages as it can and we are working on it with Astrium of get manifest on to the cargo vehicles. !at North America. !ey are manufacturing is one of the strengths of NanoRacks. We the platform and the principal customers understand the limitations on getting stu" are very sophisticated users of sensors and sent to and from the Station. So for the advanced electronics and next generation foreseeable future we are focused on the satellite systems. You can actually test in smaller payloads and maybe a happy day the harsh environment of space and bring it December 2012 SPACE QUARTERLY 16

NanoRacks Research Plate Reader ready for launch. Now on the space station. NANORACKS

In terms of executing your operations, So we struggle every day with the NASA payload through the system. When we see are there any particular challenges system—duplication of requests, uncertain a problem, we are very vocal. And when or issues you face that you wish lines of authority over our payloads. At the we see a tool that can solve it, we don’t someone would create a solution for, same time we know they mean well and ask for help. We’re developing a so%ware to complement your activities? are trying to streamline their process. I program which is now in beta testing, We struggle every day with the NASA like to think that NanoRacks has played a called the Payload Tracker, and it allows safety requirements in the NASA system. role in showing them that the commercial everybody who is responsible at NASA and It was not set up for e!ciency nor has it sector needs certain things that a NASA, at NanoRacks for a particular payload to evolved to be an e!cient system. It has government or academic researcher does track every step. We’ve broken down the evolved to be a safe system. "ey have yet not. NASA steps to seventeen distinct steps to to make the transition in their procedures get a payload through their system and now from operating the fragile shuttle program They may not need them but perhaps we can track it. which su#ered two misfortunes to operating they too would appreciate them… equipment onboard the ISS. Having NASA has been averaging roughly three So we have self-funded this. We will be said that, at the Johnson and Marshall years to get a payload through the system. licensing it now to other users and NASA Space Centers, NASA has been extremely We’re averaging nine months. So we just I hope, but we developed it because we accommodating. When we $rst approach think to assure the Station is part of the needed it. So when we need something NASA with a new customer, we are already solution to competitiveness and research that we think is important, we behave as a late in the NASA system. We are averaging and development, it’s got to routinely be commercial company behaves and we self- from contract signing to launch—nine six to nine months. I have seven full-time fund. months. "is is extremely fast in the NASA people now in Houston who do nothing system. It’s painful for us, it’s uncomfortable but work with their colleagues at Johnson Another example of a challenge has been for them. And we’d like it to be six months. Space Center on these issues of getting a that when we &y a customer that is not from December 2012 SPACE QUARTERLY 17

NanoRacks 3RD Platform prior to leaving the shop with the traditional signatures. NANORACKS

an ISS partner member nation, we need the from the leading suborbital platform to in low earth orbit, we take full advantage written permission of every one of those the U.S. National Lab. A researcher, once of the international agreements that NASA partners. We didn’t know if they would give SpaceShip Two is !ying, can !y multiple put in place and yes, we are certainly excited us permission. As it turns out, we’ve gone missions on suborbital and the hardware about moving into the other platforms as with NASA three times to the International will be the exact same hardware that will they become available. At NanoRacks we Space Station partners and they have kindly then be used to go via NanoRacks to the are starting to look at moving beyond low given us and quickly (within a matter of U.S. National Lab. You’ve reduced the cost earth orbit. We believe that the systems days) written permission to !y our non of a dynamic aggressive multi-step research we put into place, the cost e#ciencies, the ISS partner customers. So now everyone, project because the researcher focuses on standardization, the miniaturization and all internationally, in the space operational his or her payload and not on the hardware. the things we’ve used to build the business community is learning about NanoRacks. We’re currently engaged with Virgin case for Station utilization would work just Galactic on the suborbital, and for LEO, we the same beyond low earth orbit. Are you planning for other platforms are completely hardware or vehicle agnostic. than inside and now outside the We’re excited about the opportunities to So that will be interesting… to see ISS? For instance, long duration work with Bigelow. We !y everybody now. how results would differ in other parts Dragon spaceflight missions, Bigelow We’ve !own the only commercial cargo of space? modules or on some of the suborbital that was !own on all the SpaceX missions. What I mean by that is that the United States vehicles? We believe we are the only company in the and other nations are beginning to look at We were very, very grati"ed when Virgin world (which is amazing for a three year L2 and the other Lagrange points. $ey are Galactic selected NanoRacks to design, old company…) to !y payloads on shuttle, beginning to look at Mars and returning to develop and build their research hardware , SpaceX, ATV, HTV, and up the Moon. We believe that there must be a on SpaceShip Two. What’s so exciting for the and Soyuz down. So we take full advantage standardization across all the programs. I industry about that is it creates a standard— of the wonderful situation we have today think you start small using NanoLab type December 2012 SPACE QUARTERLY 18

