Main Engine Cut Off
Anthony Colangelo
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MECO is opinion and analysis of spaceflight, exploration, policy, and strategy, by Anthony Colangelo.
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Sep 12, 2023
T+259: Tom Marotta, The Spaceport Company
Tom Marotta of The Spaceport Company joins me to talk about what they’re working on, their vision for the future of spaceflight, spaceport operations, the demonstration they did in May, the FAA and its interaction with private companies, reentry licensing, and a whole host of other topics.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 34 executive producers—Steve, Bob, Stealth Julian, David, Harrison, Lee, Jan, Joonas, Ryan, Theo and Violet, Frank, Chris, Pat, Lars and Will from Agile Space, Kris, Donald, SmallSpark Space Systems, Dawn Aerospace, Matt, Pat from KC, Tyler, Craig from SpaceHappyHour.com, Joel, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut), Fred, Benjamin, The Astrogators at SEE, Russell, Warren, and four anonymous—and 833 other supporters.
Topics
* Tom Marotta (@thomasmarotta) / X
* Tom Marotta | LinkedIn
* The Spaceport Company
* The Spaceport Company: Overview | LinkedIn
* The Spaceport Company (@TheSpaceportCo) / X
* The Spaceport Company- Full Length Launch ProRes HQ 4 - YouTube
* The Spaceport Company demonstrates offshore launch operations - SpaceNews
* Cape Congestion: World's busiest spaceport stretched to its limits - SpaceNews
* The Space Review: The spaceport bottleneck
* Chinese Ceres-1 rocket reaches orbit with first sea launch - SpaceNews
* The High Frontier: An Easier Way: Marotta, Tom, Globus, Al: 9781719231749: Amazon.com: Books
The Show
* Like the show? Support the show!
* Email your thoughts, comments, and questions to anthony@mainenginecutoff.com
* Follow @WeHaveMECO
* Follow @meco@spacey.space on Mastodon
* Listen to MECO Headlines
* Listen to Off-Nominal
* Join the Off-Nominal Discord
* Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Pocket Casts, Spotify, Google Play, Stitcher, TuneIn or elsewhere
* Subscribe to the Main Engine Cut Off Newsletter
* Artwork photo by ISRO
* Work with me and my design and development agency: Pine Works
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Sep 8, 2023
T+258: The Six, by Loren Grush (Off-Nominal 123 - An Exciting Time)
Jake and Anthony are joined by Loren Grush of Bloomberg to talk about her new book, The Six: The Untold Story of America’s First Women Astronauts.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 34 executive producers—Frank, Chris, Joel, Fred, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut), Steve, David, Craig from SpaceHappyHour.com, Kris, Theo and Violet, Joonas, Lee, Bob, Stealth Julian, Pat, SmallSpark Space Systems, Harrison, Benjamin, Lars and Will from Agile Space, Ryan, Dawn Aerospace, Warren, The Astrogators at SEE, Tyler, Russell, Pat from KC, Matt, Jan, Donald, and four anonymous—and 842 other supporters.
Topics
* Off-Nominal Campaign for Relay FM/St. Jude
* Loren Grush - Bloomberg
* Loren Grush (@grushcrush) • Instagram photos and videos
* Loren Grush (@lorengrush) / Twitter
* Off-Nominal - YouTube
* Episode 123 - An Exciting Time (with Loren Grush) - YouTube
* The Six | Book by Loren Grush | Official Publisher Page | Simon & Schuster
* The Space Shuttle Columbia tragedy: a conversation with my parents who worked the accident - The Verge
The Show
* Like the show? Support the show!
* Email your thoughts, comments, and questions to anthony@mainenginecutoff.com
* Follow @WeHaveMECO
* Follow @meco@spacey.space on Mastodon
* Listen to MECO Headlines
* Listen to Off-Nominal
* Join the Off-Nominal Discord
* Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Pocket Casts, Spotify, Google Play, Stitcher, TuneIn or elsewhere
* Subscribe to the Main Engine Cut Off Newsletter
* Artwork photo by ISRO
* Work with me and my design and development agency: Pine Works
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Aug 31, 2023
T+257: Chandrayaan-3, Luna-25, and the Deep Space Network (with Scott Tilley)
Scott Tilley joins me to talk about ISRO’s success with Chandrayaan-3, Roscosmos’ Luna-25 mission and the mystery behind it, and the state of the Deep Space Network.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 34 executive producers—Pat, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut), Joel, Fred, Craig from SpaceHappyHour.com, Steve, Pat from KC, Joonas, Jan, Kris, David, Frank, Russell, Tyler, Lee, The Astrogators at SEE, Warren, Benjamin, SmallSpark Space Systems, Chris, Ryan, Lars and Will from Agile Space, Dawn Aerospace, Theo and Violet, Harrison, Matt, Bob, Stealth Julian, Donald, and four anonymous—and 842 other supporters.
Topics
* Scott Tilley 🇺🇦 (@coastal8049) / X
* Riddles in the Sky – A blog dedicated to observing, mostly classified, satellites.
* Episode 51 - Hubbles In Reverse - Off-Nominal
* Chandrayaan-3: India becomes fourth country to land on the moon - SpaceNews
* ISRO on X: “Beyond Borders, Across Moonscapes: India's Majesty knows no bounds!. Once more, co-traveller Pragyan captures Vikram in a Snap! This iconic snap was taken today around 11 am IST from about 15 m. The data from the NavCams is processed by SAC/ISRO, Ahmedabad.”
* Luna-25 crashes into moon after orbit maneuver - SpaceNews
* Scott Tilley 🇺🇦 on X: “I have been asked repeatedly about #Luna25. Thus far I have no independent observations of the mission to share. That is not without extensive trying to observe it. So why am I not detecting anything? 🧵⬇️”
* NASA Deep Space Network reaches “critical point” as demand grows - SpaceNews
* Crescent Space | Home
* Intuitive Machines to Deploy and Operate First Lunar Communication Satellite in 2022
The Show
* Like the show? Support the show!
* Email your thoughts, comments, and questions to anthony@mainenginecutoff.com
* Follow @WeHaveMECO
* Follow @meco@spacey.space on Mastodon
* Listen to MECO Headlines
* Listen to Off-Nominal
* Join the Off-Nominal Discord
* Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Pocket Casts, Spotify, Google Play, Stitcher, TuneIn or elsewhere
* Subscribe to the Main Engine Cut Off Newsletter
* Artwork photo by Arianespace
* Work with me and my design and development agency: Pine Works
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Aug 25, 2023
T+256: The Kuiper Logjam
Amazon moved their Project Kuiper prototypes from Vulcan to Atlas V. Between that and some recent conversations I’ve had, I thought it would be a good time to check in on Kuiper and to see how they’re progressing towards deployment. I do some math, and it’s not good.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 34 executive producers—Chris, Donald, Dawn Aerospace, Will, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut), Benjamin, Steve, Theo and Violet, Pat, Russell, The Astrogators at SEE, Harrison, Tyler, Jan, Bob, Kris, Lars from Agile Space, Pat from KC, Ryan, Lee, Stealth Julian, Warren, Craig from SpaceHappyHour.com, Fred, Matt, Frank, SmallSpark Space Systems, Joel, David, Joonas, and four anonymous—and 830 other supporters.
Topics
* Amazon moves Project Kuiper prototypes from Vulcan to Atlas 5 - SpaceNews
* Amazon signs multibillion-dollar Project Kuiper launch contracts - SpaceNews
* Arianespace signs unprecedented contract with Amazon for 18 Ariane 6 launches to deploy Project Kuiper constellation - Arianespace
* Blue Origin opens rocket engine factory - SpaceNews
* Barry Jenakuns on X: “Fun fact, because Bezos own's Blue Origin, Amazon have to declare how much money they spend(/receive) on them. Assuming that this is for the 27 launch option, the $2.7 billion spent would give a per launch cost for New Glenn of $100 million.”
* Episode 120 - Big Dumb Satellites - Off-Nominal
The Show
* Like the show? Support the show!
* Email your thoughts, comments, and questions to anthony@mainenginecutoff.com
* Follow @WeHaveMECO
* Follow @meco@spacey.space on Mastodon
* Listen to MECO Headlines
* Listen to Off-Nominal
* Join the Off-Nominal Discord
* Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Pocket Casts, Spotify, Google Play, Stitcher, TuneIn or elsewhere
* Subscribe to the Main Engine Cut Off Newsletter
* Artwork photo by Arianespace
* Work with me and my design and development agency: Pine Works
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Jul 20, 2023
T+255: NSSL Phase 3 Addendum
After the most recent show, I found a few nuggets of information in the NSSL Phase 3 documents, plus some more updates came out in a call that the Space Force had with some reporters.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 35 executive producers—Donald, Lee, The Astrogators at SEE, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut), Kris, Simon, Pat, Pat from KC, Russell, Matt, Fred, Stealth Julian, SmallSpark Space Systems, Tyler, Jan, Dawn Aerospace, Ryan, Theo and Violet, David, Harrison, Joel, Benjamin, Frank, Bob, Chris, Will, Craig from SpaceHappyHour.com, Joonas, Steve, Lars from Agile Space, Warren, and four anonymous—and 835 other supporters.
Topics
* T+254: Mars Sample Return, Vulcan, NSSL Phase 3 (with Eric Berger) - Main Engine Cut Off
* National Security Space Launch (NSSL) Phase 3 DRAFT Request for Proposals (RFPs) #2
* Space Force to select three providers of national security launch services - SpaceNews
* Space Force changed launch procurement plan due to concerns about capacity - SpaceNews
The Show
* Like the show? Support the show!
* Email your thoughts, comments, and questions to anthony@mainenginecutoff.com
* Follow @WeHaveMECO
* Follow @meco@spacey.space on Mastodon
* Listen to MECO Headlines
* Listen to Off-Nominal
* Join the Off-Nominal Discord
* Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Pocket Casts, Spotify, Google Play, Stitcher, TuneIn or elsewhere
* Subscribe to the Main Engine Cut Off Newsletter
* Artwork photo by ULA
* Work with me and my design and development agency: Pine Works
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Jul 18, 2023
T+254: Mars Sample Return, Vulcan, NSSL Phase 3 (with Eric Berger)
Eric Berger of Ars Technica joins me to talk about the budgetary threat facing Mars Sample Return, the latest issue with ULA’s Vulcan vehicle, and the ongoing tweaks to the National Security Space Launch Program’s Phase 3 architecture.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 35 executive producers—Will, Tyler, Ryan, Stealth Julian, Lars from Agile Space, Harrison, Craig from SpaceHappyHour.com, SmallSpark Space Systems, Pat, Theo and Violet, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut), Kris, Russell, Donald, Matt, Jan, Dawn Aerospace, Steve, Bob, Benjamin, Joel, Joonas, Lee, David, Warren, Frank, Simon, Fred, Chris, The Astrogators at SEE, Pat from KC, and four anonymous—and 833 other supporters.
Topics
* Eric Berger (@SciGuySpace) / Twitter
* Eric Berger | Ars Technica
* NASA’s Mars Sample Return has a new price tag—and it’s colossal | Ars Technica
* The Senate just lobbed a tactical nuke at NASA’s Mars Sample Return program | Ars Technica
* Vulcan’s upper stage failed due to higher stress and weaker welds | Ars Technica
* Space Force to select three providers of national security launch services - SpaceNews
* National Security Space Launch (NSSL) Phase 3 DRAFT Request for Proposals (RFPs) #2
* Stephen Clark | Ars Technica
The Show
* Like the show? Support the show!
* Email your thoughts, comments, and questions to anthony@mainenginecutoff.com
* Follow @WeHaveMECO
* Follow @meco@spacey.space on Mastodon
* Listen to MECO Headlines
* Listen to Off-Nominal
* Join the Off-Nominal Discord
* Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Pocket Casts, Spotify, Google Play, Stitcher, TuneIn or elsewhere
* Subscribe to the Main Engine Cut Off Newsletter
* Artwork photo by ULA
* Work with me and my design and development agency: Pine Works
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Jun 14, 2023
T+253: The German and European Launch Industry (with Adrian Beil)
Adrian Beil of NASASpaceFlight.com (and a long-time beloved member of the Off-Nominal Discord) joins me to talk about the state of German and European launch, with new entrants Rocket Factory Augsburgand Isar Aerospace getting close to the launch pad, many others working their way there, and institutional launch struggling amidst delays and geopolitics.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 34 executive producers—Frank, Harrison, Dawn Aerospace, Russell, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut), Bob, Pat, Benjamin, Kris, Lars from Agile Space, Craig from SpaceHappyHour.com, Stealth Julian, Joel, Fred, Simon, Theo and Violet, David, Pat from KC, The Astrogators at SEE, Tyler, Jan, Joonas, Chris, Steve, Matt, Warren, SmallSpark Space Systems, Donald, Ryan, Lee, and four anonymous—and 831 other supporters.
Topics
* Adrian Beil (@BCCarCounters) / Twitter
* Adrian Beil, Author at NASASpaceFlight.com
* Off-Nominal
* Rocket Factory Augsburg
* Isar Aerospace
* HyImpulse
* Rocket Factory Augsburg on Twitter: “Four days since we wrote history in Europe – and (of course) we still get goosebumps when watching the video! Now we want to share with you again four moments from our most exciting 280 seconds ever!”
* The biggest Meet & Greet of the European space community! - Space Creator Day
The Show
* Like the show? Support the show!
* Email your thoughts, comments, and questions to anthony@mainenginecutoff.com
* Follow @WeHaveMECO
* Follow @meco@spacey.space on Mastodon
* Listen to MECO Headlines
* Listen to Off-Nominal
* Join the Off-Nominal Discord
* Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Pocket Casts, Spotify, Google Play, Stitcher, TuneIn or elsewhere
* Subscribe to the Main Engine Cut Off Newsletter
* Artwork photo by Global Times
* Work with me and my design and development agency: Pine Works
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May 31, 2023
T+252: NASA Selects Blue Moon for a Second Lunar Lander, But is Facing a Grim Budget Reality
NASA selected Blue Moon as the second human lunar lander for Artemis—which is awesome!—yet the budget outlook for the next few years is…not good. I think through what NASA can, should, and might do in the face of a grim budget reality.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 36 executive producers—Tyler, Pat from KC, Brad, Theo and Violet, Matt, Fred, Robb, Simon, Dawn Aerospace, SmallSpark Space Systems, Moritz, Donald, Frank, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut), Kris, Harrison, Chris, Joel, Jan, Russell, Pat, Benjamin, David, Lee, Bob, Joonas, Lars from Agile Space, Stealth Julian, Steve, The Astrogators at SEE, Warren, Ryan—and 842 other supporters.
Topics
* NASA Selects Blue Origin as Second Artemis Lunar Lander Provider | NASA
* NASA awards Blue Origin $3.4 billion Artemis moon lander contract – Spaceflight Now
* NASA selects Blue Origin to develop second Artemis lunar lander - SpaceNews
* NASA’s Artemis program may face a budget crunch as costs continue to rise | Ars Technica
* A new report finds NASA has spent an obscene amount of money on SLS propulsion | Ars Technica
* At long last, the glorious future we were promised in space is on the way | Ars Technica
* NASA’s Selection of the Blue Moon Lander for Artemis V | Selenian Boondocks
The Show
* Like the show? Support the show!
* Email your thoughts, comments, and questions to anthony@mainenginecutoff.com
* Follow @WeHaveMECO
* Follow @meco@spacey.space on Mastodon
* Listen to MECO Headlines
* Listen to Off-Nominal
* Join the Off-Nominal Discord
* Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Pocket Casts, Spotify, Google Play, Stitcher, TuneIn or elsewhere
* Subscribe to the Main Engine Cut Off Newsletter
* Music by Max Justus
* Artwork photo by SpaceX
* Work with me and my design and development agency: Pine Works
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May 4, 2023
T+251: Finance and Business Strategy (Live from Space Symposium 2023)
Live from the Redwire booth at Space Symposium 2023! I discuss the business and finance side of spaceflight, with Caleb Henry (Quilty Space), Peter Beck (Rocket Lab), and Jonathan Baliff (CFO, Redwire).
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 36 executive producers—Pat, Fred, Robb, Steve, Dawn Aerospace, Matt, Theo and Violet, Bob, Benjamin, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut), Donald, Lee, Pat from KC, Warren, Tyler, David, Jan, Chris, Stealth Julian, The Astrogators at SEE, SmallSpark Space Systems, Kris, Ryan, Moritz, Russell, Harrison, Lars from Agile Space, Simon, Frank, Brad, Joel, Joonas—and 845 other supporters.
Topics
* Finance and Business Strategy - YouTube
* Caleb Henry (@ChenrySpace) / Twitter
* Quilty Space (@QuiltySpace) / Twitter
* Peter Beck (@Peter_J_Beck) / Twitter
The Show
* Like the show? Support the show!
* Email your thoughts, comments, and questions to anthony@mainenginecutoff.com
* Follow @WeHaveMECO
* Follow @meco@spacey.space on Mastodon
* Listen to MECO Headlines
* Join the Off-Nominal Discord
* Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Pocket Casts, Spotify, Google Play, Stitcher, TuneIn or elsewhere
* Subscribe to the Main Engine Cut Off Newsletter
* Music by Max Justus
* Artwork photo by SpaceX
* Work with me and my design and development agency: Pine Works
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May 2, 2023
T+250: LEO and Lunar Commercialization (Live from Space Symposium 2023)
Live from the Redwire booth at Space Symposium 2023! I discuss the commercialization effort of LEO and the Moon with Angela T. Hart (Manager, Commercial Low Earth Orbit Program Office, NASA), Dr. Molly Mulligan (Business Development, Redwire), Jana Spruce (VP of Spacecraft, Firefly), and Kevin Foley (Program Director, Commercial Space Projects, Boeing).
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 36 executive producers—Bob, Frank, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut), Harrison, Russell, Robb, Joel, Benjamin, Donald, Kris, Brad, Tyler, Simon, Jan, Moritz, Ryan, Dawn Aerospace, Pat, Lee, Fred, Matt, David, Warren, Theo and Violet, Lars from Agile Space, Pat from KC, Steve, Joonas, Chris, SmallSpark Space Systems, Stealth Julian, The Astrogators at SEE—and 845 other supporters.
Topics
* Commercialization of LEO and Lunar - YouTube
The Show
* Like the show? Support the show!
* Email your thoughts, comments, and questions to anthony@mainenginecutoff.com
* Follow @WeHaveMECO
* Follow @meco@spacey.space on Mastodon
* Listen to MECO Headlines
* Join the Off-Nominal Discord
* Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Pocket Casts, Spotify, Google Play, Stitcher, TuneIn or elsewhere
* Subscribe to the Main Engine Cut Off Newsletter
* Music by Max Justus
* Artwork photo by SpaceX
* Work with me and my design and development agency: Pine Works
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Apr 30, 2023
T+249: Space Symposium Round Up Plus Drop-In Guests (Live from Space Symposium 2023)
Live from the Redwire booth at Space Symposium 2023! I discuss news, announcements, and happenings from the conference, then talk with a trio of drop-in guests: Sean Bedford (Director of Business Development, Astrobotic), Mike DeRosa (Co-Founder & CMO, Gravitics), and Jason Hopkins (Vice President of Strategy and Business Development, Crescent Space).
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 36 executive producers—SmallSpark Space Systems, Matt, Donald, Jan, Robb, Bob, Kris, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut), Warren, Russell, Stealth Julian, Harrison, Lee, Ryan, Frank, Steve, Chris, Benjamin, The Astrogators at SEE, Fred, Tyler, Theo and Violet, Simon, Dawn Aerospace, Joonas, Joel, David, Lars from Agile Space, Brad, Pat from KC, Pat, Moritz—and 845 other supporters.
Topics
* A Classic Main Engine Cut Off - YouTube
* Rocket Lab Introduces Suborbital Testbed Rocket, Selected for Hypersonic Test Flights | Rocket Lab
* Rocket Lab to refly Electron engine - Spa…
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Apr 28, 2023
T+248: Space Policy (Live from Space Symposium 2023)
Live from the Redwire booth at Space Symposium 2023! I discuss current space policy topics with Lori Garver (former Deputy Administrator of NASA), and Karina Drees (President, Commercial Spaceflight Federation).
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 36 executive producers—Steve, SmallSpark Space Systems, Pat from KC, Matt, Chris, Tyler, Bob, Harrison, Ryan, Frank, Simon, Dawn Aerospace, Benjamin, Lee, Pat, Russell, The Astrogators at SEE, Moritz, Kris, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut), Stealth Julian, Donald, David, Brad, Warren, Robb, Joonas, Theo and Violet, Lars from Agile Space, Fred, Jan, Joel—and 845 other supporters.
Topics
* Space Policy - YouTube
* Lori Garver
* Lori Garver (@Lori_Garver) / Twitter
* Escaping Gravity: My Quest to Transform NASA and Launch a New Space Age: Garver, Lori, Isaacson, Walter - Amazon.com: Books
* Escaping Gravity by Lori Garver | Audiobook | Audible.com
* Karina Drees (@karina_drees) / Twitter
* Commercial Sp…
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Apr 26, 2023
T+247: International Partnerships (Live from Space Symposium 2023)
Live from the Redwire booth at Space Symposium 2023! I talk about the state and future of international partnerships in space with Mike Gold (Chief Growth Officer, Redwire) Masami Onoda (Director of Washington, DC Office, JAXA), and Josh Wolny (Foreign Affairs Officer, US Department of State).
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 36 executive producers—Fred, Joonas, SmallSpark Space Systems, Ryan, Frank, David, Donald, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut), Matt, Dawn Aerospace, Pat, Simon, Kris, Lee, Steve, Lars from Agile Space, Brad, Stealth Julian, Warren, Bob, Theo and Violet, Harrison, Robb, Jan, Tyler, Joel, Benjamin, Pat from KC, Russell, Chris, The Astrogators at SEE, Moritz—and 845 other supporters.
Topics
* International Partnerships - YouTube
The Show
* Like the show? Support the show!
* Email your thoughts, comments, and questions to anthony@mainenginecutoff.com
* Follow @WeHaveMECO
* Follow @meco@spacey.space on Mastodon
* Listen to ME…
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Apr 24, 2023
T+246: Starship’s First Test Flight (with Jake Robins)
Starship finally(?) flew its first test flight! Jake Robins of Off-Nominal joins me to sort through our thoughts on how it went (it was janky), what’s next for Starship, and to try and figure out if SpaceX wasted more steel or time this week.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 36 executive producers—Tyler, Pat from KC, Brad, Theo and Violet, Matt, Fred, Robb, Simon, Dawn Aerospace, SmallSpark Space Systems, Moritz, Donald, Frank, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut), Kris, Harrison, Chris, Joel, Jan, Russell, Pat, Benjamin, David, Lee, Bob, Joonas, Lars from Agile Space, Stealth Julian, Steve, The Astrogators at SEE, Warren, Ryan—and 843 other supporters.
Topics
* Jake Robins (@JakeOnOrbit) / Twitter
* Starship Flight Test - YouTube
* SpaceX on Twitter: “Liftoff from Starbase”
* Starship lifts off on first integrated test flight, breaks apart minutes later - SpaceNews
* Off-Nominal
* Off-Nominal - YouTube
* Episode 104 - Ricky Bobby Goes to…
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Apr 17, 2023
T+245: Relativity Redesigns, Pivots to Terran R
After an unsuccessful first flight of Terran 1, Relativity has announced that they’ve moved on to a newly-redesigned Terran R. Overall I think this a good direction, but there are some serious questions to be asked of and headwinds to be managed by Relativity.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 35 executive producers—Warren, Lars from Agile Space, Donald, Lee, Andrew, Russell, Joel, Ryan, Jan, SmallSpark Space Systems, Bob, Steve, Matt, David, The Astrogators at SEE, Simon, Tyler, Pat, Moritz, Stealth Julian, Benjamin, Robb, Frank, Dawn Aerospace, Fred, Pat from KC, Theo and Violet, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Joonas, Kris, Chris, and four anonymous—and 836 other supporters.
MECO Live at Space Symposium 2023! On April 18 and 19, I’ll be hosting several live shows—my first ever!—at the Redwire booth at the 38th Annual Space Symposium in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Redwire will be hosting a whole set of events on the stage at their booth, inclu…
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Apr 5, 2023
T+244: Dawn Aerospace’s Rocket-Powered Mk-II Aurora Takes Flight (with Stefan Powell, CEO)
Stefan Powell, CEO of Dawn Aerospace, joins me to talk about their big news announced today: last week, they completed three rocket-powered flights of their Mk-II Aurora spaceplane in 3 consecutive days. We talk about that achievement, what the company is up to overall, what their vision and plans are for the future, and how they’re approaching the market in a unique way.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 34 executive producers—Benjamin, Ryan, Joel, Jorge, Andrew, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Russell, Donald, Frank, Joonas, Robb, The Astrogators at SEE, Simon, Lars from Agile Space, David, Fred, Warren, Pat, Pat from KC, Moritz, Steve, Tyler, Kris, Chris, Bob, Lee, Dawn Aerospace, Theo and Violet, Jan, Matt, SmallSpark Space Systems, and four anonymous—and 828 other supporters.
Topics
* Dawn Aerospace
* Dawn Mk-II Aurora — Dawn Aerospace
* Rocket-powered spaceplane takes flight — Dawn Aerospace
* Successful Rocket-Powered Flight - CEO…
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Mar 31, 2023
T+243: Live Show Announcement! Plus Virgin Orbit Nears the End, While Relativity Flies Terran 1
I share some big news about MECO and Off-Nominal live at Space Symposium 2023, and then dive into some recent launch stories: Relativity’s first flight of Terran 1, and Virgin Orbit nearing its end.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 35 executive producers—Benjamin, Ryan, Joel, Jorge, Andrew, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Russell, Donald, Frank, Joonas, Robb, The Astrogators at SEE, Simon, Lars from Agile Space, David, Fred, Warren, Pat, Pat from KC, Moritz, Steve, Tyler, Kris, Chris, Bob, Lee, Dawn Aerospace, Theo and Violet, Jan, Matt, SmallSpark Space Systems, and four anonymous—and 831 other supporters.
