← T-Minus: Space-Cyber Briefing
T-Minus: Space-Cyber Briefing
Trump looks to Mars.
00:29:58
Space stock up after Trump inauguration. China produces ingredients for rocket fuel on Tiangong. China launches its first commercial rocket of ‘25. And more.
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- [00:02]
Maria Varmazas
You're listening to the N2K space network.
- [00:11]
Dave
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- [01:12]
Maria Varmazas
That's JoinDeleteMe.com N2k code N2K today is January 21st, 2025. I'm Maria Varmazas and this is T minus.
- [01:33]
Daniel Fox
T minus.
- [01:36]
Maria Varmazas
The Los Redwire has signed a definitive agreement to acquire UAS provider Edge, Autonomy. Axiom Space and the Turkish Space Agency have signed an agreement to explore and identify potential supply chain opportunities for the Turkish space industry ecosystem. China launches its first commercial rocket of 2025. Taikonauts on the Tiango station conducted the world's first in orbit demonstration of artificial photosynthesis technology producing oxygen as well as the ingredients necessary for rocket fuel. US President Trump takes office vowing to pursue our manifest destiny into the stars and aims to plant a US Flag on Mars. And today's guest is Daniel Fox, founder of the Future of Space. Daniel has just returned from the space to Sea Antarctica adventure along with space legends such as former NASA astronauts Charlie Duke and Jose Hernandez, as well as astrophysicist Neil DeGrasse Tyson and many. And we'll be sharing what the experience was like with us later in the show. Happy Tuesday, everybody. And unless you've been living under a rock for the last few months, you'll know that yesterday marked the first day in office for the new US Administration. Donald Trump has resumed his previously held role as President of the United States and ushered in a new era of US Leadership. With space front and center of his planned objectives, the United States will once again consider itself a growing nation, one that increases our wealth, expands our territory builds our cities, raises our expectations and carries our flag into new and beautiful horizons. And we will pursue our manifest destiny into the stars. Launching American astronauts to plant the Stars and Stripes on the planet Mars. Yes, the 47th president of the US who has a very close relationship with SpaceX CEO Elon Musk, is looking to Mars, trump said. Americans are explorers, builders, innovators, entrepreneurs and pioneers. The spirit of the frontier is written into our hearts. The call of the next great adventure resounds from within our souls. Musk was in attendance at the inauguration and cheered along with the crowd when Trump spoke of his ambition. Unsurprisingly, Trump's speech bolstered space stocks, which were climbing earlier today. Intuitive Machines, Rocket Lab, ast, Space Mobile and Redwire were all trading up following yesterday's inauguration. In a sign that space may once again be on the UP under the new administration, Taikonauts on the Tiangong Space Station have conducted the world's first in orbit demonstration of artificial photosynthesis technology. The aim of the research was to produce oxygen as well as the ingredients necessary for rocket fuel. Chinaman Space says the Taikonauts used semiconductor catalysts to convert carbon dioxide and water into oxygen while producing ethylene, a hydrocarbon that can be used to make spacecraft propellants. The tests focused on technologies that would be essential for resource production and human survival in space. And speaking of China, Galactic Energy launched its Ceres 1 rocket on Monday, marking the first commercial rocket launch in China. China for 2025, the Beijing based rocket maker's mission on Youn shoulders delivered five satellites into orbit. Four of those satellites were Yunya 1 satellites, which are all equipped with Global Navigation Satellite System Occultation detection payloads, which means they acquire data on atmospheric temperature, humidity, pressure and ionospheric electron density, all of which may be blocking or occulting GNSS signals. The other satellite is the JTX A05, which is equipped with a hyperspectral camera Paylo to acquire remote sensing images. Moving on now to Turkey and Axiom Space and the Turkish Space Agency have signed an agreement to explore and identify potential supply chain opportunities for the Turkish space industry ecosystem in the development of the planned Axiom Station and other Axiom Space activities. The two parties sign a memorandum of understanding covering mutual cooperation in fields such as space technology, aerospace, textiles, materials science, advanced manufacturing, communications and life sciences. The partnership aims to engage Turkey's younger population in space activities, inspire future astronauts, engineers, scientists and leaders, and support the sustainability of the space industry while fostering innovation in other sectors and Redwire has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Edge Autonomy, which is a provider of uncrewed airborne system technology. In case you were wondering what UAS stands for, Redwire will acquire the UAS company for $925 million on a debt free cash free basis. The merger consideration is expected to be paid using $150 million in cash and $775 million in shares of Redwire common stock. Following the merger, Edge Autonomy and its subsidiaries would be wholly owned subsidiaries of Redwire. Redwire says the acquisition will make the company a global leader in multi domain autonomous technology, broadening its portfolio of mission critical space plat include combat proven autonomous airborne platforms and that