Cognitive Labs

carrie-ann moss and val kilmer in 'red planet'


'Drunken Astronauts' became one of the top searches on Google today, leading us into perhaps, a Consumer Space Status Report. Who are the players? Who has an interesting take on the field, who has the bet hedged to lessen the risk? Who (if any) are the wildcard players?

- Branson: successful trial (despite today's accident)
- Musk: progress towards successful launch vehicle
- Bezos: launch vehicle with alternate design
- Diamandis: zero G corp, giving a feeling zerograv to the masses
- Bigelow: successful trial of 'hotel in space' model, hedged approach

red planet capital:
venture capital firm focused on low-budget space, funded partially by nasa, with a wild card strategy

in contrast, NASA itself has had 3 scandals this year, all relating to people:
- astronaut love triangle/attempted assault
- drunken astronaut story
- sabotage on the Shuttle?

Now, look at the budget for the aggregate 6 ventures/projects above (modest) compared to Nasa's annual manned spaceflight budget - the difference is an exponential multiple, with less achieved.

Labels: allen, bezos, branson, diamandis, drunken astronauts, musk, nasa, vallee, x prize

// posted by neurofuture10:03 PM permanent link