Main Engine Cut Off

Founder and CEO of Auriga Space, Winnie Lai, joins me to talk about their electromagnetic launch infrastructure and the path she sees for Auriga across space and defense markets. And yes, we talk about whether this kind of alternative launch architecture is a good fit for Earth, or a better fit for pretty much every other rock in the solar system.

This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 32 executive producers—Steve, Ryan, Matt from Built, Russell, Joel, David, Kris, Joakim, Fred, Pat, Matt, Theo and Violet, Natasha Tsakos, Donald, Warren, Miles O’Brien, Will and Lars from Agile, Frank, Jan, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Josh from Impulse, Stealth Julian, Lee, Joonas, The Astrogators at SEE, and four anonymous—and hundreds of supporters.

Topics

Auriga - Electromagnetic Launch for Space and Defense

Auriga Space raises $6M to shoot rockets off an electromagnetic launch track | TechCrunch

The Show

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Artwork photo by SpaceX

Work with me and my design and development agency: Pine Works

I often talk about SpaceX being an extreme outlier in the industry and how many organizations have tried to replicate their approach, but very few (if any) have been successful. Matt Gjertsen of Built  joins me to share a take on what exactly it is internally that drives their results, how to apply it in other organizations, and to share some perspective on his time at SpaceX leading Training and Development, and from elsewhere in the industry.

This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 32 executive producers—Steve, Ryan, Matt from Built, Russell, Joel, David, Kris, Joakim, Fred, Pat, Matt, Theo and Violet, Natasha Tsakos, Donald, Warren, Miles O’Brien, Will and Lars from Agile, Frank, Jan, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Josh from Impulse, Stealth Julian, Lee, Joonas, The Astrogators at SEE, and four anonymous—and hundreds of supporters.

Topics

Built Leaders

Minimum Viable Manager – Built Leaders

Why Steve Jobs drowned the first iPod prototype | Cult of Mac

The Show

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Artwork photo by SpaceX

Work with me and my design and development agency: Pine Works

Blue Origin’s New Glenn blew up on LC-36 last night during a static fire test, Starship flew its 12th flight, and NASA had a series of updates on its Moon Base program, including LTV awards, launch and landing contracts, and a somewhat unexplained branding exercise.

This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 32 executive producers—Lee, Steve, Josh from Impulse, Kris, David, Miles O’Brien, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Jan, Donald, Frank, Better Every Day Studios, Stealth Julian, The Astrogators at SEE, Ryan, Matt, Warren, Will and Lars from Agile, Pat, Fred, Joonas, Theo and Violet, Russell, Joel, Natasha Tsakos, Joakim, and four anonymous—and hundreds of supporters.

Topics

Here's why the failure of Blue Origin's New Glenn rocket is so catastrophic - Ars Technica

NASA takes steps toward building Moon Base, including discussing a "perimeter" - Ars Technica

NASA selects four companies for initial moon base awards - SpaceNews

The Show

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Artwork photo by NASA/Bill Ingalls

Work with me and my design and development agency: Pine Works

Former NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine has joined Quantum Space as CEO. We talk about what the company is working on, the Ranger spacecraft, how they fit into the industry, where he sees their market going, and what it’s like to be a former NASA Administrator running a company in the industry.

This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 32 executive producers—Fred, Frank, Better Every Day Studios, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), David, Steve, Kris, Stealth Julian, Will and Lars from Agile, The Astrogators at SEE, Pat, Warren, Josh from Impulse, Miles O’Brien, Russell, Matt, Natasha Tsakos, Joakim, Lee, Theo and Violet, Joonas, Joel, Jan, Donald, Ryan, and four anonymous—and hundreds of supporters.

Topics

Quantum Space hires Bridenstine as CEO - SpaceNews

Quantum Space to build spacecraft in Tulsa - SpaceNews

Quantum Space acquires Phase Four propulsion assets - SpaceNews

Quantum Space raises $40 million - SpaceNews

The Show

Like the show? Support the show on Patreon or Substack!

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Artwork photo by NASA/Bill Ingalls

Work with me and my design and development agency: Pine Works

Neel Kunjur, Co-Founder and CTO of K2 Space, joins me to talk about their hardware in space today, how their vision and plans have evolved over the past few years, and how industry changes like the push for orbital data centers have impacted their future.

This episode of Main Engine Cut Off is brought to you by 32 executive producers—Lee, Steve, Josh from Impulse, Kris, David, Miles O’Brien, Tim Dodd (the Everyday Astronaut!), Jan, Donald, Frank, Better Every Day Studios, Stealth Julian, The Astrogators at SEE, Ryan, Matt, Warren, Will and Lars from Agile, Pat, Fred, Joonas, Theo and Violet, Russell, Joel, Natasha Tsakos, Joakim, and four anonymous—and hundreds of supporters.

Topics

High-Power Satellite Platforms | K2 Space | Build Bigger

T+270: K2 Space (with Neel Kunjur, Co-Founder and CTO) - Main Engine Cut Off

Investors commit quarter-billion dollars to startup designing “Giga” satellites - Ars Technica

Episode 241 - Maybe the Denver Airport (with Andrew Rush) - Off-Nominal

Anduril teams with commercial space firms, Sandia lab on Golden Dome interceptor program - SpaceNews

Space Force taps K2 satellites to test laser communications for missile-defense - SpaceNews

The Show

Like the show? Support the show on Patreon or Substack!

Email your thoughts, comments, and questions to anthony@mainenginecutoff.com

Follow @WeHaveMECO

Follow @meco@spacey.space on Mastodon

Listen to MECO Headlines

Listen to Off-Nominal

Join the Off-Nominal Discord

Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Pocket Casts, Spotify, Google Play, Stitcher, TuneIn or elsewhere

Subscribe to the Main Engine Cut Off Newsletter

Artwork photo by NASA/Bill Ingalls

Work with me and my design and development agency: Pine Works