MECO Live at Space Symposium 2023! On April 18 and 19, I’ll be hosting several live shows—my first ever!—at the Redwire booth at the 38th Annual Space Symposium in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Redwire will be hosting a whole set of events on the stage at their booth, including 5 episodes of MECO and an Off-Nominal at happy hour.
Find me at t…
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Mar 16, 2023
T+242: NASA’s FY2024 Budget Request (with Casey Dreier)
Casey Dreier of The Planetary Society joins me to talk about the NASA FY2024 budget request and what it means for Artemis, the ISS, and planetary science.
Correction: At some point in the show, we said DAVINCI is managed out of APL, but it’s actually run out of Goddard. Sorry, Maryland!
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 35 executive producers—Pat, Joonas, Bob, The Astrogators at SEE, Fred, David, Kris, Joel, Dawn Aerospace, Jan, Matt, Robb, Warren, SmallSpark Space Systems, Frank, Ryan, Lars from Agile Space, Donald, Moritz, Simon, Theo and Violet, Benjamin, Chris, Pat from KC, Russell, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Steve, Jorge, Andrew, Lee, Tyler, and four anonymous—and 831 other supporters.
Topics
* Casey Dreier (@CaseyDreier) / Twitter
* Casey Dreier | The Planetary Society
* The Planetary Society
* Planetary Society (@exploreplanets) / Twitter
* T+235: Artemis I, 2022 Midterms (with Casey Dreier) - Main Engine Cut Off
* President…
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Mar 6, 2023
T+241: ULA on the Market
Eric Berger has three sources saying United Launch Alliance is being shopped around the market right now, so I kick around some thoughts on who may buy ULA, if an offer comes to fruition.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 35 executive producers—Matt, Russell, Pat, Warren, Lee, Kris, Frank, Joel, Lars from Agile Space, Jorge, Benjamin, Pat from KC, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Moritz, Steve, Joonas, Tyler, Bob, Dawn Aerospace, Robb, Theo and Violet, The Astrogators at SEE, David, Chris, Fred, Simon, Andrew, Jan, Donald, SmallSpark Space Systems, Ryan, and four anonymous—and 821 other supporters.
Topics
* Sources say prominent US rocket-maker United Launch Alliance is up for sale | Ars Technica
* Eric Berger on Twitter: “I've spoken with a lot of people about this in recent days, and the general consensus is that the favorites might be Lockheed or L3 Harris, followed by a Jeff Bezos company, followed by private equity. It will be some time befor…
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Feb 28, 2023
T+240: NSSL Phase 3, and a New Glenn Check In
The Space Force rolled out the draft RFP for Phase 3 of the National Security Space Launch program, and it looks pretty good! Elsewhere, NASA selected New Glenn to launch ESCAPADE in 2024, so I check in on the state of things over at Blue Origin—as always, it’s about the engines.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 44 executive producers—Simon, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian, Lars from Agile Space, Matt, The Astrogators at SEE, Chris, Fred, Dawn Aerospace, Andrew, Harrison, Benjamin, SmallSpark Space Systems, Tyler, Steve, Theo and Violet, Pat from KC and seven anonymous—and 821 other supporters.
Topics
* Space Force to change how it buys national security launches - SpaceNews
* Space Force looks to energize industry with next round of launch contracts - SpaceNews
* Space Force Reimagining Launch Service Procurement –…
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Feb 13, 2023
T+239: Space Policy with Lori Garver
Lori Garver, former NASA Deputy Administrator, joins me to talk about a whole host of space policy topics, including Artemis and lunar politics, the legacies of Commercial Cargo and Crew, the status of Commercial LEO Destinations, and also Lance Bass.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 42 executive producers—Simon, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian, Lars from Agile Space, Matt, The Astrogators at SEE, Chris, Fred, Dawn Aerospace, Andrew, Harrison, Benjamin, SmallSpark Space Systems, Tyler, Steve, Theo and Violet, and seven anonymous—and 814 other supporters.
Topics
* Lori Garver
* Lori Garver (@Lori_Garver) / Twitter
* Episode 66 - My Next One is “Fiction” - Off-Nominal
* Escaping Gravity: My Quest to Transform NASA and Launch a New Space Age: Garver, Lori, Isaacson, Walter - Amazon.com: Books
* Escaping Gravity by Lo…
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Jan 25, 2023
T+238: Rocket Lab Flies from Wallops Island (with Caleb Henry)
Caleb Henry of Quilty Analytics and I took a trip down to Wallops Island to watch Rocket Lab’s first Electron launch from the US. Listen to our conversation on the drive down to Virginia, a bit of me at the press site before launch, and the launch itself in wonderful stereo audio.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 43 executive producers—Simon, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian, Lars from Agile Space, Matt, The Astrogators at SEE, Chris, Fred, Hemant, Dawn Aerospace, Andrew, Harrison, Benjamin, SmallSpark Space Systems, Tyler, Steve, Theo and Violet, and seven anonymous—and 826 other supporters.
Topics
* Twitter thread of our trip
* Main Engine Cut Off, Spacey Space: “Pretty great day trip down to Wallops to see the Rocket Lab flight! Electron really has a kick, I was impressed. Beautiful and delicate second stage plume, to…
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Jan 17, 2023
T+237: Virgin Orbit and ABL Suffer Failures
Virgin Orbit’s first launch from the UK ended in failure, putting them in an even more precarious financial position. And on the other side of the North Pole, ABL’s first launch attempt ended in failure right on the launch pad in Alaska.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 43 executive producers—Simon, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian, Lars from Agile Space, Matt, The Astrogators at SEE, Chris, Fred, Hemant, Dawn Aerospace, Andrew, Harrison, Benjamin, SmallSpark Space Systems, Tyler, Steve, Theo and Violet, and seven anonymous—and 817 other supporters.
Topics
* First Virgin Orbit U.K. launch fails - SpaceNews
* Even before Monday’s launch failure, Virgin Orbit’s finances were dismal | Ars Technica
* First launch by ABL Space Systems fails shortly after liftoff – Spaceflight Now
The Show
* Like the show? Support…
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Dec 15, 2022
T+236: SpaceX Starshield, NSSL Phase 3
SpaceX rolled out Starshield, a new, Starlink-inspired (derived?) offering for national security space systems. And I have some thoughts on the upcoming National Security Space Launch Phase 3 contracting setup.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 42 executive producers—Simon, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian, Lars from Agile Space, Matt, The Astrogators at SEE, Chris, Fred, Hemant, Dawn Aerospace, Andrew, Harrison, Benjamin, SmallSpark Space Systems, Tyler, Steve, and seven anonymous—and 815 other supporters.
Topics
* SpaceX - Starshield
* SpaceX rolls out new business line focused on military satellite services - SpaceNews
* USA 320, ..., 323, 328, ..., 331 - Gunter's Space Page
* SpaceX launches Globalstar satellite on mysterious Falcon 9 mission - NASASpaceFlight.com
* Lockheed Martin, York Space to produce 20 satellit…
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Nov 29, 2022
T+235: Artemis I, 2022 Midterms (with Casey Dreier)
Casey Dreier of The Planetary Society joins me to talk about Artemis I, where the Artemis program goes from here, and what the 2022 midterm elections mean for space.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 44 executive producers—Simon, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian, Lars from Agile Space, Matt, The Astrogators at SEE, Chris, Aegis Trade Law, Fred, Hemant, Dawn Aerospace, Andrew, Harrison, Benjamin, SmallSpark Space Systems, Tyler, Sean & Daniel Hart, Steve, and seven anonymous—and 831 other supporters.
Topics
* Casey Dreier (@CaseyDreier) / Twitter
* Casey Dreier | The Planetary Society
* The Planetary Society
* Planetary Society (@exploreplanets) / Twitter
* NASA’s Artemis I mission has successfully… | The Planetary Society
* Why we have the SLS | The Planetary Society
* Artemis I | Flickr
* What the 2022 midter…
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Oct 28, 2022
T+234: Scott “Kidd” Poteet, Sarah Gillis, and Anna Menon of Polaris Dawn
The crew of Polaris Dawn—Scott “Kidd” Poteet, Sarah Gillis, and Anna Menon—join me to talk about the mission and its operations, their preparation and training so far, how their roles on past missions play into their role on this one, what they are learning and bringing back to their day-to-day roles, and what they’re excited about as they get ready to fly next year.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 43 executive producers—Simon, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian, Lars from Agile Space, Matt, The Astrogators at SEE, Chris, Aegis Trade Law, Fred, Hemant, Dawn Aerospace, Andrew, Harrison, Benjamin, SmallSpark Space Systems, Tyler, Sean & Daniel Hart, and seven anonymous—and 844 other supporters.
Topics
* T+233: Jared Isaacman, Polaris Program - Main Engine Cut Off
* Polaris Dawn
* Team - Polaris Program
* Centrifug…
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Oct 25, 2022
T+233: Jared Isaacman, Polaris Program
Jared Isaacman of the Polaris Program joins me to talk about how the program began, how it’s envisioned, how they choose what to take on and solve, how they interact with SpaceX, and why he’s chosen to contribute to spaceflight in this way.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 43 executive producers—Simon, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian, Lars from Agile Space, Matt, The Astrogators at SEE, Chris, Aegis Trade Law, Fred, Hemant, Dawn Aerospace, Andrew, Harrison, Benjamin, SmallSpark Space Systems, Tyler, Sean & Daniel Hart, and seven anonymous—and 841 other supporters.
Topics
* Polaris Program
* Polaris Dawn
* Inspiration4 - Home
* Centrifuge and hypoxia symptoms training - Polaris Program
* Polaris Dawn Selects 38 Science and Research Experiments to Advance Human Health and Space Exploration - Polaris Program
* Pola…
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Oct 12, 2022
T+232: A Visit to Astrobotic
Last week, I took a visit to Pittsburgh to visit Astrobotic, who is working on a few different landers and rovers destined for the Moon. I got to sit down with several team members for a series of conversations about what they’re working on, how things are going, and how the company is approaching the next few years in the industry.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 43 executive producers—Simon, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian, Lars from Agile Space, Matt, The Astrogators at SEE, Chris, Aegis Trade Law, Fred, Hemant, Dawn Aerospace, Andrew, Harrison, Benjamin, SmallSpark Space Systems, Tyler, nomadic, and seven anonymous—and 837 other supporters.
Topics
* Pittsburgh Aerospace Company | Astrobotic Technology
* Moon Manifest | Astrobotic Technology
* Astrobotic Unveils Peregrine Lunar Lander Flight Model | Astrobotic Techn…
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Sep 30, 2022
T+231: The Future of Private Astronaut Missions to the ISS
In the wake of Axiom-1, NASA has revised the requirements for future Private Astronaut Missions. It seems to put pressure on the market to focus on a certain customer base, like research and national astronauts, and it definitely changes the math for future flights.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 43 executive producers—Simon, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian, Lars from Agile Space, Matt, The Astrogators at SEE, Chris, Aegis Trade Law, Fred, Hemant, Dawn Aerospace, Andrew, Harrison, Benjamin, SmallSpark Space Systems, Schultzy, Tyler, and seven anonymous—and 848 other supporters.
Topics
* NASA revises requirements for ISS private astronaut missions - SpaceNews
* NASA division proposing program to send scientists to ISS - SpaceNews
* NASA, Axiom Sign Second Private Astronaut Mission to Space Station Order | NASA
* NASA r…
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Sep 19, 2022
T+230: Bob Pearce, Associate Administrator of NASA’s Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate
Bob Pearce, Associate Administrator of NASA’s Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate, joins me to talk about Aeronautics at NASA. We talk about how the directorate fits into the agency overall, how they develop its strategic direction, how they choose which projects to take on, how they transfer technology to industry, what they’re working on right now, and what they’ll tackle in the future.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 42 executive producers—Simon, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Matt, The Astrogators at SEE, Chris, Aegis Trade Law, Fred, Hemant, Dawn Aerospace, Andrew, Harrison, Benjamin, SmallSpark Space Systems, Schultzy, and seven anonymous—and 844 other supporters.
Topics
* Mr. Robert A. Pearce, Associate Administrator | NASA
* Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate | NASA
*…
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Sep 13, 2022
T+229: Space Insurance (with Richard Parker and John Farnsworth)
Richard Parker, Head of Space at Canopius, and John Farnsworth, insurance broker and space advocate, join me to talk about the (seemingly) most mysterious topic in spaceflight: insurance!
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 42 executive producers—Simon, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Matt, The Astrogators at SEE, Chris, Aegis Trade Law, Fred, Hemant, Dawn Aerospace, Andrew, Harrison, Benjamin, SmallSpark Space Systems, Schultzy, and seven anonymous—and 835 other supporters.
Topics
* Canopius global specialty (re)insurance
* Measat gives up on drifting satellite in a blow for insurers - SpaceNews
* Insurance claim for failed Measat-3 satellite in dispute - SpaceNews
* The Space Review: Boldly insure where no one has gone
* OneWeb takes $229 million charge for canceled Soyuz launches - SpaceNews…
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Sep 9, 2022
T+228: Artemis I, Act I
Artemis I scrubbed its way through its first and second launch attempts, and is now undergoing repairs on the pad, ahead of its next launch attempt. I talk about the initial attempts, general thoughts on where we’re at with this program, where it’s headed in the future, and what public reactions to Artemis I have been.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 43 executive producers—Simon, Lauren, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Matt, The Astrogators at SEE, Chris, Aegis Trade Law, Fred, Hemant, Dawn Aerospace, Andrew, Harrison, Benjamin, SmallSpark Space Systems, Schultzy, and seven anonymous—and 826 other supporters.
Topics
* First Artemis 1 launch attempt scrubbed - SpaceNews
* Second Artemis 1 launch attempt scrubbed - SpaceNews
* NASA to repair SLS liquid hydrogen leak on the pad - SpaceNews
*…
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Aug 22, 2022
T+227: Astrobee, Free-Flying Robots on the ISS (with Jonathan Barlow)
Jonathan Barlow from the NASA Ames Research Center joins me to talk about Astrobee—the free-flying robots on the International Space Station that test new technologies, sensors, and operations, and assist astronauts and mission controllers alike. Jonathan is the Astrobee Lead Engineer and has been with the program since the beginning, so we go way back to its origins and talk in-depth about what the robots are up to today on the ISS.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 43 executive producers—Simon, Lauren, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Matt, The Astrogators at SEE, Chris, Aegis Trade Law, Fred, Hemant, Dawn Aerospace, Andrew, Harrison, Benjamin, SmallSpark Space Systems, Schultzy, and seven anonymous—and 818 other supporters.
Topics
* What is Astrobee? | NASA
* Astrobee - Four Years in Video | NA…
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Aug 18, 2022
T+226: Northrop Grumman and Firefly Partner on Antares
Northrop Grumman and Firefly announced a partnership to develop a new first stage for Antares—the same first stage that will power Firefly’s larger launch vehicle, Beta. It’s a great partnership for both parties that will surely lead to more interesting things in the future.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 42 executive producers—Simon, Lauren, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Matt, The Astrogators at SEE, Chris, Aegis Trade Law, Fred, Hemant, Dawn Aerospace, Andrew, Harrison, Benjamin, SmallSpark Space Systems, and seven anonymous—and 816 other supporters.
Topics
* Northrop Grumman Teams with Firefly Aerospace to Develop Antares Rocket Upgrade and New Medium Launch Vehicle | Northrop Grumman
* Northrop Grumman and Firefly to partner on upgraded Antares - SpaceNews
* Beta - Firefly Aerospac…
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Aug 16, 2022
T+225: Astrogation with Space Exploration Engineering
Mike Loucks and John Carrico of Space Exploration Engineering join me to talk about astrogation, mission planning, missions they’ve worked on, how they interact with teams of all types, and everything else they do at SEE.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 42 executive producers—Simon, Lauren, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Matt, The Astrogators at SEE, Chris, Aegis Trade Law, Fred, Hemant, Dawn Aerospace, Andrew, Harrison, Benjamin, SmallSpark Space Systems, and seven anonymous—and 811 other supporters.
Topics
* Space Exploration Engineering
* Space Exploration Engineering (@SEE_Aerospace) / Twitter
* Mike Loucks (@Astrogator_Mike) / Twitter
* Astrogator John (@AstrogatorJohn) / Twitter
* Rocket Lab’s CAPSTONE injection profile comes from SEE’s broad experience in cislunar space | The…
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Aug 12, 2022
T+224: Northrop Grumman’s Commercial Space Station, with Rick Mastracchio (Director Of Business Development)
Rick Mastracchio, former NASA astronaut and current Director Of Business Development at Northrop Grumman Space Systems, joins me to talk about Northrop Grumman’s Commercial Space Station concept that they are working on as part of NASA’s Commercial LEO Destinations program.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 42 executive producers—Simon, Lauren, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Matt, The Astrogators at SEE, Chris, Aegis Trade Law, Fred, Hemant, Dawn Aerospace, Andrew, Harrison, Benjamin, SmallSpark Space Systems, and seven anonymous—and 807 other supporters.
Topics
* Commercial Space Station - Northrop Grumman
* Commercial Space Station Data Sheet - Northrop Grumman
* NASA Selects Companies to Develop Commercial Destinations in Space | NASA
* A Closer Look at Northrop Grumman Commercial Space…
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Jul 25, 2022
T+223: Viper Delayed, Masten Unravels, CLPS Moves On
NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services program is in a tricky spot right now. VIPER has been delayed a year, new task orders are being awarded to new teams like the one led by Draper, and Masten is all but dead.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 41 executive producers—Simon, Lauren, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Matt, The Astrogators at SEE, Chris, Aegis Trade Law, Fred, Hemant, Dawn Aerospace, Andrew, Harrison, Benjamin, and seven anonymous—and 810 other supporters.
Topics
* Commercial Lunar Payload Services | NASA
* NASA delays VIPER lunar rover launch by a year - SpaceNews
* WeMartians Podcast on Twitter: “I feel like maybe VIPER was rushed on to CLPS to give it some credibility. But now it’s two years behind schedule because NASA has changed the design, and the total cost is $433M.…
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Jul 21, 2022
T+222: Rogozin Out, Seat Exchange Signed
Some thoughts on where we are now that Dmitry Rogozin has been dismissed as head of Roscosmos, and that NASA and Roscosmos have signed a seat exchange agreement for future flights to the ISS.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 41 executive producers—Simon, Lauren, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Matt, The Astrogators at SEE, Chris, Aegis Trade Law, Fred, Hemant, Dawn Aerospace, Andrew, Harrison, Benjamin, and seven anonymous—and 805 other supporters.
Topics
* Rogozin Out, Seat Swaps In – SpacePolicyOnline.com
* The trampoline is now international: NASA and Roscosmos agree to seat swap | Ars Technica
* Parabolicarc.com on Twitter: “A little late to this, but my guess is Deputy Prime Minister Yuri Borisov is being shunted off to Roscomos due to poor performance in Ukraine of the military industr…
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Jul 1, 2022
T+221: Psyche Misses Its Launch Window, SIMPLEx Missions Struggle to Find Theirs (with Jake Robins)
Our good friend Jake Robins, host of WeMartians and my cohost on Off-Nominal, joins me to talk about Psyche missing its launch window, the state of the SIMPLEx program, its troubles with launch slots, and how NASA might approach this in the future.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 41 executive producers—Simon, Lauren, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Matt, The Astrogators at SEE, Chris, Aegis Trade Law, Fred, Hemant, Dawn Aerospace, Andrew, Harrison, Benjamin, and seven anonymous—and 813 other supporters.
Topics
* WeMartians Podcast
* 124 - The Future of the Mars Program (feat. Scott Hubbard)
* Jake Robins | Patreon
* WeMartians Podcast (@We_Martians) / Twitter
* Jake Robins (@JakeOnOrbit) / Twitter
* Off-Nominal
* NASA Announces Launch Delay for Psyche Asteroid Mission | NASA
* Softwar…
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Jun 17, 2022
T+220: Artemis Architecture (with Eric Berger)
Eric Berger of Ars Technica joins me to talk about the Artemis Program’s space suits, expensive launch sites, maybe-cheaper-but-at-least-not-as-delayed launch sites, vehicles, and its manifest over the next decade. Plus, a few bonus topics like Astra, Firefly, and Lori Garver’s new book.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 42 executive producers—Simon, Lauren, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Matt, The Astrogators at SEE, Chris, Aegis Trade Law, Fred, Hemant, Dawn Aerospace, Andrew, Harrison, Benjamin, and seven anonymous—and 804 other supporters.
Topics
* Eric Berger (@SciGuySpace) / Twitter
* Eric Berger | Ars Technica
* NASA Partners with Industry for New Spacewalking, Moonwalking Services | NASA
* NASA chooses two companies to build spacesuits for its 21st-century Moonwalkers | Ars…
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Jun 13, 2022
T+219: Starship Launch Plan Clears FAA Environmental Review, with Mitigations Required
SpaceX’s plans for launching Starship to orbit from Boca Chica cleared an environmental review with the FAA, but more than 75 mitigations are required in order to receive a launch license to carry out flights in the future.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 41 executive producers—Simon, Lauren, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Matt, The Astrogators at SEE, Chris, Aegis Trade Law, Fred, Hemant, Dawn Aerospace, Andrew, Harrison, and seven anonymous—and 799 other supporters.
Topics
* FAA Requires SpaceX to Take Over 75 Actions to Mitigate Environmental Impact of Planned Starship/Super Heavy Launches | Federal Aviation Administration
* SpaceX on Twitter: “One step closer to the first orbital flight test of Starship”
* FAA environmental review to allow Starship orbital launches after chang…
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Jun 9, 2022
T+218: Starliner Flies, Dragon Gets More Flights
Boeing completed Starliner’s long-awaited Orbital Flight Test-2 mission to the ISS, but about a week after landing, NASA announced its intent to buy more Dragon flights from SpaceX.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 41 executive producers—Simon, Lauren, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Matt, The Astrogators at SEE, Chris, Aegis Trade Law, Fred, Hemant, Dawn Aerospace, Andrew, Harrison, and seven anonymous—and 792 other supporters.
Topics
* NASA, Boeing Complete Starliner Uncrewed Flight Test to Space Station | NASA
* Boeing’s Starliner capsule completes first “nail-biting” docking at space station – Spaceflight Now
* Starliner concludes OFT-2 test flight with landing in New Mexico - SpaceNews
* NASA to buy five additional Crew Dragon flights - SpaceNews
* NASA Selects Companie…
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May 16, 2022
T+217: Artemis Accords, with Mike Gold
Mike Gold, Executive Vice President of Civil Space Business Development and External Affairs at Redwire, joins me to talk about his previous role at NASA, where he served as Associate Administrator for Space Policy and Partnerships, and was the driving influence behind the Artemis Accords.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 41 executive producers—Simon, Lauren, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Matt, The Astrogators at SEE, Chris, Aegis Trade Law, Fred, Hemant, Dawn Aerospace, Andrew, Harrison, and seven anonymous—and 795 other supporters.
Topics
* NASA Artemis Accords
* Mike Gold, Former Assoc. Admin. for Space Policy and Partnerships | NASA
* Space Industry Leader Mike Gold Joins Redwire as Executive Vice President of Civil Space Business Development and External Affairs | Redwire Space
*…
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Apr 27, 2022
T+216: Orbital Reef, with Brent Sherwood (SVP of Advanced Development Programs at Blue Origin)
Brent Sherwood, Senior Vice President of Advanced Development Programs for Blue Origin, joins me to talk about Orbital Reef. We talk about the long history leading up to this architecture, the nature of their partnership with Sierra Space and other team members, the parts of the program that are specific to their contract with NASA on the Commercial LEO Destinations project, and dive into how their business strategy might play out in the near future.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 40 executive producers—Simon, Lauren, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Matt, The Astrogators at SEE, Chris, Aegis Trade Law, Fred, Hemant, Dawn Aerospace, Andrew, and seven anonymous—and 788 other supporters.
Topics
* Blue Origin
* Orbital Reef
* Announcing Orbital Reef - Your Address in Orbit - YouTube
* Mix…
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Apr 25, 2022
T+215: CAPSTONE, with Brad Cheetham, CEO of Advanced Space
Brad Cheetham, co-founder, CEO, and President of Advanced Space joins me to talk about their upcoming CAPSTONE mission. We talk about how the mission came to be, what it’s been like working with NASA and the other partners on the mission, and then dive into the nerdy details of the trajectory it’s flying to the moon, the orbits it will operate in, how its autonomous positioning system works, and how it might be used in the future.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 40 executive producers—Simon, Lauren, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Matt, The Astrogators at SEE, Chris, Aegis Trade Law, Fred, Hemant, Dawn Aerospace, Andrew, and seven anonymous—and 783 other supporters.
Topics
* Advanced Space | Delivering Innovation to Orbit.
* CAPSTONE | Advanced Space
* CAPSTONE lunar cubesat mission…
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Apr 19, 2022
T+214: Andrew Maximov, Founder of Precious Payload
Andrew Maximov, founder of Precious Payload, joins me to talk about what he and his team have been working on, what they see as the missing pieces in the industry, and why they think they are building the right set of tools for where things are headed.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 40 executive producers—Simon, Lauren, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Matt, The Astrogators at SEE, Chris, Aegis Trade Law, Fred, Hemant, Dawn Aerospace, Andrew, and seven anonymous—and 773 other supporters.
Topics
* Precious Payload – Do rocket science. We'll do the rest.
* Precious Payload (@preciouspayload) / Twitter
* ‘Bringing space down to Earth for everyday people... using software?’ Precious Payload meets MECO - YouTube
The Show
* Like the show? Support the show!
* Email your thoughts, co…
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Apr 14, 2022
T+213: Amazon’s Project Kuiper Launch Contract Blockbuster
Amazon is purchasing up to 83 launches from Arianespace, Blue Origin and United Launch Alliance—in addition to the 9 Atlas V launches they bought last year—to deploy their Project Kuiper constellation. This is a huge deal that changes the game for heavy lift launch providers, and has major implications for the small launch providers in the industry.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 40 executive producers—Simon, Lauren, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Matt, The Astrogators at SEE, Chris, Aegis Trade Law, Fred, Hemant, Dawn Aerospace, Andrew, and seven anonymous—and 766 other supporters.
