Guest: Dr. Scott Pace. Topics: U.S. space policy, leadership, international participation, HSF, and the importance of it to our nation and future. Please direct all comments and questions regarding Space Show programs/guest(s) to the Space Show blog, http://thespaceshow.wordpress.com. Comments and questions should be relevant to the specific Space Show program. Written Transcripts of Space Show programs are a violation of our copyright and are not permitted without prior written consent, even if for your own use. We do not permit the commercial use of Space Show programs or any part thereof, nor do we permit editing, YouTube clips, or clips placed on other private channels & websites. Space Show programs can be quoted, but the quote must be cited or referenced using the proper citation format. Contact The Space Show for further information. In addition, please remember that your Amazon purchases can help support The Space Show/OGLF. See www.onegiantleapfoundation.org/amazon.htm. We welcomed back Dr. Scott Pace to the program to discuss our space policy, leadership, the prospects for human spaceflight (HSF), and international participation. For more information on what Dr. Pace talked about today, see http://thediplomat.com/2013/03/28/american-space-strategy-choose-to-ste… and www.spacepolicyonline.com/news/logsdon-and-pace-criticize-lack-of-white…. Dr. Pace stated that our national space policy was adrift which we discussed in some detail during this 1 hour 38 minute program. In the first segment, I asked Dr. Pace to explain why our space policy was and is adrift. He referred back to the 2010 National U.S. National Space Policy which he largely supported but the human spaceflight portions of it were weak. We mostly focused on human spaceflight for this Space Show program. I asked him about the forthcoming NRC Human Spaceflight Study underway for which he had several comments but said policy does not typically come from external organizations. We talked about weakness in space policy leadership both with the White House and Congress. Dr. Pace said that he believed HSF to be meaningful to our nation and our future, and he put forth the rational for this throughout both segments of our discussion. Listener Mike Listner called in to ask questions about the European Code of Conduct which is in an ongoing evaluation process among many countries. Dr. Paced talked about the concerns and benefits of the Code & I asked if at least in the U.S. the policy makers were considerate of commercial or private space (NewSpace) interests. He said they were, especially within the State Department. We also talked about humans to Mars missions, lunar return missions and Cis-lunar development. Doug called to express his concerns regarding lunar and Cis-lunar missions and at one point Dr. Pace talked about how frontier lines actually move so what may not be doable today may be doable in the near future. We started the second segment with a call from John Hunt who talked about the need to have a space transportation system before we can return to the Moon or go anywhere. This took us into the world of heavy lift rockets, Dream Chaser & routine spaceflight. We also talked about Falcon Heavy and SLS. We switched over for ITAR updates which Dr. Pace provided for us. Space as a political issue for upcoming elections was discussed as were the much talked about NASA asteroid missions. Near the end, Dr. Pace was asked about the Chinese program & their plans to do an end of the year lunar robotic mission. Dr. Pace had much to say about the Chinese space program. Dr. Pace did provide a summary for us saying that there are still great opportunities in space despite the challenges. He made an excellent case for American space leadership & why its so important for us all. Please post your comments/questions on The Space Show blog. You can reach Dr. Pace through his GWU website or through me.
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