The Open Space Movement: Like Sourceforge.net for Aerospace Engineers - General

[IMG]http://img.waffleimages.com/20f705e3783c12d5e6a0a1b234361e84665d3513/1972.jpg[/IMG] [QUOTE] Mission Statement The Open Space Movement seeks to rally public interest in space colonization through a community-driven public space venture. We aim to develop and provide the educational resources to teach space science and engineering to a worldwide audience, while offering participation through a collaborative design environment, and democratic control of organizational and financial policy. We will adhere to the spirit of the open-source software paradigm through open-book accounting of all income and expenditures, open access to private and commercial interests, and allowing direct involvement by the community in policy creation and decision making, insofar that proposed changes do not violate our fundamental tenets. Our plan is to determine the optimal means of doing the greatest good for manned space development. We believe there are several potential means of reaching our stated outcome. Our organization, and associated web site, will serve to harness the sum of our community's combined talents, monetary resources, and initiative to develop a public space venture for the express purpose of enabling affordable space access, establishment of space-borne industry, and to drive the colonization of our home solar system. We are limited only by public involvement. To flourish, space needs markets, markets need people, and the Open Space Movement aims to unify the public behind a single banner. We call upon the public to support our endeavor, for we seek to challenge the most relentless enemy: time. Time, which has allowed disinterest and boredom to bring Mankind's expansion in space to a standstill. Time, which we must quietly endure, if the realm of space is one day controlled by nationalistic or corporate interests. We fight the time that stands between our earthbound present, and our innate desire to become the first free citizens of space. For all that we stand for, we seek to focus the combined might of the public behind one banner, one movement, one rallying cry: [B]Get There First![/B] [/QUOTE] [QUOTE][B]How does the OSM work[/B] The OSM works on the premise that there exists an optimal means of making space access available to the greatest number of people in the shortest time possible. The purpose of the OSM will be to determine a course of action to support this premise, and work towards enacting it. Our plans, and our ability to carry them out are dependent entirely on the efforts of our member base. If you personally feel an overwhelming sense of apathy whenever the powers that be talk about timetables of 10-20 years for manned missions beyond LEO, or commercial offerings of suborbital tourism for a few million per seat, then the OSM may be a way to do something about it. The OSM can not make space travel happen by itself, but it can provide the tools and organizational support to help focus the creative, monetary, and entrepreneurial resources of the public. If this comes to fruition, we will not be competing with existing space agencies, space tourism industries, and private aerospace companies. We will steamroll them.[/QUOTE] [B]Who can join:[/B] The site is not dedicated only to rocket scientists, since, according to most, the biggest problem with getting development in space is public interest, not funding. So if you are just there getting people interested, that's enough. Detailed answer below: [QUOTE]Who can join the OSM Everybody really. One of the most common things I hear is "I'm not really an engineer, so I don't know how I can help". First off, we need a lot more than just 'rocket scientists'. If our eventual goal is to pave the way for colonization, then we have to develop a whole slew of technologies and equipment that aren't even related to aerospace. This calls for people from virtually every background. Biologists, economists, Geographic Information Systems specialists (On Mars!), nutritionists, doctors, firefighters, logistical experts, architects, construction workers, HVAC engineers, IT professionals, etc etc etc. Secondly, even if you know nothing about space - we're here to help you learn about it. Third, we need more than just project developers. Just posting on the forums, commenting on projects, raising public awareness, and being active within the OSM community are great ways to help. It should be noted that we will not charge a cent for membership, as we feel that a larger member base is significantly more valuable than a small one that pays regular dues. [/QUOTE] [B]Why?[/B]: [QUOTE]This is why I'm starting the OSM. We are nearing the 40th anniversary of Not Walking On The Moon. The OSM has no plans to celebrate a 50th.[/QUOTE] [B]Example Projects:[/B] - [URL=http://www.osmdevel.org/projects/9]Fuel Cell[/URL] - [URL=http://www.osmdevel.org/projects/7]Nuclear Pulse Propulsion Spacecraft[/URL] [IMG]http://imgur.com/X8kcg.jpg[/IMG] - [URL=http://www.osmdevel.org/projects/6]Cost of establishing an asteroidal mining outpots[/URL] Facebook Group: [url]http://www.facebook.com/pages/Open-Space-Movement/182332693305?ref=mf[/url] Website (Under Construction): [url]http://www.osmdevel.org/[/url] SA Thread: [url]http://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3288027[/url] tl;dr group of like-minded nerds getting together and making rawckets

This is not going to get anywhere unless they get some major donations. A space program costs billions.

It's nothing but communists trying to ruin the economy for private space exploration.

[QUOTE=Mindtwistah;23057357]This is not going to get anywhere unless they get some major donations. A space program costs billions.[/QUOTE] Wrong, NASA's did, but recently we've been launching shit for hundreds of thousands/millions.