Topics
* Amazon signs multibillion-dollar Project Kuiper launch contracts - SpaceNews
* Arianespace, ULA, Blue Origin discuss executing ambitious Kuiper constellation missions for Amazon - NASASpaceFlight…
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Mar 29, 2022
T+212: NASA’s Budget, Commercial LEO, and the Sustaining Lunar Development Contract
The White House has finally submitted its fiscal year 2023 budget request, which has big implications for NASA’s Commercial LEO program, and their newest announcement, the upcoming Sustaining Lunar Development contract to support the Artemis program’s lunar landings through the 2020s.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 40 executive producers—Simon, Lauren, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Matt, The Astrogators at SEE, Chris, Aegis Trade Law, Fred, Hemant, Dawn Aerospace, Andrew, and seven anonymous—and 748 other supporters.
Topics
* NASA Provides Update to Astronaut Moon Lander Plans Under Artemis | NASA
* NASA Lays Out Revised Approach for Future Human Lunar Landing Systems – SpacePolicyOnline.com
* NASA to support development of second Artemis lunar lander - SpaceNews
* Budget Docu…
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Mar 17, 2022
T+211: Political and Industrial Fallout of the War
A follow-up on my last show with Debra Werner about the war in Ukraine and all the fallout from it, both political and industrial. Everything from the NASA budgets for 2022 and 2023, NASA telling astronauts to stop tweeting, the increased importance of European human spaceflight, and how the launch industry might shift in the future.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 40 executive producers—Simon, Lauren, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Matt, The Astrogators at SEE, Chris, Aegis Trade Law, Fred, Hemant, Dawn Aerospace, Andrew, and seven anonymous—and 738 other supporters.
Topics
* T+210: Ukraine, Russia, and the Space Industry (with Debra Werner) - Main Engine Cut Off
* NASA To Get $24 Billion for FY2022, More than Last Year But Less Than Biden Wanted – SpacePolicyOnline.com
* Scott Kelly…
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Mar 3, 2022
T+210: Ukraine, Russia, and the Space Industry (with Debra Werner)
Debra Werner of SpaceNews joins me to talk about Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine, the ways that it is affecting the space industry, how their last invasion had similar effects, and how the situation solidifies several arguments that have been made over the past decade or more.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 40 executive producers—Simon, Lauren, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Matt, The Astrogators at SEE, Chris, Aegis Trade Law, Fred, Hemant, Dawn Aerospace, Andrew, and seven anonymous—and 730 other supporters.
Topics
* Debra Werner, Author at SpaceNews
* Debra Werner (@spacereportr) / Twitter
* Previous invasion of Ukraine had serious repercussions for the space sector - SpaceNews
* EOS Data Analytics issues urgent plea for imagery of Ukraine - SpaceNews
* Russian military c…
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Feb 25, 2022
T+209: Off-Nominal 50 (with Michael Sheetz and Eric Berger)
A special feature of a very-MECO episode of my other podcast, Off-Nominal, that I did this week with Michael Sheetz of CNBC and Eric Berger of Ars Technica. If you have yet to check out Off-Nominal, find us on YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 40 executive producers—Simon, Lauren, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Matt, The Astrogators at SEE, Chris, Aegis Trade Law, Fred, Hemant, Dawn Aerospace, Andrew, and seven anonymous—and 749 other supporters.
Topics
* Off-Nominal
* Episode 50 - Was That a Bake Sale? - Off-Nominal (Show notes)
* Episode 50 - Was That a Bake Sale? (with Michael Sheetz and Eric Berger) - YouTube
* Off-Nominal - YouTube
* Subscribe to the show! - Off-Nominal
The Show
* Like the show? Support the show!
* Email your thoug…
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Feb 14, 2022
T+208: The Polaris Program
Jared Isaacman, commander of Inspiration4, announced the Polaris Program—a privately-funded development program to “rapidly advance human spaceflight capabilities” via flights on SpaceX’s Dragon and Starship vehicles. It begins with a mission to the highest Earth orbit ever flown by humans, featuring the first commercial spacewalk, and culminates with the first crewed Starship flight.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 40 executive producers—Simon, Lauren, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Matt, The Astrogators at SEE, Chris, Aegis Trade Law, Fred, Hemant, Dawn Aerospace, Andrew, and seven anonymous—and 738 other supporters.
Topics
* Polaris Program
* Inspiration4 - Home
* Jared Isaacman (@rookisaacman) / Twitter
* Starship Update - YouTube
The Show
* Like the show? Support the…
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Jan 21, 2022
T+207: 2022 Preview, Predictions, and Things to Watch (with Eric Berger)
Eric Berger of Ars Technica joins me to talk about what’s on our radar in 2022, to predict when the big new rockets will fly, and to generally catch up on what’s going on in the space industry.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 39 executive producers—Simon, Lauren, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Matt, The Astrogators at SEE, Chris, Aegis Trade Law, Fred, Hemant, Dawn Aerospace, and seven anonymous—and 741 other supporters.
Topics
* Eric Berger
* Eric Berger | Ars Technica
* Liftoff: Elon Musk and the Desperate Early Days That Launched SpaceX
* Rocket Report: SpaceX lands rocket cargo funding, Virgin Galactic’s stock crash | Ars Technica
* This may finally be the year we see some new chunky rockets take flight | Ars Technica
* Firefly Owner Max Polyakov to Sell Stake in Rocket…
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Dec 23, 2021
T+206: Going Independent
Last week I left my full-time gig at Big Cartel. I’m going independent to do more Main Engine Cut Off and Off-Nominal, and to make these space-focused projects the primary work that I do. I’m also going to be building some apps of my own, and doing a good bit of client work—which could include you! If you’ve got an app or a site or really anything digital to build, hit me up and let’s work together.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 39 executive producers—Simon, Lauren, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Matt, The Astrogators at SEE, Chris, Aegis Trade Law, Fred, Hemant, Dawn Aerospace, and seven anonymous—and 718 other supporters.
Topics
* Going Independent - Anthony Colangelo
* Home - Off-Nominal
* Off-Nominal - YouTube
* Off-Nominal Happy Hour - Dec 16, 2021 - YouTube
The Show…
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Dec 16, 2021
T+205: Phil McAlister, Director of Commercial Spaceflight at NASA
Phil McAlister, Director of Commercial Spaceflight at NASA, joins me to talk about the history of and lessons learned from the Commercial Cargo and Crew programs, what things went well and not so well in those programs, the difficulty of changing NASA’s approach to human spaceflight, how to deal with varying levels of Congressional funding and buy-in, and how all of that feeds into the new Commercial LEO Destinations program.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 39 executive producers—Simon, Lauren, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Matt, The Astrogators at SEE, Chris, Aegis Trade Law, Fred, Hemant, Dawn Aerospace, and seven anonymous—and 716 other supporters.
Topics
* Philip McAlister, HEO Director of Commercial Spaceflight Division | NASA
* NASA Releases COTS Final Report | NASA
* Internati…
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Dec 14, 2021
T+204: ISS Port Management (with Bill Spetch of NASA)
Bill Spetch, Manager of the ISS Vehicle Office at NASA, joins me to discuss the operational considerations of docking and berthing ports on the International Space Station, the recent traffic jams we’ve seen on station, why certain vehicles and systems use one port over the other, how to fit large cargo through docking ports, and what the future of ISS port operations look like in the era of commercial space station expansion.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 40 executive producers—Brandon, Simon, Lauren, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Matt, The Astrogators at SEE, Chris, Aegis Trade Law, Fred, Hemant, Dawn Aerospace, and seven anonymous—and 712 other supporters.
Topics
* NASA OIG, AUDIT OF COMMERCIAL RESUPPLY SERVICES TO THE INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION, April 26, 2018
* It now seems lik…
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Dec 7, 2021
T+203: Starlab with Marshall Smith, SVP of Space Systems at Nanoracks
Marshall Smith, Senior Vice President of Space Systems of Nanoracks, joins me to talk about Starlab, their commercial space station which recently won a contract award from NASA as part of their Commercial LEO Destinations program.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 40 executive producers—Brandon, Simon, Lauren, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Matt, The Astrogators at SEE, Chris, Aegis Trade Law, Fred, Hemant, Dawn Aerospace, and seven anonymous—and 706 other supporters.
Topics
* Nanoracks - Your Portal to Space
* Nanoracks Appoints Marshall Smith as Senior Vice President of Space Systems
* Starlab - The first ever free-flying commercial space station - Nanoracks
* Nanoracks Space Outpost Program
* T+200: Orbital Reef, Starlab, and the ISS Conundrum - Main Engine Cut Off
* Nanoracks a…
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Nov 30, 2021
T+202: The Geopolitics of ASAT Weapons and Space Debris (with Brian Weeden)
Brian Weeden of the Secure World Foundation joins me to talk about the technical and political fallout of Russia’s recent anti-satellite weapons demonstration, the history of anti-satellite weapons and testing, the geopolitical situation surrounding the topic, and what the future of space debris tracking and management looks like.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 40 executive producers—Brandon, Simon, Lauren, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Matt, The Astrogators at SEE, Chris, Aegis Trade Law, Fred, Hemant, Dawn Aerospace, and seven anonymous—and 712 other supporters.
Topics
* Brian Weeden (@brianweeden) / Twitter
* Dr. Brian Weeden | Secure World
* Promoting Cooperative Solutions for Space Sustainability | Secure World
* Global Counterspace Capabilities | Secure World
* SWF Release…
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Nov 19, 2021
T+201: Russia’s Reckless and Awful Anti-Satellite Operation
Russia recklessly carried out an anti-satellite operation on a large, defunct satellite in one of the most heavily-used and most important sections of Earth orbit. I share my thoughts on the operation, Russia’s status in the space industry at large, and what the technical and political fallout may be coming out of this.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 40 executive producers—Brandon, Simon, Lauren, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Matt, The Astrogators at SEE, Chris, Aegis Trade Law, Fred, Hemant, Dawn Aerospace, and seven anonymous—and 703 other supporters.
Topics
* Russia destroys satellite in ASAT test - SpaceNews
* Russia Confirms ASAT Test, Denies Debris Threat – SpacePolicyOnline.com
* SWF Releases Updated Compilation of Anti-satellite Testing in Space | Secure World
* 2021 Rus…
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Oct 28, 2021
T+200: Orbital Reef, Starlab, and the ISS Conundrum
Commercial space station mania! Blue Origin, Sierra Space, Boeing, and Redwire announced Orbital Reef, while Nanoracks and Lockheed Martin announced Starlab, all in the run up to the expected awards as part of NASA’s Commercial Low-Earth Orbit Destinations program.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 40 executive producers—Brandon, Simon, Lauren, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Matt, The Astrogators at SEE, Chris, Aegis Trade Law, Fred, Hemant, Dawn Aerospace, and seven anonymous—and 702 other supporters.
Topics
* Nanoracks and Lockheed Martin partner on commercial space station project - SpaceNews
* Blue Origin and Sierra Space announce plans for commercial space station - SpaceNews
* Orbital Reef
* Announcing Orbital Reef - Your Address in Orbit - YouTube
* Blue Origin and Sierra Spa…
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Oct 14, 2021
T+199: A Visit to the NASTAR Center (with Glenn King)
I took a half-hour ride out to the National Aerospace Training and Research (NASTAR) Center to take a tour with Glenn King, (COO, Director of Advanced Pilot & Space Training, and recent Netflix star) about their training, what they’ve been up to lately in this busy season of people going to space, and what the future may hold for spaceflight training. We tour their altitude chamber, spatial disorientation device, and high performance human centrifuge along with its various cockpits.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 41 executive producers—Brandon, Simon, Lauren, Melissa, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Matt, The Astrogators at SEE, Chris, Aegis Trade Law, Fred, Hemant, Dawn Aerospace, and seven anonymous—and 691 other supporters.
Topics
* Audio Gear as of March 7, 2020
* National Aerospace…
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Oct 7, 2021
T+198: Ryan McDevitt, CEO of Benchmark Space Systems
Ryan McDevitt, CEO of Benchmark Space Systems joins me to talk all about what Benchmark has been up to lately, what mobility-as-a-service means for the industry, and their partnership with Orbit Fab.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 41 executive producers—Brandon, Simon, Lauren, Melissa, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Matt, The Astrogators at SEE, Chris, Aegis Trade Law, Fred, Hemant, Dawn Aerospace, and seven anonymous—and 683 other supporters.
Topics
* Benchmark Space Systems
* Benchmark Space Systems unveils in-space mobility-as-a-service business - SpaceNews
* Satellite propulsion startup Benchmark eyes growth in military market - SpaceNews
* Orbit Fab
* Orbit Fab and Benchmark Space Systems to partner on in-space refueling technologies - SpaceNews
* Orbit Fab to launch propell…
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Sep 23, 2021
T+197: NASA’s Human Spaceflight Directorate Shakeup
At a town hall this week, NASA announced that the Human Exploration and Operations Mission Directorate will be split in two: the Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate, led by Jim Free, and the Space Operations Mission Directorate, led by Kathy Lueders. I discuss what this change might mean for the future of NASA’s human spaceflight program, and why I think it’s not something to worry about if you’re a Kathy Lueders stan.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 42 executive producers—Brandon, Matthew, Simon, Lauren, Melissa, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Matt, The Astrogators at SEE, Chris, Aegis Trade Law, Fred, Hemant, Dawn Aerospace, and seven anonymous—and 683 other supporters.
Topics
* NASA Town Hall on Human Spaceflight - YouTube
* NASA splits human spaceflight directora…
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Sep 8, 2021
T+196: Checking In on Small Launch with Firefly Alpha, Astra LV0006
Last week, Firefly made their first flight attempt of Alpha, and Astra launched their latest vehicle, LV0006. Though both ended in failure, it’s a good time to check in on them and other small launchers that will debut soon like, ABL’s RS1 and Relativity’s Terran 1, and how they may all compete with each other.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 42 executive producers—Brandon, Matthew, Simon, Lauren, Melissa, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Matt, The Astrogators at SEE, Chris, Aegis Trade Law, Fred, Hemant, Dawn Aerospace, and seven anonymous—and 662 other supporters.
Topics
* Firefly Alpha failure blamed on premature engine shutdown - SpaceNews
* Jack Beyer (@thejackbeyer) / Twitter
* Firefly Alpha FLTA001 - YouTube
* Firefly partners with Aerojet Rocketdyne, mulls AR1 engine for B…
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Aug 3, 2021
T+195: Blue Origin’s Project Jarvis, Suborbital Flights, and Nauka Fallout (with Eric Berger)
Eric Berger of Ars Technica returns to the show to talk about the recent crewed suborbital flights by Virgin Galactic and Blue Origin, Blue Origin’s Project Jarvis and their future work, and what the chaotic arrival of Nauka means for the future of the ISS and international space politics.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 43 executive producers—Brandon, Matthew, Simon, Lauren, Melissa, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, Grant, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Matt, The Astrogators at SEE, Chris, Aegis Trade Law, Fred, Hemant, Dawn Aerospace, and seven anonymous—and 618 other supporters.
Topics
* Eric Berger
* Eric Berger | Ars Technica
* Liftoff: Elon Musk and the Desperate Early Days That Launched SpaceX
* Here’s why Richard Branson’s flight matters—and, yes, it really matters | Ars Technica
* Blue Origin succe…
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Jul 23, 2021
T+194: Branson & Bezos Fly To Space
Richard Branson flew to space aboard SpaceShipTwo on Virgin Galactic’s Unity 22, and Jeff Bezos flew to space aboard Blue Origin’s New Shepard 16. I share my thoughts on the flights, the vehicles, and how I’m currently looking at suborbital tourism and why it does or doesn’t matter.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 42 executive producers—Brandon, Matthew, Simon, Lauren, Melissa, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, Grant, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Matt, The Astrogators at SEE, Chris, Aegis Trade Law, Fred, Hemant, and seven anonymous—and 628 other supporters.
Topics
* Virgin Galactic's First Fully Crewed Spaceflight #Unity22 - YouTube
* Virgin Galactic on Twitter: “Take-off! The #Unity22 crew including @RichardBranson leave Spaceport America, New Mexico for #VirginGalactic’s first fully-crewed spaceflight.”…
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Jul 9, 2021
T+193: Marcia Smith, SpacePolicyOnline.com
Marcia Smith of SpacePolicyOnline.com joins me for a round up of space policy news, including how the Biden and Nelson administrations are doing so far, things that are being overlooked or sidelined, the Senate’s NASA Authorization bill, NASA’s Human Landing System contract and the battle for funding, the space tourism learning period, and we finish with a quick look at what China and Russia have been up to lately.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 41 executive producers—Brandon, Matthew, Simon, Lauren, Melissa, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, Grant, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, The Astrogators at SEE, Chris, Aegis Trade Law, Fred, Hemant, and seven anonymous—and 613 other supporters.
Topics
* SpacePolicyOnline.com – Your first stop for news, information and analysis about civil, military and commercial space progra…
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Jun 23, 2021
T+192: iROSA with Matt LaPointe and Andrew Rush
I’m joined by Matt LaPointe, Technical Director at Redwire’s Deployable Space Systems, and Andrew Rush, COO of Redwire, to talk about the newest upgrade to the International Space Station: the Roll-Out Solar Arrays that are currently being deployed over the course of several spacewalks.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 41 executive producers—Brandon, Matthew, Simon, Lauren, Melissa, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, Grant, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Matt, The Astrogators at SEE, Chris, Aegis Trade Law, Fred, and seven anonymous—and 617 other supporters.
Topics
* Redwire | Heritage + Innovation
* Deployable Space Systems
* ROSA Flight Demonstration Hardware Successfully Deploys On ISS - Deployable Space Systems
* New Solar Arrays to Power NASA’s International Space Station Research | NASA
* Redwire acquires…
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Jun 8, 2021
T+191: Phil Bracken, VP of Engineering at Spaceflight
Phil Bracken, Vice President of Engineering at Spaceflight, joins me to talk about their past, current, and upcoming missions, the Sherpa program, and to dive into the technical details of it all.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 41 executive producers—Brandon, Matthew, Simon, Lauren, Melissa, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, Grant, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Matt, The Astrogators at SEE, Chris, Aegis Trade Law, Fred, and seven anonymous—and 595 other supporters.
Topics
* Philip Bracken - Spaceflight
* Spaceflight - Launch Services, Dedicated and Rideshare
* Spaceflight - Sherpa Program
* SSO-A - Spaceflight
* Integration Wrap Up for SXRS-5 - Spaceflight
* Inside look: Spaceflight ships out Sherpa orbital tugs
* T+162: Grant Bonin, SVP of Business Development at Spaceflight - Main Engine Cut Off
The Show…
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May 24, 2021
T+190: Brock Howe, Nanoracks Bishop Airlock Program Manager
Brock Howe, the Program Manager for Nanoracks’ Bishop Airlock, joins me to talk about the final build out and launch of Bishop, its installation on ISS, some details of its operations, and its plans for the future on ISS and beyond.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 40 executive producers—Brandon, Matthew, Simon, Lauren, Melissa, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, Grant, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Matt, The Astrogators at SEE, Chris, Aegis Trade Law, and seven anonymous—and 592 other supporters.
Topics
* Nanoracks - Your Portal to Space
* Bishop Airlock - First Commercal Space Station Airlock
* Nanoracks (@Nanoracks) / Twitter
* Brock Howe (@B_Rock_Howe) / Twitter
* Bishop Airlock Takes Flight, Headed to ISS on SpaceX-21 Launch
* Nanoracks on Twitter: “#BishopAirlock: Now mated to @Space_Station”
The Show…
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May 17, 2021
T+189: Stephen Forbes, DARPA Blackjack Program Manager
Stephen Forbes, the Program Manager for DARPA’s Blackjack project, joins me to talk about DARPA and its interaction with the rest of the Department of Defense, how they approach space initiatives, where Blackjack came from, where it’s going, what they hope to accomplish with it, and how it fits into the near-future of the industry.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 40 executive producers—Brandon, Matthew, Simon, Lauren, Melissa, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, Grant, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Matt, The Astrogators at SEE, Chris, Aegis Trade Law, and seven anonymous—and 589 other supporters.
Topics
* Blackjack
* Lockheed Martin wins $27 million contract modification for integration of DARPA’s Blackjack satellites - SpaceNews
* Northrop Grumman to supply navigation payloads for DARPA’s Blackjack satellites -…
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May 11, 2021
T+188: Starship SN15, and the HLS Protests
SpaceX successfully flew and landed Starship SN15 last week, amid protests of their NASA HLS award by Blue Origin and Dynetics.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 40 executive producers—Brandon, Matthew, Simon, Lauren, Melissa, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, Grant, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Matt, The Astrogators at SEE, Chris, Aegis Trade Law, and seven anonymous—and 576 other supporters.
Topics
* Starship | SN15 | High-Altitude Flight Test - YouTube
* Following Starship SN15's success, SpaceX evaluating next steps toward orbital goals - NASASpaceFlight.com
* Little Joe 2 BP-22 Successful Failure - YouTube
* T+186: NASA Selects Starship as Artemis Lander - Main Engine Cut Off
* Blue Origin protests NASA Human Landing System award - SpaceNews
* Dynetics protests NASA HLS award - SpaceNews
* SpaceX bid on lau…
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Apr 23, 2021
T+187: Eric Berger on Artemis, Starship, Amazon’s Atlas V Rides, and the State of Blue Origin
Eric Berger of Ars Technica returns to the show to talk about NASA selecting SpaceX’s Starship for its Artemis landings, Bill Nelson’s nomination hearing, Amazon buying 9 Atlas V launches for Kuiper, and the state of Blue Origin.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 40 executive producers—Brandon, Matthew, Simon, Lauren, Melissa, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, Grant, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Matt, The Astrogators at SEE, Chris, Aegis Trade Law, and seven anonymous—and 547 other supporters.
Topics
* Eric Berger
* Eric Berger | Ars Technica
* Liftoff: Elon Musk and the Desperate Early Days That Launched SpaceX
* NASA’s bold bet on Starship for the Moon may change spaceflight forever | Ars Technica
* Bill Nelson backs NASA decision on lunar lander in confirmation hearing | Ars Technica
* ABL Space has never…
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Apr 20, 2021
T+186: NASA Selects Starship as Artemis Lander
NASA selected SpaceX’s Starship as its ride for crew to the lunar surface as part of the Artemis program. As the Source Selection Statement outlines, Starship was selected as the sole winner because of the constrained lander budget. It’s an aggressive, interesting, and exciting move from NASA, so I have a lot of thoughts.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 40 executive producers—Brandon, Matthew, Simon, Lauren, Melissa, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, Grant, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Matt, The Astrogators at SEE, Chris, Jack, and seven anonymous—and 543 other supporters.
Topics
* As Artemis Moves Forward, NASA Picks SpaceX to Land Next Americans on Moon
* Source Selection Statement - Human Landing System, Option A Next Space Technologies for Exploration Partnerships-2
* Biden Requests 6.3 Percent Increase for NA…
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Mar 26, 2021
T+185: Bill Nelson Nominated as NASA Administrator
President Biden nominated Bill Nelson to be the new NASA Administrator, so I check in on some of my past thoughts on NASA Administrators and Jim Bridenstine, talk about Bill Nelson’s history in space policy, and what the future may hold under a Bill Nelson NASA.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 39 executive producers—Brandon, Matthew, Simon, Lauren, Melissa, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, Grant, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Matt, The Astrogators at SEE, Chris, and seven anonymous—and 523 other supporters.
Topics
* President Biden Announces his Intent to Nominate Bill Nelson for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration | The White House
* Widespread support for Nelson nomination to lead NASA - SpaceNews
* Sen. Nelson Floats Alternate Use for NASA Commercial Crew Money - SpaceNews
* NASA to offer funding…
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Mar 16, 2021
T+184: Jake Robins on the 2021 Mars Fleet and Future Exploration
Our good friend Jake Robins, host of WeMartians and my cohost on Off-Nominal, joins me to talk about the arrival and early operations of the 2021 Mars fleet—Hope, Tianwen-1, and Perseverance. Then we dig into what the future of Martian exploration looks like, including strategy, communications, sample return, and the upcoming decadal survey.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 39 executive producers—Brandon, Matthew, Simon, Lauren, Melissa, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, Grant, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Matt, The Astrogators at SEE, Chris, and seven anonymous—and 509 other supporters.
Topics
* WeMartians Podcast
* Jake Robins | Patreon
* WeMartians Podcast (@We_Martians) / Twitter
* Jake Robins (@JakeOnOrbit) / Twitter
* Home - Off-Nominal
* Episode 39 - Europe Saved Cassini’s Ass - Off-Nominal
* WeMarti…
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Mar 5, 2021
T+183: Peter Beck on Neutron, Going Public, and Eating Hats
Peter Beck, Founder, CEO, and CTO of Rocket Lab, joins me to talk about going public, their new, bigger launch vehicle, Neutron, updates to their Electron and Photon offerings, eating hats, and avoiding eating hats in the future.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 39 executive producers—Brandon, Matthew, Simon, Lauren, Melissa, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, Grant, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Matt, The Astrogators at SEE, Chris, and seven anonymous—and 498 other supporters.
Topics
* Peter Beck (@Peter_J_Beck) / Twitter
* Rocket Lab | Frequent and reliable access launch is now a reality | Rocket Lab
* Neutron | Rocket Lab
* Introducing Neutron - YouTube
* Episode T+182: Rocket Lab Neutron, Relativity Terran R - Main Engine Cut Off
* Rocket Lab says SPAC deal will accelerate development of Neutron rocket - SpaceN…
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Mar 2, 2021
T+182: Rocket Lab Neutron, Relativity Terran R
Relativity sorta-announced a bigger launch vehicle, Terran R. A few days later, Rocket Lab _really_ announced a bigger launch vehicle, Neutron. I hate one announcement, and love the other.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 38 executive producers—Brandon, Matthew, Simon, Lauren, Melissa, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, Grant, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Matt, The Astrogators at SEE, Chris, and seven anonymous—and 483 other supporters.