concludes today's Intel Briefing. Head to the Selected Reading section of our show notes for links to further reading on all the stories mentioned throughout the show. And today we've included two extra stories for you. One's on General Atomics test on nuclear thermal propulsion and another is on the Canadian Space Agency's support of Quantum key distribution technology. You know we are just under a week away from Commercial Space Week in Florida, and by the way, we here at T Minus will be recording at booth 1217 from January 28th through 30th. So combine, meet the team, say hi, let us know how we can improve the show for you, or book a time to speak with me. Yes, I will interview you by emailing us@space2k.com to arrange the time. Hey T Minus crew, if you are just joining us, be sure to follow T Minus Space daily in your favorite podcast app. And if you could do us a favor and share the intel with your friends and coworkers, we would really appreciate it. Maybe by Friday show three Friends or Coworkers Podcast because a growing audience is the most important thing for us and we would love your help as part of the T Minus crew. So if you find our show useful, and of course we always hope that you do, please share it so other professionals like you can find it. Thanks so much for your support everybody. It means a lot to me and all of us here at T Minus.
- [09:34]
Dave
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- [10:16]
Maria Varmazas
Our guest today is Daniel Fox, founder of the Future of space.
- [10:24]
Daniel Fox
For 15 years, I did Soto Wilderness expedition under the banner of Feel the Wild, which was kind of a narrative of our own journey with nature as this place of teachings and lessons, not necessarily about nature, but more about us using nature as a teacher. And after the combination of my book Feel the Wild, that published in 2019 and Covid, I was given the opportunity to kind of reassess how to move forward. And this is where I acquainted myself with space. As an explorer, I always understand what the value of these new front of these new places. And as someone who is maybe not necessarily a space geek and never thought that space was feasible, I really did a pivot and created a company called Future Space with the intent of continuing that storytelling and understanding the power of these places and trying to reshape the narrative of how these new frontiers matter and how they're part of the equation. In the world of being so divided, I think that there's a value in reconnecting ourselves with our capacity to figure things out. So Space to See is really this platform where we tell stories, we get to experience them, and we get to bring people together. And now we just did our inaugural Space to See Voyage of Legends. That was in Antarctica.
- [12:00]
Maria Varmazas
Yes. And you are fresh back from that. My goodness. Space to sea, this incredible voyage that you went on. I'm gonna read the highlight of the guest for our listeners and viewers. William Shatner, Neil Degrasse, Tyson moonwalker, Charlie Duke, Ann Curry, NASA astronauts Scott Kelly, Jose Hernandez, Celine Cousteau. And also someone I'm a huge fan of also is the artist Stefan Wiltshire. I love his work. So I just was so pleased to see that he was part of that as. But I'm sure that is just the tip of the iceberg. I wish I could have been a fly on the wall for the incredible conversations that must have been just happening everywhere on that voyage. My goodness, where do you even start describing what that was like?
- [12:39]
Daniel Fox
It was, I think, really something magical that happened. But I think it is a testament to the type of experiences that we want to create and where here we are on a ship, you have 240 different individuals from different backgrounds, different economic realities. We had, you know, a billionaire, we had teachers, we had young, old. And yet in the end, the biggest takeaway from all of this, right, Antarctica was impactful as the background people got to be reminded of these remote places. But one of the biggest takeaways was the sense of community, right? These relationships that were Created on board that sense of connection. This is really the biggest takeaway and why it matters. And I think it's an important reminder and that in times where so much of everything is divided because we brand our opinions high and loud and that's the first thing that we share with the world. But the reality is that when we come together, this is where the magic happens. And, you know, to have Celine on the stage with, you know, between Neil Degrasse and Scott, and having her presence and her energy really balancing and being delivered with so much elegance, it was incredible what Anne brought to the conversation with Stephen, right, An artist that is kind of subtle, easy to miss, and yet the power that he brings to the conversation. It was. I mean, there were so many moments. I mean, even from our ugly sweater contest, but it was. It was just a reminder of what we can achieve and what we can do. Antarctica and these remote places need to be experienced and they need to be done in a way that we understand why they matter. And I know that there's a conversation that is happening about, well, we should leave these places alone. We should never go to Antarctica, we should never go to the moon. Why go to space where we've already done so much damage? The reality is that these new places are always part of the equation. We need to experience them to give you a sense of perspective. They give you a sense of how everything is interconnected. And for us to be able to create a platform where people were able to experience that was just priceless.
