X Prize Fever Continues

11 October 2004: X Prize group plans new series of contests, C|Net

“The X Prize Foundation , creator of the Ansari X Prize for space tourism, announced the new series of innovation contests this week after awarding its first prize to Paul Allen’s Mojave Aerospace Ventures for piercing Earth’s atmosphere twice in one week with its privately financed SpaceShipOne craft.”

12 October 2004: Space Tourism Seeking Public Investors, AP

“[Walt Anderson, chief executive of the aerospace technology company Orbital Recovery Corp. and founder of the venture capital company Gold & Appel] asserted that those restrictions mean that the best and brightest are no longer coming to the United States to pursue careers in the space industry. “We have to keep in mind that the United States, while we’ve brought a lot of technology into the world, may no longer be the center of the universe for space forever,” he said.”

29 September 2004: First X prize flight completed, Nature

“Other experts remain dubious that today’s flight will open space to the paying public quite so fast. “It’s not gonna happen next week,” says John Logsdon, director of the Space Policy Institute at George Washington University in Washington DC.”

Editor’s note: John Logsdon is also an official space policy advisor to John Kerry’s presidential campaign.