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“Any time there’s dynamic change, there’s the opportunity for new ideas.”
Space ideas welcome! Credit: Aurich Lawson | Getty Images
Over the first quarter of the 21st century, two major trends have transformed the global space industry.
The first is the rapid rise of China’s space program, which only flew its first human to orbit in 2003 but now boasts spaceflight capabilities second only to the United States. The second trend is the rise of the commercial space sector, first in the United States and led by SpaceX, but now spreading across much of the planet.
Both of these trends have had profound impacts on both civil and military space enterprises in the United States.
Big implications for NASA and military space
For NASA, the rise of China has meant the emergence of a true competitor, not only when it comes to returning humans to the Moon but also in sending robotic probes out into the Solar System. China may attempt a mission to return rock and soil samples from Mars later this decade, years before NASA will do so.
With regard to commercial space, NASA can justifiably claim credit for spurring much of the rise of these new space companies (and corresponding decline in traditional space). But the aging space agency now must grapple with the fact that private companies have become better at building rockets and satellites and are increasingly luring away some of NASA’s best engineers with higher-paying jobs. NASA must adapt to remain relevant.
As space has become more contested in a military sense, with both Russia and China as adversaries, the United States created the Space Force in 2019 to protect American assets in orbit. The US military, too, is grappling with the rise of commercial space by modernizing its procurement processes, but in many cases, it has struggled to keep up with the changing landscape.
The bottom line is that the space industry is undergoing profound change.
This broader change, however, is just the backdrop to a highly disruptive political environment in the United States right now, said Greg Autry, associate provost for Space Commercialization and Strategy at the University of Central Florida. He noted the recent fight between the White House Office of Management and Budget and the US Congress over NASA’s budget, as well as the military’s chief of Space Operations, Chance Saltzman, calling for “drastic change” in how the Space Force operates.
“Any time there’s dynamic change, there’s the opportunity for new ideas to insert themselves,” Autry said in an interview with Ars. So Autry and others want to give people a chance to voice those ideas by launching the “Space Ideation Challenge.”
A challenge for new ideas
A prize purse of $125,000 will be awarded to the best ideas, of which $25,000 will be devoted to the best undergraduate and graduate student submissions. Entrants will be required to write three- to five-page white papers that explain their idea and how they would shape markets and strengthen the space economy or national security. Papers are due by June 30, and judging will be complete by August 15.
As an additional incentive, the best ideas will be briefed to relevant policymakers, including key members of Congress, NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman, and Saltzman, of the Space Force.
So what constitutes a good idea? It is not, Autry said, a business plan. These ideas will be shared with others, so if you have a proprietary idea to make billions of dollars, go elsewhere. Beyond that, though, it could be anything, Autry said, and the goal is to really open the aperture widely.
As an example, he cited NASA’s Commercial Orbital Transportation Services program, initiated more than two decades ago. This program ultimately spawned private cargo and crew services to the International Space Station and provided key funding to help SpaceX survive its early, lean years and accelerate to what it has become today. Autry said forward-looking ideas today might help the space agency with the transition to private space stations from the ISS or in the competition with China to reach the Moon and develop its resources. There could also be other kinds of prize-based competitions to spur innovation.
Ideas could come from students; the various super-engaged space communities on Twitter, YouTube, Reddit, Discord, or elsewhere; or even employees at NASA or private companies who can’t get management to listen to them. Basically, if someone has thought about space and how something could be done better, this is an opportunity to speak up and be heard.
“I think we all know that we’re on the verge of some big things in space, but I think there’s some frustration with how to get there with traditional thinking,” Autry said. “So we’re looking for some non-traditional thinking.”
Space ideas welcome! Credit: Aurich Lawson | Getty Images
Over the first quarter of the 21st century, two major trends have transformed the global space industry.
The first is the rapid rise of China’s space program, which only flew its first human to orbit in 2003 but now boasts spaceflight capabilities second only to the United States. The second trend is the rise of the commercial space sector, first in the United States and led by SpaceX, but now spreading across much of the planet.
Both of these trends have had profound impacts on both civil and military space enterprises in the United States.
Big implications for NASA and military space
For NASA, the rise of China has meant the emergence of a true competitor, not only when it comes to returning humans to the Moon but also in sending robotic probes out into the Solar System. China may attempt a mission to return rock and soil samples from Mars later this decade, years before NASA will do so.
With regard to commercial space, NASA can justifiably claim credit for spurring much of the rise of these new space companies (and corresponding decline in traditional space). But the aging space agency now must grapple with the fact that private companies have become better at building rockets and satellites and are increasingly luring away some of NASA’s best engineers with higher-paying jobs. NASA must adapt to remain relevant.
As space has become more contested in a military sense, with both Russia and China as adversaries, the United States created the Space Force in 2019 to protect American assets in orbit. The US military, too, is grappling with the rise of commercial space by modernizing its procurement processes, but in many cases, it has struggled to keep up with the changing landscape.
The bottom line is that the space industry is undergoing profound change.
This broader change, however, is just the backdrop to a highly disruptive political environment in the United States right now, said Greg Autry, associate provost for Space Commercialization and Strategy at the University of Central Florida. He noted the recent fight between the White House Office of Management and Budget and the US Congress over NASA’s budget, as well as the military’s chief of Space Operations, Chance Saltzman, calling for “drastic change” in how the Space Force operates.
“Any time there’s dynamic change, there’s the opportunity for new ideas to insert themselves,” Autry said in an interview with Ars. So Autry and others want to give people a chance to voice those ideas by launching the “Space Ideation Challenge.”
A challenge for new ideas
A prize purse of $125,000 will be awarded to the best ideas, of which $25,000 will be devoted to the best undergraduate and graduate student submissions. Entrants will be required to write three- to five-page white papers that explain their idea and how they would shape markets and strengthen the space economy or national security. Papers are due by June 30, and judging will be complete by August 15.
As an additional incentive, the best ideas will be briefed to relevant policymakers, including key members of Congress, NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman, and Saltzman, of the Space Force.
So what constitutes a good idea? It is not, Autry said, a business plan. These ideas will be shared with others, so if you have a proprietary idea to make billions of dollars, go elsewhere. Beyond that, though, it could be anything, Autry said, and the goal is to really open the aperture widely.
As an example, he cited NASA’s Commercial Orbital Transportation Services program, initiated more than two decades ago. This program ultimately spawned private cargo and crew services to the International Space Station and provided key funding to help SpaceX survive its early, lean years and accelerate to what it has become today. Autry said forward-looking ideas today might help the space agency with the transition to private space stations from the ISS or in the competition with China to reach the Moon and develop its resources. There could also be other kinds of prize-based competitions to spur innovation.
Ideas could come from students; the various super-engaged space communities on Twitter, YouTube, Reddit, Discord, or elsewhere; or even employees at NASA or private companies who can’t get management to listen to them. Basically, if someone has thought about space and how something could be done better, this is an opportunity to speak up and be heard.
“I think we all know that we’re on the verge of some big things in space, but I think there’s some frustration with how to get there with traditional thinking,” Autry said. “So we’re looking for some non-traditional thinking.”