- [15:17]
Maria Varmazas
I can just begin to imagine, I'm imagining all those different people coming on board for quite some time. During the holidays, no less. I imagine there must have been a lot of preconceived notions, a lot of hopes and dreams that people had and a lot of changed minds. By the end of it, people may be coming away with conclusions they didn't expect that they would be having really a lot of unexpected experiences. I'm wondering if you have any examples or. Yeah, obviously you don't have to name names for people's privacy, but no, I mean, there's no.
- [15:51]
Daniel Fox
I mean, Ann Currie, you know, said she was not interested in going back until. Unless her children were coming along. Celine could still the same thing. She was not interested in going back to Antarctica except if it was for her son to expand that. And the. The physicality of these places is not to be forgotten there. It's. It's worth physical species. We need to expand these things. There's a lot of people who, you know, came away as like, listen I had. I didn't feel that I was. I would be able to contribute or that I mattered because, you know, I'm. I haven't done much, and yet I've never felt the sense of being excluded or that I didn't matter. That's. I think it's, again, this constant reminder of what we can achieve and the power of traveling. Why do we travel? Because we go out and we're reminded of the things that we take for granted back home. It makes you really appreciate, makes you fall in love again with the things that we forget. So the Drake Passage. Yes, we're able. We're able to experience these things now where before you either had to be like, a lone wolf or a crazy person or because you didn't fit in society and you thought, like, I'm just gonna go and get stuck on the ship and I'll die in the process. Before, you know, going to these remote places, you had to be a scientist or you had to be a hardcore adventurer where, you know, you would be on a research vessel for two months eating oatmeal for, you know, for the entire time. Not really pleasant. Right now we get to bring common, regular people who, you know, felt that this was not available for them. And, you know, our voyage was. Was quite exclusive. But the reality is that you have different options if you want to go to these places. And, you know, yes, we are connected to the Internet, Starlink, you know, all the way through, which is an added value, right? You can share. I mean, I've put like a Bing on the. On the bow deck with. With family members that are sharing that experience with their family back home is precious. Right? So the. We have all these preconceived notions of. Of these experiences and these voyagers until you go there and you get to experience it, and then you go, my God, great. I. I understand why it matters. I. I cannot fathom how remote and how crazy these voyages of Shackleton and Scott and Amundsen and. And when these experiences are curated and crafted in a way that information, context, and education is done, they become the most powerful and impactful experiences in your life.
- [19:00]
Maria Varmazas
I can totally believe it. And what also I'm hearing a lot from what you're telling me is as much as these places are extraordinary and goodness knows, I really hope I can visit Antarctica one day myself. That's definitely on my bucket list. It's actually a lot. It sounds like to me, you seeing what other people are getting out of these voyages and seeing their transformation is extremely rewarding for you, given how much you have traveled this world, it almost sounds like the place is secondary to the experience of the people that you're with. I hope I'm not misreading that, but it sounds a little bit like that.
