FOR THE FIRST time ever, more people will go to space as commercial astronauts than as government astronauts in 2022. Admittedly, the government astronauts spent more total time off-world this year than their private counterparts—stints on the International Space Station ISS) are long and space tourism hops are short—but given the state of the industry, those trends are unlikely to reverse anytime soon.
One of those commercial astronauts was George Nield. He retired four years ago as the head commercial space regulator at the Federal Aviation Administration FAA), and on March 31, 2022, he became a beneficiary of the industry he once regulated when he boarded Blue Origin’s New Shepard for its fourth manned flight. This flight attracted some additional press attention because it was also supposed to contain the tattooed comedian and adjunct influencer Pete Davidson, though he later pulled out.)
During his regulatory career, Nield—a former Air Force officer who also worked at NASA and the Orbital Sciences Corporation—served in an unusual two-part role as the administrator of the FAA’s Office of Commercial Space Transportation: He was charged with both ensuring public safety and promoting the fledgling commercial space transportation industry. The state of the industry today suggests he succeeded at each. In July, Reason’s Katherine Mangu-Ward sat down with Nield to discuss his childhood dreams of space, the state of the industry, and what the future holds.
Reason: You flew on Blue Origin’s New Shepard. It was a suborbital flight. What was that like?
Nield: I was interested in aviation and space as a child and used to cut out newspaper articles and pictures in Life magazine of the space chimps and the Mercury astronauts.
ãã®èšäºã¯ Reason magazine ã® December 2022 çã«æ²èŒãããŠããŸãã
7 æ¥éã® Magzter GOLD ç¡æãã©ã€ã¢ã«ãéå§ããŠãäœåãã®å³éžããããã¬ãã¢ã ã¹ããŒãªãŒã9,000 以äžã®éèªãæ°èã«ã¢ã¯ã»ã¹ããŠãã ããã
ãã§ã«è³Œèªè ã§ã ?  ãµã€ã³ã€ã³
ãã®èšäºã¯ Reason magazine ã® December 2022 çã«æ²èŒãããŠããŸãã
7 æ¥éã® Magzter GOLD ç¡æãã©ã€ã¢ã«ãéå§ããŠãäœåãã®å³éžããããã¬ãã¢ã ã¹ããŒãªãŒã9,000 以äžã®éèªãæ°èã«ã¢ã¯ã»ã¹ããŠãã ããã
ãã§ã«è³Œèªè ã§ã? ãµã€ã³ã€ã³
Libertarianism From the Ground Up
ARGUMENTS FOR LIBERTARIANISM typically take two forms. Some libertarians base their creed on natural rights-the idea that each individual has an inborn right to self-ownership, or freedom from aggression, or whatever-and proceed to argue that only a libertarian political regime is compatible with those rights.
Lawlessness and Liberalism
THE UNITED STATES is notorious both for mass incarceration and for militarized police forces.
Politics Without Journalism
THE 2024 CAMPAIGN WAS A WATERSHED MOMENT FOR THE WAY WE PROCESS PUBLIC AFFAIRS.
EVERY BODY HATES PRICES
BUT THEY HELP US DECIDE BETWEEN BOURBON AND BACONATORS.
The Great American City Upon a Hill Is Always Under Construction
AMERICA'S UTOPIAN DREAMS LEAD TO URBAN EXPERIMENTATION.
Amanda Knox Tells Her Own Story
\"OUR CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM RELIES UPON OUR OWN IGNORANCE AND THE FACT THAT WE DON'T KNOW WHAT OUR RIGHTS ARE.\"
Trade Policy Amnesia
WHILE HE WAS interviewing for the job, President Joe Biden demonstrated an acute awareness of how tariffs work. It's worrisome that he seems to have forgotten that or, worse, chosen to ignore it-since he's been president.
Civil Liberties Lost Under COVID
WHEN JOE BIDEN was sworn in as president in January 2021, he had good reason to be optimistic about the trajectory of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Bye, Joe
AMERICA'S 46th president is headed out the door. After a single term marked by ambitious plans but modest follow-through, Joe Biden is wrapping up his time in office and somewhat reluctantly shuffling off into the sunset.
Q&A Mark Calabria
IF YOU HAVE a mortgage on your home, the odds are that it's backed by one of two congressionally chartered, government-sponsored enterprises (GSES), Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.