What is the role of science in space commerce?
Are there sufficient commercial markets for science missions?
Variations include: Are there commercial markets that would enable science missions? Is there a collaboration potential between commercial and science missions?
Comments?
- •Typically, science does not have any money. Researchers do not have control over a flight budget. I can’t envision enough of a culture change for SMD to be able to say, we’ll give $2B to the first company that can provide us with 500 kg of selected samples from the Aristarchus plateau. I could see a fee for service for delivered supplies to the Moon, or development of resources, but only as “extras” above and beyond what the minimum mission is.
-
Comments (1)
Bradley Cheetham said
at 9:47 pm on Jun 15, 2008
I think the question becomes, at what cost does the scientific market open up? How cheap does the mission have to be so that private universities and research institutions would purchase science missions?
What would you all say to a $10 million prize for the first team to return scientific data from the moon? Say, specific information about radiation, micrometeorites, dust, or some other thing. This could lead to future development of lunar capabilities and thus lower prices for lunar mission and thus lunar scientific information.
You don't have permission to comment on this page.