Pacific Space Access And Hawai`i: Equatorial Sea Launch, Japan Space Elevator, China Hainan Spaceport

Space access from the Pacific Rim has the potential to increase international cooperation in space exploration and commerce by uniting the East and West, and promoting an excellent area for space launches – the Pacific Equatorial region. Several sites in the region are already being utilized or explored, including the Sea Launch ocean platform, SpaceX facilities in the Marshall Islands, and Japan's interest in Kiribati (Christmas) Island. Other Pacific Rim space opportunities include Hainan Island in China; potential launch facilities in Japan, Russia, Indonesia and Australia; and future technologies such as the space elevator concept. Hawaii would be an ideal location to base such activities, as the Island of Hawaii is home to one of the world's preeminent astronomy sites – Mauna Kea, and the State of Hawaii is already one of the premiere tourism destinations on the planet. Hawaii also has its own rich cultural history, and is seen as a multicultural melting pot of the world. Possibilities for increased space activity in Hawaii include suborbital tourism flights, student rocket launches at Barking Sands on Kauai, a growing high-technology sector on Oahu, potential ocean-based launches, NASA Explorer Schools on Hawaii and Kauai, and a recent agreement between the State of Hawaii and NASA Ames Research Center in CA. Most importantly, Hawaii has a tradition of Aloha, which can be described in essence as peace, compassion, cooperation and unity. Any endeavor to a new world should be driven not only by a desire to explore the new, but also by a sense of Aloha, to ensure the journey is undertaken for the benefit of all humanity. (Credit: Sea Launch, SpaceX)

The '2008 Japan-US Science, Technology & Space Applications Program (JUSTSAP) / Pacific International Space Center For Exploration Systems (PISCES) Symposium' takes place Nov 9-13 on Hawai`i Island. Hawaii, also known as the Big Island, is the largest of the Hawaiian Islands and home to Mauna Kea – the tallest mountain in the world from the sea floor. The symposium is themed, 'Multinational Horizons for Space Exploration,' and will feature discussions on international and commercial opportunities in space exploration, lunar robotics and ISRU, space-based energy systems, and precursor robotic missions to the Moon and Mars. PISCES, which was formed in 2007 under JUSTSAP and the Hawaii State Department of Business, Economic Development & Tourism (DBEDT), is focused on developing a simulated lunar outpost on the Moon-like slopes on Mauna Kea. In cooperation with NASA, the Canadian Space Agency (CSA), NORCAT and Carnegie Mellon University (CMU), PISCES will present a demonstration of its ongoing field tests on Mauna Kea for a prototype rover (pictured) that can search and drill for potential lunar resources such as water / ice. The rover, dubbed 'Scarab,' was developed for NASA by the Robotics Institute at CMU, while CSA and NORCAT contributed to the onboard robotic drill system. This is the second year JUSTSAP and PISCES are holding a joint conference. JUSTSAP has held its annual meeting since 1991. (Credit: PISCES/JUSTSAP, CMU)