Those interested in the ins and outs of space policy and broader issues of the commercial and not-so-commercial space industry should take a look at Space Policy Digest (http://spacepolicy.org), a monthy space magazine published online.

Space Capitalists, a new group being formed by some of the members of the Houston Space Society, is planning a party at the International Space Development Conference being held here in Houston. The party will take place in our corner suite at the Radisson Hotel near Hobby Airport on Sunday 30 May 1999, starting at 9 p.m. and going as late as we please. Ask the hotel operator (from any house phone) to connect you with Jim Davidson's room, and someone will tell you the room number. Or look for the Space Pork Dollar posters.

SATMS? ISFO? STC? No idea what they mean? Are you behind the times - or what?

If attending the ROTON ATV rollout at Rotary Rocket Company’s facility wasn’t cool enough, the party afterward was the ultimate schmooze fest. Old friends and fellow space activists conversed with business and government leaders. It was like a joint National Space Society, Space Access Society, and Space Frontier Foundation conference.

The March issue of Scientific American highlights the new age of

Knowing as we do that passenger space travel, and particularly space tourism, is going to become the largest, economically most important activity in space, we are pleased to recognise that 1998 has been an exceptionally good year, with a number of key successes.

Mark your calendars folks.

As Space Future turns one year old today, the two goals of space tourism and space power which are key to paying for human expansion into space, are looking better than ever before. Both topics are substantially more widely accepted today than even one year ago, though there's still a long way to go.

Under the dramatic headline "Allegre Blasts Station, ESA Management" Space News (June 22-28) reported on some blunt comments by the French Space Minister, Claude Allegre. While complaining about a long list of things (including ESA, the European Commission, Britain, etc) he explained why the French government would not support crewed space activities:

Space 98, the biennial space conference of the American Society of Civil Engineers' Aerospace Division, is one of the few "mainstream" space conferences that is actively adapting to the "new paradigm" that space activities are becoming increasingly commercial, and their funding will come increasingly from the private sector with the objective of earning profits.