hardware and the !rst few forays out, let’s self-!nanced, out of our pockets to put up together. Now we are going out to do a say to L2, there is no reason why it shouldn’t the !rst few research platforms. At that second round. Far more signi!cant. #is will be in the form factor. How do you point we did our !rst round. We haven’t be with Venture Capitalists. #ese funds will use low earth orbit for assembly? Start small. disclosed the amount—it was an adequate be used to build the external platform. We Start with standardization. Use commercial amount. We didn’t go to friends, we went have revenue and yet it will still not be the practices. I think we will get there far faster, directly to angel investors and we worked easiest thing in the world because it is space. and it will be more robust and safer than if with Near Earth LLC which raises funds But I am very con!dent that we’ll do !ne on we follow the traditional process of times for satellite and other space ventures. And our second round of !nancing. past. sometimes when we !rst approached the angel investors, we’d say we were looking And how long until you will be You have mentioned a few times, for x amount to do a round and they’d say, profitable? Or are you already? that unlike many space ventures “Oh you can’t get into space for that money” I don’t anticipate that we will be pro!table NanoRacks is self-financed and and we’d reply, “No, we are already in space. for some time as we spend 30 plus percent does not operate on a cost-plus We are permanently on the Space Station. of our revenue on investments. And that’s basis. Can you talk more about this We already have customers. We’re looking what you do as a commercial company. We business model and expand on what for these funds to grow and to operate.” It are embarking on something now that is “self-financed” means in your case— was still di"cult to close the round. I’m terribly exciting. I told you we have three Personal Funds? Friends and Family? bemused when I see people getting up and platforms now. Platforms 1 and 2 went up Angels? Venture Capital? saying “I have an idea for a space project in 2010. We are now investing in rebuilding When we started the company we liked to and I’m going to raise !ve million dollars”. new platforms to replace 1 and 2; given say that the !rst investors were Visa and Space does not have a good reputation in what we’ve learned, given advances on the MasterCard… I have been in the business the investment community because it has station, we are making an investment that a long time now. I shudder to say this but yet to show strong and adequate returns. So the station is going to grow and we want to I have been in for three decades. I didn’t even though we closed our !rst round when be more sophisticated for our customers. want to approach anyone with “I will…” we were already permanently on the station, #ere are other people still clinging to in the future tense. I’m past that point it was di"cult. We used that !rst round to shuttle hardware. Commercial companies now. If you believe in it, you do it. We grow, to build equipment, to keep the team keep investing to make sure their services to

Space optics addressing global challengesTM

With more than 35 years of experience in optical instrumentation, ABB counts several space achievements positioning the company at the forefront of the Remote Sensing Industry. Discover how ABB helps its customer overcome their technical challenges with an efficient expertise and capabilities in remote sensing space applications at: www.abb.com/analytical

ABB Inc. Analytical Measurement Phone: +1 418-877-2944 1 800 858-3847 (North America) Email: [email protected]

DATE CRÉATION 05/16/12 FORMAT 7,25 in x 4,5 in DATE MODIFICATION May 17, 2012 1:31 PM DIRECTION ARTISTIQUE Benoit DATE DE SORTIE 05/17/12 RÉALISATION Fred NOM DU DOCUMENT ABB-Pub_Space December 2012 SPACE QUARTERLY 19

