WEBVTT 00:00:11.489 --> 00:00:13.489 We place very complex machines on the top of huge vertical structures, the 00:00:15.329 --> 00:00:19.826 size of a 34 story tall building. We proceed to light these explosives and 00:00:19.859 --> 00:00:23.015 the whole structure along with valuable contents are shut up so high they 00:00:23.048 --> 00:00:27.186 end up in space or plant. We call these rocket launches and we 00:00:27.219 --> 00:00:30.686 collectively species are from one of them around every two weeks and we 00:00:30.719 --> 00:00:34.676 have been doing them for at least 40 years right now. At this very moment 00:00:34.709 --> 00:00:38.646 , there are six humans just like you and me currently traveling at seven 00:00:38.679 --> 00:00:44.237 kilometers per second. That is almost 16,000 MPH at 400 kilometers in 00:00:44.270 --> 00:00:48.976 altitude inside a pressurized box. We call the International Space Station. 00:00:49.009 --> 00:00:52.195 All of this is incredibly exciting, of course, but it is also incredibly 00:00:52.228 --> 00:00:56.856 dangerous and crazy. Why would anybody do such a thing? We don't just 00:00:56.889 --> 00:01:00.695 perform these activities for the sake of proving the limits of humanity. 00:01:00.728 --> 00:01:04.286 But there's a fundamental benefit of why we're doing them being in space 00:01:04.319 --> 00:01:07.156 gives you an unparalleled perspective that allows you to look back down to 00:01:07.189 --> 00:01:11.105 your world in ways not achievable. Otherwise imagine being lost in a cord 00:01:11.138 --> 00:01:15.706 . I don't know how we get into that position. But if you were able to know 00:01:15.739 --> 00:01:20.165 what it looked like from above, everything would be so much easier. Well, 00:01:20.198 --> 00:01:23.087 satellites provide a similar vantage point. They know what everything 00:01:23.120 --> 00:01:25.605 looks like from the top because they're up there in space. Looking back 00:01:25.638 --> 00:01:29.467 down to us all the time. This is very valuable information that allows us 00:01:29.500 --> 00:01:33.156 to solve problems. They in fact make a lot of aspects of our modern lives. 00:01:33.189 --> 00:01:36.956 For example, the GPS service you may have used to navigate here, the 00:01:36.989 --> 00:01:39.915 weather forecast you may have seen this morning and the telecommunications. 00:01:39.948 --> 00:01:43.227 We all love to use the internet, telephone radios. All of these things 00:01:43.260 --> 00:01:47.766 depend in one way or another in by satellites machines we humans have sent 00:01:47.799 --> 00:01:52.007 into space. Then there's science, scientific breakthroughs and discoveries 00:01:52.040 --> 00:01:56.555 in physics, astronomy, even biology are very often oriented in spacecraft 00:01:56.588 --> 00:02:00.135 like the Hubble space telescope in International Space Station, Space 00:02:00.168 --> 00:02:04.016 Exploration, we today have high resolution images of the planets and the 00:02:04.049 --> 00:02:07.626 moon of our solar system. We have even imaged planets on the habitable 00:02:07.659 --> 00:02:11.725 suns of stars older than our own sun places where we might want to find 00:02:11.758 --> 00:02:16.156 life. We have placed humans and robots too on the surfaces of the objects 00:02:16.189 --> 00:02:20.077 of our solar system. Objects once considered to be God by the ancient 00:02:20.110 --> 00:02:23.957 humans. Clearly, there's a fundamental benefit and advantage of being in 00:02:23.990 --> 00:02:28.156 the space. This begs the question, why don't we go there? More often. Well 00:02:28.189 --> 00:02:32.196 , it is stupidly expensive to go to space right now. That's why. And 00:02:32.229 --> 00:02:35.225 there's multiple reasons why going to space is expensive. First, there's 00:02:35.258 --> 00:02:38.376 the obvious one, like building a rocket, the size of a building, fill it 00:02:38.409 --> 00:02:42.017 with explosives and cry generally cooling. It tends to be a bit expensive 00:02:42.050 --> 00:02:44.636 and it certainly doesn't help at all that after we are done with the 00:02:44.669 --> 00:02:47.737 launch, we let the thing crash into the ocean and sink so we can go keep 00:02:47.770 --> 00:02:50.677 company to the Titanic. 