2008 DRAGON*CON SPACE
TRACK SCHEDULE
** some panels/times might change **
| Friday 08-29-2008 | Return to top | ||
| 1:00pm - 3:30pm LIVE SOLAR TELESCOPE by Erik J. Benner |
Ever wanted to really see what the Sun looks like? Without burning out your eyes? We've got the setup for you! Come to the Hilton pool on the 3rd level and see our Sun in all it's amazing glory through our Solar Telescope. (Weather Permitting!) | |
| 1:00pm International Space University & Project Phoenix: A Lunar Biological & Social Archive by Laura A. Burns, |
Phoenix: A Lunar Biological and Social Archive was a team projects from the International Space University (ISU) Space Studies Program 2007. This talk introduces ISU and discusses archiving human knowledge on the moon in case of catastrophe on Earth. | |
2:30pmHow to Discover Some Asteroids, Name Them After Friends, and Still Sleep at Night by Jeff Medkeff |
Jeff Medkeff talks about the gritty work of looking for asteroids from in the trenches - right behind the telescope making the observations. And about how asteroids come to be named after
people like Phil Plait, Derek & Swoopy, Mike Stackpole, & others.
This panel has been cancelled. Jeff Medkeff has passed away. | |
| 2:30pm Replacement Panel Still Still Under Consideration Possible replacement Speakers: |
Panel will depend on availability of the speaker. John Smith and Kriss Hougland have both expressed interest but are unsure of their schedules. Possible topics are: 'Navigating the Saturn System' and 'ISS: Support Systems Training'. I hope to have a final answer soon. | |
| 4:00pm The Ultimate Renewalbe Clean Energy: Spaced-Based Solar Power by A.C. Charania & |
Higher energy prices getting to you? Learn about Space Solar Power; placing solar arrays in space and beaming power to the ground for use in the worlds energy grids. Hear about this technology and economic aspects of this future clean energy source. | |
| 5:30pm Mars Rovers: Still Going After All These Years by Trina Ray |
Wouldn't it be nice if all machines lasted this long past their warranties? Built to last 3 months, these amazing rovers, Spirit and Opportunity, are into their 4th year. Both rovers are showing their age; dust on their solar panels saps their engergy and they don't get around as well as they used to. But they are still doing science and gathering information on the geology of Mars and it's history of water. | |
| 7:00pm How We Know the Big Bang is Real by Dr. Pamela Gay |
To the scientific world it is commonly accepted that our universe was created in a BIG BANG. But there are those who dispute this theory. Join us to hear the 'proofs' that have convinced the astrophysicists. | |
| 8:30pm A History of Planetary Probes by Hugh S. Gregory |
A look at the probes that have left the Earth to explored our Solar System and beyond. From the early U.S. and Russian ventures on to the latest 'space race' countries in the ESU, China and Japan. | |
| 10:00pm 96% of the Universe is Missing? by Dr. William C. Keel |
Our universe is HUGE! Billions of galaxies - millions of billions of stars. Dust and gas to create billions more stars. But all of that only accounts for 4% of our universe; nowhere near the amount needed to create enough gravity to hold our universe together. Where's the rest?! | |
| 12:00am to 3:00am LIVE ASTRONOMY!! by Dr. William C. Keel |
Late night on the Space track means astronomy. Live Astronomy. You choose what to look at. Join Dr. Keel in 'TeleAstronomy' - you're in GA and the telescope is in AZ. | |
| Saturday 08-30-2008 | Return to top | ||
| 10:00am Cassini-Huygens - 4 years at Saturn by Trina Ray |
The Cassini mission has just completed its prime 4-year mission in orbit around the planet Saturn, exploring the planet, the rings, the icy satellites. Find out the top science results of the mission, including some amazing images! | |
| 11:30pm - 3:30pm LIVE SOLAR TELESCOPE by Erik J. Benner |
Ever wanted to really see what the Sun looks like? Without burning out your eyes? We've got the setup for you! Come to the Hilton pool on the 3rd level and see our Sun in all it's amazing glory through our Solar Telescope. (Weather Permitting!) | |
