Space Update – 62 Mile
Club Event October 4, 2007
October 4, 2007 was the 50th anniversary of the
launch of Sputnik, a day that changed the world, fanned the flames of Cold War
paranoia, and launched the space race.
Today, American citizens of various national origins ride Russian
rockets to an International Space Station, while entrepreneurs of every
nationality are building the infrastructure for a commercial space
industry. To celebrate this event and
the current atmosphere, the 62 Mile Club <www.62mileclub.com>
(disclosure—clients of the firm) put on an event – a party – in West Los
Angeles that we may look back on as part of the coming out of the commercial
space industry of Southern California.
In a way, Southern California
was the star. The local infrastructure
was on display: SpaceX from the South Bay,
XCor from Mojave, Rick Searfoss, Astronaut, test pilot and engaging speaker
from Tehachapi. Visionaries like John
Spencer (also a client), investment bankers, lawyers (Rick Citron and yours
truly) accountants, scientists and academics from USC, enthusiasts, the curious
(and next to be feeling the pull of the commercial space business), and on
everyone’s mind, but not in the room (as far as we could tell), Virgin
Galactic, Scaled Composites, Masten Space Systems (all residents of Mojave), Cal
Tech, JPL – all these are testimony to the current vitality of the space
commerce industry. While the future
looks bright, the present is already underway!