00:02:50.710 --> 00:02:53.856 But even though the whole whole rocket thing is expensive, this is not the 00:02:53.889 --> 00:02:58.327 real reason why going to space is expensive after all, on average rocket 00:02:58.360 --> 00:03:02.335 launches and the cost of that is only about a 10% of the total cost of a 00:03:02.368 --> 00:03:07.106 space mission. So where is the rest of my money going? Space is expensive 00:03:07.139 --> 00:03:10.975 because we're stuck in a vicious cycle and allow me to explain, we have a 00:03:11.008 --> 00:03:14.457 starting point. We're designing, constructing and operating a space 00:03:14.490 --> 00:03:18.136 mission is expensive now because the space is expensive. We can only 00:03:18.169 --> 00:03:21.386 afford so many of them. And there's a low number of space missions because 00:03:21.419 --> 00:03:24.186 it's a low number of space missions. When you get the opportunity to send 00:03:24.219 --> 00:03:27.786 something to space, you really, really want to make sure it works. After 00:03:27.819 --> 00:03:31.536 all, you may have been waiting for this opportunity for the last 20 years. 00:03:31.569 --> 00:03:35.217 Something not unheard of in the industry. These proportionate resources 00:03:35.250 --> 00:03:39.327 are spent into guaranteeing the success of these missions. Redundancy, 00:03:39.360 --> 00:03:42.487 open redundancy, quality checks, background checks and additional harding 00:03:42.520 --> 00:03:45.866 for all materials. All of these things cost money. They are up and in the 00:03:45.899 --> 00:03:49.207 end end up being the majority of the cost of emissions leading us to more 00:03:49.240 --> 00:03:53.116 expensive missions. And the cycle repeats itself expensive mission leads 00:03:53.149 --> 00:03:56.967 to low number of whose success wants to be guaranteed no matter the cost 00:03:57.000 --> 00:04:00.717 leading to more expensive missions and we're stuck, space is expensive 00:04:00.750 --> 00:04:06.957 because failure is not an option. But what if it was? What if we embrace 00:04:06.990 --> 00:04:11.156 the possibility of failure? What if we accepted and took risks? What if we 00:04:11.189 --> 00:04:14.636 were to break the cycle by constructing smaller missions whose success is 00:04:14.669 --> 00:04:18.377 not to be guaranteed? Now, I'm not trying to suggest we just build ha 00:04:18.410 --> 00:04:21.437 hazardous missions that are prone to failure or that every mission should 00:04:21.470 --> 00:04:24.226 have risk. There are of course some missions where we should go for a 00:04:24.259 --> 00:04:28.705 higher cost to guarantee a lower risk, especially when humans, astronauts 00:04:28.738 --> 00:04:32.955 are involved. But there's some cases where it is reasonable to take some 00:04:32.988 --> 00:04:36.976 risk. Imagine you are a planetary scientist who is studying the circles of 00:04:37.009 --> 00:04:41.036 Mars because you just love the rocks and the circles of Mars and that's ok. 00:04:41.069 --> 00:04:46.645 There's people like that. Well, traditionally, you will build one very 00:04:46.678 --> 00:04:49.986 expensive state of the art, beautiful robber that will go all the way to 00:04:50.019 --> 00:04:53.387 Mars and perform wonderful science for you. But what if for the same 00:04:53.420 --> 00:04:57.007 amount of money you were to go to. Now, this is not like an information 00:04:57.040 --> 00:04:59.606 with some black magic. So obviously, you will need to cut corners 00:04:59.639 --> 00:05:02.606 somewhere and the system may be more prompt to failure somewhere leading 00:05:02.639 --> 00:05:06.717 to say a 75% chance of success. For each role, you still send the ball to 00:05:06.750 --> 00:05:11.377 