Oklahoma Space Alliance Update for February 2013
Tom Koszoru won’t be able to edit Update until at least September. This month’s issue is edited by Syd Henderson. If you would like to edit Update, contact Steve Swift. (Address and Phone Number near the end.)
February Meeting
Oklahoma Space Alliance will meet on February 9, 2013 at Denny’s on the I-240 access road on the north side just east of Pennsylvania Avenue in southern Oklahoma City. Our business meeting will start at 2:30 p.m. with feature presentations beginning at 3:15 p.m. The street address is 1617 SW 74th Street and the phone number is 685-5414. Visitors are welcome. Our directions posted in previous issues of Outreach were unnecessarily complicated; if you take the exit at Pennsylvania coming from the east, you pass right by the entrance. If you’re coming on Pennsylvania itself, there’s an entrance from the street to the north of Denny’s.
February 9, 2013 - OSA Meeting Agenda
2:30 PM
3:15 PM
The theme for Oklahoma Space Alliance in 2012 is “What’s Happening in Space.” People think that space exploration is dead with the end of the shuttle program. We should use our theme as an emphasis for meetings, selection of speakers and topics for agenda items.
Minutes of January meeting
Oklahoma Space Alliance met January 12 at the Denny’s on the I-240 access road on the north side just east of Pennsylvania Avenue in southern Oklahoma City. Attending were Steve, Karen and Brian Swift, Don Robinson, Linda Shannon, Tim Scott, John Northcutt, Josh Fladie and Syd Henderson. This was Josh’s first meeting.
Space Alliance Appointees and Yuri’s Night were added to the agenda. Does Steve get the Chapter’s Leader (NSS-CL) posts? We need to see who wants to be correspondence secretary and Update editor. Syd’s willing to keep doing Outreach.
Nobody was inducted into the Oklahoma Aviation and Space Hall of Fame this year.
Brian and Steve went to the Oklahoma Spaceport at Burns Flat. We should write letters to the state legislature about space in Oklahoma, not just about spaceport.
We need volunteers for Yuri’s Night. Claire wants to have a party. Steve will make phone calls.
Steve, Tim and Syd need to do the annual report to NSS.
Quote of the month: “Destiny is not a matter of chance; it is a matter of choice. It is not a thing to be waited for, it is a thing to be achieved.”--William Jennings Bryan
What’s Happening in Space?
ISS Expedition 33 landed in Kazakhstan.
Stratolaunch has parted ways with SpaceX in favor of Orbital Services. This may set them back a year.
SpaceX has been awarded two EELV class ventures. SpaceX is also going to build a new class of rocket engines, the Raptor, with methane as fuel and liquid oxygen as oxidizer. These would be the rockets used in a proposed Mars mission. [They should get together with Robert Zubrin about the return trip.]
SpaceX did a test of their Grasshopper rocket, sending it up 132 feet to hover. Video is at http://www.spacex.com/updates.php.
Mars1 has specified requirements for 2013 asteroid selection. We watched a video on Mars1.
Congressman Lamar Smith (R-Texas) is the new chair of the House Committee on Science, Space and Technology, which oversees a $39 billion dollar budget. New Oklahoma Congressman Jim Bridenstine is on the committee.
We looked at http://www.universetoday.com/99304/exciting-potential-for-habitable-exomoons/#.
We saw a photograph of sunrise at Tycho crater on the Moon, highlighting the mountain at the center.
--Minutes by OSA Secretary Syd Henderson
Notes on January 9 OSIDA Meeting
The Oklahoma Space Industry Development Authority met at the Department of Transportation Building in Oklahoma City on January 9. All seven board members were present. Executive director Bill Khourie and legal advisor Brinda White were also present, but OSIDA secretary Kim Vowell was not. There were five in the audience, including Syd Henderson and Steve Swift.
The Operations Center progress is still on hold, and no brick has yet been ordered for the windows. Board member Goodbary asked what assurance we have that the building will be completed in our lifetime. There’s still a March 31 date for the opening.
The contractor is still working on another part of the building outside of the windows. Most of the interior is now complete, but Bill recommended that OSIDA not move in until the windows are completed.
The spaceport got a dump truck, but it wasn’t what they wanted, so they sent in back and ordered a replacement. On the other hand, the $126,000 runway sweeper should be delivered around February 1.
The new barbed wire fence (to keep out cattle and such) has to be 200 feet from buildings because it would otherwise interfere with radio signals.
The south taxi lane lighting system repair and signage is pre-OSIDA and needs to be replaced. The cost is $112,000, but the FAA will pay 90% of the cost.
Budget committee hearings are coming up, probably in February. OSIDA has submitted a tentative budget.
Bill’s attending the Commercial Space Transportation Conference in Washington, DC, February 15 - 16. This is the weekend after the February OSIDA meeting.
--Notes by OSA Secretary Syd Henderson
News:
NSS is raising funds for the Kickstarter Project, which
“will create a high quality video presentation that shows why space exploration and development are needed, how they will greatly benefit us all, and why the time to get involved is right now. This is not a history lesson. This is an inspiring view of the future.
