International Space
Development Conference
(ISDC'96)
Grand Hyatt New York, 42nd St. and Park Ave.
New York City
Thurs., May 23 - Mon., May 27, 1996
Memorial Day Weekend
The 15th annual convention of the National Space Society features a multi-track program of
astronauts, visionaries, entrepreneurs, activists, and educators. ISDC'96 will take place
in a discounted, luxury hotel in the heart of New York City, within walking distance
of such world-famous sights as the Empire State Building and United Nations,
as well as to a huge range of excellent dining and shopping opportunities.
Hosted by the Space Frontier Society of New York City
Great Conference, Great City, Great Price
If spaceflight fascinates you, and you've ever wanted to visit New York City in style, we've got a great conference for you!
Come to ISDC'96 in the heart of midtown Manhattan over Memorial Day Weekend 1996. You can experience everything the Big Apple has to offer at a bargain price, and at the same time find out about the state of the art in space exploration and technology.
What Is the ISDC?
The International Space Development Conference is five days of spaceflight panels, workshops, exhibits, and more--all open to the public. At this multi-track space conference, you'll rub elbows with hundreds of astronauts, visionaries, entrepreneurs, activists, and educators. ISDC is sponsored by the National Space Society (NSS), a 25,000-member grassroots association dedicated to the creation of a spacefaring civilization.
1996 ISDC in New York City
ISDC'96, hosted by the Space Frontier Society of New York City (SFS/NYC), the New York City chapter of NSS, starts Thursday, May 23, and runs through Monday, May 27 (Memorial Day Weekend), at the Grand Hyatt New York in midtown Manhattan. The program for ISDC'96 will consist of four program tracks on spaceflight technology and issues.
Program Highlights
The Four Conference Tracks of ISDC'96
Please note that the following program is subject to change.
Rugged Individualism Track (Entrepreneurship and Volunteerism, May 23-27)
A look at how entrepreneurs and volunteers are paving their own way into space--and how you can participate. Find out about the latest in space entrepreneurship, orbital tourism, and volunteer-run space and satellite programs.
- Space Business Case Studies (Thurs. 5/23)
- Space Tourism (Sat. 5/25)
- Amateur Satellite & Rocket Projects (Sat.-Sun. 5/25-26)
- Private Space Missions (Fri. 5/24)
Large-Scale Programs Track (Government and Big Business in Space, May 23-27)
Government programs, large-scale private space ventures. Session topics will include planetary exploration, the International Space Station, solar power satellites, and space settlement.
- Space Shuttle / Space Station (Thur.-Fri. 5/23-24)
- New Launch Vehicles (Sat. 5/25)
- Planetary Exploration (Sat.-Mon. 5/25-27)
- Solar Power Satellites (Sun. 5/26)
Technology Frontiers Track (Technology and More, May 23-27)
The nuts and bolts of spaceflight. We will include sessions on telerobotics, propulsion, exploration architectures, and space on the Internet.
- Space Life Sciences Symposium (Fri. 5/24)
- In-Situ Materials (Fri. 5/24)
- Biospheres and Space Habitation (Sat. 5/25)
- Asteroids: Peril or Promise? (Sun. 5/26)
(Special session by the Philadelphia Area Space Alliance)
Education Track (Space for Educators, Parents, and Students, May 25-27)
Resources, trends, and workshops for educators, parents, and space enthusiasts interested in learning how to integrate space into the current curriculum. Learn how to prepare today's youth for the scientific and technological challenges of the 21st century and beyond.
Additional ISDC'96 Activities
Special Events and Co-Located Activities
A number of separate space-related events are being held in conjunction with ISDC 96--most included with your ISDC registration fee. See below for details.
"New Roads to the Stars" Interstellar Flight Symposium
- Symposium on Starflight Technology, May 23-24
1996 New York Space Expo
- Astronaut / Scientist / Visionary Speakers Program
- Space Collectibles / Stamp / Merchandise Show
- US Postal Service Station / ISDC'96 Postal Cover
- "Art of the Distant Earth" Space Art Exhibit
- One-Day Professional Space Courses (extra fee)
- Special NYC, Buehler Challenger Center tours (extra fee)
Analog Magazine Science Fiction Panel
- Analog Magazine will host a panel of science fiction authors on their view of the future of spaceflight. Moderated by Analog editor Stanley Schmidt, the panel is scheduled for the morning of Monday, May 27.
Students for the Exploration & Development of Space (SEDS)
- Students for the Exploration and Development of Space (SEDS), an organization of spaceminded college and university students, will host their annual conference on Friday, May 24, at ISDC'96. The program will include discussion on the SEDSAT tethered satellite project, SEDS amateur rocketry program, and other activities. For more information on this separate-admission activity, contact:
Mark Ciotola
285 Buckingham Way #103
San Francisco, CA 93132
(415) 564-4114
Professional-Level One-Day Short Courses (extra fee)
Four exciting, relevant courses on the leading edge of space! In conjunction with the National Space Society's 1996 International Space Development Conference and the 1996 New York Space Expo in New York City, these deeply discounted, one-day courses are being made available for a fee in addition to the ISDC'96 / New York Space Expo registration price. You need not register for either event to attend these courses.
Each course is taught on a professional but accessible level, intended for the space-initiated public. All courses will be held at the Grand Hyatt New York, 42nd Street at Park Avenue, Manhattan, concurrently with ISDC'96 and the 1996 New York Space Expo. Follow these links for detailed course descriptions, instructor backgrounds, and costs and the registration form. (Registration deadline: May 1, 1996; late registrations subject to availability.)