- [19:35]
Daniel Fox
It is. It's funny, I remember some many years ago, I was having this radio interview after doing a lot of Alaska and they were asking me like, what's your favorite place? What's your favorite mountains? And I found myself answering in that moment and surprising myself. And I said that, you know, mountains are mountains, wildlife or wildlife. And ultimately, you know, they're the backdrop of something bigger that is happening, which is all these human connections, these human relationship. Like everywhere that I've been to. Part of my creative process was to stay with local people, you know, share a table, sit with them, share a glass of wine and hear their stories. And those became the most cherished discoveries along the way. Right. And if I was connecting more with a mountain or with a bear, I would have to start asking myself a question, really like, who am I? Because, you know, I'm human. And ultimately it's the human connection that really enriches my life. The rest is basically accessories to define more what type of relationships you will have. Right. Am I someone who creates those relationships more by going to the outdoors or by going to a movie theater? I mean, these things kind of are more the filter of what defines the group of people that you hang out with. Our voyage to Antarctica was that right? It was people who understand or wanted to experience the power of these places. So now obviously, you know, you're on the ship with like minded individuals. But all the travel, right, the travel great. We get to experience food from different places. But ultimately it's the people along the way, they're really became that most cherished discovery.
- [21:40]
Maria Varmazas
I can totally believe that too. And I think that would be my takeaway as well. I think that's the scenery is always incredible and the experience is also better. You always remember the people first and foremost, for good and bad, but hopefully for good. I can't help but wonder what your next adventures are going to be. I'm sure you've got a lot already planned.
- [22:00]
Daniel Fox
Well, we do have Galapagos November. This is going to be something really different, much smaller. Just because of the nature of the experience itself. It's a smaller ship. The Galapagos are very extremely careful about how they manage. So you cannot be more than 100 voyages on a ship. There are a limited amount of ships, but we'll do something before and after there's other programs and other experiences that we're going to be creating. Everything that we do, everything that we do is founded on these three kind of statements that define everything that we create. So embracing new frontiers, celebrating the human experience and elevating the conversations. Everything that all these experiences, these events that we're going to be doing are going to stem from these three statements that for us kind of define really who we are as a species.
- [23:09]
Maria Varmazas
We'll be right back.
- [23:16]
Dave
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- [24:35]
Maria Varmazas
Welcome back. If you didn't know what those brilliant glittery streaks across the skies above the Caribbean were last Thursday, it's understandable if they freaked you out or if you went, ooh, shiny. Starship exploded during test flight number seven last week. And when things go right during these test flights, Starship goes up, goes orbital, and comes back down to Earth, either burning up on reentry or splashing down in a remote patch of the Indian Ocean. But we humans make plans and the laws of thermodynamics laugh at them. And in this case, nine minutes after liftoff, Starship came back down to Earth near the Caribbean island of Turks and Caicos instead in a lot of itty bitty pieces. Thankfully, no one was injured by the falling debris, but those pieces are littering the land and shores of the tropical beach paradise. In a story reported by Denise Chow of NBC News, tennis instructor Ray Garcia saw the debris rain down on the tennis court and golf course where he works in Turks and Caicos. He said, I was actually very scared. I was thinking it was a meteorite. It kept exploding and exploding and exploding. It was strong. You could feel the explosion. It felt so close. It is very, very lucky indeed that no one was hurt. And I hate to add this qualifier, but we're very lucky that no one was hurt this time. It's safe to say most of us listening to this show understand the math. More satellites in leo, more launches, the greater the likelihood of something dire happening. That is part of the reason why a growing group of advocates from the space industry and the space research community are urging the United nations to add a safeguard for space, especially low Earth orbit, in the UN's Sustainable Development Goals, or SDGs. Such a goal would primarily have the aim of preventing the dreaded Kessler Effect, where LEO becomes unusable because of all the space debris orbiting us. But the problem of space debris collisions in LEO didn't seem too urgent until suddenly it was. And it seems we are nearing a similar point with space debris raining down on Terra firmament. Might be worth some space in that SDG. Just a thought. That's it for T minus for January 21, 2025, brought to you by N2K Cyberwire. For additional resources from today's report, check out our show notes at Space. We're privileged that N2K and podcasts like T Minus are part of the daily routine of many of the most influential leaders and operators in the public and private sector, from the Fortune 500 to many of the world's preeminent intelligence and law enforcement agencies. This episode was produced by Alice Carouse. Our associate producer is Liz Stokes. We are mixed by Elliot Peltzman and Trey Hester, with original music by Elliot Peltzman. Our executive producer. Producer is Jennifer Ibin. Our executive editor is Brandon Karp, Simone Petrella is our president, Peter Kilpe is our publisher, and I am your host, Maria Varmazes. Thanks for listening. We'll see you tomorrow. T minus.
- [27:55]
Dave
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