TOP STORIES: OCTOBER 2017

30 October 2017

Each month we round up some of the top stories in space, entrepreneurship, innovation, finance and technology.

Here’s our round-up for October:

Lifesaving technologies front and centre in disastrous month

After months of hurricanes wreaking widespread destruction across the U.S., we are witnessing the worst of Mother Nature bringing out the best in human nature. Big data is enabling forecasters to effectively warn citizens and government officials. Read the article here.

A human return to the Moon could be done with commercial or international capabilities, without jeopardizing a government-led humans-to-Mars program. (credit: Boeing)

Lockheed Martin adds a lander to its picture for NASA’s future journeys to Mars

“Lockheed Martin has fleshed out its picture for sending astronauts to the Red Planet by adding a refuelable lander and a water-based fuel supply chain to its “Mars Base Camp” mission architecture.

The system, updated today at the International Astronautical Congress in Australia, could make use of resources provided by asteroid mining companies such as Redmond, Wash.-based Planetary Resources.”

Read more at on Geekwire.

Muddling through space traffic management

“Space traffic management” is the cyber security of the space world. It is a hugely important public policy issue that underpins the successful future expansion of space activities, yet there is no agreement on its definition. Read more here.

Lead image: “[A]t its core, space traffic management is a ‘super wicked’ public policy problem,” analyst Brian Weeden writes. “But with estimates of 16,000 or more satellites on the drawing board to be launched in the next decade, it is not a problem we can continue to kick down the road.” Credit: Shutterstock

Glasgow wins favour as space satellite city

“Glasgow, once a heavy steel and shipbuilding city, seems an unlikely place to find scientists hoping to build satellites with groundbreaking potential — but the city is home to companies at the centre of efforts to miniaturise and democratise space exploration.” Read more at the FT.

Foldable space systems: taking inspiration from the Japanese art of origami

Oxford Space Systems is using origami to help design the next generation of satellites. CEO Mike Lawton discusses how inspiration from an unlikely source led to exciting innovation. – via Innovate UK blog

CEO Mike Lawton holding one of Oxford Space Systems’ deployable space systems