Pat Hynes Study Guide for NASA related Questions

Dear Class Members: I put this exercise together and gave you a role as a member of the New Mexico Space Commission. It may help you get into working your piece on Boje's TRANSORGANIZATIONAL Game Board. See TD Gameboard  

YOUR ROLE:  You are a well-paid management consultant who is an expert on one of the TD Gameboard methods. What is your advice to the Governor of NM and to Dr. Pat Hynes of NASA-NMSU?

In the TD Gameboard approaches you apply, you can, if you are able or willing, tie to concept of Phrog Farm, JoHari, Myers-Briggs  leadership types, Bion Intergroup assumptions about people. 

You may be doing a leadership question or jumping into the TD Gameboard. If it is TD, begin by explaining the TD method. Then, develop practical ideas (action steps) about how the TD Gameboard consultation would work (who would you invite to dialog, what would you do there, what questions would you ask, etc. - but base it on the TD square).  Should NASA become a military weapon? You do not answer all these questions (they are to help you think through the complexities). I assume you have your own questions. The point is always to challenge the premise of the question in any assignment. 

TD Instructions: You have been assigned a number from 1 to 16;  use that square in TD Gameboard to frame your answer. 

Be an expert consultant of the TD Gameboard square. Learn the square and craft your answer from its foundation.  Come to class ready to share your answer for 5 minutes with Pat Hynes and the class. You have a number assigned from 1 to 16, BECOME THE SQUARE MASTER on your TD Gameboard topic.

http://web.nmsu.edu/~dboje/TDgameboard.html *there are 16 squares on TD Gameboard, you will each be assigned to one.  The 26 questions and answers presented below are more or less relevant to each of the 16 squares. You are to become a square master, then play out your role.  Boje, says resituation is always needed following any 503 answer.

Please connect your answer to the handout by Jerry B. Harvey (1977) on TRANS-organizaitons as Phrog Farms, can also look at M-B, and at JoHari and the Bion unconscious assumptions. Won't be able to apply them all, but some would be nice.

Each person doing an answer will be presenting their answer orally to Dr. Hynes and the 503 class, instead of the usual buddy exercise. Some are doing written answers as part of their question-answering schedule.  Those writing buddy-responses on Web CT can advise their buddy on the adequacy and reality of their answer and its resituation. If possible we will try to allow time for buddies and question-answers to meet in first part of class to get their show ready (5 to 10 minutes each answer).

There is a very brief org. chart on the next page to give you some idea of all the organizations involved in this problem. Federal and state agencies, federal and state facilities including White Sands Missile Range, and government contractors. These contractors include Lockheed Martin, Boeing, and General Dynamics. Not only do you have to take into consideration federal and state bureaucratic structures, but industry bureaucracy. Don’t worry about the detail, just try & understand how organizations might interact given the game piece you are assigned. This is a real world situation. And it changes daily. There is no right or wrong answer. I have provided a bunch of information to help you. Sort - you can’t use it all.

May 2002 Amendments-  Since 9-11 the Florida Space Flight Center has become more of a player. There is also a New NASA Administrator, Dr. Shawn O'Keefe has replaced Dan Goldin as CEO.  That will mean some differences in leadership style and behavior.  The new NASA Chief of Staff, Mr. Courtney Stadd, used to be at Earth Watch. The NASA Earth Science Divisions, for example, look at fires, weather modeling, resource management, catch people stealing water and other resources illegally, moisture content of air, etc.

Figure One - FIRST TRANSORGANIZATIONAL CHART - A beginning look at the multi-organizational arena of leadership

You are a member of Governor Johnson’s Space Commission As a member of the Space Commission, the governor has asked you to develop a plan to be presented to the State Legislature, outlining your recommendations regarding a request by President Bush to expand New Mexico’s role in homeland defense. White Sands Missile Range is one of the most important resources for the nation in defense of our space assets. These assets include all communications, weather, and defense satellites. There has been an effort to build a Commercial Spaceport in southern New Mexico. In particular, the governor wants the recommendations of the Space Commission to take into consideration the role spaceports would play in the militarization of space.

