Frontier AI Labs with Wil Waldon

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NASA Selects First Commercial Moon Landing Services for Artemis Program Jun 02, 2019

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NASA has selected three commercial Moon landing service providers that will deliver science and technology payloads under Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) as part of the Artemis program. Each commercial lander will carry NASA-provided payloads that will conduct science investigations and demonstrate advanced technologies on the lunar surface, paving the way for NASA astronauts to land on the lunar surface by 2024.

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State of the Podcast 6-1-2019 - Rerecorded Jun 02, 2019

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Why are there so many ads?! You folks make me happy :)

SpaceX worth $33.3 Billion. Paul Allens company goes out of business and First NASA Moon contracts awarded Jun 01, 2019

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Elon Musk’s second-most famous business may soon top his first.

The value of SpaceX has risen to $33.3 billion, people familiar with the company’s recent fundraising. In an amendment of its April fundraising effort, a filing last week from SpaceX showed the company’s latest round brought in $536 million at a price of $204 a share. SpaceX has raised just over $1 billion this year, as the company accelerates fundraising to develop its plan to beam high-speed internet to anywhere on Earth.

Additionally, Musk’s space company is now more valuable than his electric vehicle company. Tesla shares closed down on Friday giving the company a market value of $32.8 billion – just below SpaceX’s valuation.

SpaceX’s valuation has risen steadily as the company has raised funding for rockets, spacecraft and more over the past decade. Most recently, SpaceX was reportedly valued at $30.5 billion.The company has been able to draw investment from private markets with ease, as a person familiar with SpaceX’s fundraising this year said both its equity raises were oversubscribed. In the most recent round, investor demand meant SpaceX could have raised between $300 million to $400 million more than it did, the person said.

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Supernovas May Have Helped Humans Walk Upright May 31, 2019

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As human ancestors went from swinging through trees to walking on two legs, they may have received a boost from an unlikely source: ancient supernovas.

These powerful stellar explosions may have showered Earth with enough energy to shift the planet's climate, bathing Earth in electrons and sparking powerful, lightning-filled storms, according to a new hypothesis.

Lightning then could have kindled raging wildfires that scorched African landscapes. As savanna replaced the forest habitat, early humans that lived there may have been pushed to walk on two legs, the new study suggests.

However, don't go jumping to conclusions just yet. Many factors likely contributed to the evolution of bipedalism, a process that began many millions of years before these stellar explosions took place, one expert told Live Science.

SpaceX to Mars in 4 Years and Life on Mars May 30, 2019

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Gwynne Shotwell said in a meeting at MIT on the 29th of May that SpaceX will be sending cargo to Mars in 4 Years. Also, 'Fettuccine' may be most obvious sign of life on Mars, researchers report

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US and Japan Going to the Moon Together May 29, 2019

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The governments of the United States and Japan have agreed to further cooperation in space which could include flying Japanese astronauts to the moon.

At a joint press conference in Tokyo May 27 with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, President Donald Trump mentioned cooperation in space exploration as one outcome of their meetings during the president’s visit to the country.

"I am pleased to confirm that Prime Minister Abe and I have agreed to dramatically expand our nations’ cooperation in human space exploration," Trump said. "Japan will join our mission to send U.S. astronauts to space. We'll be going to the moon. We'll be going to Mars very soon. It's very exciting."

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Should we colonize the moon? May 28, 2019

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I dig in to a few reasons why we should colonize the Moon.

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How to see Starlink Satellite Constellation in the night sky May 26, 2019

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How to see Starlink Satellite Constellation in the night sky. #starlink #spacex

My new podcast: https://anchor.fm/wayfarepodcast

Go to CalSky.com.
Start by setting your location here. (You can view Starlink without making an account, but I would recommend it so you can save a location for later use)
Click on ‘Satellites‘ then ‘Sat Library‘
Select your duration at the top of the page for the amount of time you would like to see future fly-by’s. (I usually select ‘1 Week’)
Type “starlink” in the or find a satellite by name or number box.
Click on “Sighting Opportunities” (bookmark this page)
Check the following boxes: (you can utilize others like transits/close encounters later on, but for the sole purpose of viewing use these)
1. Show satellite passes
2. Satellite must be illuminated
Scroll back up to the top and click “GO” again to refresh.
Scrolling down, you’ll see a list of the upcoming passes of the Starlink constellation.
If you are confused by the 24h time format “21:36:42” that means 9:36:42pm. (12 + 9 = 21) There is an option to switch to the 12h format (9:36 pm) located on the page where you set your location. (#2 on that page)
To know where to look, use the little map on the right side of each pass
1. This image shows the satellites will be starting from the southwest direction, peaking in the southeast part of the sky ~45deg up or so (halfway to straight up), then going towards the northeast.
2. Here’s another example: this one shows the satellites coming from northwest, going straight overhead, and towards the southeast. Starlink satellites will always be coming from the west and going east. (NW->SE & SW->NE, never from the east)
3. If you’re not familiar with which way is North/South/East/West, grab a compass app on your phone’s app store to assist.
4. Using the “another example” #2 map above as one: Appears = where the blue line starts (NW), Culmination = where the point of the blue arrow is (straight over your head), Disappears = where the blue line ends (SE) They are not always directly overhead, some may reach their peak height closer to the horizon, in one area of the sky (like #10, peaking in the SSE sky ~45° up)

Directions are from : https://www.tmahlmann.com/2019/05/how-to-watch-or-photograph-starlink/

NASA executive quits and SpaceX clogging up the night sky May 25, 2019

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A top NASA executive hired in April to guide strategy for returning astronauts to the moon by 2024 has resigned, the space agency said on Thursday, the culmination of internal strife and dwindling congressional support for the lunar initiative.

Mark Sirangelo, named six weeks ago as special assistant to NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine, left the agency as NASA abandoned a reorganization plan due to a chilly reception on Capitol Hill, Bridenstine said in a statement.

The Moon and Mars with Dr. David Warmflash - Episode 6 May 24, 2019

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Moon: An Illustrated History: From Ancient Myths to the Colonies of Tomorrow (Sterling Illustrated Histories)

From the moon’s formation, to its potential for future exploration, this richly illustrated volume presents 100 milestones in lunar history.
With dazzling images on every spread, and illuminating text by astrobiologist Dr. David Warmflash,Moon: An Illustrated History chronologically presents 100 milestones in the Moon’s development and exploration. Starting 4.5 billion years ago when the Moon formed, this stunning volume moves from the hypotheses of the Moon’s formation (4.5 billion years ago) to sixth-century BCE predictions of solar eclipses, from the twentieth-century Space Race between the US and the Soviet Union to private space companies and possible future lunar colonies. Find out about lunar calendar systems and cults in the Bible; how lunar brightness was used to estimate stellar distances; how advancing telescopes in the seventeenth century allowed us to eye the Moon more closely; how author Jules Verne inspired the Father of Astronautics; the originals of the Saturn V Moon Rocket; the Apollo missions, and so much more. https://www.amazon.com/Moon-Illustrated-Colonies-Tomorrow-Histories/dp/1454931981

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