Topics
* Relativity's reusable Terran rocket competitor to SpaceX's Falcon 9
* Relativity Space on Twitter: “We've officially completed and buckle-tested the Stage 1 Iron Bird tank demonstrator model! Check out these shots of the tank moving outdoors, going fully vertically and being installed into our LA1 Structures Test Stand.”
* Neutron | Rocket Lab
* Introducing Neutron - YouTu…
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Feb 10, 2021
T+181: Falcon 9 Fleet, ABL in the UK, Firefly to the Moon
SpaceX broke their turnaround record and is racking up quite the flight history across their Falcon fleet. Lockheed selected ABL for a launch from the Shetland Islands. Firefly shook up their board, is looking for new investment, and won a CLPS contract from NASA.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 37 executive producers—Brandon, Matthew, Simon, Lauren, Melissa, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, Grant, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Matt, the Astrogators at SEE, and seven anonymous—and 471 other supporters.
Topics
* Gwynne Shotwell talks about selling flight-proven rockets, Starship | Ars Technica
* SpaceX fires 60 Starlink internet satellites into orbit, with more set to launch Friday – Spaceflight Now
* Lockheed Martin selects ABL Space Systems for UK launch - SpaceNews
* Episode T+169: Commercial Small Launcher Upda…
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Jan 28, 2021
T+180: Christian Davenport, The Washington Post, on the SLS Green Run, Axiom Ax-1, Virgin Orbit
Christian Davenport, reporter at The Washington Post, joins me to talk about the aborted SLS Green Run hot fire, the space policy landscape as we enter a new administration, Axiom’s Ax-1 mission and its crew, and Virgin Orbit’s first successful launch to orbit.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 37 executive producers—Brandon, Matthew, Simon, Lauren, Melissa, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, Grant, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Matt, Space Exploration Engineering, and seven anonymous—and 473 other supporters.
Topics
* Christian Davenport (@wapodavenport) / Twitter
* Christian Davenport - The Washington Post
* The Space Barons: Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, and the Quest to Colonize the Cosmos - Bookshop.org
* The Space Barons: Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, and the Quest to Colonize the Cosmos - Amazon
* Officials had doubts ab…
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Jan 18, 2021
T+179: Meagan Crawford, SpaceFund
Meagan Crawford, Co-Founder and Managing Partner of SpaceFund and host of the Mission Eve podcast, joins the show to talk about the financing side of space. We talk about recent rounds of fundraising, acquisitions, holding companies, and she helps me sort through my thoughts on the whole Special Purpose Acquisition Company trend.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 36 executive producers—Brandon, Matthew, Simon, Lauren, Melissa, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, Grant, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Matt, and seven anonymous—and 466 other supporters.
Topics
* Meagan Crawford (@MeaganMCrawford) / Twitter
* SpaceFund Venture Capital - Funding the Future | SpaceFund
* Mission Eve on Apple Podcasts
* Mission Eve | Podcast on Spotify
* SpaceX raises $1.9 billion in equity - SpaceNews
* Relativity Space raises $500 milli…
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Jan 11, 2021
T+178: Andrew Jones, on China’s Chang’e-5, 2021 Plans, and More
Andrew Jones returns to the show for the third time to talk about China’s current missions and future plans, including Chang’e-5, Tianwen-1, the Chinese Space Station, and the international politics surrounding it. And then we dig into the Chinese commercial market a bit—launch companies and remote sensing companies are raising a ton of money, but it’s not yet clear what effect that will have on the global market.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 36 executive producers—Brandon, Matthew, Simon, Lauren, Melissa, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, Moritz, Joel, Jan, Grant, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Matt, and seven anonymous—and 460 other supporters.
Topics
* Andrew Jones (@AJ_FI) / Twitter
* Andrew Jones, SpaceNews
* Andrew Jones, Space.com
* Andrew Jones, The Planetary Society
* Chang’e-5 spacecraft prepare for historic lun…
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Dec 21, 2020
T+177: NASA VCLS 2, Relativity, Astra, and Firefly
NASA awarded Venture Class Launch Services contracts to Astra, Firefly, and Relativity. Astra almost made orbit with its most recent test flight of Rocket 3.2. And something is up at Firefly, but I don’t know what yet.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 35 executive producers—Brandon, Matthew, Simon, Lauren, Melissa, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, Grant, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, and six anonymous—and 447 other supporters.
Topics
* NASA Awards Venture Class Launch Services Demonstration 2 Contract | NASA
* NASA Awards Venture Class Launch Services Contracts | NASA
* Astra, Relativity, and Firefly Win NASA Venture Class Launch Services Contracts - Main Engine Cut Off
* Virgin Orbit on Twitter: “Our vehicles, hardware, and software are all ready to go. With two rehearsals already complete, one final wet dress re…
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Dec 14, 2020
T+176: The Flight of Starship SN8
Starship SN8 took flight last week on a mostly-successful mission to test its final descent phase. I share some thoughts on the test, the state of Starship development, and what that all means for the near future of Starship.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 36 executive producers—Brandon, Matthew, Simon, Lauren, Melissa, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, Grant, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, and seven anonymous—and 438 other supporters.
Topics
* On the Spectacular Flight of Starship SN8 and the Future of Starship Development - Main Engine Cut Off
* Starship | SN8 | High-Altitude Flight Test - YouTube
* SpaceX on Twitter: “Starship landing flip maneuver”
* September 2019 Starship Update - YouTube
* U.S. Transportation Command to study use of SpaceX rockets to move cargo around the world - SpaceNews
* Epis…
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Dec 5, 2020
T+175: Delays
A lot of big, long-running projects have faced delays recently, and it seems like as good a time as any to check in and share some related thoughts. I cover a lot in this one: the Orion PDU issue, Ariane 6, Japan’s H3, Dream Chaser, Vulcan, and New Glenn.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 36 executive producers—Brandon, Matthew, Simon, Lauren, Melissa, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, Grant, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, and seven anonymous—and 434 other supporters.
Topics
* Component failure in NASA’s deep-space crew capsule could take months to fix - The Verge
* Update on Orion Final Assembly and Transfer – Artemis
* New Artemis 1 schedule uncertainty as NASA EGS ready to continue SLS Booster stacking - NASASpaceFlight.com
* NASA ‘Go’ for Green Run Wet Dress Rehearsal – Artemis
* Ariane 6 Slips t…
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Nov 25, 2020
T+174: SpaceX Crew-1 Kicks Off New Era for ISS
SpaceX Crew-1 successfully launched and docked last week, kicking off a new era of the ISS. It’s a good time to zoom out and look at the ISS program overall, and what it means for the future of space development.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 36 executive producers—Brandon, Matthew, Simon, Lauren, Melissa, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, Grant, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, and seven anonymous—and 430 other supporters.
Topics
* CREW-1 MISSION - SpaceX - Updates
* NASA's SpaceX Crew-1 Mission | NASA
* Crew-1 Mission | Launch - YouTube
* Crew-1 Mission | Rendezvous and Docking - YouTube
* NASA safety panel raises doubts about Starliner test flight schedule - SpaceNews
* Axiom Space finalizing first commercial ISS mission - SpaceNews
* Next-Generation Airlock Prepped for SpaceX CRS-21 Launch – Kenned…
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Nov 14, 2020
T+173: Headlines
With a massive amount of news happening in the week following the election here in the US, it’s a good opportunity to give everyone a listen in on MECO Headlines. I run through all the stories of the week each and every weekend just like this for the supporters of MECO, so if you like what you hear, join the Headlines tier or higher!
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 37 executive producers—Brandon, Matthew, Simon, Lauren, Melissa, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Nadim, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, Grant, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, and seven anonymous—and 421 other supporters.
Topics
* U.S. Department of Defense > Contract (SpaceX NSSL fleet surveillance)
* Airbus, Raytheon protest Space Development Agency satellite contract awards - SpaceNews
* Blue Canyon Technologies - Small Satellite Leader Blue Canyon Technologies To Be Acquired By…
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Oct 20, 2020
T+172: Lunar Politics
Last week, IAC 2020 brought a flurry of announcements and statements to digest. It’s a good time to check in on current and future lunar politics, with some statements by the ever-antagonistic Rogozin, seven countries signing onto the Artemis Accords, a handful of lunar development contracts announced, and the US election within sight.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 38 executive producers—Brandon, Matthew, Simon, Lauren, Melissa, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Nadim, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, Grant, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Adam, and seven anonymous—and 414 other supporters.
Topics
* Rogozin Wants ISS Extension, Gateway Too U.S.-Centric - SpacePolicyOnline.com
* Shared Standards are a Vital Part of Future Space Exploration - Administrator Jim Bridenstine
* NASA Artemis Accords
* Episode T+158: Doug Loverro Resigns, and a Bit…
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Oct 9, 2020
T+171: SpaceX, L3Harris Selected by SDA for Missile Warning Satellites
The Space Development Agency has selected L3Harris and SpaceX to produce satellites for a missile warning constellation. I break down the details of the SDA project, the technical aspects, and what it means to see SpaceX enter the world of satellite manufacturing and sales.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 38 executive producers—Brandon, Matthew, Simon, Lauren, Melissa, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Nadim, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, Grant, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Adam, and seven anonymous—and 402 other supporters.
Topics
* L3Harris, SpaceX win Space Development Agency contracts to build missile-warning satellites - SpaceNews
* SDA Awards Contracts for the First Generation of the Tracking Layer – Space Development Agency
* SDA RFP Seeks Industry Proposals for Launch Services – Space Development Agency
* SDA Tranche 0 Launch S…
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Oct 5, 2020
T+170: Catching Up on the News
I’m back after a few wonderful weeks offline with my newly-arrived son, Will! I figured I’d jump back in with a rundown of the important and notable bits of news that happened while I was gone.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 38 executive producers—Brandon, Matthew, Simon, Lauren, Melissa, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Ryan, Nadim, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, Grant, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Adam, and seven anonymous—and 402 other supporters.
Topics
* My son has arrived! Signing off for a few weeks. - Main Engine Cut Off
* Main Engine Cut Off on Twitter: “It’s Space Shirt Friday over in the @offnom Discord and I’m guessing @JimBridenstine will appreciate Will’s first participation in it.”
* Discovery of noxious gas on Venus could be a sign of life - The Verge
* What the future of Venus exploration could look like following…
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Aug 13, 2020
T+169: Commercial Small Launcher Updates
There have been a ton of recent updates from commercial small launch companies, like increased payload mass and volume from Rocket Lab, contracts and funding from ABL, solved vibration issues from Virgin Orbit, and a few others. With a handful of vehicles on the verge of their first launch, it’s a good time to take a higher-level look at these competitors.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 39 executive producers—Brandon, Matthew, Simon, Lauren, Melissa, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Nadim, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, Grant, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Adam, and seven anonymous—and 399 other supporters.
Topics
* Rocket Lab Increases Electron Payload Capacity, Enabling Interplanetary Missions and Reusability | Rocket Lab
* ABL Space Systems begins RS1 stage testing and reaches $90mm in funding
* Small launch startup ABL secures ov…
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Aug 10, 2020
T+168: SpaceX and ULA Win NSSL Phase 2
The long-awaited news is finally here! ULA and SpaceX have won the National Security Space Launch (NSSL) Phase 2 launch contracts from the US Department of Defense, which leaves Blue Origin’s New Glenn and Northrop Grumman’s OmegA out in the cold. I talk through what this means for each company and launch vehicle, and where things will go from here on all sides of the issue.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 39 executive producers—Brandon, Matthew, Simon, Lauren, Melissa, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Nadim, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, Grant, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Adam, and seven anonymous—and 398 other supporters.
Topics
* U.S. Department Of Defense > Contracts For Aug. 7, 2020
* Pentagon picks SpaceX and ULA to remain its primary launch providers - SpaceNews
* Air Force to end agreements with Blue Origin and Northrop G…
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Jul 29, 2020
T+167: Phillip Hargrove, NASA Launch Services Program
Phillip Hargrove, a Launch Vehicle Trajectory Analyst at NASA joins me to talk about NASA’s Launch Services Program. We discuss how LSP interacts with mission teams like Mars 2020 Perseverance, launch providers like United Launch Alliance and SpaceX, and what kind of work they tackle in their unique role tying it all together.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 39 executive producers—Brandon, Matthew, Simon, Lauren, Melissa, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Nadim, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, Grant, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Adam, and seven anonymous—and 398 other supporters.
Topics
* Off-Nominal - YouTube
* Off-Nominal
* 32 - Well Within the Kill Zone | Off-Nominal
* Episode 32 - Well Within the Kill Zone (with Richard Garriott) - YouTube
* Phillip H (@FlightMastrPhil) / Twitter
* Launching Rockets | NASA
* Phillip H on Tw…
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Jul 23, 2020
T+166: Laura Klicker and Daniel Gillies, Astrobotic
Two members of the Astrobotic team join me for a conversation: Laura Klicker, Payload Systems Management Lead, and Daniel Gillies, Mission Director for the Griffin/VIPER mission. We talk about Astrobotic’s first Peregrine mission coming up next year, the very exciting VIPER mission to the south pole of the Moon in 2023, payload management across multiple flights, the technical aspects of their various vehicles, and a whole lot more.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 38 executive producers—Brandon, Matthew, Simon, Lauren, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Nadim, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, Grant, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Adam, and seven anonymous—and 397 other supporters.
Topics
* Astrobotic
* Careers | Astrobotic
* Peregrine Lander | Astrobotic
* Griffin Lander | Astrobotic
* Astrobotic Awarded $79.5 Million Contract to Deliv…
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Jul 21, 2020
T+165: Caleb Henry on the OneWeb Acquisition, Starlink Antennas, C-Band Drama, and More
Caleb Henry of SpaceNews returns to the show to talk about the OneWeb acquisition and related fallout, Starlink antennas, the ongoing C-band drama including the satellite-buying bonanza, and he helps us understand the FCC-GPS-Ligado situation.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 38 executive producers—Brandon, Matthew, Simon, Lauren, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Nadim, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, Grant, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Adam, and seven anonymous—and 397 other supporters.
Topics
* Caleb Henry, SpaceNews
* Caleb Henry (@CHenry_SN) / Twitter
* British government and Bharti Global buy OneWeb, plan $1 billion investment to revive company - SpaceNews
* British military finalizes Skynet-6A contract with Airbus - SpaceNews
* Wyler claims breakthrough in low-cost antenna for OneWeb, other satellite systems - SpaceNews
* New…
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Jul 17, 2020
T+164: An Announcement, and a Check-in on International Space Policy and NSSL Phase 2
To start, there’s exciting news! My son is due at the end of August, and so I’ll be taking some time off after he arrives. Before that, I wanted to check in on two storylines.
Professional shit-stirrer Dmitry Rogozin made it pretty clear that Russia is not interested in the Artemis Program, while various countries around the world partner with NASA on it. And we’re only a few weeks out from the NSSL Phase 2 awards and there is some related budgetary considerations being debated, so it’s a good time to circle back on that.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 38 executive producers—Brandon, Matthew, Simon, Lauren, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Nadim, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, Grant, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Adam, and seven anonymous—and 392 other supporters.
Topics
* Rogozin Not Interested in Cooperating with U.S. on Lunar P…
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Jul 3, 2020
T+163: Suborbital Crew, Virgin Galactic to ISS
NASA recently established the Suborbital Crew office within the Commercial Crew Program, which will focus on developing a plan to fly personnel on suborbital spaceflights. At the same time, Virgin Galactic signed an agreement with NASA to provide private orbital spaceflights to the ISS.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 38 executive producers—Brandon, Matthew, Simon, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, Grant, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Adam, and seven anonymous—and 385 other supporters.
Topics
* NASA Developing a Plan to Fly Personnel on Suborbital Spacecraft | NASA
* Virgin Galactic to fly Italian Air Force research mission - SpaceNews.com
* Virgin Galactic Signs Space Act Agreement with NASA for Private Orbital Spaceflight to the International Space Station (ISS) - Virgin Galactic
The Show…
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Jun 26, 2020
T+162: Grant Bonin, SVP of Business Development at Spaceflight
Grant Bonin, Senior Vice President of Business Development at Spaceflight joins me to talk about everything they’ve been up to lately, including being acquired, signing deals with SpaceX for rideshares on Starlink missions and on dedicated flights to SSO, signing deals with new launch companies and international providers, and a lot more including manifesting satellites, last-mile services, and about what makes Spaceflight unique.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 38 executive producers—Brandon, Matthew, Simon, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, Grant, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Adam, and seven anonymous—and 385 other supporters.
Topics
* donate.offnominal.space
* Grant Bonin (@grantbonin) / Twitter
* Grant Bonin - Spaceflight
* Welcome to Spaceflight Grant! - Spaceflight
* Spaceflight I…
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Jun 22, 2020
T+161: Mark Wiese, Manager of NASA’s Gateway Deep Space Logistics
Mark Wiese, Manager of NASA’s Gateway Deep Space Logistics, joins me to talk about the logistics architecture for Gateway and, specifically, the selection of SpaceX and Dragon XL for missions in the future. He even lets me get really nerdy and responds to some of my complaints and questions from past episodes!
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 38 executive producers—Brandon, Matthew, Simon, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, Grant, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Adam, and seven anonymous—and 384 other supporters.
Topics
* Mark Wiese (@MW_go4launch) / Twitter
* Mark D. Wiese, Manager, Deep Space Logistics, Gateway Program | Kennedy Biographies | NASA
* About Gateway Deep Space Logistics | NASA
* NASA Awards Artemis Contract for Gateway Logistics Services | NASA
* Source Selection Statement fo…
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Jun 17, 2020
T+160: Lueders Leads HEO, Northrop Grumman Awarded HALO Contract
Northrop Grumman was awarded $187 million for the Gateway Habitat design, which caps off NASA’s 2020 budget work for Artemis components. Additionally, Kathy Lueders was named head of human spaceflight at NASA, which is huge and fantastic news. We take a look at the Artemis program’s acquisitions so far and the road ahead under Lueders’ leadership.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 38 executive producers—Brandon, Matthew, Simon, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, Grant, David, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Adam, and seven anonymous—and 377 other supporters.
Topics
* donate.offnominal.space
* Let’s Make Space Better. | Off-Nominal
* Origins: Jim Bridenstine | Off-Nominal
* WeMartians Podcast
* NASA to sole source Gateway habitation module to Northrop Grumman - SpaceNews.com
* NASA Awards Nor…
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Jun 5, 2020
T+159: SpaceX Demo-2 Carries Crew to ISS
It happened! American astronauts on American rockets from American soil. Bob and Doug successfully launched, docked to the ISS, and joined Expedition 63. I talk about what this means for SpaceX, NASA, space policy, and where things go from here.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 37 executive producers—Brandon, Matthew, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, Grant, David, Mints, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Adam, and six anonymous—and 371 other supporters.
Topics
* NASA Astronauts Launch from America in Test of SpaceX Crew Dragon | NASA
* Station Welcomes First SpaceX Crew Dragon with Astronauts | NASA
* SpaceX DM-2 Launch! Hang out and watch the prep, launch, and early orbital operations. - YouTube
* Crew Demo 2 (Launch) - YouTube
* Crew Demo 2 (Approach and Docking) - YouTube
* Main Engine Cut Off o…
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May 26, 2020
T+158: Doug Loverro Resigns, and a Bit About the Artemis Accords
The head of human spaceflight at NASA resigned last week, just before the most important crewed launch the agency has seen in a decade. However, it appears as though the resignation is related to the Artemis program and its landers. I give some thoughts on the implications of the departure, and also cover a recent development in international space politics—the Artemis Accords.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 37 executive producers—Brandon, Matthew, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, Grant, David, Mints, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Adam, and six anonymous—and 371 other supporters.
Topics
* NASA human spaceflight head Loverro leaves agency - SpaceNews.com
* Here’s why NASA’s chief of human spaceflight resigned—and why it matters | Ars Technica
* Doug Loverro Resigns - SpacePolicyOnline.com…
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May 5, 2020
T+157: Blue Origin, Dynetics, and SpaceX Win NASA Lunar Lander Contracts
NASA announced three contract awards for the Artemis Progam’s Human Landing System—a Blue Origin-led team, Dynetics, and SpaceX’s Starship. I talk through some thoughts on each landing system and what the future might hold for NASA, regarding both politics and decisions.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 37 executive producers—Brandon, Matthew, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, Grant, David, Mints, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Adam, and six anonymous—and 363 other supporters.
Topics
* NASA Selects Blue Origin, Dynetics, SpaceX for Artemis Human Landers
* NASA Names Companies to Develop Human Landers for Artemis Missions | NASA
* Blue Origin's HLS National Team Mission to the Moon to Stay with NASA - YouTube
* Dynetics Lander Infographic (PDF, 5.1MB)
* SpaceX on Twitter: “A lunar optimized…
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Apr 30, 2020
T+156: Sean Mahoney, CEO of Masten Space Systems
Sean Mahoney, CEO of Masten Space Systems joins me to talk about everything they’ve been up to lately, from flights of their terrestrial vehicles out in Mojave, NASA’s Lunar CATALYST program, their recent Commercial Lunar Payload Services task order award, and some other projects like DARPA’s XS-1, the Broadsword engine, and XEUS.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 37 executive producers—Brandon, Matthew, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, Grant, David, Mints, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Adam, and six anonymous—and 361 other supporters.
Topics
* Masten Space Systems
* Masten Space Systems (@mastenspace) / Twitter
* mastenspace - YouTube
* Whats the Point? — Masten Space Systems
* Lunar CATALYST | NASA
* XL-1 — Masten Space Systems
* NASA Awards Contract to Deliver Science, Tech to Moo…
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Apr 22, 2020
T+155: Peter Beck on the Pandemic’s Effect on the Industry and Rocket Lab’s Busy Few Months
Peter Beck, Founder, CEO, and CTO of Rocket Lab returns to the show to talk about how the industry is dealing with the pandemic, and to update us on their busy past few months, including their acquisition of Sinclair Interplanetary, flying missions to the Moon and beyond, and their work towards reusability.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 37 executive producers—Brandon, Matthew, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, Grant, David, Mints, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Adam, and six anonymous—and 357 other supporters.
Topics
* Peter Beck (@Peter_J_Beck) | Twitter
* Rocket Lab | Frequent and reliable access launch is now a reality | Rocket Lab
* Rocket Lab (@RocketLab) | Twitter
* Rocket Lab - YouTube
* Episode T+138: Peter Beck, Founder of Rocket Lab - Main Engine Cut Off
* Rocket Lab executive says c…
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Apr 17, 2020
T+154: Tim Ellis, CEO and Cofounder of Relativity
Tim Ellis, CEO and Cofounder of Relativity joins me for an in-depth discussion about Relativity’s status and work towards their first launch. We cover everything from their company vision, funding, new headquarters, wider fairing, customer backlog, potential west coast launch site, and dive into the details of Stargate and Relativity’s materials work.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 37 executive producers—Brandon, Matthew, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, Grant, David, Mints, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Adam, and six anonymous—and 354 other supporters.
Topics
* Relativity Space
* Terran — Relativity Space
* Stargate — Relativity Space
* Relativity Space (@relativityspace) / Twitter
* Tim Ellis (@thetimellis) / Twitter
* Relativity Space raises $140 million - SpaceNews.com
* Relativ…
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Apr 9, 2020
T+153: Boeing to Refly Starliner Uncrewed Test, While SpaceX Crew Plans Firm Up
A flurry of Commercial Crew news hit last week: new crew members were announced for SpaceX Crew-1, Jim Bridenstine shed some light on the DM-2 schedule, and Boeing will refly the Starliner uncrewed test flight. I break down each of those and talk through why those stories are more connected than was hinted at by NASA and others.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 37 executive producers—Brandon, Matthew, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, Grant, David, Mints, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Adam, and six anonymous—and 352 other supporters.
Topics
* NASA selects astronauts for Crew Dragon mission - SpaceNews.com
* NASA, SpaceX to launch astronauts in May despite coronavirus pandemic
* Boeing will refly botched Starliner test flight, setting back its hopes for sending people into space this year - The Washing…
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Apr 2, 2020
T+152: SpaceX’s Dragon XL Wins Gateway Logistics Services Contract
NASA selected SpaceX and their new Dragon XL vehicle as the first Gateway Logistics Services provider. I take some time to think through why SpaceX is interested in this program, what they might want to get out of it, and what we could see Dragon XL doing in the future.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 38 executive producers—Brandon, Matthew, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, Grant, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Adam, and six anonymous—and 352 other supporters.
Topics
* NASA Awards Artemis Contract for Gateway Logistics Services | NASA
* NASA Seeks Information for Gateway Cargo Delivery Services
* Episode T+124: Gateway Logistics Services, FY2020 NDAA, and Small GEO Satellites - Main Engine Cut Off
* NASA to pay more for less cargo delivery to the space station | Ars Technica
*…
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Mar 23, 2020
T+151: Northrop Grumman, Satellite Servicing, and DARPA’s RSGS
After a tumultuous past few years, DARPA has selected a new partner for RSGS. It is none other than Northrop Grumman, who has found early success with their satellite servicing ventures.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 38 executive producers—Brandon, Matthew, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, Grant, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Adam, and six anonymous—and 349 other supporters.
Topics
* MEV-1 Docks with Intelsat 901 - Main Engine Cut Off
* Maxar/SSL Cancels DARPA RSGS Satellite Servicing Agreement - Main Engine Cut Off
* DARPA picks Northrop Grumman as its commercial partner for satellite servicing program - SpaceNews.com
* Northrop Grumman’s Wholly Owned Subsidiary, SpaceLogistics, Selected by DARPA as Commercial Partner for Robotic Servicing Mission | Northrop Grumman
* No…
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Mar 9, 2020
T+150: SpaceX Signs Crew Flight Agreements with Axiom, Space Adventures
SpaceX recently signed two agreements: one with Axiom Space to fly a private mission up to the ISS, and one with Space Adventures for a free-flying tourist flight up to 1,000 kilometers. I discuss these two missions and why agreements like this are key to SpaceX’s long-term strategy.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 38 executive producers—Brandon, Matthew, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, Grant, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Adam, and six anonymous—and 347 other supporters.