• About NM Spaceport (part of Inland spaceport initiative)
• About FL Spaceport (the coastal option to NM)
• About CA Spaceport (another coastal option to NM)

Instructions: Think in terms of the TD Gameboard Square you were assigned. If you are TD Square 1, for example, you will need to look at how to create a grassroots, bottom up community organization effort, and what kinds of leadership approach is needed.

The following is a list of 24 questions and answers. There are links to more documents, should as a TD gameboard Square master, you need to get more depth in order to compose your answer. Remember, there is always more information available, and you have a short life on the planet - Boje.

Q1 What is a Spaceport?

Imagine a world where access to space is as common, safe and affordable as air travel is today. Where people can travel to the mountains of the Moon with as little fanfare as we visit the Rockies at the end of the 20th century. Contemplate a world where these new types of vehicles create a revolutionary transportation system over which goods, services and ultimately people will travel to, through and from space. Where new products and perhaps new medical treatments result from commercial space activities. Spaceports are a part of that world.

Ports at sea are the facilities where ships depart and arrive, transporting people and material over the oceans to other ports, specifically countries/land near the sea. Airports are the facilities where airplanes take off and land, transporting people and materials through the air to destinations all over the world. Spaceports will become the facilities where spacecraft/rockets take off and land, transporting people and materials through space to destinations in earth’s orbit and beyond. For now, spaceports only transport materials, such as satellites, to earth’s orbits.

• Remarks by Patricia Grace Smith http://ast.faa.gov/about/speeches/98/98feb24-26.htm
• NM’s Space Commercialization Program http://spacegrant.nmsu.edu/CASTE/presentation/CASTE/htm
• Spaceport Gets National Support... http://www.caller.com/2000/january/29/today/local_ne/7242.html
• FAA Gets New Ideas... http://spacegrant.nmsu.edu/CASTE/FAA.asp
• Your Chance for a Tour2Space http://www.tour2space.com/

• Space-New Mexico’s Final Frontier? http://www.nmbiz.com/issues/97/97_november/97_nov_scit.htm
• Texas Aerospace Commission http://www.tac.state.tx.us/spaceport1.htm
• Reusable Launch Vehicle Programs & Concepts http://ast.faa.gov/pdf/2000rlv.pdf
• 2000 Commercial Space Transportation Forecasts http://ast.faa.gov/pdf/ast2000.pdf
• The Case for Spaceports http://www.space.com/missionlaunches/launches/graham.html

Q2 What is the Office of Space Commercialization?

The Office of Space Commercialization is part of New Mexico Economic Development Department with the State of New Mexico. The Office of Space Commercialization was created to identify, coordinate, and promote the development of commercial and/or military aerospace related activities leading to increased revenues to New Mexico.

The majority of the effort and energy of the division is concentrated on the multitude of details involved with the creation of a Space port.

• NM Economic Development Department http://newmexicodevelopment.com/
• NM Office of Space Commercialization http://www.edd.state.nm.us/SPACE/index.html

Q3 How much will it cost to build a spaceport in New Mexico?

Building an inland spaceport in New Mexico would cost approximately $525M. Building an inland spaceport would be supported by the state and federal government, as well as industry partners.

The Southwest Regional Spaceport (SRS) will support partial building of the landing strip and aviation complex and the Site Infrastructure, such as the land and utilities.

The majority of the building of the spaceport would be in supported by industry partners who are interested in testing, launching, and landing their Next Generation Launch Vehicle. Industry partners would support building the launch complex, payload assembly facilities, and operation facilities for their launch vehicle.

Q4 How much money would a spaceport in New Mexico generate?

No one knows how much money will be brought into New Mexico from the spaceport, either directly from the work of the spaceport, or indirectly through additional industry moving into the state. Estimates have been made about how much profit will be come from the spaceport in the next twenty years (see attached chart).

The spaceport will be built on state land. This land is not being used, or may be currently leased for grazing at a cost of about $.18/acre. If the land is used for a spaceport the amount of tax dollars the state will received will greatly exceed the current revenues. This money will go directly into the New Mexico’s public schools.