Mars and yes, one might fail, but you still got the other one. Maybe both 00:05:11.410 --> 00:05:15.656 fail, then you're out of luck. But what if the most likely scenario occurs 00:05:15.689 --> 00:05:18.776 and both can succeed? Then we have just performed double the amount of 00:05:18.809 --> 00:05:22.317 science without a single 10 a increases in price, we can do more with less 00:05:22.350 --> 00:05:26.007 if we accept some risk. This is specifically what we were doing with CUB 00:05:26.040 --> 00:05:30.656 sets. Some engineers, a couple in 1999 they came together and disagreed 00:05:30.689 --> 00:05:34.406 upon building very, very small satellites in the same form factor. They 00:05:34.439 --> 00:05:37.666 introduced what we know today as a cub set standard and Cub sets come in 00:05:37.699 --> 00:05:42.166 various sizes. A one U tube set is a 10 by 10 by 10 centimeter blocks 00:05:42.199 --> 00:05:46.736 about the size of a tissue box. A two U is a 10 by 10 by 20 centimeter box 00:05:46.769 --> 00:05:50.387 and a three U is a 10 by 10 by 30 centimeter box just about the size of a 00:05:50.420 --> 00:05:55.776 loaf of bread. Here, I have a model of a three unit Gibson. This is the 00:05:55.809 --> 00:05:59.476 actual size of the spacecraft, but just because you're born a box doesn't 00:05:59.509 --> 00:06:04.697 mean you have to die a box. You can expand and deploy solar panels. These 00:06:04.730 --> 00:06:08.906 satellites are remarkably small, especially when you consider the fact 00:06:08.939 --> 00:06:12.887 that when we normally talk about satellites, we talk in terms of cars and 00:06:12.920 --> 00:06:17.086 school buses, not loads of red tissue boxes. Satellites are not normally 00:06:17.119 --> 00:06:21.286 something you call on stage while talking. So even though these satellites 00:06:21.319 --> 00:06:25.346 are so small, we can fit a lot of useful electronics into them. This is 00:06:25.379 --> 00:06:28.495 thanks to the fact that people want a smaller computer in a smaller iphone 00:06:28.528 --> 00:06:33.555 every single year. The commercialization, the militarization of consumer 00:06:33.588 --> 00:06:37.217 electronics have left us with very, very powerful computers on very very 00:06:37.250 --> 00:06:42.377 small packages. So why not take the computer in your cellphone 00:06:42.410 --> 00:06:45.296 and put it in a satellite? This is the point where a traditional aerospace 00:06:45.329 --> 00:06:49.055 engineer would say stop right there. This is not gonna work, but I'm not a 00:06:49.088 --> 00:06:53.796 traditional aerospace engineer. I can guarantee to you that utilizing this 00:06:53.829 --> 00:06:58.395 iphone electronics in your satellite is much, much, much less expensive 00:06:58.428 --> 00:07:02.325 than utilizing the redundant radiation hard and customized electronics of 00:07:02.358 --> 00:07:05.846 normal satellites. There's some risk to utilize these electronics because 00:07:05.879 --> 00:07:09.217 they're more prone to fill in space. But this allows us to build space 00:07:09.250 --> 00:07:14.145 guard for a really low price and break the cycle. So I have built my space 00:07:14.178 --> 00:07:17.645 , my little cub and I'm ready to send it to space. What do I do? Well, I 00:07:17.678 --> 00:07:20.705 approach a lunch provider and say, hey, lunch provider send this to space 00:07:20.738 --> 00:07:23.717 for me. The lunch provider will say, ok, I'll send this to space for you. 00:07:23.750 --> 00:07:28.495 Just give me 100 and $65 million 00:07:28.528 --> 00:07:33.586 as an undergrad student. We felt a little bit out of my budget. So what do 00:07:33.619 --> 00:07:38.817 I do? I wait for another customer with more money to get a lunch and I 00:07:38.850 --> 00:07:41.555 don't have to wait long because after all lunches happen every two weeks, 00:07:41.588 --> 00:07:46.046 right? So then I just grab my little tips up and I strap it next to the 00:07:46.079 --> 00:07:50.096 rocket engine belt or whatever I can make it fit. I ask him for permission. 