Newt’s New Frontier.

He is my friend and our class representative in the space studies program of International Space University, France in 2003. Recently, in 2011, we both had an opportunity to meet up again at the International Astronautical Congress in South Africa. It was a cool reunion, and as you may depict from the image below, we hold each other in very high esteem.

Mikko

Mikko Suominen is a highly respected Finnish space analyst. Little wonder, he responded to my re-post of Rick Tumlinson’s huffingtonpost on my fb wall, titled “Big ideas in small times”, written on Newt Gingrich’s new comments on space colony.

Mikko was right to emphasize the wave of critiques that followed Newt’s comment in a campaign train at the wake of winning supports in the State that somewhat could be referred to as the “mecca” of spaceflight in America. The retired US Space Shuttle program took off, and landed in Cape Canaveral, Florida, with the situated Kennedy Space Center of the NASA program well positioned nearby.

For GOP hopefuls, the State of Florida was a best place to hit on an ‘out of the box idea’ on space, ideas that have the potential of bringing back the lost jobs and more - a ray of hope that could be ignited. The space professionals and astronauts alike have their schedules shrunk as a result of the last launch of Atlantis STS-135 in July, 2011.

It was sound to say most politicians want to be like JFK. Why not? JFK was one of the greatest American Presidents, despite the fact that he was short-lived. He was an orator in the class of Marcus Tullius Cicero, friendly, finely educated, and most of all a leader with both vision and pragmatism. For a republican seeking party nomination to be knitting up a tie with the ideals of a die-hard democrat, tells about the gargantuan greatness of JFK and the reach of his legacy. It is therefore pertinent to hear a republican frontrunner of Mitt Romney said Newt isn’t “conservative” enough, solely because he trailed on a democrat’s ideal. Let’s be reminded that President Ronald Reagan was equally a space enthusiast. That isn’t a part of my interest here; the context of the idea proclaimed by Newt is what caught my fancy.

Absolutely! I agree with my friend, again, that Newt is appealing to national pride, and his motivation is just to fish for votes. However, what better way to fish for votes in a tensed-up campaign train, trying to consolidate on his recent South Carolina lead, and competing with a very wealthy Mitt. Mitt’s wealth, analysts have said, will rival one of the five richest Presidents of America, if elected, depending on how you rate. “Just how rich is Mitt Romney? Add up the wealth of the last eight presidents, from Richard Nixon to Barack Obama. Then double that number. Now you're in Romney territory.” For Sheldon Adelson, Newt might have been well crowded out – just on the power of money in politics. I like Mitt Romney a lot, I see him a fine gentleman properly educated, whose legacy as a Governor of Massachusetts speaks volume. He might give Obama a tough run for the White House if he secures his party nomination.

City of Cocoa on Florida Space Coast’s January 25 laid out plan of having an American-manned lunar colony in 2020 if elected cannot be said to be boastful of Newt, considering the fact that he is not a newcomer to space interest and policy. He has pretty good pedigree to that effect while serving in the House.

Former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich

Although in JFK’s situation, you cannot distinctly say he nursed the idea for too long time before getting to execute it. However, when he had the idea he did subject it to a very extensive research with the technocrats and politicians alike, and for the impending necessity to beat the Soviet Union. And, in the JFK’s, it took space crisis, the race to push the Frontier.

For Newt to have come up with this idea in a time of opportunities, an idea to go mine the immense resources on the Moon for humanity here on Earth, or live on there, is worth commendation, irrespective of one’s political inclination. Moreover, the idea during the Apollo times was to get to the Moon and proceed further! After all, if this ideal had been pressed on with commitments from all and we are by now, a space colonizing world, nobody, not even Newt would have thought it’s worth a campaign statement.

I have this to say, we like it or not, the Moon, and, the vast space is the future of humanity. Our future lies there, in the Final Frontier. That’s the new challenge and we need the political will to forge ahead to this future. In a nutshell, “What Americans dream, Americans can do,” though this applies to all! But it’s time for America to do it again; the other Worlds too, are now setting their goals toward the “lunar far-side.” Doing it again is the best tribute to pay to Neil, Buzz and Mike, and of course, to the space explorers like the Columbia astronauts and others who lost their lives, and to the other living legends. 

Moon

On aspects of implementations, there is no one way to achieve that. In as much as New Space should push limits and President Obama’s idea has empowered companies like SpaceX; NASA’s guidance will still remain invaluable. X-Prize, a foundation of Peter Diamandis is leading a revolution of modern day incentivized prize competition, and as it regards the Moon, the Google Lunar X-Prize with 26 private teams vying for $30 Million has promising teams like Synergy Moon LLC, White Label Space and Moon Express in the pack. Hence, going back to the moon is underway.  However, I am glad Newt proposed a PPP approach, which means he considered the economies of this new idea, which in a sense, is an age-long idea given a new breath.

The whole seems laughable, is it because it has not been done before? What we need is the political will, leadership, management of the right technologies, and push, the kind that JFK provided. Hence, I do think extensive consultations should be like the times of JFK to fashion out the best approach-there’s no need for a rush, 2020 might just be unrealistic considering the present timeline in the US space program. Newt’s New Frontier: if nothing, romance that could be associated with space was brought back into the consciousness of space professionals.
Ad astra.
Ayodele Faiyetole