Topics
* Axiom Space plans first-ever fully private human spaceflight mission to International Space Station
* Episode T+147: Mike Suffredini, President & CEO of Axiom - Main Engine Cut Off
* Space Adventures Announces Agreement with SpaceX to Launch Private Citizens on the Crew Dragon Spacecraft - Space Adve…
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Feb 28, 2020
T+149: Let’s Talk About Starship with Tim Dodd, the Everyday Astronaut
Tim Dodd, the Everyday Astronaut, joins me to talk all about SpaceX’s Starship, its history thus far, it’s nearly-impossible-to-keep-up-with development in the open, and what we may see in the coming months. We make some timeline predictions, talk about the predicament of Boca Chica, and both randomly stumble into completely unsupported theories.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 37 executive producers—Brandon, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, Grant, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd the Everyday Astronaut, Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Adam, and six anonymous—and 345 other supporters.
Topics
* Everyday Astronaut
* Everyday Astronaut (@Erdayastronaut) / Twitter
* Everyday Astronaut - YouTube
* Starship | SpaceX
* Starship Development Thread - r/spacex
* A conversation with Elon Musk about Starship - YouTube
* Is SpaceX's Raptor e…
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Feb 19, 2020
T+148: Gerst to SpaceX, and Why Landing is Part of Mission Success
Long-time head of human spaceflight at NASA, Bill Gerstenmaier, has joined SpaceX as a consultant, but everyone is excited for the wrong reasons. And SpaceX missed a booster landing on their most recent Starlink launch, which prompted a new round of debates over whether booster recovery is part of mission success or not.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 37 executive producers—Brandon, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, Grant, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd the Everyday Astronaut, Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Adam, and six anonymous—and 335 other supporters.
Topics
* SpaceX hires former NASA official William Gerstenmaier
* Gerst the Politician, Gerst the Engineer - Main Engine Cut Off
* Starlink Mission - YouTube
* SpaceX launches fifth batch of Starlink satellites, misses booster landing - SpaceNews.com
The Show
* Like the show? Sup…
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Feb 13, 2020
T+147: Mike Suffredini, President & CEO of Axiom
Mike Suffredini, President and CEO of Axiom, joins me to talk about their recent announcement: Axiom has been selected by NASA for access to an ISS port. They will build out Axiom Station as an expansion of the ISS, and eventually operate it as a free-flying space station. Before Axiom, Mike was NASA’s ISS Program Manager for a decade.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 37 executive producers—Brandon, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, Grant, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd the Everyday Astronaut, Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Adam, and six anonymous—and 328 other supporters.
Topics
* Axiom Space
* Axiom Space - Overview and Team
* NASA Selects First Commercial Destination Module for Space Station | NASA
* Axiom selected by NASA for access to International Space Station port
* Assembly Sequence: Watch the Axiom Segment of the ISS constr…
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Jan 31, 2020
T+146: Loren Grush on Commercial Crew, Starlink, NASA Authorization, and More
Loren Grush of The Verge joins me to talk about a whole host of current topics—SpaceX’s in-flight abort test, Starliner’s shaky first test and its fallout, space traffic, Starlink, the NASA Authorization bill, and why ”Space is hard” is the worst mantra.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 37 executive producers—Brandon, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, Grant, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd the Everyday Astronaut, Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Adam, and six anonymous—and 329 other supporters.
Topics
* Loren Grush (@lorengrush) | Twitter
* Loren Grush Profile and Activity - The Verge
* Verge Science - YouTube
* SpaceX successfully tests escape system on new spacecraft — while destroying a rocket - The Verge
* Boeing and NASA are forming an investigation team to figure out cause of spacecraft mishap - The Verge
* Starliner…
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Jan 25, 2020
T+145: Caleb Henry
Caleb Henry of SpaceNews joins me to talk about the recent happenings in the satellite industry, including new ITU milestones for megaconstellations, SpaceX’s big year for Starlink, OneWeb’s progress, and DirecTV’s battery issue.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 38 executive producers—Brandon, Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, Grant, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd the Everyday Astronaut, Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Adam, and six anonymous—and 325 other supporters.
Topics
* Caleb Henry, SpaceNews.com
* Caleb Henry (@CHenry_SN) / Twitter
* ITU sets milestones for megaconstellations - SpaceNews.com
* SpaceX becomes operator of world’s largest commercial satellite constellation with Starlink launch - SpaceNews.com
* DirecTV fears explosion risk from satellite with damaged battery - SpaceNews.com
* Boeing says Spaceway-1 batter…
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Dec 31, 2019
T+144: 2019 Impacts
A look back at 2019 through the lens of “Who actually did something that matters this year?”
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 38 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd the Everyday Astronaut, Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Adam, Sam, and six anonymous—and 325 other supporters.
The Show
* Like the show? Support the show!
* Email your thoughts, comments, and questions to anthony@mainenginecutoff.com
* Follow @WeHaveMECO
* Listen to MECO Headlines
* Join the Off-Nominal Discord
* Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Pocket Casts, Spotify, Google Play, Stitcher, TuneIn or elsewhere
* Subscribe to the Main Engine Cut Off Newsletter
* Buy shirts and Rocket Socks from the Main Engine Cut Off Shop
* Music by Max Justus
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Dec 23, 2019
T+143: Starliner, 2020 US Space Budget
Starliner’s flight test did not go as planned, and the US 2020 budget was passed, which creates Space Force and has big implications for NASA’s work.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 38 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd the Everyday Astronaut, Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Adam, Sam, and six anonymous—and 317 other supporters.
Topics
* Starliner anomaly to prevent ISS docking - SpaceNews.com
* NASA, Boeing Complete Successful Landing of Starliner Flight Test | NASA
* Thoughts on Starliner - Main Engine Cut Off
* Trump Signs FY2020 Appropriations Into Law – SpacePolicyOnline.com
* Artemis Wins Only Lukewarm Support in Final NASA FY2020 Appropriation – SpacePolicyOnline.com
* Trump signs defense bill establishing U.S. Space Force: What comes next - SpaceNews.com…
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Dec 16, 2019
T+142: T.S. Kelso, CelesTrak and AGI
Last week, I took a ride out to the AGI offices and sat down with Josh Poley and T.S. Kelso. We shot a handful of videos for AGI’s YouTube channel, the longest of which was this interview right here.
I talked with T.S. Kelso about the history of CelesTrak.com and satellite tracking on the internet as a whole, as well as a few topics relevant to the modern day: satellite tracking and orbit reporting among operators, conjunction and collision monitoring, and space debris mitigation and management.
Be sure to follow along with AGI’s channel as the rest of the videos go live throughout the week!
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 38 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd the Everyday Astronaut, Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Adam, Sam, and six anonymous—and 314 other supporters.
Topics…
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Dec 13, 2019
T+141: Dylan Taylor, Voyager Space Holdings
Dylan Taylor, Chairman and CEO of Voyager Space Holdings, joins me to talk about the new company, how it fits into the industry, his vision for space, and their first acquisition (and past MECO guest!), Altius Space Machines.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 38 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd the Everyday Astronaut, Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Adam, Sam, and six anonymous—and 314 other supporters.
Topics
* Voyager Space Holdings
* Dylan Taylor - Voyager Space Holdings
* Voyager Space Holdings (@VoyagerSH) | Twitter
* Dylan Taylor (@SpaceAdvisor) | Twitter
* Altius Space Machines
* Episode T+82: Jon Goff, Altius Space Machines - Main Engine Cut Off
* OneWeb and OneWeb Satellites bolster commitment to Responsible Space with advanced grappling technology from Altius…
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Nov 27, 2019
T+140: Launch Protests and Lander Hopefuls
Blue Origin successfully protested the US Air Force’s RFP for the National Security Space Launch program, which will have big implications for the way the current round of contract awards plays out. NASA added five new providers to the Commercial Lunar Payload Services program, including SpaceX and Blue Origin, and I’ve got some thoughts about the inclusion of those options in what is quickly becoming my favorite NASA program.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 38 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd the Everyday Astronaut, Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Adam, Sam, and six anonymous—and 310 other supporters.
Topics
* Air Force to revise selection criteria for launch procurement in wake of Blue Origin’s successful protest - SpaceNews.com
* Redacted GAO Decision (PDF)
* New Co…
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Nov 21, 2019
T+139: RemoveDEBRIS with Richard Duke
Richard Duke from the Surrey Space Center joins me to talk about their RemoveDEBRIS mission, which launched last year and carried out 4 different tests focused on space debris removal and management.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 38 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd the Everyday Astronaut, Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Adam, Sam, and six anonymous—and 308 other supporters.
* Surrey Space Centre | University of Surrey
* RemoveDEBRIS | University of Surrey
* Remdeb Mission Highlights - YouTube
* RemoveDebris Mission - YouTube
* Surrey Nanosats SSC Mission Delivery Team - YouTube
* Like the show? Support the show!
* Email your thoughts, comments, and questions to anthony@mainenginecutoff.com
* Follow @WeHaveMECO
* Listen to MECO Headlines
* Join the Off-Nominal…
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Oct 30, 2019
T+138: Peter Beck, Founder of Rocket Lab
Peter Beck, Founder, CEO, and CTO of Rocket Lab, joins me to talk about what they’ve been up to with Electron and Photon, as well as some of their new offerings like ground station support through KSAT and Photon missions to the Moon.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 38 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd the Everyday Astronaut, Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Adam, Sam, and six anonymous—and 296 other supporters.
* Peter Beck (@Peter_J_Beck) | Twitter
* Rocket Lab | Frequent and reliable access launch is now a reality | Rocket Lab
* Rocket Lab (@RocketLab) | Twitter
* Rocket Lab - YouTube
* Rocket Lab | Electron - satellite launch vehicle | Rocket Lab
* Photon | Rocket Lab
* Rocket Lab successfully launches ninth Electron mission, deploys payload to highest orbit yet |…
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Oct 28, 2019
T+137: Artemis Politics, United Lander Alliance
Artemis and international politics were on display on the first day of IAC 2019, followed by strange-yet-politically-minded partnerships on the second day.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 38 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd the Everyday Astronaut, Frank, Julian and Lars from Agile Space, Tommy, Adam, Sam, and six anonymous—and 295 other supporters.
* Pence calls for American-led cooperation in space exploration - SpaceNews.com
* Blue Origin | Blue Origin Announces National Team for NASA’s Artemis Human Landing System
* Blue Origin teams up with Lockheed Martin and more for human lunar lander design - The Verge
* Like the show? Support the show!
* Email your thoughts, comments, and questions to anthony@mainenginecutoff.com
* Follow @WeHaveMECO
* Listen to MECO Headlines
* Join the…
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Oct 12, 2019
T+136: Starship to GTO, SSO from Florida
A few bits of follow-up on Starship to GTO, the Bridenstine-Musk show at SpaceX HQ, and flying to polar orbits from Florida.
Meetup alert! Sunday, October 20, 2019 in Washington, DC. Hang out with me, Jake, and a ton of amazing people of space the night before IAC 2019 kicks off. Details at events.offnominal.space.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 39 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd the Everyday Astronaut, Frank, Rui, Julian, Lars, Tommy, Adam, Sam, and six anonymous—and 284 other supporters.
* SpaceX targets 2021 commercial Starship launch - SpaceNews.com
* WATCH LIVE: Elon Musk and NASA chief give an update on SpaceX's astronaut spacecraft – 10/10/2019 - YouTube
* 45th Space Wing commander: Changes underway to support commercial launch - SpaceNews.com
* Michael Baylor on Twitter: “Th…
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Oct 8, 2019
T+135: Jake Robins on Starship
Jake Robins, host of WeMartians and my co-host on Off-Nominal, joins me for Part 2 of our conversation about SpaceX’s 2019 Starship update. Part 1 can be found over on WeMartians.
Meetup alert! Sunday, October 20, 2019 in Washington, DC. Hang out with me, Jake, and a ton of amazing people of space the night before IAC 2019 kicks off. Details at events.offnominal.space.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 39 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd the Everyday Astronaut, Frank, Rui, Julian, Lars, Tommy, Adam, Sam, and six anonymous—and 276 other supporters.
* 65 - Starship on Course (feat. Anthony Colangelo) - WeMartians Podcast — Part 1 of our Starship conversation
* Jake Robins (@JakeOnOrbit) | Twitter
* Home - WeMartians Podcast
* Off-Nominal
* Starship | SpaceX
* Starship Update - YouTube…
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Sep 27, 2019
T+134: Headlines (with news on Orion, NEOCam, and more)
I’ve got a special preview of MECO Headlines for the main feed this week, with news on Orion, NASA’s FY2020 budget, NEOCam’s legacy, Starship, and more.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 39 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd the Everyday Astronaut, Frank, Rui, Julian, Lars, Tommy, Adam, Sam, and six anonymous—and 272 other supporters.
Headlines
* Off-Nominal Events: Meetup in DC—Sunday, October 20th!
* NASA Commits to Long-term Artemis Missions with Orion Production | NASA
* Senate appropriators advance bill funding NASA despite uncertainties about Artemis costs - SpaceNews.com
* NASA to develop mission to search for near-Earth asteroids - SpaceNews.com
* Elon Musk on Twitter: “Three Raptors on a Starship”
* Elon Musk on Twitter: “Adding the rear moving fins to Starship Mk1…
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Sep 17, 2019
T+133: Kurt Klaus on CLPS
Kurt Klaus, Chair of the Lunar Exploration Analysis Group’s Commercial Advisory Board, joins me to talk about NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services program, and the wider potential for commercial flights to the Moon and beyond.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 39 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd the Everyday Astronaut, Frank, Rui, Julian, Lars, Tommy, Adam, Sam, and six anonymous—and 271 other supporters.
* Mr. Kurt K. Klaus
* Lunar Exploration Analysis Group (LEAG)
* Commercial Lunar Payload Services | NASA
* NASA Selects First Commercial Moon Landing Services for Artemis | NASA
* NASA Selects 12 New Lunar Science, Technology Investigations | NASA
* NASA Selects Experiments for Possible Lunar Flights in 2019 | NASA
* Episode T+129: Steve Altemus and Dr. Tim Crain, Intuitive Ma…
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Sep 12, 2019
T+132: SpaceX SmallSat Updates
SpaceX updated their SmallSat launch offering—dropping the price and increasing the number of flights. It certainly looks like they’ll be a force to be reckoned with in the small launch market.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 39 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd the Everyday Astronaut, Frank, Rui, Julian, Lars, Tommy, Adam, Sam, and six anonymous—and 269 other supporters.
* SpaceX - Smallsat Program
* SpaceX revamps smallsat rideshare program - SpaceNews.com
* SpaceX plans 24 Starlink launches next year - SpaceNews.com
* Email your thoughts, comments, and questions to anthony@mainenginecutoff.com
* Follow @WeHaveMECO
* Listen to MECO Headlines
* Join the Off-Nominal Discord
* Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Pocket Casts, Spotify, Google Play, Stitcher, TuneIn or elsewhere…
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Aug 31, 2019
T+131: Andrew Rush, CEO of Made in Space
Andrew Rush, CEO of Made in Space, joins me to talk about their big new NASA contract for Archinaut One and the history, present, and future of in-space manufacturing.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 40 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd the Everyday Astronaut, Frank, Rui, Julian, Lars, Tommy, Adam, Sam, and six anonymous—and 265 other supporters.
* Made In Space | Build Above
* NASA Funds Demo of 3D-Printed Parts Made, Assembled in Orbit | NASA
* Made In Space Awarded NASA Contract For Robotic Manufacturing And Assembly Flight Demo Mission | Made In Space
* Archinaut One Solar Array Deployment - YouTube
* Made In Space, Inc. Completes Successful Ground-Based Manufacturing & Assembly Testing For Archinaut Program | Made In Space
* Archinaut
* NASA seeks to break the “tyranny…
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Aug 14, 2019
T+130: SmallSat Launch Roundup
SmallSat was last week which meant a flurry of announcements. This year was launch heavy, so I break down some announcements from SpaceX, Arianespace, and Rocket Lab.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 40 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd the Everyday Astronaut, Frank, Rui, Julian, Lars, Tommy, Adam, Sam, and six anonymous—and 259 other supporters.
* SmallSat - Home
* SpaceX - Smallsat Program
* Arianespace’s “GO-1” mission will provide small satellites with a direct flight to geostationary orbit - Arianespace
* Rocket Lab Announces Reusability Plans For Electron Rocket | Rocket Lab
* Electron Is Going Reusable - YouTube
* Here’s why Rocket Lab changed its mind on reusable launch | Ars Technica
* Can Rocket Lab really catch a rocket with a helicopter? - YouTube
* PDG A…
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Aug 5, 2019
T+129: Steve Altemus and Dr. Tim Crain, Intuitive Machines
Steve Altemus, President & CEO, and Dr. Tim Crain, VP of Research & Development, from Intuitive Machines join me to talk about their Nova-C lander, the Commercial Lunar Payload Services program, and their task order from NASA for a landing on the Moon in July, 2021.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 41 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd the Everyday Astronaut, Frank, Rui, Julian, Lars, Tommy, Adam, Sam, and six anonymous—and 253 other supporters.
* Intuitive Machines
* NASA Selects Intuitive Machines for Robotic Return to the Moon in 2021 | Intuitive Machines
* Commercial Lunar Payload Services | NASA
* NASA Selects First Commercial Moon Landing Services for Artemis | NASA
* NASA: Private Houston company working on moon landing | khou.com
* Back to the moon: Johnson Space…
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Aug 2, 2019
T+128: NASA Shuffles CLPS, Partners on Blue Moon and Starship
NASA terminated OrbitBeyond’s CLPS task order, opened CLPS up to more providers, and announced exciting partnerships with Blue Origin, SpaceX, and others.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 41 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd the Everyday Astronaut, Frank, Rui, Julian, Lars, Tommy, Adam, Sam, and six anonymous—and 253 other supporters.
* NASA Partners on Blue Moon and Starship, and Shuffles CLPS Providers - Main Engine Cut Off
* Commercial lunar lander company terminates NASA contract - SpaceNews.com
* NASA Announces Next Phase of Commercial Lunar Payload Services | NASA
* Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) On-Ramping - Federal Business Opportunities: Opportunities
* NASA Announces Industry Partnerships to Advance Moon, Mars Technology | NASA
* NASA agrees to work…
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Jul 28, 2019
T+127: Gateway Habitat, Starhopper, and ABL Space Systems
I share some thoughts on three important stories from this week: NASA quietly announced their intention to sole source the Gateway habitat to Northrop Grumman, Starhopper made its first flight, and Lockheed Martin invested in ABL Space Systems.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 40 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd the Everyday Astronaut, Frank, Rui, Julian, Lars, Tommy, Adam, and six anonymous—and 253 other supporters.
* NASA to sole source Gateway habitation module to Northrop Grumman - SpaceNews.com
* NASA selects Maxar to build first Gateway element - SpaceNews.com
* SpaceX’s Starship prototype has taken flight for the first time | Ars Technica
* Lockheed Martin Ventures Invests in ABL Space Systems - Main Engine Cut Off
* ABL Space Systems Increases Payload, Cuts Pric…
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Jul 18, 2019
T+126: The NASA Ousters
Two top NASA human exploration leaders—Bill Gerstenmaier and Bill Hill—have been ousted from their positions. I break down what this means for NASA and its plans, where things could go from here, and ponder whether these changes really matter.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 39 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd the Everyday Astronaut, Frank, Rui, Julian, Lars, Tommy, and six anonymous—and 244 other supporters.
* NASA administrator on recent personnel shakeup: ‘There’s no turmoil at all’ - The Verge
* Contractors continue to win award fees despite SLS and Orion delays - SpaceNews.com
* Artemis cost estimate won’t be ready until 2020 - SpaceNews.com
* Sirangelo leaves NASA after exploration reorganization scrapped - SpaceNews.com
* Main Engine Cut Off Shop — A…
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Jul 3, 2019
T+125: Andrew Jones
Andrew Jones returns to the show to update us on China’s various efforts. We talk Chang’e-4 and Yutu-2, the mysterious Long March 5 delay, and what the future of Chinese launch may look like.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 39 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd the Everyday Astronaut, Frank, Rui, Julian, Lars, Tommy, and six anonymous—and 244 other supporters.
* Andrew Jones (@AJ_FI) | Twitter
* Andrew Jones | The Planetary Society
* Andrew Jones - SpaceNews.com
* Chang’e-4 may have discovered material from the Moon’s mantle | The Planetary Society
* China’s moon, Mars and space station missions may be facing delays - SpaceNews.com
* Chinese commercial launch sector regulations released, new launch vehicle plans unveiled - SpaceNews.com
* Andrew Jones on Twit…
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Jun 20, 2019
T+124: Gateway Logistics Services, FY2020 NDAA, and Small GEO Satellites
NASA put out a draft RFP for Gateway Logistic Services, the House Armed Services’ Committee weighs in on the US Air Force launch contracting drama, and a new company building small geostationary satellites has emerged.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 40 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd the Everyday Astronaut, Frank, Rui, Julian, Lars, Heather, Tommy, and six anonymous—and 247 other supporters.
* NASA to seek proposals for Gateway logistics - SpaceNews.com
* House Armed Services’ space launch legislation revised in 11th-hour deal - SpaceNews.com
* The Search for the Small GEO Sweet Spot - Main Engine Cut Off
* Former ABS execs form small GEO builder Saturn Satellite Networks - SpaceNews.com
* Astranis lands anchor customer for its first small GEO satellite - SpaceNews…
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Jun 10, 2019
T+123: The Noosphere of Influence
NASA made a series of announcements about their ISS commercialization effort and the first Commercial Lunar Payload Services missions, and Firefly unveiled their Orbital Transfer Vehicle. And there’s a really interesting connection between all three stories.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 40 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd the Everyday Astronaut, Frank, Rui, Julian, Lars, Heather, Tommy, and six anonymous—and 243 other supporters.
* NASA Opens International Space Station to New Commercial Opportunities | NASA
* NASA Selects First Commercial Moon Landing Services for Artemis | NASA
* Firefly’s Orbital Transfer Vehicle
* Noosphere Ventures | Technology Knowledge Humanity
* Email your thoughts, comments, and questions to anthony@mainenginecutoff.com
* Follow @WeHave…
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May 28, 2019
T+122: National Security SpaceX Lawsuit
NSSL, LSA, OMG! Last week, SpaceX filed a lawsuit against the US Air Force over the Launch Service Agreement development contracts. We’re mere months away from bids being due for the National Security Space Launch Phase 2 launch contracts, so I figured now would be a good time to take a step back to explain what these programs are, why they matter, and why SpaceX is filing this lawsuit at this moment in time.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 40 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd the Everyday Astronaut, Frank, Rui, Julian, Lars, Heather, Tommy, and six anonymous—and 251 other supporters on Patreon.
* Crunch time: Rocket companies in all-out battle for Air Force award - SpaceNews.com
* SpaceX’s Redacted Filing (PDF, 4.2 MB)
* SpaceX launches new legal battle against U.S. Air…
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May 17, 2019
T+121: Artemis, Blue Moon, Starship, and Politics
NASA and the White House released a summary of the FY2020 budget amendment this week, alongside the new name: Project Artemis. I talk through some political fallout, what the future may hold, and the chaos elements that are Blue Moon and Starship.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 40 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd the Everyday Astronaut, Frank, Rui, Julian, Lars, Heather, Tommy, and six anonymous—and 249 other supporters on Patreon.
* America to the Moon by 2024, NASA’s FY 2020 Budget Amendment Summary (PDF, 510 KB)
* Artemis - Main Engine Cut Off
* NASA Taps 11 American Companies to Advance Human Lunar Landers | NASA
* Administration Asks For Authority to Shift Money Within NASA to Pay for Moon Program - SpacePolicyOnline.com
* The uphill battle NASA faces to sell its…
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May 7, 2019
T+120: Dr. Mike Baine, Axiom Space
Dr. Mike Baine, Chief Engineer of Axiom Space, joins us to talk through Axiom’s plans for commercial low Earth orbit space stations.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 40 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd the Everyday Astronaut, Frank, Rui, Julian, Lars, Heather, Tommy, and six anonymous—and 243 other supporters on Patreon.
* Downlink
* Axiom Space
* Axiom Space | About Axiom Space
* Project Morpheus : Home
* Project Morpheus : Video Archive
* Intuitive Machines
* Email your thoughts, comments, and questions to anthony@mainenginecutoff.com
* Follow @WeHaveMECO
* Listen to MECO Headlines
* Join the Off-Nominal Discord
* Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Pocket Casts, Spotify, Google Play, Stitcher, TuneIn or elsewhere
* Subscribe to the Main Engine Cut Of…
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Apr 18, 2019
T+119: Dr. John Charles
Dr. John Charles spent nearly 33 years at NASA—most recently as Chief Scientist of the Human Research Program—working on human spaceflight through Shuttle, Mir, ISS, and beyond. He lead missions such as STS-95 (John Glenn’s Shuttle flight), STS-107, and the Twins Study with Scott and Mark Kelly. He retired from NASA in February 2018 and is now the Scientist in Resident at Space Center Houston. We talk about his career, the human spaceflight issues he worked and solved in his time at NASA, and the things that need to be solved for the exploration of the Moon, Mars, and beyond.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 39 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd the Everyday Astronaut, Frank, Rui, Julian, Lars, Heather, and six anonymous—and 238 other supporters on Patreon.
* AstroCryptoTrivi…
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Apr 8, 2019
T+118: Rapid Agile Launch Initiative
Last week, the US Air Force announced and expounded on the Rapid Agile Launch Initiative. Along with the new initiative, the new era of small launch is finally here, so it’s worth discussing a bit.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 39 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd the Everyday Astronaut, Frank, Rui, Julian, Lars, Heather, and six anonymous—and 239 other supporters on Patreon.
* Rapid Agile Launch Initiative - Main Engine Cut Off
* Rocket Lab to launch three R&D satellites for the U.S. Air Force | Rocket Lab
* Virgin Orbit wins first Defense Department launch contract - SpaceNews.com
* US Air Force releases RFI for SRP-O ASLON-45 small launch effort | Jane's 360
* Relativity Signs Telesat, Eyes Polar Launch Site - Main Engine Cut Off
* Email your thoughts, comments,…
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Apr 2, 2019
T+117: Q&A
This month we talk EM-1, Moon by 2024, the commercialization of LEO, and more.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 38 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd the Everyday Astronaut, Frank, Rui, Julian, Lars, and six anonymous—and 239 other supporters on Patreon.
