Posts Tagged ‘Dr. Pat Hynes’

Release courtesy of the New Mexico Space Grant Consortium

LAS CRUCES, NM – The International Symposium for Personal and Commercial Spaceflight (ISPCS) is a ‘go’ at the New Mexico Farm and Ranch Heritage Museum from October 20 through 21 in Las Cruces, New Mexico. The symposium will feature industry experts and renowned speakers discussing the current state and future developments in the growing commercial space industry.

New Mexico Space Grant Consortium (NMSGC) Director Dr. Pat Hynes said, “We are excited about this year’s symposium since we are at a critical time in the growth of the commercial space industry. The purpose of ISPCS is to bring key industry stakeholders together in New Mexico. Throughout the world, New Mexico is becoming a well-respected leader for this growing industry.”

The ISPCS event is not only important for the commercial space industry, but also for the city of Las Cruces, New Mexico. Along with establishing the city as a hub for commercial space activity, the event will have tremendous economic impact and bring a greater level of international awareness to the community.

ISPCS has an extensive list of speakers scheduled for this year:

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 20

8:45 a.m.          Keynote Address – Neil Sheehan, Pulitzer Prize winner and Author of A Fiery

Peace in a Cold War

10:00 a.m.       Past is Prologue: The Future of the Space Industry From the Perspective of

Those Who Helped Get It Started

Jeff Greason, Guruswami Ravichandran, Neil Sheehan, Bill Campbell, Rick Sturdevant, Fredrick Bachtel

11:00 a.m.         Closing the Credibility Gap: The Role of Suborbital Testing as a Pathfinder to

Orbital Markets or as an End Market in Itself

Debra Facktor Lepore, Jeff Greason, Julia Tizard, Neil Milburn

1:30 p.m.          Establishing the Commercial Space Market: Matching Business Strategy

with Funding Sources

Lee Rand, Grant Anderson, Mark Sirangelo, Tim Pickens, Robert Bigelow

2:30 p.m.          FAA Center of Excellence for Commercial Space Transportation

Ken Davidian, Samuel Durrance, Farrukh Alvi , Pat Hynes, Van Romero, Jim Vanderploeg

3:30 p.m.          The Practical Impact of ITAR Reform on Commercial Space

Bob Dickman, Craig Weston, Sven Grahn, Franceska Schroeder

4:30 p.m.          The Path Forward from DC-X/XA

Bill Gaubatz, Jess Sponable, Tom Ingersoll, David Masten, Yoshifumi Inatani, Neil Milburn, James Ball, Fredrick Bachtel

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 21

8:30 a.m.          Keynote Address – Lori Garver, Deputy Administrator, NASA

10:00 a.m.       The Microgravity Market

Dennis Stone, Cheryl Nickerson, Andrew Nelson

11:00 a.m.         Crew Transportation Systems: The Game Changer in Human Spaceflight

Brett Alexander, Keith Reiley, Kenneth Reightler, Robert Bigelow, Mark Sirangelo, Ken Bowersox

1:30 p.m.          Space Policy Evolution: Changes Portend Larger Commercial Markets to

Service Government Needs and Greater International Cooperation

Clay Mowry, Brendan Curry, Valerie Skarupa, Philip McAlister

2:30 p.m.          Creating the Demand: Free and Low Cost Flight Opportunities for Education

and Research in Space

David Masten, Doug Comstock, Susan Newsam, Brienna Henwood, Mark Severance, Jerry Larson, Charles Chafer

4:00 p.m.          Spaceports

Karin Nilsdotter, Rick Homans, Stu Witt

This year’s conference is expected to attract over 400 company executives, government officials and industry and university researchers. The event is scheduled to coincide with Space Week in New Mexico. Attendees can register online at www.ispcs.com for the two-day conference.

For additional information on ISPCS, please visit www.ispcs.com or contact Joylynn Watkins at jwatkins@nmsu.edu or 575-646-6414.

The October meeting of the MVEDA Business on the Border Forum will be held on Tuesday, October 5, 2010 from 11:30 AM until 1:00 PM at the Hotel Encanto de Las Cruces, 705 S. Telshor. The meeting will begin with a hot entree buffet followed by a brief update by MVEDA staff.

Dr. Pat Hynes, Director of the New Mexico Space Grant Consortium (NMSGC) at New Mexico State University, will be the featured speaker. The New Mexico Space Grant Consortium was recently selected by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) as a 2010 Center of Excellence for Commercial Space Transportation.  The NMSGC annually hosts the International Symposium on Personal and Commercial Spaceflight, the largest symposium of its kind in the U.S.  NMSGC also sponsors the annual Education Launch Program which provides access to space for students in New Mexico to answer science and engineering questions.