| 11:30am Making Space Relevant by C. Les Johnson, |
Is going back to the Moon passe? Why aren't people as engaged in space exploration as they used to be? Could it be that space exploration is considered irrelevant? Join us to discuss how space exploration can be and is still relevant. | |
| 1:00pm Phoenix - A Science Lander For The Martian Arctic by Ginny Mauldin-Kinney |
Repeated failure can precede success in the space business. As did the engineering and science of 2 previous failures combined to produce Phoenix Lander; 1st mission to the Martian Arctic. Martian ice; H2O or CO2? Is there life? So what's been found so far? | |
| 2:30pm The Great Space Observatories - 2008 Update by Dr. William C. Keel |
They've brought us images that delight and amaze us and they've provided the science to take us back farther and teach us things we've only dreamed about. Come hear what's happening with Spitzer, Chandra, Compton and, of couse, Hubble! | |
| 4:00pm A Long Sad History: Automatic Docking in Orbit by Dr. Stephen Granade |
June 1997, astronauts crashed a resupply ship into the Mir while attempting a manual docking. 2005, NASA crashed one satellite into another while attempting automatic docking. Why is in-orbit docking so hard? It's just rocket science! | |
| 5:30pm Barriers to the Future of Human Space Flight by Dr. Jason Schneiderman & |
Humankind is reaching out into space. Robots are handling the long distance exploring but humans want to get out there too! So, what's to stop us? Lots more than you think! Hear why humans going into space may not be such a good idea. | |
| 7:00pm ForeSight: A Radio Beacon Mission to Near Earth Asteroid Apophis by A. C. Charania |
Presenting the Foresight Mission, winner of The Planetary Society's Apophis mission design competition. Designed by SpaceWorks and SpaceDev, Foresight is a radio beacon spacecraft to Apophis, a 260m wide asteroid that could hit the Earth in 2036. | |
| 8:30pm Where Is Everybody? by Richard Altstatt & |
The Fermi Paradox. WikiPedia defines the Fermi Paradox as the apparent contradiction between high estimates of the probability of extraterrestrial civilizations and the lack of evidence for, or contact with, such civilizations. | |
| 10:00pm The Science in Science Fiction by Dr. Kevin Grazier & |
Science fiction can inspire real science. But how true to the science is fiction? Come hear the science advisor for Battlestar Galactica and Eureka, and The Bad Astronomer, who is known for critiquing the science in movies, as they discuss the science in current and past science fiction on TV and in film. | |
| 12:00am to 3:00am LIVE ASTRONOMY!! by Dr. William C. Keel |
Late night on the Space track means astronomy. Live Astronomy. You choose what to look at. Join Dr. Keel in 'TeleAstronomy' - you're in GA and the telescope is in AZ. | |
| Sunday 08-31-2008 | Return to top | ||
| 10:00am Stellar Women: Looking Up and Speaking Out by Dr. Pamela Gay, |
Our esteemed panel of women are not only involved in space and astronomy, but also community outreach and education. Come and pick their brains about their experiences and plans for the future. | |
| 11:30am - 3:30pm LIVE SOLAR TELESCOPE by Erik J. Benner |
Ever wanted to really see what the Sun looks like? Without burning out your eyes? We've got the setup for you! Come to the Hilton pool on the 3rd level and see our Sun in all it's amazing glory through our Solar Telescope. (Weather Permitting!) | |
| 11:30am Two Moons of Saturn - Titan and Enceladus - Wow, What a Story! by Trina Ray |
Titan, larger than the planet Mercury, is the most earth-like body in the solar system; whereas Enceladus, smaller than the state of Georgia has water geysers shooting out of the south pole - come hear the latest. | |
| 1:00pm The First Light Machine: James Webb Space Telescope by Laura A. Burns |