* Email your thoughts, comments, and questions to anthony@mainenginecutoff.com
* Follow @WeHaveMECO
* Listen to MECO Headlines
* Join the Off-Nominal Discord
* Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Pocket Casts, Spotify, Google Play, Stitcher, TuneIn or elsewhere
* Subscribe to the Main Engine Cut Off Newsletter
* Buy shirts and Rocket Socks from the Main Engine Cut Off Shop
* Support Main Engine Cut Off on Patreon
* Music by Max Justus
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Mar 28, 2019
T+116: On the Moon by 2024
The National Space Council met this week and Vice President Pence announced the administration’s intentions to see humans land on the moon by 2024. I break down my thoughts and observations coming out of the meeting.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 38 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd the Everyday Astronaut, Frank, Rui, Julian, Lars and six anonymous—and 235 other supporters on Patreon.
* Fifth Meeting of the National Space Council - YouTube
* Remarks by Vice President Pence at the Fifth Meeting of the National Space Council | Huntsville, AL | The White House
* Pence calls for human return to the moon by 2024 - SpaceNews.com
* Email your thoughts, comments, and questions to anthony@mainenginecutoff.com
* Follow @WeHaveMECO
* Listen to MECO Headlines
* Join the Off-N…
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Mar 18, 2019
T+115: Caleb Henry
Caleb Henry of SpaceNews joins me live in studio to talk about his trip to Kourou for the first OneWeb launch, more affordable antennas, the current spectrum wars, and more from the world of satellites.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 37 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd the Everyday Astronaut, Frank, Rui, Julian, and six anonymous—and 230 other supporters on Patreon.
* Caleb Henry (@CHenry_SN) | Twitter
* Caleb Henry, Author at SpaceNews.com
* OneWeb's first six satellites in orbit following Soyuz launch - SpaceNews.com
* Caleb Henry on Twitter: “Just realized Twitter clipped the video BEFORE you can see Soyuz. Here is the actual video.”
* Average revenue per user (ARPU)
* Wyler claims breakthrough in low-cost antenna for OneWeb, other satellite systems - SpaceNews…
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Mar 13, 2019
T+114: EM-1 Hot Drama with Eric Berger
Eric Berger of Ars Technica joins me to talk about the latest in SLS Hot Drama: the 2020 budget request and a Bridenstine appearance in the Senate that might just go down in history. This week, NASA has proposed flying the three prime missions of SLS on commercial vehicles, setting the stage for an interesting few months of politics and engineering, and introducing some serious questions about the future of SLS.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 37 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd the Everyday Astronaut, Frank, Rui, Julian, and six anonymous—and 229 other supporters on Patreon.
* Eric Berger (@SciGuySpace) | Twitter
* Eric Berger | Ars Technica
* New White House budget spells trouble for NASA’s SLS rocket | Ars Technica
* NASA to consider use of private rockets for first O…
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Mar 1, 2019
T+113: Q&A
This month, we talk the GEO slowdown, the LEO boom, and as always, take on some fun launch vehicle questions.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 35 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd the Everyday Astronaut, Frank, and six anonymous—and 223 other supporters on Patreon.
* Email your thoughts, comments, and questions to anthony@mainenginecutoff.com
* Follow @WeHaveMECO
* Listen to MECO Headlines
* Join the Off-Nominal Discord
* Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Pocket Casts, Spotify, Google Play, Stitcher, TuneIn or elsewhere
* Subscribe to the Main Engine Cut Off Newsletter
* Buy shirts and Rocket Socks from the Main Engine Cut Off Shop
* Support Main Engine Cut Off on Patreon
* Music by Max Justus
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Feb 27, 2019
T+112: SLC-20, SPD-4, and a Soyuz Soapbox
Firefly Aerospace is taking over Space Launch Complex 20, President Trump signed Space Policy Directive-4, and NASA is looking to buy more Soyuz seats, even though they always say it’s too late to do that.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 35 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd the Everyday Astronaut, Frank, and six anonymous—and 220 other supporters on Patreon.
* Resurrected Firefly Aerospace will take over a launch site at busy Florida spaceport - The Verge
* Text of Space Policy Directive-4: Establishment of the United States Space Force | The White House
* Space Policy Directive-4 - Main Engine Cut Off
* NASA Looking to Buy Two More Soyuz Seats, Even Though They Always Say It’s Too Late to Do That - Main Engine Cut Off
* Email your thoughts, comments, and questions to…
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Feb 21, 2019
T+111: SpaceX, the Established Launch Provider
A tale of politics, protests, and contracts tells the story of how SpaceX is in transition—and maybe has already transitioned—from a scrappy upstart to an established launch provider.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 35 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd the Everyday Astronaut, Frank, and six anonymous—and 219 other supporters on Patreon.
* California Space Mafia Needles the Air Force - Main Engine Cut Off
* Lawmakers: Air Force launch procurement strategy undermines SpaceX - SpaceNews.com
* SpaceX Protests Lucy Launch Contract - Main Engine Cut Off
* SpaceX protests NASA launch contract award - SpaceNews.com
* Air Force Awards EELV Phase-1A-6 Contracts - Main Engine Cut Off
* U.S. Department of Defense Contracts for February 19, 2019
* Project Announcement: Evaluat…
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Feb 11, 2019
T+110: Starship, New Glenn, and RS1 Updates
ABL Space Systems announced some changes to RS1, Blue Origin broke ground in Huntsville and signed a new customer, and SpaceX has been making steady progress on Starship.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 35 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd the Everyday Astronaut, Frank, and six anonymous—and 218 other supporters on Patreon.
* ABL Space Systems increases performance and cuts price of its small launch vehicle - SpaceNews.com
* Blue Origin breaks ground for BE-4 factory - SpaceNews.com
* Blue Origin’s Powerful New Glenn Rocket to Launch Telesat’s Advanced Global LEO Satellite Constellation | Telesat
* Telesat signs New Glenn multi-launch agreement with Blue Origin for LEO missions - SpaceNews.com
* New Raptor Fires Up - Main Engine Cut Off
* Elon Musk on Twitter: “De…
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Feb 2, 2019
T+109: Q&A
We cover a lot of ground in this round of questions, nearly all focused on the future—ISS crew scheduling, ISS facilities, ISRO human spaceflight, science missions, and launch vehicles.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 35 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd the Everyday Astronaut, Frank, and six anonymous—and 221 other supporters on Patreon.
* Email your thoughts, comments, and questions to anthony@mainenginecutoff.com
* Follow @WeHaveMECO
* Listen to MECO Headlines
* Join the Off-Nominal Discord
* Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Pocket Casts, Spotify, Google Play, Stitcher, TuneIn or elsewhere
* Subscribe to the Main Engine Cut Off Newsletter
* Buy shirts and Rocket Socks from the Main Engine Cut Off Shop
* Support Main Engine Cut Off on Patreon
* Music by…
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Jan 21, 2019
T+108: Layoffs and Launch Sites
I wanted to spend some time breaking down a few news items from last week that may be leading indicators of trends for 2019: layoffs at Stratolaunch, Tethers Unlimited, and SpaceX, and Relativity signed a lease for Launch Complex 16 at Cape Canaveral.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 35 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd the Everyday Astronaut, Frank, and six anonymous—and 216 other supporters on Patreon.
* Stratolaunch space venture cuts back sharply on operations – GeekWire
* Tethers Unlimited lays off 20 percent of staff due to NASA shutdown – GeekWire
* SpaceX laying off 10 percent of its workforce - SpaceNews.com
* In blow to Los Angeles, SpaceX is moving some Mars spaceship and booster work to Texas - Los Angeles Times
* Relativity to Operate Cape Canaveral Launch…
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Jan 15, 2019
T+107: Chris Gebhardt
Chris Gebhardt of NASASpaceflight joins me to talk all things SpaceX: Starship and its upcoming hopper tests, DM-1 and the government shutdown, and more.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 34 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd the Everyday Astronaut, and six anonymous—and 213 other supporters on Patreon.
* Chris G - NSF (@ChrisG_NSF) | Twitter
* NASASpaceFlight.com
* SpaceX gearing up for Starship tests at Boca Chica – NASASpaceFlight.com
* Falcon 9 with Dragon 2 rolls out for DM-1 dry dress rehearsal at 39A – NASASpaceFlight.com
* Email your thoughts and comments to anthony@mainenginecutoff.com
* Follow @WeHaveMECO
* Listen to MECO Headlines
* Join the Off-Nominal Discord
* Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Pocket Casts, Spotify, Google Play, Stitcher, TuneI…
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Jan 1, 2019
T+106: Q&A
This month I tackle questions on future space architectures, companies working in space right now, and finish with a 2018 Top 10 ranking.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 34 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd the Everyday Astronaut, and six anonymous—and 208 other supporters on Patreon.
* Episode T+82: Jon Goff, Altius Space Machines - Main Engine Cut Off
* Neumann Space - Connecting humanity to the stars
* Neumann Space Exec on a New Potential Use for Orbital Debris - Via Satellite
* Tethers Unlimited Home Page
* Vulcan-Centaur Performance Figures
* Email your thoughts and comments to anthony@mainenginecutoff.com
* Follow @WeHaveMECO
* Listen to MECO Headlines
* Join the Off-Nominal Discord
* Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Pocket Casts, Spotify, Google Pl…
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Dec 29, 2018
T+105: Jonathan McDowell
Jonathan McDowell joins me to talk about his recent paper proposing 80 kilometers, rather than 100, as a more appropriate boundary of the edge of space.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 34 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, Robb, Tim Dodd the Everyday Astronaut, and six anonymous—and 205 other supporters on Patreon.
* Jonathan’s Space Home Page
* Jonathan McDowell (@planet4589) | Twitter
* The edge of space: Revisiting the Karman Line - ScienceDirect
* Jonathan’s Space Report
* Email your thoughts and comments to anthony@mainenginecutoff.com
* Follow @WeHaveMECO
* Listen to MECO Headlines
* Join the Off-Nominal Discord
* Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Pocket Casts, Spotify, Google Play, Stitcher, TuneIn or elsewhere
* Subscribe to the Main Engine Cut Off Newsletter…
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Dec 11, 2018
T+104: Jake Robins
Jake Robins of WeMartians joins me to talk InSight, Mars EDL, and Mars 2020.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 33 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, Robb, and six anonymous—and 203 other supporters on Patreon.
* Jake Robins (@JakeOnOrbit) | Twitter
* WeMartians Podcast
* 51 - Entry, Descent, and Landing - WeMartians Podcast
* 47 - Recovering Opportunity (feat. Mike Seibert) - WeMartians Podcast
* 52 - Comin' up Jezero (feat. Tim Goudge) - WeMartians Podcast
* Email your thoughts and comments to anthony@mainenginecutoff.com
* Follow @WeHaveMECO
* Listen to MECO Headlines
* Join the Off-Nominal Discord
* Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Pocket Casts, Spotify, Google Play, Stitcher, TuneIn or elsewhere
* Subscribe to the Main Engine Cut Off Newsletter
* Buy shirts and Rock…
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Dec 4, 2018
T+103: Commercial Lunar Payload Services
NASA announced the nine companies that will be competing for Commercial Lunar Payload Services missions. I share some thoughts on the program overall, and discuss what we know about each company.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 34 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, Robb, and seven anonymous—and 200 other supporters on Patreon.
* NASA Announces New Partnerships for Commercial Lunar Payload Delivery | NASA
* Draft Concepts for Commercial Lunar Landers | NASA
* Deep Space Systems Aerospace Engineering NASA
* Homepage | Draper
* Firefly Aerospace
* Moon Express | Redefining Possible
* ORBITBeyond
* Home | Astrobotic
* intuitivemachines
* Masten Space Systems
* Lockheed Martin Corporation | Lockheed Martin
* Email your thoughts and comments to anthony@mainenginecutoff.com
* Fo…
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Nov 30, 2018
T+102: November Q&A
This month for Q&A, we try to figure out what the hell is up with DM-1, hit a few questions about launch, and talk through a few space development topics.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 33 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, and seven anonymous—and 201 other supporters on Patreon.
* NASA program to send astronauts to space station facing more delays
* Secret Rocket Company Could Bring Jobs, Investment To Space Coast - Space - 90.7 WMFE
* PLD Space, after ESA input, doubles lift capacity of smallsat launcher - SpaceNews.com
* New Glenn Payload User’s Guide via NASASpaceflight Forums
* 50 - The Journey to Mars is Hyperbolic (feat. Mark Wallace) - WeMartians Podcast
* Email your thoughts and comments to anthony@mainenginecutoff.com
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*…
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Nov 9, 2018
T+101: Starlink Addendum
As I was recording yesterday’s show about Starlink, SpaceX filed an application with the FCC for some changes to the Starlink plan. I read through the report and it confirms some of what I talked about yesterday, so thought it was worth an update.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 34 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, and eight anonymous—and 195 other supporters on Patreon.
* Episode T+100: Midterms, and a Thought on Starlink - Main Engine Cut Off
* Application for Fixed Satellite Service by Space Exploration Holdings, LLC SAT-MOD-20181108-00083
* Attachment A: Technical Information To Supplement Schedule S (PDF, 5 MB)
* Email your thoughts and comments to anthony@mainenginecutoff.com
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Nov 8, 2018
T+100: Midterms, and a Thought on Starlink
I share some space-focused takeaways from the US midterm elections and a thought that I had about recent Starlink reports.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 34 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, and eight anonymous—and 194 other supporters on Patreon.
* Midterms and Space - Main Engine Cut Off
* What the 2018 midterms mean for NASA and planetary science | The Planetary Society
* Culberson loses as Democrats win House; Nelson losing Senate reelection - SpaceNews.com
* Musk shakes up SpaceX in race to make satellite launch window: sources | Reuters
* SpaceX seeks $750 million leveraged loan | Reuters
* SpaceX circulates price guidance on $750 million term loan | Reuters
* TMF Associates blog — Fake it till you make it?
* Low Earth Orbit Visualization | LeoLabs
* Email your thoughts…
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Nov 1, 2018
T+99: October Q&A
This month, I take on questions about small launch, future space ventures, and the Boeing/SLS saga/drama.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 34 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, and eight anonymous—and 191 other supporters on Patreon.
* ISS schedule slips Dragon launch to May 19 - future manifest outlook - NASASpaceFlight.com
* Rocket Lab | Space is now open for business | Rocket Lab
* Virgin Orbit
* Firefly Aerospace
* Relativity Space
* Vega C - Arianespace
* Vector – A Revolution Is Upon Us, Opening Up The High Frontier To Innovators. And Vector Is Leading The Way.
* ABL Space Systems
* Rocket Lab selects Wallops Flight Facility for US launch site | Rocket Lab
* Episode T+87: Rocket Lab Launch Complex 2 - Main Engine Cut Off
* ConsenSys Acquires Planetary Resources | Plane…
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Oct 26, 2018
T+98: Gateway Logistics Services
NASA released a request for information this week about cargo services to the Gateway—big news for the future of NASA and the Gateway. I break down the technical and non-technical bits of that announcement, as well as some updates on Space Force and the Soyuz situation.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 34 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, and eight anonymous—and 189 other supporters on Patreon.
* DOD “Moving Out” on Space Force As Space Council Approves Six Recommendations to President - SpacePolicyOnline.com
* Bridenstine confident in Soyuz return to flight despite quality concerns - SpaceNews.com
* NASA Seeks Information for Gateway Cargo Delivery Services
* Gateway Logistics Services - Federal Business Opportunities: Opportunities
* Gateway Logistics Services - Main Engine Cut O…
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Oct 15, 2018
T+97: SLS OIG Report, Air Force LSA Awards
I share some thoughts on the two rocket drama stories from last week: a brutal OIG report on Boeing’s work on SLS stages, and the Air Force selected three new launch vehicles to receive development funding.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 35 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Tyler, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, and eight anonymous—and 186 other supporters on Patreon.
* NASA’s Management of the Space Launch System Stages Contract - NASA Office of Inspector General
* There’s a new report on SLS rocket management, and it’s pretty brutal | Ars Technica
* Air Force awards three Launch Service Agreements > U.S. Air Force
* U.S. DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE > Contract View
* Air Force funding three new rockets to compete with SpaceX but only intends to buy launch services from two providers - SpaceNews.com
* NGIS highli…
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Oct 10, 2018
T+96: Blue Origin & Harris
Blue Origin and Harris announced an interesting partnership last week that’s worth discussing: Harris will be producing 5-meter fixed mesh reflector antennas that can only fit (for now) inside of New Glenn’s big fairing.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 35 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Tyler, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, and eight anonymous—and 186 other supporters on Patreon.
* Blue Origin & Harris whitepaper on 5-meter antennas
* Email your thoughts and comments to anthony@mainenginecutoff.com
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Oct 1, 2018
T+95: September Q&A
This month, I take on questions about BE-4 and Vulcan, small launch, BFR, and human spaceflight.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 36 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Tyler, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Barbara, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, and eight anonymous—and 187 other supporters on Patreon.
* United Launch Alliance Building Rocket of the Future with Industry-Leading Strategic Partnerships
* EELV LSA Selection “Sometime in August” - Main Engine Cut Off
* U.K. selects Scottish spaceport site - SpaceNews.com
* Government Has Environmental Concerns About Nova Scotia Launch Site - Parabolic Arc
* Ursa Major Technologies
* OneWeb, treading water awaiting debt financing, now a source of industry concern - Space Intel Report
* BFR passing the Moon | Official SpaceX Photos | Flickr
* Gamma Radiation Protection and Radiation Shield | Stem…
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Sep 24, 2018
T+94: #dearMoon
Some thoughts on the #dearMoon project, SpaceX’s announcement, and the essence of SpaceX’s strategy—bringing us along for the ride.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 36 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Tyler, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Barbara, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, and eight anonymous—and 186 other supporters on Patreon.
* #dearMoon
* First Private Passenger on Lunar BFR Mission - YouTube
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Sep 13, 2018
T+93: NASA Goddard and Restore-L
Pat O. and I took a trip down to NASA Goddard to explore all that’s going on there. We talk a bit about our visit, what we saw and learned, and we talk with Brent Robertson, project manager of Restore-L, NASA’s satellite servicing mission.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 36 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Tyler, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Barbara, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, and eight anonymous—and 185 other supporters on Patreon.
* NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center | NASA
* Global Precipitation Mission Near-Realtime Rainfall (Incredible rolling 7-day video of rainfall)
* Satellite Servicing Projects Division - Team
* Satellite Servicing Projects Division - Restore-L
* pat o. 🚀 (@spacepat_o) | Twitter
* Falcon Heavy Kerbal Camera Crew Reaction Vid - YouTube
* Email your thoughts and comments to anthony@mainenginecutoff.com…
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Sep 4, 2018
T+92: Marcia Smith
Marcia Smith of Space Policy Online joins me to talk about the recent meetings of the NASA Advisory Council, the status of Commercial Crew, Space Force, and more space policy goodness.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 36 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Tyler, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Barbara, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, and eight anonymous—and 184 other supporters on Patreon.
* SpacePolicyOnline.com - Your first stop for news, information and analysis about civil, military and commercial space programs
* Marcia Smith (@SpcPlcyOnline) | Twitter
* SpacePolicyOnline.com | Facebook
* Gateway Gets Good Reviews from NAC Committees - SpacePolicyOnline.com
* NASA Announces Nine Commercial Crew Flight Assignments, More to Come from International Partners - SpacePolicyOnline.com
* Trump Continues to Talk Up Space Force As He Signs FY2019 NDAA -…
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Sep 1, 2018
T+91: August Q&A
The first official MECO Q&A! I answer questions from listeners about any and all things space—mostly. (PS: Start sending me your questions for September’s Q&A episode!)
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 36 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Tyler, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Barbara, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, and eight anonymous—and 183 other supporters on Patreon.
* The Adventures of SpaceShipTwo: Inverted Flight, Wonky Gyros & an Impatient Billionaire - Parabolic Arc
* Virgin Galactic’s Rocket Man | The New Yorker
* Exos Aerospace SARGE Whip - YouTube
* BETA 87A Vocal Microphone | Shure Americas
* Roland - Rubix24 | USB Audio Interface
* X2u XLR-to-USB Signal Adapter | Shure Americas
* MV88 iOS Digital Stereo Condenser Microphone | Shure Americas
* Rogue Amoeba | Audio Hijack: Record Any Audio on MacOS
* Ferrite Recording Stud…
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Aug 30, 2018
T+90: Andrew Jones
Andrew Jones joins me to talk all things Chinese spaceflight—exploration, policy, industry, and more.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 37 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Tyler, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Barbara, Stan, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, and eight anonymous—and 182 other supporters on Patreon.
* Andrew Jones (@AJ_FI) | Twitter
* Andrew Jones | The Planetary Society
* Andrew Jones, Author at SpaceNews.com
* GBTIMES: Andrew Jones
* Landspace of China to launch first rocket in Q4 2018 - SpaceNews.com
* Chinese rocket maker OneSpace secures $44m in funding; Expace prepares for commercial launch - SpaceNews.com
* China's mission to the far side of the Moon will launch in December | The Planetary Society
* Email your thoughts and comments to anthony@mainenginecutoff.com
* Follow @WeHaveMECO
* Listen to MECO Headlines
* Joi…
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Aug 13, 2018
T+89: Lockheed’s Small Sat Strategy, NASA Tipping Points Contracts
Lockheed Martin has been slowly revealing their small sat strategy over the last three years, and it’s shaping up to be quite interesting and potentially very compelling. And NASA announced 10 Tipping Point awards last week, which include some very interesting projects from Blue Origin, ULA, and Astrobotic.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 37 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Russell, John, Moritz, Tyler, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Barbara, Stan, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, and eight anonymous—and 181 other supporters on Patreon.
* Terran Orbital’s Series B Round, and Lockheed’s Small Sat Master Plan - Main Engine Cut Off
* NASA Announces New Partnerships in Space Exploration Technologies | NASA
* Email your thoughts and comments to anthony@mainenginecutoff.com
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* Join the Off-Nominal Discord
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Jul 30, 2018
T+88: CubeRover, Michael Provenzano and Andrew Horchler
Michael Provenzano and Andrew Horchler of CubeRover and Astrobotic join me to talk about the project, the rover itself, and the future of robotic exploration on the Moon (and beyond).
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 38 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Brian, Russell, John, Moritz, Tyler, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Barbara, Stan, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, and eight anonymous—and 176 other supporters on Patreon.
* CubeRover
* CubeRover (@CubeRover) | Twitter
* Home | Astrobotic
* Astrobotic (@astrobotic) | Twitter
* Homepage - CMU - Carnegie Mellon University - CMU - Carnegie Mellon University
* Daily Planet | Science News and Video Clips | Discovery
* This is CubeRover - YouTube
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Jul 18, 2018
T+87: Rocket Lab Launch Complex 2
Rocket Lab announced that they’re in the final selection stage of their search for a US launch site. I break down the options they have, and discuss why I think they’ll pick Wallops Island.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 37 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Brian, Russell, John, Moritz, Tyler, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Barbara, Stan, Mike, David, Mints, Joonas, and seven anonymous—and 173 other supporters on Patreon.
* Rocket Lab to expand launch capability with US launch site | Rocket Lab
* Rocket Lab selects four finalists for U.S. launch site - SpaceNews.com
* Space Access from MARS
* Next space station resupply launch scheduled May 20 at Wallops Island | Virginia | roanoke.com
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Jun 27, 2018
T+86: Falcon Heavy Wins AFSPC-52
Big news this week: SpaceX won an EELV contract for Falcon Heavy. I talk through what this means for the US launch market, how SpaceX and Falcon Heavy are set up to compete for the next few years.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 36 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Brian, Russell, John, Moritz, Tyler, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Barbara, Stan, Mike, David, Mints, and seven anonymous—and 175 other supporters on Patreon.
* Air Force Certifies Falcon Heavy, Awards SpaceX AFSPC-52 Launch - Main Engine Cut Off
* U.S. Department of Defense - Contracts for June 21, 2018
* Capabilities & Services | SpaceX
* RocketBuilder
* Air Force awards big launch contracts to SpaceX and ULA - SpaceNews.com
* Episode T+72: SpaceX’s Motivation for Falcon Heavy - Main Engine Cut Off
* Email your thoughts and comments to anthony@mainenginecutoff.com
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* Listen…
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Jun 19, 2018
T+85: Support and Criticism for the Lunar Gateway
ESA has all but given its full support to the (newly renamed) Lunar Gateway, and Terry Virts threw some criticism its way during the third meeting of the National Space Council. I break down what those things mean for the future of Lunar Gateway, and discuss why I’m (gasp!) supportive of the program.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 36 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Brian, Russell, John, Moritz, Tyler, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Barbara, Stan, Mike, David, Mints, and seven anonymous—and 174 other supporters on Patreon.
* A milestone in securing ESA’s future role in the global exploration of space / Exploration / Human Spaceflight / Our Activities / ESA
* Meeting of the National Space Council - YouTube
* Op-ed: The Deep Space Gateway would shackle human exploration, not enable it | Ars Technica
* Former astronaut criticizes lunar gateway plans - SpaceNews.com…
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Jun 4, 2018
T+84: The End of NASA Exploration Exclusivity
Last week, China opened up their future space station to other nations, and Blue Origin laid some hints about their lunar ambitions. Both of these stories are indicative of what I think the next era of exploration will look like, and it has interesting implications for NASA.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 36 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Brian, Russell, John, Moritz, Tyler, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Barbara, Stan, Mike, David, Mints, and seven anonymous—and 166 other supporters on Patreon.
* Off-Nominal Studios East - Main Engine Cut Off
* Why China is opening its space station to international partners
* Bezos outlines vision of Blue Origin’s lunar future - SpaceNews.com
* NASA Selects US Companies to Advance Space Resource Collection | NASA
* Email your thoughts and comments to anthony@mainenginecutoff.com
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May 22, 2018
T+83: Falcon 9 Block 5, RL10 on Centaur V
Two events worth discussing happened while I was on vacation—the first Block 5 Falcon 9 took flight, and ULA selected RL10 for Centaur V.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 33 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Brian, Russell, John, Moritz, Tyler, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Barbara, Stan, Mike, and six anonymous—and 164 other supporters on Patreon.
