Re: Announcing TruSat.org

From: Scott Tilley via Seesat-l <seesat-l_at_satobs.org>
Date: Sat, 26 Oct 2019 21:21:20 -0700
Hello Brian et. al.

Thanks for the clarification about your interests and offer to voice 
your support for opt-in on this issue.  I've noted that trusat.org has 
sent an update about a policy change with respect to this matter.

I ask a rhetorical question of what the Seesat-l community is not 
presently doing to:

1) Improve access to SSA data,

2) Increase the transparency in the use of space activities,

3) Provide incentive for the responsible behaviour of satellite operators?

Pardon me if I speak for the great work done by many of the community 
members here, but we are doing all of the with no incentive other than 
the pleasure of doing it and a drive to see it happen for the particular 
amateur's own personal goals.

If we are failing in any of these areas please let us know so members of 
our group can become aware of valuable areas of research that may become 
inspiration for study.

Please help me understand how a corporate entity with a limited temporal 
(financial focus and operational focus) can be expected to create, 
maintain and FUND something like this for the needed decades and beyond 
from the amateur community?  Open source? And hope we see value in it 
after the fact and just the right people choose to keep working and 
supporting the code for...?

I see a better use of their resources by helping increase awareness 
about satellite tracking and the value of SSA to the younger generation 
by funding lectures by amateurs on their work and if they really must 
build an IT infrastructure to support our hobby then base it on OUR 
needs.  I'm not saying block chain technologies have no value here, but 
our real needs don't exist there.  We could still co-operate if both 
parties understand the value to each and there is fair exchange of 
value.  Thus far our use of the scientific method to vet observations 
and make judgments has served the amateur community well since 1957.  So 
what fundamental shift is going to occur for us to need block chain 
technologies?

Here's a list of some things that could really benefit SSA:

1) Funding amateurs to speak at high schools and other educational 
institutions with satellite building and launching programs about 
satellite tracking to inspire and plant the seed in the next generation 
(RECRUITMENT),

2) Funding amateurs to speak at commercial trade shows about our efforts 
to monitor the use of space (EDUCATION),

3) Arms length donations to amateur SSA research activities that have 
defined goals and objectives (OPERATIONS).

4) Funding and supporting our limited and existing IT infrastructure and 
asking us what we really need (IT MANAGEMENT).

5) Providing us resources to obtain and enforce a user license for 
amateur SSA data so that our data can be used for science and other 
purposes with a clearly defined license (LEGAL).

One of the 'super-powers' of amateur observers is that once someone 
chooses to do this with their time, they tend to do it for a long time 
and remain focused on it and contribute things that inspire the next 
generation of observers and the cycle continues. This process doesn't 
have much if anything to do with the business cycle.  On the other hand 
corporate efforts will by there very nature of limited scope and focus 
as they are businesses with accountability to many things and their 
focus is ultimately dependent on profit no matter any other motive.  So 
my suggestion for any business wishing to support us for their own aims 
is to consider how they can define a plan to come into our world and 
provide a fair exchange of value and leave gracefully once the 
objectives of both parties are met. Address these points in a clear and 
succinct manner, develop consensus and deliver and I see a recipe for 
success.

Anything else will simply be 'In Praise of Folly'.

Respectfully,

Scott Tilley


On 2019-10-25 5:35 a.m., Brian Weeden wrote:
> We are interested in TruSat because it could help with several of our 
> organizational goals: improving access to SSA data, increasing 
> transparency of  space activities, and incenting responsible behavior 
> by satellite operators.
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Received on Sat Oct 26 2019 - 23:22:13 UTC

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