“Cheaper Private Suborbital Flight Opportunities On The Horizon- Research Implications”
Summary
As private suborbital spaceflight providers inch toward viability, space tourism is the focus of the media’s attention. However, companies such as XCOR and Virgin Galactic will also have a secondary impact- significantly lowering the costs of small payload slots. With freefall periods that last several minutes and microgravity periods that exceed the length obtainable by aircraft on reduced gravity parabolas, what advantages will researchers have in this new class of flights? Research with collision dynamics, dust accretion, sputtering, chemical reactions, and other processes will be explored. Specific implications for experiments backed by institutions such as UCF’s Center for Microgravity Research will be discussed.
The presentation can be seen here.
View Presentation