Avenging the dinosaurs - prospecting, mining, and moving asteroids

65 million years ago, the dinosaurs were wiped out by a rogue asteroid. Today, humanity is closer than ever to commercial mining of asteroids and other worlds. This represents a golden opportunity to build new industries and grow human civilisation beyond Earth - and also a chance to stop the next dinosaur killer.

The threat of an asteroid hitting Earth and endangering life as we know it is still there. Some of you might remember the Chelyabinsk meteor in 2013. A rock the size of a house exploded over the Russian city with the force of over 26 Hiroshimas, injuring over a thousand people and damaging over 7000 properties.

How can we prevent something like Chelyabinsk, or even worse, another dinosaur killer, from happening again?

Moderated by

WILLIAM CROWE
Cofounder and CEO - HEO Robotics

William Crowe is CEO and cofounder of High Earth Orbit Robotics, a Sydney based startup tackling the problems of space debris and planetary defence. He originated HEO during a PhD in aerospace engineering. His PhD was in the astrodynamics domain, where he investigated the dynamics of spacecraft swarms that explore asteroids. While at university, William won the 2015 Move an Asteroid Prize, sponsored by an executive from Blue Origin. William has a keen interest in the future of humanity and in off-Earth mining in particular, to help enable the next stage of space exploration.

In conversation with

NIKOLA SCHMIDT
Researcher and Lecturer, Department of Political Science, Charles University, Prague

Dr. Nikola Schmidt is currently a leader of Planetary Defense project with an objective to deliver a policy strategy on planetary defense and asteroid mining for the Czech Ministry of Transport. The project consists of astronomers, space engineers, international lawyers and political scientists. He finished his PhD in 2016 at Charles University, Faculty of Social Sciences and Institute of Political Studies with a dissertation on The Birth of Cyber as a National Security Agenda. During his PhD, Nikola has been extensively teaching courses on space and cyber security at various Czech universities. He did his bachelor degree in sociology and studied also international security at Sciences Po in Paris. Nikola founded and led two software development companies before coming back to academia and worked on an NGO driven food facility project in Afghanistan.

PETR BOHACEK
Associate Researcher, Institute of International Relations, Prague

Petr Boháček is a security and foreign policy analyst with the focus Europe, Transatlantic relations and US politics. Petr received a BA in Political Science and International Relations at St. Norbert College, Wisconsin, and an MA in Security Studies from Charles University, Prague. Working as an analyst for various private intelligence companies Petr examined political, economic and security risks before founding the European Security Journal, a multi-lingual analytical publication on security. Currently, Petr focuses on space policy and global governance and is involved in a research grant on Planetary Defense led by Nikola Schmidt that has the ambition to shape the global political perceptions on planetary defense.

THE VENUE

We're being kindly hosted by Griffith Hack - awesome IP lawyers! Be sure to take some time to thank someone who works there.

AGENDA

6:00pm - Arrive and get registered
6:30pm - Summary of NewSpace industry and asteroid mining
6:35pm - Panel Q&A
7:20pm - Audience Q&A
7:45pm - Wrap up formal proceedings
8:30pm - Everyone out!