For those who don’t know, VASMIR is an acronym that stands for VAriable Specific Impulse Rocket.  For those still a bit confused, it’s a plasma rocket.  The design of this rocket started with research in the 1960’s and 1970’s.  The research was focused on creating and sustaining a “sun-like plasma substance here on earth”.  To create this sun-like substance, material has to be heated to sun-like temperatures, which is in the neighborhood of 5,800 Kelvin (or 9,980 degrees Fahrenheit).  Of course, there’s not a container on earth that can hold this substance, so work was done on constructing massive electromagnetic fields to hold it.

Fast-forward a few years, a Ph.D. and the start of an astronaut career, and you have one Dr. Franklin Chang-Diaz, taking this idea of massive electromagnetic fields and transforming it into the next-gen space propulsion system.  The unique thing about VASMIR is it’s simplicity in concept (of course, the physics and mathematics behind it are a bit more complicated). Essentially, Dr. Chang-Diaz is taking some inert gas, using strong magnetic fields to transform this gas into a plasma by stripping away electrons and allowing nature to follow its course.  This course includes some electrons and ions swirling at various angles, gaining momentum, and finally transferring that circular motion into axial (or longitudinal) motion.  At this point, Sir Isaac Newton takes over with basic laws of motion (”equal and opposite reactions and such), and the bigger, heavier ions produce small amounts of moment on the engine, thus propelling it forward.

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There’s an article on NasaWatch.com that I found rather interesting.  Basically, it’s a response to the attention the Gen Y presentation has been gaining over the past few weeks.  More interesting to me, however, is the responses given to this article from Gen X’ers and older.  In particular, there’s the notion that instead of finding something broken or missing and fixing or inventing it, we’re complaining about not being in NASA leadership, programs, and the like.  While it would be undeniably cool to hold any leadership position at NASA at the tender age of 27, all of us are, among other things, realists.  We do understand and comprehend the concept of corporate ladders and hierarchies.  We understand that Gen X,  the Boomers, and those before them have already paid their dues to be in the positions they currently hold, and that we must do the same before we get to the same positions.  As I stated in my last post, the Gen Y presentation points to a larger issue.  It’s bigger than leadership positions, inclusions into decision making, and such.  It’s about NASA as a whole lacking in the communications department.

One thing I believe everyone here should realize is that NASA has been, since it’s conception, a government organization.  Thus, it adheres to certain government models (structure, executions of plans and procedures, and communications).  On the whole, our government tends to hold information very close to the vest until that information has been combed, scrutinized, structured, and approved for release.  NASA, being first and foremost a government entity, also follows this model.  What we (Gen Y) are asking for is that NASA modify it’s external communications model by becoming more transparent to the public.  After all, being a government organization means we are a public organization.  We are funded only by the taxes the American people agree to pay; thus, we are responsible, first and foremost, to the public we serve.  How does NASA serve the public?  Well, everyone today is in love with GPS enabled cellphones, navigation systems in vehicles, satellite TV, advances in the medical field, environmental research, the list goes on and on.  However, if you were to go to your neighbor and inquire about what they know about NASA, I would guess that the list would be rather short.  Can this be rectified?  Absolutely.  How do we go about doing this?  That requires change, and changing an organization requires individuals to do something that most people are very uncomfortable with, and that’s change themselves.

I’ve spent some time thinking about the Gen-Y presentation, the reactions to it, and what it means to NASA.  Around NASA and around the ‘net, many people are saying that the Gen-Y presentation is, for lack of a better term, selfish.  After all, we the people of Gen-Y, are asking, and almost demanding, that a government organization do better to connect with us.  And while on the surface, this may seem to be a very selfish thing to demand, I think it points to a much larger issue.

In the most simple of terms, the Gen-Y presentation is saying that NASA is failing to communicate with the people of Gen-Y.  Is this a true statement?  I believe it is.  Is it selfish for us to say that we want NASA to make a better effort to communicate with us?  Well, it can seem that way, but you have to realize one thing:  communication is a two way street.  It takes both parties being willing to sit down at the table and lay the issues out.  In my view, this presentation is about the Gen-Y people employed by NASA standing up and saying “we’re at the table”.   Now NASA has to be willing to meet us halfway.  However, as I stated before, I believe the Gen-Y presentation points to a larger issue: NASA is failing to communicate, period.

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