AVIATION WORKFORCE 40 SPACE POWER 34 ROBOTICS 12 Attract the best and brightest Meet ROSA, the Roll Out Solar Array The case for telepresence at Mars Satellite envy Balloons could outperform spacecraft by surfi ng the stratosphere. We go deep on one company’s plan. PAGE 24 OCTOBER 2017 | A publication of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics | aerospaceamerica.aiaa.org CALL FOR TECHNICAL BRIEFINGS The AIAA Defense and Security Forum (AIAA DEFENSE 2018) brings together the contractor, acquisition, and R&D communities for classifi ed and unclassifi ed discussions of critical technical, programmatic, and policy topics in a SECRET/NoFORN unbiased, nonpartisan environment. Nearly 200 experts will present the latest innovative technological breakthroughs that will integrate with current and next-generation defense systems. Advanced Prototypes Aerospace and Defense Computing Systems Countermeasures Directed Energy Weapons Estimation, Guidance, Navigation and Control Hypersonic Systems and Technologies Innovative Concepts and Technologies Missile Defense Robotic and Unmanned Weapon Systems Space Systems Strategic Missile Systems – Ground Based Strategic Missile Systems – Sea Based Deterrent Survivability Systems and Decision Analysis for National Security Tactical Missiles Weapon System Performance Analysis, Modeling and Simulation Weapon System Test and Evaluation Abstract Deadline: 30 November 2017 FEATURES | October 2017 MORE AT aerospaceamerica.aiaa.org 16 34 24 Ka-boom! Unrolling innovation Stratosphere surfi ng How a mission to smash a spacecraft Meet the solar array that could One company says its balloons can do into a moonlet may help defend Earth disrupt the spacecraft market. from asteroids and comets. what conventional satellites can do, By Debra Werner and then some. By Adam Hadhazy By Keith Button On the cover: A crew prepares a Stratollite for launch in Arizona. Image credit: World View aerospaceamerica.aiaa.org | OCTOBER 2017 | 1 9–11 JULY 2018 CINCINNATI, OH Mark Your Calendar and Plan to Attend! In 2018, hundreds of thought leaders and cutting-edge engineers and researchers will congregate in Cincinnati, Ohio, to discuss the exciting innovations happening in the fields of aerospace power and propulsion. Mark your calendar and plan to participate in the AIAA Propulsion and Energy Forum and Exposition, 9–11 July 2018. The Call for Papers will be available in October 2017. Join us in Cincinnati at the Duke Energy Convention Center! propulsionenergy.aiaa.org 17-1927 AEROSPACE ++ +AMERICA + ++ OCTOBER 2017, VOL. 55, NO. 9 IN THIS ISSUE EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Ben Iannotta [email protected] Tom Jones ASSOCIATE EDITOR Tom fl ew on four space shuttle missions. On his last fl ight, STS-98, he Karen Small led three spacewalks to install the American Destiny laboratory on the [email protected] International Space Station. He has a doctorate in planetary sciences. STAFF REPORTER PAGE 12 Tom Risen [email protected] EDITOR, AIAA BULLETIN Adam Hadhazy Christine Williams [email protected] Adam reports on astrophysics and technology. His work has appeared in Discover and New Scientist magazines. EDITOR EMERITUS Jerry Grey PAGE 16 CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Keith Button, Adam Hadhazy, Tom Jones, Robert van der Linden, Keith Button Debra Werner, Frank H. Winter Keith has written for C4ISR Journal and Hedge Fund Alert, where he broke news of the 2007 Bear Stearns scandal that kicked off the global James “Jim” Maser AIAA PRESIDENT credit crisis. John Langford AIAA PRESIDENT-ELECT PAGE 24 Sandra H. Magnus PUBLISHER Rodger S. Williams DEPUTY PUBLISHER ADVERTISING Debra Werner Joan Daly, 703-938-5907 [email protected] A frequent contributor to Aerospace America, Debra is also a West Coast correspondent for Space News. ART DIRECTION AND DESIGN PAGE 34 THOR Design Studio | thor.design MANUFACTURING AND DISTRIBUTION DEPARTMENTS Association Vision | associationvision.com LETTERS AND CORRESPONDENCE Ben Iannotta, [email protected] TRENDING 8 A modern take on an aircraft carrier for the sky 4 Editor’s Notebook 10 12 Aerospace America (ISSN 0740-722X) is published 7 From the Corner Offi ce monthly by the American Institute of Aeronautics and Q & A Astronaut’s View Astronautics, Inc., at 12700 Sunrise Valley Drive, Suite 200 Air Force Maj. Gen. David Tom Jones argues for Reston, VA 20191-5807 [703-264-7500]. Subscription rate 43 AIAA Bulletin Thompson talks about putting robots on Mars is 50% of dues for AIAA members (and is not deductible North Korea, satellites. guided by astronauts therefrom). Nonmember subscription price: U.S., $200; in orbit. foreign, $220. Single copies $20 each. Postmaster: Send 60 Career Opportunities address changes