Summer sizzles along. A quick mix of mid-August goodies:
Space law marketing opportunities? Those external projectors up on Genesis II mean business. Although as Robert Bigelow said this week, the commercial use of the "spacecraft’s billboard capability" "is in the process of evaluation and may take a while," we can certainly have a friendly wager here on SLP -- what law firm will be the first to have its name or logo projected on the surface of a Bigelow spacecraft? Of course, what's appropriate and tasteful on an orbiting space hotel may not necessarily fly let's just say, on the shuttle or elsewhere in government space, at least under Rep. Ken Calvert's (R-CA) NASA Innovation Fund and Sponsorship Act (to be introduced in September; see Jeff's Space Politics post on that). No worries. There's plenty of space for everyone to brand.
NASA solicits input from commercial space: the agency issued a RFI from industry for COTS phase 2. Send in your feedback and ideas. (Via HobbySpace)
Speaking of NASA, there goes the space agency changing the subject again: Oh sure. Just to deflect some of the recent criticism and controversy, the sneaky space agency folks conducted picture perfect launches of the space shuttle Endeavour with teacher Barbara Morgan (yay!!), as well as Phoenix Mars Lander liftoff. But really, do they think this impressive work compensates for all the icky PR? (It does here.) Congratulations. ;)
Satellite radio merger flyby: If you didn't see it yet, Sirius and XM filed a 112-page Joint Opposition to Petitions to Deny and Reply Comments (with appendices), and if you're all about plowing through nonstop FCC filings (and who isn't?) you can grab these and tons of other materials and documentation on FCC's XM Sirius transaction page (MB Docket No. 07-57). I've covered a bunch of pro-merger action; I'll also note that yesterday Orbitcast blog reports Senator Claire McCaskill (D-MO) wrote a letter to FCC and DOJ opposing the deal as not in the best interest of consumers; and Orbitcast tallys: "Senator McCaskill is now the 82nd lawmaker to express opposition to the XM-Sirius merger." (OK, somebody's been eating lunch with NAB.)
Even more summer space law reading: (If I didn't link these already) catch up with Human Space Flight and National Power by John M. Logsdon; and The Moon is a Land Without Sovereignty: Will it be a Business-Friendly Environment? by Henry R. Hertzfeld (both published in High Frontier, March 2007 and still fresh).
Law for space doctors: Space (and air) lawyer Doug Griffith gave a healthy presentation on the Legal Atmosphere for Aerospace Medicine Professionals in Commercial Human Spaceflight at the Aerospace Medical Association (May 13, 2007). Take two PDF's and call him before liftoff.
The Space Policy Institute's Elliott School of International Affairs, has a summary of its April workshop, "Asian Approaches to Space Security."
For you C-band buffs, Via Satellite has put together a three-part series of webcasts, (or if you prefer the term, webinars) including "How Serious Is The Threat To Satellite's C-band Spectrum?" (Sept. 25, 2007).
Congratulations to Professor Ram Jakhu of McGill University's Institute of Air and Space Law on being elected Fellow of the International Association for the Advancement of Space Safety (IAASS).
By invitation only: Future of Space Commerce Workshop, Aug. 24, 2007 in Breckenridge, CO, will include VIP's from "the civil, military, commercial, and new space sectors, and relevant academic, consulting, business, and financial organizations," hosted by the Air Force Academy’s Center for Space and Defense Studies, NASA Ames Research Center and Futron. (And for those not invited? Here's an idea based on the hit film, The Wedding Crashers -- yes, how about The Workshop Crashers? But don't say you got the idea on SLP.)
Poetry space: Attorney-mediator and Settle It Now Negotiation Blog host Victoria Pynchon lets down her hair and pens (types, actually) a few curved words on space time.
No space lawyers - or any other kind of lawyers - will be speaking at the Singularity Summit 2007 ("AI and the future of Humanity"), Sept. 8-9, 2007 in San Francisco.
Yes, as I've noted, there will be lawyers at the 58th International Astronautical Congress in Hyderabad, India Sept. 24-28, 2007. Plenty of 'em.
Just in time for morning rush, a tornado with a bad sense of direction hit Brooklyn ... yup, missed Kansas by a few miles. Of course twisters aside, getting to work in NYC each day is like winning the DARPA Urban Challenge. In the meantime, bring on those Personal Air Vehicles! (Via HobbySpace) Or, I'll take one of these flying cars thingys (via Sam Dinkin at Transterrestrial Musings).
But forget all that high flying tech stuff for a moment, here's how to throw a boomerang. (Popular Mechanics via Instapundit of course).
Carnival of Space #15. Thanks, Pamela.
Ok. If lawyers are rats. . . what are space lawyers? Never mind.
Have a fine summer weekend. Think like an ancient astronomer and behold the Perseids!
Ex astris, scientia! ;)
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IMAGE: That's right, if you're in Northern Hemisphere -- but not in or near my 'hood in Manhattan (or any urban, light-polluted analog thereof) -- you get to check out the coolest sky show of the summer, the Perseids, peaking Aug. 13th. This stunning photo, copyright Wally Pacholka, captures a Perseid fireball over Joshua Tree National Park, California in 1999.
// posted by Jesse Londin @
5:12 PM 
