Planetary Radio: Space Policy Edition
Episodes
Space Policy Edition #20: Looking back on the year in space policy. Also, your questions!
05 Jan 2018
Contributed by Lukas
It’s the space policy guys’ turn to look back at a year that saw great achievements in space. Were they matched by events in Washington DC?
Space Policy Edition #19: When did the private space age begin? Much earlier than you think.
01 Dec 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Elon Musk. Jeff Bezos. Richard Branson. These are the names we tend to associate with the current era of private space exploration. But what about Joh...
Space Policy Edition #18: Jim Bridenstine vs. the Senate and First Meeting of the National Space Council
03 Nov 2017
Contributed by Lukas
The likely next Administrator of NASA, Jim Bridenstine, appeared before a somewhat skeptical Senate committee to defend his nomination. Casey and Jaso...
Space Policy Edition #17: The 75th Anniversary of the Rocket Age, with Dr. Michael Neufeld
06 Oct 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Fifteen years before Sputnik, on a bright 1942 afternoon in northern Germany, a thundering machine of metal and fire pierced the sky, ultimately touch...
Space Policy Edition #16: NASA's Flagship Missions: Are They Worth It?
01 Sep 2017
Contributed by Lukas
The multi-billion dollar, multi-decade Cassini mission is about to end. A new report tries to answer an important question: are flagship science miss...
Space Policy Edition #15 – Congressman Rick Larsen, Could Russia Exit the ISS?
04 Aug 2017
Contributed by Lukas
New U.S. sanctions against Russia have reignited speculation that global politics could undermine cooperation in the International Space Station. Coul...
Space Policy Edition #14 – Ice Giants and Ocean Worlds Beckon
07 Jul 2017
Contributed by Lukas
A new report builds the case for long overdue returns to Uranus and Neptune, while another proposal calls for exploration of the many bodies in our so...
Space Policy Edition #13 – The 2018 Budget Proposal and Is Mars Exploration in Retrograde?
02 Jun 2017
Contributed by Lukas
The Trump Administration released its proposed FY2018 budget just days ago. Casey Dreier, Jason Callahan and Mat Kaplan dive deep into what this contr...
Space Policy Edition #12 – Is Space Policy Stagnant? With Special Guest Marcia Smith
05 May 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Moon or Mars? Should NASA depend on private companies? What’s the goal of human spaceflight? These questions were debated three decades ago, yet are...
Space Policy Edition #11 – Big Science and a Skinny Budget
07 Apr 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Whether it’s discovering gravity waves, curing cancer or building a space station, the biggest science challenges increasingly require investments t...
Space Policy Edition #10 - Special Guest Laura Delgado Lopez, SpaceX to the Moon, looming budget cuts
03 Mar 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Laura Delgado Lopez from the Harris Corporation joins us to talk about the growing number of countries getting into the space business, particularly i...
Space Policy Edition #9: Congress Plots New Space Legislation Amid Trump's Tumultuous First Two Weeks
06 Feb 2017
Contributed by Lukas
It’s still too early to say where the Trump Administration will take NASA, but there are a few hints. Congress is not waiting. Casey, Jason and Mat ...
Space Policy Edition #8 - A Transition "Trumpdate", 2016 in Review, and Answering Your Questions
05 Jan 2017
Contributed by Lukas
After an opening update on the presidential transition, Casey, Jason and Mat share their nominees for the biggest space exploration events of 2016. Th...
Space Policy Edition #7 - The Trump Administration: What Can We Expect for Space?
01 Dec 2016
Contributed by Lukas
The SPE team reviews the outlook for human spaceflight, planetary science, Earth observation and much more under the upcoming Trump administration.
Space Policy Edition #6: Election 2016! Where Do Clinton and Trump Stand on Space?
03 Nov 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Just in time for election day in the USA, we take stock of the major candidates' space policies (as far as they go), comparing statements and pol...
Space Policy Edition #5: The U.S. Senate takes on the politics of Mars
07 Oct 2016
Contributed by Lukas
We take a deep dive into new space legislation working its way through the US Senate. It embraces Mars and NASA's big rocket. But Elon Musk and S...
Space Policy Edition #4: Near Earth Asteroids—Why we go, how we find them, and maybe mine them
02 Sep 2016
Contributed by Lukas
In honor of OSIRIS-REx—NASA’s newest asteroid mission—we explore the policy and history of near-Earth Objects: why NASA explores them, how the g...
Space Policy Edition #3: Plutonium-238, Europa via SLS, Cost of the Next Mars Rover Rises
05 Aug 2016
Contributed by Lukas
In our third episode, we debate the risks and rewards of tying the future of a Europa mission to the fate of NASA's massive Space Launch System r...
Space Policy Edition #2: Why Juno? Why Jupiter? Why Now?
01 Jul 2016
Contributed by Lukas
This month Jason Callahan, Casey Dreier and Mat Kaplan ask whether the Moon vs. Mars human destination debate makes sense, highlight a new report on t...
Space Policy Edition #1: How We Got Here: Human Spaceflight at the End of the Obama Era
03 Jun 2016
Contributed by Lukas
In the premiere of this new monthly series we briefly examine the latest move by the House of Representatives in the game of NASA's budget and th...