their customer are at the cutting edge. We on the U.S. National Lab, and you’ll soon be to the little guys, make pro!t on hardware will be the !rst company or organization able to use the ArduLab on ’s development. "ey build something. ever to have second generation space station SpaceShip Two—then you can see a market Government uses it. NanoRacks makes our hardware. To our knowledge, no one has for one to two hundred of these a year and pro!t on utilization. Our goal is to make yet put hardware on the station, used it, then you have a whole community out something as inexpensively and as quickly, have customers use it, get feedback, !gure there making NanoLabs better and better. as safely as possible so a consumer base can out ways you can do it better and take I can envision in a few years that you’ll be develop. advantages of advances that are taking place able to do ten sophisticated experiments on the station as it moves into the utilization inside a single NanoLab. "at means we Utilization is the big issue isn’t it? If era and !nance a second generation of that keep lowering the cost, we keep driving the you have something that doesn’t do hardware. "is is the speed that commercial innovation. anything, provides no value in people’s companies move at. We don’t minds, then what is the need to wait for NASA funding, point in doing it, in having we don’t need to wait for an RFP, it? we can say “Huh! Our customers We take full advantage "at is the accepted model have told us A,B,C, and D.” Now in this community where the is it worth it to take our money of the international government funds people to and rip out platforms 1 and 2 build hardware, it takes years and put up new ones? We’ve agreements that NASA to do and the end product made the decision that the is simply the hardware. We answer is yes. put in place and yes, we keep people skilled, we keep the knowledge base in place Disruptive and self- are certainly excited and the results that come out disruptive innovations are may be very good but they are often the most valuable about moving into the very long in coming. I !nd types of innovation… it fascinating that we in our and being self-disruptive other platforms as they business even have a special is preferable to having a word for when the hardware is competitor creating the become available. used: we call it “utilization”. In disruption. any other business that is called Right. We just did something a customer. that I am so proud of… we just announced a winner in a We don’t say “Boy you should contest we held to have another see how those Fords are company o#er, open source, low utilized” or “you should see how cost NanoLabs. We announced my iPhone is utilized”. It’s so that In!nity Aerospace has been awarded The more the nature and results of unique and rare in our business that we use for their product that they are coming out these experiments is communicated, a special word. At NanoRacks, we try and with, ArduLabs, for likely (I don’t know yet) the more likely that is to spur get away from that. We’re trying to get away under $2000. "at’s $2000 for the NanoLab innovation and creativity and from being in the hardware business. We’re and then you have to pay for the space side encourage people to think of what in the services business. I was at a meeting through Nanoracks. First of all, why didn’t else they can do? at and somebody said NanoRacks develop this themselves? "e "at’s exactly right. We believe at “the chief goal of the U.S. National Lab is reason is, we believe passionately that you NanoRacks that the creativity comes lower to produce good science”. I said “May I say have to develop an ecosystem. We don’t have down the pyramid. It’s not just people with it a di#erent way? "e way we look at it at all the answers. I want someone else waking PhDs who have the ideas. Like the so$ware NanoRacks—our chief goal at NanoRacks up in the morning, thinking about products marketplace, like the internet business, the is to have a happy customer. It could be that that can be used with NanoRacks. And the !rst great breakthrough in space research their project fails to get results. But they more people thinking about it, the better. may happen from a college drop-out. It may are happy and satis!ed that they learned be somebody whose parents buy a gi$ of something from that failure”. This seems similar to the business %ying a payload with NanoRacks, and they model that Apple and other come up with something. "ere’s no reason As Thomas Edison said “I have not smartphone or tablet manufacturers why the breakthroughs and applications in failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that have used with their app the internet may not be duplicated in space won’t work”... development… research. Exactly. So we are customer driven. If "at’s how we see it as well. We are seeding there are some ways that NanoRacks is In!nity Aerospace with a two thousand Here’s a basic di#erence between NanoRacks unique, !rst is our pro!t does not come dollar investment and customers right now and a lot of folks in the space business: most from hardware development, it comes can use them on the NanoRacks platform folks in the space business from the big guys from customer use. "e second way we December 2012 SPACE QUARTERLY 20

are unique is that we are solely focused on plans now, second generation based on saying this is what we want, this is what we keeping our customers happy and that is NanoRacks. It’s a great feeling of satisfaction demand. And you had the complexity of why we get repeat business. and tells us we are on the right pathway. a launch, of a manned launch. !e idea in the space business of changing that launch Various competitors in this summer’s You have had unique experiences schedule by one second to accommodate a NewSpace Business Plan competition in dealing with space stations and commercial customer is ludicrous. To the mentioned NanoRacks in their plans… commercialization. You’ve even commercial sector, the idea of the vendor does NanoRacks have interests in or written a book about it Selling Peace. not listening to you fully is also ludicrous. collaborations with other companies? Are there lessons you learned in So I have learned a number of things. First Yes. One of the most exciting things Russia and with Mir and Mircorp that I have learned there is nothing wrong with happening is the development of this have given you unusual insight to the pro"t in space. I’ve learned that providing ecosystem. We had a meeting several issues facing the ISS today? commercial goods and services in space months ago where a company has a Everything that I have learned from working works just the same as it does on the Earth. new concept “sticky boom” for cubesat with Energia, the Russian space company I’ve learned it is not our God-given right for deployment and in their proposal they and with the Mir space station is what I America to be the leader in space: we have showed us, they are dependent on our am applying at NanoRacks. I think I am to earn it every day. I’m very proud of what external platform. And I said “Gentleman, the only business man to have marketed NASA is doing today: I had thought they you are going forward with your program two space stations. !e toughest, toughest were in danger of losing their way in the based on our success with the external hurdle to overcome is the demanding 1990s. We in America rely very much on our platform”?! And they said “Yes. We believe requirement of the space operations friends in Russia now and I am very proud in you.” And there are others - both startups; versus the philosophy in the commercial of the time I worked with Russia. I thought like the winner of the competition, Space world of “the customer is always right”. it was very important at that moment where Amalgam LLC, and others including some So when NBC wanted us during the Mir Russia stepped up on Space Station. !e big companies we are partnering with. era to guarantee for a television program Russians in the 1990s reminded NASA how We see this ecosystem developing in the that the launch of the Soyuz would be on to do long missions. NASA used to clock, commercial sector and we are seeding Halloween, you had the two worlds coming down to the second, the astronauts’ time this now. And people are making their together. !e entertainment business was and it really took the Russians to say “wait a December 2012 SPACE QUARTERLY 21