* Bangabandhu Satellite-1 Mission | SpaceX
* SpaceX launches Bangladeshi satellite on debut Block 5 Falcon 9 mission - SpaceNews.com
* RL10 Engine to Power ULA’s New Vulcan Centaur Upper Stage | Aerojet Rocketdyne
* ULA selects Aerojet to provide Vulcan upper stage engine - SpaceNews.com
* Episode T+63: Centaur V, BFR Updates - Main Engine Cut Off
* Email your thoughts and comments to anthony@mainenginecutoff.com
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* Join the Off-Nominal Discord
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May 9, 2018
T+82: Jon Goff, Altius Space Machines
Jon Goff of Altius Space Machines joins me to talk about how he got to where he is today and what’s ahead for Altius—including satellite servicing with Bulldog, propellant depots, cryo couplers, and wet labs.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 31 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Brian, Russell, John, Moritz, Tyler, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Barbara, and six anonymous—and 161 other supporters on Patreon.
* Jonathan A. Goff (@rocketrepreneur) | Twitter
* Selenian Boondocks | Random Musings from the Warped Minds of Jonathan Goff, Ken Murphy, John Hare, and Kirk Sorensen
* Jonathan Goff | Selenian Boondocks
* Altius Space Machines, Inc.
* AltiusSpaceMachines (@AltiusSpace) | Twitter
* Cryo Coupler SBIR Phase II Win » Altius Space Machines
* STARPOST
* Email your thoughts and comments to anthony@mainenginecutoff.com
* Follow @WeHaveMECO
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May 2, 2018
T+81: Resource Prospector Cancellation
Last week, we heard news that the Resource Prospector mission has been cancelled. I spend some time thinking through my initial reactions to the news, and speculate about what the path ahead may hold for lunar development.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 31 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Brian, Russell, John, Moritz, Tyler, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, Barbara, and six anonymous—and 161 other supporters on Patreon.
* NASA scraps a lunar surface mission — just as it’s supposed to focus on a Moon return - The Verge
* NASA emphasizes commercial lunar lander plans with Resource Prospector cancellation - SpaceNews.com
* Commercial Lunar Payload Services - CLPS - Federal Business Opportunities: Opportunities
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Apr 25, 2018
T+80: DARPA Launch Challenge
The DARPA Launch Challenge has been officially unveiled, so I spent some time breaking down the competition and speculating about who will enter and what DARPA wants out of it.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 30 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Brian, Russell, John, Moritz, Tyler, Joel, Jan, David, Grant, and six anonymous—and 158 other supporters on Patreon.
* DARPA Launch Challenge
* Rocket Lab
* Virgin Orbit
* Vector
* Astra Space preparing for suborbital test launch - SpaceNews.com
* Firefly Aerospace
* Relativity Space
* Stratolaunch
* ARCA | Engineering The Future
* Email your thoughts and comments to anthony@mainenginecutoff.com
* Follow @WeHaveMECO
* Listen to MECO Headlines
* Join the Off-Nominal Discord
* Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Pocket Casts, Spotify, Google Play, Stitcher, TuneIn or elsewhere
* Subscribe to the Mai…
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Apr 21, 2018
T+79: Orbital ATK’s OmegA, NASA’s Bridenstine
Orbital ATK unveiled the name and additional technical details of their new launch vehicle, OmegA. Jim Bridenstine was finally confirmed as the new NASA Administrator.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 29 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Brian, Russell, John, Moritz, Tyler, Joel, Jan, David, and six anonymous—and 157 other supporters on Patreon.
* OMEGA: Orbital ATK’s New Large-Class Rocket for U.S. Air Force
* Bridenstine Confirmed as NASA Administrator On Party-Line Vote - SpacePolicyOnline.com
* Senate votes to confirm Bridenstine as NASA administrator - SpaceNews.com
* Email your thoughts and comments to anthony@mainenginecutoff.com
* Follow @WeHaveMECO
* Listen to MECO Headlines
* Join the Off-Nominal Discord
* Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Pocket Casts, Spotify, Google Play, Stitcher, TuneIn or elsewhere
* Subscribe to the Main Engine Cu…
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Apr 9, 2018
T+78: No Cost-Plus, But No Vision, Either
NASA had some interesting comments on the Lunar Gateway at a recent NASA Advisory Council meeting—the program is eschewing cost-plus contracting, but it’s lacking vision.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 27 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Brian, Russell, John, Moritz, Tyler, Joel, and six anonymous—and 153 other supporters on Patreon.
* Eschewing Cost-Plus, Lacking Vision - Main Engine Cut Off
* NASA considers acquiring more than one gateway propulsion module - SpaceNews.com
* Email your thoughts and comments to anthony@mainenginecutoff.com
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* Listen to MECO Headlines
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* Support M…
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Apr 4, 2018
T+77: Blue Origin Reconfigures New Glenn
Caleb Henry got a great scoop on some changes Blue Origin is making to New Glenn. I think through why these changes may have been made and what these changes could mean for the near future.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 27 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Brian, Russell, John, Moritz, Tyler, Laszlo, Joel, and six anonymous—and 150 other supporters on Patreon.
* Main Engine Cut Off Shop
* Main Engine Cut Off on Twitter: “🚨 New shirts alert! 🚨 Just put up 4 new shirts over in the MECO shop. Really excited about these.”
* Blue Origin switches engines for New Glenn second stage - SpaceNews.com
* Blue Origin Switches to BE-3U for New Glenn Second Stage - Main Engine Cut Off
* Blue Origin ramping up BE-4 engine testing – NASASpaceFlight.com
* Two Weeks Until “The Stick” Gets Its Name - Main Engine Cut Off
* FA8811-17-9-0001; Evolved Expendable…
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Mar 27, 2018
T+76: Caleb Henry
Caleb Henry of SpaceNews returns to talk Satellite 2018, megaconstellations, flat-panel antennas, and the current state of the satellite industry.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 28 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Brian, Russell, John, Moritz, Tyler, Laszlo, Joel, and six anonymous—and 149 other supporters on Patreon.
* Caleb Henry (@CHenry_SN) | Twitter
* Caleb Henry, Author at SpaceNews.com
* Satellite 2018
* LEO and MEO broadband constellations mega source of consternation - SpaceNews.com
* SoftBank says GEO operators besides Intelsat can sell OneWeb capacity - SpaceNews.com
* What would it take for SoftBank to invest in SpaceX? - SpaceNews.com
* OneWeb asks FCC to authorize 1,200 more satellites - SpaceNews.com
* There’s something strange going on amid the satellite Internet rush | Ars Technica
* SSL bags Amos-8 and BSAT-4b manufacturing contrac…
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Mar 23, 2018
T+75: March Roundup
A few interesting documents have been released: the late-but-final 2018 appropriations, NASA’s lunar cargo lander request for information, and the public summary of the NASA Independent Review Team’s investigation into the CRS-7 mishap. And a few interesting announcements were made: NASA Acting Administration Robert Lightfoot is going to retire, and the Air Force awarded contracts for another round of EELV Phase 1A launches.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 28 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Brian, Russell, John, Moritz, Tyler, Laszlo, Joel, and six anonymous—and 147 other supporters on Patreon.
* Off-Nominal Events
* NASA Budget To Soar Over $20 Billion in Final FY2018 Appropriations - SpacePolicyOnline.com
* Acting NASA Administrator Lightfoot Announces Retirement - SpacePolicyOnline.com
* Lunar Surface Transportation Capability Request for Information (RF…
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Mar 9, 2018
T+74: Stagnation and Opportunity
NASA Acting Administrator Robert Lightfoot appeared in front of the space subcommittee of the House Science Committee to discuss the 2019 NASA budget request, and I’ve got some thoughts on their decisions regarding the SLS Mobile Launcher and how it affects SLS’ flight rate. And then I get off onto a train of thought regarding the stagnation of and opportunity within the policy gridlock we’re stuck in today.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 28 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Brian, Russell, John, Moritz, Tyler, Laszlo, Joel, and six anonymous—and 141 other supporters on Patreon.
* Off-Nominal Events
* Hearing - An Overview of the NASA Budget for Fiscal Year 2019 - YouTube
* Safety panel warns of “bottleneck” of reviews for exploration and commercial crew vehicles - SpaceNews.com
* House members question balance of NASA programs in 2019 budget proposal…
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Feb 23, 2018
T+73: Commercial Crew Contingency Plans, and the End of ISS
NASA recently began talking about some contingency planning for potential Commercial Crew delays, and the end-of-ISS discussion is heating up.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 27 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Brian, Russell, John, Moritz, Tyler, Laszlo, and six anonymous—and 135 other supporters on Patreon.
* NASA’s Continued Focus on Returning U.S. Human Spaceflight Launches - Commercial Crew Program
* NASA studying commercial crew contingency plans - SpaceNews.com
* How the private space industry could take over lower Earth orbit — and make money off it - The Verge
* Email your thoughts and comments to anthony@mainenginecutoff.com
* Follow @WeHaveMECO
* Listen to MECO Headlines
* Join the Off-Nominal Discord
* Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Pocket Casts, Google Play, Stitcher, TuneIn or elsewhere
* Subscribe to the Main Engine Cut Off N…
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Feb 13, 2018
T+72: SpaceX’s Motivation for Falcon Heavy
SpaceX launched Falcon Heavy last week and shook up the space launch world. I spend some time thinking through SpaceX’s motivations for building Falcon Heavy, and what its effects might be on the world around it.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 27 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Brian, Russell, John, Moritz, Tyler, Laszlo, and six anonymous—and 125 other supporters on Patreon.
* 05 - The Volume of Anti-Starmanism | Off-Nominal
* Falcon Heavy Demo from the Press Site - YouTube
* Falcon Heavy Test Flight - YouTube
* Military certification the next big test for Falcon Heavy - SpaceNews.com
* SES Rethinks GEO Model - Main Engine Cut Off
* SpaceX no longer planning crewed missions on Falcon Heavy - SpaceNews.com
* Email your thoughts and comments to anthony@mainenginecutoff.com
* Follow @WeHaveMECO
* Listen to MECO Headlines
* Join the Off-Nominal Disc…
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Jan 30, 2018
T+71: Commercial Crew, Congress, and the GAO
The Commercial Crew program—NASA, SpaceX, Boeing, and more—went in front of Congress to discuss the current status of the crew launch systems in development. Concurrently, the GAO released a report warning that more delays are likely, and could put NASA in a tough spot. I share some thoughts on the matter and talk through what is likely to happen this year.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 24 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Brian, Russell, John, Moritz, and five anonymous—and 120 other supporters on Patreon.
* Hearing - An Update on NASA Commercial Crew Systems Development - YouTube
* U.S. GAO - NASA Commercial Crew Program: Continued Delays Pose Risks for Uninterrupted Access to the International Space Station
* U.S. GAO - NASA Commercial Crew Program: Continued Delays Pose Risks for Uninterrupted Access to the International Space Station (PDF, 1.2MB)
* NAS…
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Jan 17, 2018
T+70: Polar Launches from Cape Canaveral
The US Air Force has developed a viable corridor for launching to polar and other high-inclination orbits from Cape Canaveral. I spend some time thinking through who may be interested in using that corridor and what its existence could mean for the newer launch vehicles in development.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 24 executive producers—Kris, Mike, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Brian, Russell, John, and five anonymous—and 113 other supporters on Patreon.
* Off-Nominal
* 04 - In The Year of Our Lord Steve Squyres | Off-Nominal
* Ninkasi Brewing - Ground Control 2017
* Air Force: Cape rockets could fly new southern corridor toward poles
* Canaveral’s Polar Express - Main Engine Cut Off
* Polar XS-1 Launches - Main Engine Cut Off
* Email your thoughts and comments to anthony@mainenginecutoff.com
* Follow @WeHaveMECO
* Listen to MECO Headlines
* Join the Off-Nominal Disco…
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Dec 27, 2017
T+69: Robin Seemangal
Robin Seemangal joins me for a free-flowing discussion on the stories we found most important in 2017 and what we’re looking forward to in 2018, including SpaceX’s huge year, Blue Origin’s under-the-radar work to lay foundations for their future, SLS’ rough year, and—what else?—Falcon Heavy.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 23 executive producers—Kris, Mike, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Brian, Russell, and five anonymous—and 108 other supporters on Patreon.
* Robin Seemangal (@nova_road) | Twitter
* How Is SpaceX Doing on Its Deep Space Ambitions? | WIRED
* Email your thoughts and comments to anthony@mainenginecutoff.com
* Follow @WeHaveMECO
* Listen to MECO Headlines
* Join the Off-Nominal Discord
* Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Pocket Casts, Google Play, Stitcher, TuneIn or elsewhere
* Subscribe to the Main Engine Cut Off Newsletter
* Buy shirts and Ro…
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Dec 20, 2017
T+68: Mike Lewis, CTO of NanoRacks
Mike Lewis, CTO of NanoRacks joins me to talk about what they’re working on today, as well as their big plans for the future, including their upcoming airlock and the Ixion project—their ongoing work to turn spent upper stages into useful spacecraft.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 23 executive producers—Kris, Mike, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Brian, Russell, and five anonymous—and 108 other supporters on Patreon.
* NanoRacks | The Operating System of Space
* NanoRacks (@NanoRacks) | Twitter
* Mike Lewis | NanoRacks' Chief Technology Officer
* NanoRacks’ 4th External Cargo Ship Satellite Deployment Mission
* NanoRacks Successfully Deploys First Customer Microsatellite from ISS
* NanoRacks Airlock Passes Johnson Astronaut Training Exercise
* Contract for Commercial Habitat Concept Study Signed
* NanoRacks on Twitter: “We see the future commercialization of #LEO in re-…
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Dec 8, 2017
T+67: Special Preview of MECO Headlines, December 1–8, 2017
A special preview of the MECO Headlines shows: Elon Musk kinda-sorta-maybe announces the Falcon Heavy demo payload, Russia and China carry out successful military launches, NASA announces some very interesting NextSTEP-2 contracts, OA-8E Cygnus departs ISS, and SpaceX’s SLC-40 is back, baby!
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 23 executive producers—Kris, Mike, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Bob, Brian, Russell, and five anonymous—and 107 other supporters on Patreon.
* Elon Musk on Twitter: “Falcon Heavy to launch next month from Apollo 11 pad at the Cape. Will have double thrust of next largest rocket.”
* Elon Musk on Twitter: “Payload will be my midnight cherry Tesla Roadster playing Space Oddity. Destination is Mars orbit. Will be in deep space for a billion years…”
* Intelligence-gathering satellite deployed in orbit for Russian military - Spaceflight Now
* Russia launches Lotos…
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Nov 27, 2017
T+66: A Visit to NanoRacks, and Virgin Orbit Books a Department of Defense Launch
I was in Houston last week and I visited NanoRacks for a bit. And Virgin Orbit piqued the interest of the Department of Defense, which has some interesting implications.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 22 executive producers—Kris, Mike, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Robert, Brian, and five anonymous—and 104 other supporters on Patreon.
* Virgin Orbit wins first Defense Department launch contract - SpaceNews.com
* STRATCOM chief Hyten: ‘I will not support buying big satellites that make juicy targets’ - SpaceNews.com
* Revival of Cape Canaveral’s LC-46 begins with Minotaur Pathfinder Assembly - Spaceflight101
* Orbital ATK’s Next-Generation Composite Case Passes Structural Acceptance Test - Main Engine Cut Off
* Orbital ATK Successfully Tests First Motor Case for Next Generation Launch Vehicle | Orbital ATK News Room
* Orbital ATK on Twitter: “Our Next Generation Launch Vehicl…
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Nov 11, 2017
T+65: The New GEO Model, Orbital ATK’s Composite Case, Good and Bad SpaceX News
SES gives us a preview of their new GEO strategy (which may be a harbinger of the future), Orbital ATK tests a new composite case to be used for their Next-Generation Launcher and future SLS boosters, NASA approves the use of previously-flown Falcon 9 first stages, and SpaceX sets off some LOX fireworks down in McGregor, Texas.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 23 executive producers—Kris, Mike, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Guinevere, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Robert, Brian, and five anonymous—and 96 other supporters on Patreon.
* SES Rethinks GEO Model - Main Engine Cut Off
* SES tells satellite builders to prepare for a total rethink of their business - Space Intel Report
* Orbital ATK’s Next-Generation Composite Case Passes Structural Acceptance Test - Main Engine Cut Off
* Orbital ATK Successfully Tests First Motor Case for Next Generation Launch Vehicle | Orbital ATK News Room
* Orbital ATK on Twitter: “O…
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Oct 28, 2017
T+64: BE-4 Fires Up, and Some Thoughts on the Future of Commercial and Military Launch
Blue Origin fired up their BE-4 engine for the first time, which is a big moment. And I share some meandering thoughts on the future of commercial and military launch.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 22 executive producers—Kris, Mike, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Guinevere, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, Warren, Robert, and five anonymous—and 95 other supporters on Patreon.
* Blue Origin on Twitter: “First hotfire of our BE-4 engine is a success #GradatimFerociter”
* Blue Origin just sent a jolt through the aerospace industry | Ars Technica
* Tory Bruno on Twitter: “@WeHaveMECO CDR in December. Tooling is the factory. First hardware in fab. pad mods underway”
* Tory Bruno on Twitter: “@IanPineapple @WeHaveMECO Cape pad will be backwards compatible. VAFB may not need that”
* Email your thoughts and comments to anthony@mainenginecutoff.com
* Follow @WeHaveMECO
* Listen to MECO Headlines
* Join the MECO Discor…
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Oct 18, 2017
T+63: Centaur V, BFR Updates
Tory Bruno wrote an op-ed in SpaceNews regarding Vulcan and its future, and he announced that ULA will be upgrading Centaur. Elon Musk spent some time on reddit talking about BFR and updating us on some of the details.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 21 executive producers—Kris, Mike, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Guinevere, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, and five anonymous—and 92 other supporters on Patreon.
* Off-Nominal
* Off-Nominal - Main Engine Cut Off
* FA8811-17-9-0001; Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle (EELV) Launch Service Agreements (LSA) Request for Proposals (RFP) - Federal Business Opportunities: Opportunities
* Op-ed | Building on a successful record in space to meet the challenges ahead - SpaceNews.com
* Op-ed by Tory Bruno | Building on a successful record in space to meet the challenges ahead : ula
* /u/ToryBruno on reddit
* T+45: 2018 Air Force Launch Vehicle Contracts, and the Dim Future of Antares - M…
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Oct 4, 2017
T+62: Chris Gebhardt on SpaceX’s BFR 2017 Update
Chris Gebhardt of NASASpaceflight joins me to discuss Elon Musk’s presentation last week, in which he provided an update to the BFR.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 20 executive producers—Kris, Mike, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Guinevere, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, and five anonymous—and 82 other supporters on Patreon.
* Chris Gebhardt on Twitter
* Making Life Multiplanetary
* The Moon, Mars, & around the Earth – Musk updates BFR architecture, plans | NASASpaceFlight.com
* SES-10 Press Conference in which Chris grills Elon until he says “Wow, you’re really in the details there.”
* Email your thoughts and comments to anthony@mainenginecutoff.com
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* Listen to MECO Headlines
* Join the MECO Discord
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* Subscribe to the Main Engine Cut Off Newsletter
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Sep 25, 2017
T+61: Northrop Grumman Acquires Orbital ATK, Lockheed Martin Unveils New Satellite Family
Northrop Grumman is acquiring Orbital ATK in a $9.2 billion deal. Lockheed Martin unveiled a new family of satellite busses, positioning themselves for the next era of satellite bus production.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 20 executive producers—Kris, Mike, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Guinevere, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, Chris, and five anonymous—and 77 other supporters on Patreon.
* Northrop Grumman to acquire Orbital ATK - SpaceNews.com
* Analysts see red flags in Northrop’s acquisition of Orbital ATK - SpaceNews.com
* Lockheed won’t protest now two-way race to refresh U.S. nuclear arsenal - SpaceNews.com
* All in the Family: Lockheed Martin Introduces New Satellite Lineup - Sep 19, 2017
* Lockheed Martin unveils new satellite bus lineup - SpaceNews.com
* Email your thoughts and comments to anthony@mainenginecutoff.com
* Follow @WeHaveMECO
* Listen to MECO Headlines
* Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Go…
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Sep 16, 2017
T+60: New Glenn’s Fairing, OneWeb’s Factory
Blue Origin announced a size increase to New Glenn’s fairing, and OneWeb has decided to keep their Toulouse factory open for other customers after their initial 10-satellite production run is over. Both decisions bring about some interesting implications for the market at large.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 19 executive producers—Kris, Mike, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Guinevere, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, and five anonymous—and 69 other supporters on Patreon.
* Blue Origin | New Glenn
* Blue Origin on Twitter: “Given customer response, we’re going straight to the 7m fairing and skipping 5.4m. Customers liking options the 2X volume provides.”
* New Glenn Gets Larger Fairing - Main Engine Cut Off
* OneWeb Satellites to keep Toulouse factory open for other customers - SpaceNews.com
* OneWeb Satellites to keep Toulouse factory open for other customers - Main Engine Cut Off
* Email your thoughts and comments to anthon…
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Sep 7, 2017
T+59: Jake Robins
Jake Robins of the WeMartians Podcast joins me to discuss the state and future of the Mars exploration program, lean sample return, and more.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 18 executive producers—Kris, Mike, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Guinevere, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, Jasper, and four anonymous—and 69 other supporters on Patreon.
* WeMartians Podcast - WeMartians Podcast - Follow Humanity's Journey to Mars
* WeMartians Podcast (@We_Martians) | Twitter
* WeMartians 029 - A Teenage Rover (feat. Mike Seibert)
* Mars Exploration Program, Thomas H. Zurbuchen, NASA SMD Associate Administrator, Presentation to National Academies (PDF, 1.9MB)
* NASA proposes rapid Mars sample return architecture - SpaceNews.com
* NASA considers kicking Mars sample return into high gear | The Planetary Society
* A future comes into focus for the Mars Exploration Program | The Planetary Society
* Space Policy Edition #16: NASA's Flagship Missions: A…
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Aug 25, 2017
T+58: Totality
I spent 2 minutes and 40 seconds in the shadow of the Moon in Gallatin, TN. Totality was an incredibly powerful experience, and I wanted to share what it was like to be there as best I could.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 17 executive producers—Kris, Mike, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Guinevere, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, and four anonymous—and 66 other supporters on Patreon.
* Exploring Nashville
* My exact location in Gallatin, TN for totality
* My 8" Dobsonian telescope setup
* My photo of totality on Flickr
* Path of April 8, 2024 total solar eclipse in North America
* Email your thoughts and comments to anthony@mainenginecutoff.com
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* Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Google Play, Stitcher, TuneIn or elsewhere
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* Support Main Engine Cut Off on Patreon
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Aug 16, 2017
T+57: Caleb Henry
Caleb Henry of SpaceNews joins me to discuss the slowdown in GEO satellite orders, the latest on the big LEO constellations, and what’s up with the sky falling.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 17 executive producers—Kris, Mike, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Guinevere, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, and four anonymous—and 65 other supporters on Patreon.
* Caleb Henry (@CHenry_SN) | Twitter
* Caleb Henry, Author at SpaceNews.com
* Lack of satellite orders triggers layoffs at Space Systems Loral - SpaceNews.com
* MDA slashes GEO order expectations - SpaceNews.com
* NGA director supports commercial remote sensing regulatory reform - SpaceNews.com
* Smallsat developers propose self-regulation to address orbital debris concerns - SpaceNews.com
* Three Orbcomm OG2 satellites malfunctioning, fate to be determined - SpaceNews.com
* SES loses 12 transponders on NSS-806 satellite, says impact is temporary - SpaceNews.com
* Email your thought…
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Aug 11, 2017
T+56: Small Launchers and Advanced Propulsion
Rocket Lab completed their investigation into what went wrong on their first launch, Virgin Orbit’s carrier 747 arrived in Long Beach, and I discuss a few NASA-backed advanced propulsion projects.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 17 executive producers—Kris, Mike, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Guinevere, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, and four anonymous—and 66 other supporters on Patreon.
* Main Engine Cut Off | Listen OnDemand Free | TuneIn
* Rocket Lab Completes Post-Flight Analysis | Rocket Lab
* Rocket Lab Addresses Vehicle Roll on Twitter
* Telemetry glitch kept first Electron rocket from reaching orbit - SpaceNews.com
* Rocket Lab clear on why first launch failed and confident to go again - NZ Herald
* Virgin Orbit plans 2018 first launch - SpaceNews.com
* Virgin Orbit Tweet Shows Launch Vehicle Hardware
* Virgin Orbit - NewtonThree Hotfire (5 June 2017) - YouTube
* Virgin Orbit - NewtonFour Hotfire (29 June 2017) - YouTube…
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Aug 4, 2017
T+55: ISS and Beyond
I spend some time thinking through what the future of the ISS holds, and what may come after it.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 17 executive producers—Kris, Mike, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Jamison, Guinevere, Nadim, Peter, Donald, Lee, and four anonymous—and 65 other supporters on Patreon.
* The Space Review: Pondering the future of the International Space Station
* T+20: Mike Johnson, Chief Designer at NanoRacks on NanoRacks’ History, NextSTEP, and Wet Workshops - Main Engine Cut Off
* NanoRacks | The Operating System of Space
* NanoRacks To Catalyze Concepts for Deep Space Habitats
* Bigelow Aerospace
* Axiom Space
* The Space Show, 01/06/2017, Michael Suffredini, Amir Blachman, Axiom Space
* Email your thoughts and comments to anthony@mainenginecutoff.com
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Jul 27, 2017
T+54: Eric Berger
Eric Berger returns to the show to talk about Elon Musk and SpaceX’s crusade against cost-plus contracting, the end of Red Dragon, where NASA policy is heading, and what SpaceX may have in store for the Air Force’s next round of development contracts.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 16 executive producers—Kris, Mike, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Laszlo, Jamison, Guinevere, Nadim, Peter, and four anonymous—and 63 other supporters on Patreon.
