We have grown accustomed to the role of large companies, such as Boeing and Lockheed Martin, in successful space launches. But with the nearly flawless debut of SpaceX, and with the arrival of other smaller companies on the scene, we are again seeing the benefits of competition, as new companies bring innovation, flexibility and, more importantly, reduced costs to space operations. Continue Reading
As Atlantis’ mission and NASA’s space shuttle program draws to a close, George Abbey, Baker Botts Senior Fellow in Space Policy, reflects on the legacy of U.S. space exploration and discusses prospects for its future. Abbey, who served as director… Continue Reading
A Baker Institute event organized by Space Policy fellow George Abbey is discussed in a blog posted on the Smithsonian’s Air & Space magazine website. The blog, “The Once and Future Moon,” provides an overview of some of the speakers’… Continue Reading
George Abbey, the institute’s Baker Botts Senior Fellow in Space Policy, is the former director of NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston. Twenty-five years ago, when the space shuttle Challenger exploded, he was the director of flight crew operations at… Continue Reading
In my position at the Baker Institute, I have had the pleasure of meeting many national and international dignitaries over the years; Gabrielle Giffords is the only one who knows me by my first name. I met her six years… Continue Reading
The Baker Institute recently hosted the International Space Medicine Summit (ISMS), the fourth-such conference in a series to address the challenges of long duration space flight. More than 140 leading physicians, space biomedical scientists, engineers, astronauts, cosmonauts and educators from… Continue Reading
Today was not a good day for the thousands of employees and contractors at Johnson Space Center in Clear Lake who work on the space shuttle program for NASA. In a speech at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, President… Continue Reading