SVSC/Citizens in Space Workshop
San-Sun, May 4-5, 2013
Hacker Dojo, Mountain View
A Space Hacker Workshop for Suborbital Experiments will take place at the Hacker Dojo, directly across from NASA Ames Research Center, May 4-5. Participants will learn how to build and fly experiments in space aboard the XCOR Lynx in a 10-flight program managed by Citizens in Space. The program will accomodate up to 100 CubeLab experiments.
The program announcement was picked up by Scientific American, and appears in their Citizen Science section. The announcement appears in full on sites like SpaceRef.com, and appears below. Registration is $100 before April 18, and will be $150 at the door.
Press release at SpaceRef.com and other sources below...
Are you a hardware hacker? Do you have the Right Stuff to become a
citizen scientist or citizen astronaut? Here's your chance to find out.
Citizen scientists and hardware hackers will learn how to do "space on
the cheap" at the first Space Hacker Workshop for Suborbital
Experiments. Participants at the two-day workshop will learn how they
can build and fly experiments in space, and even fly in space as citizen
astronauts, through the Citizens in Space program.
The Space Hacker Workshop takes place May 4-5 at the Hacker Dojo in
Mountain View, California, across the street (literally) from NASA Ames
Research Center. The workshop is sponsored by Citizens in Space, a
project of the United States Rocket Academy, and the Silicon Valley
Space Center.
Citizens in Space has purchased 10 flights on the XCOR Lynx spacecraft,
now under construction at the Mojave Air and Space Port, which will be
made available to the citizen-science community.
"We're looking for 100 citizen-science experiments and 10 citizen
astronauts to fly as payload operators," Citizens in Space project
manager Edward Wright said. "This is a chance for citizen scientists to
develop and test new technologies, like bioreactors and 3D printing, in
zero gravity; to collect microorganisms from the extreme upper
atmosphere; to experiment with new processes for creating new materials;
and do many more cool things. The Space Hacker Workshop will provide
participants with information and skills needed to take advantage of our
free flight opportunities."
"Space is no longer the exclusive domain of NASA and university
scientists," said Dr. Sean Casey, co-founder of the Silicon Valley Space
Center. "Citizen scientists can build and fly fully functioning
experiments for a few hundred dollars or less, thanks to technology
developed here in Silicon Valley. With components available at Radio
Shack or Fry's Electronics, citizen scientists can build instruments and
experiments with more power than a NASA satellite from a few years
back."
"Commercial spaceflight is the next high-tech revolution, making space a
participatory frontier," said Dr. Alexander Saltman, executive director
of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation. "This event will tap into the
creative spirit that has made Silicon Valley a center of innovation for
decades."
The Space Hacker Workshop will provide hands-on exposure to a variety of
microcontrollers, sensors, imaging systems, and other components. With
these components, participants will learn how to design and build
microgravity, fluid-physics, life-science, and engineering experiments.
Infinity Aerospace, which is developing the open-source ArduLab for
low-cost space experiments, will be on hand to discuss the use of
ArduLab hardware as a development platform. Also on hand will be
representatives of XCOR Aerospace, which is building the fully reusable
Lynx suborbital spacecraft, and NASA Ames Research Center.
Khaki Rodway of XCOR Aerospace will discuss the capabilities and
requirements of the Lynx spacecraft. A panel of experts from NASA and
industry will discuss research professional scientists have done in the
past, prospects for new research on low-cost vehicles such as the Lynx,
and opportunities for citizen scientists to build on the shoulders of
NASA giants.
Project manager Edward Wright will be on hand to discuss Citizens in
Space flight opportunities for experiments and citizen astronauts,
including an exclusive glimpse at citizen-astronaut training activities
planned for this summer.
Admission for the event is $150 at the door, but early-bird tickets are
available now for $100. Tickets are limited and the event may sell out.
Online registration is available at
http://spacehacker.eventbrite.com.