Defined as one of the world's 9 largest science projects by the Discovery Channel, the James Webb Space Telescope is a 6.5 meter telescope set to launch in 2013. Hear an overview of the project and the current status from a project engineer. | |
| 2:30pm Solar Sailing by C. Les Johnson |
Learn about how NASA, the Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency and The Planetary Society plan to use the limitless power of the sun to propel spaceships throughout the solar system | |
| 4:00pm Boomers to Millennials: What We've Learned in a Generation by Dr. Pamela Gay, |
What we didn't know then that we do now. Can you name 10 things in Cosmology/Astronomy that has been learned in your lifetime? Come enjoy this interplanetary, interstellar and possibly even intergalactic, slide show and travelogue as we take you from the Earth to the farthest reaches of the known universe! | |
| 5:30pm Space Flight:: Robots vs Humans by Dr. William C. Keel, |
How should we explore the universe? Send humans with all their fralities and tons of extra oxygen, food, water, etc.? Or should we stick to robots who are cheaper, faster, and if they die the world doesn't violently object? Come join this lively debate and put forth your own views. | |
| 7:00pm Messengers From the Gods by Richard Jakiel |
History and historical effects of comets throughout the ages. Sequel to last year's 'Striking Ancient Skies'. | |
| 8:30pm Astronomy for a Flat World: How a Dutch Schoolteacher Discovered the Ghost of a Dead Quasar or What We Can Do With 125,000 Research Assistants! by Dr. Pamela Gay & |
It started with SETI Desktop and we bet you have at one running on your computer. StarDust searchs for comet particles. Mersenne Prime looks for new prime numbers. GalaxyZoo is classifying - galaxies. Citizen science is everywhere and on hundreds of thousands of personal and business computers. If you're not a citizen scientist, shouldn't you be? | |
| 10:00pm 1st ANNUAL MAD SCIENTIST'S BALL entertainment by ARCATTACK |
Singing Tesla Coils. Lab Coats. Evil Geniuses. Mad Scientists. Loads of Minions. Lots of fun. Lots of dancing. Very Little Sleep. And Goodies! Wannabes Welcome! | |
| 12:00am to 3:00am LIVE ASTRONOMY!! by Dr. William C. Keel |
Late night on the Space track means astronomy. Live Astronomy. You choose what to look at. Join Dr. Keel in 'TeleAstronomy' - you're in GA and the telescope is in AZ. | |
| Monday 09-01-2008 | Return to top | ||
| 10:00am Messenger and New Horizons: From Boiling Hell to Plutoids by Hugh S. Gregory |
They haven't even reached their destinations yet but the science they're sending back is rewriting the astronomy books. From our inner most planet, Mercury to the far reaches of Pluto and beyond. These probes are traveling! | |
| 11:30am StarDust, Genesis, Deep Impact: Updates on the Science From the Solar System Probes by Ginny Mauldin-Kinney |
Genesis crashed in Nevada but what about the science coming from that mission? StarDust and Deep Impact were huge successes, where's the science from those missions? Why don't we hear about the discoveries from these missions? Come here and you will learn. | |
| 1:00pm Enabling Access to Space: Good and Bad Ideas by Dr. John E. Bradford |
A review and critique of various options proposed for getting into space. From the space elevator to the ASPENNTR/scramject. Is your idea good or bad? Come find out! | |
| 2:30pm What's JPL Up To? by Trina Ray |
Among our robotic spacecraft arrayed across the solar system, we have rovers on Mars, orbiters around Saturn, telescopes in space, a contingent of Earth orbiting satellites, and much more. Come hear the latest and greatest from JPL. | |
| 4:00pm Interstellar Travel by Richard L. Altstatt, |
We loved Star Trek/Star Wars because we could imagine the endless possibilities if only we could travel between the stars. Does known physics allow for the possibility of interstellar travel? What about 'speculative physics'? Come listen and find out! | |
Science Track 2008 Schedule
Space Track 2007 Schedule
Science Track 2007 Schedule
Space & Science 2006 Schedule
Space & Science 2005 Schedule
Space & Science 2004 Schedule
Space & Science 2003 Schedule