Can NASA loosen its grip on space missions?
This answer is elusive, but many people–NASA administrator Michael Griffin included–think it’s a good idea. “I hope the answer is yes,” said Mark Oderman, managing director of aerospace and defense consulting firm CSP Associates. “Whenever the private sector gets involved, the costs are 20 percent of federal costs.” But space specialist Robert Stallard, a director at the investment firm Macquarie Capital, cast some doubt at the forum on how smoothly the privatization of NASA could proceed, because of the involvement of Congress and the agency’s structure. “In theory it’s a great idea, but in practice it might be a struggle,” Stallard lamented. Still, some interesting NASA contracts are on the way that could help rocket companies pursue their private ventures. NASA officials see opportunities in a pending International Space Station commercial resupply services contract, soon to be awarded to leading launch operators SpaceX or Orbital Sciences (pictured above). Another launch opportun
