Return To The Moon Details

06/23/05 00:00:00    

By Michael Mealling

If you liked ISDC last month then you can't miss Return to the Moon VI. NASA will be using this venue to make some very significant announcements so you should be there. Here are some new details released last nigh by Jeff Krukint:

Return to the Moon VI is approaching quickly and many developments have occurred in the last few weeks. Make your travel plans for RTM VI now as the agenda is filling up with some very exciting items. Register now at https://www.space-frontier.org/Events/RTM6/

Hotel Deadline Approaching

Discount hotel rates ($70/$70/$105 for Wed –Fri nights) will expire on 6/25/05!!!

*Confirmed NASA Speakers *

A number of high-level NASA speakers have confirmed their presentation topics:

    ·       Chris Shank – NASA's plans to restructure exploration/Crew Exploration Vehicle efforts in line with Administrator Griffin's new direction

· Michael Foale – Long-term vision and integrating shuttle and exploration operations in the future

· Brant Sponberg – New Non-Traditional Approaches office and Centennial Challenge prizes to support exploration

· NASA Legal – A NASA speaker on hand to talk about Other Transactions Authority (OTA)

· NASA Exploration Systems Mission Directorate – Several speakers will be on hand from NASA ESMD to discuss various exploration projects

(Look for the release of a complete speaker list in the next week)

Banquet Awards Ceremony

Two distinct Heroes of the Moon awards will be given this year. The Foundation is proud to announce that one of these awards will be given to President Bush for his vision of returning NASA and this country to the Moon and pushing further into the solar system, and for his continued support of that vision.

The Foundation will also be awarding a Heroes of the Moon award to a hero from the past; an individual who contributed to the effort that got this nation to the Moon in the first place. Look for the announcement of this award in the next week.

RTM VI General Information

2005 has been a very big year for the space sector. All of the new developments in the entrepreneurial space community, combined with the maturing of a new Presidential mandate to return to the Moon under the new Vision for Space Exploration (VSE) presents one of the most exciting years yet for advocates of the true development of space.

At this critical juncture in this new endeavor, the Space Frontier Foundation presents the sixth annual lunar development conference; Return To the Moon VI July 21-23 at the Flamingo Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada. Entitled RTM VI: “Reality Check,” this year’s conference will focus on exploring what is really happening in lunar development.

The event is envisioned to be a focal point of the lunar development process; the point where the entrepreneurial space community and NASAÂ’s exploration agenda intersect. All discussions will be focused on what we are doing now and what we can do on the Moon within the next decade, rather than longer-term, idealized concepts. We are bringing new entrepreneurial and legacy companies both within and outside the aerospace sector to one venue to explore the opportunity that the development of the Moon and cis-lunar space has to offer.

Attendees will have the opportunity to meet the people in NASA, politics, the private space sector, and the space advocacy community who are doing the hard work of opening space. In addition to our sponsors (such as t/Space, Space Age Publishing, PoliSpace, and the National Aerospace Development Center), a wide array of scientists, politicians, entrepreneurs, and visionaries will appear at the conference. Conference panels include:

How do we get to the Moon? – A discussion of the technologies and systems that will allow real lunar development to begin.

  * What will we do on the Mmoon? – An analysis of the techniques, technologies, and approaches that will enable long- term lunar habitation. 

  * What will we do on the Moon? – A detailed analysis of the scientific as well as commercial  applications that will make lunar development both productive and profitable. 

  * Legal/Regulatory/Policy – An exploration of the legal, regulatory, and policy roadblocks and leveraging tools that will both encourage and hamper lunar development in the near term. 

  * Enabling Technologies – a panel discussion of those critical technologies which may fit outside of the traditional visions for lunar development, but which nonetheless will be critical to the success of any development efforts. 

  * International Partners – A panel made up of representatives of some of our nation’s most important allies and partners to discuss how we can all benefit from our return to the Moon. 

  * Lunar and In-Space Business Development Models – A discussion of the unique business requirements and models required to set up successful lunar businesses. 

  * Space Property Rights – Sooner rather than later the question of who owns and who can own extra-terrestrial property will have to be answered. There is no shortage of opinions on this topic. This panel will explore some of them.

A detailed list of panel chairs and a keynote speaker will be announced at the end of next week, so keep a close eye on the conference website and on your email.

In addition to providing unique discussions, speakers, and panels, the Return to The Moon conference features a unique backdrop to the conference: Las Vegas; a city built on nontraditional business models. So, after an entire day focused on humanityÂ’s return to the Moon, all of the excitement and relaxation of the Las Vegas strip is available right outside the door.

RTM VI: Reality Check will be unlike any other conference; this is where the public and private sectors will meet to seize the opportunities involved in returning to the Moon. Seize this opportunity and join us at the Space Frontier FoundationÂ’s sixth annual Return to The Moon conference.

The basic agenda for the conference is currently available at: http://www.space-frontier.org/Projects/Moon/rtm2005.html

Early registration is strongly recommended and currently available at:https://www.space-frontier.org/Events/RTM6/

Thank you for your kind attention.