Week 5 Summary

Please pardon my shorthand as I am typing 1-handed for the next week or so. I should be getting my cast off August 22, but I don't know yet if the doctor will put on another cast. My elbow feels a lot better now. I have almost no pain. I just physically cannot type with the angle of the cast. :-) I will continue to do my best to post regular updates.

This week was another full week of space immersion! Where else can you learn this stuff?? Sometimes I just sit back in class and contemplate how amazing it is to have the privilege to take some time off work to learn about so many aspects of space and meet the experts. I am so lucky to be here.

Pictures from Week 5 - click here

Wednesday, August 10

• Team Project meeting - two awesome guest speakers:
• Gernot Groemer (Austrian Space Forum) did a Mars rover demonstration (pictures below)
• John Connolly (NASA) explained trade study decision matrices
• Policy & Law Department Activity - National Space Frameworks with Irmgard Marboe, International Law Professor at University of Vienna
  
• Distinguished lecture "Space Science Research in China" - Professor Zhang, Chinese Academy of Sciences
• Reception - Scott Madry's last night with the "Space Schnitzel" band

Thursday, August 11

• Policy & Law Department Activity - United Nations Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (UNCOPUOS) simulation, part 1
• Team Project meeting - worked on letter of intent
  

Friday, August 12 - Alumni Weekend

• Theme Day #1: Space Debris - the problem, concerns, current protection / avoidance strategies, and the politics involved
  
• Rudiger Jehn (European Space Operations Center in Darmstadt, Germany)
• Jeffrey Apeldoorn (OHB System AG, Germany)
  
• Ray Williamson (Secure World Foundation, USA)
  
• Workshop #10 - Chinese Culture and Space
• Meeting about how to increase participation from USA
• Cultural Night #4
• Australia - taught us Aussie slang
  
• Latvia - danced!
  
• Czech Republic - taught us about Pilsner
  
• Israel - performed the Shabbat ceremony with bread and wine
  
• Uruguay - taught 2 dances and performed tango!
  

Saturday, August 13 - Alumni Weekend

• Policy & Law Department Activity - United Nations Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (UNCOPUOS) simulation, part 2
• Systems Engineering Department rocket launch!
• Space Masquerade - I went as the "Out of Order Canadarm" and made it into the top 5 of the individual costume competition! The masquerade was in a cave under the Schlossberg ("castle hill"). Check out this picture of the entrance at night. What an amazing setting!
  

Sunday, August 14 - Alumni Weekend

• Brunch
• Worked on my policy paper and team project research
• Alumni/student football (soccer) match. The alumni won 3 to 2!
  

Thanks to all my "robo" teammates for sending pictures from Wednesday!

Photo credit: Baoyuan Wu
Remote operation of Mars Rover

Photo credit: Baoyuan Wu
Astronaut trying to repair Mars Rover

Photo credit: Mihaela Vlasea
Trying to tie shoe laces with space gloves!