[QUOTE=bravehat;23057565]Wrong, NASA's did, but recently we've been launching shit for hundreds of thousands/millions.[/QUOTE] Yes. Big difference

[QUOTE=ProboardslolV2;23057651]Yes. Big difference[/QUOTE] It's a huge difference. Heavy-lift rockets that send stuff for a couple millions are paving the way for cheap industrial spaceflight. Hell, the Falcon 1 costs six million and can take half a ton into orbit (That's an amazing mass:cost ratio btw).

That's osm.

[QUOTE=ProboardslolV2;23057651]Yes. Big difference[/QUOTE] hmm $1,000,000,000 or $100,000 or maybe even $1,000,000 I have to say, that's a pretty fucking big difference.

either way, i feel another moon walk is just a dream... the government seems scared of doing it, maybe it was all faked and our technology is too great now that every fool and his blind mother could see it would be faked again...

[QUOTE=ghostfais;23058696]either way, i feel another moon walk is just a dream... the government seems scared of doing it, maybe it was all faked and our technology is too great now that every fool and his blind mother could see it would be faked again...[/QUOTE] It wasn't fucking faked. And this one isn't government funded, the government has never had a good reason for going to space, so they won't do it. They had a reason in the 60's and the like cause they had to prove technological dominance over the russians and shit but that's it.

I think this idea is pretty fucking brilliant, and my argument can go fuck itself. (snipped) I will gladly devote my higher education for this cause...Mostly because I already want to Major in Aerospace Engineering anyway.

[QUOTE=Mindtwistah;23057357]This is not going to get anywhere unless they get some major donations. A space program costs billions.[/QUOTE] [B]News flash:[/B] Rockets don't always have to be enormous, and carry tons of cargo into space.

this sounds like an incredible project, I wanna be able to contribute to it some day

I seriously hope this turns out well. Space is something that in the future, could yield solutions to Earth-bound problems, such as a potential fuel crisis. Asteroid/planetoid mining, when the technology is available, could be a viable means of producing fuel.

The fuel cell is awesome, but the nuke-pulse thing seems much less feasible.

Looking a bit more at these guys and what they've accomplished I actually believe this can lead to something. It's good to see people making an effort in order to increase our space tech, which is currently pretty much standing still.

[QUOTE=MrBob1337;23063091]The fuel cell is awesome, but the nuke-pulse thing seems much less feasible.[/QUOTE] it's more feasible than using antimatter

Registered, gonna visit back when it's finished construction

[IMG]http://67.23.42.192/sites/default/files/osm.png[/IMG] A graph, showing development stages of their projects. EDIT: From the guy: [QUOTE]To soon to tell, but we've got some of the framework setup for all of the major site sections so far. Another 3 weeks and it might be ready, but that's my non-web-developer amateur estimate.[/QUOTE]

i think it is relatively obvious that there is something to be covered up... i mean really, why else would we just stop?

[QUOTE=ghostfais;23093861]i think it is relatively obvious that there is something to be covered up... i mean really, why else would we just stop?[/QUOTE] Because it's expensive and there is nothing in space that the government could possibly want at this point in time.

[QUOTE=Kyle902;23096144]Because it's expensive and there is nothing in space that the government could possibly want at this point in time.[/QUOTE] Except for the trillions of dollars worth of resources, but we know they're too stubborn to start developing the technology to get those resources.

How come they don't use nuclear power for launches?

And if it blows up on the launchpad? These conditions are far too risky to take nuclear material into.

[QUOTE=/Syntax;23103002]And if it blows up on the launchpad? These conditions are far too risky to take nuclear material into.[/QUOTE] We have been able to build nuclear rockets for five decades. Completely safe, closed-cycle nuclear rockets that fire their own radioactive shit into the Sun before going back down. They have worked on the security issues before to the point where nothing can happen.

Are you talking about those fission fragment rockets? those are fuckin' awesome and it's a shame noone has the balls to develop them any more.

Frankly unnerving more-like. Those damn things could easily K-kill Terra. Not to mention saying: We are here aliens. Those things would be visible for light-years. I'd rather avoid advertising our position, at least for a while yet.

[QUOTE=Jeep-Eep;23106350]Frankly unnerving more-like. Those damn things could easily K-kill Terra. Not to mention saying: We are here aliens. Those things would be visible for light-years. I'd rather avoid advertising our position, at least for a while yet.[/QUOTE] what are you using google translate or something

[QUOTE=wonkadonk;23106421]what are you using google translate or something[/QUOTE] he's speaking in jeeperish.

Oops. I may have mistook it for some other kind of engine. 3-5%C... that's probably safe. But you wouldn't want it hitting you none-the-less. Make quite a mess, to say the least. I don't know how far you could see that from, but I know it's a good distance. The saturn 5 was detectable from pluto with our level of tech. 3-5%C... that's pretty fast. Anything capable of reaching that in short time periods is pretty showy. (Sorry, line of thought.)