and subscription orders to Aerospace America, American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, at 12700 Sunrise Valley Drive, Reston, VA, 20191-5807, 62 Looking Back 40 64 Attn: A.I.A.A. Customer Service. Periodical postage Opinion Trajectories paid at Reston, Virginia, and at additional mailing An aviation industry PrecisionHawk’s offi ces. Copyright 2017 by the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Inc., all rights reserved. executive poses a strategy co-founder says drones The name Aerospace America is registered by the AIAA for attracting young will change the world. in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Offi ce. professionals. aerospaceamerica.aiaa.org | OCTOBER 2017 | 3 EDITOR’S NOTEBOOK TECHNOLOGY AT WORK Lessons from Harvey and Irma he storm losses in Texas and Florida could have been even worse were it not for the many Hurricane Irma talented and energetic young people who decided years ago to pursue careers in aerospace approaches the Florida Keys on Sept. 10 in this and the associated sciences, such as weather forecasting. test image from the The accurate forecasts and fast relief efforts were set up by the diffi cult lessons of 2005’s Advanced Baseline Hurricane Katrina, and also by years of technical innovation and budget fi ghts over how to Imager on NOAA’s T GOES-16, the fi rst of a spend federal dollars. There were the Hurricane Hunter planes and NOAA weather satellites that fed the forecast models; the overhead images of the storm aftermath that reassured some evacuees and broke next generation series of weather satellites. the hearts of others. There were the algorithms, software and communications networks that tied the information together and shared it. In light of all this, the aerospace industry should not need to gussy itself up to continue attracting the best and brightest. In our high schools and universities at this very moment, I would bet that young people have come away energized about the professionals they saw in action. They will cut through the policy controversy about climate change that has paralyzed my generation. They will reshape the aerospace industry in ways that none of us can predict. Those well into their careers, like me, will need to be open-minded about the coming changes. Someone who needs to forecast a hurricane’s path, or calculate what it will take to calm our amped-up atmosphere, doesn’t care whether the data comes from an agency, a startup or a giant corporation. The information needs to be accurate and the supply of it can’t vanish with the whims of the business cycle or budgets on Capitol Hill. Other than that, the sky is open. As with any human calamity, there will be lessons from Harvey and Irma. One of them has to do with the power of math. Algorithms, it turns out, can be tools for good or ill. They are the foundation of the forecasting models that warned of Harvey’s epic rainfall and nailed the track and intensity of Irma. But automated versions of algorithms also reportedly drove up the prices of airline tickets for evacuees who had no other way to get out of harm’s way. When the next emergency comes, it won’t do to say the prices were the fault of an algorithm. A better world lies ahead, so long as the humans stay in charge of the technology. + Ben Iannotta, editor-in-chief, [email protected] 4 | OCTOBER 2017 | aerospaceamerica.aiaa.org LETTER TO THE EDITOR Looking to the future and the past hile I’m very excited about [Elon] Musk and [Jeff] Bezos and their commercial plans to return to the moon and go to Mars, WI feel the need to remind the newer generation of the past glory days of NASA and pioneering space in the early years. Now at my advanced age of 81, it seems like only yesterday when I was 21 and part of the pioneering of space. Where did those years go? So many of my colleagues are no longer here. Every week another of my friends shows up in the obituary column. I feel that soon I’ll be the last one standing. It’s hard not to refl ect on the past. Someone once said that you are left with memories and regrets. I’ve got wonderful memories. And a few regrets, of course. And now more time to think about them. But [I’m] still looking forward to the future and being around to experience the wonder of it all. NASA William Ketchum Gemini 8 astronauts Neil Armstrong and David Scott San Diego prepare to board their spacecraft at Cape Kennedy in [email protected] Florida in 1966. AIAA associate News from Put our experts to work for you. Creating complex workflows with UQ and design evaluation, especially for unsteady cases is complex. We’re continually adding to our team and technology to help you get the most out of your commitment to CFD. 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