Guest: Dr. Alan Stern. Topics: Golden Spike & the NSRC 2013 conference followed by Open Lines in the last hour. 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. We welcomed back Dr. Alan Stern for the first hour of this two hour program. Dr. Stern first talked about his new company, Golden Spike, then he told us about the upcoming NSRC 2013 Conference. Please visit these websites for more information: http://goldenspikecompany.com; http://nsrc.swri.org. Dr. Stern started by telling us about the Golden Spike company plan, goals, objectives, and time tables. He talked about the technology, their business plan, pricing, who may want to buy the two seats to go to the Moon for $1.5 billion and what they might do on the Moon though that is the choice of the customer. He talked about the number of launches needed based the specific launch vehicle to be used. We also talked about the lunar lander, challenges to the mission, and the company financial needs. Return payload requirements were mentioned which are 50 kilos at this time. Questions were asked about EVAs and spacesuits, capsule life support, radiation, etc. Dr. Stern also received questions pertaining to the future plans for Golden Spike and potential mission expansion plans. As we approached the end of the first segment of the two hour program, we talked about the upcoming NSRC 2013 conference to be held from June 3-5 in Broomfield, CO. Alan went through the logistics, keynote speakers & he talked about the potential impact of sequestration on the conference. During our hour with Dr. Stern, he also talked about two Indiegogo programs underway. The first campaign Alan talked about re $1 for each mile to the Moon can be found at http://www.indiegogo.com/projects/golden-spike-is-sending-nations-and-p…. Later, Alan talked about naming the closest exoplanet via Indiegogo. Check it out at www.uwingu.com. In our second segment, we went to Open Lines. I talked about the recent set of astronaut panels at Rocky Mountain College and when they might be archived on Space Show websites. I also went over the coming Space Show schedule. Doug called to talk about sequestration and he had Space X, Falcon Heavy and reusable questions per our discussion with Dr. Stern. Later, John from Atlanta called re Golden Spike, Inspiration Mars, and the NASA budget. He also talked about the continuing resolution (CR) and did not think there would be much blowback on Congress or NASA budget and spending issues. In our sequestration comments, we talked about the FAA closure of some controlled airports and the political use of the sequestration. Please post your comments/questions on The Space Show blog above You can email our guest or any of our callers through me at drspace@thespaceshow.com.
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