Luncheon cost is $20.00 per person, payable by cash, check or major credit card. Due to space limitations, reservations are required. Please confirm your attendance no later than Thursday, September 30^thby sending an email to rsvp@mveda.com or by calling the office at (575) 525-2852. The meeting is open to the public.

Release courtesy of New Mexico Space Grant Consortium

LAS CRUCES, NM – When Dr. Pat Hynes was recently notified that the New Mexico Space Grant Consortium at New Mexico State University (NMSU) was selected by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) as a 2010 Center of Excellence for Commercial Space Transportation, she predicted that this would help make New Mexico the magnet for commercial space in the nation and the world. At a press conference held August 19 at NMSU, Dr. Hynes noted that this highly competitive process for the $10 million dollar funding was an important win for New Mexico because it also marks the first time the federal government has made a major investment in the commercial space industry, and it was made in New Mexico.

“Robert Goddard and NMSU’s Physical Sciences Laboratory were pioneers in the space industry along with White Sands Missile Range, leadership in space research is our heritage at NMSU and in New Mexico” Dr. Hynes said. “As we begin the age of Spaceflight for Mankind, the State of New Mexico is once again leading the effort.”

The FAA has created the Center of Excellence (COE) program in partnership with the Office of Commercial Space Transportation (AST) to help identify solutions of existing and anticipated space transportation issues. By teaming with the nation’s top academic research institutions, the COE will help ensure the protection of the public, property, and the national security and foreign policy interests of the United States during commercial launch or reentry activities. NMSU will be the lead institution for the FAA, working with the following core university partners: New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology; Florida Institute of Technology; Florida Center for Advanced Aero-Propulsion; Stanford University; University of Colorado – Boulder; and the University of Texas – Medical Branch.

Initial funding for the COE is $2 million for the start-up phase, with and additional $4 million in agency funds over the first five years of operation, which will be matched by the partners to total $10 million in initial funding. Center Operations Cooperative Agreements will be issued to all seven research universities. Research funding will come from government contracts in addition to the operating funds in the form of IDIQ contracts.

Dr. Hynes explained what the COE will do for the FAA. “We will work on research for improved spaceport operations systems, and to find ways to improve airspace integration, for example.” She explains that vehicles traveling to space will transverse through present commercial air space, so changes to the air traffic control process will allow for frequent travel to and from space. “We will also characterize the business of commercial space, and define the related markets we expect it will create.” In addition, the COE will provide education services for all organizations involved in commercial space transportation.

Dr. Hynes is also the Director of the New Mexico Space Grant Consortium which is a member of the congressionally funded National Space Grant College and Fellowship Program. This program is administered by NASA. The statewide consortium supports a wide range of space related research and education projects, including the Student Launch Program which provides annual access to space from Spaceport America for student experiments.

Release courtesy of Spaceport America

Las Cruces, NM – Spaceport America and the New Mexico Spaceport Authority (NMSA) congratulate Dr. Pat Hynes and the New Mexico Space Grant Consortium at New Mexico State University (NMSU) for being selected as the Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) Center of Excellence for Commercial Space Transportation (COE-CST). Winning the nationwide competition to host the COE-CST now enables NMSU to serve as the hub of a minimum $5 million, five-year research coalition addressing key challenges in the development of the commercial space industry.

“It’s a great day not only for education in the state of New Mexico, but also for the emerging commercial space industry and the role that Spaceport America will have in its continuing growth,” said Spaceport America Executive Director Rick Homans. “This COE-CST reaffirms and cements New Mexico’s leadership in the vanguard of commercial space.” Homans said the Center would likely facilitate development of launch vehicle systems, technologies and operations research for Spaceport America. “We commend Dr. Pat Hynes and her team, and are excited to work with her innovative consortium from New Mexico, Florida, Texas, Colorado and California, as well as companies like Virgin Galactic, SpaceX and other members of the NMSU COE-CST industry advisory board.”

In addition, NMSA Chairman of the Board Ben Woods said, “Today’s announcement means the New Mexico Space Grant Consortium at NMSU will be at the center of development for industry enabling technologies such as space launch operations and traffic management, space commerce and commercial human spaceflight for launch facilities like Spaceport America here in New Mexico.”

More information on the COE-CST announcement can be found on the FAA website: http://www.faa.gov/news/press_releases/news_story.cfm?newsId=11737.

Spaceport America has been providing commercial launch services since 2006. The spaceport is the world’s first purpose-built commercial spaceport and is now undergoing construction near Truth or Consequences, New Mexico. This state-of-the-art launch facility is expected to become fully operational in 2011. Officials at Spaceport America have been working closely with leading aerospace firms such as Virgin Galactic, Lockheed Martin, Moog-FTS, and UP Aerospace to develop commercial spaceflight at the new facility. The economic impact of launches, tourism and new construction at the Spaceport is already delivering on its promise to the people of New Mexico.