"We've gathered a truly stellar team of creative experts who have agreed to bring our video to life, but first we need your support to make it happen.”
The first goal, to raise $35,000 by February 16, has already been achieved, but they also have goals to send the video to all state governors, US Congressmen, the cabinet and President; and to create video on other subjects. For details, visit http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/351762534/our-future-in-space-a-national-space-society-video.
There is a bill in the Oklahoma State House of Representatives that would repeal the Oklahoma Space Industry Development Act, which is the authorization act for the Oklahoma Spaceport. The bill is HB 1483. Go here http://webserver1.lsb.state.ok.us/WebApplication2/WebForm1.aspx
and type “HB 1483” in the window and it will give you a summary.
Asteroid 2012 DA14 will fly within 17,200 miles of the Earth on February 15. The asteroid is only about 100 meters long and 50 meters wide and poses no threat to Earth. The asteroid will reach 8th magnitude for observers in Asia and Australia, but will only reach 12th magnitude for observers in North America.
More recent estimates of Comet PanSTARRS have it somewhat dimmer than earlier predicted: Instead of getting up to magnitude -4 (brighter than Jupiter) or even magnitude 0 (brighter than all but three or four stars), some estimates now have it peaking at magnitude 1 or even 3. Since comets are diffuse light sources, PanSTARRS would be much harder to see than these magnitudes suggest, although it should still be visible to the naked eye on a dark night. At the moment, it is around magnitude 7.
Comet PanSTARRS is apparently approaching the Sun for the first time, and such virgin comets are notoriously hard to predict. The best time to look will be around March 12 – 13 when the comet passes close to the crescent moon.
A February 6, NASA report complete with an informative video is online at http://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/2013/06feb_panstarrs/.
Comet PanSTARRS is not to be confused with Comet ISON, which will pass very close to the Sun in November and December. Comet ISON has the potential to be the brightest comet in at least a half-century, and really optimistic astronomers predict that it could be visible in the daytime.
Meteorite NWA 7325, discovered last year in Morocco, was unusual because it had a strongly greenish fusion crust. It appears that it may actually be unique: it looks like it may be a bit of the planet Mercury, which, if confirmed, would make it the first meteorite found on Earth to hail from that planet. Story at http://www.skyandtelescope.com/news/The-First-Ever-Meteorite-from-Mercury-189374981.html.
Oklahoma Space Alliance Officers, 2013 (Area Code 405)
Steve Swift, President 496-3616 (H)
Claire McMurray, Vice President 329-4326 (H) 863-6173 (C)
Syd Henderson, Secretary & Outreach Editor 321-4027 (H) 365-8983 (C)
Tim Scott, Treasurer 740-7549 (H)
OSA E-mail Addresses and Web Site:
OSA E-mail Addresses and Web Site:
(Replace "at" with @ symbol.)
sswift42 at aol.com (Steve Swift)
jtvt at inbox.com (Jim Trombly)
sydh at ou.edu (Syd Henderson)
ctscott at mac.com (Tim Scott)
cliffclaire at hotmail.com (Claire McMurray)
T_Koszoru at cox.net (Heidi and Tom Koszoru)
john.d.northcutt1 at tds.net (John Northcutt)
lensman13 at aol.com (Steve Galpin)
E-mail for OSA should be sent to [email protected]. Members who wish their e-mail addresses printed in Outreach, and people wishing space-related materials e-mailed to them should contact Syd. Oklahoma Space Alliance website is osa.nss.org/index.html. Webmaster is Syd Henderson.
Other Information
Oklahoma Space Industrial Development Authority (OSIDA), 401 Sooner Drive/PO Box 689, Burns Flat, OK 73624, 580-562-3500. Web site www.state.ok.us/~okspaceport.
Science Museum Oklahoma (former Omniplex) website is www.sciencemuseumok.org. Main number is 602-6664.
Tulsa Air and Space Museum, 7130 E. Apache, Tulsa, OK 74115.
Web Site is www.tulsaairandspacemuseum.com. Phone (918) 834-9900.
The Mars Society address is Mars Society, Box 273, Indian Hills CO 80454. Their web address is www.marsociety.org.
The National Space Society's Headquarters phone is 202-429-1600. Executive Director is LtCol Paul E. Damphousse [email protected]. The Chapters Coordinator is Bennett Rutledge 720-529-8024. The address is: National Space Society, 1155 15th Street NW, Suite 500, Washington DC 20005 Web page is space.nss.org.
The Planetary Society phone 626-793-5100. The address is 65 North Catalina, Avenue, Pasadena, California, 91106-2301 and the website is www.planetary.org. E-mail is [email protected].
NAA Spacelink BBS 205-895-0028. Or try www.nasa.gov. .
Congressional Switchboard 202/224-3121.
Write to any U. S. Senator or Representative at [name]/ Washington DC, 20510 (Senate) or 20515 [House]
Contact person for Oklahoma Space Alliance is Claire McMurray
PO Box 1003
Norman, OK 73070
Webmaster is Syd Henderson.
Copyright ©2012 Oklahoma Space Alliance.