A fantastic group of people gathered recently to explore the incredible adventures and exciting opportunities unfolding in the realm of space. Chapter President Nathan Price kicked off the meeting with a few opening remarks.
Isaac Asimov, the renowned science fiction author, would undoubtedly be familiar with many historic space milestones: the first human in space, the first spacewalk, and so on. However, in his work “Lucy Starr and the Moons of Jupiter,” when a group lands on Io, one of Jupiter’s moons, a character reflects, “Think of all the trillions of people in the galaxy. Think how few have had the luck to be the first on a world. You can almost name them all. Janofski and Sterling were the first men on the moon…”
This struck me as curious. Upon checking the copyright page, I saw it was published in 1957. Ah, that explains it. Back then, predicting future space milestones was largely a matter of speculation. The identity of the first person on the moon was still unknown.
Nevertheless, the rarity of being a “first” on another world is a crucial point. Looking at the attendees of our North Houston Space Society meetings, I see some who could very well be among the future pioneers.
Patricia Vlach updated us on space weather, explaining how the sun’s dynamic nature affects Earth and will become even more critical as we explore the solar system.
Greg Stanley shared the latest space news, including the Polaris Dawn mission, which set a record for the first private space walk and highest orbit for people since Apollo 17 and contributed to the record of the most people in orbit simultaneously—19 in total (3 on a Soyuz, 3 on China’s Space Station, plus 9 on the ISS). He also discussed innovative concepts like building data centers in orbit to harness continuous solar power.
Chris Kapp delved into the origins of the rocket age, highlighting pivotal programs like Paperclip that secured German engineering talent. He also shared his personal connection to these historical events.
You can catch all this information in the recording of the meeting here:
However, the true highlight was the engaging conversations and connections made at PJ’s Coffee afterward. Twelve of us lingered for an hour or two, exchanging ideas and enjoying each other’s company. It was a blast!
I’m excited to see you at our next meeting on October 12, 2024 at 2PM at Barbara Bush Library.
Our library meetings are always free and open to everyone. Afterward, join us at PJ’s for more socializing. Also, consider applying to join the North Houston Space Society. Membership includes access to our Slack Channel for networking, participation in various planned activities, and the opportunity to lead your own initiatives. Members also have the chance to join tours and outreach events, such as judging at the Science and Engineering Fair of Houston (SEFH) and attending conventions like Conroe Comic Convention and Comicpalooza.