Space Done Wrong

Do the achievements of the space industry fill you with wonder or do you wonder about its shortcomings? With all the amazing things slated for 2021 it is also good to take a closer look at the things that need betterment. If you want to join in this:

Welcome to #SpaceDoneWrong.

If New Space is going to be a lasting success, we need some changes in the governance of space itself. With a series of articles I will therefore shed light on some of the underlying problems of the industry.


What to expect:

Note: a new episode will be published once per month. Bonus articles in irregular intervals.

—> Bonus 1-1 – Don’t use CCN’s

—> Bonus 1-2 – More bang for your buck.

—> Bonus 1-3 – How to become obsolete, fast!

—> Bonus 1-4 – Space industry’s obsession…

  • Episode 02 – Destroying the satellite industry one free image at the time.

–> Bonus 2-1 – The curious case of RapidEye

  • Episode 03 – Space Debris! Or did anyone say moral hazard? (delayed)

–> Bonus 3-1 Case Study: EnviSat

–> Bonus 3-2 Yes we can! No we can’t The two faces of ESA space debris mitigation

–> Bonus 3-3 Who is liable for ESA satellites?

–> Bonus 3-4 Can we all agree not to do this? (Antisatellite weapons)

  • Episode 04 – The beast of ECCS tailoring and the beauty of a clean slate. (delayed)
  • Episode 05 – Mine or Yours: On the nature of Terms and Conditions.
  • Episode 06 – How to squander public money and waste human ingenuity. (delayed)

–> Bonus 6-1 – What agency small satellites and Aston Martin Cygnet have in common.

–> Bonus 6-3 – Salami Tactics. How progress in public funded R&D is slowed down.

–> Bonus 6-4 – Trivial Pursuit. Research below the state of the Art. Example: Star Trackers.

–> Bonus 6-6 Spot the difference. Industry Small Satellites vs. ESA Small Satellites

  • Episode 07 – Meet Over-Engineering the ugly child of fear.

—> Bonus 7-1 – Let’s stick with what we know. ESA/EC IOD Element 1

—> Bonus 7-2 – Success Guaranteed. DLR TET

—> Bonus 7-3 – I found gold! ESA IOD study results

—> Bonus 7-4 – Something does not add up. ESA/EC IOD Element 2

  • Episode 08 – Even free technology comes at a cost. (delayed)
  • Episode 09 – Using Commercial Space to kill commercial space. (delayed)
  • Episode 10 – When everybody is #newspace, nobody is.

–> Bonus 10-1 – The two faces of the space industry (Beggar and Don)

  • Episode 11 – Comments and Opinions on currents events (TBD)

–> Bonus 11-1 – Satellite Mass Manufacturing in Germany

–> Bonus 11-2 – Don’t Spent on Space

–> Bonus 11-3 – Do you need an export license for ESA?

–> Bonus 11-4 – What is the carbon footprint of a satellite?

  • Episode 12 – Missed Opportunities (TBD)

–> Bonus 12-1 – I am looking for a MicroGEM

  • Episode 13 – The price of perfection (today is better than perfect tomorrow)

–> Bonus 13-1 – Case Study Enmap (celebrating 10 years of mission delay)

–> Bonus 13-2 – Case Study GEORG (bleeding edge)

Links to articles will be added to the list once they are published.

Post Scriptum and Special Thanks

Those who know me better, will see that these topics were in my heart for a long time already. It took a nudge to bring it to a broader audience. Therefore, thanks to the kind souls at the #karmanproject for selecting me as one of 15 fellows for 2020 and supporting me in my commitment towards the betterment of our industry.