second… these astronauts are up there for Looking to the foreseeable future, Interview: Jeffrey NewSpace: Turning Smallsats on Current State of the months, you can’t do that anymore”. NASA Jeff, what do you see as the big Manber p.10 the Corner? p.30 the Rise p.60 Satellite Industry p.44 knew that from their Apollo missions and opportunities and challenges for Skylab, but they had forgotten it. My unique space exploration, now that we seem experience has taught me that capitalism to be getting closer to having reliable works in zero-gravity just as well as in access? December 2012 SpaceQuarterly.com gravity. !e free markets have taken over the !e challenge is today. We’re in an planet, from China to Vietnam to Russia. extraordinary period where many things Capitalism exists in di"erent variants that I dreamt about we have today. We have and models. Open markets are better for a stable policy and permanent facility in low Earth Observation: innovation, for providing services than are earth orbit. We have multiple ways to reach Present and Future closed, centralized markets and that is true the station. We have a government that’s for space as well. !at’s what we are showing behaving like a commercial customer. So the space community, I’m hoping, with this is the moment to prove that the private

NanoRacks. sector can contribute to space exploration ISSN 2162-9390 in low earth orbit and beyond. Also the idea Print edition $12.95 I was also involved with PanAmSat. I was that the NanoRacks model for commercial 9772162 939009 very fortunate when I was younger to work space only works in LEO is absurd. To me, with René Anselmo. René Anselmo may it is like being a little bit pregnant. Once be forgotten today but he busted up the you allow the free markets into LEO, which Intelsat monopoly. Up until the early 1990s, is what is happening, they are not going to SUBSCRIBE in Europe you had to go into the PTT, a stop two hundred miles up. !ey will go phone booth, to make an overseas phone beyond. When we go to the Moon, Mars call because of the monopoly on satellites or L2; unless we want to repeat the delays TODAY sending signals between countries: they in the program and cost overruns it better had to all belong to Intelsat. !en, a call to be as a free market. !ere is something else London cost twelve bucks. René wanted driving me (and I am speaking here as an Space Quarterly brings you the to send soap operas between Mexico and American who spent much of my career most important information America and he found out he wasn’t allowed overseas)… Who gets to space #rst, who and analysis for civil space, to because it violated the Intelsat agreement. operates the #rst colonies, who gets to the commercial space, military He fought and fought and the #rst country Moon - these things matter. Our whole space, space policy, and more. to allow PanAmSat to function was West culture in the U.S. is based on Anglo Saxon Germany, then Margaret !atcher’s UK law because of the British settlements (with and #nally (to my utter embarrassment) some residual Napoleonic code in$uence in was the U.S. (#rst Bush Administration). Louisiana). So who gets there #rst matters Print edition: Overnight, the ability to allow the private for hundreds and hundreds of years. So sector to transmit satellite data and images when we talk about whether to go to Mars, $46/year (4 issues) from one nation to another, collapsed the to me it’s not about planting the $ag, it is in the US, Canada, and UK arti#cial price structure of Intelsat. !at’s about the values that we hold in our society why we have CNN, that’s why we have that become the norms as we venture out $89/year (4 issues) Skype, and cheap phones around the world. into the solar system. I think we should take everywhere else !e entire world, as we know it today with the IGA, the intergovernmental agreement instantaneous communications came about for Station as the founding document Digital edition: because of René Anselmo. What I took for moving beyond low earth orbit, back away from that was it was not a change in to the Moon and on to Mars. You have a $19/year (4 issues) the satellite technology that changed the functioning legal document that has all the worldwide world as we know it. It wasn’t a change in spacefaring nations of the world (except for how you launch or operate satellites. It was India and China) as signatories. It works. It’s allowing the free markets to play a role in good. It’s been in use for over ten years now international satellite communications. on the Space Station. But it is time to start Eventually PanAmSat went public for moving out, as nations and as companies, a billion dollars, then Intelsat itself was beyond LEO. privatized and later Intelsat bought PanAmSat. What I take away from my Thank you very much Jeffrey for a career is that it is not technology that is fascinating discussion! We wish much always the driving force; it’s making sure success to you, NanoRacks, and free www.SpaceQuarterly.com we hit the sweet spot between government markets in space. intervention (safety and regulations) and providing goods and services.