00:07:50.129 --> 00:07:52.995 First, of course, 00:07:53.028 --> 00:07:56.825 for the rocket at 3 kg increment in mass due to the kids. That makes 00:07:56.858 --> 00:08:00.495 absolutely no difference since it may already be carrying a five ton 00:08:00.528 --> 00:08:04.106 satellite, the size of school. We are literally hitchhiking the way into 00:08:04.139 --> 00:08:08.156 space as secondary pillars and we're just charging conveniently for it. 00:08:08.189 --> 00:08:12.976 This fee may be in the order of a couple of $100,000 and I know it's still 00:08:13.009 --> 00:08:15.656 expensive. It's not to the point where everybody is gonna go tonight, 00:08:15.689 --> 00:08:18.776 build their kids and send it to space tomorrow. But this is a very 00:08:18.809 --> 00:08:22.406 significant reduction in price. One that opens the doors of the previously 00:08:22.439 --> 00:08:27.236 British Love Space Club. Two more players, 00:08:27.269 --> 00:08:31.705 I'm talking about high risk science with the possibility of a high reward. 00:08:31.738 --> 00:08:35.066 Now, imagine you are a lunar scientist who's studying the moon because 00:08:35.099 --> 00:08:38.135 you just love the rocks on the surface of the moon. And that's ok. There's 00:08:38.168 --> 00:08:42.895 people like that too. Well, we have orbiters right now orbiting the moon 00:08:42.928 --> 00:08:45.366 just like this. This is the moon, this is the orbiter. They're doing, 00:08:45.399 --> 00:08:49.047 they're doing fine science, really cool stuff. But if we were able to 00:08:49.080 --> 00:08:52.956 orbit the moon really, really close to it on a really low altitude orbit, 00:08:52.989 --> 00:08:57.275 we will be able to make some very astonishing measurements. But it doesn't 00:08:57.308 --> 00:09:01.167 matter how much you love the moon and its rocks. No scientist or engineer 00:09:01.200 --> 00:09:03.816 in their right mind is going to risk the spacecraft. It is such a low 00:09:03.849 --> 00:09:11.177 orbit because it might crash into the moon and that's bad. But what if you 00:09:11.210 --> 00:09:14.726 were using a cub set? Let's send it on to a 10, a five kilometer of it. I 00:09:14.759 --> 00:09:19.657 don't care. We have 10 or 20 more around the moon at the same time. This 00:09:19.690 --> 00:09:23.177 aspect of cub that has been utilized by a company called Planet Planet is 00:09:23.210 --> 00:09:27.047 an earth imaging company founded in 2010 with one mission and one mission 00:09:27.080 --> 00:09:31.145 only. They want to image the whole earth every single day and they're 00:09:31.178 --> 00:09:34.346 doing it. And the resulting images are not only beautiful but they're 00:09:34.379 --> 00:09:39.287 highly valuable for agriculture, space and defense and, and mapping. As a 00:09:39.320 --> 00:09:42.066 result, they're making a good back out of selling these images. They have 00:09:42.099 --> 00:09:45.797 transitioned from being headquartered in a garage. Seven years ago to 00:09:45.830 --> 00:09:49.557 being a single entity with the most satellites are on our planet right now. 00:09:49.590 --> 00:09:52.547 They have hundreds of three unit tubes that just like that one over here 00:09:52.580 --> 00:09:56.936 on planet and they have hundreds more waiting for lunch. They recently 00:09:56.969 --> 00:10:00.807 deployed at the record in 88 from a single launch. And yes, the 00:10:00.840 --> 00:10:03.576 individuals had the spell at the time, but when you have hundreds more 00:10:03.609 --> 00:10:07.446 waiting for lunch and how to do tomorrow. One of it, it doesn't matter. 