Sponsored by:
Space Expos of America Inc.
Launchspace Inc.
International Space University
- Primer on Launch Vehicle Technologies & Systems (Thurs. 5/23)
Dr. Marshall Kaplan, Launchspace Inc.
Overview of / trends in expendable, reusable launchers.
- An Introduction to Remote Sensing (Thurs. 5/23)
Dr. Scott Madry, International Space University
Basics of Earth imaging, including applications, software.
- LEO Constellation Design & Spacecraft Design Impacts (CANCELLED)
Mr. Robert Cenker, PE, Launchspace Inc.
Introduction to spacecraft system technologies, trends.
- Chaos, Orbital Dynamics and Fuzzy Boundaries (Fri. 5/24)
Dr. Edward Belbruno, The Geometry Center, U of Minn.
New low-energy planetary missions through chaos theory.
Tours of NYC and Beyond
New York City is a great vacation spot, with the Grand Hyatt New York right in the middle of it all. Organized sightseeing, shopping and dining trips will be available, as will child day care. Scheduled extra-fee tours include:
- Wall Street / NYC Technology Tour (Fri. 5/24)
- Statue of Liberty / Ellis Island (Sat. 5/25)
- "Jackie O" Walk / Metropolitan Museum of Art (Sat. 5/25)
- Self-Guided Double-Decker Bus Tours of NYC (All Days)
- Discount Broadway Show (Sat. Eve 5/25)
- Buehler Challenger Center (Fri. Eve 5/24)
(Includes tour, "Return to the Moon" simulated mission.)
(As of May 1)
Scheduled Speakers (Partial List as of May 22)
- Buzz Aldrin (Invited) (Apollo 11 Astronaut)
Space Tourism Session
- Charles Walker (Three-Time Shuttle Astronaut)
- Norman E. Thagard (Shuttle/Mir Astronaut)
- Steven A. Bachmeyer
- Keith Baker (Radio Amateur Satellite Corp. (AMSAT))
- Ed Belbruno (The Geometry Center, U of Minn)
- Greg Bennett (The Artemis Project)
- Alan Binder (Lunar Prospector - Lockheed Martin)
- Sheryl L. Bishop (University of Texas Medical Branch)
- Terry Bisson (Award-Winning SF Author)
- Alex Bonnici
- Brice Cassenti (United Technologies)
- Robert Cenker (Former Payload Specialist)
- Suman Chakrabarti (Pennsylvania State University)
- James Chestek
- Mark Ciotola (SEDS)
- Yvonne A. Clearwater (NASA, Ames Research Center)
- Ted Colton
- Donald Cox
- Peter Diamandis (The "X" Prize Foundation)
- Joan Emerson
- Robert Farquhur (NEAR)
- Martyn Fogg (British Interplanetary Society)
- Lou Friedman (The Planetary Society)
- William Gaubatz (X-33 McDonald Douglas)
- Tom Gehrels (Spacewatch)
- Ellen Goldstein
- Jerry Grey (American Inst of Aero & Astro)
- Martin Hoffert (New York University)
- Mark Hopkins
- Marshall Kaplan (Launchspace, Inc.)
- Alan Ladwig (NASA Headquarters)
- Geoffrey A. Landis (Ohio Aerospace Institute)
- Arthur Larson (Interstellar Flight Author)
- Chuck Lauer (Space Business Parks, Panels)
- Sue Lorraine Lavorata
- Robert A. Lewis (Penn State University)
- Barney Linden
- Claudio Maccone (Alenia Spazio)
- Eugene Mallove (Interstellar Flight Author)
- Gregory Matloff (NY Univ., City Univ. of NY)
- T. K. Mattingly (X-33 Lockheed)
- Marc Millis (NASA, Lewis Research Center)
- Kira Nelkin
- Raymond J. Noonan (New York University)
- Richard S. Nowakowski (UMDNJ-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School)
- Noel M. Nunes
- Charles Pellegrino (Author, LEM Historian)
- Rudy Pohl
- Seth Potter (New York University)
- James Powell (Brookhaven National Laboratory)
- Wayne Robinson
- Salvatore Santoli (British Interplanetary Society)
- Marshall Savage (First Millennial Foundation)
- Stanley Schmidt (Analog Magazine)
- Paul Shuch (The SETI League)
- Michael Simon (International Space Entreprises)
- Robert Staehle (Jet Propulsion Laboratory - Pluto Express)
- Paul Stengel
- Darlina Swartz
- Richard J. Tormey, Jr.
- Francesco Tubiello (Biosphere 2 / GISS)
- Rick Tumlinson (SFF - Alphatown)
- Jeffrey van Cleve (Cornell University)
- Joan Vernikos (NASA Headquarters)
- Robin Vernuccio
- Peter Wilhelm (Clementine - Naval Research Lab)
- Alan Willoughby
- Robert Zubrin (Mars Direct)
Sponsors
Principal Co-Sponsors
Coming from Chicago and points west? Check out Amtrak's Suborbital Shuttle
and the Conference on the Way to the Conference!
Links to Space-Related Web Sites
For more information about ISDC'96 as it becomes available,
add this site to your bookmarks and stop back here often,
or contact:
Greg Zsidisin, ISDC'96 Chair
(212) SAM-8000 (voicemail)
or e-mail for:
Speaker/program inquiries:
Greg Zsidisin, ISDC'96 Chair, SFS/NYC President
Registration inquiries:
Linda DeLaurentis, SFS/NYC Secretary, Past President
General inquiries on the Space Frontier Society of NYC
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