Chart of Revenue/Expenses/Profit ENCLOSED

• CA Gold for the New Millenium http://www.csta.net/plex001215c.pdf
• Skylon Operations & Economics http://www.gbnet.net/orgs/skylon/pap_soae.htm

   

• Impact of Space Activities on Ordinary Citizens http://www.peterson.af.mil/usspace/SPT/overview.htm (Page 16)
• Florida Today http://www.floridatoday.com/space/
• Cheap Access to Space Symposium http://www.space-frontier.org/EVENTS/CATSYMP97/First_panel.html

Q5 What are the "Next Generation of Launch Vehicles" to be launched from a spaceport?

The vehicles that will be launched from commercial spaceports are Reuseable Launch Vehicles (RLV). RLVs have become attractive alternatives for access to space for several reasons. With the exception of the U.S. Space Shuttle, world access to space is made possible by expendable launch vehicles (ELVs), or rockets that can only be used once. As a new vehicle is needed for each launch, the customer who purchases a launch must pay the cost to build an entire vehicle. In contrast, an RLV has the capacity not only to launch but also to return to Earth to be used again. Because the cost of construction of an RLV could be amortized over multiple launches, RLVs may potentially reduce the cost of access to space for government and commercial users. In addition, the return nature of RLVs facilitates human trips to and from space. Although many national governments and companies have explored the development of RLVs, the Space Shuttle - first fown in 1981 - remains the first and only currently operational, partially reusable launch vehicle (the orbiter and solid rocket boosters are refurbished and reused, buth the external tank is irrecoverable. Starting in the 1990s, however, both the public and private sectors intensified RLV design and development efforts. The private sector is developing a variety of RLV concepts with plans to perform both payload launch and human passenger/crew mission. The vehicles in development include:

• abKelly Space Plane - Kelly Space and Technology

• abK-1 - Kistler Aerospace Corporation

• abPathfinder - Pioneer Rocketplane

• abRoton - Rotary Rocket Company

• abSA-1 - Space Access, LLC

• abSpace Cruiser System - Vela Technology Development, AeroAstro, LLC

• abVentureStar - Lockheed Martin Corporation

• Reusable Launch Vehicles & Spaceports http://ast.faa.gov/veh_site/rlv.html
• Kelly Space & Technology http://www.kellyspace.com/
• Kisler Aerospace Corporation http://www.kistleraerospace.com/

• Rotary Rocket Company http://www.rotaryrocket.com/

  Pioneer Rocket Plane http://www.rocketplane.com/

• SSRT Related Sites http://gargravarr.cc.utexas.edu/ssrt/sites.html
• SSRT (Single Stage Rocket Technology) http://gargravarr.cc.utexas.edu/ssrt/
• NASA Space Transportation www.highway2space.com
• 20 Questions About SSTO http://www.hvcn.org/info/a2s2/20questions.html
• Editorial Right Intentions, Wrong Directions http://ns1.mesh.net/~warlocke/rant/polite.htm
• NASA Kills $1.3Billion Space Plane http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A10038-2001Mar1.html

Q6 How much does it cost to launch from a spaceport?

The cost of a launch would depend on the type of Next Generation Launch Vehicle, the weight of the payload, and the location of the spaceport. The location of the Southwest Regional Spaceport, located at Upham, New Mexico, is very economical because of its latitude and elevation.

The latitude allows the launch to take advantage of the Earth’s rotation. (Earth is spinning faster near the equator than at the poles. Launching from New Mexico, at a latitude of 33^{" N takes advantage of this better than launching from Poker Flat, Alaska, at a latitude of 65° N.}

The elevation of the launch site contributes to the cost of the launch because the higher the elevation, the less air the vehicle needs to push, the less it costs to get the same weight off the ground. Florida and California spaceports are located near sea level. The Southwest Regional Spaceport is located at an elevation of approximately 4,500. This lowers the cost to launch significantly.

An estimate of the Venture Star vehicle projected that over the twenty year life of a Venture Star vehicle, approximately $15 BILLION will be saved if launched in New Mexico rather than Florida or California. This is the savings for a single vehicle. If the company is launching several vehicles they would save even more.