00:10:07.479 --> 00:10:10.717 Now, I have to admit to you, I have said a lot of good things about 00:10:10.750 --> 00:10:14.576 satellites but about tips. That's specific, but they're not the solution 00:10:14.609 --> 00:10:19.015 to every problem out there. We still need big space missions because we 00:10:19.048 --> 00:10:22.917 cannot have uh we cannot share the Hubble space telescope um into the size 00:10:22.950 --> 00:10:27.196 of a break with current technology. But cub sets are very useful for very 00:10:27.229 --> 00:10:31.635 specific. So solving very specific problems. For example, scientists in 00:10:31.668 --> 00:10:34.787 the city of Phoenix are trying to understand how the composition and the 00:10:34.820 --> 00:10:40.135 structure of our cities affects the urban heat islands, human materials, 00:10:40.168 --> 00:10:43.496 materials like concrete and asphalt. They tend to retain the heat of the 00:10:43.529 --> 00:10:47.265 sun longer and far more than the surrounding natural materials like grass 00:10:47.298 --> 00:10:51.895 , dirt and cactus. As a result, the air temperature and the surface 00:10:51.928 --> 00:10:56.797 temperature of the cities is increased. This this is not good because 00:10:56.830 --> 00:11:00.177 Phoenix is already hot enough. So 00:11:00.210 --> 00:11:03.446 um this is a very valid scientific investigation. One to which many 00:11:03.479 --> 00:11:07.217 scientists dedicated their whole lives about study. But for some reason or 00:11:07.250 --> 00:11:10.177 another, this may not attract sufficient attention to single handedly 00:11:10.210 --> 00:11:14.076 justify the construction of a large serving mission, but it can justify A 00:11:14.109 --> 00:11:17.787 Q. And that is specifically what I'm working on right now together with a 00:11:17.820 --> 00:11:20.996 team of around 60 other undergraduate students at Arizona State University. 00:11:21.029 --> 00:11:24.486 I'm building such ac that we have named Phoenix. Phoenix will go to space 00:11:24.519 --> 00:11:28.645 carry a thermal camera and images from over there. We wrote a proposal to 00:11:28.678 --> 00:11:34.025 NASA two years ago and received $200,000 to build this mission. That may 00:11:34.058 --> 00:11:38.145 seem like a large amount of money because it is, but it is a very change 00:11:38.178 --> 00:11:42.846 compared to any other mission out there. That is not a keep set cub sets 00:11:42.879 --> 00:11:46.336 like Phoenix allows us to train the scientists and engineers of the future. 00:11:46.369 --> 00:11:49.395 It allows us to like us not just to learn how to design a spacecraft on 00:11:49.428 --> 00:11:52.385 paper, but to actually build a real spacecraft that we will go into real 00:11:52.418 --> 00:11:56.446 space. The same were at as well. 00:11:56.479 --> 00:12:00.907 This is huge because it doesn't matter how much we as a species as a 00:12:00.940 --> 00:12:04.196 society value education. Nobody is currently writing checks for 00:12:04.229 --> 00:12:07.486 undergraduate students like me to go build satellites, but they're doing 00:12:07.519 --> 00:12:09.967 so. For Q sets 00:12:10.000 --> 00:12:13.116 in Phoenix or Qet, it's much more than use A Q set. It is an 00:12:13.149 --> 00:12:15.875 interdisciplinary effort with students from the school of journalism 00:12:15.908 --> 00:12:19.385 design in the arts, sustainability engineering. All of us getting valuable 00:12:19.418 --> 00:12:22.765 , getting valuable experience that will make us better in the respective 00:12:22.798 --> 00:12:26.557 fields. All of us working in unison towards our single common goal. We aim 00:12:26.590 --> 00:12:30.356 to promote the importance of climate science. We aim to promote in terms 00:12:30.389 --> 00:12:33.525 of the importance of climate science and produce meaningful scientific 00:12:33.558 --> 00:12:36.875 information and share with anybody anywhere so they can do meaningful 00:12:36.908 --> 00:12:40.297 scientific analysis if they sell this high. I and the rest of my team has 00:12:40.330 --> 00:12:43.816 spent countless hours working on this mission. It is proof that our work 00:12:43.849 --> 00:12:46.976 can have a meaningful impact on the world. And I love this. It's stick to 00:12:47.009 --> 00:12:51.428 something as a small as a lo of red. Thank you.