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Guest: Lt. Col. Carol Welsch, USAF, returned for this special Space Show program. We started our discussion on the subject of last year's Chinese ASAT test as this subject was the focus of Col. Welsch's thesis at the US Air Force War College at Maxwell AFB, AL. As soon as her thesis is published, she will let me know and I will announce it on the show. During this program, we discussed some of the Colonel's findings and conclusions regarding intent, the scope of the Chinese ASAT program, plus many other factors. She received many listener questions regarding the ASAT test, the Chinese space program, orbital debris caused by last year's test, the Russian and other space programs, and US space policy. This is definitely a discussion you will want to hear. We also addressed some educational issues, especially the shortfall of qualified engineers for the US aerospace program. As we learned, the same shortfall holds true for our military. I asked Col. Welsch to define what was meant by "qualified engineer," so you will want to hear her response. As a result of a listener question, we discussed ways to motivate students to study important engineering and educational programs. I suggested financial incentives for select fields, but maybe some of you have better ideas. Col. Welsch and I are all ears so tell us your ideas on how to spark more engineering students in the needed fields of study. We also talked about Operationally Responsive Space and Space Situational Awareness. These topics came up throughout the show. Small satellites were discussed and so were student launches and their availability. If you want to ask Lt. Col. Welsch a question or offer a comment, please do so through me at drspace@thespaceshow.com.
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