• The Economics of Spaceports http://www.fmf.org/pubs/ffn/1_2/spaceports.html
• Reusable Launch Vehicles: Big Potential... http://www.ft.com/ftsurveys/industry/sc7d36.htm
• Skylon Operations & Economics http://www.gbnet.net/orgs/skylon/pap_soae.htm
• Cheap Access to Space Symposium http://www.space-frontier.org/EVENTS/CATSYMP97/
• A Discussion of Spacelift http://www.peterson.af.mil/usspace/SPT/overview.htm  (Appendix 1 to Chapter 3)

Q7 What are the safety concerns for a spaceport?

FAA - Our primary focus is safety, making sure that all launches under our jurisdiction are carried out with minimal safety risk to uninvolved persons and property. Our licensing authority also applies to reentry activities, that is - the future reentry of reentry or reusable launch vehicles. Historically, U.S. launches have taken place from four federal launch sites: Cape Canaveral, Florida; Vandenberg Air Force Base, California; Wallops Flight Facility, Virginia, and, White Sands Missile Range, New Mexico. We also license and regulate operation of non-federal launch sites, such as the California Spaceport Authority, Florida Spaceport Authority, the Alaska

Aerospace Development Corporation and the Virginia Commercial Spaceport Authority.

I am proud to say that in the 11 years and 126 commercial launches during which this office has been responsible for performing this safety role, there has not been a single incident of death or injury, nor significant property damage resulting from activities carried out under our licenses.

• Oral Presentation by Patricia Grace Smith http://ast.faa.gov/about/speeches/2K/2000May24FranceISU_1.htm
• Commercial Space Transportation http://www.asy.faa.gov/Risk/CommercialSpace/Commercial.PPT
• Safety Analysis Compares Launch Sites... http://www.rti.org/news/news_full.cfm?NR_ID=198&news.htm
• New Mexico Spaceport - Planning Report (Enclosed)

Q8 What is the weather like in NM, CA, & FL?

Cancelling or postponing a launch because of weather costs money. Launching at a spaceport where there are little bad weather saves money for the company trying to launch.

New Mexico: Outstanding weather provides maximum launch opportunities and schedule integrity. There is a dry clear atmosphere conducive to year-round outdoor work. There are storms, so less chance of having to cancel launch activities due to weather conditions. There are no catastrophic conditions, such as hurricanes, tornadoes, volcanoes, or earthquakes.

Florida: Good weather provides good launch opportunities. Since it is near the ocean, there are more frequent and severe storms.

California: Good weather provides good launch opportunities. Since it is near the ocean, there are more frequent and severe storms.

• NMSU-CASTE - Why New Mexico http://spacegrant.nmsu.edu/CASTE/why.htm

• KSC Area Weather http://science.ksc.nasa.gov/weather/weather.html
• WSMR Area Weather http://155.148.19.139/wsmr-mb.htm
• Florida Weather http://www.weatherfast.com/florida.html

• Athena Curriculum - Weather http://www.athena.ivv.nasa.gov/curric/weather/index.html
• Project Global Weather http://users.massed.net/~prodanas/weather.htm
• Alaska Historical Weather Data http://www.hallobay.com/weather.html
• Apache Point Observatory - Weather http://www.apo.nmsu.edu/

Q9 ^{What has NM already done in space?}

New Mexico has an impressive reservoir of facilities and expertise in space-systems R&D and in the testing and operating of space systems. New Mexico’s facilities include federal and state-funded laboratories as well as the largest U.S. instrumented land-based test range, all of which encompass every major discipline in space-system engineering and development. The universities in New Mexico provide expertise in diverse space-related specialties such as nuclear propulsion, telemetry, photonics, high-performance computing, and large space optics. New Mexico private sector possesses expertise in numerous space-related fields including software engineering, space environmental effects and large-optics fabrication.

New Mexico has a long history in the space industry, beginning with Robert Goddard’s work in Roswell in the 1930s. Additional work in New Mexico in the space industry includes work done by:

• abFederal Facilities

• abWhite Sands Missile Range http://www.wsmr.army.mil/