From Satellites to Space Tourism Project - IET Kelvin Lecture 2008

Speaker: Robert Lainé, Chief Technical Officer, EADS SPACE Flying in air then going into space to explore what is unreachable to most humans has been a long lasting dream of humanity. The dream of flying is already available to everybody. Space exploration started just 50 years ago with Gagarin, followed by the moon exploration and then regular orbital flight of astronauts to MIR and the International Space Station. However the dream of going in orbit is not really accessible today to non professional astronauts. Following Space Ship1%u2019s flight to 100 km altitude, market analysis has revealed that a significant part of the wealthy population is interested in the sub-orbital flight to experience a few minutes of weightlessness and the view of earth from space. This presentation gives an overview of the logical link between Astrium%u2019s space activities and Space Tourism and presents the corresponding craft.

Robert Lainé has recently been appointed EADS SPACE's new CTO (Chief Technical Officer). The CTO, reporting directly to CEO Francois Auque, is at the heart of organisation developments. As CTO, Mr Lainé will develop synergies between the Satellites and Space Transportation branches as well as R&D strategy at EADS SPACE level. He has therefore an essential role in preparing the company for the future. Mr Lainé, of French nationality, has been in the space business since 1970. He has held a variety of senior positions in technical and programme management within industry and at the European Space Agency (ESA), where he led scientific exploration programmes such as the Giotto comet probe and the XMM-Newton space telescope, and spaceflight projects, notably the ATV (automated transfer vehicle) programme for the European cargo vessel that will serve the ISS. Recently, as head of ESA's Launcher Division, he has been a key player in the Ariane 5 return-to-flight programme. Robert Laine holds a degree in engineering from the Ecole Nationale Superieur d'Electricité Appliquie, Paris.