* Eric Berger (@SciGuySpace) | Twitter
* Elon Musk knows what’s ailing NASA—costly contracting | Ars Technica
* Elon Musk’s Mars rocket may be about to lose half of its engines | Ars Technica
* SpaceX appears to have pulled the plug on its Red Dragon plans | Ars Technica
* Farewell, Red Dragon - Main Engine Cut Off
* SpaceX goes there—seeks government funds for deep space | Ars Technica
* NASA finally admits it doesn’t have the funding to land humans on Mars | Ars Technica
* Op-ed: We lov…
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Jul 22, 2017
T+53: Loren Grush
Loren Grush of The Verge joins me to talk about Falcon Heavy, SpaceX cancelling Dragon 2 propulsive landings, Red Dragon riding off into the sunset, Moon Express, US space policy, and a whole lot more.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 16 executive producers—Kris, Mike, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Laszlo, Jamison, Guinevere, Nadim, Peter, and four anonymous—and 62 other supporters on Patreon.
* Loren Grush (@lorengrush) | Twitter
* Elon Musk suggests SpaceX is scrapping its plans to land Dragon capsules on Mars - The Verge
* Farewell, Red Dragon - Main Engine Cut Off
* Larry Lemke - Red Dragon: Low Cost Access to the Surface of Mars (SETI Talks) - YouTube
* Meet Scott Pace, the National Space Council's new executive secretary | The Planetary Society
* JAXA Interested in NASA’s Deep Space Gateway - Main Engine Cut Off
* To mine the Moon, private company Moon Express plans to build a fleet of robotic landers - The Verge
* How Moon Express…
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Jul 13, 2017
T+52: XCOR Winds Down, ULA Wins STP-3
XCOR laid off the rest of its staff and is closing up shop after losing a contract with ULA, which leaves ULA in an interesting spot for Vulcan-ACES. On the ULA side, they won their first Phase 1A contract from the Air Force, and the contract price sheds some light on just how much they’re cutting their costs.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 16 executive producers—Kris, Mike, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Laszlo, Jamison, Guinevere, Nadim, Peter, and four anonymous—and 56 other supporters on Patreon.
* XCOR Aerospace Lays Off Entire Staff But Intends To Keep Going
* XCOR Loses XS-1 and ULA ACES Contract, Announces Lay Offs - Main Engine Cut Off
* ULA wins competition for $191 million Air Force launch - SpaceNews.com
* United Launch Alliance Wins Competitive Contract Award to Launch the United States Air Force STP-3 M - United Launch Alliance
* Very interesting comments on STP-3 from Tory Bruno on the ULA subreddit
* NASA -
NASA Selects Lau…
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Jun 29, 2017
T+51: The SpaceX Steamroller, Blue Origin Chooses Alabama
SpaceX launched two missions last weekend, flew new titanium grid fins on Falcon 9, and are really picking up the pace. And Blue Origin got cozy with the Alabama Launch Alliance by announcing that they’ll build the BE-4 production facility in Huntsville—if the engine is chosen for Vulcan.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 15 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Laszlo, Jamison, Guinevere, Nadim, Peter, and four anonymous—and 55 other supporters on Patreon.
* SpaceX Doubleheader — Main Engine Cut Off
* NASASpaceflight on Twitter
* United Launch Alliance Issues Layoff Notices at Vandenberg AFB | Business - Noozhawk.com
* Blue Origin retains engine lead as House considers limitations on launch system funding - SpaceNews.com
* What just happened between Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin and Alabama? | AL.com
* Aerojet Rocketdyne bringing 800 rocket jobs to Alabama | AL.com
* The Alabama Launch Alliance - Main Engine Cut Off
* Thor…
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Jun 15, 2017
T+50: Boeing Gets XS-1, SpaceX Gets X-37B
Boeing’s proposal won Phases 2 and 3 of DARPA’s XS-1 program, and I’m pretty bummed about it. And the Air Force announced that SpaceX will launch the fifth X-37B mission in August.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 14 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Laszlo, Jamison, Guinevere, Nadim, and four anonymous—and 52 other supporters on Patreon.
* Thoughts on XS-1 - Main Engine Cut Off
* DARPA selects Boeing for spaceplane project - SpaceNews.com
* Bulgariasat launch realigns; SpaceX secures X-37B launch contract | NASASpaceFlight.com
* SpaceX will launch next secret X-37 Air Force mission - SpaceNews.com
* Tory Bruno says ULA didn’t get to compete for Air Force X-37B launch that went to SpaceX - SpaceNews.com
* Email your thoughts and comments to anthony@mainenginecutoff.com
* Follow @WeHaveMECO
* Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Google Play, Stitcher, or elsewhere
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Jun 5, 2017
T+49: Dr. Thomas Lang
Dr. Thomas Lang, Professor of Radiology and Biomedical Imaging at the UCSF School of Medicine, joins the show to discuss human health and physiology in space.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 13 executive producers—Kris, Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Laszlo, Jamison, Guinevere, and four anonymous—and 51 other supporters on Patreon.
* Thomas Lang | UCSF Profiles
* NASA Honors Two UCSF Scientists for Top Discoveries in Microgravity | UC San Francisco
* Browse Articles | npj Microgravity
* Towards human exploration of space: the THESEUS review series on muscle and bone research priorities | npj Microgravity
* The Space Show - March 7, 2017 - Dr. Francis Cucinotta on space radiation
* Study Reveals Immune System is Dazed and Confused During Spaceflight | NASA
* For an Immune Cell, Microgravity Mimics Aging | NASA
* Spaceflight alters expression of microRNA during T-cell activation. - PubMed - NCBI
* Spaceflight and simulated microgravity caus…
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May 27, 2017
T+48: Rand Simberg
Rand Simberg joins me to talk about his recent trip to the Space Tech Expo, the dawning of the age of in-space manufacturing, the future of SLS and Orion, the National Space Council, and a lot more.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 12 executive producers—Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Laszlo, Jamison, Guinevere, and four anonymous—and 50 other supporters on Patreon.
* Rand Simberg
* Transterrestrial Musings
* Safe Is Not An Option: Overcoming The Futile Obsession With Getting Everyone Back Alive That Is Killing Our Expansion Into Space
* Safe Is Not An Option on Amazon
* Space Tech Expo USA
* Loser of ULA’s Vulcan engine downselect will likely lose Air Force funding - SpaceNews.com
* NASA inspector questions why agency built rocket test stands in Alabama | Ars Technica
* Virgin Orbit on Twitter
* The Long Space Age, by Alexander MacDonald
* DARPA selects Boeing for spaceplane project - SpaceNews.com
* Thoughts on XS-1 - Main Engine C…
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May 16, 2017
T+47: Uncrewed EM-1 Delayed to 2019
Last week was rough for the Space Launch System. An issue with weld tooling was discovered, with some serious consequences, and then a LOX tank dome was dropped and damaged beyond repair. To top it off, NASA announced that EM-1 will fly without crew, and is delayed until 2019.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 12 executive producers—Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Laszlo, Jamison, Guinevere, and four anonymous—and 46 other supporters on Patreon.
* NASA will not put a crew on EM-1, cites cost – not safety – as main reason | NASASpaceFlight.com
* SLS Core Stage team recovering from consequences of weld pin change | NASASpaceFlight.com
* NASA investigating damaged SLS tank section - SpaceNews.com
* Options for Staging Orbits in Cis-Lunar Space (PDF, 4.7MB)
* The Deep Space Gateway, Cislunar Staging Orbits, and Momentum - Main Engine Cut Off
* Email your thoughts and comments to anthony@mainenginecutoff.com
* Follow @WeHaveMECO
* Subscribe on…
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May 2, 2017
T+46: Eric Berger
Eric Berger, Senior Space Editor at Ars Technica, joins me to talk SLS/Orion, New Space vs. Old Space, space policy in the Trump administration, and why the fight might not be settled until 2020.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 10 executive producers—Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, Laszlo, and four anonymous—and 46 other supporters on Patreon.
* Eric Berger (@SciGuySpace) | Twitter
* Eric Berger | Ars Technica
* Senior official: NASA will delay first flight of new SLS rocket until 2019 | Ars Technica
* EM-1 Officially Slips to 2019 - Main Engine Cut Off
* New Commercial Space Launch Competitiveness Act Coming Soon™ - Main Engine Cut Off
* Inside NASA’s daring $8 billion plan to finally find extraterrestrial life | Ars Technica
* The world’s two most powerful telescopes are glorious—and vulnerable | Ars Technica
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Apr 20, 2017
T+45: 2018 Air Force Launch Vehicle Contracts, and the Dim Future of Antares
As the award date approaches for the 2018 Air Force launch vehicle development contracts, we keep hearing from Congress about how they would like to see it go. And I discuss the future of Antares and the Next-Generation Launch Vehicle in light of the continuing flights of Cygnus on Atlas V.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 9 executive producers—Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, and four anonymous—and 42 other supporters on Patreon.
* House Members Ask Air Force to Fund Vehicles, Not Components - Main Engine Cut Off
* House members ask Pentagon to stay the course on launch vehicle development - SpaceNews.com
* Thornberry Walks Back Vulcan Intervention - Main Engine Cut Off
* The Alabama Launch Alliance - Main Engine Cut Off
* Cygnus, Antares, Atlas V, and NGL - Main Engine Cut Off
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Apr 1, 2017
T+44: SpaceX and the Age of Reusability
SpaceX made history this week by launching SES-10 with a previously-flown first stage. I discuss implications of this achievement, the things we learned from Elon Musk in the post-flight press briefing, and the doubters, as always.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 8 executive producers—Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, Ryan, and three anonymous—and 41 other supporters on Patreon.
* SES-10 Hosted Webcast - YouTube
* Press event with Elon Musk - Everyday Astronaut
* SES, SpaceX, and the Steady Beat of Progress - Main Engine Cut Off
* One More Step - Main Engine Cut Off
* SpaceX’s reusability effort faces one more big challenge — Space Intel Report
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Mar 25, 2017
T+43: March Lightning Round
The last two weeks have been filled with a bunch of smaller stories—SpaceX’s GPS III bid win and upcoming SES-10 launch, ULA’s decision on Vulcan’s engines and Congress’ potential meddling, and the ISS beyond 2024.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 6 executive producers—Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, and two anonymous—and 39 other supporters on Patreon.
* SpaceX Wins GPS III Launch, More Info on Phase 1A - Main Engine Cut Off
* Issue #15 - Main Engine Cut Off
* The Alabama Launch Alliance - Main Engine Cut Off
* Thornberry Walks Back Vulcan Intervention - Main Engine Cut Off
* BE-4 Hydrostatic Bearings - Main Engine Cut Off
* Space Subcommittee Hearing- The ISS after 2024: Options and Impacts | Committee on Science, Space, and Technology
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Mar 9, 2017
T+42: Blue Origin Introduces New Glenn
This week, Blue Origin shed some more light on New Glenn—by way of an animation, launch agreements, and a talk by Jeff Bezos at Satellite 2017—and the first fully-assembled BE-4 shipped to their test site in Texas for a hot firing. I discuss the new details we learned and how New Glenn will fit into the industry in the 2020s.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 6 executive producers—Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, and two anonymous—and 36 other supporters on Patreon.
* Introducing New Glenn - YouTube
* New Glenn Specs, Customers, and More - Main Engine Cut Off
* Eutelsat signs up for Blue Origin’s New Glenn launcher - Eutelsat Corporate
* Blue Origin on Twitter: “Five more launches for #NewGlenn! Excited to announce our second commercial customer #OneWebForAll”
* Jeff Bezos on Twitter: “1st BE-4 engine fully assembled. 2nd and 3rd following close behind. #GradatimFerociter”
* Decision on Vulcan engine could slip to 2017 - SpaceNews.com
* B…
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Mar 2, 2017
T+41: EM-1 Follow-up, Dragon 2-Falcon Heavy to the Moon
This week is all about #hotdrama, with two surprise media briefings: one from NASA on a potential crewed EM-1, and one from SpaceX on a privately-crewed journey around the Moon—riding on a Dragon 2 and Falcon Heavy—at the end of 2018. I discuss the implications of both, and go on a rant about SpaceX and “focus.”
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 5 executive producers—Pat, Matt, Jorge, Brad, and one anonymous—and 34 other supporters on Patreon.
* NASA study to examine crewed SLS/Orion mission in 2019 - SpaceNews.com
* NASA measuring risks and “significant” cost of crew on maiden SLS launch | Ars Technica
* SpaceX to Send Privately Crewed Dragon Spacecraft Beyond the Moon Next Year | SpaceX
* If you think NASA is frustrated with SpaceX, you’re probably right | Ars Technica
* Email your thoughts and comments to anthony@mainenginecutoff.com
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Feb 18, 2017
T+40: The Potentially Infamous EM-1 Memo
Robert Lightfoot, the Acting NASA Administrator, sent a memo to the agency on the possibility of putting a crew on EM-1. I discuss the potential fallout from this idea and where the SLS/Orion program may be heading in the future.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 5 executive producers—Pat O, Matt, Jorge, Brad, and one anonymous—and 31 other supporters on Patreon.
* Acting NASA Administrator Lightfoot Memo: Agency Update – Feb. 15, 2017
* A bolder, risk-taking NASA? Agency looking at Orion crew launch in 2019 | Ars Technica
* NASA developing contingency plan for commercial crew delays - SpaceNews.com
* S.2617 - 114th Congress (2015-2016): MANIFEST for Human Spaceflight Act of 2016 | Congress.gov | Library of Congress
* Issue #14 - Main Engine Cut Off
* The Intricate Dance of Orion, SLS, Commercial Crew, and Soyuz - Main Engine Cut Off
* The NASA-Boeing-Soyuz Transaction - Main Engine Cut Off
* Email your thoughts and comments to anthony@mai…
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Feb 9, 2017
T+39: Opportunities for Private Companies within Government Programs
This week, NASA officially announced that NanoRacks will be adding an airlock onto the International Space Station to add capabilities and capacity to their already-up-and-running business. That announcement, along with some early insight into NASA policy in 2017, got me thinking about commercial opportunities within government programs, beyond Commercial Cargo and Crew.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 4 executive producers—Pat O, Matt Giraitis, Jorge Perez, and one anonymous—and 28 other supporters on Patreon.
* NASA Announces Acceptance of NanoRacks Airlock Proposal - Main Engine Cut Off
* T+20: Mike Johnson, Chief Designer at NanoRacks on NanoRacks’ History, NextSTEP, and Wet Workshops - Main Engine Cut Off
* Issue #13 - Main Engine Cut Off
* NextSTEP Pushes Forward to Ground Prototypes - Main Engine Cut Off
* NASA Releases RFI for EM-2 Payload - Main Engine Cut Off
* Video from Orbital ATK Featuring Cygnus-Derived Habitats - Main Engine…
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Feb 2, 2017
T+38: 2017 NASA Transition Authorization Act Speculation
Marcia Smith of SpacePolicyOnline.com saw a draft of the 2017 NASA Transition Authorization Act, and it contains some very interesting changes from the 2016 version that bounced around Congress last year. I discuss what some of these changes may mean in the light of Commercial Crew delays, NASA RFIs regarding SLS and Orion, and continued Russian reliability issues.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 4 executive producers—Pat O, Matt Giraitis, Jorge Perez, and one anonymous—and 28 other supporters on Patreon.
* The Intricate Dance of Orion, SLS, Commercial Crew, and Soyuz - Main Engine Cut Off
* What's Happening in Space Policy January 30 - February 3, 2017
* Senate Floor Action on New NASA Authorization Act Could be Imminent
* As Russian Space Industry Tumbles, the Kremlin Steps In — Again — Parabolic Arc
* Doug Messier on the State of the Russian Space Industry - Main Engine Cut Off
* As Trump takes over, NASA considers alternatives to its O…
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Jan 27, 2017
T+37: Government Subsidies, Private Capability, and the 2010 National Space Policy
Four members of the House of Representatives sent letters to DARPA and the Pentagon this week to file a complaint about a program in conflict with the 2010 National Space Policy. It’s a situation reminiscent of the debate over commercial use of retired ICBMs as low-cost launch vehicles, except this time, Orbital ATK is on the other side. I discuss the current issues and how their resolution may affect future policy decisions.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 4 executive producers—Pat O, Matt Giraitis, Jorge Perez, and one anonymous—and 28 other supporters on Patreon.
* Elon Musk on Twitter: “@gdoehne Expendable. Future flights will go on Falcon Heavy or the upgraded Falcon 9.”
* Issue #11 - Main Engine Cut Off
* Orbital ATK For and Against Government Subsidies - Main Engine Cut Off
* DARPA satellite-servicing project comes under congressional fire - SpaceNews.com
* Current debate on ICBM use a throwback to the 1990s - SpaceNews.com
* Emai…
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Jan 19, 2017
T+36: Falcon 9 Flies with New Fueling Procedures, and the NASA-Boeing-Soyuz Saga
SpaceX is off to a strong start in 2017 with a very successful launch of Iridium-1 and a promising next few weeks. I also discuss the very interesting story developing between NASA, Boeing, and Russia regarding Soyuz flights to the ISS.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 3 executive producers—Pat O, Matt Giraitis, and one anonymous—and 26 other supporters on Patreon.
* Iridium-1 Hosted Webcast - YouTube
* John Insprucker on propellant loading - Iridium-1 Hosted Webcast - YouTube
* SpaceX’s Early 2017 Cadence - Main Engine Cut Off
* The NASA-Boeing-Soyuz Transaction - Main Engine Cut Off
* NASA considering Boeing offer for additional Soyuz seats - SpaceNews.com
* Boeing and Energia negotiating Sea Launch settlement - SpaceNews.com
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Jan 12, 2017
T+35: NASA Policy Grab Bag
While we don’t yet have hard details on which direction NASA programs are headed during the Trump administration, we have started to get some hints. The leadership of the Congressional subcommittees that NASA depends on will be largely unchanged, and Boeing and SpaceX were each promised 4 more Commercial Crew flights. I also talk a little bit about how the Air Force One and F-35 situations apply to NASA programs.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 3 executive producers—@spacepat_o, Matt Giraitis, and one anonymous—and 26 other supporters on Patreon.
* Texas Remains Powerful Space Influence as House Appropriations, Senate Commerce Announce Subcommittee Chairs
* Culberson Promises NASA Resources It Needs Despite Tough Budget Year
* Mission Awards Secure Commercial Crew Transportation for Coming Years | NASA
* Results of Progress MS-04 Investigation - Main Engine Cut Off
* Progress MS-04 fails to reach orbit
* Aerojet Rocketdyne Announces Expansio…
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Jan 5, 2017
T+34: SpaceX’s COPV Investigation and Return to Flight
SpaceX wrapped up their investigation into the Amos-6 explosion, and the news is mixed. I discuss their findings, their path back to flight, and some other 2016-2017 odds and ends.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 3 executive producers—@spacepat_o, Matt Giraitis, and one anonymous—and 25 other supporters on Patreon.
* Anomaly Updates | SpaceX
* OneWeb gets $1.2 billion in SoftBank-led investment - SpaceNews.com
* Virgin Galactic ends 2016 with second SpaceShipTwo glide flight - SpaceNews.com
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Dec 15, 2016
T+33: SpaceX’s Commercial Crew Delay, Fueling Process Approved, and the Inmarsat-Falcon Heavy Situation
Inmarsat, under regulatory pressure to get flying, decided to take a mid-2017 launch slot on Ariane 5, moving away from Falcon Heavy. Everyone thinks it’s a big deal, but for the wrong reason. And SpaceX’s Commercial Crew flights have been delayed, but we did find out that NASA’s Safety Technical Review Board approved their plan to load crew before fueling. That is a big deal.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 3 executive producers—@spacepat_o, Matt Giraitis, and one anonymous—and 25 other supporters on Patreon.
* Inmarsat Switches to Ariane 5 from Falcon Heavy - Main Engine Cut Off
* SpaceX Commercial Crew Delay and Propellant Loading - Main Engine Cut Off
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Dec 8, 2016
T+32: Soyuz-U Failure and Satellite Servicing
A Progress launch failed on its way to the ISS, so I discuss how this may affect the politics of the ISS and NASA going forward. And then I get into some thoughts on satellite servicing in general, and specifically surrounding Restore-L and Orbital ATK’s Mission Extension Vehicle.
This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 3 executive producers—@spacepat_o, Matt Giraitis, and one anonymous—and 25 other supporters on Patreon.
* Progress launch to space station fails - SpaceNews.com
* Progress MS-04 fails to reach orbit
* Stage III of the Soyuz rocket
* Issue #7 - Main Engine Cut Off
* SSL, Orbital ATK, and Satellite Servicing - Main Engine Cut Off
* NASA’s Restore-L contract nudges SSL closer to in-orbit servicing - SpaceNews.com
* NASA Awards Contract for Refueling Mission Spacecraft | NASA
* The Space Show, Mon, 10/31/2016 - 14:00 | General James B. Armor
* Mission Extension Services - Orbital ATK
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Dec 1, 2016
T+31: ULA’s RocketBuilder
Tory Bruno took to the stage to announce RocketBuilder, their new way to market and sell Atlas V launch services. I discuss my initial thoughts about it and what the announcement means for ULA going forward in the commercial market.
* Initial Thoughts on RocketBuilder - Main Engine Cut Off
* Introducing RocketBuilder - YouTube
* Press Conference: ULA Unveils Website to Transform How Launch Services are Selected - YouTube
* T+24: ULA’s RapidLaunch and Commercial Market Competitiveness - Main Engine Cut Off
* ULA Branding Their Emptying Manifest - Main Engine Cut Off
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Nov 23, 2016
T+30: SpaceX Nearing Falcon 9 Return-to-Flight
All signs point to SpaceX nearing a return-to-flight mission for Falcon 9. I discuss what to watch for in the months ahead, and read some email.
* SpaceX prime Falcon 9 rockets for December return | NASASpaceFlight.com
* With rockets on the move, SpaceX still aiming for 2016 return to flight | Ars Technica
* Matt Desch on Twitter: “A beautiful sight. Stage 1 arriving in California for our launch. Soon, very soon... Rainbow was a nice (and fitting) touch! #IridiumNEXT”
* Chris B - NSF on Twitter: “SpaceX ramping up to RTF. Falcon 9 S1 spotted en route to Vandy (Iridium NEXT). Next S1 and S2 (Echostar-23?) on the McGregor test stands.”
* Main Engine Cut Off Weekly, Issue #5
* The Space Review: Enabling a Mars settlement strategy with the Hercules reusable Mars lander
* Space Shuttle Decision, 1965-1972, by T. A. Heppenheimer
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Nov 16, 2016
T+29: Commercializing the NASA Exploration Roadmap
Following up on last show’s topic, there are signs that NASA may be moving away from Orion in the future. I discuss how I see NASA modernizing their exploration roadmap, politically, in the next administration.
* As Trump takes over, NASA considers alternatives to its Orion spacecraft | Ars Technica
* Alternative NASA Exploration Crew Vehicles - Main Engine Cut Off
* Issue #4 - Main Engine Cut Off
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Nov 2, 2016
T+28: The Future of NASA and the Moon
NASA released an RFI for small scientific payloads bound for the lunar surface, meant to “address strategic knowledge gaps” associated with human missions to the Moon. I talk about how this could indicate a shift of the SLS/Orion roadmap, and how NASA may be focusing on lunar surface missions in order to build more political capital for the program of record.
* Lunar Commercial Cargo Lite - Main Engine Cut Off
* NASA signals interest in extending commercial spaceflight to the Moon | Ars Technica
* Lunar CATALYST | NASA
* Eric Berger on Twitter
* T+27: Financial vs. Political Capital and Mission Sustainability - Main Engine Cut Off
* Moon Village: humans and robots together on the Moon / DG's news and views / About Us / ESA
* T+20: Mike Johnson, Chief Designer at NanoRacks on NanoRacks’ History, NextSTEP, and Wet Workshops - Main Engine Cut Off
* Email feedback to anthony@mainenginecutoff.com
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Oct 26, 2016
T+27: Financial vs. Political Capital and Mission Sustainability
In light of the recent Schiaparelli lander failure, I discuss the differences between missions supported by financial and political capital, and how those differences will play out in the next era of space exploration.
* ExoMars completes crucial orbit insertion, hope lost for lander | NASASpaceFlight.com
* Schiaparelli descent data: decoding underway / ExoMars / Space Science / Our Activities / ESA mobile
* Arbitrary Spin and Damage Control - Main Engine Cut Off
* MRO image of Schiaparelli – after / 10 / 2016 / Images / ESA Multimedia / ESA Online Videos
* Main Engine Cut Off Weekly, Issue #1
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Oct 19, 2016
T+26: OA-5, Antares, and Orbital ATK’s Road Ahead
I took a trip down to Wallops Island, Virginia this week for the launch of OA-5—the return to flight for Antares, sending Cygnus up to the ISS on a resupply mission. I recorded this episode on the long drive home afterwards, and talked about what Antares’ return means for Orbital ATK and what their future may hold—both good and bad.
* My video of the launch of OA-5, complete with incredible audio
* My photos of the launch of OA-5
* Antares launches Cygnus on return-to-flight mission - SpaceNews.com
* Talking Space
* Gene J. Mikulka
* Aerojet Rocketdyne Makes Case for AR1 - Main Engine Cut Off
* Aerojet Rocketdyne Announces Expansion at NASA’s Stennis Space Center in Mississippi - Main Engine Cut Off
* T+19: SpaceX’s Manifest, Flight-Proven Hardware, Blue Origin Updates, and Antares’ Engines - Main Engine Cut Off
* T+6: Orbital ATK’s Next-Gen Vehicle, Falcon 9 Proving Its Reusability, and ULA’s Tough Future - Main Engine Cut Off
* Video from Orbital…
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Oct 12, 2016
T+25: Falcon 9 Updates and the 10% Discount
Gwynne Shotwell, President of SpaceX, spoke at two events and dropped some tidbits about the Falcon 9 investigation, future versions of the vehicle, and what kind of discount they would offer for “flight-proven” stages. I break down the new info, and discuss their reusability discount.
* SpaceX's Shotwell on Falcon 9 inquiry, discounts for reused rockets and Silicon Valley's test-and-fail ethos - SpaceNews.com
* Shotwell says SpaceX “homing in” on cause of Falcon 9 pad explosion - SpaceNews.com
* The SpaceX Discount
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